Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Emergent effects of ground beetles size diversity on the strength of prey suppression

Determining how multiple predators provide better prey suppression is a key step towards developing conservation biological control strategies. While numerous previous studies have demonstrated that diverse predator assemblages can be more effective in controlling pest populations, others have shown that it is the presence or absence of competitively superior species that is critical to pest biological control (i.e. selection effect). The present study investigated how increasing ground beetle body size diversity increases prey suppression. A mesocosm experiment was conducted to compare invertebrate prey suppression between nine created ground beetle assemblages. Size diversity of these assemblages was manipulated according to three diversity levels: low, medium, and high diversity. Partitioning of the diversity effects revealed that increasing the ground beetle size diversity had no effect on the strength of prey suppression. The absence of an effect of ground beetle size diversity may be because of the absence of resource partitioning among different‐sized ground beetles. The amount and range of prey consumed increased with increasing ground beetle body size. Thus, prey suppression was strongly strengthened by the presence of large ground beetles in the assemblages. The present results suggest that for biological pest control, Agri‐managers should emphasise practices that promote the presence of large carabids. This is not only because promoting the presence of large carabids could be at least as effective as conserving a diverse ground beetle community, but also because large ground beetles are more vulnerable to environmental disturbances and to predation than ground beetles of the other size classes.
A smart all-in-one device to measure vital signs in admitted patients

Background Vital sign measurements in hospitalized patients by nurses are time consuming and prone to operational errors. The Checkme, a smart all-in-one device capable of measuring vital signs, could improve daily patient monitoring by reducing measurement time, inter-observer variability, and incorrect inputs in the Electronic Health Record (EHR). We evaluated the accuracy of self measurements by patient using the Checkme in comparison with gold standard and nurse measurements. Methods and findings This prospective comparative study was conducted at the Internal Medicine ward of an academic hospital in the Netherlands. Fifty non-critically ill patients were enrolled in the study. Time-related measurement sessions were conducted on consecutive patients in a randomized order: vital sign measurement in duplicate by a well-trained investigator (gold standard), a Checkme measurement by the patient, and a routine vital sign measurement by a nurse. In 41 patients (82%), initial calibration of the Checkme was successful and results were eligible for analysis. In total, 69 sessions were conducted for these 41 patients. The temperature results recorded by the patient with the Checkme differed significantly from the gold standard core temperature measurements (mean difference 0.1 ± 0.3). Obtained differences in vital signs and calculated Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) were small and were in range with predefined accepted discrepancies. Conclusions Patient-calculated MEWS using the Checkme, nurse measurements, and gold standard measurements all correlated well, and the small differences observed between modalities would not have affected clinical decision making. Using the Checkme, patients in a general medical ward setting are able to measure their own vital signs easily and accurately by themselves. This could be time saving for nurses and prevent errors due to manually entering data in the EHR.
Assessing the diversity of indigenous chicken from two agro-ecological zones of Côte d'Ivoire using microsatelite markers.

Dans l’objectif d’une gestion durable des ressources genetiques avicoles, une caracterisation moleculaire de l’espece Gallus gallus domesticus a ete entreprise dans deux zones agroecologiques (foret et savane) de Cote d’Ivoire. Elle a porte sur 121 poulets repartis en six ecotypes suivant leur origine geographique. Cette caracterisation a ete realisee a l’aide de 22 marqueurs microsatellites. Les resultats ont montre qu’il existe une grande variabilite genetique intra population ivoirienne caracterisee par un taux eleve d’heterozygotie (Hnb) et d’alleles efficaces. Le taux d’heterozygotie variant de 0,537 a 0,629 est superieur a celui observe dans la population de reference qui lui varie de 0,295 a 0,511. Ces marqueurs polymorphes ont permis de montrer que les ecotypes ivoiriens ne peuvent pas etre separes. Les distances genetiques sont presque nulles (0,000 a 0,035) entre ces ecotypes dues probablement a un important flux genique entre eux. La structuration de la population des poulets traditionnels de Cote d’Ivoire revele une absence de sous-populations et montre plutot une homogeneite entre les ecotypes. Ces resultats indiqueraient l’existence d’une seule race ivoirienne, malgre la grande diversite genetique intra populations observee.
Knowledge and Perception of Pupils on Health and Environmental Risk of Open Defaecation: A case Study in the First Cycle Schools in Eastern and Volta Regions of Ghana

Open defaecation remains major public and environmental health concerns and has attracted global attention in recent time. This study explores the knowledge and perception of pupils on health and environmental risk of open defaecation. Self-reported data were collected from 400 school pupils using questionnaires, focus group discussions and in-depth interview. Results of the study shows high knowledge level (89.8%) among the pupils. Pupils’ knowledge of environmental risks was fairly high (52%). Knowledge of health risks was, however, low among greater number (53%) of the pupils. Open defaecation shows statistical significant association with health risk ( ᵡ 2 =65.062, p=0.002), environmental risk ( ᵡ 2 = 44.961, p=0.006) and pupils level of perception of environmental risk ( ᵡ 2 = 36.887, p=0.045). The Ministry of Education must introduce courses into the school curriculum to help pupils acquire adequate knowledge on health and environmental consequences of open defaecation. Keywords: Knowledge, perception, health & environmental risks, open defaecation, first cycle school pupils, Eastern, Volta, Ghana.
Comparative Analysis of Happiness and Unhappiness using Topic Modeling: Korea, U.S., U.K., and Brazil

Recently, ‘happiness’ has become a major issue of national level, exceeding the matter of personal issue. Especially, Korea has actually increased its GDP by focusing on the economic growth for decades, and now it has achieved the economic/ technical development as an IT power. However, Korean people’s satisfaction with life called ‘happiness index’ is moving back every year. Even though there have been continuous efforts to enhance the national happiness by mentioning it as an essential issue in the national level, there are not many researches related to it. This study drew measures to enhance happiness by extracting happiness factors and unhappiness factors of Korea through social network service. Especially, it aims to analyze, compare, and apply happiness factors and unhappiness factors of three countries such as the US, UK, and Brazil with higher happiness indexes than Korea. For this, through the topic modeling of text mining technique, postings including keywords about happiness and unhappiness were collected/ analyzed from Twitter of Korea, the US, UK, and Brazil. The significance of this study is to discuss measures to increase happiness and to decrease unhappiness by mining/ analyzing the actual public opinions about happiness and unhappiness in four countries like Korea, the US, UK, and Brazil by using the topic modeling. Through this, the quality of life of Korean people could be improved by suggesting measures to enhance happiness and to decrease unhappiness in the level of individual, family, society, and government.
Biomarkers of exposure to and effects of vitamins A, C and E.

Since antioxidant vitamins can affect an organism’s capacity for defence against reactive oxygen species, biological markers of the dietary exposure to these vitamins is of importance. There is also a need of effect biomarkers for determining the ability of these and other antioxidants to increase the overall antioxidant capacity and decrease the oxidative damage occurring in biological samples. This chapter is concerned with such markers, except for markers of DNA damage, which are dealt with elsewhere in this volume.
Efeito de doses de nitrogênio via fertirrigação na dinâmica microbiana, em solo cultivado com trigo = Effect of nitrogen doses by fertirrigaton in the microbial dinamic under culture of wheat

No Cerrado brasileiro, a area cultivada com trigo aumentou consideravelmente nos ultimos anos, tendo em vista o desenvolvimento de cultivares especificamente para essas condicoes edafoclimaticas. O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar o efeito de doses de nitrogenio e de epocas de coleta de solo, no carbono da biomassa microbiana do solo (CBM) respiracao basal (RB) e carbono orgânico total do solo (COT), sob cultivo de trigo irrigado. O experimento foi instalado em maio de 2006, em um Latossolo Vermelho, na Embrapa Cerrados (CPAC), no Distrito Federal. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos ao acaso com tres repeticoes, as parcelas receberam as doses de nitrogenio: 50, 100, 150 kg ha-1 N e uma testemunha sem N; as subparcelas representaram as epocas de coleta de solo. Realizou-se apenas uma aplicacao de ureia via fertirrigacao, no perfilhamento. As coletas de solo foram feitas na camada de 0 - 10 cm para a determinacao em quatro epocas: 5 dias antes da primeira fertirrigacao; 5 dias depois da primeira fertirrigacao; na floracao e apos a colheita. Houve efeito das doses de N e das epocas de coletas de solo no CBM, RB e COT. O CBM foi um bom parâmetro para avaliar a atividade microbiana a curto prazo, pois este tendeu a diminuir apos a aplicacao da ureia
Defining innate immunity to Clostridium difficile

Clostridium difficile is a spore-forming anaerobic bacillus and a leading cause of nosocomial diarrhoea. C. difficile infection occurs often following antibiotic treatment leading to alteration of the gut microbiota enabling C. difficile to thrive and cause a range of symptoms from asymptomatic carriage to severe diarrhoea, PMC and death. C. difficile virulence is associated with production of toxins (A, B and CDT) nonetheless this bacteria harbours an array of other virulence factors. In the present study, C. difficile-mediated innate immunity response was investigated utilising four different strains including: R20291 a hypervirulent strain (A+B+, CDT+), 630 a fully sequenced strain (A+B+) and variant strains M68 and CF5 (A-B+). Initial studies showed that all strains shared comparable survival and sporulation capacity whereas strains R20291, M68, and CF5 achieved similar growth kinetics. R20291 showed significant adherence to IEC and was the most potent strain. 630 and M68 were found to be as cytotoxic leading to significant cell apoptosis, IEC TJ disruption and increased paracellular permeability. In contrast, CF5 had the least effect on cell death and IEC barrier integrity. Although all four strains induced antimicrobial immunity and pro-inflammatory cytokines, CF5 mediated the least pro-inflammatory responses. Similar findings were also found in an ex vivo model of infection utilising human colonic explants. C. difficile strains up-regulated murine DC maturation markers leading to a predominant anti-inflammatory IL-10 secretion, which is known to suppress IL-12 and IL-23 induction although C. difficile may generate a cytokine milieu that favours dual Th1/Th17 immunity. C. difficile toxin mutant strains showed DC activation and cytokine production in a toxin-dependent and independent manner and triggered an ASC-containing inflammasome causing the activation of caspase-1 and release of mature IL-1β. These findings indicated that multiple bacterial factors may play a role in initiating host innate immune responses to C. difficile infection.
Macroecological patterns in soil communities

Aim To review published evidence regarding the factors that influence the geographic variation in diversity of soil organisms at different spatial scales. Location Global. Methods A search of the relevant literature was conducted using the Web of Science and the author's personal scientific database as the major sources. Special attention was paid to include seminal studies, highly cited papers and/or studies highlighting novel results. Results Despite their significant contribution to global biodiversity, our taxonomic knowledge of soil biota is still poor compared with that of most above-ground organisms. This is particularly evident for small-bodied taxa. Global patterns of soil biodiversity distribution have been poorly documented and are thought to differ significantly from what is reported above-ground. Based on existing data, it appears that microorganisms do not respond to large-scale environmental gradients in the same way as metazoans. Whereas soil microflora seem to be mainly represented by cosmopolitan species, soil animals respond to altitudinal, latitudinal or area gradients in the same way as described for above-ground organisms. At local scales, there is less evidence that local factors regulate above- and below-ground communities in the same way. Except for a few taxa, the humpbacked response to stress and disturbance gradients doesn't seem to apply underground. Soil communities thus appear weakly structured by competition, although competitive constraints may account for assembly rules within specific taxa. The main factor constraining local soil biodiversity is the compact and heterogeneous nature of soils, which provides unrivalled potential for niche partitioning, thus allowing high levels of local biodiversity. This heterogeneity is increased by the impact of ecosystem engineers that generate resource patchiness at a range of spatio-temporal scales.
Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) increases cutaneous wound healing in the diabetes mouse

HGF/SF is a heparin binding polypeptide that stimulates cell proliferation, motility and morphogenesis via activation of it's receptor c-Met tyrosine kinase. It has also been shown that HGF/SF is a potent angiogenic factor in a sponge implant model in rats. To evaluate the potential HGF/SF has to heal chronic cutaneous wounds we have topically applied recombinant murine HGF/SF to full thickness excisional injuries using the diabetes mouse model. The diabetes mouse is the result of a spontaneous mutation in an inbred mouse strain. Homozygote animals (db/db) are obese, hyperglycemic and exhibit impaired cutaneous wound healing compared to their wildtype littermates.
Movements of Feral Hogs in Response to Warfarin Bait Consumption

Author(s): Franckowiak, Gregory A. ; Torres-Poche, Zaria; Poche, David M. ; Poche, Richard M. | Abstract: The distribution of feral hogs throughout North American has increased dramatically since their introduction. The use of toxicants has proven to be a n effective tool in controlling feral hog numbers in several countries. Using data from 13 GPS hogs, we compared movements and space use of control and treated hogs between pre-baiting and baiting phases of 3 feral hog toxicant field tests. Generalized linear mixed models were used to explain prospective changes in movements. In addition, we evaluated the distance of toxicant-killed feral hog carcasses from bait stations, roads, and cultivated crop plots. The mean distances traveled by treatment hogs between the pre-baiting and baiting periods was reduced by 43.9%, 32.1%, and 48.8% for daily, diurnal, and nocturnal periods, respectively. Daily and nocturnal movements exhibited a significant decrease between pre-baiting and baiting phases by feral hogs as a result of bait consumption. Mean space use size between the pre-baiting and baiting periods for treatment hogs was reduced by 37.5% and 30.0% for 95% MCP and 50% MCP, respectively but was not a result of bait consumption. Toxicant-killed feral hog carcass distance from bait stations, cultivated crops, and roads averaged (± SE) 919.4 ± 68.1 m, 908.9 ± 72.1 m, and 120.7 ± 34.9 m, respectively. These carcasses were never recovered from crop plots or near roads and were typically found in natural land cover types. The toxicant warfarin reduced movements of feral hogs, which in turn can reduce their damage to crop and reduce the spread of disease.
Biology of Sharks and Their Relatives

Phylogeny and Zoogeography The Origin and Relationships of Early Chondrichthyans Eileen D. Grogan, Richard Lund, and Emily Greenfest-Allen Elasmobranch Phylogeny: A Mitochondrial Estimate Based on 595 Species Gavin J.P. Naylor, Janine N. Caira, Kirsten Jensen, Kerri A.M. Rosana, Nicolas Straube, and Clemens Lakner Phylogeny of Batoidea Neil C. Aschliman, Kerin M. Claeson, and John D. McEachran Phylogeny, Biology, and Classification of Extant Holocephalans Dominique A. Didier, Jenny M. Kemper, and David A. Ebert Form, Function, and Physiological Processes Biomechanics of Locomotion in Sharks, Rays, and Chimeras Anabela M.R. Maia, Cheryl A.D. Wilga, and George V. Lauder Prey Capture Behavior and Feeding Mechanics of Elasmobranchs Philip J. Motta and Daniel R. Huber Energetics, Metabolism, and Endothermy in Sharks and Rays Diego Bernal, John K. Carlson, Kenneth J. Goldman, and Christopher G. Lowe Food Consumption and Feeding Habits Bradley M. Wetherbee, Enric Cortes, and Joseph J. Bizzarro Integrative Multisensor Tagging: Emerging Techniques to Link Elasmobranch Behavior, Physiology, and Ecology Nicholas M. Whitney, Yannis P. Papastamatiou, Adrian C. Gleiss Reproductive Biology of Elasmobranchs Christina L. Conrath and John A. Musick Hormonal Regulation of Elasmobranch Physiology James Gelsleichter and Andrew N. Evans Sensory Physiology and Behavior of Elasmobranchs Jayne M. Gardiner, Robert E. Hueter, Karen P. Maruska, Joseph A. Sisneros, Brandon M. Casper, David A. Mann, Leo S. Demski Recent Advances in Elasmobranch Immunology Carl A. Luer, Catherine J. Walsh, and Ashby B. Bodine Ecology and Life History Assessing the Age and Growth of Chondrichthyan Fishes Kenneth J. Goldman, Gregor M. Cailliet, Allen H. Andrews, and Lisa J. Natanson Population Dynamics, Demography, and Stock Assessment Enric Cortes, Elizabeth N. Brooks, and Todd Gedamke Genetics of Sharks, Skates, and Rays Edward J. Heist Predator-Prey Interactions Michael R. Heithaus and Jeremy J. Vaudo An Updated Look at Elasmobranchs as Hosts of Metazoan Parasites Janine N. Caira, Claire J. Healy, and Kirsten Jensen Assessing Habitat Use and Movement Colin A. Simpfendorfer and Michelle R. Heupel Index
Biological Control of Root-Knot Nematodes (Meloidogynespp.) on Peach

: Root-knot nematodes that are distributed in all over the world, cause economically reduction in agricultural products. Control methods except chemical, could be limited because of having broad host range and different species. It was a big necessity to search possibilities of using biocontrol methods, since chemical control have an adverse effect on environment, nature, water and human also their applications are very difficult and expensive. Lots of fungi, bacteria and nematodes that parasite on root-knot nematodes in soil in the nature and cause reduction of nematode population. In this review, fungi, bacteria and predator species of root-knot nematodes, their principle characteristics and factors that effect on the biological control of root-knot nematodes are reviewed by using literature.
One Renegade Cell: How Cancer Begins

The Enemy Within: Genes, Cells, and the Nature of Cancer Clues to Cancers Origins: How the Outside World Affects the Insides of Our Cells The Elusive Quarry: Hunting the Proto-oncogene Fatal Flaws: Finding Oncogenes in Human Tumors A Book of Many Chapters: Multistep Tumor Development Fueling the Fire: Carcinogens That Arent Mutagens Brake Linings: The Discovery of Tumor Suppressor Genes Guts: A Case Study in Cancer Development Defenders of the Text: DNA Repair and Its Breakdown Guide Proteins of the Cell: The Machinery That Controls Growth A Breakdown of Order: Subverting Normal Growth Control Immortality: Avoidance of Almost Certain Death Assisted Suicide: Apoptosis and the Death Program A Clock Without Hands: The Cell Cycle Clock Apparatus Many Obstacles in the Road: The Evolution of a Tumor An End to the Scourge: Using the Knowledge of Cancers Causes to Develop New Cures
Biochemistry of Terpenoids: Monoterpenes, Sesquiterpenes and Diterpenes

Terpenoids represent the largest class of secondary metabolites and usually do not contain nitrogen or sulfur in their structures. Many terpenoids serve as defence compounds against microbes and herbivores and/or are signal molecules to attract pollinating insects, fruit-dispersing animals or predators which can destroy insect herbivores. As a consequence, many terpenoids have pronounced pharmacological activities and are therefore interesting for medicine and biotechnology. The first part of the biosynthesis is the generation of a C5 unit, such as isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) or dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP). Two independent pathways have been discovered that can produce the C5 unit: the mevalonate and the methylerythritol phosphate (MEP) pathway. Depending on the number of C5 units, we distinguish hemiterpenes C5, monoterpenes including iridoids (C10), sesquiterpenes (C15), diterpenes (C20), sesterterpenes (C25), triterpenes (including steroids) (C30), tetraterpenes (C40) and polyterpenes (>C40). The biosynthesis (including enzymes, genes and their regulation) of mevalonate and the methylerythritol phosphate pathway and the consecutive pathways leading to mono-, sesquiand diterpenes are discussed in this chapter in detail.
A Review: Effect of Diabetes on Vascular Endothelium

Endothelial dysfunction is mainly observed in diabetics. The main role of endothelium is to control the tone of the vascular smooth muscle through the production of vasodilator mediators like nitric oxide (NO), prostacyclin, and endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF). Impaired endothelium-dependent vasodilation has been observed in vascular beds of different animal models of diabetes and in humans with type 1 and 2 diabetes. Hyperglycaemia causes repeated acute changes in intracellular metabolism and causes activation of polyol pathway, activation of protein kinase C, advanced glycation end product and increased oxidative stress.
Monsoon variability : Links to major oscillations over the equatorial pacific and indian oceans

In this article, we first discuss our perception of the factors which are critical for inter-annual variation of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall and the major milestones leading to this understanding. The nature of the two critical modes for monsoon variability, viz. El Nino Southern Oscillation and equatorial Indian Ocean Oscillation is considered and their links to the monsoon elucidated. We suggest possible reasons for the rather poor skill of simulation of the interannual variation of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall by atmospheric general circulation models, run with the observed sea surface temperature as boundary condition. We discuss implications of what we have learned for the monsoon of 2006, and possible use of information on the two important modes for prediction of the rainfall in all or part of the summer monsoon season. We conclude with our view of what the focus of research and development should be for achieving a substantial improvement in the skill of simulation and prediction of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall in the near future.