Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A G Protein-Coupled Receptor Is a Plasma Membrane Receptor for the Plant Hormone Abscisic Acid

The plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) regulates many physiological and developmental processes in plants. The mechanism of ABA perception at the cell surface is not understood. Here, we report that a G protein–coupled receptor genetically and physically interacts with the G protein α subunit GPA1 to mediate all known ABA responses in Arabidopsis. Overexpressing this receptor results in an ABA-hypersensitive phenotype. This receptor binds ABA with high affinity at physiological concentration with expected kinetics and stereospecificity. The binding of ABA to the receptor leads to the dissociation of the receptor-GPA1 complex in yeast. Our results demonstrate that this G protein–coupled receptor is a plasma membrane ABA receptor.
ENGLISH IMMERSION PROGRAM IN EFL SETTING: A MODIFIED MODEL, IMPLEMENTATION, AND EFFECTIVENESS

This study reflects the best practice of the English immersion program designed for EFL learners. Through observation in the research site and interview with eight participants (two language managers and six language learners), the modified model is discovered as the guidelines in ruling the project in which curriculum, English proficiency, and language management are the main points. Besides, Informal learning becomes the hot issue of this study since the English zone facilitates English informal interaction between language partners and learners which enhances English learning experiences effectively and motivates them to use English. The finding also reported that English immersion program emerges learning community, personal qualities development, English language acquisition, and self-efficacy, language awareness and language exposure The study may contribute to the body of knowledge in second language acquisition and recommend schools or universities and other related institutions to implement English immersion program as the alternative solution for English language learning in non-native speaking countries.
Secondary school students who drop out of school in rural Pakistan: The perspectives of fathers

ABSTRACT Background: The problem of students dropping out of school is one of the barriers to improving educational outcomes in poor and developing countries. Purpose: This small scale, in-depth study sought to explore the phenomenon of students who drop out from secondary education, through the perspectives of fathers of such students in a rural district of Pakistan. Method: Primary data were collected through detailed, individual interviews with 14 fathers whose sons had dropped out from secondary education. The study adopted a framework involving push and pull factors to analyse qualitatively the processes and examine the reasons for dropping out that prevailed inside and outside school. Findings: The analysis suggested that, from the perspectives of the fathers, family poverty, poor academic performance and issues relating to teachers’ engagement with teaching at school were main factors involved in a student dropping out of school. Conclusions: The findings from this small scale, detailed analysis of data draw attention to the issues arising from a tension in mainstream teachers’ educational roles in and beyond the school. It further highlights the need for greater investment in secondary education, in order to help to reduce rates of student drop out in the remote rural areas of Pakistan.
Enhancing the performance of low molar ratio urea–formaldehyde resin adhesives via in-situ modification with intercalated nanoclay

ABSTRACT Low molar ratio urea–formaldehyde (UF) resin adhesives are primarily used for the reduction of formaldehyde emission (FE) from wood-based composites, at the expense of poor reactivity and adhesion. This study aimed to enhance the performance of low molar ratio UF resins via in-situ modification, via the addition of octadecylamine (ODA)-modified bentonite (ODA–BNT) nanoclay. The molecular weights, curing behavior, chemical groups, and crystallinity of modified UF resins with different levels of ODA−BNT were characterized by gel permeation chromatography, differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The ODA–BNT/UF resins showed better reactivity and lower activation energy compared with neat resins. The XRD results clearly showed that ODA–BNT in modified UF resins had been intercalated. A 5% ODA−BNT addition resulted in a decrease in the crystallinity of the modified UF resins, leading to better adhesion strength and lower FE compared with neat UF resins. These results suggest that intercalation of ODA–BNT in low molar ratio UF resins improve their cohesion through the formation of a larger branched network in their cured state.
Fish stress and health in aquaculture

Preface 1. Stress in finfish: past, present and future - a historical perspective B. A. Barton 2. Effects of rearing conditions on the health and physiological quality of fish in intensive culture G. A. Wedermeyer 3. Effects of stress on reproduction and growth of fish N. W. Pankhurst, and G. van der Kraak 4. The endocrinology of stress J. P. Sumpter 5. Ionic, osmotic and acid-base regulation in stress G. McDonald, and L. Milligan 6. Behavioural response to stress C. B. Schreck 7. Genetic basis to the stress response: selective breeding for stress-tolerant fish T. G. Pottinger and A. D. Pickering 8. Immune-endocrine interactions P. Balm 9. Dietary effects on stress and health T. C. Fletcher 10. Measurements of stressed states in the field J. D. Morgan, and G. K. Iwama Index.
Both histidine residues of the conserved HHXXXDG motif are essential for wax ester synthase/acyl-CoA:diacylglycerol acyltransferase catalysis

Bacterial acyltransferases of the wax ester synthase/diacylglycerol acyltransferase (WS/DGAT) family possess a highly conserved HHXXXDG motif. In this study, we describe the first experimental evidence that this motif is part of the active site of WS/DGAT from the Acinetobacter baylyi strain ADP1 and that it is crucial for enzymatic activity. The second histidine residue of this motif (H133) turned out to be essential for the catalytic activity. In addition, the replacement of the first histidine (His132) also led to explicitly decreased activity. A complete loss of activity was only observed upon substitution of both histidine residues by leucine, revealing that both are necessary for maximal activity. In contrast, the replacement of Asp137 and Gly138 against alanine had only little effect on enzyme activity, thus demonstrating that they are not essential for WS/DGAT catalysis although belonging to the highly conserved motif. One peculiarity of WS/DGAT enzymes is their little substrate specificity regarding hydrophobic compounds. In this study, we demonstrated the inability of WS/DGAT to accept polar compounds as substrates.
CONCENTRACIÓN DE INMUNOGLOBULINAS TOTALES EN CALOSTROS DE VACAS EN EXPLOTACIONES LECHERAS DE COSTA RICA

Total immunoglobulin concentration in colostrum produced by dairy cows in Costa Rica. The objective of this study was to determine the concentration of total immunoglobulins (Ig) in colostrum produced by dairy cows and establish the effect that breed and parity can have on Ig concentration. The data presented correspond to determinations of concentration of total Ig determined by a colostrometer in 537 colostrum samples obtained between the year 2010 and 2012, during the months of August to November in 50 dairy farms in the provinces of San Jose, Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago. Cow breeds were classified into Holstein, Jersey, HolsteinxJersey and other. Farm size ranged from 10 to 300 milking cows. For the purposes of this study, good quality colostrum was considered when Ig concentration was ≥ 50 mg/ml. Immunoglobulin concentration ranged from 10 to 140 with an average of 85 mg/ml. Of all the samples analyzed, 13.2% had an inadequate concentration of Ig. When considering breed effect on Ig concentration, no significant differences were found. Parity number significantly influenced Ig concentration and it was found that Ig concentration increases linearly with parity number. The information collected in this study indicates that Ig concentration in colostrum is good and that failure of passive transfer of immunity could be due to other factors such as the volume of colostrum consumed and the time between birth and the first feeding of colostrum.
Cost-Effective Migration Toward Virtualized C-RAN With Scalable Fronthaul Design

Migration from distributed to centralized radio access networks (C-RANs) can be expensive in terms of capital expenditures due to the initial investment while it has lower operational expenditures due to pooling baseband processing into the cloud and reduced power consumption. Partial centralization can be also an option by employing network function splitting and keeping lower physical layer functions colocated with the RUs. This increases the power consumption but relaxes the high capacity requirement in the fronthaul. It is not intuitive which migration strategy is more cost effective. In this article, we formulate a pool placement optimization problem as an integer linear programming (ILP), which minimizes the total cost of ownership (TCO), and evaluate the migration cost to C-RAN with both full centralization of network functions, and partial centralization by using function splitting. We define a network upgrade optimization problem, by adding new cells to the network, as a revisited version of the original optimization problem to evaluate the upgradability of the architectures. We solve the problem with both ILP for optimality, and genetic algorithm for scalability. Simulation results show that partial centralization results in optimal TCO with lower crossover time compared to C-RAN with full centralization.
Genetic traceability of two local chicken populations, Bianca di Saluzzo and Bionda Piemontese, versus some current commercial lines

The aims of this investigation were to analyse the genetic variation of two Piemonte chicken local breeds, Bionda Piemontese and Bianca di Saluzzo , and to set them against some commercial lines. A panel of 19 microsatellite markers was used. On the overall, the results of different analyses highlight the genetic uniqueness of the two breeds; therefore they should be considered genetic resources worthy of preservation. The panel of microsatellites used in this investigation turns out to be a consistent and reliable tool for traceability. In fact, these markers are able to distinguish the two local populations from the commercial lines and they are able to confirm the existence of two genetically different clusters within the Bionda Piemontese , namely the ecotypes standard and Cuneo . Mating policies implemented to avoid inbreeding and, if necessary, a marker assisted conservation scheme would be sufficient to solve the problem of inbreeding.
Estimating Vertical Chlorophyll Concentrations in Maize in Different Health States Using Hyperspectral LiDAR

The detection of vertical heterogeneity in vegetation has attracted an increasing attention as it has a great significance for precise agriculture. The hyperspectral light detection and ranging (LiDAR) (HSL) can obtain the spectral and spatial information simultaneously. However, its ability to monitor the vertical distribution of biochemical parameters in plants has not been fully explored. In this article, the applicability of empirical ratio and normalized spectral indices for HSL channels in chlorophyll (Chl) detection was investigated using three data sets: the PROSPECT-5 synthetic data set, the ANGERS public data set, and an HSL-measured data set. A linear regression model of the best performing index against measured Chl values was constructed so as to build 3-D Chl point clouds of maize. The performance of HSL in Chl detection at the upper and lower layers was also tested based on the selected spectral index. The result showed that the CIred edge index was most compatible with the HSL channels. The estimated Chl concentrations of the upper and lower layers showed the close relationships with HSL measurements ( $R^{2} = 0.73$ and 0.91, respectively). The vertical Chl profiles in maize were also presented, indicating that the HSL system has a strong ability to monitor the vertical distribution of maize Chl concentrations. This article provides a basis for the vertical detection of vegetation biochemical parameters directly from HSL measurements.
Alelopatia de extratos aquosos de cinamomo (Melia azedarach L. – Meliaceae) sobre a germinação e crescimento inicial do tomate (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. – Solanaceae)

A alelopatia caracteriza-se por efeitos no desenvolvimento das plantas, causados por substâncias quimicas que sao produzidas e liberadas por outras plantas. O objetivo deste trabalho foi investigar a atividade alelopatica de extratos aquosos de folhas frescas e secas e de frutos de cinamomo ( Melia azedarach L.- Meliaceae) sobre a germinacao e crescimento inicial do tomate. Os extratos foram preparados nas concentracoes 1, 2 e 4% e caracterizados quanto ao pH e potencial osmotico. Os bioensaios foram constituidos de quatro repeticoes de 25 sementes de tomate distribuidas em placas de Petri contendo duas folhas de papel germitest, sendo que cada placa recebeu 2mL do extrato correspondente ao tratamento. Para a germinacao foram avaliados a porcentagem de germinacao (PG), a velocidade de germinacao (VG) e o indice de velocidade de germinacao (IVG). O crescimento inicial foi avaliado pelo comprimento da radicula, do hipocotilo e da folha e pela massa fresca e seca. Todas as concentracoes de extratos do cinamomo apresentaram atividade inibitoria sobre a germinacao e crescimento da radicula, sendo maior o efeito inibitorio a medida que aumentava a concentracao do extrato. Extratos de folhas secas apresentaram maiores efeitos sobre o tomate. O potencial osmotico e pH dos extratos utilizados apresentaram pouca variacao em relacao ao controle, indicando que o efeito alelopatico se deve a acao dos aleloquimicos presentes nos extratos.
Genetic Diversity and Population Structure in the Heavily Exploited Korean Rockfish, Sebastes schlegeli, in Korea

The Korean rockfish, Sebastes schlegeli, is a valuable and intensively exploited species in Korea. We discuss the genetic diversity and genetic structure of four Korean rockfish populations using eight microsatellite loci. In total, 161 different alleles from 138 individuals were observed. Average allele number per locus ranged from 2.5 to 23 and allelic richness varied from 13.38 to 14.63 within a population. Despite a long history of stocking practices, we found very high levels of polymorphism (mean heterozygosity = 0.810), which is comparable to other congeneric species. No significant difference in genetic diversity and molecular genetic variance (FST and RST) was observed among four local samples (P > 0.1). Little indication of contemporary inbreeding (FIS= 0.051) or population structure (K = 1) was detected. This absence of differentiation may reflect high levels of gene flow along the coast of Korea. Our study demonstrates that rockfish in Korea should be managed as a single unit. Currently, the species does not appear to be genetically threatened, but the potential for a rapid loss of genetic diversity remains. This information on the genetic characteristics of Korean rockfish populations has important implications for fisheries management and conservation efforts, and will aid in the sustainable exploitation of the fishing resources and the preservation of biodiversity.
Evidence for the Presence of Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor (PPAR) α and γ and Retinoid Z Receptor in Cartilage

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α, PPARγ, and retinoid acid receptor-related orphan receptor (ROR) α are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily of ligand-activated transcription factors. Although they play a key role in adipocyte differentiation, lipid metabolism, or glucose homeostasis regulation, recent studies suggested that they might be involved in the inflammation control and especially in the modulation of the cytokine production. This strongly suggests that these transcriptional factors could modulate the deleterious effects of interleukin-1 (IL-1) on cartilage. However, to date, their presence in cartilage has never been investigated. By quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, and immunocytochemistry analysis, we demonstrated, for the first time, the presence of PPARα, PPARγ, and RORα in rat cartilage, at both mRNA and protein levels. Comparatively, the PPARα mRNA content in cartilage was much lower than in the liver but not significantly different to that of the adipose tissue. PPARγ mRNA expression in cartilage was weak, when compared with adipose tissue, but similar to that found in the liver. RORα mRNA levels were similar in the three tissues. mRNA expression of the three nuclear receptors was very differently modulated by IL-1 or mono-iodoacetate treatments. This indicates that they should be unequally involved in the effects of IL-1 on chondrocyte, which is in accordance with results obtained in other cell types. Indeed, we showed that 15d-PGJ2 mainly, but also the drug troglitazone, that are ligands of PPARγ could significantly counteract the decrease in proteoglycan synthesis and NO production induced by IL-1. By contrast, PPARα ligands such as Wy-14,643 or clofibrate had no effect on this process. Therefore, the presence of PPARγ in chondrocytes opens up new perspectives to modulate the effects of cytokines on cartilage by the use of specific ligands. The function of the two other transcription factors, PPARα and RORα identified in chondrocytes remains to be explored.
A small HSP gene is not responsible for diapause and cold tolerance acquisition in Chilo suppressalis

Abstract: The cDNA sequence of a small heat shock protein (hsp19.7) was cloned and sequenced from the rice stem borer, Chilo suppressalis Walker. The cDNA encoded a protein of 177 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight of 19.7 kDa. The deduced amino acid sequence showed the highest identity of 90% to Bombyx morihsp19.9. Expression levels of hsp19.7 were similar between diapausing and non‐diapausing larvae. In non‐diapausing larvae, but not in diapausing ones, hsp19.7 expression was upregulated by cold acclimation. Involvement of hsp19.7 in larval diapause and cold tolerance in C. suppressalis is discussed.
Earnings and Cash Flow Information on Its Value Relevance by The Book Value

This study aims to examine the relationship of earnings and operating cash flow as an independent variable on the value relevance of accounting information proxied by stock returns by using book value as a moderating variable. The utilitation of stock returns as an independent variable is choosed as previous research on value relevance tends to use stock prices as an independent variable. The sample of this study is all population of companies listed on the Jakarta Islamic Index (JII) in the 2016-2018 period June-November (issued from June 1st) using saturation sampling. The data used in this study is compound from annual reports in the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) and stock prices from Yahoo Finance. Further, data were tested using multiple linear regression analysis. The results showed that earnings and cash flow have an effect on value relevance proxied by stock returns. However, book value neither strengthens nor weakens earnings and cash flow towards stock returns as a moderating variable. Keywords : Earnings, Operation Cash Flow, Stock Return, Value Relevance, Jakarta Islamic Index
Three-Port Full-Bridge Bidirectional Converter for Hybrid DC/DC/AC Systems

Sustainable solutions such as renewable energies, distributed generation, energy storage, and electric vehicles require power conversion and advance control techniques. This process is usually done in two stages by more than one power converter, specially in hybrid systems, increasing power losses and costs. The configuration with two dc stages and one ac port is widely used in several applications, such as grid-connected photovoltaic inverters; fuel cells, hybrid and electric vehicles; and ac/dc microgrids. Thus, three-port topologies have been developed to operate such systems, most of them comprising multiple power processing stages for the connection of the different elements. This article proposes a three-port full-bridge converter with a single power processing stage for dc/dc/ac systems. The ac port can be single-phase or three-phase, using two legs like an H-bridge or three legs like the conventional three-phase inverter. In both configurations, each leg is used as an inverter and as a buck-boost converter at the same time. The converter is able to manage the power flow among three ports with just four or six switches through a multivariable control strategy. Simulation and experimental results show the capability of the converter to manage the interaction between a battery and a capacitor connected to the grid achieving a fast dynamic response, bidirectional capability in all ports and reduction of components.
Artificial neural networks for rice yield prediction in mountainous regions

Decision-making processes in agriculture often require reliable crop response models. The Fujian province of China is a mountainous region where weather aberrations such as typhoons, floods and droughts threaten rice production. Agricultural management specialists need simple and accurate estimation techniques to predict rice yields in the planning process. The objectives of the present study were to: (1) investigate whether artificial neural network (ANN) models could effectively predict Fujian rice yield for typical climatic conditions of the mountainous region, (2) evaluate ANN model performance relative to variations of developmental parameters and (3) compare the effectiveness of multiple linear regression models with ANN models. Models were developed using historical yield data at multiple locations throughout Fujian. Field-specific rainfall data and the weather variables (daily sunshine hours, daily solar radiation, daily temperature sum and daily wind speed) were used for each location. Adjusting ANN parameters such as learning rate and number of hidden nodes affected the accuracy of rice yield predictions. Optimal learning rates were between 0·71 and 0·90. Smaller data sets required fewer hidden nodes and lower learning rates in model optimization. ANN models consistently produced more accurate yield predictions than regression models. ANN rice grain yield models for Fujian resulted in R2 and RMSE of 0·87 and 891 vs 0·52 and 1977 for linear regression, respectively. Although more time consuming to develop than multiple linear regression models, ANN models proved to be superior for accurately predicting rice yields under typical Fujian climatic conditions.
The Influential Factors of Consumers’ Sustainable Consumption: A Case on Electric Vehicles in China

As one of the internationally recognized solutions to environmental problems, electric vehicles feature zero direct emissions and can reduce dependence on petroleum. An increasing number of countries have attached importance to the electric vehicle and developed it, and it is predicted that it will become a main force in the transportation system. Hence, it is necessary to explore the factors that drive consumers to buy electric vehicles. This study analyzes the factors that influence the consumer’s intention to buy electric vehicles and tests the relationship between them, and intends to offer information for the formulation of policies designed to popularize electric vehicles in order to reduce carbon emissions from transportation. As a result, consumer attitudes are the most important factor influencing the intention to purchase electric vehicles. The greatest effect is found in this line: Brand Trust→Perceived Benefit→Attitude→Purchase Intention. This means that the brand can increase the consumer’s perceived benefit of electric vehicles, make consumers more attracted to electric vehicles, and influence their final purchase intention.