Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of fibre level in the mixture on the state of intestinal epithelium of fatteners.

The effect of fi bre level in the mixture on the state of intestinal epithelium of fatteners. The purpose of the work was to determine the effect of the fi bre content in the mixture on morphometric traits of intestinal epithelium of fatteners. In one-phase fattening, 14 crossbred pigs were classifi ed into two groups and ad libitum fed the mixtures, differing in the composition and nutritional value, including the level of crude fi bre (control group – C – 3.4%; experimental group – E – 12%) but with the maintained energy-protein ratio (1 : 13). At the age of 180 days, the fattening was completed; the weight of the pigs from C group was equal to ca. 100 kg and that one of the pigs from group E was by ca. 26 kg lower. The rate of growth of pigs from group E as compared to the animals from group C was slower (P ≤ 0.01). After slaughter, morphometric evaluation of the scrapes from the following three segments of the small intestine was carried out: duodenum, jejunum and ileum. There was found a lower mitosis index (the number of divisions per one crypt) of the intestinal epithelium cells of the pigs from group E as compared to group C (duodenum, P ≤ 0.01). The height of the epithelial cells in crypts and depth of crypts in three examined segments of small intestine (D, J, I) was higher in group E vs. group C (P ≤ 0.05; P ≤ 0.01), whereas the villus height was lower in group E vs. group C. The fi bre level in the mixture affected the direction and level of changes in the examined indicators, characterizing the morphometric traits of intestinal epithelium.
Cannibalism in Natural Populations

Cannibalism, defined as intraspecific predation, is a behavioral trait found in a wide variety of animals, although most references to this behavior are anecdotal or based on casual laboratory observations, The role of cannibalism in the dynamics of natural populations has been largely neglected; the most elegant and detailed analy­ ses of the population consequences of cannibalism are still provided by laboratory studies of flour beetles (Tribolium) that describe the process, examine its interac­ tions with other population processes, and attempt to derive generalities about its effects (60, 78, 88), Therefore, some authors have suggested that cannibalism is an artifact of laboratory systems (20, p, 324) or that it occurs only in cases of severe stress, especially when alternatives, such as dispersal, are not possible (I05), My purpose in this review is to show that cannibalism is a normal phenomenon in many natural populations, to evaluate its possible roles in influencing demo­ graphic structure and population processes, and to suggest conditions for, and constraints on, its occurrence, Cannibalism may be an interaction that reduces population size before acute resource shortage causes severe physiological stress, and in this sense its effects may be analogous to those of spacing behavior or dominance hierarchies in some social animals (104), I also discuss cannibalism as a limiting case of predator-prey interactions among potential competitors, This review is based mainly on field experiments and direct estimates of rates of cannibalism, but I use papers describing laboratory experiments to supplement the discussion of behavioral triggers and genetic components and to fill gaps in the field evidence, I have excluded numerous references with only casual mention of canni­ balistic events,
The potential for field studies and genomic technologies to enhance resistance and resilience of British tree populations to pests and pathogens

Genetic research on the interactions of temperate tree hosts with pests and pathogens, and breeding for resistance or low susceptibility, are hindered by the long generation time and large size of tree species. Foresters need to be quick to exploit new technologies that may accelerate research and breeding programmes, and opportunistic in gaining maximum use from existing experimental tree plots. A fruitful approach may be to apply new genomic methods to the analysis of established provenance and progeny trials, seed orchards and clonal archives, where screening for pests and pathogens may occur. An important test case of this approach is underway in Britain with respect to ash (Fraxinus excelsior L.) and the search for resistance to the dieback caused by Hymenoscyphus fraxineus (T. Kowalski) Baral, Queloz, Hosoya, comb. nov. This review examines: (1) the use of field trials for pathogen and pest resistance in forest trees, (2) how field trials may support the application of genomic technologies to tree health issues, (3) the extent of the field trial resource in Britain, (4) issues that constrain the use and maintenance of field trials, (5) an outline of possible experimental designs, (6) the use of natural systems and (7) funding of long-term trials. Application of the latest technologies may be critically dependent on the availability of welldesigned and maintained, long-term, field trials that produce invaluable resources and results for decades.
The innervation of human muscularis mucosae: an ultrastructural study

The muscularis mucosae, a thin band of smooth muscle located at the base of the gastrointestinal mucosa, has been the topic of very few studies . The muscularis mucosae might regulate the absorptive and secretory functions of the gut through movements of the mucosal surface (1). The autonomic innervation of this tissue is almost completely unknown.Therefore we have carried out an ultrastructural study on nerve fibers of muscolaris mucosae by using archived mucosal rectal biopsies of children of different age , examined in the past for the diagnosis of neurometabolic disease and resulted negative. Nerve fibers of muscularis mucosae were unmyelinated. They contain several axons with the characteristics of intervaricose tract completely or almost surrounded by Schwann cells . Other axons in the nerve fibers appear as varicosities partly covered with Schwann cell cytoplasm or naked, and filled with vesicles and mitochondria . The vesicles in the same varicosity appear pleomorphic: small clear-core vesicles , dense -core of small diameter or less often dense-core of larger type. The membrane of muscle cells often protruded toward the varicosity . No synaptic specialization was observed.With very low frequency we found varicosities in intimate contact with the plasmalemma . Pleomorphic vesicles inside the same varicosity suggest a complex neurotransmission based on the release of classical transmitter and cotransmitters.The physiological relevance of these nerves remains unclear. Strips of longitudinal muscularis mucosae isolated from the human, guinea pig and rat colon responded with concentration-dependent contractions to the application of several spasmogens (1). In the human muscularis mucosae, neurokinin A was most potent, followed by carbachol, prostaglandin F2 and acetylcholine. These findings suggest the possibility that the muscularis mucosae is innervated by excitatory cholinergic nerves (1). On the other hand in oesophagus exogenously applied adrenaline inhibited spontaneous activities of the muscularis mucosae motor activity. Adrenergic nerves might inhibit spontaneous motility via the inhibition of cholinergic neurotransmission. VIP- , NPY-, CGRP- and galanin-immunoreactive nerve fibers were observed in the human esophageal muscularis mucosae but their function remains unknown (2).
Involvement of Some Low-Molecular Thiols in the Destructive Mechanism of Cadmium and Ethanol Action on Rat Livers and Kidneys

The involvement of some low-molecular thiol compounds in the mechanisms of peroxidative action of cadmium (Cd) and ethanol (EtOH) was studied. Concentrations of reduced glutathione (GSH), metallothionein (Mt) and thiol (-SH) groups in protein and non-protein fractions were assessed in the homogenates of the liver and kidney of rats exposed to Cd (50 Cd/dm 3 of drinking water) and EtOH (5 g EtOH/kg body weight/24 h, intragastrically), singly or in combination, for 12 weeks. Exposure to Cd caused a reduction in the concentration of GSH and non-protein SH groups in the liver and kidneys with a simultaneous increase in Mt level in these organs. The concentration of total SH groups increased only in kidneys. Administration of EtOH had no effect on Mt concentration in both organs, but caused a reduction in the concentration of GSH and non-protein SH groups. A reduction in the level of total SH groups following exposure to EtOH was also noted in the liver. In the group of rats with a simultaneous exposure to Cd and EtOH, GSH concentration was decreased in the liver compared to the control and Cd-exposed animals, and in the kidney in comparison to the control and EtOH-receiving rats. Following the combined exposure to Cd and EtOH, the concentration of non-protein SH groups decreased in the liver and kidneys in comparison to the control and Cd-exposed rats, and in the liver also in comparison to the EtOH group. Mt concentration increased in the liver and kidneys of animals exposed to a combination of Cd and EtOH, compared to the control and EtOH group, but was reduced compared to the Cd group. Combined administration of Cd and EtOH caused an increase in the concentration of total SH groups in the kidneys compared to the control, Cd and EtOH groups. A negative correlation was found between GSH concentration and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and positive correlation between Mt and MDA. The intensity of lipid peroxidation as well as GSH and Mt concentrations influencing this process in the state of combined exposure to Cd and EtOH results both from independent actions of these substances and interactions between them. The study outcome seems to indicate that the Cd- and EtOH-induced reduction in GSH and non-protein SH groups in the liver and kidneys may be one of the mechanisms that leads to lipid peroxidation in these organs.
Loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay for sensitive and rapid detection of Phytophthora capsici

Abstract Phytophthora capsici is an oomycete plant pathogen that infects peppers, tomatoes, and other agronomic and ornamental crops of the Solanaceae and Cucurbitaceae families worldwide. Early and accurate detection of P. capsici is essential for controlling this disease in the field. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of nuclear-encoded ribosomal DNA genes are widely used to detect Phytophthora nicotianae, Pythium helicoides and Peronospora variabilis. In this study, a novel and highly sensitive loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay was developed for the specific detection of P. capsici using calcein as a fluorescent indicator. Four LAMP primers were designed based on the ITS sequence of P. capsici. A total of 23 isolates of P. capsici from geographically distinct counties in China yielded positive results in the LAMP assay. No cross-reaction was observed with other oomycetes or fungal pathogens. The detection limit of P. capsici by LAMP was 100 fg genomic DNA per 25 μL reaction. The LAMP assay developed in this study is simple, fast, sensitive and specific, and can be used in the field to detect P. capsici in infected plant tissue.
Selection for forage and avoidance of risk by woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) at coarse and local scales

The relationship between selection at coarse and fine spatiotemporal spatial scales is still poorly understood. Some authors claim that, to accommodate different needs at different scales, individuals should have contrasting selection patterns at different scales of selection, while others claim that coarse scale selection patterns should reflect fine scale selection decisions. Here we examine site selection by 110 woodland caribou equipped with GPS radio-collars with respect to forage availability and predation risk across a broad gradient in availability of both variables in boreal forests of Northern Ontario. We tested whether caribou selection for forage and avoidance of risk was consistent between coarse (seasonal home range) and fine scales of selection. We found that local selection patterns predicted coarse scale selection patterns, indicating a close relationship between the drivers of selection at both spatial scales.
Effect of H₂ on soil bacterial community structure and soil denitrifier population

EFFECT OF H2 ON SOIL BACTERIAL COMMUNITY STRUCTURE AND SOIL DENITRIFIERS POPULATION By Xiang (Nancy) He Previous studies have shown that H2 from HUP" legume nodules promotes plant growth and enhances N2O emission from soil, possibly as the result of hydrogen-induced variation of rhizobacterial community structure. Using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism and 16S rRNA clone library, the current study revealed that the major bacterial groups that responded to H2 exposure belong to Gammaproteobacteria and Bacteroidetes. To understand the relationship between H2 exposure and soil denitrification, the gene copy number of a key gene in the denitrification process, nirK, encoding copper nitrite reductase, was quantified in soil samples with different treatments using a real-time PCR technique. The result showed that the nirK gene copy numbers in soil increased significant after H2 treatment. Several key genes in the denitrification pathway (such as qnorB, nosZ) were confirmed in some soil H2-oxidizing bacterial isolates suggesting a connection between H2 uptake and N20 emission.
Strategic Innovation Management Through Organizational Change

Strategic management and innovation management have to consider the top competing factors that ensure successful organizational change, since innovation management has a fundamental strategic position and is directly interrelated with the corporations’ objectives. Whilst innovation management is deeply embedded in the new dynamics of global economic development and competition, enterprises have to be able to design incorporated innovation management methods or models that are flexible and adaptable to all changes.The objective of this paper is to highlight strategic innovation management as an important administration implement in order to support the hypothesis that governance principles have a huge impact on the organizational accomplishment in the innovation management, simply because innovation is central to strategy. All gathered data are applied in a case study to propose a model of analysing strategic innovation management and determine the need for organizational change.The methodology used embraces empirical research based on qualitative methods, defining the decisive innovative factors towards more effective routines and innovation excellence. The results show which the weakest and the strongest associations can be when planning organizational change and highlights the importance of strategic innovation management.
Development of the large fish indicator and associated target for a Northeast Atlantic fish community

The large fish indicator (LFI) was developed to support the North Sea fish community Ecological Quality Objective (EcoQO) pilot study, intended to establish an operational ecosystem approach to management. Subsequently, procedures established in the North Sea were applied to the Celtic Sea to derive an LFI and target specific to this region. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) requires EU Member States sharing marine regions to cooperate using the Regional Seas Conventions, and using indicators already adopted by them. The MSFD explicitly suggests the LFI as a foodweb indicator, but it could equally well be used to monitor biodiversity. Here, we apply the established rationale to develop an LFI and target specific to the southern Bay of Biscay. Despite declining in the 1990s, the LFI subsequently recovered to near original values in 2008. Previously, relationships between the LFI and fishing pressure have involved lengthy time-lags. We observe a similar relationship, but with shorter lag. The nature of the larger species responsible for much of the change in the LFI may explain this difference, and might also suggest that, in the Bay of Biscay, the LFI is more appropriately used as a biodiversity indicator, rather than a foodweb indicator.
In vitro Propagation of Laelia albida (Orchidaceae) for Conservation and Ornamental Purposes in Mexico

micropropagation Abstract. The orchid Laelia albida is an important cultural and religious plant resource of the Tehuacan-Cuicatlan Valley Biosphere Reserve in south-central Mexico. It is gradu- ally becoming scarce due to overcollecting and habitat perturbation. For this reason, and for preservation purposes, the aim of the present work was to obtain the conditions to successfully propagate this species, through the use of mature seeds stored at 4 °C, and basal buds following in vitro techniques. Seeds with different storage periods (lot 1 and lot 2) were analyzed for seed viability as determined by the TTC method, germination percentage and germination index were analyzed on a monthly basis for 11 months on two Knudson C (K-4003, K-4128; Sigma). Seedlings were initially grown on the same culture media variants, but 30 days later they needed to be supplemented with potato starch (20 g·L -1 ). Basal buds were cultured on Knudson C containing nine BAP and NAA combinations two of which were also supplemented with potato starch (20 g·L -1 ) and coconut water (10%). Seed viability ranged from 78% to 98% throughout the 11 months and germination percentage was 70% to 90% without signifi cant differences between the two lots. K-4003, either alone or supplemented with potato starch, was the best culture medium used to achieve all the development stages as well as seedlings with rhizoids. Bud proliferation was also successful on K-4003 added with BAP, NAA, potato starch and coconut water. The BAP (7.4 μM) and NAA (5.3 μM) combination promoted shoots and protocorm-like bodies (PLB). The results obtained with basal buds, make its preservation through in vitro culture possible and give the possibility to obtain available plantlets for its cultivation in regional nurseries. Storage conditions tested here may be useful for seed bank management for this species. Chemical names used: 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP), 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA).
The Simple Power-Based Modulation Methods for DAB-Based AC-DC Converter with Unfolder Concept

The DAB-based AC-DC converter with isolated ability has been studied to connect the ac grid and the dc bus with unfolder operation for high efficiency performance, and the DAB dc-dc stage is employed to realize the half sinusoidal modulation. However, in terms of efficiency, the adopted modulation methods in the existing methods may be not very suitable for the DAB converter, and a minimum-current-stress phase-shift (MCS-PS) method is selected which can implement on-line continuous control with high efficiency for this converter. Generally, there are two kinds of load conditions for this AC-DC converter, including the resistor load and the grid voltage source. When the DAB-based AC-DC converter is connected with the load resistor, the accurate power flowing model is analyzed, and then, a simple power-based modulation scheme (SPBM) is proposed for high power quality. Moreover, when this AC-DC converter is connected with the grid voltage source, a SPBM scheme is also proposed for high power quality and regulating both the active power and the reactive power. Finally, the simulation and experimental results are provided to verify the excellent performance of the proposed SPBM strategies.
Fault Detection Technique Based On Clustering Approach of Artificial Intelligence in Electric Vehicle Converters

An on-board health monitoring system to diagnose the vehicle while it is in operation; is a necessity to propose electric vehicles (EVs) as a robust replacement of the internal combustion engine (ICE) ones. This paper proposes an efficient, simple and reliable fault detection technique of an open circuit fault in voltage source inverters (VSI), as a case study. It is based on semi-clustering approach, which compares a gate-driving signal (as a reference) to the actual VSI output voltage, trained in many different scenarios. Simulink simulation model and a laboratory prototype are built to prove the validity of the proposed technique. Results are presented and discussed to confirm coherence of proposed methodologies.
Genetic Structure of Aedes vexans (Diptera: Culicidae) Populations from Central United States Based on Mitochondrial ND5 Sequences

Abstract Aedes vexans (Meigen), the vexans mosquito, is a species that prefers mammalian hosts and is a vector of West Nile virus (family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus). It is one of the most widespread pest mosquitoes in the world and North America, and it is commonly found in southern Canada and continental United States. Population structure of this species in Kansas was examined using DNA sequences of a 423-bp region of the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 (ND5) gene, relative to three other states. From the 54 Kansas samples, a total of 39 nucleotide positions were polymorphic, with 34 haplotypes. Of the 34 haplotypes, 22 (79%) were not shared among populations. The average haplotype diversity (0.953) from 11 Kansas populations indicated a high level of genetic diversity in Ae. vexans. Among the Kansas, South Dakota, Texas, and Louisiana samples, a total of 40 haplotypes were observed. Analysis of molecular variance was conducted on the resulting haplotypes for all populations and no geographical structure was observed among populations by using isolation-by-distance tests. This first genetic study of Ae. vexans provides evidence that there is a large amount of haplotype variation within and among populations, and gene flow occurs across broad geographical areas in this species.
High density 48V-to-PoL VRM with hybrid pre-regulator and fixed-ratio buck

The rack-level 48 V bus architecture is wide-spreading as modern Data Center architectures move towards the cloud computing and Internet of Things Era. Increasing power demands require low-profile, high-density server board solutions able to efficiently step down the input distribution bus to the digital rails. Intermediate Bus Converters (IBCs) are usually implemented though soft-switching resonant topologies such as non-regulated LLCs, while core voltage regulation is achieved through a multi-phase buck VRM. This paper proposes two different architectures to increase the power density of the 48 V-1.8 V conversion: the IBC is implemented through a regulated switched-capacitor converter, while the Point-of-Load stage is a novel 4:1 fully-coupled buck that enables DC magnetic flux cancellation and leakage inductance minimization to improve the load transient response.
Assessment of ant communities in secondary forest in the eastern Amazon

Ant communities were assessed in plots fertilized with nitrogen and phosphorus in an area of secondary forest in the Eastern Amazon. Collections were made from April to September 2004, using the mini-Winkler extractor method. A total of 4893 ant individuals were obtained distributed in three subfamilies, 22 genera and 82 species. The most frequent species were Wasmannia auropunctata (100%), Pyramica sp1 and Solenopsis sp1 (75%). The Shannon diversity index showed low values, the Jaccard index presented dissimilarity, the equitability index showed that the distribution of the abundance of individuals was not homogeneous and the species richness also presented low values. There was variation in the composition of the ant fauna in soils fertilized with N, N + P and P. The study corroborated other research in degraded areas, showing that the species composition is modified compared to more complex environments.