Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neuropeptides and their interaction with exercise and immune function

It is known today that the immune system is influenced by various types of psychological and physiological stressors, including physical activity. It is well known that physical activity can influence neuropeptide levels both in the central nervous system as well as in peripheral blood. The reported changes of immune function in response to exercise have been suggested to be partly regulated by the activation of different neuropeptides and the identification of receptors for neuropeptides and steroid hormones on cells of the immune system has created a new dimension in this endocrine–immune interaction. It has also been shown that immune cells are capable of producing neuropeptides, creating a bidirectional link between the nervous and immune systems. The most common neuropeptides mentioned in this context are the endogenous opioids. The activation of endogenous opioid peptides in response to physical exercise is well known in the literature, as well as the immunomodulation mediated by opioid peptides. The role of endogenous opioids in the exercise‐induced modulation of immune function is less clear. The present paper will also discuss the role of other neuroendocrine factors, such as substance P, neuropeptide Y and vasoactive intestinal peptide, and pituitary hormones, including growth hormone, prolactin and adrenocorticotrophin, in exercise and their possible effects on immune function.
ELECTROPHORESIS IN HETEROGENEOUS HYDROGELS AND APPLICATIONS IN SURFACE PATTERNING

ELECTROPHORESIS IN HETEROGENEOUS HYDROGELS AND APPLICATIONS IN SURFACE PATTERNING The creation of chemical micropatterns on surfaces makes it possible to add unique chemical functionality to surfaces, modifying properties such as wettability, or even adding the ability to selectively bind other molecules. The creation of biochemical surface patterning in particular is useful in a variety of fields including tissue engineering and highthroughput drug screening. There are many existing surface patterning techniques which focus on precise control over the patterned geometry, even down to submicron scale features, but they do not allow local control over chemical concentration. So the results are high resolution patterns with binary concentration. There are also existing methods to generate surface gradients of chemicals, but the focus there is to produce unidirectional concentration variation over a large surface. Normally these two methods—surface patterning and surface gradient generation—are incompatible with each other. So despite the large number of applications where simultaneous control over chemical placement and concentration would be useful, there is a dearth of options for doing so. In addition, it would be valuable to make micro patterned surfaces in a simple and approachable way, because fields where it could be most beneficial (such as tissue culture) are populated by individuals who are typically not microfabrication experts. The goal of this research is to develop an easy and low cost method for creating biochemical surface patterns with microscale feature resolution and local control over chemical concentration. The method described here leverages the force on charged protein molecules in an electric field to drive the molecules in a given direction. The speed with which these molecules move depends on the properties of the molecules themselves and the medium through which they travel. By creating a material with heterogeneous regions—in this work, a hydrogel with different mesh densities—it is possible to have local spatial control over the speed of protein movement. In this work, this concept was used to drive biomolecules (proteins) onto a target paper surface, and then local protein concentration was measured using fluorescence or intensity of a protein stain. In addition, these patterns were achieved using materials and methods that are easily accessible to individuals in most biochemical or tissue culture laboratories.
Variação do tamanho corporal de machos de Eulaema nigrita Lepeletier (Hymenoptera, Apidae, Euglossini). Resposta materna à flutuação de recursos?

It was compared body size (measured as intertegular span) variance of trapped-males of Eulaema nigrita Lepeletier, 1841 sampled in dry (July, August and September) and wet (December, January and February) seasons of the years 1988/89 and 1994/95 in Vicosa (Minas Gerais, Brazil). It was also compared the body size variance between males and females sampled in three nests found in Sao Carlos (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and between these males and trapped ones. The smaller male (6.4 mm) was sampled in June and the bigger (8.9 mm) in July 1994, but the majority (32.3%) showed an intertegular span ranging from 7.8 to 8.0mm. The observed variance in body size was similar between males sampled in nests and trapped-males and the variance found inside a nest was similar between the sexes. However, males sampled in 1988/89 were bigger than 1994/95 males and males sampled in nests were smaller than trapped-males. The variance of the body size of males did differ between 1988/89 and 1994/95. In the first period differences between males sampled in dry or wet season was not observed, but in 1994/95 period the males sampled in dry season showed significantly greater variance in body size than males sampled in wet season. The body size variance did not differ between the wet seasons of 1988/89 and 1994/95. The body size variation, measured as the coefficient of variation in intertegular span, did not differ between males of E. nigrita (CV = 4.3%) and ground-nesting bees. These results show that the variation in body size of males of E. nigrita reflects that one found inside the nests of this bee, being similar among males and females. This variation is expected as result of ecological factors influences the nesting females. El Nino climatic events alone or in association with the lack of local food resources due to deforestation and presence of monocultures might play a role in observed body size variation. However this hypothesis is not sufficient to explain the observed body size variation inside a single nest. The absence of pressures of selection related to the females' advantages of produce large offspring perhaps contributes to the maintenance of the observed size variation. Studies regarding maternal allocation in E. nigrita may be useful to explain either the variation in body size or sex ratio found in this Neotropical bee.
Creating Business Analytics Dashboard Designs Using Visualization Methodologies: Case Methods for Innovative Analytics Pedagogy.

Teaching business analytics has become a critical requirement in many business schools to stay competitive, and the search for real-world examples of business analytics applications is a subject of great interest among analytics instructors. Instructors want to be able to show students how to develop and build business analytics applications that can effectively help real world business decisions. In this research, we aim to develop teaching methodologies to design visual analytics applications that are effective at the classroom and at the same time practical for students to relate to when building their own dashboard application. This research attempts to showcase these designs in case studies where analytics applications are create to help students understand how they are used in various business operations.
Effect of facial attractiveness on clothing attractiveness ratings by gender

Faces and clothing are clues to interpersonal perception. However, it is not known whether perceptions of faces and clothing are interacting with each other. We examined the effects of facial attractiveness on subjective ratings of clothing attractiveness. Participants were shown pictures of a person wearing a T-shirt in which the faces and shirt designs were manipulated. The faces were either male or female, attractive or unattractive. Participants were instructed to rate the attractiveness of the shirts, not the faces. Nevertheless, attractive female faces increased shirt attractiveness ratings, irrespective of the participant’s gender. Attractive male faces only slightly increased shirt attractiveness ratings. Gender differences and individual variability in visual attention were not responsible for these effects. The current results more likely reflect social or cultural factors, such as the higher priority placed on female facial attractiveness than male facial attractiveness in today’s society.
Why Clinical Science Must Change or Die: Integrating Intersectionality and Social Justice

Abstract Clinical science must begin to embrace the richness and nuance involved in centering social justice, intersectionality, and diversity and creating space for these topics to exist within scholars, clients, clinical work, theory, and research. In this article, we discuss why the field has resisted these frameworks and offer strategies for increasing their integration in training, research, practice, and the field more broadly. This shift will increase diverse scholars in the field, transform the nature and questions asked within our research, the manner in which we conduct clinical interventions, and the relevance of clinical science for the populations we serve.
Mapping Annual Land Disturbance and Reclamation in a Surface Coal Mining Region Using Google Earth Engine and the LandTrendr Algorithm: A Case Study of the Shengli Coalfield in Inner Mongolia, China

The development and utilization of mining resources are basic requirements for social and economic development. Both open-pit mining and underground mining have impacts on land, ecology, and the environment. Of these, open-pit mining is considered to have the greatest impact due to the drastic changes wrought on the original landform and the disturbance to vegetation. As awareness of environmental protection has grown, land reclamation has been included in the mining process. In this study, we used the Shengli Coalfield in the eastern steppe region of Inner Mongolia to demonstrate a mining and reclamation monitoring process. We combined the Google Earth Engine platform with time series Landsat images and the LandTrendr algorithm to identify and monitor mining disturbances to grassland and land reclamation in open-pit mining areas of the coalfield between 2003 and 2019. Pixel-based trajectories were used to reconstruct the temporal evolution of vegetation, and sequential Landsat archive data were used to achieve accurate measures of disturbances to vegetation. The results show that: (1) the proposed method can be used to determine the years in which vegetation disturbance and recovery occurred with accuracies of 86.53% and 78.57%, respectively; (2) mining in the Shengli mining area resulted in the conversion of 89.98 km2 of land from grassland, water, etc., to barren earth, and only 23.54 km2 was reclaimed, for a reclamation rate of 26.16%; and (3) the method proposed in this paper can achieve fast, efficient identification of surface mining land disturbances and reclamation, and has the potential to be applied to other similar areas.
Multiple Effekte von Omega-3-Fettsäuren im Fettgewebe

Zusammenfassung Im Fettgewebe üben Omega-3-Fettsäuren multiple Effekte aus, verbunden mit systemischen Wirkungen. Veränderungen der Fettsäure-Zusammensetzung zellulärer Membranen, die sich funktionell auswirken, Interaktionen mit Membran- und intrazellulären Rezeptoren und die Synthese einer Vielzahl bioaktiver Metabolite sind eingeschlossen. Besonders bedeutsam sind die anti-inflammatorischen und entzündungsauflösenden Wirkungen von Omega-3-Fettsäuren. Die Effekte langkettiger Omega-3-Fettsäuren wie Eicosapentaensäure (EPA) und Docosahexaensäure (DHA) sowohl auf metabolische als auch auf Immunzellen des Fettgewebes modulieren inflammatorische Prozesse und wirken Fettgewebe-Dysfunktionen bei Adipositas entgegen. Weil eine chronisch-subklinische Entzündung und Dysfunktionen im Fettgewebe Risikofaktoren für Adipositas-Folgeerkrankungen darstellen, ist eine ausgewogene Ernährung einschließlich optimaler Aufnahme von Omega-3-Fettsäuren mit gesundheitsfördernden Wirkungen unter den Bedingungen der Adipositas verbunden.
Mutagenicity and cytotoxicity of fruits and vegetables evaluated by the Ames test and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)- 2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay / Mutagenicidad y citotoxicidad de frutas y vegetales evaluadas por el test de Ames y el ensayo del bromuro de 3-(4,5-dimetiltiazol-2-il)-2,

The mutagenic and cytotoxic activity of the aqueous (H2O) and ethanolic (EtOH) extracts of fruits and vegetables were studied by the Ames test and the MTT assay. A significant mutagenic activity was found for three H2O extracts of broccoli (Brassica oleracea), carrot (Dacus carota) and licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) and for one EtOH extract of kiwi (Ananas sativus ) of the nine species analyzed. The frameshift tester strain TA98 was reverted by broccoli (2.4, 4.8 and 9.6 mg/mL; p < 0.01) and carrot (9.6 mg/mL; p < 0.001) aqueous extracts and by kiwi (9.6 mg/mL; p < 0.0001) EtOH extract, whereas strain TA100 was only sensitive to the mutagens of licorice H,O extract, within the nine fruits and vegetables tested. The mutagenic response of the extracts was not altered by the presence of S9 mix. Cytotoxicity was only found for three of the nine species tested. Percentage cytotoxic ac tivities at 4.8 mg/mL in pineapple (Actinidin diasinensis) and garlic (Allium sativum) H,O extracts were 77 and 91 %, respectively. Licorice EtOH extract was the only one that showed a cytotoxic activity at all of the concentrations used. The percentage of cytotoxic activity of licorice extract was 63% at 0.24 mg/mL and increased with increasing concentration of licorice up to 4.8 mg/mL. Thus, licorice (EtOH) extract was the most cytotoxic of the species tested.
Response of Peach Fruit Fly, Bactrocera zonata (Saunders) to the Essential Oil of Cubeb Pepper, Piper cubeba Bojer

Peach fruit fly, Bactrocera zonata (Fam: Tephritidae, or: Diptera), is a quarantine insect-pest that infests various commercial fruit and vegetable crops in Egypt. Almost all the monitoring and control strategies of this flydepend on the use of the para-pheromone methyl eugenol (ME) as a sex attractant of male flies. Therefore, the current study aimed to investigate the potential use of the essential oil of berries of cubeb pepper (tailed pepper) (CEO), Piper cubeba (Fam: Piperaceae) as an attractant for B.zonata flies. CEO was extracted using the hydro-distillation scavenging apparatus from cubeb berries and chemically analyzed by GC-MS. The CEO was assayed in the attraction of B. zonata flies compared with the recommended dose of para-pheromone ME. Results showed that ME and the CEOat the different concentrations had attracted male flies and no females. Remarkably, there were no significant differences between ME and crude CEO in attracting the male flies. The GC-MS results revealed about 29 major constituents of CEO; the eugenol was the major constituent (45.88%)of the CEO, followed by 3-methyl-pentane (15.36%), methyl-cyclopentane (9.198%), and methyl eugenol (6.093%). These findings explaine the effective role of CEO as a male attractant of B. zonata and it could be used as an alternative to the ME, which would conserve a huge amount of money spent on buying the chemical ME.
Analysis of GSH Conjugates of Bay- and Fjord-Region Dihydrodiol Epoxides of Benzo[a]pyrene and Dibenzo[a,l]pyrene and their Transport in Enterocyte-like Caco-2 Cells

The gastrointestinal tract is a main route of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) due to the ingestion of PAH-contaminated food. Numerous PAH are carcinogenic and most of them are metabolized to biologically active bay- and fjord-region dihydrodiol epoxides that are capable to form stable DNA adducts leading subsequently to mutations and cell transformation. In vitro studies with canine kidney epithelial cells demonstrate that detoxification of dihydrodiol epoxides through glutathione (GSH) conjugate formation catalyzed by glutathione S-transferases and their subsequent removal from the cell by transport proteins of the ATP-binding cassette superfamily is an important process to control DNA adduct levels. In the present study, Caco-2 cells were selected to serve as a model system to investigate both the human intestinal metabolism of the carcinogenic PAH benzo[a]pyrene (BP) and dibenzo[a,l]pyrene (DBP) and transport of their conjugates. In order to allow application of non labeled compounds specific LC-ESI-MS/MS methods were established to determine GSH conjugate formation of the dihydrodiol epoxides of BP and DBP and to demonstrate their efflux from Caco-2 cells.
The Effect of Weaning Weight on Offspring Fitness in Wild House Mice (Mus musculus domesticus): A Preliminary Study

Sex allocation theory is frequently applied to mammalian reproductive traits although the basic assumptions are rarely assessed. In particular, it has been proposed that the finding of negative correlations between sex ratio (percentage males) and litter size in a variety of mammals could ultimately be seen as an adaptation according to the Trivers-Willard hypothesis. Thereby it is supposed 1) that individual young of small litters are weaned at heavier weight than young of larger litters, 2) that this litter-size effect on individual weights persists into adulthood, and 3) that such small weight advantages increase male fitness more strongly than female fitness. In this study, during each of 4 trials, I introduced 4 male and 4 female mice from 8 different litters of wild-caught breeding pairs to a semi-natural enclosure and followed up the social and reproductive events for about 10 weeks. It appeared that small weight differences attributable to litter size variation had a significant positive effect on male fitness, but not on female fitness. As the sample size was small and the social development did vary considerably between trials, this result deserves further clarification.
Phylogenetic relationships in Neonectria species having Cylindrocarpon anamorphs inferred from mitochondrial ribosomal DNA sequences

Mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU) rDNA sequences elucidated phylogenetic relationships in Neonectria Wollenw. (anamorphs = Cylindrocarpon Wollenw.; Ascomycetes, Hypocreales). Twelve isolates representing seven species in five taxonomically informal groups of Neonectria were subjected to phylogenetic analysis. Fusarium inflexum R. Schneid. (teleomorph: Gibberella) and Nectria cinnabarina (Fr.) Fr. (= Nectria s.str.) were outgroups. All of the Neonectria species formed a strongly supported clade with respect to the outgroups, indicating a single ascomycete genus for the holomorphs of Cylindrocarpon. Within the Neonectria clade there were three well-supported subclades that only partially corresponded to phenotype-defined groups. DNA sequence divergence among the twelve Neonectria isolates, 2.3-7.4%, was sufficient to resolve them. The results suggest that the mtSSU rDNA region is appropriate for phylogenetic analysis of Neonectria and Cylindrocarpon. The following new combinations are proposed: Neonectria.
The effect of the weaning to oestrus interval on litter size, live born piglets and farrowing rate in sows

Zusammenfassung Der Einflus des Rauscheintervalls auf die Wurfgrose, die Anzahl der lebend geborenen Ferkel und Abferkelrate bei Sauen Auf einem Betrieb mit 390 Sauen wurden wahrend einer Periode von funf Jahren Daten gesammelt. Der Betrieb besteht aus 3 Einheiten von je 130 Sauen. Die Einheiten unterschieden sich nur im Haltungssystem der tragenden Sauen. Die Daten wurden erhoben, um nachzuforschen ob die Unterschiede in Wurfgrose, Anzahl der lebend geborenenen Ferkel und Abferkelrate erklart werden konnen durch die Variation im Rauscheintervall (WOI). Die Wurfgrose verringerte sich von 11,9 bei einem WOI von 4 Tagen auf 11,1 bei eine WOI von 8 Tagen (p < 0,06). Ein WOI groser als 12 Tagen auserte sich in einem groseren Wurf. Bei einem WOI uber 18 Tagen war die Wurfgrose mit 13,5 Ferkel signifikant hoher als bei einem WOI von 5 Tagen mit einer Wurfgrose von 11,7 Ferkel (p < 0,01). Die Anzahl lebend geborener Ferkel lag niedriger bei Sauen mit einem WOI von 6 Tagen (10,4) als bei Sauen bei einem WOI von 5 Tagen (10,7) (p < 0,05). Sauen mit einem WOI uber 18 Tagen haben 1,8 lebend geborenenen Ferkel mehr geworfen als Sauen mit einem WOI von 5 Tagen (p < 0,01). Erstlingssauen hatten nach einem WOI von 4 oder 6 Tagen eine niedrigere Abferkelrate (bzw. 74,1 und 76,1%) als altere Sauen (bzw. 93,4 und 88,2%), (p < 0,05). Bei einem WOI von 9 bis 12 Tagen lag die Abferkelrate, sowohl bei den Erstlingssauen als auch bei den alteren Sauen, niedriger als bei einem WOI von 5 Tagen (bzw. 66,7 und 58,6% bei einem WOI von 9 bis 12 Tagen und bzw. 85,8 und 87,7% bei einem WOI von 5 Tagen), (p < 0,01).
Tree mortality caused by Gremmeniella abietina in a subalpine afforestation in the central Alps and its relationship with duration of snow cover

Summary Tree survival and causes of mortality were studied in an experimental afforestation in the upper subalpine forest zone in the Swiss Alps. A total of 59.8% of Pinus cembra and 45.6% of Pinus mugo were killed by Gremmeniella abietina during the first 20 years after planting, compared to 1.5% of Larix deddua trees. The mortality rates caused by G. abietina were highly correlated with the duration of snow cover in spring. Tree losses were lowest at sites where the snow melted early and highest at sites where the snow ablation was delayed in spring. Tree mortality varied greatly between years. In the year after the coldest summer of the observation period mortality due to G. abietina infections was highest, suggesting high susceptibility of trees in poor condition. Phaddium infestans, which was the second most important factor for mortality in P. cembra, killed trees irrespective of their condition. Other biotic and abiotic causes of tree mortality had negligible influence compared with the impact of G abietina and P. infestans. Excluding anthropogenic impacts, the diverse spatial pattern of forested and treeless sites close to the subalpine timberline may predominantly result from the action of parasitic fungi, depending on the ablation pattern of the snow cover in spring.
The care of infants in a wild marmoset (Callithrix flaviceps) group

The behavior of a free‐ranging group of buffy‐headed marmosets (Callithrix flaviceps) was observed in detail over a five‐month period following the birth of twins. Infant care, principally carrying and food sharing, were analyzed and the variation both between age‐sex classes and through time investigated. Potentially reproductive males exhibited a relatively high degree of interest in the infants during the first week following birth, but their provision of care was otherwise little different from that of other group members. The data are considered in relation to the factors stimulating care‐giving behavior and possible differences between callitrichid genera are discussed.