Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antidiarrhoeal Effect of Isolated Fraction (JC) of Jatropha curcas Roots in Mice

Objective : To study antidiarrhoeal activity of JC fraction isolated from Jatropha curcas L. roots in albino mice. Materials and methods : The roots of Jatropha curcas were collected from Awasari ghat near Pune, Maharashtra. The methanol extract of defatted roots was fractionated by solvent wash and preparative chromatography to yield JC fraction. This fraction at 50 and 100 mg/kg was tested for faecal output in normal and castor oil or magnesium sulphate induced diarrhoea in albino mice. The effect of JC fraction 100mg/kg was also studied on fluid and electrolyte secretion after castor oil administration and charcoal meal adsorption. Results : JC fraction showed activity against castor oil and magnesium sulphate induced diarrhoea . It also reduced intestinal motility as well as castor oil induced increased intraluminal fluid and sodium ion secretion in small intestine. Conclusion : JC fraction shows antidiarrhoeal activity through inhibition of prostaglandin biosynthesis and reduction of osmotic pressure. It also decreases peristaltic activity and castor oil induced permeability changes in intestinal mucosal membrane to water and electrolyte.
Possibility of amino acid nutrition in broiler

The consumption of poultry meats exceeds 50% of total meat consumption. With the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy and foot and mouth disease, the consumption of poultry meat is set to increase. The use of meat bone meal derived from cattle and pigs is prohibited. Therefore, plant protein has to be used more frequently and the importance of the study of amino acid nutrition is increasing. In order to improve dietary efficiency, it is necessary to elucidate the exact amino acid requirements of poultry. The amino acid requirements are not constant and are affected by various factors. By using the plasma amino acid concentration as a parameter, it is possible to predict the amino acid requirements within a short period using a small number of animals repeatedly. By satisfying the amino acid requirements through supplementing crystalline amino acids, it is possible to reduce dietary protein and excretory nitrogen simultaneously. However, when the dietary protein is reduced, the abdominal fat tends to increase. This is solved by deciding the optimum dietary protein level, but it is difficult to control the taste of poultry meat by dietary amino acids.
IFN Regulatory Factor-1 Bypasses IFN-Mediated Antiviral Effects through Viperin Gene Induction

Viperin is an antiviral protein whose expression is highly upregulated during viral infections via IFN-dependent and/or IFN-independent pathways. We examined the molecular alterations induced by the transcriptional activator IFN regulatory factor (IRF)-1 and found viperin to be among the group of IRF-1 regulated genes. From these data, it was not possible to distinguish genes that are primary targets of IRF-1 and those that are targets of IRF-1–induced proteins, like IFN-β. In this study, we show that IRF-1 directly binds to the murine viperin promoter to the two proximal IRF elements and thereby induces viperin expression. Infection studies with embryonal fibroblasts from different gene knock-out mice demonstrate that IRF-1 is essential, whereas the type I IFN system is dispensable for vesicular stomatitis virus induced viperin gene transcription. Further, IRF-1, but not IFN type I, mediates the induction of viperin transcription after IFN-γ treatment. In contrast, IRF-1 is not required for IFN-independent viperin induction by Newcastle disease virus infection and by infection with a vesicular stomatitis virus mutant that is unable to block IFN expression and secretion. We conclude that the IRF-1 mediated type I IFN independent mechanism of enhanced viperin expression provides a redundant mechanism to protect cells from viral infections. This mechanism becomes important when viruses evade innate immunity by antagonizing the induction and function of the IFN system.
Preliminary observations on the recruitment variability in Tripneustes gratilla (echinodermata: echinoidea) in three selected biogeographic regions in the Philippines

The sea urchin Tripneustes gratilla is an eco­ nomically important resource found along reef flats in many areas in the Philippines. Monthly field monitoring was conducted in three marine biogeographic regions in the Philippines: Northwestern Luzon, Northern Mindanao and Southern Mindanao, to determine and compare the density and size frequency distribution of T. gratilla benthic recruits (≤40 mm test diameter) from July 2009 to May 2010. Preliminary results showed that the mean density of recruits was significantly higher in the Southern Mindanao (9.41 individuals/ 100 m) and Northern Mindanao (5.42 individuals/ 100 m) compared to Northwestern Luzon (only 0.28 individuals/ 100 m). On the other hand, most of the larger­sized urchins (up to 92 mm) were recorded in the Northwestern Luzon, and adults (>60 mm) comprised up to 66% of the total density. The observed variability in the density and size frequency distribution of T. gratilla recruits is discussed based on the biophysical profiles of the three regions. Southern and Northern Mindanao seem more favorable for sea urchin recruitment compared to Northwestern Luzon. Our ability to repeatedly induce spawning every month and the prevalence of mature stages (up to 100%) of egg samples in the three regions so far indicate the possible regular supply of larvae in all the regions, however, the vulnerability of the recruit stage to the changing environment may differ across biogeo­ graphic regions.
Bedeutung der Spurenelemente Zink und Eisen bei der Gebärparese des Rindes

Zusammenfassung Ziel der Studie war, die Zink(Zn)- und Eisen(Fe)-Konzentrationen sowie Beziehungen zu Stoffwechselparametern bei festliegenden Kühen zu analysieren. Material und Methoden: Festliegende und klinisch gesunde Fleckviehkühe wurden in fünf Gruppen eingeteilt: a) Kontrollgruppe (KG, n = 21), b) Gebärparese(GP)-Kühe gesamt (n = 174), c) GP-Kühe ohne Zusatzkrankheiten (n = 145), d) GP-Kühe mit Mastitis (n = 10), e) GP-Kühe mit Retentio secundinarum oder postpartaler Endometritis (n = 19). Die Blutserumanalyse umfasste folgende Parameter: Selen (Se), Zn, Fe, Mangan (Mn), Kupfer (Cu), Kalzium (Ca), anorganisches Phosphat (Pi), Magnesium (Mg), Kalium (K), Tumornekrosefaktor α (TNFα), Haptoglobin (Hp), Antioxidanzien (Trolox Equivalent Antioxidative Capacity, TEAC), Protein, Albumin, freie Fettsäuren (FFS), Beta-Hydroxybutyrat (BHB), Bilirubin, Harnstoff, Kreatinin, Glukose, Cholesterol, Gamma-Glutamyltransferase (GGT) und alkalische Phosphatase (AP). Ergebnisse: Die Konzentrationen von Zn, Fe, Ca, Pi und TEAC waren bei allen festliegenden Kühen niedriger, die von Hp höher als in der KG (p 0,05). In Gruppe c) lagen Ca- und Pi-Konzentration niedriger als in den Gruppen d) und e) (p 0,05). In Gruppe e) wurde eine signifikant geringere Zn-Konzentration bestimmt als in Gruppe c) (p 0,05). Zn korrelierte negativ mit K (KG), positiv mit TEAC, Cu, Mn und Fe (Gruppe b und c) und Mn (Gruppe e) (p 0,05). Fe korrelierte gesichert positiv mit Ca (Gruppe c), mit Pi (Gruppe c), mit K (Gruppe b und c), mit Mg (Gruppen b–d) sowie mit Zn, Cu und Se (Gruppe b und c) (p 0,05). TNFα war in den Gruppen b) und c) erhöht und korrelierte negativ mit Fe (p 0,05). Die Aktivität der AP war in den Gruppen b) und e) niedriger als in der KG (p 0,05). Schlussfolgerung: Die Resultate und Literaturberichte befürworten die Hypothese, dass Zn und Fe unmittelbar den Knochenstoffwechsel beeinflussen und in die Pathogenese der GP involviert sein können. Die Hp- und TEAC-Konzentrationen unterstützen diese Interpretation. Die Kontrolle des Zn- und des Fe-Status der Kühe und die Supplementation von Zn sollten in die Prävention und erweiterte Therapie der GP eingeschlossen werden.
Relative impacts of morphological alteration to shorelines and eutrophication on littoral macroinvertebrates in Mediterranean lakes

Development of effective methods for assessing the ecological status of lakes based on littoral benthic fauna has been hampered by the lack of quantitative data on the relative impacts of key pressures on the benthic community. We used variance partitioning at 126 sites belonging to 14 natural Mediterranean lakes to analyze the pure and shared effects of eutrophication, morphological alterations, microhabitat type, lake morphometry and geographic position on the littoral macroinvertebrate community. The spatial arrangement of the sampling sites was responsible for 9.1% of the total variance in littoral benthic community composition, lake morphometry accounted for 4.3% of variation, and microhabitat type accounted for 3.9%. Communities appeared to be affected primarily by morphological alterations to lake shorelines, and their impact was 2.5 times as important as that of eutrophication. The structure of littoral benthic communities was governed by processes acting at several spatial scales from region to lake scale. Thus, several pressures and the various spatial scales at which these act should be taken into account when implementing methods of assessing lake ecological condition based on littoral benthic invertebrates. Region-specific methods for subalpine and volcanic lakes might enhance the validity of assessment of results of morphological alterations and improve management of those water resources.
MAN'S ACTIVITY AS A FACTOR IN CLIMATIC CHANGE

The question of the physical mechanism of climatic changes received increased attention about 30 years ago, when convincing evidence for recent climatic fluctuations was obtained. In the first decades of the present century the ice cover of the Arctic Ocean has decreased by more than 1 million km.2 During the same period the glacier area of the eastern Alps has decreased by about one third, and the thickness of the glacier has shrunk about 60 cm. every year. The problem of foreshadowing of climatic trends in the future is the most difficult task that can be put to a meteorologist. Since we know very little about the real physical causes of climatic fluctuations, little more can be done than to formulate a simple extrapolation of recent trends. There is little comfort in the thought that the meteorologists involved will hardly survive the success or failure of their forecasts. Starting from the viewpoint of large-scale turbulent fluctuations-emphasized already by Defant (1921)-Manley (1953) has suggested a time spectrum of climatic variations, which will enlarge the time scale of the spectrum of meteorological phenomena toward larger values. If we consider the statistical relationship between time scale and area of meteorological phenomena-10” sec. equivalent to 10” or lO“+lrn-as extended into the region of climatic variations, we may ask whether the physical conditions responsible for climatic variations of longer duration-that is, lo3 to lo8 years-might extend beyond the limits of the earth. As a consequence of this, astrophysical hypotheses should be discussed as causes of such variations, but not necessarily of shorter fluctuations also. During the 19th century, it was supposed sometimes that the apparent signs of climatic deterioration in arid and semiarid areas are caused by man’s activity. After recent investigations of the thermal and water balance of the earth’s surface it seems advisable to reconsider this hypothesis on the basis of our present knowledge.
Dormancy in white-grain mutants of Chinese Spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Abstract Red wheats (Triticum aestivum L.) are generally more dormant and sprout resistant than white wheats. Whether this is caused by pleiotropic effectsof the red grain colour genes (R) on dormancy and coat colour, or to tight linkage between R and dormancy genes has not been fully resolved. To directly determine the effect of the R1 allele on dormancy, mutations were induced with sodium azide in a pure line selection of the red genotype (R1R1r2r2r3r3) Chinese Spring wheat. Two white mutants (CSW01, CSW02) were recovered from M3 caryopses derived from approximately 20,000 M2 plants. Both mutants were shown to be allelic to a domesticwhite genotype (r1r1r2r2r3r3). Except for seed coat colour, CSW01 and CSW02 are morphologically indistinguishable from the wild type and are presumed to be near isogenic lines of Chinese Spring. Freshly harvested grainsproduced under four different environments were evaluated for post-harvest dormancy. In all environments, intact caryopses of all three isolines exhibited high temperature dormancy typical of cereal species, although the red wild type consistently exhibited greater dormancy than the white mutant isolines. Dormancy was dissipated by afterripening in dry storage at 37°C in a similar manner for the red and white isolines. Excised embryos of the three isolines exhibited similar levels of dormancy and sensitivities to exogenous abscisic acid. These results indicate a functional R1 allele is not absolutely required for dormancy in wheat, but does enhance its expression in caryopses with dormant (sensitive) embryos
Acute toxicity and behavioral changes of Caspian kutum ( Rutilus frisii Kutum Kamensky, 1991) and Caspian roach ( Rutilus rutilus caspicus Jakowlew, 1870) exposed to the fungicide hinosan

Pesticides are used in agriculture to control pest and protect human health and animals. Excessive use of pesticides caused risk for human health and threated non-target organisms, polluted water, soil and air. Hinosan is a component of organophosphate pesticide which is used as a fungicide in agricultural fields. In the study, lethal concentration (LC50) of Hinosan was calculated for Rutilus frisii kutum and Rutilus rutilus caspicus with a mean weight of 3 ± 1 g [mean ± SD]. The experiment were carried out in static condition and based on instructions of O.E. C.D in four days under controlled water physicochemical factors with pH = 7 to 8.5, dissolved oxygen = 200 mg L‑1 (CaCO3) and temperature = 20 ± 1°C. Fishes were acclimatized in 70x40x30 cm aquarium for 10 days. Five treated aquariums with concentration ranges 1, 2, 4, 8, 16 ppm of hinosan (Technical 95 Edifenphos) with one control group (no toxic concentration), were performed. Data were analysed using the probit analysis. LC1, LC10, LC30, LC50, LC70, LC90 and LC99 were calculated in 24, 48, 72 and 96 h. Our results indicate that LC50 96 h hinosan for R. frisii Kutum and R. rutilus caspicus were obtained 3.61 and 2.88 ppm, respectively. These findings suggest that hinosan is medium toxicity for these two species. Clinical symptoms including irregular protrusion of the eyes and irregular swimming were observed. Key words: Organophosphore, hinosan, Rutilus frisii kutum, Rutilus rutilus caspicus, LC50, pollution.
Sensory biology of sharks, skates, and rays

Abstract : Partial contents: Vision--Visual system of the Elasmobranchs (State of the art 1960-1975), Refraction and accommodations of the Elasmobranch eye, Brain organization in the Cartilaginous fishes, and Behavioral studies correlated with central nervous system integration of vision in sharks; Chemical Senses--Electrophysiological studies of chemoreception in Elasmobranchs, and Chemoreception and the role of its interaction with flow and light perception in the locomotion and orientation of some Elasmobranchs; Mechanical and Acoustical Senses--Mechanoreception and the behavior of Elasmobranch fishes with special reference to the acoustico-lateralis systems, Underwater sound (Its effect on shark's behavior), and Telemetering techniques for study of free-ranging sharks; Electrical Senses--Physiology of the Ampulla of Lorenzini, and Electric and magnetic sensory world of sharks, skates, and rays; and Ecology and Behavior- Dispersion of the Port Jackson shark in Australian waters, Problems in studies of sharks in the southwest Indian Ocean, Knowledge and exploitation of the sensory biology of sharks in the southwestern Pacific, and Effects of fasting confinement on Squalus acanthias.
Response in female fertility and calf growth to selection for pregnancy rate in tropical beef cattle

Direct response to divergent selection based on estimated breeding value for female pregnancy rate in a herd of Bos indicus cross cattle was evaluated along with correlated responses in calf survival, weaning rate, cow liveweight and calf growth. Pregnancy rates were significantly higher ( P < 0.05) in heifers of the High line compared with the Low line (High-Low=15¦ 5%) and in lactating 4-year-old cows (25¦9.5%) and in 3 of the 5 years of the study (average difference 24%). The Low line had significantly ( P < 0.05) higher pregnancy rates in 1 year (-16¦5.4%). These differences in pregnancy rates were reflected in weaning rates, but calf survival was only different between the lines in 2 of the 4 years analysed (-6¦ 3.0% in 1990 and 18¦6.5% in 1991). The High line had a significantly ( P < 0.05) shorter days to calving than the Low line in heifers (High=309¦2.2 days v. Low= 315¦2.5 days), lactating 3-year-old cows (3l5¦ 3.6 days v. 331¦4.1 days), non-lactating 3-year-old cows (301¦5.4 days v. 320¦4.6 days) and lactating 4-year-old cows (311¦3.9 days v. 336¦4.9 days). Differences between the lines in pre-weaning growth varied according to generation with significantly lower (P < 0.05) weaning weights (182¦3.1 kg v. 189¦3.3 kg) and pre-weaning growth (790¦17 g/day v. 826¦ 17 g/day) in first generation High line calves from foundation dams and no difference between the lines in second generation calves from first generation dams. Post-weaning growth was significantly higher ( P < 0.05) in High line calves (350¦ 5 g/day v. 327¦5 g/day). The results indicate that selection of sires on EBV for pregnancy rate leads to improved fertility in heifers and 4-year-old lactating cows without adverse effects on progeny growth.
Effects of lianas and Hurricane Wilma on tree damage in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

Climate change may increase the intensity of hurricanes (Emanuel 1987, 2003), and thus the size of disturbance in tropical forests. As a consequence, disturbance-specialist plants, such as lianas, may increase in abundance there (Phillips & Gentry 1994). Putz (1984) hypothesized that lianas create larger treefall gaps by connecting trees together and pulling down multiple trees during storms. This positive-feedback cycle may increase the prevalence of lianas in disturbed tropical forests (Schnitzer & Bongers 2002, Schnitzer & Carson 2001). Alternatively, Putz (1984) proposed that lianas tie and stabilize canopies together, resulting in less disturbance. Forest age may determine the role of lianas during disturbance because liana abundance and composition vary through secondary succession (De Walt et al. 2000, Schnitzer et al. 2000). To test the two hypotheses of Putz (1984), we evaluated the effect of liana cutting between forests of different successional ages on tree damage by hurricane Wilma.
Asymbiotic germination, seedling development and plantlet propagation of Encyclia aff. oncidioides - an endangered orchid

In order to estimate the best germination conditions of Encyclia aff. oncidioides seeds, five different media (Fast, Knudson C modified by Vajrabhaya, Murashige and Skoog, PB2 and modified Vacin and Went) with different concentrations of plant growth regulators such as benzyladenine (BA), naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) and gibberellic acid (GA3) were tested. No beneficial effect was observed when BA and NAA were applied to the germination medium and GA 3 inhibited germination. The effect of light, activated charcoal, coconut water and casein hydrolysate on seed germination was also studied. The growth rate of seedlings on three different media supplemented with activated charcoal and plant growth regulators was checked. The applied plant growth regulators had no beneficial effect on the further growth of seedlings. Fast and PB 2 media with 0.2% activated charcoal proved to be the best for E. aff. oncidioides seed germination, seedling development and plantlet propagation.
Metabolism of Membrane Phospholipids and Its Relation to a Novel Class of Oligosaccharides in Escherichia coli

Abstract Phosphatidylethanolamine is metabolically stable in exponentially growing cells of Escherichia coli, whereas phosphatidylglycerol and cardiolipin (diphosphatidylglycerol), labeled by growth in the presence of sn-[2-3H]glycero-3-32P, lose their radioactivity during subsequent growth on unlabeled medium. We have found that the loss of label from the lipid fraction is accompanied by its appearance in a novel type of cell constituent of E. coli, a closely related group of oligosaccharides, each containing glycerol and phosphoric acid in equimolar proportions, probably derived as intact glycerophosphate units from phosphatidylglycerol and/or cardiolipin. Glucose is the sole detectable sugar. The glycerophosphate-containing oligosaccharides may be fractionated by ion-exchange chromatography into several subfractions, some of which contain succinic acid in ester linkage. Although apparently derived from membrane phospholipids, the newly discovered substances contain no fatty acids, are soluble in water, and are insoluble in organic solvents such as chloroform. They comprise about 0.5-1% of the dry weight of growing cells.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Drinking Water.

SUMMARY: The literature concerning antagonism between Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli, the natural habitat of the former and its potential pathogenicity, has been briefly surveyed. Experimental work showed that the two organisms can coexist in pure water, but in mixed cultures in peptone water Ps. aeruginosa can inhibit E. coli, though not in the early stages of growth and only within a critical range of peptone concentration. Ps. aeruginosa might therefore reduce the coli-aerogenes content in grossly polluted water but would not normally interfere with the determination of the actual coli-aerogenes content at the time of sampling. Water supplies containing many Ps. aeruginosa but few or no coli-aerogenes bacteria were found to be relatively common in Northern Israel and in view of the faecal origin of the former, and its potential pathogenicity, it is concluded that this organism should be taken into account, as well as coli-aerogenes bacteria, in assessing the suitability of water for drinking purposes.
Dispersal of adult stoneflies (Plecoptera) from upland streams draining catchments with contrasting land-use

Briers, R. A. , Cariss, H. M. , Gee, J. H. R. (2002). Dispersal of adult stoneflies (Plecoptera) from upland streams draining catchments with contrasting land-use. Archiv Fur Hydrobiologie, 155, (4), 627-644.
Long‐circulating Nanoparticles Using Biodegradable ABA Triblock Copolymers Containing Poly(L‐lactic acid) A‐blocks Attached to Central Poly(oxyethylene) B‐blocks

The biodistribution of [3H]progesterone nanoparticles consisting of ABA triblock copolymers containing poly(L-lactic acid) (PLA) A-blocks attached to central poly(oxyethylene) (PEG) B-blocks (PLA-PEG-PLA, MW 119 000) were compared with [3H]progesterone nanoparticles consisting of PLA (MW 129 000). The plasma concentration of [3H]progesterone after intravenous administration of PLA-PEG-PLA nanoparticles (mean diam. 192 nm) was higher than that of PLA nanoparticles (mean diam. 180 nm). The distribution of [3H]progesterone to liver and spleen after administration of PLA-PEG-PLA nanoparticles was about half that of PLA nanoparticles.