Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Seasonal plasticity in life history traits: growth and development in Polygonia c-album (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae)

The potentially multivoltine comma butterfly, Polygonia c-album L. , hibernates in the adult stage. The adult seasonal morph is demonstrated to be a good indicator of whether an individual has entered reproductive diapause or is developing directly to sexual maturation. This fact, and the assumption that a short development time is not equally important to all categories of individuals, was used to test predictions on variation in life-history traits among categories (morphs and sexes) and environments (temperature and photoperiod) at the level of individuals and to some extent families and populations (the univoltine Stockholm population and the partially bivoltine Oxford population). Individuals developing to adults in a short time were expected to be smaller and lighter as a result of a basic trade-off between the two traits. Development times varied in accordance with predictions, but in most cases this was due to plastic growth and development in both the larval and pupal stages rather than through variation in size or weight, i.e. size was a highly canalized trait. This suggests a relationship between plasticity and canalization and a strong potential for plasticity to shield life-history traits from selection. Individuals regulated development times also within developmental pathways, in response to photoperiods indicating the progression of the season. These and other results suggest that development times are not normaily minimized in temperate butterflies unless this is enforced by direct development and protandry. There is thus scope for a high degree of adaptive plasticity in growth- and developmental rates which may devalue the basic trade-offs assumed by life-history theory and account for inconsistencies with its predictions.
A new species of Bothriochloa (Poaceae, Andropogoneae) endemic to montane grasslands of Santa Catarina, Brazil

Bothriochloa catharinensis , a new species of Andropogoneae (Poaceae: Panicoideae, Andropogoneae) endemic to montane grasslands associated with araucaria forest in the state of Santa Catarina, Southern Brazil, is described and illustrated. Morphological similarities between the new taxon and other species of Bothriochloa are discussed. Comments on habitat, morphology, distribution and conservation status are provided.
Operation of light-dark cycles within simple ecosystem models of primary production and the consequences of using phytoplankton models with different abilities to assimilate N in darkness

We compare the output of a nitrogen-phytoplankton-zooplankton (NPZ) model and of a hypothetical diatom-flagellate competition scenario operating in continuous light or in a diurnal light-dark cycle of equal daily photon dose. Within these models, phytoplankton were configured with contrasting abilities to assimilate nitrogen in darkness. If only a single phytoplankton group is being considered then it appears unnecessary to describe the diurnal light cycle. However, given the minimal additional processing time required to include the light cycle when running complex biological models, inclusion is recommended where model output is used to provide an insight into the behaviour of the organisms and food webs. This is particularly so for considering temporal variations in the use of ammonium and nitrate (pertaining to the f ratio for new production) by different phytoplankton groups and hence the interaction between these organisms and their zooplankton predators that regenerate ammonium. In that instance it is important to endow the phytoplankton model with a capacity for dark N assimilation commensurate with the type of organism (namely diatom or non-diatom) being considered. Such different capabilities likely affect competition and succession of these groups in nature and do affect these interactions in simulations.
Species-specific differences in phytoplankton responses to N and P enrichments and the N:P ratio in the Archipelago Sea, northern Baltic Sea

A nutrient enrichment experiment was conducted in order to study the role of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and the N:P ratio on the early summer phytoplankton community in the Archipelago Sea, northern Baltic Sea. The phytoplankton community was, in terms of chlorophyll a and total biomass, primarily N-limited, but the individual species varied in their responses to the nutrient supply. The recorded overall N limitation was due to fast growth responses of a few N- limited species such as the diatom Chaetoceros wighamii (Brightwell) and the mixotrophic chrysophyte Uroglena sp. Another dominating diatom, Skeletonema costatum (Greville) Cleve was most clearly P-limited. The N:P ratio had the strongest effect on Uroglena sp. , which grew exponentially in the enrichments with a high N:P ratio. This can be explained by the ability of the species to feed on P-rich bacteria, which gives it a competitive advantage in P-limited conditions. The species-specific differences in the responses to the nutrient enrichments can generally be explained by differences in the species physiology and they were consistent with the theory of resource competition.
The effect of moisture content and prechill duration on dormancy breakage of Douglas fir seeds (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii [Mirb.] Franco)

Abstract Seeds of Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii [Mirb.] Franco) were initially germinated at six constant temperatures (10–35°C), following 0–48 weeks incubation under moist conditions at 4°C, i.e. prechill or stratification. The best, single germination temperature was 15°C for determining the efficacy of subsequent dormancy breakage treatments. Seeds from the same seedlot were then adjusted to 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40% moisture contents (mcfw, fresh weight basis), prechilled for 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64 and 128 weeks and transferred to 15°C. A smoothed bivariate spline was used to model the results and showed that virtually all combinations of moisture content and prechill duration significantly stimulated germination capacity, but that the optimal germination percentage (≥93%) was stimulated only by various combinations of between 30 and 35% mcfw and 25 and 48 weeks prechill. At optimal moisture contents (30 and 35%) , extending the prechill duration beyond 48 weeks led to a decrease in germination capacity. This was not due to dormancy reintroduction, but was caused largely by seed death. Regression models using a weighting function, to account for differences in standard deviations, demonstrated significant increases in the mean moisture content of individual seeds at higher moisture contents (≥25%) and longer prechill durations (≥64 weeks) that were concomitant with significant decreases in dry weight. The most likely explanation for this was seed respiration. The combined results suggest that dormancy breakage in Douglas fir seeds requires a hydration level sufficient for respiration to take place, and that, after maximal dormancy release, seeds at the highest mc (35–40%) exhaust their food reserves and begin to deteriorate.
Log or Linear? Distinct Intuitions of the Number Scale in Western and Amazonian Indigene Cultures

The mapping of numbers onto space is fundamental to measurement and to mathematics. Is this mapping a cultural invention or a universal intuition shared by all humans regardless of culture and education? We probed number-space mappings in the Mundurucu, an Amazonian indigene group with a reduced numerical lexicon and little or no formal education. At all ages, the Mundurucu mapped symbolic and nonsymbolic numbers onto a logarithmic scale, whereas Western adults used linear mapping with small or symbolic numbers and logarithmic mapping when numbers were presented nonsymbolically under conditions that discouraged counting. This indicates that the mapping of numbers onto space is a universal intuition and that this initial intuition of number is logarithmic. The concept of a linear number line appears to be a cultural invention that fails to develop in the absence of formal education.
Longer growing seasons lead to less carbon sequestration by a subalpine forest

As global temperatures increase, the potential for longer growing seasons to enhance the terrestrial carbon sink has been proposed as a mechanism to reduce the rate of further warming. At the Niwot Ridge AmeriFlux site, a subalpine forest in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, we used a 9‐year record (1999–2007) of continuous eddy flux observations to show that longer growing season length (GSL) actually resulted in less annual CO2 uptake. Years with a longer GSL were correlated with a shallower snow pack, as measured using snow water equivalent (SWE). Furthermore, years with a lower SWE correlated with an earlier start of spring. For three years, 2005, 2006, and 2007, we used observations of stable hydrogen isotopes (δD) of snow vs. rain, and extracted xylem water from the three dominant tree species, lodgepole pine, Engelmann spruce, and subalpine fir, to show that the trees relied heavily on snow melt water even late into the growing season. By mid‐August, 57% to 68% of xylem water reflected the isotopic signature of snow melt. By coupling the isotopic water measurements with an ecosystem model, SIPNET, we found that annual forest carbon uptake was highly dependent on snow water, which decreases in abundance during years with longer growing seasons. Once again, for the 3 years 2005, 2006, and 2007, annual gross primary productivity, which was derived as an optimized parameter from the SIPNET model was estimated to be 67% 77%, and 71% dependent on snow melt water, respectively. Past studies have shown that the mean winter snow pack in mountain ecosystems of the Western US has been declining for decades and is correlated with positive winter temperature anomalies. Since climate change models predict continuation of winter warming and reduced snow in mountains of the Western US, the strength of the forest carbon sink is likely to decline further.
Removal of cyanogens from cassava roots : studies on domestic sun-drying and solid-substrate fermentation in rural Africa

Cassava is an important staple crop, but its potential toxicity has led to some health problems in Africa. The potential toxicity comes from endogenous cyanogenic glucosides, mainly linamarin, which may degrade by linamarase to cyanohydrins and subsequently to hydrocyanic acid (HCN). A study into a small outbreak of paralysis and poisoning in a cassava-dominated rural area of Mozambique revealed that the walking disability was konzo, a recently identified disease, and suggested that insufficient processing of the bitter cassava roots was a factor in its causation. The usual processing stages to turn roots into flour, sun-drying and heapfermentation, were studied in Uganda and The Netherlands. For evaluation of initial and resulting levels of the cyanogenic compounds, an analytical assay was tested and improved. Mechanisms of cyanogen removal from cassava by sun- drying and heap-fermentation were elucidated, to allow for its optimization. Sun-drying removed cyanogens insufficiently from roots with high initial levels. Dynamics of cyanogen levels are described. Continuing drying below moisture levels of 15% did not diminish linamarin levels further, but it was useful for further removal of the cyanohydrins formed. The dehydration rate influenced linamarin breakdown negatively. Reducing the size of the pieces to speed up drying, as done during the konzo outbreak, therefore resulted in higher residual linamarin levels. Linamarin breakdown can be enhanced by reducing the initial dehydration rate. Microbial contamination may need to be controlled to prevent the formation of microbial toxins. In Uganda and Mozambique certain communities promote fungal growth by heaping and covering the peeled roots. Their aim is to improve the palatability and reduce the toxicity. Cyanogen removal by this solid-substrate fermentation appeared more effective than by sun-drying alone, but several samples of this flour from rural households still had undesirably high levels of cyanogens. Screening of 30 flour samples for mycotoxins was negative, but the formation of mycotoxins cannot be excluded. The humid incubation of cassava extends the time of physiological cell-wall degradation, which allows for linamarase-linamarin interaction. The microflora had an additional positive effect on cyanogen removal by enhancing the cell-wall degradation. The linamarase activity shown by several microorganisms was of lesser importance. The food grade fungi Neurospora sitophila and Rhizopus oryzae were the most effective in cyanogen removal. Optimization of processing conditions, including the use of starter cultures, is recommended for ensuring safe products.
Compatibility Methods in Systematics

Character compatibility analysis is founded on the idea that, for the purpose of making plausible reconstructions of evolutionary relationships among the species or other evolutionary units in a taxon, characters are already hypotheses of evolutionary relationships. If two or more such hypotheses are logically consistent (compatible), then they may be combined into a single, more complex, hypothesis that often asserts a more refined, resolved reconstruction of evolutionary relationships. If two such hypotheses are logically inconsistent (incompatible), they cannot be combined without first modifying one or the other or both so that they become compatible. When used to construct a phylogenetic tree, algorithms (such as those based on minimizing evolutionary changes) that can accept incompatible characters for input make these modifications automatically without additional scientific considerations. Knowledge of the ways two incompatible characters contradict one another as hypotheses can be useful when one considers which possible additional research activities might suggest how the hypotheses should be modified. Collections of mutually compatible characters can help to determine which characters plausibly reflect true historical evolutionary relationships. To establish a rigorous analytic technology for character compatibility analysis, we must make precise the notion of a character as a hypothesis of *Cuffent address is: University Herbarium, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720.
Pishgam, a new bread wheat cultivar for normal irrigation and terminal stage deficit irrigation conditions of cold regions of Iran.

(Bkt/90-Zhong87) لاــ ـــــس رد 1374 اــ ـــــب ود گر يريگ ) سارـك هرامـش اـب 14658 1 ( رد هسسوم تلاغ تاقيقحت شخب تاقيقحت حلاـصا رذــ ـب و لاــ ـهن هــ ـيهت و دــ ـش زاــ ـغآ . فدــ ـه زا گرود يريگ هب تمواقم لاقتنا عاونا گنز اـه ـب ه يبســ ن لــمحت زــ ين و درز گــنز هژــ يو شنــ ت هــ ب مقر زا يكشخ هناتسمز ينيچ 90-Zhong 87 هـب كي مقر پيت و ينيبانيب يـلو يـناريا لوصحم رپ درز گنز هب ساسح مان هب تكرب دوب . رذـب لسـن
Construction of yeast two-hybrid cDNA library of high-viruliferous(RSV-infected) populations of the small brown planthopper,Laodelphax striatellus(Hemiptera:Delphacidae)

In order to research the interaction between the small brown planthopper(Laodelphax striatellus Fallen,SBPH) and rice stripe virus(RSV),yeast two-hybrid cDNA library of high-viruliferous(RSV-infected) SBPH populations was constructed.SBPH infected with RSV was maintained in our laboratory.The mRNA was isolated and purified from high-viruliferous populations,and used as the template to synthesize the double-strand cDNAs.The cDNAs were ligated with three-frame adapter and purified by the cDNA size fractionation columns.By using homologous recombination reaction,the cDNA entry library was prepared and then recombined into Gateway compatible vector pGADT7-DEST to construct yeast two-hybrid cDNA library.Detection of the library indicated that it contained 3.68×107 independent clones,and the titer of the amplified library was 2.62×1010 cfu/mL.The recombination rate was above 95%,and the average size of inserts was above 1 kb in the cDNA library.The results demonstrate that the library database meets the requirements of the standard cDNA library.The yeast two-hybrid cDNA library of high-viruliferous SBPH will be useful for the future research on the interaction between insect vector and RSV.
Molecular Genetics of Plant Embryogenesis

Embryogenesis is a complex devel opmental pathway that plays a central role in the life cycle of higher plants. Recent advances in the application of genetics and molecular biology to the study of developmental processes in animals have led to a renewed interest in the analysis of plant development and the identification of genes with important functions during plant embryogenesis. The most extensive studies
Key health and welfare indicators for broiler production

The purpose of the research was to identify measurable indicators, which can firstly provide objective measures of bird welfare and secondly act as “lead” rather than “lag” indicators. Broiler welfare has historically been measured using lag indicators such as final mortality, stocking density, levels of contact dermatitis, reject levels and leg health. Although there are benefits to their use as indicators, the main disadvantage of these measures is that whilst they provide data for interorganisational and inter-growing cycle analysis the welfare issues have already occurred for the birds concerned and the information can only effect change in future production cycles. Alternatively, lead indicators are intra-cycle indicators which will provide information on bird welfare so that preventive/corrective action can be taken within the growing cycle. These indicators include feed and water consumption, air and litter quality and daily weight gain. It has been established that water is a vital nutrient that should be routinely analysed to ensure that it complies with accepted quality standards so that bird health and welfare is optimised. Furthermore water consumption, (both daily and per cycle) is a key indicator of bird welfare and worthy of further quantitative study to determine if it can be used as a headline “lead” indicator to determine health and welfare issues early in the growing cycle so that appropriate management action can be taken.
Mating type distribution using a multiplex PCR mating assay and fertility status in Didymella rabiei in chickpea-growing areas in Iran

Ascochyta blight, caused by Ascochyta rabiei is the most destructive disease of aerial parts of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) worldwide. Forty isolates of A. rabiei representing eight geographical regions, were collected from the west and south western Iran, and analysed for mating type distribution and fertility. A multiplex PCR assay using specific primers designed to amplify partial regions of the MAT1–1 and MAT1–2 idiomorphs was used to facilitate population analysis. Didymella rabiei populations were dominated by MAT1–1 mating type. The fertility status of isolates was determined using controlled crosses in vitro, pairing each isolate with compatible standard testers (USDA-AR-20 and USDA-AR21). Out of the 40 tested isolates, 38 isolates (95%) were MAT1–1 and two isolates (5%) were MAT1–2. Both mating types were present in Gachsaran and Jalian Populations, where Chi-square tests showed the proportions of each mating type were significantly different from 1:1 ratio. The predominance of one mating type in populations indicates that sexual reproduction is rare or may not occur with significant frequency in D. rabiei populations associated with chickpea in Iran. Microscopic studies of naturally infected tissues and inoculated with standard testers, which had been kept for two years under natural conditions, revealed the development of pseudothecia.
Post-transcriptional Regulation in Mitochondria of Rice and Wheat at Low Temperatures

Land plants respond to cold through complicated physiological, morphological, and metabolic pro- cesses, including abnormalities and changes in organelles, while plant mitochondrial gene expres- sions are regulated through several unique post-transcriptional events, such as cis-/trans-intron splic- ing and RNA editing. The author tries to clarify the relationship between these post-transcriptional events at low temperatures. Some intron-containing transcripts before splicing increase in rice and wheat after several days under cold conditions, while certain RNA editing events in IBS (Intron Binding Sites: which is present in exons and make complementary base pairing with Exon Binding Sites located in introns) have tight associations with splicing, some of which are sensitive to cold in intron-containing transcripts. However no correlation is observed between post-transcriptional events and the organization of introns: the primary sequence of introns, splicing manner (cis or trans), intron length, and splice-site sequence. These findings suggest that nucleus-encoded factors regulate mitochondrial gene expressions, some of which are cold-sensitive. In wheat, a cold acclimatable plant, accumulation of some intron-spliced transcripts also increase at low temperatures, as well as intron-containing transcripts, which may be one of the phenomena related to cold acclimation. The study about plant mitochondrial gene expression at low temperatures has the potential to become an alternative system to see how mitochondrial genes are regulated, which, in turn, has the potential to enhance plant breeding for cold tolerance.
A Day in the Life of a Seed: Movements and Fates of Seeds and Their Implications for Natural and Managed Systems

We develop a model that outlines the movements and fates of seeds after they leave the parent plant, and then we examine the relative influences of abiotic and biotic factors on those movements and fates. Phase I dispersal is movement of a seed from the parent to a surface, while Phase II dispersal includes subsequent horizontal or vertical movements. Although less studied, Phase II dispersal is more likely to account for the patterning of plants in communities and ecosystems and is the focus of this review. Abiotic factors influence Phase II dispersal-the distance and type of movement depend on seed morphology, surface attributes, and the nature of the physical forces. Biotic factors (animals) move seeds to new sites passively either on body surfaces or by ingestion, or actively by consuming fruits or hoarding seeds. Animals also influence the movements of seeds through digging and burrowing activities. Arrival at microsites suitable for germination and establishment is critical and is affected not only by abiotic and biotic factors but also by seed morphology and ger- mination responses. We emphasize that seed banks are much more dynamic than they are usually portrayed. Although often poorly quantified, seed mor-
EGG MORTALITY AND EARLY EMBRYO HATCHING CAUSED BY FUNGAL INFECTION OF IBERIAN ROCK LIZARD (LACERTA MONTICOLA) CLUTCHES

Infertile and non-viable fertile eggs within a reptile clutch may decrease the incubation success of the remaining eggs, as (1) opportunistic pathogens may use the nutrient resources provided by dead eggs to colonize the clutch and spread to and kill viable eggs; and (2) odours released by spoilt eggs may attract predators to the clutch. These hypotheses were tested on the Iberian rock lizard (Lacerta monticola) by comparing the incubation success of fertile eggs between clutches composed solely of fertile eggs and clutches containing a small number of dead eggs. In a laboratory experiment, fungi (Fusarium sp. and Gliocladium sp.) colonized both infertile eggs and fertile eggs that died during incubation and thereafter spread to and killed adjacent eggs. In addition, offspring hatched earlier from fungal infected eggs than from noninfected eggs. The former were smaller and lighter than the latter, as they hatched before using the full egg yolk content. Results from a field experiment did not corroborate the fungal pathogenic effects observed in the laboratory nor did they confirm that clutches containing dead eggs suffer higher predation. Despite the inconclusive results regarding the role of fungal pathogens in nature, the present study indicates that this subject deserves further investigation in reptiles.