Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Persistence of Botrytis cinerea in its vector Drosophila melanogaster.

Conidia of Botrytis cinerea, a pathogen of grape that causes bunch rot, were carried externally on the cuticle of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster and also might be carried internally through the digestive tract. Conidia germinated in the insect crop and developed into mycelium. Under some conditions, development of microsclerotia, which are fungal survival structures the flies can carry their entire life, may occur. Drosophila must be considered a plurimodal vector of B. cinerea, supporting nonpersistent, semipersistent, and possibly persistent transmission of B. cinerea. Les conidies de B. cinerea sont vehiculees sur la cuticule de D. melanogaster et peuvent aussi transiter par le tube digestif. Les conidies peuvent germer dans le jabot de l'insecte et donner un mycelium qui, dans certaines conditions, se differencie en microsclerotes, formes de resistance que l'insecte peut transporter jusqu'a la fin de sa vie. La drosophile peut donc etre consideree comme un vecteur plurimodal de B. cinerea, le transmettant par vection nonpersistante, semipersistante, et probablement par vection persistante.
Phosphorylation of Connexin-43, Gap Junctional Protein, in Cumulus Cells is Regulated by Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase and Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase during In Vitro Meiotic Resumption in Porcine Follicular Oocytes

: The changes of Cx-43 and MAP kinase in cumulus cells that were recovered from porcine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs) cultured with FSH and LH and/or PI 3-kinase inhibitor, LY294002, were analyzed by immunoblotting. Three migration forms of Cx-43 (43, 45, and 47 kDa) were detected in the cumulus cells of COCs immediately recovered from their follicles. At 12-hr of cultivation with hormones, oocyte nuclear stage was progressed from GV II stage to GV III stage. At this time point, the 43 kDa band almost completely disappeared, although two phosphorylation forms of Cx-43 (45 and 47 kDa) were still detected. However, in the cumulus cells of COCs cultured with LY294002, three prominent bands of Cx-43 were recognizable, as in the cells recovered immediately from the follicles. Although two intense bands of activated MAP kinase (ERK 1, 2) were also seen in the cumulus cells of COCs at 12-hr of cultivation with hormones, the intensity of the activated ERK 2 band was relatively faint in cumulus cells of COCs cultured with LY294002. At the same time point, LY294002 produced a significant decrease in the proportion of oocytes exhibiting GV III stage compared to those observed with hormones. It is concluded that the progression from GV II stage to GV III stage in porcine oocytes may be closely associated with phosphorylation of Cx-43 by vir-tue of MAP kinase, which was activated through the PI 3-kinase pathway in their cumulus cells.
Productivity and nutrient content of Juncus kraussii in an estuarine marsh in south-western Australia

Juncus kraussii, which is the dominant emergent macrophyte in the marshes of the Blackwood River Estuary, has an estimated net above-ground production there of 0.3 to 1.3 kg dry weight m-2 yr-1. A high standing crop of live culms is present throughout the year and dead material generally exceeds live. New culms are produced throughout the year, but especially during the warm season. Growth and senescence of culms also occurs throughout the year although there is evidence for increased growth in the warm season. Concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus are given on a per g dry weight and per m2 basis. Some 60% of the nitrogen and 50% of the phosphorus remain in the dead culm material, the remainder being retranslocated. Sodium and, especially, potassium are readily retranslocated during senescence, but calcium and magnesium are much less mobile.
Effects of antibiotic therapy on the gastrointestinal microbiota and the influence of Lactobacillus casei

Aims of methods Effects of intervention with Lactobacillus casei Shirota (LcS) on the incidence of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea (AAD), Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) and changes in faecal microbiota were analysed using C. difficile ELISA (678 patients), qPCR using 16S rRNA group-specific primers, C. difficile-toxin kit and polymerase chain reaction/denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (56 patients). Results Results As much as 18.5% of antibiotic treated group developed AAD, but only 5% of patients treated with antibiotics and LcS. Following antibiotic therapy, a decrease in the abundance of total Bacteria, Clostridium cluster IV and XI, Bifidobacterium spp. and butyryl-CoA CoA transferase genes was observed, whereas Enterobacteriaceae increased. LcS intervention reduced the antibiotic-associated decrease in the diversity of microbiota, increased the abundance of Lactobacillus spp. and reduced the antibiotic-induced decrease of Bifidobacterium spp. Conclusions Antibiotic treatment affects the diversity and the composition of the microbiota impairing butyrate production. Intervention with certain Lactobacillus strains may antagonise some of these changes, and more potent short-chain fatty acid-stimulating probiotics are desirable for intervention in AAD.
Butterflies of the genus Vanessa and of the resurrected genera Bassaris and Cynthia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae)

Field, William D. Butterflies of the Genus Vanessa and of the Resurrected Genera Bassaris and Cynthia (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae). Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology, number 84, 105 pages, 1971. —The genus Cynthia with nine species (including C. annabella, new species) and the genus Bassaris with two species are recognized as separate from the genus Vanessa, with five species remaining. All taxa are keyed and redefined with characters, including the male and female genitalia, tarsi, and wing habitus. Knowledge of the distribution and biology of most species is extensive and is given herein (for distribution) or cited (known food plants are listed and references to the literature of the biology are given). Unusual modified setae on the ovipositors are described for five Cynthia species. Official publication date is handstamped in a limited number of initial copies and is recorded in the Institution's annual report, Smithsonian Year. UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1971 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 Price $1.50 (paper cover) William D. Field Butterflies of the Genus Vanessa and of the Resurrected Genera Bassaris and Cynthia
Characterization of two 3-ketothiolases possessing differing substrate specificities in the polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesizing organism Alcaligenes eutrophus

Two constitutive acetyl-CoA acetyltransferases (3-ketothiolases A and B) were purified from Alcaligenes eutrophus. Enzyme A was active with only acetoacetyl-CoA and 3-ketopentanoyl-CoA, whereas enzyme B was active with all the 3-ketoacyl-CoAs (C4−C10) tested. Enzyme A appeared to be a tetramer (Mr 70 000) with identical subunits (Mr 44 000) and enzyme B had a similar Mr of 168 000 (containing Mr 46 000 subunits). Enzymes A and B had isoelectric points of 5.0 and 6.4, respectively. The stoichiometry of the reactions catalysed by each enzyme was confirmed. Km values of 44 μM and 394 μM for acetoacetyl-CoA, and 16 μM and 93 μM for CoA, were determined with enzymes A and B, respectively. Enzymes A and B gave Km values of 1.1 mM and 230 μM, respectively, for acetyl-CoA. The condensation reaction was potently inhibited by CoA in both cases.
Social Unit of the Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris in the Non-breeding Season

The breeding unit of the Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris is a territorial group consisting of seven unrelated members. Within the group, cooperative polygynandry is common; females copulate with several male members and the males help to feed the chicks of the several females with whom they have copulated. Do Alpine Accentors, like typical cooperative breeders, maintain the membership of the group throughout the year? The social unit in winter and the wintering ecology were studied at Ashio in 1989-95, Yoshino in 1990-93 and Misaka-Pass in 1992-95. At each site, one or two (total of four) individuals banded at a breeding site, Mt. Norikura, wintered. They exhibited wintering site fidelity within seasons and between years. They were recorded singly or in flocks with less than ten unhanded birds. The unhanded birds were not members of their breeding group, which means that the breeding group was broken' up in winter. We also found no evidence of extended bonds between parents and their offspring in winter flocks. Flocks were less cohesive and their membership often changed day by day. Linear dominance hierarchies were observed within a flock. Individual activities were concentrated in particular areas, but they frequently associated with other conspecifics without aggression. Wintering individuals spent, on average, 78.1% and 17.3% of their total activity foraging and perching, respectively. Information at other wintering sites also shows that Alpine Accentors live in less cohesive small flocks but can readily switch from solitary living to flocking. We conclude that the breeding group and the winter flock in Alpine Accentors are independent of each other because there was no evidence that individual associations (group composition and family bonds) were maintained between breeding and, wintering sites.
Interinsular variations in the spring and summer diet of the Raven Corvus corax in the Canary Islands

This paper presents the first data on the diet of the Raven Corvus corax in the Canary Islands, based on analysis of 2315 pellets collected from all of the islands and islets in the archipelago. The Ravens on three groups of island showed differences in diet, but in all cases the diet was clearly omnivorous, both in its qualitative and quantitative composition. It is evident that a broadening of the Raven's trophic niche has occurred in comparison with those living in continental areas. While the diet has a strong plant component on the wetter islands (frequency of occurrence > 87%), an appreciable animal component in the diet (principally vertebrates) is more frequent on the drier islands of the archipelago (frequency of occurrence > 96%). The composition of the plant component of the diet varied markedly from one island to another. Remains of refuse are more commonly found in the Raven's diet on the central and western islands. We concluded that while the animal diet is essential from the bioenergetic point of view, the vegetation diet is only a complementary food source. The Raven plays an important role in seed dispersal among the different habitats within each island.
Quantum Evolution and Punctuated Equilibria in Continuous Genetic Characters

A model of polygenic inheritance is used to study a character evolving in the neighborhood of two fitness peaks. The major conclusion reached is that if the variance of the character becomes sufficiently large, the population can make a rapid deterministic transition from an equilibrium near one fitness peak to a new equilibrium near a higher peak despite the presence of an intervening valley in the individual fitness function. The transition can be initiated by either a change in the environment (the individual fitness function) or a change in the internal (mutational or developmental) properties of the character that increase its variance in the population. During such an adaptive transition the mean of the character can change several phenotypic standard deviations in a few tens or hundreds of generations. The pattern of evolution generated by this process accords well with the "punctuated equilibria" description of the fossil record.
Fluctuation in the number of needle sets and needle shed in Pinus sylvestris

Number of needle sets and needle shed dynamics along the stem and branches of young Scots pines (Pinus sylvestris L.), growing on four dry upland sites and one moist upland site, were monitored annually for 10 years in five stands near the Arctic Circle in northern Finland. Standwise, number of needle sets varied in the summers of 1987–1997 between 3.9 and 6.2 needle sets along the branches and between 3.3 and 4.9 sets along the stem. The long‐term means for the branches were the same (5.4–5.5 sets) on all five sites. The pines on the dry sites had undergone an average needle loss of 2.3 needle sets in 1987. The long‐term mean annual needle shed was 1.0 needle sets. In the case of the 1987 needle loss, single pines on the dry site had lost 17–78% of their green needle sets, but they all recovered within two to three years to the normal needle‐retention level. In general, the number of needle sets in the summer correlated positively with the annual needle shed. Normally, a needle set remained attached as a.
Climate change and northern prairie wetlands: Simulations of long-term dynamics

A mathematical model (WETSIM 2.0) was used to simulate wetland hydrology and vegetation dynamics over a 32-yr period (196 1-1992) in a North Dakota prairie wetland. A hydrology component of the model calculated changes in water storage based on precipitation, evapotranspiration, snowpack, surface runoff, and subsurface inflow. A spatially explicit vegetation component in the model calculated changes in distribution of vegetative cover and open water, depending on water depth, seasonality, and existing type of vegetation. The model reproduced four known dry periods and one extremely wet period during the three decades. One simulated dry period in the early 1980s did not actually occur. Simulated water levels compared favorably with continuous observed water levels outside the calibration period (1990-1992). Changes in vegetative cover were realistic except for years when simulated water levels were significantly different than actual levels. These generally positive results support the use of the model for exploring the effects of possible climate changes on wetland resources.
Hatching from cysts and egg sacs of Heterodera cruciferae and effects of temperature on hatching and development on oilseed rape

SUMMARY Juveniles hatched readily from field cysts and very readily from eggs in egg sacs of Heterodera cruciferae, when exposed to oilseed rape root diffusate. They hatched very poorly, however, from white or brown females from which the above egg sacs had been removed. Some hatching occurred at 8 oC but much more occurred at12, 16, 20 and 24 oC, with most at 16 oC. Development of juveniles in roots of oilseed rape occurred throughout the range 8–24 oC, and proceeded faster the higher the temperature. The basal development temperature was taken as 5 oC and the number of day degrees above this temperature required to reach each stage of development was calculated. From invasion of roots to the hatching of F1 juveniles required an average of 680 day degrees, but only 210 day degrees were required for the first appearance of egg sacs on adult females. On this basis, two consecutive generations of H, cruciferae would be possible on autumn-sown oilseed rape in southern England, but the second would mature fully only after the crop was harvested. In Scotland, two consecutive generations could also occur but the second would be much less mature by harvest: only about 850 day degrees are available compared to almost 1100 in southern England. In practice, however, overlapping generations probably occur due to flushes of hatching of juveniles (i) at sowing, (ii) when soils warm up after winter and (iii) when the first generation completes its development. The proportion of eggs found in egg sacs was never more than 37% and some field cysts contained about 220 eggs; their egg sacs may, therefore, have contained as many as 150 eggs. Any study of population dynamics or damage assessment will require a quantification of the contribution of eggs in egg sacs to population density. Oilseed rape is direct drilled and may, therefore, be more sensitive to a given population density of the nematode than host crops which are transplanted.
Evidence for plant‐arthropod interactions in the fossil record

From a study of extant arthropods (particularly insects) and plants it is clear that there are many close interactions between the two groups, which must have co-evolved over a considerable period of time. Surprisingly, the fossil record of such interactions has hardly been studied and has therefore often been assumed to be non-existent. Interactions include feeding (e.g. leaf and spore/pollen feeding, leaf mining and wood boring), shelter (e.g. the formation of galls), transport, and reproduction (flower pollination). There is fossil evidence for all of these interactions from the time that arthropods and plants first colonized the land. The shortage of data results from lack of study rather than a real absence of interactions.
Assessing the effect of lucerne utilization systems in the Pannonian region of Austria

Conservation of water using mulches is a viable option under semiarid conditions for enhancing water use efficiency. Effect of mulches varies among years and with the amount and timing of mulching. Lucerne is a key crop for organic farming systems under semiarid conditions in Austria. Effect of mulching with lucerne has not been thoroughly investigated. Field experiments were conducted to assess the effect of lucerne utilization system (nonmulch versus mulch) on its shoot and root dry matter yield, biological nitrogen fixation and water use efficiency. Experiments were laid out in randomized complete block design with four replicates at the experimental farm of University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria, during 2007–2008. Mulching was effective in lowering soil temperature by 1–6°C in the top 5 cm of soil. Utilization systems did not significantly affect the other studied parameters (P < 0.05). Lucerne shoot and root dry matter yield, biological nitrogen fixation, and water use efficiency were greater in 2008 than in 2007. Effect of lucerne utilization systems on soil properties needs to be investigated over long-term studies to verify results of this 2-year study.
On the Translated Whitney Numbers and their Combinatorial Properties

In this paper, we further develop the study of the translated Whitney numbers by deriving more combinatorial properties such as more recurrence relations, exponential and rational generating functions and the orthogonality and inverse relations. To achieve this goal, we introduce the “signed” translated Whitney numbers of the ﬁrst kind. A relationship between these numbers and the Bernoulli polynomials is also brieﬂy discussed.
Growth-dependent tree mortality models based on tree rings

Mortality is a crucial element of population dynamics. However, tree mortality is not well understood, particularly at the individual level. The objectives of this study were to (i) determine growth patterns (growth levels and growth trends) over different time windows that can be used to discriminate between dead and living Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst. ) trees, (ii) optimize the selection of growth variables in logistic mortality models, and (iii) assess the impact of competition on recent growth in linear regression models. The logistic mortality model that we developed for mature stands classified an average of nearly 80% of the 119 trees from one site correctly as being dead or alive. While more than 50% of the variability of recent growth of living trees can be attributed to the influence of competition, this percentage was only 25% for standing dead trees. The predictive power of the logistic mortality model was validated successfully at two additional sites, where 29 of 41 (71%) and 34 of .
Elicitor recognition, signal transduction and induced resistance in plants

Abstract The most viable and practical option for the management of plant diseases is disease resistance. However, in most of the crop plants, natural resistance against pathogens is rare. Breeding resistant varieties is a long-term process and the possibility of resistance being broken always exists. Induced resistance exploiting natural defense machinery of plants is indeed an alternative, nonconventional and ecologically friendly approach for plant protection. Its introduction into agricultural practice could minimize the scope of chemical control, thus contributing to the development of sustainable agriculture. Induced resistance can be defined as an increased expression of natural defense mechanisms of plants against various types of pathogens, provoked by a range of factors: pathogens causing hypersensitive necrotic reaction, avirulent or attenuated pathogenic strains, and elicitors of pathogenic origin (glucans, proteins, lipids, etc.). Induced resistance, being based on the expression of latent genetic information present in plants, is not underlaid by genome alterations (mutations, introgression of foreign genetic material), thus enhancing its biological safety. In this communication, classes of elicitor, their signal perception, transduction and induced defense gene activation has been described.
Consequences of a decentralized participatory barley breeding programme on changes in SSR allele frequency and diversity in one cycle of selection

Changes in allele type, allele frequency and genetic diversity because of selection by individual farmers and breeders were assessed using simple sequence repeats (SSRs) during one cycle of selection in a decentralized participatory barley breeding programme. Selection by both breeders and farmers resulted in the loss of a number of alleles in the majority of the locations, with more alleles lost in the heterogeneous breeding materials than in the fixed genotypes, indicating selection against undesirable traits uncovered in the heterogeneous breeding materials that are presumably linked to SSR alleles. After selection, significant allelic frequency changes were observed at several loci in both the germplasm groups. As the selection was conducted independently in each location, an allele had a chance of being selected in more than one location, and therefore considering the whole study area the allelic composition and diversity of the original genetic materials was maintained after the selection. The study showed the importance of decentralized participatory plant breeding in maintaining genetic diversity that helps stabilize and sustain production in unpredictable production conditions.
Leaf size regularities in Festuca pratensis from the systemic viewpoint

The influence of internal systemic factors on the size of fully grown leaves was investigated in the Poaceae plant Festuca pratensis. Using the systemic approach, the length of leaves of different ordinal numbers along a shoot and the length of leaves of the same ordinal number on different shoots were measured, analysing groups of shoots categorized as subsystems by the authors. It was found that the length of leaves regularly increased with an increase in the ordinal number of leaves along the shoot. The explanation could be systemic trophic relationships: the number of donor leaves increases, which expresses the shoot size factor, i.e. more assimilates are received by younger leaves, thus a vegetative developmental programme has been implemented. Another tendency was discovered as well: the length of the same numbered leaves also regularly increased with an increase in the shoot ordinal number. This increase is manifested in apical subsystems, while leaf length distribution in the basal subsystem is irregular. The explanation could be systemic informational relationships causing a spatial effect, i.e. apical dominance, as the energetically more important apical parts send a signal to suppress the growth of basal parts and ensure the flow of resources to the apical region. This set of internal systemic patterns is relevant for further research on environmental factors (nutrition, temperature, moisture, etc.), and controlled experiments could benefit by sampling leaves of the same internal systemic influence and by rejecting cases of irregular distribution.