Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Genetics of Plant Restoration

populations. G enetic guidelines for the restoration of vegetation and the reintroduction of species, especially those involving rare plants, have been the subject of much debate in recent years. Some of the questions stewardship professionals are facing are: When reintroducing a plant, should one always use a local seed source? What if there are no local populations with adequate genetic diversity? Might this lead to inbreeding depression or reproductive failure ? On the other hand, if one attempts to maximize genetic diversity in the reintroduced population by using propagules from many sources, might this lead to outbreeding depression? At what point should one consider augmenting a population with non-local genotypes? Perhaps most important, how does the practitioner identify species that may be at special risk, and how can he or she deal with them in a practical way? In an attempt to answer some of these questions and promote scientifically-based stewardship of natural resources, a symposium titled "Plant Population Genetics: Bridging the Gap Between Research and Practice" was held at the Chicago Botanic Garden in October 1997. The symposium was intended to provide an overview of current research in the field of plant population genetics including inbreeding and outbreeding depression, the relationship between reproductive biology and population genetics, and techniques for measuring genetic diversity. The symposium also focused on the role of genetics in restoration and rare-plant reintroduction projects. The invited speakers were Donald Waller, Mary Jo Godt, Barbara Schaal, Jeffrey Karron, Michele Dudash, Laura Galloway, Jim Reinartz, Marlin Bowles, and Larry Stritch. Many of the speakers discussed fitness declines associated with inbreeding, a common phenomenon in small populations, including natural, ex situ nursery, and reintroduced populations.
B-CELL EPITOPE PREDICTION of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Ag85A ANTIGEN

Tuberculosis (TB) infection is one of the major public health problems in developing country including Indonesia. The endemic of TB infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis became worse because of the multidrug-resistant TB (MDRTB). M. tuberculosis had special feature which is its cell wall or envelope that consists of complex lipids, lipoglycans and peptidoglycans (Forrelad, 2013). The cell wall consisted of two layers, the inner and the outer. The inner consisted of peptidoglycan sacculus veiled by mycolylarabinogalactan polysaccharide layer. The outer envelope consisted of trehalose 6,6′- dimycolate (TDM; cord factor) which was synthesized by fibronectin binding protein (fbp)/ antigen 85 (Ag85) complex (Elamin, 2011). The Ag85 complex was a 30–32 kDa protein consisting of three proteins (Ag85A, Ag85B, and Ag85C). It had several functions, including enzymatic mycolyl-transferase activity for coupling of mycolic acids to cell wall arabinogalactan, cord factor biogenesis (trehalose-dimycolate), and had capacity to bind to fibronectin and elastin of the extracellular matrix proteins (Huygen, 2014). This protein were encoded by three paralogous genes located in different regions of the bacterial genome (D’Souza, 2003). The Ag85 complex was the major secreted protein of M. tuberculosis cell culture besides of its association with bacterial surface. It had essential role in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis. The ability of this protein to bind fibronectin promoted M. tuberculosis adhesion to the mucosal surface, thus facilitating the bacteria to entry into the host cell. However, the main role of it to the virulence of M. tuberculosis was the ability to synthesis of cell wall lipids (Forrelad, 2013). Ag85A (fbpA) was part of the antigen 85 complex. It had several functions including as the triacylglycerol synthase and might have the key role in stability of cell wall and storage compounds biosynthetic for the survival of M. tuberculosis during the dormant state (Elamin, 2011). Belisle et al. (1997) studied the role of Fpb proteins in the virulence of mycobacteria using M. tuberculosis H37Rv fbpA mutant and suggest that the Ag85A (fbpA) would be essential in the virulence of M. tuberculosis. The study by Elamin et al (2011) had the same result that Ag85A might be the key player for formation of lipid storage bodies and thus also essential for the establishment and maintenance of a persistent tuberculosis infection. Ag85A and Ag85B are among the most promising tuberculosis vaccine candidates because their ability to induces T-cell response and production of IFN-γ (Huygen, 2014). The T-cells epitopes of the Ag85A have been identified. (Ivanyi, 2014). The Bcell epitope of Ag85A have rarely investigated. Thus, this study is aimed to predict the B-cell epitope of Ag85A. The result of this study will be useful for investigation of the immunogenicity and antigenicity of Ag85A antigen.
Cuscuta reflexa as a Rich Source of Bioactive Phenolic Compounds

ABSTRACT Free and bound phenolic acids in flowers and stems of Cuscuta reflexa were extracted by sonication using two extraction procedures and analyzed by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with a photodiode array detector (RP-HPLC-DAD). The HPLC profiling revealed the presence of 16 phenolic compounds including 13 phenolic acids and 3 aldehyde derivatives, possessing a greater fraction of bound phenolic acids than free ones. The results from both procedures revealed that caffeic and p-coumaric acids were the dominant constituents in both flowers and the stem of the plant. Five phenolic acids, i.e., gallic, gentisic, 2,4,6-trihydoxybenzoic acid (THBA), β-resorcinolic, and vanillic acids were identified only as bound phenolic acids, while the others were present in both forms. The radical scavenging potential and total phenolics content were greater in the stem than flowers, while total flavonoids and tannins were more prominent in flowers.
The Sensory Evaluation of Food Products Made with Varying Levels of Sucrose and Fructose and of Threshold Measurements of Individuals with Diabetes Mellitus

The Sensory Evaluation of Food Products Made with Varying Levels of Sucrose and Fructose and of Threshold Measurements of Individuals with Diabetes Mellitus by Sherrie Lynn Hardy, Master of Science Utah State University, 1978 Major Professor: Charlotte P. Brennand, M.S. Department: Nutrition and Food Sciences vii The relative sweetness, flavor, texture and overall acceptance of sucrose and fructose was determined at various sugar levels in sugar cookies, white cake, vanilla pudding and lemonade. Because of the reported increased sweetness of fructose and its increased tolerance in individuals with diabetes mellitus, the study was designed to investigate the possibility of fructose as an alternative sweetener. Taste panel members were used to evaluate the products. All products were served in duplicate and only data from those judges who had sampled both replications were used for the statistical analysis. Each product was prepared at 100%, 50% and 25% of the specified recipe quantity, using three different sugars: sucrose, fructose equal to sucrose by weight and fructose equal to sucrose by volume. A second objective of this study was to determine if quantities less than suggested in traditional recipes for either sugar could be used without damaging product acceptability. The results of this study indicated that sucrose was both preferred and considered sweeter than fructose in sugar cookies, viii however; the reverse held true in lemonade. Based on the results of this study the author does not recommend that individuals substitute fructose for sucrose. In addition to panels comparing sucrose and fructose in baked products, the difference in diabetic and nondiabetic taste sensitivity was also evaluated. Detection and recognition thresholds were determined for diabetic and nondiabetic youth (19-15 yrs.) and adults (16 yrs. and older) for sweet, sour, salty and bitter taste stimuli. Diabetics showed a lower sensitivity, especially in older individuals, with the exception of sour stimuli. As previously reported, detection thresholds were lower than recognition thresholds. The youth groups were better able to detect the presence of stimuli at lower levels than the adult groups, however, they were not as good at recognizing the stimuli.
Functional membrane diVusion of G-protein coupled receptors

G-protein-coupled receptor function involves interactions between the receptor, G-proteins and eVectors in the cell plasma membrane. The main biochemical pro- cesses have been individually identiWed but the mecha- nisms governing the successive protein-protein interactions of this complex multi-molecular machinery have yet to be established. We discuss advances in understanding the functional dynamics of the receptor resulting from diVusion measurements, and in the context of the plasma membrane organization.
Effect of Parkia Biglobosa (JACQ) G. Don. Pod Extracts on its Seed Germination and Seedling Development.

The pod extracts at different concentrations influenced the seed germination and seedling vegetative growth of twenty-six different Parkiabiglobosa(JACQ) G. Don Samples. Aqueous Parkia pod extracts of various concentrations (5, 10, 15 and 20g in 100ml of water) were used for the planting of the Parkia seeds and water as control. Significant (at p=0.05) reduction was observed in concentration of 20g of Parkia pod. The seed germination, epicotyl and hypocotyl lengths of the seedlings of the different Parkia trees exhibited varying responses to the extracts at various concentrations among the twenty-six Parkia biglobosa tree seeds used for the germination study within the three weeks of the experiment. The retardation in the seedlings vegetative growth was suspected to influence by the allelopathic components in the pod extracts. The varied responses of the Parkia seedlings to these extract concentrations were assumed to be either from the pod used which were selected from all the tree samples or that the seedlings were sensitive to an allelophatic chemicals of their own pod extracts or to other pods extracts.
Impacts of on farm management factors on herd fertility of commercial beef breeding herds in Northern Ireland

SUMMARY To assess the impact of farm management on herd fertility, a survey of 105 beef farms in Northern Ireland was conducted to establish the relationship between management variables and fertility. Each herd's average calving interval (CI) and the proportion of cows with a CI > 450 days (extended calving interval, ECI) was calculated to establish herd fertility. The relationship between each response variable (CI and proportion ECI) and each explanatory variable (respondents’ answers to questionnaire) was examined using univariate linear regression analyses. All response variables found to be associated with the explanatory variables were modelled against each group in turn using a fully automated multivariate stepwise regression algorithm employing the method of forward selection with backward elimination. The optimum 365-day CI and a proportion of 0 cows per hundred calved ECI targets were not widely attained in the current study. The distribution of CI and proportion ECI in the current study suggests more realistic targets would be a 379-day CI and 5 cows per hundred calved with ECI in commercial beef breeding herds. Six management factors were found to be associated with herd fertility: herd vaccination, bull selection, fertility management, breeding female management, perception of extension service (rural education provided by the government) and record keeping. It was found that respondents who vaccinated cows had a reduction of 5 cows per hundred calved in the proportion of cows with ECI, and as the number of vaccines administered to a cow increased, the CI decreased. Regular vaccination of breeding bulls was associated with a 9-day reduction in CI. Bull selection strategy had several associations with herd fertility; most notable was that respondents who used visual selection rather than estimated breeding values (EBVs) to select bulls were found to have a 15-day longer CI and 7 cows per hundred calved higher proportion of cows with ECI. For each 0·01 increase in the proportion of cows served by artificial insemination, CI increased by 0·16 days. Respondents who rated their beef breeding herd fertility as ‘very good’ had lower ECI and CI than those who rated beef breeding herd fertility as poor or satisfactory. Condition scoring of cows at weaning lowered ECI by 5 cows per hundred calved. Those who perceived the extension service to be very useful had the lowest CI and lowest ECI. Respondents who did not keep a record of CI to assess herd fertility had an 11-day longer CI and 6 cows per hundred calved higher proportion ECI than those who did not. In conclusion, the survey found a number of important variables linked to improved fertility including selecting sires based on EBVs and using a robust vaccination programme.
Diffuse Axonal Injury: A Devastating Pathology

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) also known as intracranial injury is the result of a lesion within the brain due to an external force. Common forms of TBI result from falls, vio-lence, and/or vehicle crashes; the classification of this pathology is dependent on the severity of the lesion as well as the mechanism of trauma to the head. One of the most common onsets of traumatic brain injuries result from mild to severe lesions to the white matter tracts of the brain called diffuse axonal injury (DAI); however, additional forms of TBI’s can present in non-penetrating forms. Penetrating forms of TBI’s such as trauma to the head via a foreign object do also contribute to the many millions of TBI cases per year, but we will not discuss these traumatic injuries as in depth within this chapter. The onset of diffuse axonal injury will vary on a per-patient basis from mild to severe, based on a standardized neurological examination rated on the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), which indicates the severity of brain damage present. While there is a spectrum of severity for DAI patients, a concussion is typically observed within a larger majority of patients in addition to other overwhelming trauma.
Nature and Mechanisms of Cytoplasmic Male Sterility in Plants: a Review1

Cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) has been described in many of our cultivated crops and is commercially useful in the production of hybrids when pollen vectors will provide the necessary economic levels of seed production. In the more common type, the sporophytic, the development of the microspore is affected by the abnormal growth of the tapetum or mistiming of callose formation and, in corn at least, the mitochondrial complex is involved. In the gametophytic system the factor causing abortion of the pollen apparently resides in the microspore rather than in its environment. Other systems which suggest plasmid-like inclusions associated with CMS have been reported. Transfer to the cytosterile mechanism by cell fusion has been accomplished, but wider application of this technique waits on methods for development of plants from naked protoplasts In more species.
Comparison of bacterial populations in bedding material, on teat ends, and in milk of cows housed in compost bedded pack barns

The objective of this study was to observe relationships among somatic cell count (SCC) and bacteria counts in milk, on teat ends of lactating cows, and in compost samples from the aerated layer of the compost bedded pack. Twenty-nine lactating cows were used in this study. Clinically mastitis cows were not selected for the trial. The correlation between total bacteria count (TBC) and Streptococcus spp. of teat end and hygiene score was (r = 0.49) and (0.44, P = 0.01), respectively. In addition, there was a positive correlation (0.40, P = 0.03) between TBC on teat ends and somatic cell score. When analysing bacterial populations on teat ends and in milk, there was a positive correlation (0.39, P = 0.03) between Escherichia coli at the teat end and coliform counts in milk and also a positive correlation (0.38, P = 0.04) between coliform counts at the teat end and milk. Furthermore, Streptococcus spp. counts on teat end were positively correlated (0.38, P = 0.04) with TBC in milk. Although correlations were observed between hygiene score and SCC with bacterial population, all correlations were moderate. Therefore, hygiene score was not an efficient tool to estimate bacterial populations on teat end and milk.
Principal component analysis of sensory properties of chicken breast muscle supplemented with different feed additives

The objective of the present study was to examine the effect of different dietary supplements (bee pollen, propolis, and probiotic) on sensory quality of chicken breast muscle. The experiment was performed with 180 one day-old Ross 308 broiler chicks of mixed sex. The dietary treatments were as follows: 1. basal diet with no supplementation as control (C); 2. basal diet plus 400 mg bee pollen extract per 1 kg of feed mixture (E1); 3. basal diet plus 400 mg propolis extract per 1 kg of feed mixture (E2); 4. basal diet plus 3.3 g probiotic preparation based on Lactobacillus fermentum added to drinking water (E3). Sensory properties of chicken breast muscle were assessed by a five-member panel that rated the meat for aroma, taste, juiciness, tenderness and overall acceptability. The ANOVA results for each attribute showed that at least one mean score for any group differs significantly ( p ≤0.05). Subsequent Tukey's HSD revealed that only C group had significantly higher mean score ( p ≤0.05) for each attribute compared with E2 group. As regards the E1 and E3 groups, there were not significant differences ( p >0.05) in aroma, taste and tenderness when compared to C group, with the significantly lowest juiciness value ( p ≤0.05) found in E3 group and significantly lower values of overall acceptability in both groups ( p ≤0.05). In addition, it is noteworthy that control group received the highest raking scores for each sensory attribute, i.e. the supplements did not influence positively the sensory quality of chicken breast meat. Principal component analysis (PCA) of the sensory data showed that the first 3 principal components (PCs) explained 69.82% of the total variation in 5 variables. Visualisation of extracted PCs has shown that groups were very well represented, with E2 group clearly distinguished from the others. Normal 0 21 false false false SK X-NONE X-NONE
Neurochemistry of Neurochemicals: Messengers of Brain Functions

Neurochemistry refers to the chemical processes that occur in the brain and nervous system. This section of study determines how neurochemicals influence the network of neural operation. The brain transfers numerous chemical information via neurons to communicate. The main role of neurochemistry activities takes place in the brain, which allows it to perform numerous actions. Foundation of brain is a little bit different from man to man and several things can play a role in the levels of various neurotransmitters in the brain. It is supposed that differences in brain chemistry may accountable for a variety of behavioral disorders. A particular cell called neurons is the basis of brain. Neurotransmitters have the capability that it can trigger when ordered to do so, along with receptors for specific neurotransmitters. By sending messages with neurotransmitters to signal various cell activities, brain perform its functions. Neurotransmitter spreads chemical messages from neuron to neuron to broadcast certain work and thus it works. A neuron may accept many chemical messages, both positive and negative from the other neurons contiguous it. They are accountable to get the neuron to reply in different ways, or they may work combine to produce a certain effect. Since all of this occurs just within a split second, the neurotransmitter must be cleared away rapidly so that the same receptors can be activated again and again. Psychoactive drugs work by briefly influencing a man's neurochemistry, which thusly causes changes in a man's mind-set, cognition, perception and behavior. Neuropeptides are endogenous protein molecules that are utilized for neuronal signaling. These molecules exert more prolonged and diverse effects on behavior than neurotransmitters. Therefore the objective of this appraisal is to show study of the brainâ€™s chemical makeup especially neurotransmitters, psychopharmaceuticals, neuropeptides and their activities to nervous tissue.
Analyse génétique et morphologique de l’isolement reproductif partiel dans la zone d'hybridation de Solea senegalensis et Solea aegyptiaca en Tunisie

Les processus d’hybridation et d’introgression occupent une place importante dans l’etude du mecanisme de speciation, car ils permettent d’analyser les consequences evolutives des echanges genetiques entre especes partiellement isolees. Ici, nous nous sommes interesses a la zone d’hybridation entre les soles S. senegalensis et S. aegyptiaca au niveau des cotes nord-tunisiennes, pour comprendre l’origine de leur diversification. Nous avons premierement caracterise les consequences phenotypiques de l’hybridation sur la variabilite morphologique. Nos resultats montrent que si l’introgression provoque la convergence de certains caracteres morphologiques, elle est en revanche a l’origine de transgressions et de distorsions morphologiques sur d’autres traits, pouvant refleter une condition plus faible des genotypes recombinants. Les phenomenes d’incompatibilite genetique associes a une eventuelle contre-selection des hybrides sont supposes creer une permeabilite differentielle du genome face au flux genique entre especes. Pour etudier cette semi-permeabilite a l’echelle du genome, nous avons etabli un jeu de donnees de polymorphisme par la methode RAD-seq. Ceci nous a permis de genotyper 200 individus pour 10 756 marqueurs SNP, qui nous ont permis de caracteriser les flux geniques entre ces deux especes a travers trois approches complementaires. La premiere est basee sur une reconstitution demographique de l’histoire des echanges genetiques qui integre les effets de la semi-permeabilite des genomes. La seconde approche se focalise sur l’evolution spatiale des frequences alleliques a travers la zone d’hybridation. La derniere methode, dite des clines genomiques, compare le comportement de chaque locus au patron d’introgression moyen attendu sous l’hypothese de neutralite. Nos resultats indiquent que S. senegalensis et S. aegyptiaca ont subi une divergence ancienne en allopatrie suivie d’un contact secondaire recent. Seule une faible proportion du genome parvient a introgresser de maniere asymetrique dans la zone hybride qui en resulte, selon une grande diversite de patrons d’introgression dont nous discutons les origines possibles.
Effect of Heat Stress on Body Weight Gain, Heterophile-Lymphocite Ratio and Body Temperature in Broiler

Increasing in ambient temperature inside the cage could lead to heat stress in broilers. This research was conducted to find out effects of heat stress on body weight gain, heterophile-lymphocite ratio and body temperature in chicken broiler. Twenty broilers aged 20 days (strain Cobb) were randomly divided into 2 groups. The first group was treated with no heat stress, the second one was caged in 33±1 0 C temperature for 4 hours per day for 14 days. The results indicated that heat stress reduced body weight gain, increased body temperature, and changed behavior, but no effect on feed conversion ratio (FCR) and heterophile-lymphocyte ratio. It suggested that the heat stress caused detrimental effects on broiler chicken.