Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Predatory Behaviour in Domestic Cat Mothers

This study documents quantitatively the change in predatory behaviour of domestic cat mothers as their kittens develop. Predatory behaviour in mother cats was found to decline as that of their offspring increased. Before kittens were 8 weeks old, mothers were more likely to interact with prey if their kittens had not been on the prey for a time; they led in interactions with prey. Kittens were found to show increased rates of predatory behaviour patterns in the presence of their mother. This paper then goes on to examine some of the mechanisms by which mothers are able to bring about such an improvement in their kittens' predatory behaviour. It was found that kittens interacted more frequently and for longer with prey following the mother's bouts. Kittens were more likely to quickly follow another cat on the prey than wait more than 10 seconds. However when siblings only were considered, they were less likely to follow a sibling in less than 10 seconds of it having been on the prey. After the eighth week, kittens attended to prey by themselves more often than would be expected by chance, whereas in the early weeks of exposure to prey, they were more likely to attend to prey while their siblings or their mother was watching prey.
I'll See You On “Facebook”: The Effects of Computer-Mediated Teacher Self-Disclosure on Student Motivation, Affective Learning, and Classroom Climate

This experimental study examined the effects of teacher self-disclosure via Facebook on anticipated college student motivation, affective learning, and classroom climate. Participants who accessed the Facebook website of a teacher high in self-disclosure anticipated higher levels of motivation and affective learning and a more positive classroom climate. In their responses to open-ended items, participants emphasized possible negative associations between teacher use of Facebook and teacher credibility. Participants offered recommendations for teachers regarding the use of Facebook and other weblog services.
Glucosamine inhibits the synthesis of glycosaminoglycan chains on vascular smooth muscle cell proteoglycans by depletion of ATP

Abstract Glucosamine via GlcNAc is a precursor for the synthesis of glycosaminoglycan (GAG) chains on proteoglycans. We previously found that proteoglycans synthesized and secreted by vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) in the presence of supplementary glucosamine had GAG of decreased not increased size. We investigated the possibility that the inhibition of GAG chains synthesis on proteoglycans might be related to cellular ATP depletion. Confluent primate VSMCs were exposed to glucosamine, azide, or 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG). Each of these agents depleted cell ATP content by 25–30%. All agents decreased 35S-SO4 incorporation and reduced the size of the proteoglycans, decorin and biglycan as assessed by SDS-PAGE. On withdrawal of the glucosamine, azide or 2-DG ATP levels and proteoglycan synthesis returned towards baseline values. Glucosamine decreased glucose uptake and consumption suggesting that ATP depletion was due preferential phosphorylation of glucosamine over glucose. Thus, glucosamine inhibition of proteoglycan synthesis is due, at least in part, to depletion of cellular ATP content.
Familial correlation and segregation analysis of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1), with and without smoking adjustments, in a Tucson population

BACKGROUND: Previous researchers have found significant familial aggregation but no evidence of Mendelian inheritance of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) in general population studies. However, the influence of cigarette smoking on familial aggregation of FEV1 has been difficult to assess in these studies. OBJECTIVES: The main objective of our study was to attempt to discern the effects of smoking on familial correlation and segregation models of FEV1. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: In a randomly selected sample of white, non-Mexican American families in Tucson, Arizona, we performed two separate familial correlation and segregation analyses of FEV1, one adjusted for cigarette smoking and one unadjusted for smoking. In both, initial survey measures of FEV1 for 1329 females and 1291 males in 746 families were standardized for gender, age, height and height-squared using piecewise linear regression models. In the smoking-adjusted model, total number of pack-years smoked, current and ex-smoking status, and the interaction between total pack-years and current smoking status were also included. RESULTS: FEV1 was significantly correlated among sibling pairs and parent-offspring pairs (both p < 0.001), regardless of smoking adjustment, but sibling correlation was significantly higher than parent-offspring correlation (p < 0.05), suggesting additional effects beyond common parentage. Spousal correlations were not significant even when both spouses smoked. We found no evidence of major gene segregation of FEV1, with or without smoking adjustment, and all of the segregation models were significantly different from the unrestricted model. CONCLUSIONS: The best-fitting model was an environmental model with three distinct distributions of FEV1 and significant residual familial effects. A significant familial component suggests the presence of polygenic factors and/or effects due to a shared environment (multifactorial). That familial correlations of smoking-adjusted and smoking-unadjusted residuals were not appreciably different suggests that current smoking status and number of packyears smoked do not account for the observed familial aggregation of FEV1.
Late PlioceneHomoand Oldowan Tools from the Hadar Formation (Kada Hadar Member), Ethiopia

Rapport preliminaire de la decouverte d'un maxilaire d'Homo associe a un outillage Oldowayen et a une faune du Pliocene final dans une formation Hadar en Ethiopie. Les elements de datation 4 0A R/3 9A R indiquent indiquent un age de 2.3 MA ± 0.07. Ils indiqueraient la plus ancienne association de restes hominides et d'outillage et probablement la plus ancienne sequence datee du genre Homo
Freshwater mussel abundance predicts biodiversity in UK lowland rivers

1. Indicator taxa are widely used as a valuable tool in the assessment of freshwater biodiversity. However, this approach to identifying sites of conservation priority requires surveyors to possess expert taxonomic knowledge. Furthermore, sorting and microscopic examination of material can present logistical and financial constraints. 2. Comparisons were made between the taxon richness and the density of freshwater mussels (Bivalvia: Unionidae) from 30 sites in seven UK lowland rivers, ranging from ca 3 m to 50 m width and ca 0.5 m to 4 m depth. Where mussels occurred, taxon richness of other invertebrates was strongly correlated with both mussel density and mussel biomass. Overall mussel density was a better predictor of taxon richness than the density of any individual mussel species. 3. It is suggested that this association arises from the ‘keystone’ role that mussels play in many freshwater ecosystems. Local biota can benefit from the mussels' filtration, excretion, biodeposition and physical presence. 4. Using mussel abundance as a surrogate provides a rapid and straightforward alternative to conventional methods of assessing freshwater biodiversity. No expert knowledge is required and any standardized sampling technique can be used. Freshwater mussels are found throughout the world's lentic and lotic fresh waters and this approach therefore has the potential for widespread utility, especially where rapid comparisons of biodiversity are required between biogeographically similar regions. In addition, the results highlight the ecosystem-level consequences of allowing the global decline of freshwater mussels to remain unchecked. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Somaclonal variation in cell suspension culture-derived regenerants of Cymbopogon martinii (Roxb.) Wats var. motia

Plants regenerated from cell suspension cultures of palmarosa grass, Cymbopogon martinii (Roxb.) Wats, were analysed for somaclonal variation in five clonal generations. A wide range of variation in important quantitative traits, e.g. plant yield, height, tiller number, oil content and qualitative changes in essential oil constituents - geraniol, geranyl acetate, geranyl formate and linalool - were observed among the 120 somaclones screened. Eight somaclones were selected on the basis of high herb and oil yield over the donor line and high geraniol content in the oil. Based on performance in the field trials, three superior lines were selected, and maintained for five clonal generations. The superior lines exhibited a reasonable degree of stability in the traits selected.
Alkyltins in farmed fish and shellfish

A study to update dibutyltin (DBT) and tributyltin (TBT) residues in farmed fish and shellfish (Mytilus edulis) was carried out 4 years after the adopting of the restricting regulation of the antifouling uses of organotins in Italy. DBT and TBT were simultaneously extracted from farmed fish and shellfish (M. edulis) and from free living specimens, used as control, purchased from retail stores or fishermen in the province of Naples (Italy), and detected using a capillary gas chromatograph equipped with a flame photometric detector (GC-FPD). Dosable amounts of DBT were found in the 10% of the farmed fish analyzed, ranging from 1 to 26 μ g kg−1 wet wt (mean 10 μ g kg−1) and in the 23% of the free living fish at an average level of 2 μ g kg−1 wet wt (range 1–4 μ g kg−1 wet wt). TBT was detected in 85% of the farmed fish, in concentrations varying from 2 to 260 μ g kg−1 wet wt (mean 28 μ g kg−1 wet wt) and in 46% of the free living specimens (mean 39 μ g kg−1 wet wt; range 1–93 μ g kg−1). All the mussel samples analyzed were polluted by both DBT and TBT. In the farmed mussels the average amounts of DBT and TBT were, respectively, 4 and 2 μ g kg−1 wet wt; in the free living they were 4 and 5 μ g kg−1 wet wt, respectively. The results indicate that the DBT and TBT contamination is as highly diffuse in farmed as in free living fish and mussels on sale in retail markets in Naples province even if the levels of the contamination are meanly quite low.
Quantitative trait loci affecting stomatal density and growth in a Quercus robur progeny: implications for the adaptation to changing environments

Stomatal traits are important to cope with changes in levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) and with changing availability of water. Thus, they are expected to be involved in the reactions of plants to climate change. They are known to show a plastic physiological response to environmental factors such as elevated CO2 concentrations, but they are also under genetic control and should undergo evolutionary change if selection differs among environments. Stomatal development is regulated by several environmental and genetic signals suggesting a polygenic inheritance. In the present study, F1 progeny derived from a cross between Quercus robur and Q. robur subsp. slavonica were used to map QTLs (quantitative trait loci) for stomatal densities and growth parameters under nonwater stress conditions in 2 and 3 consecutive years, respectively. The positions of QTLs for stomatal density and growth coincided on six linkage groups. The QTL allele associated with the higher stomatal density was generally associated with taller plants and size increment indicating pleiotropic gene effects or close linkage. The phenotypic effects of the individual QTLs were mostly moderate in terms of phenotypic variance explained. However, a considerable amount of the genetically determined variation was explained by QTLs for stomatal density (from 63.6% to 94.4%). Especially, the QTL on linkage group 11 had a strong and highly significant effect on stomatal densities and growth parameters in all years suggesting a major QTL on this linkage group. The importance to analyse the genetic variation controlling complex adaptive traits in keystone species as oaks is discussed with regard to a better understanding of the reactions of ecosystems to global change.
p115 RhoGEF, a GTPase activating protein for Gα12 and Gα13

Members of the regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) family stimulate the intrinsic guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) activity of the α subunits of certain heterotrimeric guanine nucleotide–binding proteins (G proteins). The guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) for Rho, p115 RhoGEF, has an amino-terminal region with similarity to RGS proteins. Recombinant p115 RhoGEF and a fusion protein containing the amino terminus of p115 had specific activity as GTPase activating proteins toward the α subunits of the G proteins G12 and G13, but not toward members of the Gs, Gi, or Gqsubfamilies of Gα proteins. This GEF may act as an intermediary in the regulation of Rho proteins by G13 and G12.
A Scanning Electron Microscopy Survey of Some Maydeae Pollen

Abstract Scanning electron microscopy was used to examine the wall sculpturing of pollen from Zea mays L. ssp. mays (maize), Zea mays ssp. mexicana (Schrad.) Iltis (teosinte), Zea perennis (Hitchc.) Reeves and Mangelsdorf (perennial teosinte), and two species of Tripsacum L. The Zea taxa are shown to possess similar pollen types, with spinules scattered regularly over the exine surface. Tripsacum exhibits a distinctly reticuloid pattern, with spinules clumped into isolated lacunae. Hybrids between Zea and Tripsacum are either intermediate in exine pattern or similar to Tripsacum, depending on the genome combination.
Selecting for triallate resistance in wild oat

Resistance in wild oat (Avena fatua L.) to triallate was monitored from 1996 to 1998 in plots of continuous spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and wheat-fallow, with or without triallate applied from 1979 to 1997. Resistance in wild oat occurred after 18 yr where triallate was applied annually in continuous wheat, but not where triallate was applied 10 times in a wheat-fallow rotation over the same period. No resistance was detected in the continuous wheat or wheat-fallow plots where no herbicide was applied. Key words: Herbicide resistance, wild oat, triallate
Nitric oxide and nitric oxide synthase in the kidney: Potential roles in normal penal function and in renal dysfunction

A detailed overview of nitric oxide and nitric oxide synthases in the kidney is presented. Physiologically, constitutive and inducible nitric oxide synthases have been detected in basically all vascular segments of the kidney, including all large vessels and arterioles that are primarily involved in the regulation of renal hemodynamics. It was observed that nitric oxide increases renal blood flow, decreases renal vascular resistance, and exerts variable effects on glomerular filtration rate depending on the experimental conditions. In addition, macula densa generated nitric oxide appears to mediate tubuloglomerular feedback. Constitutive and inducible nitric oxide synthases have also been delineated in most renal tubular segments. The inner medullary collecting duct was shown to contain the highest amount of constitutive nitric oxide synthase as compared to other nephron segments. It appears that nitric oxide may directly enhance tubular reabsorption in the collecting duct and the proximal tubule. Pressur.
Transcriptional Regulation of the Platelet-derived Growth Factor α Receptor Gene via CCAAT/Enhancer-binding Protein-δ in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells*

Inflammatory cytokines stimulate the proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) and play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of vascular diseases including atherosclerosis and restenosis. Mitogenic response of interleukin-1β (IL-1β) on VSMC is thought to be mediated by induction of endogenous platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), especially PDGF-AA. Although the action of PDGF-AA is mediated by its specific receptor, PDGFα-receptor (PDGFαR), very little is known about the regulatory mechanism of PDGFαR gene expression in VSMC. To understand the mechanism, we studied the transcriptional control of the PDGFαR gene in VSMC after treatment with IL-1β. IL-1β (10 ng/ml) drastically increased both PDGFαR and CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein δ (C/EBPδ) mRNA levels in a time dependent manner. A rapid induction of C/EBPδ mRNA within 30 min was followed by slower emergence of PDGFαR mRNA, which reached the maximum level in 12 h, whereas C/EBPδ mRNA was detectable at 30 min and reached the maximum level at 3 h. Electromobility shift and supershift assays revealed that IL-1β markedly increased DNA-protein complex, which was mainly composed of C/EBPβ and/or -δ. Both Western blotting and immunohistochemistry demonstrated that either C/EBPβ or -δ expression was induced by IL-1β exclusively in nuclei of VSMC. On the other hand, overexpression of C/EBPδ specifically transactivated the promoter activity of the PDGFαR gene and significantly enhanced VSMC proliferation in PDGF-treated cells. We conclude that induction of PDGFαR expression is mainly mediated by C/EBPδ expression in VSMC, and a high level of C/EBPδ expression may be involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and restenosis.
Responses of barley cells to puncture by microneedles and to attempted penetration by Erysiphe graminis f.sp. hordei

Responses to puncture by microneedles were compared with responses to attempted penetration by Erysiphe graminis f.sp. hordei in epidermal cells of coleoptiles of Hordeum vulgare. Wounds left by needles were repaired within a few minutes so that cells could withstand development of turgor, although no plug was visible at the wound site and cytoplasmic aggregation at the site was not necessary for repair. These initial (stage I) repairs were more effective in the cutinized than in the non-cutinized cell surface. Stage I was followed by a second set of repairs (stage II) in which cytoplasm aggregated at the wound site where a visible wall apposition (wound plug) was deposited. Similar appositions were deposited as encasements on the surfaces of needles left in cells or as papillae at sites of attempted penetration by E. graminis. Cytoplasm aggregated in cells adjacent to cells under fungal attack but not in cells adjacent to cells with needle punctures. Furthermore, histochemical tests indicated that needle.
Association of Loci Underlying Field Resistance to Soybean Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) and Cyst Nematode (SCN) Race 3

Coinheritance of field resistance of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr. ] to sudden death syndrome (SDS) [caused by the fungus Fusarium solani (Mart.) Sacc. f. sp. phaseoli (Burk.) Snyd. & Hans. ] and soybean cyst nematode (SCN) race 3 (caused by Heterodera glycines Ichinohe) sometimes occurs in crosses among adapted cultivars. Out objective was to characterize the loci underlying this coinheritance. One hundred thirty DNA markers were compared with SDS disease response and SCN score among 100 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) derived from a cross between SDS and SCN resistant 'Forrest' and SDS and SCN susceptible 'Essex'. SDS disease incidence (DI) was determined in replicated sites during 4 yr encompassing five locations. The SCN score was determined in the greenhouse from naturally infested field soil samples. Two separate genomic regions identified by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers OI03 450 and OW15 400 were associated with mean SCN score (P = 0.0001) and jointly accounted for about 47% of variability in SCN score. OI03 450 identified a QTL for resistance to SCN (R 2 = 14%) within a genomic region that was strongly associated with SDS DI (R 2 = 20%), partly explaining the coinheritance of the two traits. This locus could be assigned to the region of linkage group G already known to encompass the major SCN resistance locus.
Nutritional values of some commercial edible bamboo species of the North Eastern Himalayan region, India

The North Eastern Himalayan (NEH) region of India has a great diversity of bamboo resource and the tribal communities of the region use young succulent shoots of various bamboo species as vegetable, pickles, salad, etc., from May to September every year. Out of 25 edible bamboo species identified for the region, 11 species, i.e., Bambusa balcooa Roxb. , B. nutans Wall. ex Munro, B. tulda Roxb. , Dendrocalamus giganteus Munro in Trans., D. hamiltonii Nees et. Arn, D. hookerii Munro in Trans., D. longispathus Kurz, D. sikkimensis Gamble, Melocanna baccifera (Roxb.) Kurz, Phyllostachys bambusoides Sieb. and Zucc. and Teinostachyum wightii Beddome have been found as potential species, which are sold in the markets by primary or secondary vendors in fresh, fermented, boiled or roasted form. Besides their occurrence in forests, these edible species are also cultivated in home gardens. This paper reports the nutritional values on some major edible bamboo species of the region. For different species, food energy ranged from 14.6 to 16.9 MJ/kg and ash content from 2.1 to 3.7%. For different species, crude fibre content ranged between 23.1 and 35.5%, fat between 0.6 and 1.0%, and carbohydrate between 4.5 and 5.2%. Among various species, the protein content was determined to be high in D. hamiltonii, P. bambusoides, T. wightii and B. balcooa. Young edible bamboo shoots were also found rich in macronutrients, particularly in calcium with a range of 1.2–1.9 g/100 g. The potassium content ranged from 0.02 to 0.03 g/100 g, phosphorus from 0.5 to 1.0 g/100 g and magnesium from 0.04 to 0.05 g/100 g. Edible shoots were also rich in vitamins. Among species, the ascorbic acid ranged from 3.0 to 12.9 mg/100 g, tryptophan from 0.4 to 1.7 g/16 g N and methionine from 0.3 to 0.8 g/16 g N. Hydrocyanic acid (HCN) content was also available in edible shoots; however, the range varied from 0.01 to 0.02%. The study showed that Dendrocalamus spp, M. baccifera and P. bambusoides need to be included in various afforestation programmes in the region where shifting cultivation has already caused serious environmental degradation. It will serve the twin purpose of restoration of degraded lands and production of edible shoots for consumption of various ethnic groups of the region.