Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Padronização dos extratos de Cissus sicyoides L. (Insulina vegetal) e identificação de carotenos

Cissus sicyoides L. has commonly been known in folk medicine as vegetable insulin and used by its hypoglicemic properties. Extracts of the plant have been examined and carotenes were identified in the acetonic fraction. Analysis of the fluid extract of the plant has also been effected and the chromatopraphic profile established.
The importance of genetic variability and population differentiation in the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx for conservation, in the context of habitat and climate change

1 The Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx occupies a variety of environmental and climatic conditions, and the majority of present-day European populations have either recovered from severe demographic bottlenecks, or are living in fragmented habitat. These factors may have affected the genetic variability of lynx populations. We summarize available data on genetics, population status and ecology of these felids to shed light on the pattern and mechanisms behind their genetic variability and population differentiation in Europe. 2 Genetic studies conducted so far, based on mtDNA and microsatellites, have shown that the Eurasian lynx has low to moderate genetic variability. Variability is lowest in the north (Scandinavian bottlenecked population), but is also low in the Carpathian region. A trend towards loss of genetic variation has been noted in fragmented and reintroduced populations. Genetically, the populations are highly differentiated from each other. 3 There are clear relationships between the pattern of lynx genetic variability, differentiation between the populations, and such factors as population history (demographic bottlenecks), social interactions and habitat fragmentation. The genetic divergence between lynx populations is also strongly correlated with the depth and duration of snow cover. 4 Our review provides evidence that the lynx is undergoing significant genetic differentiation, due to several factors. To enable better planning of conservation programmes for the Eurasian lynx, researchers should identify the Evolutionarily Significant Units among its populations, using different classes of molecular markers.
The role of ethylene in the shedding of red raspberry fruit.

In the following experimental programme, the changes in ethylene production and accumulation within raspberry fruit at different stages of development have been related to the loss of abscission zone integrity. The control of ethylene production was investigated by the addition of the inhibitor of ethylene biosynthesis AVG or of the immediate precursor of ethylene ACC
Flying in the face of climate change: a review of climate change, past, present and future

The distribution and abundance of birds is known to depend critically upon climate variability at a range of temporal and spatial scales. In this paper we review historical changes in climate in the context of what is known about climate variability over the last millennium, with particular reference to the British Isles. The climate of Britain is now warmer than it has been in at least 340 years, with the 1990s decade 0.5 ° C warmer than the 1961‐1990 average. In addition, the frequency of cold days (mean temperature below 0 ° C), particularly during March and November, has declined and there has been a marked shift in the seasonality of precipitation, with winters becoming substantially wetter and summers becoming slightly drier. Current understanding is that the rate of future warming is likely to accelerate with more frequent and more intense summer heatwaves, milder winters, an increase in winter rainfall, an increased risk of winter river floods, and an increase in mean sea-level and associated coastal flooding. All of these aspects of climate change are likely to impact on coastal birds. A range of potential future climate scenarios for the British Isles are presented derived from recently completed global climate model experiments. For migrant bird species, changes in the British climate have also to be seen within the context of remote climate change in both the breeding and the overwintering grounds.
Les exploitations agricoles familiales sont-elles des institutions ?

Face aux changements de l’environnement economique (dysfonctionnement de la filiere arachide, desengagement de l’Etat, etc.), les menages ruraux recherchent avant tout la securite alimentaire de leur famille en diversifiant leurs productions et leurs activites economiques au village et dans les centres urbains grâce a la migration temporaire. Dans ce contexte, l’exploitation agricole, vue comme une institution, ne peut pas etre consideree comme une entreprise, au sens de la theorie economique classique. Elle correspond plus a un systeme d’activites dont le fonctionnement tient compte des logiques marchandes et familiales. Apres un eclairage sur le concept d’institution et son application a l’exploitation agricole familiale, nous preciserons les changements survenus dans les exploitations du Bassin arachidier en termes d’organisation sociale et de fonctionnement. Ensuite - en considerant l’exploitation agricole comme une institution - nous montrerons comment la nature des formes de coordination a evolue au sein de l’exploitation et de la famille elargie.
Effects of Water Extract of Urtica dioica L. on the Quality of Meatballs

A study was carried out to evaluate the effect of lyophilized Urtica dioica L. water extract (LUWE) on some properties of meatballs. Meatballs were produced with the following five different formulations: control (meatballs treated without LUWE or vitamin E); meatballs with 250 ppm LUWE; meatballs with 500 ppm LUWE; meatballs with 250 ppm vitamin E; and meatballs with 500 ppm vitamin E. Samples were stored under aerobic conditions at 4C for 9 days. Only pH (P < 0.01) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS; P < 0.05) values of the meatballs were affected by the addition of LUWE or vitamin E. Storage time had a significant effect (P < 0.01) on all parameters except fat and cooking loss values. Storage time and cooking of meatballs increased TBARS values. Cooking decreased L*, a* and b* values of both external and internal surfaces. The results show that 250 ppm LUWE has the potential to be used in meatball production. Practical Applications Lipid oxidation is one of the main problems that often result in a significant loss of quality and acceptability of meat and meat products. Use of antioxidants, therefore, is important to prevent economic loss. On the other hand, use of synthetic antioxidants has been banned in some countries. Therefore, the article is deals with the use of lyophilized Urtica dioica water extract as a functional ingredient in meatballs.
Biotechnology and the Improvement of Forage Legumes

The author (an anthropologist) explains that his aim in writing this book is to show that Zapotec in agricultural activities in Talea are as much a science as that of agronomists trained in the universities. For our readers such proof is unnecessary. The methods he describes to prove his thesis is a must-read for economic botanists. Dr. González actually lived and worked for fourteen months with the campesinos of Talea. He planted and harvested corn, made unrefined brown sugar, and worked the coffee plantations, which is the cash crop in Talea. With great effort, he learns to use a machete and other items he labors to describe as ‘‘implements’’ rather than tools or machines. He also plays the trumpet in the village band. González gives a through history of Talea from the Spanish Conquest to the local and national politics of today. He is an excellent writer and, except for the ‘‘proof’’ parts of the text, a fascinating one. After a thorough reading this reviewer felt almost as if she had been there. However, while the men were working long days and nights far from home, the lives of their wives and children who remain in the village are an almost total blank. Had there been a Ms. González living among them our picture of this vanishing agricultural way of life would have been complete. Their way of life is vanishing because these campesinos are economically successful. Their preserved raw brown sugar safely wrapped and stored can always be sold for a premium to those who dislike the refined sugar sold cheaply in the stores. The coffee is not top quality but does bring a good price. The campesinos are not extravagant. They save their money and send their children to college. So they are probably the last generation to farm by these methods. At least we have a carefully detailed description of how they did it.
Mercury Toxicity and Health Effect

Mercury is a toxic heavy metal which is widely dispersed (in several chemical forms) in nature. It evaporates at room temperature and its inhalation and contact may cause poisoning. The toxicity of mercury depends on its chemical form and route of exposure. Due to the nonspecific symptoms, diagnosis is difficult in special circumstances with no initial history of mercury exposure. Most human exposure results from fish consumption, dental amalgam, cosmetics, agrochemicals and many other industries. Diagnosis of mercury toxicity can be challenging but can be obtained with reasonable reliability. Their sources, symptoms, complications have been described.
Public Preferences for Compensatory Mitigation of Salt Marsh Losses: a Contingent Choice of Alternatives

Abstract: Human activities continue to eliminate or degrade wetlands that provide rich habitat for many species. Compensatory mitigation, including creation of new wetlands, restoration of previously degraded wetlands, or preservation of existing wetlands, is one policy option that seeks to maintain no net loss of wetland habitat. Public support of wetland mitigation is essential because the public incurs the cost for many mitigation projects in the form of higher taxes. Therefore, public preferences should be considered when decisions are made about wetland mitigation options. We used a contingent‐choice survey in Rhode Island to identify factors affecting public support for different types of compensatory wetland mitigation. Results were based on 640 survey responses. The amount of wetland lost during the original development project had no significant effect on the preferred mitigation alternative. Preferences for preservation, restoration, and no‐action alternatives varied according to respondents' gender, education, and income. Certain general considerations applied, however, regardless of mitigation type. Respondents were willing to incur increases in taxes and fees for most mitigation projects. The larger the mitigation project and the lower the cost, the more likely it was to gain public support. The presence of endangered species contributed to public support, but less significantly than public access. Public access can be critical to public support, particularly if the size of the wetland is small or the cost is high. If the cost of providing public access, such as a boardwalk or viewing tower, is relatively small, the gain in public support for mitigation expenditures may well allow a substantial expansion of the area involved in mitigation projects and thus a greater increase in the amount of habitat conservation.
Studying and improving Lambda Red recombination for genome engineering in Escherichia coli

The phage-derived Lambda Red recombination system utilizes exogenous DNA in order to generate precise insertion, deletion, and point mutations in Escherichia coli and other bacteria. Due to its convenience, it is a frequently-used tool in genetics and molecular biology, as well as in larger-scale genome engineering projects. However, limited recombination frequency constrains the usefulness of Lambda Red for several important applications. In this work, I utilize a mechanism-guided approach in order to improve the power and utility of Lambda Red recombination. In Chapter 1, I discuss the capabilities of Lambda Red recombination, and introduce its notable past uses, particularly in genome engineering. I also summarize the current mechanistic understanding of Lambda Red, describe several past improvements of the recombination process, and discuss our motivation for improving Lambda Red recombination further. In Chapter 2, I advance and support a novel mechanism for the Lambda Red recombination of dsDNA, in which Lambda Exonuclease entirely degrades one strand, leaving the other strand intact as ssDNA. This single-stranded intermediate then anneals at the lagging strand of the replication fork and is incorporated into the newly synthesized strand. In Chapter 3, I use this mechanistic insight to investigate new methods for improving dsDNA recombination frequency, finding that recombination frequency can significantly be enhanced by using phosphorothioate bonds to protect the 5ʹ end of the lagging-targeting strand, and by removing the endogenous nuclease ExoVII.
Molecular characterization of autochthonous hydrocarbon utilizing bacteria in oil-polluted sites at Bodo Community , Ogoni land , Niger Delta ,

Hydrocarbon utilizing bacteria in water, soil and sediment samples collected from crude oil-impacted sites at Bodo community, Ogoniland in the Niger Delta were isolated using Bushnell-Haas agar. Bacterial genera tentatively characterized were Bacillus, Corynebacterium, Enterobacter, Flavobacterium, Klebsiella, Micrococcus, Proteus, Pseudomonas and Serratia. A portion of the 16S ribosomal ribonucleic acid (16S rRNA) gene of the genomic DNA extracted from each bacterial isolate was amplified with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the universal primer set 27F: GAGTTTGATCCTGGCTCAG and 1492R: GGTTACCTTGTTACGACT. The PCR products (ca.1500bp) were cleaned up and sequenced with the ABI Big Dye version 3.1 kit on ABI 3730XL genetic analyzer. Electropherograms were inspected with Chromas Lite 2.01 while sequence identification was performed using GenBank’s BLAST algorithm. Sequence analysis revealed the presence of distinct known hydrocarbon degrading bacteria like Acinetobacter radioresistens strain Philippines-11, Alcaligenes sp. PAH43, Bacillus sp. UR2, Bacillus subtilis strain B7, Bacterium NLAE-zl-H221, Bacterium NLAE-zl-H156, Bacterium NLAE-zl-H231, Bacterium NLAE-zl-H84, Cedecea davisae isolate PSB5, Pantoea agglomerans strain T224 (formerly Enterobacter agglomerans), Proteus mirabilis strain SNB5, Proteus mirabilis strain NBRC 13300, Proteus mirabilis strain ALK418, Proteus penneri strain YCY34, Proteus mirabilis strain TL14C1, Proteus mirabilis strain 73, Proteus mirabilis strain SZH18, Proteus mirabilis strain CIFR1, Proteus hauseri strain ZMd44, Proteus vulgaris strain Knp3, Proteus mirabilis strain D27, Pseudomonas sp. G4 (2013) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain XM1. It is highly recommended that16S rRNA-gene-based techniques be used when studying the bacterial community diversity and dynamics in oil-polluted ecosystems in order to fully describe the active microorganisms involved in hydrocarbon degradation.
Attractiveness of host volatiles combined with background visual cues to the tea leafhopper, Empoasca vitis

The tea green leafhopper, Empoasca vitis (Göthe) (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), is a serious pest of tea plants. We examined the behavioral responses of E. vitis adults to odors from the shoots of three host plants in a Y‐tube olfactometer with background visual cues. The host plants were tea [Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze (Theaceae)], peach [Prunus persica (L.) Siebold & Zucc. (Rosaceae)], and grapevine [Vitis vinifera L. (Vitaceae)]. Volatiles from the shoots were analyzed. Both yellow‐green and gold backgrounds enhanced the olfactory responses of E. vitis adults to tea plant odors, and this enhancement was stronger under a high light intensity. On the yellow‐green background, E. vitis adults significantly preferred the odors from shoots of the three host plants compared with clean air. Moreover, E. vitis adults preferred grapevine odor over the tea plant odor. The volatile blends of the three plant species were distinctly different. Peach plant shoots emitted the greatest amount of volatiles, whereas grapevine shoots released the greatest diversity of compounds. These results provide evidence that background visual cues could enhance the response of E. vitis adults to host‐plant volatiles. The leafhoppers can discern different host odors, suggesting the possibility of using peach plant and grapevine odors to monitor and manage this pest in tea plantations.
Regulation of MITF and Brn2 in melanoma

Melanoma is the most aggressive skin cancer with high recurrence and low survival rate. In addition to genetic mechanisms, resistance also arises from phenotypic heterogeneity in which a proportion of cells, the so-called melanoma stem or initiating cells, survive therapy. Due to a lack of reliable markers, however, there is still debate about the existence of these cells in melanoma. Consistent with phenotypic heterogeneity, previous observations in our laboratory have demonstrated that cells in melanoma can reversibly segregate in vivo into different subpopulations with different properties, such as differentiation or increased invasive capacity (potentially attributed to the existence of de-differentiated stem-like cells). To characterise these cells, a dual reporter lentiviral system was engineered, expressing fluorescent proteins under cell stage/phenotype-specific promoters. The promoters for the transcription factors POU3F2 ( Brn2 ) (to mark de-differentiated cells) and the microphthalmia -associated transcription factor ( MITF ) (to mark proliferating and differentiated cells) were chosen. Lentivirally-transduced cells were used to screen a library of kinase inhibitors for their potential to affect promoter activity in vitro . The RhoA/ROCK pathway, known to contribute to invasion and metastases, was identified to play a role in Brn2 promoter activity and exhibited differential effects on both the MITF and Brn2 promoters in 501mel and SKmel28 cell lines. Through investigation of other signalling pathways involved in melanoma metastasis, we also identified the co-activator Mastermind-like 1 (MAML1), previously reported to act in the Notch pathway, as an activator of the Brn2 promoter via the transcription factor TCF3, and the MITF promoter through the lymphoid-enhancer binding factor 1 (LEF1). The effects of MAML1 on Brn2 and MITF promoter activity were potentiated by β-catenin. These findings provide new opportunities for the identification of therapeutic targets to prevent metastases formation in melanoma.
Response of Soil Fauna to Landscape Heterogeneity: Determining Optimal Scales for Biodiversity Modeling

Abstract: The concept of scale is inherent to ecological processes that occur over landscapes. To address this issue, we examined the response of soil fauna (Collembola) to landscape heterogeneity at different spatial scales. We derived spatial features from satellite images of the Massif of Arize in the French Pyrenees. We developed a multiscale approach to test the effect of scale of the landscape pattern on species abundance and biodiversity, with a Mantel test and stepwise multiple linear regression analysis, respectively. We distinguished the effect of the “regional” habitat (landscape descriptors) on soil fauna, which is a spatially explicit concept, and that of the “local” habitat (topography and forest type). We carried out a variance‐partitioning analysis of species composition and richness to assess the relative contribution of regional and local habitat. The effect of the spatial structure on species abundance was especially strong at a well‐defined scale of 48 ha. The surrounding environment that primarily structured the soil fauna assemblages was vegetation cover, measured as the mean of a radiometric vegetation index. Our results show that regional habitat can play an important role in structuring species composition, which is frequently hidden when the scale component is not taken into consideration. Further, we modeled endemic Collembolan richness based on a combination of landscape features at two spatial scales (2.25 ha and 292 ha). The landscape descriptors accounted for 72% of endemic richness variance, although within that variation 41% is shared with local habitat and spatial terms. We used the linear regression model to extrapolate endemism scores over the landscape. Such spatial models could be powerful tools for the selection and delimitation of high‐biodiversity areas in conservation policies.
Isoflavone content of soybean [ Glycine max (L). Merr.] cultivars with different nitrogen sources and growing season under dry land conditions

The objective of the research was to determine the best N nutrient management for isoflavone content in three soybean cultivars under dry land conditions. Two experiments were experiment I (June to September 2012 growing season) and Experiment II (October to December 2012 growing season). Experimental design was a randomized block design with 2 factors and 3 replications. The first factor was soybean cultivars (Anjasmoro, Wilis, Sinabung). The second factor was N source, with Urea (50 kg/ha), Bradyrhizobium sp. , farmyard manure (10 ton/ha), a combination of Bradyrhizobium sp. + farmyard manure (5 ton/ha) and a control with no N. A combined analysis of variance was done to evaluate the production and the content of isoflavone in the two different growing seasons as affected by N source and cultivar. The parameters observed were the content of genistein, daidzein, glycitein and total isoflavone content. Results showed that the October to December growing season had higher genistein, daidzein, glycitein and total of isoflavones than the June to September growing season. The treatment cultivar Wilis plus Bradyrhizobium sp. grown at October to December growing season increased total isoflavone content more than other treatments. Keywords: isoflavone, nitrogen, soybean
Effect ofin vitrocadmium exposure on natural killer (NK) cells of catfish,Ictalurus melas

Abstract The effect of in vitro cadmium exposure on catfish natural killer (NK) cells was investigated. Purification of NK cells by nylon-wool columns and density gradient centrifugation indicated that they were a population of nylon-wool adherent cells. Subsequently NK cells were separated only by density gradient centrifugation, where these cells band at the 43 /45 ·5 % Percoll interface. In some cytotoxicity assays, catfish NK cells were exposed to 5, 10, 30 and 50 μ M cadmium (CdCl 2 ); 10 μ l of Cd solutions were added to NK cells simultaneously with the target cells. In vitro , 5 μM Cd inhibited the ability of catfish NK cells to kill the human erythroleukemic cell line K-562. In the presence of 10 μM Cd, the antibody-independent cytotoxic activity was totally suppressed.
Structures of the mating-type-specific prohormones of mucorales

Specific prohormones from separate mating types of Blakeslea trispora are shown tohave structures (3)(from plus) and (6)–(9)(from minus); each is specifically produced by one mating-type and only converted into the active hormones (1) and (2) by the other.