Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dissemination of Toxoplasma gondii to the central nervous system : With special reference to in vivo bioluminescence imaging

Toxoplasma gondii causes an asymtomatic chronic infection in immune competent individuals that can be life-threatening in individuals that become immuno-compromised or to the developing fetus. This thesis aimed to (1) establish a novel murine model to study acute and reactivated toxoplasmosis in real-time using in vivo bioluminescence imaging (BLI), (2) investigate the migratory pathways utilized by Toxoplasma for systemic dissemination, especially to the central nervous system (CNS) and (3) address the role of resident brain glia cells in the setting of recrudescent infection in mice. Firstly, dissemination of T. gondii to distant organs was monitored in vivo by BLI. Dramatic differences in the kinetics of dissemination of virulent and non-virulent T. gondii strains were observed in vivo. Protective host responses in vivo were partly explored for the Toll/Interleukin-1 receptor (TIR) pathway showing that signaling mediated by Toll-like receptors (TLRs) to the adaptor protein MyD88 is crucial for the outcome of the disease. Secondly, Toxoplasma could take advantage of cells of the immune system such as dendritic cells (DC) to assure systemic dissemination. Infected DC exhibited a dramatic hypermotility phenotype in vitro. Adoptive transfer of infected DC potentiated dissemination of parasites to distant organs in syngeneic mice. Thirdly, we established a model to study the onset of toxoplasmic encephalitis using BLI and investigated the pathophysiology associated with recrudescence in mice. Interestingly, an uneven distribution of foci of reactivation was found in the CNS. In our model, recrudescence preferentially occurred in the parietal and frontal cortex, similar to localizations described in human disease. Also, parasitic foci co-localized with microvasculature along with massive leukocyte infiltration. Activated astrocytes and microglia co-localized with foci of parasite reactivation. Similar to DC, infected microglia exhibited hypermotility whereas astrocytes did not. This suggests a role for infected microglia in the local dissemination of Toxoplasma in the CNS. This thesis has addressed some of the mechanisms underlying Toxoplasma s success in establishing infections in its host. The application of BLI to the Toxoplasma infection model in mice provides a non-invasive versatile tool to study the behavior of this parasite in vivo. The results presented here reveal that the dynamics of parasite dissemination is strain specific and that Toxoplasma may use infected cells as Trojan horses to assure systemic dissemination to distant organs and within the CNS.
In vitro multiplication of Jovibarba sobolifera

Jovibarba sobolifera and its subspecies (subsp. hirtum, subsp. allionii, subsp. arenaria) live in the eastern and southern Alps, the Carpathians and the western Balkans south to northern Albania. In Romania was noticed the presence of two species: Jovibarba heuffelii and Jovibarba sobolifera. The aim of the paper is the preservation of Jovibarba sobolifera, a rare species from the Red List of Romanian Flora, based on unconventional strategies through clonal micropropagation. The composition of the phenolic compounds recommend also this species as a potential source of pharmaceutically active compounds and natural biopesticides. The cytokinin growth regulators (benzylaminopurine and kinetine) are added to shoot culture media to promote axillary shoot growth. Single shoots or shoot clusters have been cultivated to a different medium for rooting "in vitro" before being transferred to the external environment.The regenerated plants have shown a positive reaction, indicating a high level of adaptability.
The Diversity of Overwintering Strategies Utilized by Separate Populations of Gall Insects

The variability of overwintering strategies of four insect species occupying identical hibernacula are compared over two climatic regions. Stepwise acclimation was accomplished over a 12-week "seasonal" cycle between 5, -40, and 20 C. The ball gall hibernaculum of Solidago sp. provides a minimal thermal buffer to its inhabitants. Separate populations of the gall maker Eurosta solidagensis demonstrate markedly different adaptive strategies during acclimation. Low temperature exposure results in an elevation of supercooling points (SCPs) in northern populations so that early freezing occurs. Southern populations depress the SCP upon similar exposures to avoid tissue-freezing encounters. The SCPs become synchronous between populations when ambient temperatures are reduced below the supercooling limit (-20 C). Warm acclimation is characterized by a major depression in the SCP in both populations. However, the temperature trigger has been shifted to higher temperatures in northern species (>5-< 20 C vs. >0-< 5 C for southern groups). Three other species overwinter in the gall: Mordellistena unicolor, a coinhabitant with E. solidagensis, and Eurytoma obtusiventris and Eurytoma gigantea, two predators. Each of these species have distinct overwintering strategies.
Tolerance of Skin Homografts Induced in Adult Mice by Multiple Injections of Homologous Spleen Cells.∗

Summary 1. Adult mice of the Z(C3H) strain have been made tolerant of skin homo-grafts of the(A X Z) F1 hybrid strain by repeated intravenous and intraperitoneal injections of homologous spleen cells. 2. Repeated intraperitoneal injections of homologous spleen cells generally failed to induce a tolerant state, although 3/75 recipients accepted the homologous skin homotransplant.
An examination of the PCB: lipid relationship among individual fish

We examined data from 1984 to 1994 for five species of Lake Michigan salmonids to explore the relationship between total PCB concentration and percent lipid. When we compared mean species lipid and PCB values, we found a strong linear correlation. When we compared values among individuals, we found modest positive PCB:lipid associations in brown trout (Salmo trutta), chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), and rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) collected during spawning, but positive associations were not apparent among nonspawning individuals. Lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) exhibited no discernible PCB:lipid relationship. Our results are not incompatible with previous observations that contaminants are differentially partitioned into lipids within a fish, but these results do suggest that lipids are not a major factor influencing contaminant uptake.
Addition of round gobies to the prey community of Lake Ontario and potential implications to thiamine status and reproductive success of Lake Trout

The addition of round goby to the Lake Ontario prey fish community can, because it appears to lack thiaminase, ameliorate the effects of a diet high in thiaminase-rich alewives associated with a thiamine deficiency in Lake Trout. However, the effects of round goby predation may negate such effects. We conducted studies to assess the proportion, by weight, of round gobies in the diet of contemporary Lake Ontario Lake Trout and predicted its effect on egg thiamine concentration, and early mortality syndrome (EMS) and growth retardation, two indicators of thiamine deficiency. We compared these parameters to that for the historic prey community, as well as possible future diet scenarios with progressively greater proportions of round goby (e.g. 50, 75 and 100%). To assess the combined and separate effects of the thiamine deficiency we used a modeling approach to determine the effect of EMS (70%) typical of Lake Ontario Lake Trout, growth retardation, density of Lake Trout egg (e.g. 100, 500, 1000, and 5000 eggs m−2) and round goby (e.g. 1, 9, 18, 35, 75, 150 gobies m−2), three separate durations of round goby residence on Lake Trout spawning habitat (e.g. 30, 60 and 213 days), and at either a shallow water or deepwater temperature regime. Eight years after first invading Lake Ontario, the proportion of round gobies in Lake Trout diets remains low, although the highest observed (25%) would result in significant amelioration of the thiamine deficiency from past conditions. Modeling indicated that the negative effects associated with round goby predation on eggs and fry could easily exceed any positive effects resulting from amelioration of the thiamine deficiency by a diet containing round goby. The effects of goby predation were found to be dependent on density of both Lake Trout eggs and round gobies, and while predation effects were minimally affected by temperature regime, they were highly dependent on the period of round goby residence on Lake Trout spawning habitat.
Replacement of Fish Meal with Ethanol Yeast in the Diets of Sunshine Bass

Abstract Increasing demand and rising costs of fish meal (FM) coupled with static landings of reduction fisheries have made continued use of FM-rich aquaculture feeds environmentally and economically unsustainable. Animal- and plant-derived proteins have been investigated as alternatives to FM, with variable success. Observed limitations of commonly used alternative proteins have led nutritionists to investigate new alternatives to FM. Ethanol yeast, a co-product of bioethanol production and potential new alternative protein source, was evaluated as a FM replacement in the diets of sunshine bass (female white bass Morone chrysops × male striped bass M. saxatilis). Five diets were evaluated, including a control diet containing 30% FM and four experimental diets (22.5, 15, 7.5, and 0% FM) in which 25, 50, 75, or 100% of the FM content was replaced with ethanol yeast. Juvenile sunshine bass (∼16 g) were fed twice daily to apparent satiation for 45 d. Production performance of sunshine bass was not impaired b.
Caracterização do gene PHA sintase de bactérias isoladas a partir de amostras de solo.

TUSSO, D. C. T. PHA synthase gene characterization of bacteria isolated from soil samples. 2015. 129 p. Masters thesis (Microbiology) – Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, 2015. The polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) polyesters produced by microorganisms are as intracellular granules as a source of carbon and energy. These materials arouse great interest in biotechnology, as provide thermoplastic and elastomeric properties similar to the synthetic plastics petrochemical origin. In the biosynthesis of PHA, the PHA synthase is the key enzyme for its production and catalyzes the incorporation of 3HA monomer to the polymer chain. From bacterial isolates obtained by Lício (2011) capable of producing poly (3hydroxybutyrate) (P3HB). These isolates were identified by sequence analysis of 16S rDNA genes and the construction of a phylogenetic tree of the genus Burkholderia as sp. There after, the PHA synthase genes were cloned into these isolated pBBRMCS-2 plasmid and expressed in mutant of Pseudomonas sp. (LFM461) and Burkholderia sacchari (LFM344), deficient in PHA accumulation. The recombinant strains were grown in excess glucose as carbon source in order to evaluate the potential of PHA synthase incorporate monomers (3HA) to PHA. Were performed PHA accumulation assays using glucose as carbon source, with the production of 3HB units, 3HO and 3HD in recombinant strains of Pseudomonas sp. The recombinant strains of B. sacchari incorporated as sole constituent of P (3HB). PHA accumulation assays were performed on the recombinant strains of B. sacchari, as cosubstrates using different fatty acids being detected to incorporate 3HV units and 3HHx addition of 3HB, were provided as valeric and hexanoic acid. These results indicate that the PHA synthases of Class I are able to incorporate different monomer units.
Some Notes on the Biology and Physiology of the Sheep Blowfly, Lucilia sericata, Meig.

1. The increase in weight of flies of both sexes is followed on several diets. Unfed flies and flies fed on water alone or on meat and water lose weight. Males fed on meat, sugar and water, or on sugar and water, increase in weight rapidly during the first day of adult life and then lose weight until they die. Females fed on sugar and water increase in weight rapidly for the first day and then more slowly until the twelfth day, when they commence to lose weight until death occurs. A similar rapid increase in weight on the first day occurs in females fed on meat, sugar and water, but a second period of rapid increase occurs between the fourth and sixth days. The first period corresponds to the growth of the imaginal fat-body and the second to the growth of the ovaries. The percentage dry weight of flies fed on meat, sugar and water and on sugar and water increases rapidly at first but then decreases slowly until death occurs. 2. The disappearance of the pupal fat-body cells and the growth of the imaginal fat-body on several diets is described. It is suggested that the inclusions of the pupal fat-body cells are transferred to the rapidly growing imaginal fat-body. 3. The hypothesis is put forward that the abdominal air-sacs in flies of the Muscid type have but little respiratory function and are chiefly concerned in ( a ) preserving the increased volume of the newly-emerged fly ; ( b ) providing ample space within the abdomen for growth of the imaginal fat-body in the male and for the fat-body and ovaries in the female, both of which organs increase greatly in size.
Some effects of leaf posture on the yield and water economy of winter wheat

SUMMARY Selections for erect-(E) and lax-leaf (L) posture in winter wheat were made from a cross between parents which contrasted in the character. By the F5 generation there were consistent, heritable differences between E and L lines. The lines were evaluated in three field experiments and a glasshouse experiment. In an experiment in which plots were automatically sheltered from rain and in which there were three irrigation treatments, there was no treatment-posture interaction, and over all treatments E lines outyielded L lines by 0·26 t/ha. When fully irrigated the water use of both E and L lines between 1 May and maturity was approximately 280 mm. Withholding water caused a reduction in water use and a corresponding reduction in grain yield for both E and L lines. When the four most erect- and the four most lax-leaved lines were considered over all three field experiments, E lines maintained a slight, though not significant, grain yield advantage of 0·17 t/ha over L lines. However, the E lines produced significantly more biomass, averaging 0·7 t/ha more than L lines, and this extra biomass was not produced at the expense of additional water requirement. However, results from the glasshouse experiment suggested that the E lines may be more susceptible to a substantial pre-anthesis drought. It is concluded that varieties of winter wheat with the erect-leaf habit may provide an opportunity of increasing biomass production. In an environment in which a preanthesis drought is unlikely to occur, such varieties may give the highest yields. However, on light soils prone to early drought or at sites which would not permit the maximum expression of leaf area index at anthesis, varieties with a lax-leaf posture may give greater yield.
Dégradation et prélèvement de peptides de caséines marqués au 14C par des bactéries mixtes du rumen

Breakdown and uptake of 4casein peptides by mixed rumen bacte- ria. This work studied the in vitro degradation by mixed rumen bacteria of various 14 fractions of casein peptides, of known molecular size, added to a total unlabelled casein hydro- lysate. Size exclusion HPLC was used in order to segregate the casein peptides according to their molecular weights. Radioactivity associated with the bacteria increased over time. The way 14was incorporated into the bacteria depended on the size of the labelled peptides ini- tially added. Small peptides (I to 2 kDa) were very rapidly assimilated, whereas radioactivity coming from larger peptides (5 to 10 kDa) tended to accumulate far more slowly in the bacterial pellet. The disappearance rates of the radioactivity differed between the fractions. The longest pep- tides disappeared more quickly than the medium-sized ones, which in turn were hydrolysed more rapidly than the smallest ones. Here, the uptake of small peptides seems to be the limiting step of the peptides utilization by bacteria. @ Inra/Elsevier, Paris
Interaction of selected production indicators of the economics of pork production.

Abstr Act : Estimates of the effects influencing the economics of pig production are of primary importance for breeders. For this purpose, costs, revenues and profitability were determined on the basis of individual parameters of the efficiency of tested pigs and of average commodity prices. The calculation was the result of the efficiency of actual animals and of the average and simulated prices of inputs received by producers in large-scale production operations. 136 animals, 64 of crossbred combinations (LWs × D) × (LW D × L) and 72 of PN × (LW D × L) were used. The total cost of 1 pig represented the costs per weaned piglet, feed and other costs; the revenues represented the actual price of a pig at slaughter. Multivariable hierarchical models were constructed to assess the relationships between the following factors: crossbred combination, nutrition and sex, ADG, number of piglets bred, CFM price and carcass price with the outcome variables: costs, revenues and profitability. The results demonstrated that the total cost of fattening pig is considerably influenced by the price of a piglet and feed, not by the price of the carcass and the growth intensity. There was no proof of a relationship between the price of a pig and reproduction and/or the price of feed. Profitability is significantly influenced by the reproduction rate, price of feed, growth intensity and revenues. The results also showed that the intensity of nutrition and the sex considerably influence the total cost of 1 fattened pig, which represents an increase in the total cost by 3.80 € in the application of ad libitum feeding techniques, and 5.39 €/pc in the fattening of barrows. The choice of a suitable combination represents a decrease in the total cost by 1.49% and an increase in revenues by 2.93%. Profitability is significantly associated with the intensity of nutrition, sex and breed. With unrestricted feeding it is reduced by 4.1%, for barrows by 6.6%, and in the use of four-breed combinations of crossbreds it increases by 4.13%.
Cadmium-induced changes in mitotic index and genotoxicity on Vigna unguiculata (Linn.) Walp

The present study is aimed to investigate the effect of Cadmium (Cd) on mitotic index (MI) and DNA damage of Vigna unguiculata. The seedlings were exposed to 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 mM concentrations of cadmium chloride (CdCl2) for 15 days. The drastic reduction in MI was observed due to Cd toxicity because the mitotic divisions had been with holding when the Cd stress increases. Cd-induced genotoxicity was measured through comet assay. This suggests that increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) under Cd toxicity serves as a major source of DNA damage leading to strand breakage, removal of nucleotides and variety of modifications in organic bases of nucleotides. Key words: Genotoxicity, comet assay, mitotic index, Cadmium stress, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)damage.
Growth, Nutrient Utilization and Zinc Status in Goats as Affected by Supplementary Zinc Sources

Eighteen goat kids weighing 22.84±1.68 kg (8–9 months of age) were divided into 3 groups of six animals each in order to study the effect of zinc (Zn) supplementation through different sources (ZnO and ZnSO4) on growth, nutrient utilization and blood Zn profile. Animals were fed on gram straw and concentrate mixture for 90 days to meet their requirements. Kids of control group (T1) were fed on gram straw and concentrate mixture (maize grain 55, groundnut cake 18, soybean meal 7, deoiled rice polish 17, mineral mixture without Zn 2 and common salt 1part). The concentrate mixtures fed to the goats in the experimental groups T2 and T3 were supplemented with 45 mg of ZnO and ZnSO4 per kg, respectively. The DM intake, digestibility of DM, OM and CF and nutritive values of rations in terms of DCP and TDN were comparable in three groups. Digestibility of CP, EE and NFE, intake of DCP and TDN, N retention, Zn intake, serum and hair, average daily gain and feed conversion efficiency were better (P<0.05) in groups T2 and T3 as compared to T1, however, response was similar in ZnO and ZnSO4 supplemented kids. Hence, supplementation of Zn oxide or ZnSO4 as source of Zn in concentrate mixture of kids increased growth performance, nutrient utilization, improved feed conversion efficiency and enhanced Zn level in blood serum and hair.
Establishment of the PROSAFE collection of probiotic and human lactic acid bacteria

Within the framework of the EU-funded research project PROSAFE – Biosafety evaluation of lactic acid bacteria used for human consumption – we aimed to establish a relevant collection of probiotic and human LAB. The collection comprises a total of 907 strains including 320 nutritional isolates (most of which have probiotic claims) and 580 human isolates from sterile (n=339) or faecal (n=241) sites. The strains were received as belonging to the genera Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Enterococcus, Pediococcus, Lactococcus, Propionibacterium and Streptococcus. Depositors of strains were the PROSAFE partners (http://lmg.ugent.belprosafe), PROEUHEALTH partners (http://proeuhealth.vtt.fi/), authors of relevant peer-reviewed papers, companies involved in the production and/or distribution of probiotics, public culture collections (BCCM/LMG and CCUG) and contacted researchers of private collections. The (commercial) probiotic strains submitted by the companies mainly belong to the genera Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. About half of these strains are of human origin, were isolated in the 1990s and are marketed for human consumption.
Growth of Nitrosomonas europaea on hydroxylamine

Hydroxylamine is an intermediate in the oxidation of ammonia to nitrite, but until now it has not been possible to grow Nitrosomonas europaea on hydroxylamine. This study demonstrates that cells of N. europaea are capable of growing mixotrophically on ammonia and hydroxylamine. The molar growth yield on hydroxylamine (4.74 g mol−1 at a growth rate of 0.03 h−1) was higher than expected. Aerobically growing cells of N. europaea oxidized ammonia to nitrite with little loss of inorganic nitrogen, while significant inorganic nitrogen losses occurred when cells were growing mixotrophically on ammonia and hydroxylamine. In the absence of oxygen, hydroxylamine was oxidized with nitrite as electron acceptor, while nitrous oxide was produced. Anaerobic growth of N. europaea on ammonium, hydroxylamine and nitrite could not be observed at growth rates of 0.03 h−1 and 0.01 h−1.
2. NOTICE OF SOME NEW SPECIES OF MARMOSET MONKEYS (HAPALE AND MIDAS)

Fur very long and flaccid, blackish silvery grey ; the crown and nape, the hands, and feet black ; sides of the rump blackish ; hair of the crown very long, forming a large hood expanding over the eyebrows ; face reddish, large ; orbits black. Hab. British Museum. The colour of the back is produced by the intermixture of a nearly equal quantity of very long blackish and grey hairs ; the hairs of the crown and the hands and feet are short and black to the base.