Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of Lemon (Citrus limon, L.) Peel Powder on Oocyst Shedding, Intestinal Health, and Performance of Broilers Exposed to E. tenella Challenge

Simple Summary This study delved into the promising application of repurposed lemon peel powder as a supplement for augmenting the growth rate and bolstering the intestinal condition in broilers. Furthermore, it aimed to evaluate its potential as a natural alternative against experimental coccidiosis. The results revealed that incorporating 3 and 6 g/kg of lemon peel powder into the diet effectively countered the negative effect of coccidial oocysts on the birds’ growth rates. This intervention resulted in notable reductions in cecal lesion scores and a reduction in oocyst shedding. Furthermore, it played a pivotal role in revitalizing the cecal villi of the broilers. These findings underscore the considerable promise of lemon peel powder as a viable and natural means to alleviate the adverse effects of coccidiosis and to enhance the overall well-being and performance of broiler chickens. Abstract To date, no study has reported the anticoccidial effect of lemon peel powder in broilers. Coccidiosis, caused by Eimeria species, is the prevalent enteric parasitic disease in poultry. Although certain chemical drugs have been used for their control, concerns regarding drug residues and the development of resistance in chickens have arisen among consumers. In this study, a total of 300 Ross 308 broiler chicks were randomly allocated into five groups (five equal replicates of 12 animals). The first group served as the control and did not receive any specific treatment (NC). The second group, referred to as the positive control (PC) group, was deliberately exposed to Eimeria tenella. The third group was challenged with E. tenella and also received treatment with amprolium (1 g/kg) and was designated as AT. The fourth and fifth groups were challenged with E. tenella and simultaneously supplemented with lemon peel powder at a dosage of 3 g/kg (LPP3) and 6 g/kg (LPP6). Sporulated E. tenella oocysts (5 × 104/mL bird) on day 22 of the experiment were administered to the infected broiler chickens. The results indicated that in comparison with the NC, all Eimeria-treated birds exhibited significantly (p < 0.05) lower growth performance. However, a notable improvement was observed when infected birds also received a supplement of LPP3 and LPP6 in their feed. Both LPP3 and LPP6 supplementation significantly (p < 0.05) reduced mortality, lesion scores, and oocyst per gram (OPG) of feces compared with the PC group. Additionally, the histological features of the cecum revealed that villus height, villus width, and crypt depth were partially restored under supplementation with LPP3 and LPP6 in the infected birds. Overall, the results demonstrate that Eimeria-infected birds supplemented with LPP3 and LPP6 exhibited improved growth performance, reduced OPG, lowered intestinal coccidiosis lesion scores, and enhanced intestinal histological features.
Metabolomic and lipidomic studies on the intervention of taurochenodeoxycholic acid in mice with hyperlipidemia

Bile acids are the main component of animal bile and are directly involved in the metabolic process of lipids in vivo. Taurochenodeoxycholic acid (TCDCA) is the primary biologically active substance in bile acids and has biological functions such as antioxidant, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic activities and improves immunity. In the present study, we assessed the impact of TCDCA on hyperlipidemia development in mouse models. Mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) to induce hyperlipidemia and orally administered different doses of TCDCA orally for 30 days. Then, indicators such as triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) in mice were detected. Using HE and ORO staining techniques, the morphology of the mice’s liver tissue was detected. Based on metabolomic and lipidomic analyses, we determined the mechanism of TCDCA in treating hyperlipidemia. The results showed that TCDCA had a significant ameliorating effect on dietary hyperlipidemia. In addition, it exerted therapeutic effects through glycerophospholipid metabolism.
Lactancia materna y asma bronquial en niños menores de ocho años

OBJETIVO: describir la relación entre la lactancia materna y el asma bronquial en niños menores de ocho años, que asisten a la consulta externa de la Pediatría del Hospital General San Juan de Dios. METODOLOGÍA: Estudio descriptivo transversal, se describió la sintomatología respiratoria y exacerbación de asma en los pacientes alimentados con lactancia materna exclusiva (n=54) y lactancia artificial (n=22). Se exploró la relación entre el grado de severidad y el tipo de lactancia recibida. RESULTADOS: el grupo que recibió lactancia materna exclusiva, 43% (23) estaba entre la edad de cinco y siete años y, 54% (29) fue sexo femenino; el grupo que recibió lactancia artificial el 50% (11) tenía entre dos y cuatro años y, 59% (13) del sexo femenino. Entre la sintomatología respiratoria evaluada, tanto la tos como la congestión bronquial, en ambos grupos se presenta en nueve de cada diez niños, las sibilancias y la disnea fue mayor en el grupo con lactancia artificial, 68% (15) y 27% (6) respectivamente; 13.6 % (3) de los menores con lactancia artificial refirieron tres crisis asmáticas en la última semana. En ambos grupos seis de cada 10 niños presentaron un grado de severidad mayor. En cuanto a la relación de la lactancia materna y el grado de severidad, no se encontró asociación, aun así, la lactancia materna exclusiva sí evidenció ser un factor protector (OR 1.071). CONCLUSIONES: Los niños que reciben lactancia materna exclusiva presentan menos severidad en cuanto a sus síntomas respiratorios durante las exacerbaciones agudas de la enfermedad.
Improving kinematic wave routing scheme in Community Land Model

Version 3.5 of Community Land Model (CLM) has incorporated a river routing module, called the River Transport Model (RTM), to simulate the runoff routing process over a hydrologic basin. RTM treats river routing as a linear reservoir process propagated through a gridded domain. Because the flow velocity at each grid is set as a constant, RTM cannot simulate river routing well. In this paper, we developed a large scale catchment-based kinematic wave routing (KWR) model to be coupled with CLM, which simulates the movement of water through floodplains and river channels. An advantage of KWR over RTM is that the flow velocity is calculated by the Manning equation, which considers the difference in friction slope and hydraulic radius in each sub-basin (or grid) and time step. A second advantage is that the KWR velocity parameterization accounts for spatial–temporal variability. Using the daily runoff simulations in continental China over the time period 1995–2004 from CLM3.5 as inputs to both RTM and KWR, we found that the simulated discharge of KWR is closer to observed discharge than that of RTM. Our study has shown that KWR may be a valid alternative to RTM in CLM.
Evaluation of spatial application accuracy of sensing-spraying system for variable rate application of oil palm trees

Precious agricultural agents are lost during conventional spraying systems. The use of sensing and spraying system to spray according to the plant size reduces spray losses which reduces farming costs significantly and contributes to environmentally friendly crop farming. The continuous change in the size of the plant canopy requires an accurate adjustment of the quantity of liquid. The objectives of this study are examining, analyzing and improving the ability of the sensing and spraying system in detecting and spraying the plants under higher speed conditions. In this paper, two different ultrasonic sensors WRA1 and EZ0 were used to investigate the effect of sensor response time on detecting different distances and spatial application accuracy (SAA) of VR spraying system at different driving speeds. The results of the first assessment of an electronic control system for proportional spray application to the canopy length showed there was no significant effect of driving speed from 1.1 to 3.3m/s on ultrasonic detected distance measurements. Sensor EZ0 gave a shortest response time at driving speed range of 1.1- 3.3 m/s with error in range of 11-15 cm. The use of VR sprayer with the ultrasonic detection system was fast and accurate enough to spray at the correct positions above the plant with a maximum SAA of 97.7%.
ROLE OF SEDIMENT PROCESSES IN CONTROLLING WATER QUALITY IN THE CAPE FEAR RIVER

Sediment loading and sediment processes were evaluated for their role in regulating water quality conditions at three lock and dam (LD) structures on the Cape Fear River (CFR) in fall of 2001. In comparison to the upstream site LD 3, surface waters at downstream sites LD 2 and LD 1 generally had higher concentration of dissolved reactive phosphorus during the May to December 2001 study period. Cs dating of sediment cores from the floodplains at the three LD locations reveal that the sedimentation rates vary from 0.5 cm/yr at LD 3 to 1.5 cm/yr and 1.3 cm/yr at LD 2 and LD 1, respectively. The sedimentation rates correspond well to the total sediment phosphorus concentrations, indicating that sediment deposition during the recent decades (≈ 40 years) has caused an increase in nutrient loading to the CFR. The floodplain sediments at LD 2 had the greatest phosphorus binding capacity, while the most downstream site, LD 1, had the lowest. However, the intra-site variability in phosphorus sorption capacity and mineral element composition increases downstream, most likely in response to differential sorting of the riverine sediment. P Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) analyses of concentrated river water and floodplain sediments reveal that phosphorus loading in this river occurs in diverse chemical forms. Although the surface water concentration of these forms of phosphorus may be very low, over time the phosphorus binding properties of the deposited sediments may concentrate these forms of phosphorus in the floodplain of the CFR. Importantly, increasing variability downstream in the mineral element composition and the P-binding capacity of riverbank sediments suggests that moving seaward, sediment sorting will lead to creation of ‘hot spots’ for efficient P-sorption and release along the riverbank of the CFR, and this could pose a considerable challenge with regard to water quality management. We further show that converting natural wetland forests to agricultural land leads to the loss of ‘chemical diversity’ in nutrient speciation. However, wetland restoration promotes the re-establishment of this diversity in chemical speciation of phosphorus. Thus P NMR spectrometry can be used as a tool to track the progress of wetland restoration actions. These findings have important implications for water quality management in this largest river system in North Carolina.
MEASURING ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP IN AFRICA

Organizational leadership in Africa is under-studied. Pan-African leadership theories have been proposed but it seems unlikely that the same leadership styles would be equally effective in every African country. For example, South Africa has much lower power distance and much higher individualism than Egypt or Nigeria according to the Hofstede system for classifying national cultures. The differences between South Africa and the other two nations appear vast enough to require different leadership styles. How can we cluster African countries into groups within which the same leadership styles will be effective? Our proposal is to conduct leadership surveys in multiple African countries and to examine the modal response in each country to each question. If the modal response is 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale, the question should be retained. If the modal response is 3, the question should be dropped. If the modal response is 1 or 2, the question should be retained but reverse scored. Countries with similar modal responses may have similar optimal leadership styles. We illustrate how this could be implemented using data from a leadership survey conducted in The Gambia, a small nation in West Africa. We conclude with implications for research and practice.
Endmember identification from EO-1 Hyperion L1_R hyperspectral data to build saltmarsh spectral library in Hunter Wetland, NSW, Australia

Saltmarsh is one of the important communities of wetlands, however, due to a range of pressures, it has been declared as an EEC (Ecological Endangered Community) in Australia. In order to correctly identify different saltmarsh species, development of spectral libraries of saltmarsh species is essential to monitor this EEC. Hyperspectral remote sensing, can explore the area of wetland monitoring and mapping. The benefits of Hyperion data to wetland monitoring have been studied at Hunter Wetland Park, NSW, Australia. After exclusion of bad bands from the original data, an atmospheric correction model was applied to minimize atmospheric effect and to retrieve apparent surface reflectance for different land cover. Large data dimensionality was reduced by Forward Minimum Noise Fraction (MNF) algorithm. It was found that first 32 MNF band contains more than 80% information of the image. Pixel Purity Index (PPI) algorithm worked properly to extract pure pixel for water, builtup area and three vegetation Casuarina sp. , Phragmitis sp. and green grass. The result showed it was challenging to extract extreme pure pixel for Sporobolus and Sarcocornia from the data due to coarse resolution (30 m) and small patch size (<3 m) of those vegetation on the ground . Spectral Angle Mapper, classified the image into five classes: Casuarina, Saltmarsh (Phragmitis), Green grass, Water and Builtup area with 43.55 % accuracy. This classification also failed to classify Sporobolus as a distinct group due to the same reason. A high spatial resolution airborne hyperspectral data and a new study site with a bigger patch of Sporobolus and Sarcocornia is proposed to overcome the issue.
Prevalence and Associated Factors of Anemia Among Hospital Admitted Patients in Eastern Ethiopia

Background Anemia is one of the most common comorbidities frequently seen in admitted patients. However, there is a scarcity of evidence regarding anemia among hospital admitted patients in Ethiopia, particularly in the Harari Region. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence and associated factors of anemia among hospital admitted patients in Eastern Ethiopia. Methods A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted from October 25 to December 30, 2022. Four milliliters of venous blood were collected and complete blood count was done using the DxH 800 (Beckman Coulter, Inc, Miami, FL) hematology analyzer. The data were entered in Epi-data version 4 and exported to SPSS version 26 for statistical analysis. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression models were fitted. The level of significance was declared at a p-value of < 0.05. Results Of the 381 hospital admitted patients, 64.8% (95% CI = 60.01, 69.65) of the participants were anemic. Admitted patients who drank standard alcohol daily (AOR = 3.78, 95% CI = 1.71, 8.30), underweight (AOR = 9.39, 95% CI = 2.90, 30.46), and undernourished patients (AOR = 2.59, 95% CI = 1.15, 5.84), patients admitted with chronic kidney disease (AOR = 11.16, 95% CI = 4.06, 30.64), chronic liver disease (AOR = 3.20, 95% CI = 1.21, 8.47), deep vein thrombosis (AOR = 6.22, 95% CI = 1.98, 19.52), infectious disease (AOR = 9.71, 95% CI = 2.77, 34.02), and chronic non-communicable disease (AOR = 7.01, 95% CI = 1.90, 25.99) were all significantly associated with anemia. Conclusion Anemia was common among hospital admitted patients and should prompt the focus on admission diagnoses that are likely to play leading roles in etiology. This information indicates a need for routine screening of anemia for all admitted patients to improve their health.
Developing a Pilot Scale Horizontal Sub Surface Flow Constructed Wetlands for Phytoremediation of Primary Lagoon Effluents

Wastewater discharge is a threat to nature, causing eutrophication and water borne diseases. The situation is getting worse with rapid urbanization where adequate sanitation and wastewater treatment facilities are lacking. Constructed wetlands (cw) are designed to mimic natural wetlands with much degree of control. Despite recognizing cw as an alternative for conventional wastewater treatment, little has been done in developing countries. This study aims at developing a pilot scale horizontal subsurface flow cw for treatment of primary lagoon effluent. Experimental set - up would consist of three vegetated cells and one non-vegetated cell control. Cells would be packed with 5-10mm diameter pea gravel while 20-50mm diameter pea gravel will be used at the inlet and outlet areas to prevent clogging. Hydraulic residence time (HRT), shall be established from previously published research. Sampling shall be done twice a month for a period of 2 years. SPSS software shall be used for statistical analysis.
Sensitivity of Polarimetric SAR Decompositions to Soil Moisture and Vegetation Over Three Agricultural Sites Across a Latitudinal Gradient

The goal of this work is to assess the impact of polarimetric SAR decompositions for soil moisture retrieval, and identify the decomposition that performs best for varying vegetation covers and soil conditions. Seven polarimetric decompositions are applied to three L-band radar time-series to evaluate their relative performances for future inclusion within a soil moisture retrieval scheme. Three agricultural sites with different soil and vegetation characteristics are selected across a latitudinal gradient in America. Two time-series of quad-polarimetric data collected by the NASA/JPL Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) airborne instrument are considered for the first two sites, while quad-polarimetric images acquired by the SAOCOM-1A mission are examined for the third site. We extract a set of radar polarimetric descriptors, including the backscattering coefficients, to analyze their sensitivity to soil moisture and vegetation through correlation analysis. We also apply a simple linear regression model to each crop type and site for estimating soil moisture (or Soil Water Index) by alternatively considering a combination of the decomposition powers and of the total backscattering coefficients (${{\bm{\gamma }}}^0,\ {{\bm{\sigma }}}^0$). The linear regression analysis shows that the estimates are generally comparable in terms of linear correlation and root mean square error. Results also reveal that the sensitivity of polarimetric decomposition descriptors to soil moisture and vegetation parameters depend both on crop type and area of interest, without significant differences among the various decompositions tested in this study.
Proteomic investigations of adult polyglucosan body disease: insights into the pathobiology of a neurodegenerative disorder

Inadequate glycogen branching enzyme 1 (GBE1) activity results in different forms of glycogen storage disease type IV, including adult polyglucosan body disorder (APBD). APBD is clinically characterized by adult-onset development of progressive spasticity, neuropathy, and neurogenic bladder and is histologically characterized by the accumulation of structurally abnormal glycogen (polyglucosan bodies) in multiple cell types. How insufficient GBE1 activity causes the disease phenotype of APBD is poorly understood. We hypothesized that proteomic analysis of tissue from GBE1-deficient individuals would provide insights into GBE1-mediated pathobiology. In this discovery study, we utilized label-free LC–MS/MS to quantify the proteomes of lymphoblasts from 3 persons with APBD and 15 age- and gender-matched controls, with validation of the findings by targeted MS. There were 531 differentially expressed proteins out of 3,427 detected between APBD subjects vs. controls, including pronounced deficiency of GBE1. Bioinformatic analyses indicated multiple canonical pathways and protein–protein interaction networks to be statistically markedly enriched in APBD subjects, including: RNA processing/transport/translation, cell cycle control/replication, mTOR signaling, protein ubiquitination, unfolded protein and endoplasmic reticulum stress responses, glycolysis and cell death/apoptosis. Dysregulation of these processes, therefore, are primary or secondary factors in APBD pathobiology in this model system. Our findings further suggest that proteomic analysis of GBE1 mutant lymphoblasts can be leveraged as part of the screening for pharmaceutical agents for the treatment of APBD.
Development of a New Marine Fish Continuous Cell Line Derived from Brain of Red Sea Bream (Pagrosomus major) and Its Application to Fish Virology and Heavy Metal Toxicology

Simple Summary With a mass production scale and important economic and nutritive value, red sea bream (Pagrosomus major) is one of the most popular farmed marine teleost fish species. However, outbreaks of diseases have produced huge losses to the aquaculture industry in recent years. Fish cell lines are suitable models to study fish physiology, virology, immunology and toxicology. As the main target organ for Nervous necrosis virus infection, primary cell cultures of brain tissue were initiated for the first time from Pagrosomus major in this study. Our data showed that this cell line could provide wide applications for virology and toxicology for Pagrosomus major. RSBB cells are susceptible to Nervous necrosis virus, Singapore grouper iridovirus, Infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus and Siniperca chuatsi rhabdoviruses infection. Moreover, single exposure of RSBB cells to metal Cd resulted in cytotoxicity and could induce cell apoptosis and necrosis. This study established and characterized a new marine fish brain cell line and demonstrated its suitability as a model for fish virology and toxicology. Abstract Red sea bream (Pagrosomus major) is one of the most popular farmed marine teleost fish species. Fish cell lines are becoming important research tool in the aquaculture field, and they are suitable models to study fish virology, immunology and toxicology. To obtain a Pagrosomus major cell line for biological studies, a continuous cell line from brain of red sea bream (designated as RSBB cell line) was established and has been successfully subcultured over 100 passages. The RSBB cell line predominantly consisted of fibroblast-like cells and multiplied well in M199 medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum at 28 °C. Karyotyping analysis indicated that the modal chromosome numbers of RSBB cells was 48. After transfection with pEGFP-N1, RSBB cells showed bright green fluorescence with a transfection efficiency approaching 8%. For toxicology study, it was demonstrated that metal Cd could induce cytotoxic effects of RSBB cells, accompanied with a dose-dependent MTT conversion capacity. Morphologically, cells treated with metal Cd produced rounding, shrinking and detaching and induced both cell apoptosis and necrosis. For virology study, the RSBB cells were highly susceptible to Nervous necrosis virus (NNV) and Singapore grouper iridovirus (SGIV) with steady titers (i.e., 108.0~8.3 TCID50 mL−1 and 107.0~7.2 TCID50 mL−1 respectively). Furthermore, an obvious cytopathic effect (CPE) could be observed in RSBB cells infected with Infectious spleen and kidney necrosis virus (ISKNV) and Siniperca chuatsi rhabdoviruses (SCRV). Meanwhile, all the infections were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction. The new brain cell line developed and characterized from red sea bream in this study could be used as an in vitro model for fish studies in the fields of toxicology and virology.