Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Photo-identification in grey seals : legibility and stability of natural markings

La stabilite des marques naturelles est cruciale dans toute etude de photo-identification. Nous avons etudie la stabilite des marques naturelles du pelage chez le phoque gris, en comparant visuellement des series de photos prises dans une petite population sur plusieurs annees. Nous avons observe que le pelage des animaux se fonce au cours du temps, et particulierement pendant les premieres annees de leur existence. Cela renforce la lisibilite du pelage chez les femelles, chez qui quelques taches noires se dessinent sur un fond clair. Par contre chez les mâles, tres fonces des la naissance, l'ensemble devient uniformement noir et trop difficile a distinguer. Parametre indispensable pour estimer la taille de la population, nous avons egalement calcule la proportion d'individus identifiables par photo-identification. Ainsi, 63 % des phoques presents autour des reposoirs terrestres ont pu etre identifies, dont 100 % des femelles et 44 % des mâles presents.
Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Derived Exosomal miRNA-29c Decreases Cardiac Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury Through Inhibition of Excessive Autophagy via the PTEN/Akt/mTOR Signaling Pathway.

BACKGROUND Cardiac ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury will cause a large amount of cardiomyocyte loss and cascade reactions such as apoptosis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and excessive autophagy. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are promising therapeutic tools to replace damaged cardiomyocytes, but the underlying mechanism is still unknown.Methods and Results:Exosomes contain many microRNAs and protein, which are believed to have multiple biological functions. This study explored the role of bone marrow MSCs (BMMSCs)-derived exosomes under different oxidation levels in heart protection and miRNA-related mechanisms. Exosomes extracted from BMMSCs contained a high level of miR-29c, and its expression level changed after cells were treated under hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) conditions. In vivo I/R experiments also confirmed an expression change of miR-29c, and PTEN-Akt-mTOR is one of the predominant pathways that regulate autophagic change during this process. CONCLUSIONS This study highlighted the role of miR-29c in regulating autophagy under cardiac I/R injury, which also extended existing mechanisms of a stem cell and its derivative to explore potential therapeutic interventions in ischemic heart diseases.
Does Happiness Improve Health? Evidence From a Randomized Controlled Trial

Happier people are healthier, but does becoming happier lead to better health? In the current study, we deployed a comprehensive, 3-month positive psychological intervention as an experimental tool to examine the effects of increasing subjective well-being on physical health in a nonclinical population. In a 6-month randomized controlled trial with 155 community adults, we found effects of treatment on self-reported physical health—the number of days in the previous month that participants felt healthy or sick, as assessed by questions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Questionnaire. In a subsample of 100 participants, we also found evidence that improvements in subjective well-being over the course of the program predicted subsequent decreases in the number of sick days. Combining experimental and longitudinal methodologies, this work provides some evidence for a causal effect of subjective well-being on self-reported physical health.
Anti-fungal evaluation of some plant extracts against some plant pathogenic field and storage fungi

Aqueous extract of eight plants were screened for antifungal activity against Fusarium solani and Aspergillus flavus at 10% concentration by dry mycelial weight, spore germination and poisoned food techniques. The results revealed that Decalepis hamiltonii Wight & Arn. (Asclepiadaceae) showed significant antifungal activity. The antifungal activity of aqueous extract of D. hamiltonii an edible plant, was further evaluated at different concentrations by poisoned food technique against eight species of Fusarium, ten species of Aspergillus, three species of Penicillium, two species of Drechslera and Alternaria alternata. These phytopathogenic fungi were isolated from Sorghum, Maize, and Paddy seeds. It was observed that aqueous extract showed significant antifungal activity against all the test pathogens. Species of P. chrysogenum was completely inhibited at 10% concentration. D. halodes and A. fumigatus were inhibited at 20% concentration, whereas F. lateritium and F. moniliforme, were inhibited at a higher concentration of 50%. D. hamiltonii was further subjected to different solvent extraction using petroleum ether, benzene, chloroform, methanol and ethanol to identify the solvent extract having high activity. It was observed that petroleum ether extract showed highly significant antifungal activity followed by benzene and chloroform extracts, whereas no activity was observed in methanol and ethanol extracts at 2000 μg/ml. This plant being an edible one can possible be exploited in the management of seed borne pathogenic fungi and prevention of biodeterioration of grains and mycotoxin elaboration during storage.
Neurocognitive predictors of self‐reported reward responsivity and approach motivation in depression: A data‐driven approach

Individual differences in reward‐related processes, such as reward responsivity and approach motivation, appear to play a role in the nature and course of depression. Prior work suggests that cognitive biases for valenced information may contribute to these reward processes. Yet there is little work examining how biased attention, processing, and memory for positively and negatively valenced information may be associated with reward‐related processes in samples with depression symptoms.
Production and characterization of intergeneric hybrids between Dichroa febrifuga and Hydrangea macrophylla

The potential of producing an intergeneric hybrid between Dichroa febrifuga Lour. and Hydrangea macrophylla (Thunb.) Ser. was investigated. Reciprocal hybridizations were made between a D. febrifuga selection (GUIZ 48) and diploid ('Veitchii') and triploid ('Kardinal' and 'Taube') cultivars of H. macrophylla. Embryo rescue was employed for about one-third of the crosses that produced fruit, and the rest were allowed to mature on the plant and seed- collected and germinated. Reciprocal hybrids, which were verified with simple sequence repeat markers, were produced from both embryo rescue and seed germination and with both diploid and triploidH.macrophylla cultivars. Hybrids were intermediate in appearance between parents, but variability in leaf, inflorescence, and flower size and flower color existed among the hybrids. A somatic chromosome number of 2n =6 x = 108 was tentatively proposed for D. febrifuga GUIZ 48. Chromosome counts and flow-cytometric measurements of nuclear DNA content indicated that some of the hybrids may be aneuploids, but neither analysis was definitive. Although hybrids with H. macrophylla as the pistillate parent did not form pollen-producing anthers, D. febrifuga · H. macrophylla hybrids had normal-appearing anthers that produced abundant pollen. F2 and BC1 progeny were obtained using D. febrifuga · 'Veitchii' hybrids. This work documents the first step in an effort to combine desirable horticultural features from D. febrifuga and H. macrophylla.
Agri-silviculture in Nigeria: food crops and soil fertility

Agri-silviculture is the simultaneous husbandry of forest tree crops and food crops. In the first 1–3 years of forest crops such as teak, pine and Gmelina arborea, they are interplanted with food crops such as yam, maize and cassava in plantation. In humid countries such as Nigeria and Burma agrisilviculture evolved out of the needs to boost food production and satisfy labourers who work on afforestation programmes.
Relationship between FGF21 and drug or nondrug therapy of type 2 diabetes mellitus

Sedentary and high‐calorie diets are associated with increased risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus, while exercise and diet control are also important nondrug treatments for diabetes. Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is an important cytokine, which is mainly expressed in liver, fat and muscle tissue responding to nutrition and exercise, and plays an important role in the improvement of glucose and lipid metabolism. Due to the increasing serum FGF21 level in obesity and diabetes, FGF21 can be used as a predictor or biomarker of diabetes. A variety of clinical antidiabetic drugs can reduce the content of FGF21, possibly for the improvement of FGF21 sensitivity. In this paper, we reviewed the interactions between FGF21 and nondrug therapy (diet and exercise) for diabetes and explored the potential value of the combined application of clinical antidiabetic drugs and FGF21.
Complement activation by human IgG antibodies to galactose‐α‐1,3‐galactose

Some human antibodies may paradoxically inhibit complement activation on bacteria and enhance pathogen survival in humans. This property was also claimed for IgG antibodies reacting with terminal galactose‐α‐1,3‐galactose (Galα3Gal; IgG anti‐αGal), a naturally occurring and abundant antibody in human plasma that targets numerous different pathogens. To reinvestigate these effects, we used IgG anti‐αGal affinity isolated from a pool of normal human IgG and human hypogammaglobulinaemia serum as a complement source. Flow cytometry was performed to examine antibody binding and complement deposition on pig erythrocytes, Escherichia coli O86 and Streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 9V. Specific nanobodies were used to block the effect of single complement factors and to delineate the complement pathways involved. IgG anti‐αGal was capable of activating the classical complement pathway on all the tested target cells. The degree of activation was exponentially related to the density of bound antibody on E. coli O86 and pig erythrocytes, but more linearly on S. pneumoniae 9V. The alternative pathway of complement amplified complement deposition. Deposited C3 fragments covered the activating IgG anti‐αGal, obstructing its detection and highlighting this as a likely general caveat in studies of antibody density and complement deposition. The inherent capacity for complement activation by the purified carbohydrate reactive IgG anti‐αGal was similar to that of normal human IgG. We propose that the previously reported complement inhibition by IgG anti‐αGal relates to suboptimal assay configurations, in contrast to the complement activating property of the antibodies demonstrated in this paper.
Protective effect of dexmedetomidine infusion combined with epidural blockade on postoperative complications after surgery: A prospective randomized controlled clinical trial

Objectives This prospective, randomized, controlled study aimed to explore the efficacy of dexmedetomidine combined with epidural blockade on postoperative recovery of elderly patients after radical resection for colorectal cancer. Methods Ninety-six elderly patients who underwent radical resection for colorectal cancer were randomly divided into the following four groups: dexmedetomidine, epidural blockade (ropivacaine), combined (dexmedetomidine + epidural blockade), and control (0.9% saline). The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), Visual Analog Scale (VAS), and Ramsay scores at 48 hours, and time to first activity, length of hospital stay, and postoperative complication rates at 3 months were assessed. Results Twelve hours after surgery, Ramsay scores were higher in the combined compared with the control and epidural blockade groups. Twenty-four hours after surgery, MMSE scores were higher in the combined compared with the other groups. The combined group showed the lowest VAS scores except at 48 hours. Time to first activity and length of hospital stay were significantly shorter in the combined compared with the other groups. There was no difference in total postoperative complication rates among the groups. Conclusions A combination of intraoperative dexmedetomidine infusion and epidural blockade could mitigate pain after surgery, improve cognitive dysfunction in early surgery, and facilitate recovery.
Xylooligosaccharide Enriched Yoghurt: Physicochemical and Sensory Evaluation

2 Abstract: Enrichment of yoghurt with xylooligosaccharide (XO) at different levels was studied with physicochemical and sensory analysis. Yoghurt prepared by incorporation of XO were compared for these characteristics to the yoghurt containing stabilizer (gelatin, 0.4% w/w) in addition to XO. Moisture contents, pH, acidity and total solids were studied. These attributes were significantly affected by the use of stabilizer and rate of XO incorporation. Use of gelatin produced better results in terms of lowering syneresis and improved appearance, body and texture. Addition of XO upto 3.5% did not influence taste and overall acceptability but higher levels contributed aftertaste.
Development and characterization of microsatellite markers in Eucommia ulmoides Oliver (Eucommiaceae)

Twenty-three microsatellite markers were developed from an AC-enriched genomic library of Eucommia ulmoides, an economically important tree species for both herbal medicine and organic chemical industry in China. Nineteen microsatellite loci were found polymorphic by testing 36 individuals from 10 populations, with two to 14 alleles per locus. The expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.054 to 0.874. This set of microsatellite markers has provided a useful tool for the ongoing efforts in studying population genetic structure of E. ulmoides.
Time-Transient Effects of Silver and Copper in the Porous Titanium Dioxide Layer on Antibacterial Properties

Recently, silver (Ag) and copper (Cu) have been incorporated into a titanium (Ti) surface to realize their antibacterial property. This study investigated both the durability of the antibacterial effect and the surface change of the Ag- and Cu-incorporated porous titanium dioxide (TiO2) layer. Ag- and Cu-incorporated TiO2 layers were formed by micro-arc oxidation (MAO) treatment using the electrolyte with Ag and Cu ions. Ag- and Cu-incorporated specimens were incubated in saline during a period of 0–28 days. The changes in both the concentrations and chemical states of the Ag and Cu were characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The durability of the antibacterial effects against Escherichia coli (E. coli) were evaluated by the international organization for standardization (ISO) method. As a result, the Ag- and Cu-incorporated porous TiO2 layers were formed on a Ti surface by MAO. The chemical state of Ag changed from Ag2O to metallic Ag, whilst that of Cu did not change by incubation in saline for up to 28 days. Cu existed as a stable Cu2O compound in the TiO2 layer during the 28 days of incubation in saline. The concentrations of Ag and Cu were dramatically decreased by incubation for up to 7 days, and remained a slight amount until 28 days. The antibacterial effect of Ag-incorporated specimens diminished, and that of Cu was maintained even after incubation in saline. Our study suggests the importance of the time-transient effects of Ag and Cu on develop their antibacterial effects.
Fruit differentiation, palynology, and systematics in Pterocephalus Adanson and Pterocephalodes, gen. nov. (Dipsacaceae)

The single-seeded fruits of the Dipsacaceae are enclosed by four fused bracts forming an epicalyx. A detailed study of the epicalyx morphology and anatomy of nearly all of the approximately 30 species of Pterocephalus s.L, together with other floral, palynological and karyological data, suggest only loose relationships and convergent similarities (homoplasies) between the core of the taxa (Pterocephalus s.s.), ranging from south-west and central Asia (P gedrosiacus, P. afghanicus) to Macaronesia (e.g. P. dumetorum) east Africa (P. frutescens) and southeast Asia (P. hookeri, P. bretschneideri and P. siamensis). The latter are separated as a new genus: Pterocephalodes. Pterocephalus S.S. lacks floral bracts, has numerous feathery calyx bristles and 5-merous corollas, and is apparently monophyletic. Its species demonstrate the gradual development of a hyalie corona, a diaphragma and other specialized epicalyx structures. These and other features allows the recognition of a relatively plesiornorphic, very widespread and paraphyletic basal group of perennial species (epicalyx type I), two more apomorphic perennial groups (epicalyx types II and III), and two most advanced groups (epicalyx types IV and V) with one perennial and two annual species. Pterocephalodes has floral bracts and 4-merous corollas, also appears to be monophyletic, and is limited to the eastern Himalaya and south-west China. It shares with Pseudoscabiosa the lack of a diaphragma in some of its species as well as the origin of a feathery pappus and of a corona. Thus, all three genera allow an insight into the evolutionary processes of fruit differentiation in the Dipsacaceae family.
Serum interleukin-6 and C-reactive protein are associated with survival in melanoma patients receiving immune checkpoint inhibition

Background Inflammatory mediators, including acute phase reactants and cytokines, have been reported to be associated with clinical efficacy in patients with melanoma and other cancers receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). Analyses of patient sera from three large phase II/III randomized ICI trials, one of which included a chemotherapy arm, were performed to assess whether baseline levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) or neutrophil/lymphocyte (N/L) ratios were prognostic or predictive. Patients and methods Baseline and on-treatment sera were analyzed by multiplex protein assays from immunotherapy-naïve patients with metastatic melanoma randomized 1:1 on the Checkmate-064 phase II trial of sequential administration of nivolumab followed by ipilimumab or the reverse sequence. Baseline sera, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells using automated cell counting, were analyzed from treatment-naïve patients who were BRAF wild-type and randomly allocated 1:1 to receive nivolumab or dacarbazine on the phase III Checkmate-066 trial, and from treatment-naïve patients allocated 1:1:1 to receive nivolumab, ipilimumab or both ipilimumab and nivolumab on the phase III Checkmate-067 trial. Results Higher baseline levels of IL-6 and the N/L ratio, and to a lesser degree, CRP were associated with shorter survival in patients receiving ICI or chemotherapy. Increased on-treatment levels of IL-6 in patients on the Checkmate-064 study were also associated with shorter survival. IL-6 levels from patients on Checkmate-064, Checkmate-066 and Checkmate-067 were highly correlated with levels of CRP and the N/L ratio. Conclusion IL-6, CRP and the N/L ratio are prognostic factors with higher levels associated with shorter overall survival in patients with metastatic melanoma receiving ICI or chemotherapy in large randomized trials. In a multi-variable analysis of the randomized phase III Checkmate-067 study, IL-6 was a significant prognostic factor for survival.
NATIVE VENDACE (COREGONUS ALBULA) AND ALIEN PELED (C. PELED): GENETIC COMPARISON AND INTROGRESSIVE HYBRIDIZATION

Non-native species of the Coregonidae were introduced in many lakes of the Northern Europe. At the same time it is known that very common process for this group of fish is hybridization. The aim of this study was to analyse the genetic relationships between two close species, vendace Coregonus albula and peled C. peled, because these data can be useful for understanding the origin and taxonomical status of these species as well as monitoring of interspecific hybridization. Samples of the vendace and peled were collected from 2003 to 2011. Genomic DNA was extracted using the phenol-chloroform extraction protocol or the Diatom®DNA Prep 100 (“IzoGen”, Moscow). We performed PCR-RFLP analysis of the mitochondrion ND-1 fragment (about 2050 bp). Also a fragment of the ND-1 gene (300 bp) was sequenced. The sequences of the studied fragment of all specimens of the peled entirely coincided with the E-1 variant of the vendace, although we studied the mtDNAs of fishes from two local populations and analysed samples belonging to two different composite haplotypes from each population. At the same time we found specimens with peled’s type composite haplotype in vendace’s population from Rybinsk reservoir (upper reaches of Volga River) although peled was not observed in catches after its introductions in the middle of the 20th century. The obtained data allow us to discuss different models of the relationships between two species. First, vendace and peled may be assumed to be ecological forms of the same species. Second, the data may also be interpreted as a consequence of the introgressive hybridization between vendace and peled. The possibility of this case was observed in the population of Rybinsk reservoir. Third alternative is that peled and vendace originated from a common ancestor and have diverged recently.
High genetic diversity, large inter-oceanic divergence and historical demography of the striped mullet

The striped mullet Mugil cephalus L. is a circumtropical species whose extreme conservative morphology stands in contrast with the degree of genetic differentiation at a global scale. One hundred and fourteen mitochondrial control region DNA sequences were analysed from four localities in the Gulf of Mexico (Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida), one on the U.S.A. east coast (N. Carolina), and one in Hawaii, giving very high levels of molecular diversity (h=1·0 every haplotype was unique in all samples, =1·1–2·0% in Gulf–Atlantic and =3·1% in Hawaii). With no genetic evidence of dramatic population expansions, mismatch distributions were still very different in each ocean. Stable population levels in Hawaii have fostered the generation and persistence of very high molecular diversity, but Gulf–Atlantic samples suggest a shorter span of population stability. Ninety-five per cent of the molecular variance was allocated between ocean basins and virtually none among Gulf–Atlantic samples. A neighbourjoining reconstruction revealed Atlantic- and Pacific-specific lineages separated by more than 24% uncorrected sequence divergence (d=0·49 Tamura-Nei Gamma-corrected). The lack of phylogeographic structure among Gulf–Atlantic samples corroborated the AMOVA results and supported the existence of a single population with high levels of gene flow along the Gulf of Mexico and north-west Atlantic coasts. The genetic differentiation between oceans points to the absence of gene flow and an accelerated rate of mitochondrial evolution in the genus Mugil. 2000 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles