Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Pigmentação testicular em Physalaemus nattereri (Steindachner) (Amphibia, Anura) com observações anatômicas sobre o sistema pigmentar extracutâneo

The testes in the anurans are paired ovoid organs constituted by seminiferous structures surrounded by the fibrous connective tissue, commonly unprovided of pigments. This study tried to analyze the morphological characteristics of rare and conspicuous pigment-containing cells and their relationship with other structures. The pigment cells are variously and indistinctly also termed Kuppfer cells in the liver, pigment cells, extracutaneous pigment cells, pigmented macrophages, melanomacrophages, melanophage, melanophores and melanocytes in the liver, spleen and kidney and other visceral structures of exothermic vertebrates. Ten male samples of Physalaemus nattereri (Steindachner, 1863) (Leptodactylidae) were used. After macroscopic analyses, the testicular fragments were submitted to the histological routine, fixed with karnovisky, embedded Historesin and coloration with Haematoxylin/Eosin. A rare peculiarity was the presence of numerous pigment-containing cells (melanocytes) randomly distributed in the albuginea tunic and testicular interstitium, giving the testes a dark brown coloration. This unusual characteristic has been rarely described and in other lower vertebrates, the pigment cells can be found in different organs, constituting an extracutaneous pigmentary system of unknown function. Further, it was identified a conspicuous variation, as to presence and distribution pattern due to possible species-specific aspects. However, histologically there is no difference in the germ epithelium arrangement. Between the seminiferous locules, there is an inter-locular tissue composed by Leydig interstitial cells, fibroblasts, efferent ductules, melanocytes and blood vessels. This inter-locular tissue is relatively scarce, presenting melanocytes in all specimens analyzed intimate associated with blood vessels. They are irregular cells with numerous melanosomes and long cytoplasmic processes.
Turning biochemistry inside out: A new approach to teaching metabolism in the post‐genomic era

This article describes a new approach to teaching metabolic pathways, designed to engage students with the material, and its complexities. Based on a novel way of presenting metabolic pathways, in which the focus is placed on proteins rather than metabolites [ 1 ], simple tutorial‐based exercises and mini‐projects are described, bringing metabolism to life, yet requiring very few resources.
Non‐specific immunity parameters and the formation of advanced glycosylation end‐products (AGE) in rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), fed high levels of dietary carbohydrates

The effects of long-term hyperglycaemia (5 months), through feeding high levels of dietary carbohydrates, on the non-specific immunity parameters of rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), was assessed. Fish were fed one of three diets composed of a basal diet containing approximately equal to 14% digestible carbohydrate which was progressively diluted with gelatinized potato starch in the following ratios of basal diet to supplemental carbohydrate (gelatinized potato starch): 65:00, 65:20, 65:35. The three diets were pair-fed based on the feed intake of the fish fed the diet containing the highest level of starch (65:35) and representing 100% intake. The other diets were then fed at different levels in a manner that allowed all the groups of fish in the same block to receive the same amount of the basal diet [e.g. the basal diet (undiluted, 65:00) was fed at 65% of the dietary intake of the 65:35 diet]. Blood glucose concentrations and relative liver-to-body size increased with increased dietary carbohydrate intake. Feeding supplemental carbohydrates resulted in a small increase in weight gain of the fish at both supplemental levels. Pronephros tissue lysozyme activity and pronephros macrophage superoxide production were not affected by the dietary treatments. The results suggest the presence of advanced glycosylation end-products in muscle tissue collagen, but were not significantly different between treatments. No substantial effect of long-term feeding of a high carbohydrate diet on the non-specific immunity of rainbow trout was observed. However, the results suggest that dietary carbohydrates may have a slight stimulatory effect on phagocytosis at low-moderate levels.
Tracing the Memory Mechanisms in the Song Acquisition of Nightingales

The song acquisition system of oscines shows adaptive specialization for selective, high capacity and long-term storage of signal patterns to which a bird normally is exposed early in life. This report reviews studies designed to examine the mechanisms involved in memory formation and storage of songs. The experiments were conducted on nightingales (Luscinia megarhynchos), a species renowned for its vocal 'virtuosity' and the development of large song-type repertoires by precise imitation of heard song models. In the analyses the relationships between variables of exposure to learning stimuli and variables of singing performances were examined on different hierarchy levels of performance organization. Particular focus was on the characteristics of reproduction of order information encoded in a series of song models presented in a play-back design. The results allowed to distinguish between an exposure-related and a self-induced memory organization. The characteristics of the latter, in particular, proposed a series of experiments set out to examine the mechanisms mediating the acquisition and storage of information.
Combining Model-Based and Extremum Seeking Control for Fast Tracking the Maximum Power Point of Lundell Alternator

Avoiding constructive changes in the Lundell alternator to avert manufacturing drawbacks and space limitations, the short-term alternative to increase power generation capabilities is to provide new degrees-of-freedom to the machine control system and take advantage of them. In order to achieve this, replacing only the passive rectifier with a semi-controlled switched-mode rectifier, a novel maximum power point tracking control strategy for a Lundell alternator is proposed. Using a detailed simulation model to act as the real alternator, it is shown that a model-based approach to maximum power point tracking is fast but may be inaccurate due to control project simplifications. It is then proposed a combination of the modelbased tracking strategy with the Extremum Seeking Control real-time optimization technique – which by itself is accurate but slow – and both accurate and fast maximum power point tracking capabilities are observed, while still maintaining a simple control project. Simulation results are presented to demonstrate the control strategy feasibility and how it compares to the other studies in the subject with regard of power generated and convergence time.
Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Nematode Parasites in Stray Dogs in Shiraz, Southern Iran

Abstract Mehrabani, D. , Sadjjadi, S.M. and Oryan, A. 2002. Prevalence of gastrointestinal nematode parasites in stray dogs in Shiraz, Southern Iran. J. Appl. Anim. Res., 22: 157–160. To assess the extent to which Shiraz stray dogs are infested with nematodes, 105 stray dogs of both sexes and different ages from various residential areas were autopsied and their stomach and small intestine were examined for the presence of nematodes. Twenty-six dogs (24.8%) were infested with gastrointestinal nematodes of which 22.9% were infested with ascarids, predominantly Toxascaris leonina (20%). Therefore, it appears that the nematodes of dogs in this region are of zoonotic and public health importance and control of these parasites should be taken up for the general health of the community.
PREVALENCE OF OBESITY RELATED HEALTH RISK FACTORS IN ADULT POPULATION

Overweight and obesity aggravate into a large number of health issues, both independently and in association with other diseases, obesity is among the most remarkable contributor to diseased conditions. The associations of body mass index and chronic conditions like type 2 Diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, osteoarthritis, sleep-breathing problems and others may differ between Asian and Western populations. BMI alone cannot reflect the viability in body composition in ethnic groups of south Asian and result in misclassification. This survey included 130 participants and was a cross-sectional study. Participants were provided self-administered questionnaire on gender, level of education, employment status, marital status, eating habits, and exercise and health complications. Chi-square was used to determine association between categorical variables. Classified by BMI 21.8% were overweight and 54.6% were obese. Male participants were found more obese than female participants. Central obesity was highly prevalent among females, the mean weight of males was 91.7 kg and in female participants it was found to be 83.27 kg. The top six obesity related complications were found to be hypertension, diabetes, joint or muscle pain, arthritis and metabolic syndromes. Nearly twenty percent male and nearly twenty four female were on medication for various chronic conditions on regular basis. Considering South-Asian cut-offs this study showed a prevalence of many co-morbid illnesses of obesity. Although these illnesses were most common among elderly people but middle aged people were also found at risk.
The occurrence of a quiescent infection of stone fruits caused by Sclerotinia fructicola (wint.) Rehm.

An infection of immature peach and apricot fruits by Sclerotinia fructicola (Wint.) Rehm. is described. Since infection results in macroscopically visible lesions it is proposed that this type of infection be known as "quiescent" rather than latent. Symptoms have been induced in immature apricots by inoculation with conidia of the fungus and, after a period of quiescence, progressive rots developed from such infections as the fruit ripened. The fungus was re-isolated from surface-sterilized material bearing quiescent infections. Cultural evidence, together with field observations, indicate that a quiescent infection occurs naturally in the orchard, particularly in a season of moderate to severe blossom infection. Fruit losses during a dry harvest period are ascribed in the main to the activation of quiescent infections during fruit ripening. The histology of the lesion is described. The response of the host to infection is variable, but always includes a more or less extensive collapse and necrosis of the epidermis and of one or more layers of the hypodermis. Periderm formation may be associated with the necrogenic reaction. The results of a spray trial demonstrate that some measure of control of quiescent infection can be achieved by applying eradicant sprays during blossoming, and thus provide circumstantial evidence that a proportion of such infections can be established during this period. The quiescent infection is compared with other host-pathogen combinations in which infection is followed by a period of latency or quiescence, and suggestions are put forward as to the factors governing quiescence. The concept of "latent contamination" is re-evaluated in the light of the evidence presented in the present paper. It is argued that conidia alighting on the fruit surface during the growing period are more likely to give rise to a quiescent infection than to survive to produce an infection of the ripe fruit.
Nitrate and nitrite reduction by alfalfa root nodules: Accumulation of nitrite in Rhizobium melioti bacteroids and senescence of nodules

Addition of NO−3 rapidly induced senescence of root nodules in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L. cv. Aragon). Loss of nodule dry matter began at the lowest NO−3 concentration (10 mM) but degradation of bacteroid proteins was only detected when nodules were supplied with NO−3 concentrations above 20 mM. Bacteroids from Rhizobium meliloti contained high specific activities of nitrate reductase (NR) and nitrite reductase (NiR). Both enzymes were presumably substrate-induced although substantial enzyme activities were present in the absence of NO−3 Typical specific activities for soluble NR and NiR of bacteroids under NO−3 free conditions were 1.2 and 1.4 μmol (mg protein)−1h−1, respectively. In the presence of NO−3, the specific activity of NR was considerably greater than that of NiR, thus causing NO−2 accumulation in bacteroids. Nitrite levels in the bacteroids were linearly correlated with specific activities of NR and NiR, indicating that NO−2 is formed by bacteroid NR and that this NO−2 in turn, induces bacteroid NiR. Accumulation of NO−2 within bacteroids also indicates that NO−2 inhibits nodule activity after feeding plants with NO−3
Influence of Microfinance and Empowerment on Satisfaction: Case Study of Pakistan

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of women empowerment, microfinance involvement, and loan size on women satisfaction. To achieve the objectives through simple random sampling technique the cross-sectional was collected from 372 borrowers’ and 372 nonborrowers’ women’s through questionnaire and later multinomial logistic regression was applied. The findings revealed and support the theory of adoption, which demonstrates that income increases satisfaction. Microfinance is a kind of money, which involves borrowers in small business and enables them to have money through doing businesses that increase borrowers’ women satisfaction compare to non-borrower’s women. More empowered women is more satisfied with life. Present study also found that the effect of microfinance involvement on women’s satisfaction depends on their empowerment In the light of findings this study recommends that future researchers can examine the same model in the different culture. This study contributes theoretically, practically and politically.
Particle energisation and energy transport in Multiscale MHD - Hybrid - Kinetic PIC models of magnetospheres

<p><span>A grand challenge in physics is to understand how and where electrons and ions accelerate to high energy, often forming power law distributions. We report the result of a combined kinetic-fluid effort [1]. For Earth, a full kinetic model of sizeable chunks of the magnetosphere (e.g. the magnetopause up to the bow shock, or the magnetotail) of order 10-20 RE in size in each dimension is hosted within a MHD simulation that provides it with initial and boundary conditions. For Mercury, it is possible to treat the whole magnetosphere that in this case is spawn from a state derived from a hybrid code [2]. <br>With this approach, we search for regions of most intense particle heating and acceleration, comparing the full kinetic (i.e. we treat both electrons and ions as particles) evolution with the evolution of the host global simulation: MHD for the Earth and hybrid for Mercury. </span></p><p><span>The results highlight some significant effects peculiar to kinetic models. First, of all full kinetic models provide a detailed view of the electron role in energy transfer, with a distinct role for the enthalpy, bulk and heat flux. Second, the full kinetic approach, allows for the development of modes and instabilities absent in global fluid or hybrid models [3]. </span></p>
Ground-dwelling ant diversity in Maliau Basin, Borneo: Evaluation of hand-sorting methods to estimate ant diversity

The ground-dwelling ant fauna in tropical forests remains the “final frontier” in the study of Formicidae biodiversity. This is mainly due to a lack of convenient sampling methods for the inventory of ants in soil. In the present study, employing the hand-sorting of small soil cores, we carried out the first survey of ground-dwelling ants in Maliau Basin Conservation Area, in Sabah, Borneo, to compare disturbed and undisturbed forest ant communities and to evaluate the sampling method’s performance in assessing species richness and characterizing community structure of the ant fauna. For this purpose we set a 5 m long and 1 m wide transect, consisting of five 1-m2 sections, in disturbed and undisturbed forest plots in the area, and compared the sampling results of hand-sorting between the two plots. A total of 50 ant species, in 28 genera and eight subfamilies, were collected in the two plots, of which 32 species in 20 genera were collected from the undisturbed plot and 24 species in 18 genera from the disturbed plot. According to estimates of expected species richness, the hand-sorting of soil cores allowed for the collection of 66.7 to 80.0% of the ant species expected in the undisturbed plot, and 83.3 to 88.9% in the disturbed plot. Besides lower species richness, the ant community in the disturbed plot had lower species evenness and a different species composition in comparison to undisturbed plot, which may be related with environmental changes in the plot, due to open canopy. These results indicate that hand-sorting of small soil cores is a method that could provide reliable information, not only to estimate species richness at a site, but also to evaluate differences in community structure between sites.
MECHANISMS OF SIZE SELECTIVITY BY PLANKTIVOROUS FISH: A TEST OF HYPOTHESES'

The role of decision in size—selective predation by planktivorous fish is not clear. What causes size selectivity when many prey can be seem simultaneously (high prey density) is also not well understood. Suspended clay particles were used in experiments to control the number of Daphnia pulex that could be seen simultaneously by bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus) in order to test between alternative hypotheses. In clear pools, °122 Daphnia of two distinct size classes could be seen simultaneously by the fish. In turbid pools, the probability that two or more Daphnia could be seen simultaneously was <. 01, although initial density was the same as in the clear pools. Size selectivity exhibited by the bluegills was independent of turbidity level and the number of prey seen simultaneously. A differential encounter rate hypothesis and the apparent—size selection hypothesis, both based on a perceptual bias for the larger size class, are rejected. The outcome of the experiments indicates that size selectivity resulted from decisions by the fish to ignore the smaller size class of Daphnia. The role of decision in prey selection and foraging strategies is discussed.
Effects of five metals on susceptibility of striped bass to Flexibacter columnaris

Abstract Exposure of young striped bass Morone saxatilis (weight, 8.5–34 g) to a mixture of arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, and selenium at 4 and 10 times the average environmental concentrations of 1–3 μg/L protected the fish from experimental infection with Flexibacter columnaris, the causal organism of columnaris disease. In four trials, all striped bass died within 7 d after a 2-min exposure to 5 × 106 F. columnaris cells in untreated water. In contrast, no fish died after a single day's exposure to the metal mixture followed by infection with F. columnaris and a second exposure to the metals for seven more days. When striped bass were exposed 5 d to individual metals, copper protected against infection and cadmium offered marginal protection but was slightly toxic after 2 d exposure. Arsenic increased susceptibility to infection, and lead and selenium were without an apparent effect.
Proposal of an Isolated Two-Switch DC-DC SEPIC Converter

The theoretical analysis and numerical simulations of a novel dc-dc converter conceived from SEPIC topology are presented in this paper. In this proposed converter, the voltage stress on switches and diodes is lower than a conventional SEPIC converter, when the same input and output voltage levels are considered. The proposed structure can be employed in applications with higher input voltage and high output current, once its output is connected in parallel. The paper approaches the topological stages, static analysis from DCM, design equations, and a comparative analysis. Furthermore, to evaluate the performance of the proposed topology is realized an open-loop numerical simulation for a 500 W rated power, with 120 V output voltage, 400 V input voltage and switching frequency of 50 kHz.
falciparumduring the dry and rainy seasons

Malaria remains a major parasitic disease in Africa, with 300–500 million new infections each year. There is therefore an urgent need for the development of new effective measures, including vaccines. Plasmodium falciparummerozoite surface protein-1 19 (MSP-119) is a prime candidate for a blood-stage malaria vaccine. Blood samples were collected from children aged 10 days to 15 years in the months of January–March ( N= 351) and October–November ( N= 369) corresponding to the dry and rainy seasons, respectively. P. falciparuminfection was determined by microscopy and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
Protochlorophyllide forms in non‐greening epicotyls of dark‐grown pea (Pisum sativum)

Low-temperature fluorescence emission spectra of 6.5-day-old dark-grown epicotyls of pea (Pisum sativum) revealed the presence of protochlorophyll(ide). The upper part of the epicotyl contained 30% of the protochlorophyll(ide) content per fresh weight found in pea leaves, whereas the lower part contained 3%. Three discrete spectral forms of protochlorophyll(ide) were clearly distinguished after Gaussian deconvolution of fluorescence excitation and emission spectra. Adding the satellite bands of the Qy(0-0) transitions (the emission vibrational (Emv) bands with correlated amplitudes, gave the following delineation: Ex439–Em629–Emv684, Ex447–Em636–Emv700 and Ex456–Em650–Emv728. Sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) followed by immunodetection of whole tissue extracts of the epicotyl indicated the presence of NADPH-protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (EC 1.3.1.33). Electron micrographs showed prolamellar bodies in at most 11 % of the plastid profiles of the epicotyl cells. These prolamellar bodies were smaller, and many of them showed less regular structure than those of the leaves. Taken together, the results indicate that the protochlorophyll(ide) in epicotyls is arranged in a different way than in leaves.
The Effect of Sexual Size Dimorphism on Variations in Reproductive Effort of Birds and Mammals

Several lines of evidence suggest that reproductive effort should be affected by sexual dimorphism; if so, a consideration of adult male mass should explain some of the residual variation in power curves relating offspring or clutch mass (both partial measures of reproductive effort) to female mass. To test this, we culled estimates of the average weight of adult males, females, neonates (or eggs), and litters (or clutches) for 76 mammalian and 114 avian species from the literature. Multiple regression analyses of these data were then used to determine if simultaneous consideration of both female and male mass could significantly improve the bivariate descriptions. No significant improvement was found for mammals, but for birds the clutch mass relation was improved when both sexes were considered. Among birds, species with larger males, relative to the females, produce heavier clutches than would be expected from bivariate relations between female mass and clutch mass. The reverse also holds: when the male is relatively small clutch mass is reduced from expectations. Further elaborations related this improvement to changes in the number of eggs per clutch; dimorphism had only a small effect on egg mass.