Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Different Species of α-Synuclein Oligomers Induce Calcium Influx and Seeding

Aggregation of α-synuclein (α-syn) has been linked to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) and other neurodegenerative diseases. Increasing evidence suggests that prefibrillar oligomers and protofibrils, rather than mature fibrils of α-syn, are the pathogenic species in PD. Despite extensive effort on studying oligomerization of α-syn, no studies have compared different oligomer species directly on a single-particle level and investigated their biological effects on cells. In this study, we applied a novel highly sensitive single molecule detection system that allowed a direct comparison of different oligomer types. Furthermore, we studied biological effects of different oligomer types on cells. For this purpose, we developed new oligomerization protocols, that enabled the use of these different oligomers in cell culture. We found that all of our three aggregation protocols resulted in heterogeneous populations of oligomers. Some types of oligomers induced cell death via disruption of cellular ion homeostasis by a presumably pore-forming mechanism. Other oligomer types could directly enter the cell resulting in increased α-syn aggregation. Based on our results, we propose that under various physiological conditions, heterogeneous populations of oligomeric forms will coexist in an equilibrium. These different oligomer types lead directly or indirectly to cell damage. Our data indicate that inhibition of early α-syn aggregation events would consequently prevent all α-syn oligomer related toxicities. This has important implications for the development of disease-modifying drugs for the treatment of PD and other synucleinopathies.
Grapevine Susceptibility to Pierce's Disease I: Relevance of Hydraulic Architecture

The arrangement of vascular tissue within the nodes of Chardonnay grapevine (Vitis vinifera) shoots was studied as an investigation of potential pathways of infection for the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa, the cause of Pierce's disease. Grapevine stem anatomy of the current year's growth was observed with both light and scanning electron microscopy, and xylem conductance was observed by following the movement of stains within the xylem. Four to eight leaf traces diverge from the stele, which may or may not fuse to form a reduced number, and anastomosis of these traces begins before entering the petiole proper. No evidence was observed to support the report that leaf traces are distinct for four nodes prior to divergence and leaf traces are not considered to be conductively isolated. Lateral divergence of stem xylem into tendrils and lateral shoots creates a repeating pattern of gaps in the node that may preclude long-distance movement of bacteria in these sectors of the stem. The hydraulic architecture of the grapevine node is described and implications for the spread of Pierce's disease within the grapevine shoot are discussed.
Supplemental Calcium Applications to Creeping Bentgrass Established on Calcareous Sand

Sand-based athletic fields and golf course greens may contain large amounts of CaCO 3 . Calcium is frequently applied to these areas based on the belief that the Ca within the CaCO 3 is not readily available for plant use. Our objectives were to determine if Ca applied to creeping bentgrass grown on calcareous sand increases Ca uptake, affects the clipping yield or quality of the grass plant, or affects the availability of other nutrients. A 2-yr field trial was initiated on a calcareous sand-based green established with 'Crenshaw' creeping bentgrass {Agrostis palustris Huds. [= Agrostis stolonifera var. palustris (Hods.) Farw. ]}. Treatments included gypsum (CaSO 4 ), CaCO 3 , Ca nitrate j[a(NO 3 ) 2 -4H 2 O], and liquid Ca chelate applied across five months at 4.5 g Ca m -2 per month and an untreated control. Urea was added to balance the N found in the Ca(NO 3 ) 2 and Ca chelate treatments. Throughout the experiment, there were no differences in tissue Ca content, visual quality, or clipping yield in response to the Ca treatments. With the exception of the CaSO 4 treatment in 1999, application of Ca did not significantly affect the leaf concentrations of the other nutrients. During the first year, creeping bentgrass grown in plots receiving CaSO 4 contained 11% less tissue Mg than the creeping bentgrass in the control plots. Supplemental Ca applications to creeping bentgrass established on calcareous sand had no beneficial effects.
Short Communication: Maximum Load-Lifting and Induced Power Output of Harris' Hawks are General Functions of Flight Muscle Mass

Pennycuick et al. (1989) recently reported results of an experiment in which climbing rate and load-lifting ability were measured for two trained Harris' hawks (Parabuteo unicinctus Audubon) flying with various amounts of experimentally applied loads. These data were used to estimate climbing power, maximum aerodynamic power output, and performance consequences of loads in the form of radiotracking equipment. Measuring the rate of gain of potential energy (which is presumably equal to maximum induced power output in level flight) is highly advantageous, since it uses empirical observations of the rate of work and involves considerably fewer assumptions than do previous estimates of maximum induced power output. However, Pennycuick et al. (1989) neglected to relate their results to previous measurements of maximum load-lifting, and thereby overlooked the generality of their result. The purpose of this note is to show that maximum load-lifting by Harris' hawks is consistent with results from a wide variety of birds, bats and insects, and that maximum induced power output from Harris' hawks and other flying animals can be estimated from flight muscle mass and wing length. Marden (1987) showed that maximum load-lifting among a diverse sample of birds, bats and insects was an isometric function of total flight muscle mass, with little interspecific variation (r=0.99). This result was not predicted by previous data or theory, and to date had not been confirmed with independent measurements from other studies. Because the largest animal used in Marden's study was a pigeon (0.267 kg), results from Harris' hawks (0.920 kg) also permit a further test of the isometry of maximum lift production. Estimates of maximum load-lifting and of flight muscle mass from Harris' hawks are necessary to compare their performance with that of other flying animals. Pennycuick et al. (1989) determined that Harris' hawks were able to gain altitude while carrying 1.4 kg, but not while carrying 1.55 kg. Thus, their maximum load was somewhere between these two masses, and can be approximated as 1.475 kg (the midway point). This is the same approximation used by Marden (1987), where
Caste formation in the termite genus termopsis

In Termopsis nevadensis only soldiers are produced during the first three or four years. When a normal colony comprises approximately twenty inhabitants, the first adult soldier is probably in the fifth instar; the second, somewhat larger, certainly is in the sixth. Later, others are produced in the seventh, and after the reproductive caste becomes differentiated, with about 450 inhabitants, they are in the eighth. Finally, in very old communities, some, at least, are in the ninth. The winged insect invariably is in the eighth.
The antimicrobial activity of the stem-bark and leaf of Parkia clappertoniana Keay family Leguminosae against selected microorganisms

In this work, the antimicrobial activity of the stem bark and leaves of Parkia clappertoniana Keay was investigated. The activity of the crude extract was tested on both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. A comparative study of the effects of the methanolic and aqueous extracts revealed that the methanolic extract was more potent. The screening also revealed that both the stem bark and leaves of P. clappertoniana were effective against all test organisms. The activity was however more pronounced on Gram-positive organisms with Staphylococcus aureus being more susceptible and Pseudomonas aeruginosa being most resistant. Since the traditional herbalist claims that the plant cures diarrhoea and dysentery and if the disease condition is caused by bacteria, then it can be concluded that his claims might be true based on the results obtained. Key words: Parkia clappertoniana ; antimicrobial activity; Gram-positive bacteria; Gram-negative bacteria Nig. J. Pharm. Res. 3(1) 2004: 16-22
Disposal pattern of young Sahiwal cattle under organized farm

Data of 830 female Sahiwal calves, born between 1986 and 2009 at National Dairy Research Institute's Farm, were analysed to study the influence of different non-genetic factors on disposal pattern (mortality and culling) of young Sahiwal cattle up to age at first calving (AFC) under organized herd. Different non-genetic factors like season of birth, period of birth and birth weight of calves were considered to assess their influence on mortality and culling. Overall disposal up to AFC was 33.78%, comprising 24.67% due to mortality and 9.11% due to culling. Maximum mortality was observed during first month of age, which was attributed to higher incidence of pneumonia and enteritis encountered in this age group. Mortality rate revealed a decreasing trend along with the age. Maximum culling rate was found during 12 month to AFC age group. Season of birth had highly significant influence on incidence of mortality during first month of age, whereas period of birth had significant influence on incidence of culling during 12 month to AFC age group. Birth weight of calves had no significant influence on either culling or mortality. The likelihood of mortality was higher in rainy and winter season born calves. The overall results showed that the major reason of female calves' disposal was mortality, especially during first month of age. Therefore, intensive care of calves of this age group against inclement weather conditions by providing better feeding and management would result in reducing mortality rate in calves.
Workload-sensitive Timing Behavior Analysis for Fault Localization in Software Systems

Software timing behavior measurements, such as response times, often show high statistical variance. This variance can make the analysis difficult or even threaten the applicability of statistical techniques. This thesis introduces a method for improving the analysis of software response time measurements that show high variance. Our approach can find relations between timing behavior variance and both trace shape information and workload intensity information. This relation is used to provide timing behavior measurements with virtually less variance. This can make timing behavior analysis more robust (e.g., improved confidence and precision) and faster (e.g., less simulation runs and shorter monitoring period). The thesis contributes TracSTA (Trace-Context-Sensitive Timing Behavior Analysis) and WiSTA (Workload-Intensity-Sensitive Timing Behavior Analysis). TracSTA uses trace shape information (i.e., the shape of the control flow corresponding to a software operation execution) and WiSTA uses workload intensity metrics (e.g., the number of concurrent software executions) to create context-specific timing behavior profiles. Both the applicability and effectiveness are evaluated in several case studies and field studies. The evaluation shows a strong relation between timing behavior and the metrics considered by TracSTA and WiSTA. Additionally, a fault localization approach for enterprise software systems is presented as application scenario. It uses the timing behavior data provided by TracSTA and WiSTA for anomaly detection.
A review of the conservation status of Australian mammals

Introduction: This paper provides a summary of results from a recent comprehensive review of the conservation status of all Australian land and marine mammal species and subspecies. Since the landmark date of European settlement of Australia (1788), at least 28 of the ca . 272 Australian endemic land mammal species have been rendered extinct. Results and Discussion: Extinctions have occurred at a more or less consistent rate of one to two species per decade since the 1840s, with that rate continuing unabated. A further 55 species from that original fauna are now threatened, and an additional 42 are Near Threatened. Although many factors have contributed to these declines and extinctions, and the array of threats varies amongst individual species, the threat that has had (and is continuing to have) most detrimental impact upon terrestrial mammal species is predation by the introduced cat Felis catus and European red fox Vulpes vulpes . There has been some successful broad-scale management of the fox, but the threat posed by feral cats remains largely unabated. For the 55 species occurring in Australian marine waters, the information base is mostly too meagre to assess conservation status other than as Data Deficient. For the Australian mammal fauna generally, the current conservation management effort is insufficient, with ongoing trends for decline in many species – for example, of 49 species whose conservation status changed over the period 1992-2012, 38 had deteriorating conservation status whereas only 11 had improving status. Key words: extinct, feral cat, fire, marine mammals, marsupial, predation, red fox, threatened, translocation.
Effects of radio‐collar position and orientation on GPS radio‐collar performance, and the implications of PDOP in data screening

Summary 1 Global positioning system (GPS) radio-telemetry has become an important wildlife research technique worldwide. However, understanding, quantifying and managing error and bias in raw GPS radio-telemetry data sets requires much more work. In particular, error and bias resulting from position (angle away from vertical) and orientation (compass direction) of GPS radio-collars on free-ranging animals is currently unknown. 2 We tested the effects of collar position and orientation on GPS radio-collar performance using five stationary GPS radio-collars. We also investigated the use of positional dilution of precision (PDOP) as a method for screening data with high location errors. 3 Orientation had no statistical effect on fix rates or location errors. The biggest source of variation was attributed to collar position, which resulted in significantly lower performance at angles below 90° from vertical. 4 PDOP-based screening was effective and can be used to lower location error, but the trade-off between higher location accuracy and data loss (potentially leading to new bias) must be assessed. 5 Synthesis and applications. The results of this study refine our understanding of error and bias in GPS radio-telemetry data. We suggest that collar orientation can safely be disregarded, whereas radio-collar position remains a large potential source of error and bias. This finding has major implications regarding animal activity and GPS radio-telemetry research. Researchers need to quantify and account for biases resulting from animals moving through heterogeneous terrain and habitats.
The illustrated life cycle of Microbotryum on the host plant Silene latifolia

The plant-parasitic genus Microbotryum (Pucciniomycotina) has been used as a model for various biological studies, but fundamental aspects of its life history have not been documented in detail. The smut fungus is characterized by a dimorphic life cycle with a haploid saprophytic yeast-like stage and a dikaryotic plant-parasitic stage, which bears the teliospores as dispersal agents. In this study, seedlings and flowers of Silene latifolia Poir. (Caryophyllaceae) were inoculated with teliospores or sporidial cells of Microbotryum lychnidis-dioicae (DC. ex Liro) G. Deml & Oberw. and the germination of teliospores, the infection process, and the proliferation in the host tissue were documented in vivo using light and electron microscopy. Although germination of the teliospore is crucial for the establishment of Microbotryum, basidium development is variable under natural conditions. In flowers, where the amount of nutrients is thought to be high, the fungus propagates as sporidia, and mating of compatible c.
Influence of settlement time, human population, park shape and age, visitation and roads on the number of alien plant species in protected areas in the USA

Abstract. I examined a data set of 77 protected areas in the USA (including national and state parks) to determine which of the following variables most strongly influence alien plant species richness: park area, climate (temperature and precipitation), native species richness, visitation rate, local human population size, total road length, park shape and duration of European settlement. Many of these predictor variables are intercorrelated, so I used multiple regression to help separate their effects. In support of previous studies, native species richness was the best single predictor of alien species richness, probably because it was a good estimator of both park area and habitat diversity available for establishment of alien species. Other significant predictors of alien species richness were years of occupation of the area by European settlers and the human population size of adjacent counties. Climate, visitation rate, road length and park shape did not influence alien species richness. The proportion of alien species (alien richness/native richness) is inversely related to park area, in agreement with a previous study. By identifying which variables are most important in determining alien species richness, such findings suggest ways to reduce alien species establishment.
Adjuvant-induced arthritis: IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α are up-regulated in the spinal cord

Adjuvant-induced arthritis (AIA) is a widely used animal model of human rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We have previously shown that increased neuropeptide expression is observed in the spinal cord of AIA rats. To study the potential role of cytokines in the spinal cord of AIA, we wanted to determine whether there are changes of glial and cytokine expression (IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and IFN-γ) in the spinal cord of AIA rats. Our data indicated that macroglia and MHC class II immunostaining were enhanced, astrocytes expressing GFAP were increased in number and immunostaining intensity. Using in situ hybridization and immunohistochemical methods, both mRNA and protein levels of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly increased in the spinal cord of arthritic rats. Increased cytokine expression was presented in the reactive astrocytes and microglia.
Influence des réserves azotées sur la formation des feuilles d’Alnus glutinosa et ses conséquences dans l'estimation de la fixation d'azote

The influence of nitrogen reserves on leaf formation of 5- to 6-year-old plants of Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn. was investigated using a 15N labelling method. Nitrogen reserves were derived essentially from the root system and along with N fixation by Frankia, supported the growth of the young leaves. The reserves represent 10% of the total nitrogen in the leaves at the end of the growing period under natural or environmentally controlled conditions. The percentage of fixed nitrogen in alder leaves was estimated to be 87% taking into account the nitrogen reserves and using the isotopic comparison with a nonfixing plant (Populus alba L.). Several conditions requiring the use of 15N methods to estimate the symbiotic nitrogen fixation by Frankia were formulated. The selection of samples for analysis must be from the most recently formed leaves at the end of the growing season to avoid the influence of nitrogenous reserves. Key words: nitrogen reserves, Alnus glutinosa, Populus alba, Frankia, 15N fixation.
Beef broth flavour: relation of components with the flavour developed at different cooking temperatures

The components of broths obtained at different cooking temperatures (from 55 °C to boiling under reflux) have been related, through regression analysis, with their sensorial evaluation. An increase in cooking temperature led to a significant rise (P ≤ 0.05) in the concentration of nitrogen in peptides of molecular weight higher than 600 Da (HPPN, higher than 600 Da peptidic nitrogen), nitrogen in non-amino acid substances of less than 600 Da (SNAN, small non-amino acid nitrogen compounds), creatinine, inosine 5′-monophosphate (IMP) and adenosine 5′-monophosphate (AMP) in beef broths. The levels of SNAN, IMP, AMP, guanosine 5′-monophosphate (GMP) and creatine showed a positive and significant relation (P ≤ 0.01) with the sensorial evaluation. Simple linear regression analysis showed that the beef broth flavour is inversely related to the protein nitrogen (PN) concentration. Multiple linear regression analysis suggested that flavour properties of beef broths were more influenced by the IMP concentration than the GMP and AMP concentration and that SNAN is more important than HPPN. Significant correlations (P ≤ 0.01) established between D-ribose content, sensorial evaluation and amino acid nitrogen (AN) concentration suggested that besides amino acids and free sugars, substances from the earlier steps of Maillard reactions are involved in the obtention of suitable beef broth flavour at 85 °C. Nevertheless, the development of off-flavours at cooking temperatures higher than 95 °C, especially warmed-over flavour (WOF), suggests that it is advisable to restrict the reactions that occur at high temperatures. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry
An inter‐ocean comparison of coral endemism on seamounts: the case of Chrysogorgia

The biogeography of seamount fauna remains poorly known, with less than 1% of the world's seamounts having been investigated. Here, we report data on the geographical isolation of species in the octocoral genus Chrysogorgia from south‐west Pacific seamounts and slopes, and contrast the results with patterns observed in the north‐western Atlantic.
Occurrence of two different development patterns in Lobesia botrana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) larvae during the second generation

In north‐eastern Italy, the second‐generation larvae of Lobesia botrana (Den. & Schiff.) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) can develop with two different time patterns. In particular, in ‘warmer’ areas, the developmental time is shorter than in ‘cooler’ areas and it is associated with an earlier and more economically important third generation. Because the differences in temperature are not sufficient to explain the two patterns, research was carried out aiming to investigate whether the differences in larval development time are the result of a different number of instars and whether the photoperiod is a factor. In the field, second‐generation larvae develop through five instars in a ‘warmer’ area and through six instars in a ‘cooler’ area. Laboratory and field data showed that decreasing photoperiod, which induces diapause, is also an important cue for inducing larvae to develop six instars. In the light of climate warming and subsequent changes in L. botrana phenology over the last 30 years, the two different development patterns are interpreted as a means to ensure the best fit of the moth to environmental conditions. In ‘cooler’ areas, third‐generation larvae might not complete development before frost or harvest, and hence second‐generation larvae develop through six instars before producing overwintering pupae.
Ecological Models of Language Competition

The contemporary global language “extinction crisis” has been analyzed by several influential linguists using concepts from ecology. In this article we study different reaction-diffusion models to explain the dynamics of language competition. We are mainly interested in situations where one language has a status advantage compared with the other. We consider previous applications of competition models from ecology, with particular attention to the implications of the “carrying capacity” term in such models. We derive existence as well as stability conditions for the equilibria of the models considered, and show that depending on environmental conditions both situations—coexistence of competing languages or extinction of the less advantageous language—are possible.