Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Environmental and biotic drivers of soil microbial β‐diversity across spatial and phylogenetic scales

Soil microbial communities play a key role in ecosystem functioning but still little is known about the processes that determine their turnover (β‐diversity) along ecological gradients. Here, we characterize soil microbial β‐diversity at two spatial scales and at multiple phylogenetic grains to ask how archaeal, bacterial and fungal communities are shaped by abiotic processes and biotic interactions with plants. We characterized microbial and plant communities using DNA metabarcoding of soil samples distributed across and within eighteen plots along an elevation gradient in the French Alps. The recovered taxa were placed onto phylogenies to estimate microbial and plant β‐diversity at different phylogenetic grains (i.e. resolution). We then modeled microbial β‐diversities with respect to plant β‐diversities and environmental dissimilarities across plots (landscape scale) and with respect to plant β‐diversities and spatial distances within plots (plot scale). At the landscape scale, fungal and archaeal β‐diversities were mostly related to plant β‐diversity, while bacterial β‐diversities were mostly related to environmental dissimilarities. At the plot scale, we detected a modest covariation of bacterial and fungal β‐diversities with plant β‐diversity; as well as a distance–decay relationship that suggested the influence of ecological drift on microbial communities. In addition, the covariation between fungal and plant β‐diversity at the plot scale was highest at fine or intermediate phylogenetic grains hinting that biotic interactions between those clades depends on early‐evolved traits. Altogether, we show how multiple ecological processes determine soil microbial community assembly at different spatial scales and how the strength of these processes change among microbial clades. In addition, we emphasized the imprint of microbial and plant evolutionary history on today's microbial community structure.
The mTORC1/S6K/PDCD4/eIF4A axis determines outcome of mitosis

mTOR is a serine/threonine kinase which acts a master regulator of cell growth and proliferation. Raptor, a scaffolding protein that recruits substrates to mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1), is known to be phosphorylated during mitosis, but the significance of this phosphorylation remains largely unknown. Here we show that raptor expression and mTORC1 activity are dramatically reduced in mitotic arrested cells across a variety of cancer and normal cell lines. Prevention of raptor phosphorylation during mitosis resulted in reactivation of mTORC1 in a rapamycin-sensitive manner. Importantly, expression of a non-phosphorylatable raptor mutant caused a dramatic reduction in cytotoxicity of the spindle poison Taxol. This effect was mediated via degradation of Programmed Cell Death Protein 4 (PDCD4), a tumor suppressor protein that inhibits eIF4A activity and is negatively regulated by the mTORC1/S6K pathway. Moreover, pharmacological inhibition of eIF4A was able to enhance the effects of taxol and restore sensitivity in Taxol resistant cancer cells. These findings indicate that the mTORC1/S6K/PDCD4/eIF4A axis has a pivotal role in death vs. slippage decision during prolonged mitotic arrest and may be exploited to gain a clinical benefit in treating cancers resistant to anti-mitotic drugs.
An interesting case of central and obstructive sleep apnea in a patient of congestive heart failure with unmasking of CSA's following CPAP use

An elderly man with acute anterior wall myocardial infarction who underwent medical therapy followed by angioplasty and stenting was referred to our centre for evaluation of sleep-disordered breathing. The gentleman had moderate hypothyroidism for which he was on replacement therapy. At our centre PSG showed OSA for which a trial of CPAP was given. On correction of OSA by CPAP, presence of underlying CSA was unmasked. The patient improved over time on intensified medical therapy, continuous use of CPAP and regulated thyroid replacement therapy.
Corn silage production in the northern oasis of Mendoza, Argentina - Producción de maíces sileros en el oasis norte de Mendoza, Argentina

Meat production in irrigated areas in Mendoza has increased over the last years. Corn silage emerges as an important forage alternative. This paper evaluates three corn hybrids for silage (ACA 417 RR2, ACA 485 MGRR2, ACA 498 MGRR2) cultivated in the northern oasis of Mendoza during the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 crop cycles. The study was carried out at the agricultural experiment station of the Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias of Universidad Nacional de Cuyo in Luján de Cuyo, Mendoza (33°00'38" S y 68°52'28" W). No differences were detected in green matter (GM) or dry matter (DM) yields among the hybrids during the crop cycles. In the 2015-2016 crop cycle average dry matter yields and green matter yields were 73,760 kg ha-1 and 23,493 kg ha-1, respectively, whereas during the 2016-2017 crop cycle green matter yields and dry matter yields were 58,390 kg ha-1 and 21,798 kg ha-1, respectively. Genotypes were characterized according to plant height, number of ears of corn, and the ear dry weight/whole plant dry weight ratio. The quality of the three hybrids was also determined. Results obtained suggest that corn silage is a valid forage resource for intensive cattle farming in Mendoza.
Feeding habits of the Mexican barracuda, Sphyraena ensis Jordan and Gilbert, 1882, in the southeastern end of the Gulf of California

1 Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN), Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas, Av. Instituto Politécnico Nacional, s/n, Col. Playa Palo de Santa Rita, CP 23096, La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico. 2 Escuela Nacional de Ingeniería Pesquera, Universidad Autónoma de Nayarit, Bahía de Matanchén, km 12, Carretera a los Cocos, CP 63740, San Blas, Nayarit. Mexico. 3 Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa (UAS), Facultad de Ciencias del Mar (FACIMAR), Paseo Claussen S/N, Colonia Los Pinos, CP 82000, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico.
Impact of pineapple waste silage on intake, digestibility and fermentation patterns of West African dwarf sheep

Pineapple waste (PW) is a by-product from pineapple processing, mostly dumped to pollute the environment. This study was conducted to recycle PW by ensiling with maize cobs and brewer dried grains at different levels. Twelve (12) West African dwarf rams weighing between 15.00 to16.10 kg were randomly distributed into four diets. Diets included: 0, 20, 40 and 60% PW as diets 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. Parameters studied were feed intake, nutrient digestibility and fermentation patterns: total volatile fatty acids, lactic acid concentrations, rumen pH, ammonia nitrogen and nitrogen metabolism. Silage pH ranged from 3.60 to 6.40 in all treatments. Temperature of silages varied from 31.10 to 31.50°C. CP, NDF and ADF ranges were: 12.15 to 13.74, 40.61 to 47.20 and 20.62 to 28.58%, respectively. Body weight intake, faecal output, crude protein intake, crude fibre intake, ether extract intake and ash-intake at 20% inclusion level were: 525.69, 73.27, 72.76, 26.63 and 31.17g/day, respectively. Highest total volatile fatty acid of 56.18 mg/dl was observed in 20% inclusion level. CP digestibility decreased linearly as the protein contents of the diets increased. Therefore, PW can be preserved for a longer period and utilized by ruminants at 20% PW inclusion rate. Key words: Pineapple waste, silage, intake, digestibility, sheep.
The effect of altitude on the breeding ecology of the dipper (Cinclus cinclus)

Thesis abstract In many migratory populations, only some individuals migrate each year whereas others are resident; this is known as partial migration. Empirical studies of the causes and consequences of altitudinal partial migration are few, and the costs and benefits of the different life-history strategies involved require further study. In this thesis, I investigate the effect of altitude and other factors on the timing of breeding, reproductive success and parental care in a partially migrant species; the dipper (Cinclus cinclus), a specialised riparian passerine that is thought to be declining in the UK. Most dipper populations comprise partial migrants that move to higher altitudes to breed and sedentary residents at lower elevations, but little is known about the effects of elevational gradients on the life-history traits and reproductive success of these birds. Here, I used mixed effect models to analyse field data from a long-term study population and: (1) examine the effects of altitude, female age and size on lay date, nestling mass, fledging success, number of fledglings and annual productivity; and (2) investigate the effect of altitude and prey availability on parental provisioning rate. Compared to residents, migrant dippers bred later and were less likely to have a second brood, possibly influenced by the time taken to migrate and establish breeding territories but were equally likely to fledge young, perhaps because of lower risk of flooding and predation. Altitude had no effect on nestling mass, number of fledglings or annual productivity. Provisioning rates decreased with increasing altitude despite no apparent difference in prey availability and this suggests increased time travelling to foraging sites possibly compensated by reduced handling costs and increased prey loads. Altitudinal migration is likely to be a tactic driven by competition for lowland nest sites. Annual productivity of subordinate migrants was unaffected by migration and this is likely to be because single broods are offset by fewer nests lost to flooding and predation, and compensatory provisioning strategies match those of residents. Together, these results provide insights into the impact of elevation on breeding ecology in birds and suggest that there are adaptive benefits to both altitudinal migration and residency. Age may not affect timing of breeding but older females are more likely to produce heavier nestlings, fledge broods, and have a higher number of fledglings. This may be explained by previous breeding experience and more investment in parental care. However, a decline in productivity with age suggests senescence. Further research is needed to determine the underlying causes of migration and residency, and to establish whether the net fitness benefits of the two behaviours are similar.
Gene expression networks in the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel

A major challenge in modern biology is to understand how naturally occurring variation in DNA sequences affects complex organismal traits through networks of intermediate molecular phenotypes. Here, we performed deep RNA sequencing of 200 Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel inbred lines with complete genome sequences, and mapped expression quantitative trait loci for annotated genes, novel transcribed regions (most of which are long noncoding RNAs), transposable elements and microbial species. We identified host variants that affect expression of transposable elements, independent of their copy number, as well as microbiome composition. We constructed sex-specific expression quantitative trait locus regulatory networks. These networks are enriched for novel transcribed regions and target genes in heterochromatin and euchromatic regions of reduced recombination, and genes regulating transposable element expression. This study provides new insights regarding the role of natural genetic variation in regulating gene expression and generates testable hypotheses for future functional analyses.
Perbandingan Aktivitas Antibakteri Ekstrak Etanol Biji Dengan Batang Pepaya (Carica Papaya L.) Terhadap Staphylococcus Epidermidis Dan Shigella Sonnei

Pepaya (Carica papaya L.) adalah tanaman yang mempunyai berbagai khasiat, misalnya sebagai antibakteri. Tujuan penelitian ini untuk membandingkan aktivitas antibakteri ekstrak etanol biji dan batang pepaya terhadap Staphylococcuss epidermidis dan Shigella sonnei dan mengetahui golongan senyawa yang mempunyai aktivitas antibakteri. Biji dan batang pepaya diekstraksi dengan cara maserasi menggunakan etanol 70%. Metode uji antibakteri yang digunakan adalah difusi disk Kirby Bauer. Hasil aktivitas antibakteri diamati dengan mengukur diameter zona hambat. Diameter zona hambat dianalisis menggunakan analisis statistic Independent-Sample T Test. Analisis kandungan senyawa menggunakan Kromatografi Lapis Tipis (KLT). Bioautografi dilakukan untuk mengetahui golongan senyawa yang mempunyai aktivitas antibakteri. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan tidak adanya perbedaan yang signifikan antara aktivitas antibakteri ekstrak etanol biji dengan batang pepaya dalam menghambat Shigella sonnei dan Staphylococcus epidermidis. Ekstrak etanol biji dan batang pepaya dengan konsentrasi 1.250-10.000 μg menghasilkan diameter zona hambat 6,00-8,33 mm dan 6,33-7,17 mm terhadap Shigella sonnei dan 6,33-7,55 mm dan 6,00-7,33 mm terhadap Staphylococcus epidermidis. Hasil KLT menunjukkan bahwa ekstrak etanol biji mengandung steroid, alkaloid, dan tanin, sedangkan ekstrak etanol batang mengandung triterpen dan tanin. Hasil bioautografi tidak dapat diidentifikasi adanya senyawa yang bertanggungjawab sebagai antibakteri terhadap Staphylococcus epidermidis dan Shigella sonnei.
Ecological disturbances and their relative impacts on coral cover: analysis of monitoring data in Sekisei Lagoon (Okinawa, Japan)

Using monitoring data from 1998 to 2017, we examined the spatiotemporal pattern of disturbances that occurred in Sekisei Lagoon, surrounded by Iriomote and Ishigaki islands in Okinawa, Japan. Outbreaks of crown- of-thorns starfish ( Acanthaster cf. solaris ), coral bleaching, typhoon damage, snail predation, and occurrences of growth anomalies, black band disease, and white syndrome were investigated using generalized linear models. Likelihood ratio test indicated that the type of coral assemblage, topographic features, and geographic range of research sites affected the occurrence of each disturbance. The sites dominated by Acropora spp. and the sites located in Sekisei Lagoon suffered recurrent and multiple disturbances. The impacts of disturbances on coral cover were evaluated using generalized additive models. Model averaging using Akaike information criteria revealed that a loss of coral cover occurred even when only a few A. cf. solaris were present, when the bleaching rate was sufficiently high, or when typhoon damage was severe. Our study describes spatiotemporal patterns of disturbances over a 20-yr period and reveals their relative impacts on coral cover. Our findings may be useful in predicting the responses of coral communities to future climate change scenarios.
Milk fatty acid composition of unsupplemented dairy cows grazing on a tropical pasture

ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the milk fatty acid (FA) composition of unsupplemented dairy cows grazing on elephantgrass (Pennisetum purpureum Schum. cv. Pioneiro) pastures under three grazing management strategies: pre-grazing height of 120 cm with defoliation intensities of 50 and 70% of the initial height (treatments 120/50 and 120/70) and pre-grazing height of 90 cm with defoliation intensity of 70% (treatment 90/70). Treatments were repeated three times in a complete randomized block design. Tester animals were six multiparous Holsteins [. ]
Prevalence of transfusion-transmitted infections in multiple blood transfused thalassemia patients: A report from a tertiary care center in North India

Aims: The present study was undertaken to estimate the prevalence of transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs) in multitransfused patients of thalassemia major and to determine the association with relation to the number of blood units being transfused in Jammu province. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted on 138 beta thalassemia patients registered for regular blood transfusions at the Department of Blood Transfusion Medicine, Shri Maharaja Gulaab Singh Hospital, Government Medical College, Jammu in the period July-December 2014. The tests for TTIs, i.e., human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV), were performed by using third-generation enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits. Statistical Analysis: The data were analyzed as proportions. The statistical significance of the results was evaluated using the chi-squared test/Fisher′s exact test. A P value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results : Out of 138 patients, 13.7% (19/138) were seroreactive for TTIs. Of these seroreactive patients, 13.04% (18/138) were positive for anti-HCV and 0.72% (1/138) positive for anti-HIV. Of the anti-HCV reactive cases, 66.66% were >15 years of age. Of the anti-HCV positive cases, 94.4% (17 out of 18) had received more than 100 transfusions. Anti-HCV seroreactivity was noted to increase with increase in the age of the patient and the number of transfusions. Conclusion: HCV is the main TTI in multitransfused thalassemic patients. HBV vaccination must be done before starting the transfusion regimen or as soon as otherwise possible.
Physiological responses and molecular signatures of exercise in horses.

Exercising equines, especially horses, exhibit significant changes in the physiological responses and several other vital signs. The prominent observable physiological indices are the heart rate (HR), velocity at peak Heart rate (V200), and lactate V[La]. The blood lactate is the biochemical signature of muscular fatigue. Trainings and conditioning schedules have been devised to include the speed at blood lactate levels of 2.0 and 4.0 mM/l. These indices along with recovery of heart rate and blood lactate are important indices for judging the performance of exercising horses. Adaptation to exercise with proper training results in development of cellular tolerance in the exercising muscles and other tissues. With the development of next generation technologies, the analysis of blood and muscle transcriptomes in exercising horses has led to identification of performance genes in race horses. Myostatin (MSTN) genotyping is used to identify and select the horses at early stages for either fast sprint or long distance endurance events. Genes of immune deregulation, mitochondrial respiration, oxidative phosphorylation, tissue repair, tissue remodelling and specific cytokines are among the up regulated genes in the race horses while the most suppressed genes are the ones involved in signal transduction, cell cycle regulation and protein synthesis. Further research is required in the future, to identify the molecular signatures of stress tolerance in horse breeds other than thoroughbreds and race horses, which have evolved and adapted to the climate and utility at specific locations in the world. Such an information would facilitate the horse breeders to devise selection plans in order to improve the exercise and work performance. This would also facilitate diagnosis of the diseases and metabolic disorders that are caused by exercise induced stress.
The effect of three tillage treatments on weed infestation in maize monoculture

This study assessed the impact of using soil tillage on the weed infestation intensity and weed species composition in maize monoculture. Maize has been grown in monoculture consecutively in our research since 2001 and three treatments of soil tillage were applied: conventional tillage (CT), minimum tillage (MT) and no-tillage (NT). Maize monoculture occurs across large plots of land and due to the growth conditions of maize and emerging conservational tillage technologies a broad variety of weed species is introduced and widespread in such plots. The weed infestation in our research had been observed for four years between 2012 and 2015. An arithmetic method and the multivariate analyses of ecological data were used to determine the effect of tillage on weed infestation. The highest weed infestation mainly formed by perennial species was recorded in NT, whereas rich spectrum of annual weed species were more frequently observed in MT. Based on our results can be stated that the specific soil treatments have created different conditions not only for weed emergence, but also for soil properties. Thus, studying the effect of soil tillage treatments on weed infestation may enable further development of weed infestation prediction followed by a targeted application of herbicides leading to the farmers’ cost cutting and less stress for environment.
Elevated temperatures alter an ant‐aphid mutualism

Ant‐hemipteran mutualisms are keystone interactions that can be variously affected by warming: these mutualisms can be strengthened or weakened, or the species can transition to new mutualist partners. We examined the effects of elevated temperatures on an ant‐aphid mutualism in the subalpine zone of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, USA. In this system, inflorescences of the host plant, Ligusticum porteri Coult. & Rose (Apiaceae), are colonized by the ant‐tended aphid Aphis asclepiadis Fitch or less frequently by the non‐ant tended aphid Cavariella aegopodii (Scopoli) (both Hemiptera: Aphididae). Using an 8‐year observational study, we tested for two key mechanisms by which ant‐hemipteran mutualisms may be altered by climate change: shifts in species identity and phenological mismatch. Whereas the aphid species colonizing the host plant is not changing in response to year‐to‐year variation in temperature, we found evidence that a phenological mismatch between ants and aphids could occur. In warmer years, colonization of host plant inflorescences by ants is decreased, whereas for A. asclepiadis aphids, host plant colonization is mostly responsive to date of snowmelt. We also experimentally established A. asclepiadis colonies on replicate host plants at ambient and elevated temperatures. Ant abundance did not differ between aphid colonies at ambient vs. elevated temperatures, but ants were less likely to engage in tending behaviors on aphid colonies at elevated temperatures. Sugar composition of aphid honeydew was also altered by experimental warming. Despite reduced tending by ants, aphid colonies at elevated temperatures had fewer intraguild predators. Altogether, our results suggest that higher temperatures may disrupt this ant‐aphid mutualism through both phenological mismatch and by altering benefits exchanged in the interaction.