Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of blood indices in healthy and fungal infected Caspian salmon (Salmo trutta caspius)

Hematological parameters were measured for 27 healthy and 20 fungal infected Caspian salmon. White blood cells (WBC), neutrophile, and eosinophile have higher values (P than healthy Caspian salmon. The other parameters like hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (HCT), red blood cells (RBC), lymphocyte, and monocyte were greater in healthy Caspian salmon. Weight of healthy fishes had positive significant correlation with WBC. However, a negative correlation was seen between length and weight of fungal infected samples and WBC.
Oxidative Stress and Ascorbic Acid Contents in Parmotrema Reticulatum and Parmelia Sulcata Thalli

Abstract Paraquat-treatment of Parmotrema reticulatum and high light levels in the habitat of Pamtelia sulcata can cause oxidative stress, which promotes an increase in ascorbic acid contents of thalli. Ascorbic acid was measured by an HPLC method. In P. reticulatum the increase was more pronounced in summer than in other seasons. In P. sulcata, thalli growing in sun-exposed habitats showed a higher ascorbic acid content than shade-growingspecimens.
Nutritional strategies and their influence on the expression of nutrient sensing G protein-coupled receptors in adipose tissue of dairy cows

The free fatty acid receptor FFA1, FFA2, FFA3 and h ydroxy-carboxylic acid receptor (HCA)2 are G protein-coupled receptors, acting as energy and metabolic sensors. Herein, we characterized the tissue-specific mRNA abundance of genes encoding for these receptors at different stages of lactation. In addition, potenti al effects of supplementation with or without conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) were tested. Tissue s from pluriparous cows (subcutaneous adipose tissue [SAT] and liver) and from primiparou s cows (3 SAT locations, 3 visceral adipose tissues, liver, mammary gland and skeletal muscle) were used from 2 separate trials. In primiparous cows, the mRNA abundance of all receptors (FFA3 was not detectabl e by the applied protocol in muscle and udder) was lowest in muscle ( P < 0.05). With exception of FFA1, gene expression of the investigated receptors was higher in adipose tissue than in the non-adipose tissue. Expression of FFA1 in liver ( P < 0.03), of FFA2 in SAT ( P < 0.01) and HCA2 in SAT (P < 0.01) from pluriparous cows changed during the o bservation period (days -21 to 252 relative to parturition). The correlatio n between mRNA abundance of HCA 2 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (P PARG) and likewise PPARG2 (P < 0.01) in SAT indicates a link between HCA 2 and PPARG. Differences in receptor mRNA abundance between the CLA-fed and the control anim ls were scarce and limited to HCA2 and FFA1 in 1 and 2 time points, respectively (les s hepatic HCA2 mRNA in CLA-fed pluriparous cows and greater FFA1 mRNA abundance in 2 visceral adipose depots in CLAtreated primiparous cows). In view of metabolic cha nges occurring during the different phases of lactation, in particular, the altered con centrations of nonesterified fatty acids and β-hydroxybutyrate acting as receptor ligands, the lo ngitudinal tissue specific characterization provided herein allows a first ins ight into the regulation of these receptors at gene expression level.
Utilization of fat and fatty acids and energetic feed value (AMEN, TMEN) of several fat types for laying hens

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the fat and fatty acid utilization as well as the energetic feed value of palm oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, olive oil, beef tallow, soybean oil, safflower oil and beef tallow-soybean oil blend (50:50) for laying hens. Balance experiments were performed with Lohmann Brown laying hybrids (26.-36. week of age) according to a multi-level assay which consisted of testing a low-fat diet (0.32 % crude fat) alone and of the low-fat diet successively substituted by the fat type under test (50, 100 and 150 g·kg-1). Results of the balance studies were regressively evaluated to yield both apparent and true utilization values of the different fat types. AMEN-contents (MJ·kg-1), apparent utilization (%) of crude fat and total fatty acids of palm oil, coconut oil, peanut oil, olive oil, beef tallow, soybean oil, safflower oil and beef tallow-soybean oil blend (50:50) were: 20.0, 55.4, 67.0; 32.1, 87.5, 89.3; 38.1, 92.7, 96.0; 36.3, 94.2, 96.7; 28.4, 70.7, 75.7; 35.6, 93.8, 95.6, 38.0, 95.7, 97.5 and 32.2, 84.8, 87.8; respectively. True utilization of fat and fatty acids as well as TMEvalues were only slightly higher than the corresponding apparent figures. Endogenous fat losses were estimated to be in a range between 2.1 g·kg-1 and 5.5 g·kg-1 diet corresponding to 136 mg·d-1·W-0.75 and 356 mg·d-1·W-0.75.
Effects of cypermethrin + dimethoate and extracts of Piper guineense and Azadirachta indica on the pests and yield of cowpea, Vigna unguiculata

SUMMARY Field trials were conducted in 1988 at the University of Ibadan to determine the effects of cypermethrin + dimethoate (Sherpa Plus®), the oil extract from ripe seeds of Piper guineense Schum & Thonn and the aqueous extract of ripe seeds of Azadirachta indica A. Juss on the pests and yield of cowpea. Cypermethrin + dimethoate was consistently superior to all other treatments in substantially reducing the population densities of Megalurothrips sjostedti Trybom and of Maruca testulalis Geyer, which are serious pests on flowers and buds, and in reducing the densities of four pod-sucking bugs. Pest population densities were also reduced by foliar sprays with A. indica or P. guineense extracts. Seed yield after treatment with cypermethrin + dimethoate was 0·99 t/ha, more than double the yield from other treatments. A marginal increase in seed yield compared with the control was achieved by foliar spraying with A. indica extract.
Comparative Behavioural Responses of Dryocoetes confusus Swaine, Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby), and Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) to Angiosperm Tree Bark Volatiles

Abstract Synthetic, angiosperm bark-derived volatiles, which elicit antennal responses in a number of coniferophagous bark beetles (Coleoptera: Scolytidae), were tested in groups for their ability to disrupt the pheromone-positive response of the spruce beetle (SB), Dendroctonus rufipennis (Kirby), the western balsam bark beetle (WBBB), Dryocoetes confusus Swaine, and the mountain pine beetle (MPB), Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins, to attractant-baited traps. One complex mixture disrupted WBBB response to pheromone-baited multiple-funnel traps to a level not significantly different than that in unbaited control traps. No group of compounds, including a group of green leaf volatiles, was active in disrupting SB response, a result that contrasts other published findings and that is different from the behavioral responses that are elicited by nonhost volatiles in other species of coniferophagous bark beetles. For the MPB, the two green leaf alcohols, 1-hexanol and (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, were highly disruptive. In addition, combinations of compounds from the group consisting of salicylaldehyde, benzaldehyde, nonanal, guaiacol, benzyl alcohol, and conophthorin acted to augment the disruptive activity of the green leaf alcohols.
Ion distribution and gas exchange of hydroponically grown sunflower plants as affected by salinity

This paper reports the results of a trial carried out on sunflower plants (Helianthus annuus L., Romsun HS90) grown in the greenhouse using inert substrate and two automatic and closed hydroponic systems: one of them hosting the control (C) with plants grown under optimal conditions on Hoagland nutrient solution, the other one, the salt treatment (S), with plants exposed to constant salt stress through adding 150 mM of NaCl to the nutrient solution. Salt supply caused a sharp reduction in leaf area development and dry matter production, especially in the first 4 weeks when leaves showed to be more sensitive than stem and roots. Such a reduction is attributable to the drop in net CO2 assimilation rate, transpiration and stomatal conductance and it was, on average, equal to 30, 26 and 40%, respectively, with respect to the control. The investigated genotype was not able to exclude Cl- and Na+ and considerable amounts accumulated in leaves, stem and roots. Concentration increased in leaves in the basipetal direction. Though sunflower has an efficient endogenous adaptation system by which it redistributes ions in the whole plant, with greater accumulation in older leaves, growth inhibition could be attributed to specific ion toxicity effects, and of chlorine in particular, on metabolic processes and thus on photosynthesis.
Cumulative effect of the North Atlantic Oscillation on age-class abundance of albacore (Thunnus alalunga)

Summary The aim of this study was to look into possible relationships between climate and the inter-annual variability of albacore (Thunnus alalunga) catch rates by age class observed during a recreational fishery tournament at the spawning grounds of S’Estanyol (Balearic Islands, Spain) in the years 2004–2009. The mean capture per unit effort (CPUE) was significantly higher when the mean of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) experienced by the albacore in winter and spring of its life history (NAOlife) was negative than when the NAOlife was positive. A statistically significant negative relationship was obtained between NAOlife and the probability of a CPUE value for an age class and year being higher than the average CPUE for all the cohorts in that age class. The results suggest that local abundance of albacore in a spawning grounds could be related to environmental factors dependent on the NAO and that there may be a cohort-age effect. It is hypothesized that factors dependent on the NAO, such as the abundance variation of small pelagic fishes as a response to the NAO variability, could have a cumulative effect over the good biological condition (fitness) of a long-living fish predator such as the albacore.
Factors affecting behavioural disturbances in race-horses

The aim of the present study was to identify relations between stereotyped behaviours (cribbing, weaving and box-walking) and wood-chewing in thoroughbred flat-racing horses (TB) and standardbred trotters and the different management, feeding and training factors to which these horses are exposed. This was obtained by inquiries to all the professional trainers of TB and trottinghorses used for racing in Sweden. The usable response rates were 61% for trotters and 72% for TB representing 4597 trotters from 234 stables and 644 TB from 38 stables. A small field study was carried out to control the validity of the main study which gave results similar to those in the main study. There was a large difference between the two horse categories in the occurrence of behavioural disturbances. The TB had significantly more stereotypies than the trotters (P < 0·001) but there were no differences in the occurrence of wood-chewing. There were several differences in external factors between the horse categories, e.g. trotters had more opportunities for social contacts with other horses, they also had more free time outside the stable and they were trained a shorter time per week than the TB. The TB were given larger amounts of concentrate than the trotters. Wood-chewing within each horse category was explained by the amount of roughage (P < 0·05 in trotters and P < 0·001 in TB) together with other factors. Stereotypies in the TB were explained by: amount of concentrate (positive relation), number of horses per trainer (positive relation) and amount of roughage (negative relation).
Defoliation‐induced changes in carbon allocation and root soluble carbon concentration in field‐grown Lolium perenne plants: do they affect carbon availability, microbes and animal trophic groups in soil?

Summary 1It is hypothesized that defoliation-induced changes in plant carbon allocation and root soluble C concentration modify rhizosphere C availability and, further, the abundance and activity of soil microbes and their grazers. To test this hypothesis, field-grown Lolium perenne swards were defoliated twice during their second growing season at two nitrogen availabilities (added N or no added N). Plant, soil and microbial attributes were measured 2 and 4 days after the last defoliation, and nematode abundance was measured 6 days after the last defoliation. 2Defoliation decreased shoot production in plots where N was added, but had no significant effect in plots where N was not added. Root biomass and the ratio of root mass to shoot production were not affected. 3Defoliation increased root soluble C concentration by 26% at the first harvest (2 days after defoliation) and by 18% at the second harvest (4 days after defoliation). Leaf N concentration was 27% lower in defoliated than in non-defoliated swards at the first harvest, while that of stems was 14% higher in defoliated swards at both harvests, and that of roots was not affected. Defoliation increased root C : N ratio, decreased stem C : N ratio, and did not have a statistically significant effect on leaf C : N ratio. 4Soil attributes (soil soluble C concentration and soil C and N concentrations) were not affected by defoliation. Similarly, microbial attributes such as microbial C and N content, bacterial abundance in rhizosphere soil, and diversity of C sources utilized by the rhizosphere microbial community, did not differ between defoliated and non-defoliated swards. 5Among nematode trophic groups, defoliation reduced the abundance of fungivorous and herbivorous nematodes by 70 and 47%, respectively, but did not affect the abundance of bacterivorous, omnivorous and predatory nematodes. 6Although defoliation altered plant C allocation and root soluble C concentration, these changes did not influence C availability, soil microbial growth or the abundance of bacteria-feeding nematodes in the plant rhizosphere. Instead, the effects on root- and fungus-feeding nematodes suggest that the effects of defoliation on soil communities were propagated not through the effects of root-released C on bacteria and bacterial grazers, but through effects of root quality on root-feeders and possibly through effects of mycorrhizal fungi on fungus-feeders.
Performance characterization of a new CZT-based preclinical SPECT system: a comparative study of different collimators

Triumph X-SPECT is a newly released CZT-based preclinical small-animal SPECT system with interchangeable collimators. The purpose of this work was to evaluate and systematically compare the imaging performances of three different collimators in the CZT-based preclinical small-animal system: a single-pinhole collimator (SPH), a multi-pinhole collimator (MPH) and a parallel-hole collimator. We measured the spatial resolutions and sensitivities of the three collimators with 99mTc sources, considering three distinct energy window widths (5, 10, and 20%), and used the NEMA NU4-2008 Image Quality phantom to test the imaging performance of the three collimators in terms of uniformity and spill-over ratio (SOR) for each energy window. With a 10% energy window width at a radius of rotation (ROR) of 30 mm, the system resolution of the SPH, MPH and parallel-hole collimators was 0.715, 0.855 and 3.270 mm FWHM, respectively. For the same energy window, the sensitivity of the system with SPH, MPH and parallel-hole collimators was 32.860, 152.514 and 49.205 counts/sec/MBq at a 100 mm source-to-detector distance and 6.790, 33.376 and 49.038 counts/sec/MBq at a 130 mm source-to-detector distance, respectively. The image noise and SORair for the three collimators were 20.137, 12.278 and 11.232 (%STDunif) and 0.106, 0.140 and 0.161, respectively. Overall, the results show that the SPH had better spatial resolution than the other collimators. The MPH had the highest sensitivity at 100 mm source-to-collimator distance, and the parallel-hole collimator had the highest sensitivity at 130 mm-source-to-detector distance. Therefore, the proper collimator for Triumph X-SPECT system must be determined by the task. These results provide valuable reference data and insight into the imaging performance of various collimators in CZT-based preclinical small-animal SPECT.
Degradabilidade in situ da matéria seca, da proteína bruta e da fibra de alguns alimentos

O objetivo deste trabalho foi determinar os parâmetros cineticos da degradacao, in situ, da materia seca, da proteina bruta e da fibra em detergente neutro das silagens de milho e de capim-elefante, do feno de capim-Tifton 85 e do farelo de soja. Foram utilizados tres bovinos adultos, fistulados no rumen, com peso vivo medio de 400 kg. Os alimentos foram pesados em sacos de nailon, incubados todos de uma vez e retirados nos tempos 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, 48 e 72 horas, apos a incubacao dos volumosos, e 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24 e 48 horas, apos incubacao do farelo de soja. Os residuos dos sacos foram analisados quanto ao conteudo de materia seca, proteina bruta e fibra em detergente neutro. A materia seca e a proteina bruta do farelo de soja apresentaram potencial de degradacao elevado, assim como a proteina bruta da silagem de milho. Destacou-se a elevada fracao nao-degradavel da fibra em detergente neutro do feno de capim-Tifton 85 e, portanto, sua baixa degradabilidade potencial da materia seca. O teor de fibra em detergente neutro e suas caracteristicas cineticas exercem acentuado efeito sobre a digestao dos alimentos.
Prevalence of Plasmid Borne Ampc Gene in Multi- DrugResistant Freshwater and Soil Bacteria

Ampicillin resistant E.coli, Klebsiella, Salmonella, Proteus, Bacillus, Chromobacterium, Vibrioand Pseudomonas species were isolated from water and soil samples from Kothamangalam area. All of the isolates were multidrug resistant showing resistance against 3 to 9 of the antibiotics tested.Vancomycin resistancewas most common with beta lactam resistance. Klebsiella was the most abundant isolate showing maximum resistance. The presence of ampC in plasmid was determined by PCR amplification with ampC specific primers. It was concluded that all the isolates possessed plasmid mediated ampicillin resistance.
Scaling of insect metabolic rate is inconsistent with the nutrient supply network model

Summary 1The nutrient supply network model of the metabolic theory of ecology predicts that metabolic rate scales as mass0·75 at all hierarchical levels. 2An alternative, cell size, model suggests that the scaling of metabolic rate is a by-product of the way in which body size changes, by cell size or number, or some combination thereof. It predicts a scaling exponent of mass0·75 at the widest interspecific level, but values of mass0·67−1·0 for lower taxonomic groups or within species. 3Here these predictions are tested in insects using 391 species for the interspecific analysis, and the size-polymorphic workers of eight ant species at the intraspecific level. In the latter, the contribution of ommatidium size and number to variation in body length, which is closely related to eye size, is used to assess the relative contributions of changes in cell size and number to variation in body size. 4Before controlling for phylogeny, metabolic rate scaled interspecifically as mass0·82. Following phylogenetic correction, metabolic rate scaled as mass0·75. 5By contrast, the intraspecific scaling exponents varied from 0·67 to 1·0. Moreover, in the species where metabolic rate scaled as mass1·0, cell size did not contribute significantly to models of body size variation, only cell number was significant. Where the scaling exponent was < 1·0, cell size played an increasingly important role in accounting for size variation. 6Data for one of the largest groups of organisms on earth are therefore inconsistent with the nutrient supply network model, but provide support for the cell size alternative.
Growth, Partitioning, and Nutrient and Carbohydrate Concentration of Petunia ×hybrida Vilm. Are Influenced by Altering Light, CO2, and Fertility

Fuel prices have fluctuated wildly in the last several years, and faced with unpredictable or rising fuel costs, growers often lower temperature set points to decrease fuel use. However, plant growth and development are influenced by lower temperatures and may actually cause increases in fuel use as a result of longer production times. Alternative strategies to efficient crop production are needed. Fertility, light, and CO2 are other environmental factors that can be manipulated within a greenhouse but how all three interact together on growth and development are surprisingly not well known. Petunia xhybrida Vilm. were grown in controlled environments in a 2 x 2 x 2 factorial study investigating how light, fertility, and CO2 influence growth and development, including shoot partitioning, nutrient uptake, and carbohydrate concentration. Generally, light enhanced flowering, both mass and fraction of total biomass, whereas increased fertility was detrimental to the proportion of biomass allocated to flowers. The influence of CO2 was complex with high CO2 suppressing flowering and enhancing leaf growth, but only midway through the 7-week experiment. Carbohydrate concentration remained high in elevated CO2, even when light and fertility were not limiting. This suggests a sink limitation, so even in high light and fertility, crop response to enhanced CO2 was low. Although CO2 had no size effect late in growth, CO2 suppressed nutrient concentrations. Together, these data suggest strategies that growers may have in controlling their crop growth and development and indicate that enhanced growth (leaf and steam mass) may be at the detriment of development (flowering mass and allocation).
An Electron-microscopic Demonstration of an Acidic Polysaccharide Involved in the Adhesion of a Marine Bacterium to Solid Surfaces

Summary: Staining a marine bacterium with Ruthenium Red and Alcian Blue demonstrated an extracellular, compact acidic polysaccharide layer, which was involved in bacterial adhesion to surfaces. The adhesive substance was present on suspended bacteria and appeared to assist adhesion when they were forced into contact with a suitable surface. Bacteria, which had attached to a surface naturally, produced a secondary fibrous acidic polysaccharide, which probably developed from the primary polysaccharide, and could eventually replace it. A high pH in the growth medium almost totally prevented the appearance of primary polysaccharide in preparations of naturally attached bacteria, which were surrounded by the reticular secondary polysaccharide, and adhesion was not impaired. In contrast to naturally attached bacteria, those forcibly attached were surrounded by primary polysaccharide. High temperature lowered the number of bacteria attached, relative to culture density, but did not affect the appearance of the adhesive substance.