Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Biochemical and Antigenic Properties of the First Isolates of Infectious Hematopoietic Necrosis Virus from Salmonid Fish in Europe

Abstract The first isolates of infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV) recovered from rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss (formerly Salmo gairdneri) in France and Italy were compared to six representative strains from North America by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of virion polypeptides and neutralization by monoclonal antibodies (MAbs). All three IHNV isolates from Europe had similar polypeptide profiles when compared by SDS-PAGE. An analysis of the antigenic relatedness of the European isolates to representative strains from North America showed that they were clearly different from viruses obtained from salmonids in California. The RB/B5 MAb, which was developed against virus isolated from adult steelhead (anadromous rainbow trout) reared in central Oregon, neutralized all isolates examined. The 193–110/B4 MAb, developed against IHNV isolated from infected yearling rainbow trout in southern Idaho, neutralized all isolates tested except those from California.
A new model for ecological networks using species‐level traits

Recent studies on plant–pollinator networks have focused on explaining network structure through linkage rules, including spatio‐temporal overlap, and phenotypic trait or phylogenetic signal complementarity. Few studies, however, have quantified the extent to which functional traits affect the probability of plants and pollinators interacting with each other. Dirichlet‐multinomial (DM) regression is a consumer‐resource model for the interaction probabilities in a mutualistic network. This flexible model accommodates network heterogeneity through random effects and overdispersion and can estimate the contribution of species‐level traits to plant–pollinator interactions. Using artificial networks based on linkage rules and neutrality, we evaluate the performance of DM regression and explore the model's parameter space. We also analyse an empirical network in which the interaction probabilities are modelled by species characteristics. Study results show that such random effects models can provide good fits to observed data. The characteristics pollinators seek in plant species may be better anticipated if species interactions are modelled by the functional traits that drive them.
Antioxidants and dairy production: the example of flax

This manuscript reports on the main problems decreasing productivity of dairy cows (e.g. fatty liver syndrome and poor fertility) and how antioxidants could enhance it. High producing dairy cows are prone to oxidative stress, and the situation can be exacerbated under certain environmental, physiological, and dietary conditions. Antioxidants have important effects on the expression of genes involved in the antioxidant status, which may enhance animal health and reproduction. Moreover, antioxidants may contribute to decrease the incidence of spontaneous oxidized flavour in milk enriched in polyunsaturated fatty acids. Plant lignans are strong antioxidants and flax is the richest source of plant lignans. Flax lignans are converted in the mammalian lignans enterolactone and enterodiol. The main mammalian lignan in milk is enterolactone and flax lignans are converted in enterolactone mainly under the action of ruminal microbiota. Therefore, ruminal microbiota may be the most important flora to target for plant lignan metabolism in order to increase concentration of mammalian lignan antioxidants in milk of dairy cows. However, more research is required to improve our knowledge on metabolism of other antioxidants in dairy cows and how they can contribute in decreasing milk oxidation.
Climatic Variables as Factors Affecting Diversity and Abundance of Butterflies in Okomu National Park, Edo State, Nigeria

The effect of climatic variables on butterflies diversity and abundance in Okomu National Park, Edo State was investigated from July-November, 2012 using baited traps and butterfly nets. A total of 76 species involving 5 families (Papilionidae, Pieridae, Nymphalidae, Lycaenidae, Hesperidae) were captured and identified. Diversity of butterflies in the three ranges was calculated using Shannon-wiener diversity index and the highest diversity was found in Arakhuan (H=3.618) and the lowest in Igwuowan range (H=2.997). The relationship between physical factors and individuals, total species and number of butterflies’ per family was determined. Temperature was positively significantly correlated with the total number of individuals (r s 0.418, p=0.05) and species (r s =0.444, p=0.0001) while Rainfall was negatively correlated with the total number of individuals (r s =-0.561, p=0.0044) and species (r s =-0.001, p=0.01), (p<0.05). The total abundance of Hesperidae(r s =0.229, p=0.0010) and Papilionidae(r s =0.498, p=0.02) increased with humidity, Pieridae(r s =-0.465, p=0.02) abundance decreased with rainfall while that of the Nymphalidae(r s =0.384, p=0.04) increased with temperature.
Protomarattia, A New Genus of Marattiaceae, and Archangiopteris

The Marattiaceae constitute a small family which may be regarded as the survivor of a much larger group. At present only 6 genera are known: Archangiopteris,I Macroglossum, Angiopteris, Marattia, Christensenia (Kaulfussia), and Danaea. A rchangiopteris was first discovered by A. HENRY in Yunnan and was published in i899 by CHtRIST and GIESENHAGEN as a genus connecting Angiopteris with Danaea. The type of the genus A. Henryi is shown to be one of the most primitive forms of Marattiaceae by its simply pinnate leaves and simple stelar structure.3 According to GWYNNE-VAUGHAN,4 the mature stem of Archangiopteris retains a stage which is rapidly passed through by the young plants of Angiopteris and other genera. The same seems to hold true as to the form of the leaves. As far as I have observed Angiopteris in its habitat in Formosa, the first 2 or 3 leaves from a young stock usually are simply pinnate, but die before they reach maturity and become fertile. The pinnae of these first leaves are much larger than of those that follow, and closely resemble those of Archangiopteris in shape and size. We may infer, therefore, that Archangiopteris represents the form of a primitive type to which the ancestor of Angiopteris may have belonged. Archangiopteris most closely related to Macroglossum,5 recently established by COPELAND, both in the simply pinnate fronds and
Association of A Myosin Motor with Membrane-Bounded Pigment Granules in Freshwater Shrimp Chromatophores: Evidence from the Nitella Actin-Cable Assay

Abstract We have adapted an actin-myosin motility assay to examine the interactions in vitro between actin cables isolated from the giant internodal cells of the freshwater alga, Nitella, and pigment granules extracted from red ovarian chromatophores of the freshwater palaemonid shrimp, Macrobrachium olfersi. The chromatophore pigment mass consists of large (0.5–1.0-µm diameter) membrane-bounded granules, and small (140-nm diameter), amembranous granules, both structurally continuous with the abundant smooth endoplasmic reticulum. Our previous immunocytochemical studies show a myosin motor to be stably associated with the pigment mass; however, to which granule type or membrane the myosin motor is attached is unclear. Here, we show that sodium vanadate, a myosin ATPase inhibitor, markedly increases the affinity of isolated, large, membrane-bounded granules for Nitella actin cables to which they become permanently attached. This interaction does not occur in granule preparations containing ATP with uninhibited, active myosin without vanadate. We propose that a stable state of elevated affinity is established between the granule-located myosin motor and the Nitella actin cables, resulting from a vanadate-inhibited acto-myosin-ADP complex. This finding provides further evidence for a myosin motor positioned on the surface of the membrane-bounded pigment granules in shrimp ovarian chromatophores.
Trapped in desert springs: phylogeography of Australian desert spring snails

Aim We investigate the phylogeographical history and determine the time‐scale of population divergence of hydrobiid freshwater snails (genus Trochidrobia) inhabiting groundwater springs in the Australian desert. We test the hypothesis that divergence between geographically distinct snail populations occurred simultaneously due to their isolation in hydrologically discrete spring systems, i.e. ‘trapped in desert springs’.
Focus groups show need for diabetes awareness education among African Americans

The UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources Health Promotion Workgroup assessed diabetes awareness among African Americans at risk for the disease. Workgroup members conducted focus group discussions with the target population in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Joaquin, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Stanislaus counties. Although obesity is considered a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, most participants cited poor dietary patterns, rather than body weight, as the most important factor in the high rate of diabetes among African Americans. Food preferences, family pressure and lack of social support were most often mentioned as obstacles to healthful dietary changes. Many felt that not enough information about diabetes was reaching the black community and voiced the need for culturally sensitive education, delivered through community-based channels.
Impacts of a submerged plant (Elodea canadensis) on interactions between roach (Rutilus rutilus) and its invertebrate prey communities in a lake littoral zone

Summary 1. Using 5-m2 field enclosures, we examined the effects of Elodea canadensis on zooplankton communities and on the trophic cascade caused by 4–5 year old (approximately 16 cm) roach. We also tested the hypothesis that roach in Elodea beds use variable food resources as their diet, mainly benthic and epiphytic macroinvertebrates, and feed less efficiently on zooplankton. Switching of the prey preference stabilises the zooplankton community and, in turn, also the fluctuation of algal biomass. The factorial design of the experiment included three levels of Elodea (no-, sparse- and dense-Elodea) and two levels of fish (present and absent). 2. During the 4-week experiment, the total biomass of euplanktonic zooplankton, especially that of the dominant cladoceran Daphnia longispina, decreased with increase in Elodea density. The Daphnia biomass was also reduced by roach in all the Elodea treatments. Thus, Elodea provided neither a favourable habitat nor a good refuge for Daphnia against predation by roach. 3. The electivity of roach for cladocerans was high in all the Elodea treatments. Roach were able to prey on cladocerans in Elodea beds, even when the abundance and size of these prey animals were low. In addition to cladocerans, the diet of roach consisted of macroinvertebrates and detrital/plant material. Although the biomass of macroinvertebrates increased during the experiment in all Elodea treatments, they were relatively unimportant in roach diets regardless of the density of Elodea beds. 4. Euplanktonic zooplankton species other than Daphnia were not affected by Elodea or fish and the treatments had no effects on the total clearance rate of euplanktonic zooplankton. However, the chlorophyll a concentration increased with fish in all the Elodea treatments, suggesting that fish enhanced algal growth through regeneration of nutrients. Thus, our results did not unequivocally show that Elodea hampered the trophic cascade of fish via lowered predation on grazing zooplankton. 5. In treatments with dense Elodea beds (750 g FW m−2), chlorophyll a concentration was always low suggesting that phytoplankton production was controlled by Elodea. Apparently, the top-down control of phytoplankton biomass by zooplankton was facilitated by the macrophytes and operated simultaneously with control of phytoplankton production by Elodea.
Significance of ecology in the development of biocontrol agents against soil‐borne plant pathogens

Approaches to the development of inoculant biocontrol agents (BCAs) of soil‐borne pathogens are discussed. Based on an analysis of the success of Peniophora (Phlebia) gigantea and Agrobacterium radiobacter it is argued that most subsequent attempts to develop inoculant BCAs have failed because the organisms were selected for in vitro antagonism but were ecologically unsuited to the environments where pathogens grow. The reported modes of action of BCAs are reviewed and in some cases reinterpreted. It is argued that antibiosis and some types of mycoparasitism have not been shown to be direct mechanisms of biocontrol in vivo; they might, instead, facilitate competition for substrates or sites as the primary mechanism of control. The ecology of BCAs in general is reviewed, with emphasis on interactions in microsites and the design of appropriate screening strategies. Specific examples are used to illustrate these points.
Scoparia dulcis protects against Trypanosoma brucei-induced immunosuppression in experimentally infected rabbits

The present paper summarizes our findings on the effect of Scoparia dulcis on the population of immune cells during a 28 day experimental Trypanosoma bruceiinfection in rabbits. The result obtained showed that infection resulted in an initial rise in both total white blood cells (WBC) and the absolute number of circulating lymphocytes followed by a progressive decrease in total WBC and all WBC subtypes namely; lymphocytes, monocytes and granulocytes, although the % lymphocytes (lymphocytes expressed as % of total WBC) remained consistently higher than normal throughout the study period. These changes are consistent with the development of trypanosome-induced immunosuppression in their mammalian host. Treatment with S. dulcis at a daily oral dose of 25 mg/Kg body weight significantly reduced the severity of the observed lesions (p < 0.05) when compared with untreated infected animals. Thus the herb demonstrates significant potency in protecting against the parasite induced decrease in the population of immunologically active cells. Key words: Trypanosoma brucei, Immunosuppresion, Scoparia dulcis, rabbit.
The seeing tongue: In-the-mouth electrodes give blind people a feel for vision

B lind since birth, Marie-Laure Martin had always thought that candle flames were big balls of fire. The 39year-old woman couldn't see the flames themselves, but she could sense the candle's aura of heat. Last October, she saw a candle flame for the first time. She was stunned by how small it actually was and how it danced. There's a second marvel here: She saw it all with her tongue. The tongue, an organ of taste and touch, may seem like an unlikely substitute for the eyes. After all, it's usually hidden inside the mouth, insensitive to light, and not connected to optic nerves. However, a growing body of research indicates that the tongue may in fact be the second-best place on the body for receiving visual information from the world and transmitting it to the brain. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are developing this tongue-stimulating system, which translates images detected by a camera into a pattern of electric pulses that trigger touch receptors. The scientists say that volunteers testing the prototype soon lose awareness of on-the-tongue sensations. They then perceive the stimulation as shapes and features in space. Their tongue becomes a surrogate eye. Earlier research had used the skin as a route for images to reach the nervous system. That people can decode nerve pulses as visual information when they come from sources other than the eyes shows how adaptable, or plastic, the brain is, says Wisconsin neuroscientist and physician Paul Bach-y-Rita, one of the device's inventors. "You don't see with the eyes. You see with the brain," he contends. An image, once it reaches an eye's retina, "becomes nerve pulses no different from those from the big toe," he says. To see, people rely on the brain's ability to interpret those signals correctly. With that in mind, he and his colleagues propose that restoring sight is only one of the many trajectories for their research. Restoring stability to those with balance disorders is another. So is bestowing people with brand new senses, such as the capability to use heat to see in the dark. First things first, however, and for the Wisconsin scientists that means restoring lost vision. Swapping the sense of touch for sight is not a new idea. In the 1960s, Bach-y-Rita, his colleagues, and other scientists began developing and testing devices that enable the skin of blind people to pick up visual information. For Bach-y-Rita, the experiments also provided insight into the brain's plasticity. His more general goal has been to find out how well one sense can take the place of another.
Vessel element development in the earlywood of red oak (Quercus rubra)

Earlywood formation was observed in 60-year-old forest-grown red oak trees in southern Michigan. Extreme care in removing samples from the cambial region of the main stem at 1.4 m and 18 m, and from small branches at about 24 m, permitted the following conclusions. First vessel elements were initiated in the second or third xylem derivative radially removed from the previous year's latewood, possibly in overwintering derivatives, simultaneously throughout the bole and branches of the tree, some 2 weeks before bud enlargement. Vessel elements enlarged first in the tangential dimension (to about 200 μ.) within a few days after initiation of differentiation. Enlargement in the radial direction required up to 2 weeks to grow 300 μ, occurring as the entire xylem mother cell zone was displaced outward by cambial growth to either side—tangentially—of the vessel element. The duration of earlywood formation was about 10 weeks, while the duration of shoot elongation was less than 2 weeks. First earlywood vessels we.
Nutrient Composition, Antioxidant Capacity and Natural Products in Livingstone Potato (Plectranthus esculentus)

The nutrients, natural products and antioxidant capacity of flour from Livingstone potato (Plectranthus esculentus) tubers were investigated. The flour contained 8.26 ± 0.20% moisture, 2.58 ± 0.18% ash, 2.60 ± 0.07% dietary fiber, 5.30 ± 0.17% lipid, 7.87 ± 0.04% protein and 76.00 ± 2.33% carbohydrate, but contained low amount of thiamine, riboflavin and niacin. The total flavonoid content of flour was lower (P < 0.05) than its total phenolic content. The antioxidant assay of flour (determined using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical and reducing power assays) indicated its strong antioxidant activity, although lower than that of quercetin. Gas chromatographic mass spectrometric assay of methanol/chloroform extract of flour revealed the presence of 13 compounds, whereas the major compounds in the extract with identified biological properties were 9,12-octadecadienoic (55.31%), 12-methyl-E,E-2,13-octadecadien-1-ol (21.68%), 10-octadecenoic acid methyl ester (2.74%) and 3,5-di-t-butyl phenol (2.34%). Livingstone potato contains strong antioxidant activity and some bioactive compounds that support its biological properties. Practical Applications This paper reveals the bioactive principles/natural products in Livingstone potato that justify its biological properties as used in folklore medicine. By isolating and identifying some compounds with biological activities in this plant, new drugs could be developed from this plant in the future to treat various diseases.
Studies on saponin production in tropical medicinal plants Maesa argentea and Maesa lanceolata

The continuous need for new compounds with important medicinal activities has lead to the identification and characterization of various plant-derived natural products. As a part of this program, we studied the saponin production from two tropical medicinal plants Maesa argentea and M. lanceolata and evaluated several treatments to enhance their saponin production. In this experiment, we present the analyses of saponin production from greenhouse grown plants by means of TLC and HPLC-MS. We observed that the content of saponin from these plants varied depending on organ and physiological age of the plants. In addition, the impact of elicitors on saponin accumulation on in vitro grown plants was analyzed using TLC. The production of saponin was very stable and not affected by treatment with methyl jasmonate, and salicylic acid. In conclusion, Maesa saponins are constitutively produced in plants and the level of these compounds in plants is mainly affected by the developmental or physiological stage.
Notas de ixodologia: V - A propósito da validade de algumas espécies do gênero Amblyomma do continente americano (Acari: Ixodídoe)

a) The species Amblyomma tapiri Tonelli Rondelli, 1937 and Amblyomma finitimum Tonelli Rondelli, 1937 are synonymous with Amblyomma cajennense Fabricius, 1787. Both species are based in differences of size, colour, punctations and form of the dorsal shield, presence or absence of ventral plates, size, form and direction of the spine of coxa IV. Such differences prouved to be only variations frequently observed in large lots or in cultures of Amblyomma cajennense. The revalidation of Koch's species Amblyomma tenellum Koch, 1844 and Amblyomma mixtum Koch, 1844 proposed by TONELLI RONDELLI as also of Amblyomma sculptum Berlese, 1888 and Amblyomma versicolor Nuttal et Warburton, 1908 cannot be accepted by the same reasons. b) Amblyomma beccari Tonelli Rondelli, 1939 and Amblyomma latepunctatum Tonelli Rondelli, 1939 are cospecific with Amblyomma scalpturatum Neumann, 1899 the same being true for Amblyomma myrmecophagium Schulze, 1935 and for Amblyomma brasiliense var. guianense Floch et Abonnenc, 1940, as previously stated. c) Amblyomma tasquei Floch et Abonnenc, 1940 is a good species but synonym with Amblyomma romitii Tonelli Rondelli, 1939 which has priority. d) Amblyomma curruca Schulze, 1936 is a synonym of Amblyomma parvum Aragao, 1908. e) Amblyomma deminutivum Neumann, 1899 represents a variation of Amblyomma dissimile Koch, 1844, a species whose internal spine of coxa IV may be poorly developed or even absent. f) Amblyomma nigrum Tonelli Rondelli, 1939 prouved to be synonym with Amblyomma paccae Aragao, 1911 the type representing a blackish specimen of the later species. g) Amblyomma brimonti Neumann, 1913 is a synonym of Amblyomma humerale Koch, 1844.