Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Deployment of the sex pheromone of Pseudococcus calceolariae (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) as a potential new tool for mass trapping in citrus in South Australia

ABSTRACT Mealybugs damage a variety of crops worldwide, vectoring viruses and causing problems from sooty mould. The identification of the citrophilous mealybug (Pseudococcus calceolariae, CMB) female sex pheromone has created opportunities for its use as a pest management tool that could potentially result in a reduced reliance on insecticides. Mass trapping is a pest management technique that uses baited traps to decrease pest insect densities. To assess the efficacy of the P. calceolariae sex pheromone as a mass trapping tool, a field trial was conducted in citrus in South Australia. The vertical distribution of CMB within the citrus was examined. Male flight activity was monitored using red delta traps in the centre of six 1-ha ‘plots’, after which time half the plots had 306 tent traps containing synthetic CMB pheromone lures deployed (mass traps). Six weeks after the application of mass trapping we observed a 90% lower catch in treated plots compared to catches in control plots. There were strong spatial patterns in trap catch with the Edge to Centre ratio being 3.6:1. P. calceolariae male flight activity showed peaks in October and May. Mass trapping showed promise as an effective management technique for P. calceolariae. Challenges such as male multiple mating and mealybug airborne dispersal still need to be overcome before mass trapping can be used as a reliable management technique.
Inter- and intraspecific diversity patterns in dendritic river networks

The aim of this thesis was to characterized the spatial patterns of inter- and intraspecific diversity within riverine networks, to better understand the ecological and evolutionary processes underlying them and to explore how the different facets of biodiversity interact with one another. First, I developed novel statistical approaches allowing the application of causal modeling to data in the form of pairwise matrices, thus allowing the study within integrative frameworks of several biodiversity facets at the alpha and beta levels. I then studied integratively the patterns of interspecific and intraspecific genetic diversity and of intraspecific genetic and intraspecific phenotypic diversity within the Garonne-Dordogne river basin. Finally, I used an eco-evolutionary metapopulation dynamics model to assess the impacts of the structure and environmental gradients that characterize riverine networks on local adaptation.
Disentangling competence from performance in behavioral measures of learning: A lesson for cognitive neuroscience

In cognitive neuroscience, the momentary learning performance and the underlying competence on a behavioral task are typically not distinguished, which can lead to unreliable measures of brain-behavior relationships. Here we aimed to disentangle competence from performance by examining two groups with different (speed or accuracy) instructions in the learning phase and with the same instruction (focusing on both) in the testing phase. Healthy young adults performed an implicit probabilistic learning task in two sessions. In the learning phase, the two groups showed similar learning measured by reaction times; however, only the group with speed instruction showed learning measured by accuracy. In the testing phase, a similar level of knowledge was found in both measures. Overall, multiple sessions with different instructions enabled the separation of competence from performance. Additionally, reaction time measures seemed to be more resistant to speed/accuracy instructions. These findings can help create better experimental designs for cognitive neuroscience studies.
Parallel Tempering with Lasso for model reduction in systems biology

Systems Biology models reveal relationships between signaling inputs and observable molecular or cellular behaviors. The complexity of these models, however, often obscures key elements that regulate emergent properties. We use a Bayesian model reduction approach that combines Parallel Tempering with Lasso regularization to identify minimal subsets of reactions in a signaling network that are sufficient to reproduce experimentally observed data. The Bayesian approach finds distinct reduced models that fit data equivalently. A variant of this approach based on Group Lasso is applied to the NF-κB signaling network to test the necessity of feedback loops for responses to pulsatile and continuous pathway stimulation. Taken together, our results demonstrate that Bayesian parameter estimation combined with regularization can isolate and reveal core motifs sufficient to explain data from complex signaling systems.
Mount Taishan Forest Ecosystem Health Assessment Based on Forest Inventory Data

Forest health is an important aspect of sustainable forest management. The practical significance of health assessments of forest ecosystems is becoming more and more prominent because good knowledge about the health level of forests and the causes of unhealthy forests enables the identification of proper actions for enhancing sustainable development of forest ecosystems. This paper evaluated the health status of the forest ecosystem of Mount Taishan using the spatial analysis technique of GIS (Geographic Information System) and local forest inventory data. A comprehensive indicator system that reflects the health status of forestsin the study areawas established. Based on this indicator system, the health level of each sub-compartment of the forests in the study area was assessed. The results show that the high-quality grade forest (80.4 ha) and healthy grade forest (2671 ha) accounted for only 23.5% of the total forest area of Mount Taishan. About 60.5% of Mount Taishan forest was in a sub-health status. The area of unhealthy forests was 1865 ha (accounting for 16% of the total forest area), of which about 98 ha was inextremely unhealthy conditions.Asmore than two-thirds of the forests in Mount Taishan are in a sub-health or unhealthy state, effective measures for improving forest health are in urgent need in the study area.
Vegetative anatomy and mycorrhizal morphology of Schoenorchis nivea (Lindl.) Schltr., (Orchidaceae) and their adaptive significance

The anatomical description of the vegetative parts (leaf, leaf sheath, stem and root) and mycorrhizal morphology of Schoenorchis nivea (Lindl.) Schltr. , belonging to the subfamily Epidendroideae of Orchidaceae was investigated. Leaves were amphistomatic covered by 10-12 μm thick cuticle, stomata paracytic with small and irregular substomatal chambers. Mesophyll homogenous, composed of thin-walled chlorenchymatous cells. Banded water-storage cells abundant in the mesophyll and the largest vascular bundle occurred at the centre of the leaf. The leaf sheath has both adaxial and abaxial epidermis covered with cuticle, homogenous mesophyll, water-storage cells, raphides and vascular bundles. The stem is surrounded by a uniseriate epidermis, cortex consisting of thick-walled fibers and collateral vascular bundles scattered in the ground tissue. Cortical proliferation was evident in S. nivea stem. Root hairs present in root regions were in contact with the substratum. Root hairs frequently branched at their tips. Root possess 2-3 layered velamen, ∩-thickened exodermal cells, O-thickened uniseriate endodermis, and cortex of thin-walled parenchymatous cells containing raphides and water-storage cells. Cover cells present. Xylem arches are 9-11, with vascular tissues embedded in sclerenchymatous cells. Pith composed of thick-walled sclerenchymatous cells with intercellular space. The stomatal characteristics in leaf, the size of water-storage cells and vascular bundles exhibited significant variation in different plant parts. Intact and degenerating pelotons of orchid mycorrhizal fungi were observed in the root cortical cells. The observations of the present study clearly indicate that S. nivea possesses several anatomical adaptations to thrive in epiphytic habitats.
Serotonin and childhood maltreatment interact to shape brain architecture and anxious avoidant behavior – a TPH2 imaging genetics approach

Childhood maltreatment has been associated with emotional dysregulations and altered architecture of limbic-prefrontal brain systems engaged in emotional processing. Serotonin regulates both, developmental and experience-dependent neuroplasticity in these circuits. Central serotonergic biosynthesis rates are regulated by Tryptophan hydroxylase 2 (TPH2), and transgenic animal models suggest that TPH2-gene associated differences in serotonergic signaling mediate the impact of aversive early life experiences on a phenotype characterized by anxious avoidance. The present study employed an imaging genomics approach that capitalized on individual differences in a TPH2 polymorphism (703G/T; rs4570625) to determine whether differences in serotonergic signaling modulate the effects of childhood maltreatment on brain structure and function and punishment sensitivity in humans (n = 252). Higher maltreatment exposure before the age of 16 was associated with increased gray matter volumes in a circuitry spanning thalamic-limbic-prefrontal regions and decreased intrinsic communication in limbic-prefrontal circuits selectively in TT carriers. On the phenotype level, the genotype moderated the association between higher childhood maltreatment exposure and higher punishment sensitivity. In TT carriers, the association between higher childhood maltreatment exposure and punishment sensitivity was critically mediated by increased thalamic-limbic-prefrontal volumes. The present findings suggest that childhood maltreatment shapes the neural organization of the thalamic-limbic-prefrontal circuits in interaction with individual variations in the TPH2 gene to promote a phenotype characterized by facilitated threat avoidance, thus promoting early adaptation to an adverse environment.
Temporal and spatial determinants of route selection in homing seabirds

Time of day is recognized as an important behaviour modulator of wild animals mainly via physical environmental changes such as temperature and light intensity. These temporal factors can also affect animal movements (i.e., changes of locations) and consequent distribution. However, while it is commonly observed in diverse taxa that an animal’s attendance at a specific site concentrates within a narrow time window, how time influences the route selections of traveling animals in the course of their movements through to the end point is still not well understood. In this study, we quantified temporal and spatial patterns in the homing paths of streaked shearwaters Calonectris leucomelas, which are present at the breeding colony exclusively after sunset, to investigate how time constrains their movement strategy for homing from at-sea foraging areas. We tracked the foraging trips using GPS loggers in chick-rearing seasons for five years. In addition, in one year we conducted displacement experiments, releasing birds at sea at three different times of the day (midday, sunset and night-time) to impose time constraints on homeward movements. The movement paths revealed that the time of sunset was key to their decision of timing and in route selections during homing. Most birds returning from foraging trips reached the coastal area around sunset by adjusting travel timing and directions, despite variation in foraging areas, and flew along the coastline to the breeding island. Meanwhile, most birds released offshore stopped flights around sunset and waited on the water surface for sunrise before restarting their homeward movements. Birds therefore avoid offshore traveling at night, appearing to preferentially use diurnal cues for homing at sea. This study demonstrates the importance of timing as well as geographic features for homing decisions of streaked shearwaters and confirms that both spatial and temporal cognitive abilities are well developed in seabirds.
Isotopic paleoecology (δ 13C) of mesoherbivores from Late Pleistocene of Gruta da Marota, Andaraí, Bahia, Brazil

ABSTRACT The Marota Cave (Andaraí municipality, Bahia, Brazil), located in the karst system of the Una – Utinga basin, Chapada Diamantina, is a cave of particular interest for the paleoecological understanding of the Brazilian Intertropical Region. In the present work, we present new records of the tapir Tapirus terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758), the anteater Tamandua tetradactyla Linnaeus, 1758, and the giants ground sloths Catonyx cuvieri (Lund, 1839) and Nothrotherium maquinense (Lund, 1839). We present inferences about the body mass and radiocarbon dating (14C AMS) in association with mathematical models of linear regressions using isotopic values of carbon (δ 13C), which provide new information about the paleoecology and chronology of these species. The 14C AMS datings showed an age around11.000 years for all the studied fossils, placing the records in the Late Pleistocene. The carbon isotopic values presented for T. terrestris were −17.21 ‰, for C. cuvieri was −11.19 ‰, and N. maquinense −11.99 ‰ and −12.12 ‰. These data allow us to suggest T. terrestris, C. cuvieri and N. maquinense as specialists, feeding more on C3 plants (pi C3 > 80%). The information obtained from (δ 18O) varying from 4.06 ‰ to −0.08 ‰ (µδ 18O = −1.94 ‰), associated with δ 13C data, suggests a forested environment in the region around 11,000 yr ago.
Further mismeasures of animal contests: a new framework for assessment strategies

Competition for resources is a ubiquitous feature of life, and a central topic in behavioral ecology. Organisms use assessment strategies to resolve contests, which can be delineated into two broad categories by the information individuals use to make decisions: mutual assessment (MA) or self-assessment (SA). Most research hitherto has worked to bin a species into one of these categories. In this review, we discuss the limitations of this approach and provide solutions. We posit that assessment strategies do not need to be fixed within a species, individuals, or interactions, and that many organisms should adjust their assessment strategy as the environment, opponent, and opportunities for information gathering change. We show that assessment strategies are an individual-level characteristic, can vary within and between contests, and are not mutually exclusive. We argue that MA is the midpoint along a spectrum of self only and opponent only assessment. We discuss the effects of resource distribution, demographics, experience, information transfer, and ontogeny on assessment strategy evolution and behavior. We conclude by providing empirical guidelines and an example with a simulated dataset.
Deep sampling of Hawaiian Caenorhabditis elegans reveals high genetic diversity and admixture with global populations

Recent efforts to understand the natural niche of the keystone model organism Caenorhabditis elegans have suggested that this species is cosmopolitan and associated with rotting vegetation and fruits. However, most of the strains isolated from nature have low genetic diversity likely because recent chromosome-scale selective sweeps contain alleles that increase fitness in human-associated habitats. Strains from the Hawaii Islands are highly divergent from non-Hawaiian strains. This result suggests that Hawaiian strains might contain ancestral genetic diversity that was purged from most non-Hawaiian strains by the selective sweeps. To characterize the genetic diversity and niche of Hawaiian C. elegans, we sampled across the Hawaiian Islands and isolated 100 new C. elegans strains. We found that C. elegans strains are not associated with any one substrate but are found in cooler climates at high elevations. These Hawaiian strains are highly diverged compared to the rest of the global population. Admixture analysis identified 11 global populations, four of which are from Hawaii. Surprisingly, one of the Hawaiian populations shares recent ancestry with non-Hawaiian populations, including portions of globally swept haplotypes. This discovery provides the first evidence of gene flow between Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian populations. Most importantly, the high levels of diversity observed in Hawaiian strains might represent the complex patterns of ancestral genetic diversity in the C. elegans species before human influence.
Role of NFAT5 in the Immune System and Pathogenesis of Autoimmune Diseases

The nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT5), also known as a tonicity-responsive enhancer-binding protein, was originally identified as a key transcription factor involved in maintaining cellular homeostasis against hypertonic and hyperosmotic environments. Although NFAT5 has been expressed and studied in various types of hyperosmolar tissues, evidence has emerged that NFAT5 plays a role in the development and activation of immune cells, especially T cells and macrophages. The immune-regulatory function of NFAT5 is achieved by inducing different target genes and different signaling pathways in both tonicity-dependent and -independent manners. Particularly in response to hyperosmotic stress, NFAT5 induces the generation of pathogenic TH17 cells and pro-inflammatory macrophages, contributing to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Meanwhile, with tonicity-independent stimuli, including activation of the Toll-like receptors and inflammatory cytokines, NFAT5 also can be activated and promotes immune cell survival, proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis. Moreover, under isotonic conditions, NFAT5 has been implicated in the pathogenesis of a variety of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases including rheumatoid arthritis. This review describes the current knowledge of NFAT5, focusing on its immune-regulatory functions, and it highlights the importance of NFAT5 as a novel therapeutic target for chronic inflammatory diseases.
Metabolic profile and renal function of lambs fed with maniçoba hay replacement by spineless cactus

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the replacement of maniçoba hay with spineless cactus on the metabolic response and renal function of lambs. Blood and urine samples were collected 55 days after introduction of the tested diets. No blood parameters were affected and the urinary concentration of urea, creatinine, and potassium was influenced by diet with decreasing linear behavior. The urinary glucose excretion index and the fractional urinary excretion of glucose increased linearly. The spineless cactus does not negatively impact in the metabolic profile and renal function of confined lambs, suggesting that it may replace up to 100% of the maniçoba hay.
Intestinal parasitic infection among household contacts of primary cases, a comparative cross-sectional study

Background Intestinal parasitic infection affects 3.5 billion people in the world and mostly affecting the low socio-economic groups. The objectives of this research were to estimate the prevalence and determinants of intestinal parasitic infection among family members of known intestinal parasite infected patients. Methods and materials A comparative cross-sectional study design was implemented in the urban and rural settings of mecha district. The data were collected from August 2017 to March 2019 from intestinal parasitic infected patient household members. Epi-info software was used to calculate the sample size, 4531 household members were estimated to be included. Data were collected using interview technique and colleting stool samples from each household contact of intestinal parasite patients. Descriptive statistics were used to estimate the prevalence of intestinal parasites among known contacts of intestinal parasites patients/family members. Binary logistic regression was used to identify the determinant factors of intestinal parasitic infection among family members. Results The prevalence of intestinal parasite among household contacts of parasite-infected family members was 86.14 % [95% CI: 86.14 % - 87.15 %]. Hookworm parasitic infection was the predominant type of infection (18.8%). Intestinal parasitic infection was associated with sex, environmental sanitation, source of water, habit of playing with domestic animals, the presence of chicken in the house, the presence of household water filtering materials, overcrowding, personal hygiene, residence, and substandard house, role in the household, source of light for the house, floor materials, trimmed fingernails, family size, regular hand washing practice, barefoot. Conclusion The prevalence of intestinal parasites was high among household contacts of primary confirmed cases.
An exploration into the link between brain rhythms and synaptic plasticity in health and infectious disease

During wakefulness, synapses are strengthened to enable memory formation. Whereas, during sleep, weaker connections are ‘pruned’ to help consolidate memories. These synaptic alterations are related to cortical oscillations, which are generally faster during wakefulness (30-80Hz, gamma), and slower during deep sleep (1-4Hz, delta). Synaptic strength is thought to decrease during delta rhythms (compared to gamma rhythms). Neuroinflammation can disturb these brain rhythms and lead to a decline in cognitive function, which may result from aberrations in synaptic plasticity. To test the laminar and cellular changes in synaptic plasticity during sleep- and wake-related oscillations, in vitro electrophysiology and immunofluorescence were employed using acute rat neocortical slices. To examine the effect of neuroinflammation on these brain states, systemic infection was induced using synthetic analogues of pathogenic bacterial and viral material, and a biological parasitic disease model. The expression of an immediate early gene (IEG) marker of neuronal plasticity (Arc) was higher during delta oscillations compared to gamma oscillations and was concentrated to mid-apical dendrite bundles from layer V intrinsically bursting cells. These bundles represented cortical microcolumns which are known to exhibit synchronous activity, allowing parallel processing of information. Increased Arc expression in these columns during delta oscillations may promote synaptic rescaling and highlights the role of cortical microcolumns in memory consolidation. A balance of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines was found after short term systemic infection which gave way to a predominately pro-inflammatory state when the infection was longer term. The oscillatory activity also changed, with a continued decline in gamma power. However, delta power increased short term but decreased with a longer infection. The systemic infection had no effect on cortical plasticity. These results were corroborated in a mouse model of Leishmaniasis and show that systemic infection alters neuronal communication by changes to oscillatory activity, but does not change synaptic plasticity levels.