Weedy rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most troublesome weeds affecting rice (Oryza sativa L.) production in many countries. Weedy rice control is difficult in rice fields because the weed and crop are phenotypically and morphologically similar. Weedy rice can be a source of genetic diversity to cultivated rice. Thus, this study aimed to characterize the morphological diversity of weedy rice in Southern Brazil. Qualitative and quantitative traits of 249 accessions from eight rice growing mesoregions in Rio Grande do Sul (RS) and Santa Catarina (SC) states were analyzed. For each accession, 24 morphological descriptors (14 qualitative and 10 quantitative) were evaluated. All the 249 accessions from RS and SC are of indica lineage. Considering all the phenotypic traits evaluated, the accessions separated into 14 distinct groups. One of the largest groups consisted of plants that were predominantly tall and with green leaves, intermediate shattering, and variable in flowering time. Distinct subgroups exist within larger clusters, showing discernable phenotypic diversity within the main clusters. The variability in flowering time was high (77 to 110 d after emergence), indicating high potential for flowering synchrony with rice cultivars and, consequently, gene flow. This indicates the need to remove escapes when planting herbicide-resistant rice. Thus, weedy rice populations in Southern Brazil are highly diverse and this diversity could result in variable response to weed management.

The first zoeal stages of the snapping shrimps Alpheus carlae and A. intrinsecus from Brazil were obtained from laboratory-hatched specimens and a detailed morphological description is provided. The morphological characteristics of both species are compared with available descriptions of other Alpheus species with a known first zoeal stage. Remarks from a semi-quantitative comparison of species belonging to A. armillatus species complex (A. carlae and A. brasileiro) and a comparison between larvae of A. intrinsecus from two localities in Brazil are presented. It was possible to distinguish first zoea of both species from the other congeners based on morphology. No intraspecific variability was detected between A. intrinsecus larvae obtained from two locations. Some structures showed differences between species of the A. armillatus complex. However, generalizations and conclusions based on larval morphology for taxonomic rearrangements at this point need to be made with caution and accuracy, since data of a sufficient number of species are not yet available for comparison.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of thinning eucalyptus trees on yield and nutritive value of corn for silage and palisadegrass in a crop–livestock–forest integrated system and to evaluate the total aboveground biomass yield in systems with and without trees. Plant variables, as well as the incidence of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and soil moisture, were evaluated between October 2016 and March 2018 in São Carlos, Brazil, in a crop–livestock–forest and a crop–livestock system. In the crop–livestock–forest system, eucalyptus trees (Eucalyptus urograndis clone GG100) were planted in April 2011, in single rows, with 15 × 2 m spacing. In 2016, the trees were thinned, and the spacing was changed to 15 × 4 m. The treatments comprised measurements at 0.00, 3.75, 7.50, and 11.25 m from the trees of the North row in the integrated crop–livestock–forest (iCLF) system and integrated crop–livestock (iCL) system. Palisadegrass (Urochloa brizantha) was sown after harvesting the corn. Corn yields were similar between treatments, with an average of 13.6 Mg ha−1. Corn for silage presented a higher percentage of grain in total biomass in the crop–livestock–forest positions (41.4 and 42.1%) than in the crop–livestock system (35.6%). No differences in forage accumulation were observed. Crude protein content in corn for silage and palisadegrass was higher in the crop–livestock–forest treatments than in the crop–livestock system. Such results indicate that thinning was favorable to production in the crop–livestock–forest system. Total aboveground biomass yield was higher in the iCLF system, indicating better land use for this type of integrated system.

The permeability of the crop surroundings to pests and the landscape structure can influence pest dispersal between crop patches as well as its abundance within the crop. In this work, we analyzed the dispersal of the olive moth Prays oleae (Bernard) throughout the olive grove surroundings and their abundance within the crop following three approaches: (i) pollen grains settled on bodies of olive moths collected in olive groves were identified and compared with flora occurring on the surrounding patches; (ii) the capability of P. oleae males to penetrate non-crop patches was analyzed (iii) the effect of the landscape structure on the abundance of the three generations of the olive moth was studied. Pollen grains of scrubs and other trees occurring in the crop surroundings, such as Cistus sp., Quercus sp., Juniperus-type or Pinaceae were identified on P. oleae bodies suggesting that P. oleae penetrates into non-crop habitats. Additionally, woody and, to a lesser degree, herbaceous patches, did not constitute barriers for P. oleae. Finally, more complex and heterogeneous patches presented lower numbers of captures of P. oleae. These results give new insights into the movements of the olive moth in the olive grove surroundings and suggest that the management of non-crop areas could influence this pest abundance.

Conventional tests with written information used for the evaluation of sign language (SL) comprehension introduce distortions due to the translation process. This fact affects the results and conclusions drawn and, for that reason, it is necessary to design and implement the same language interpreter-independent evaluation tools. Novel web technologies facilitate the design of web interfaces that support online, multiple-choice questionnaires, while exploiting the storage of tracking data as a source of information about user interaction. This paper proposes an online, multiple-choice sign language questionnaire based on an intuitive methodology. It helps users to complete tests and automatically generates accurate, statistical results using the information and data obtained in the process. The proposed system presents SL videos and enables user interaction, fulfilling the requirements that SL interpretation is not able to cover. The questionnaire feeds a remote database with the user answers and powers the automatic creation of data for analytics. Several metrics, including time elapsed, are used to assess the usability of the SL questionnaire, defining the goals of the predictive models. These predictions are based on machine learning models, with the demographic data of the user as features for estimating the usability of the system. This questionnaire reduces costs and time in terms of interpreter dedication, as well as widening the amount of data collected while employing user native language. The validity of this tool was demonstrated in two different use cases.

Objectives: How brain damage after stroke is related to specific clinical manifestation and recovery is incompletely understood. We studied cognitive reserve (CR) in stroke patients by two types of measurements: (i) objectively verifiable static proxies (i.e., education, occupational attainment), and (ii) subjective, dynamic proxies based on patient testimony in response to a questionnaire. We hypothesized that one or both of these types of CR measurements might correlate positively with patient cognitive performance during the post-acute and chronic phases of recovery. Method: Thirty-four stroke patients underwent neuropsychological assessment at 2, 6 and 24 months after stroke onset. In chronic stage at 24+ months, self-rating assessments of cognitive performance in daily life and social integration were obtained. CR before and after stroke was estimated using static proxies and dynamic proxies were obtained using the Cognitive Reserve Scale (CRS-Pre-stroke, CRS-Post-stroke). Results: CRS-Pre-stroke and CRS-Post-stroke showed significant mean differences. Dynamic proxies showed positive correlation with self-assessment of attention, metacognition, and functional ability in chronic stage. In contrast, significant correlations between static proxies and cognitive recovery were not found. Conclusions: Dynamic proxies of CR were positively correlated with patients’ perception of their functional abilities in daily life. To best guide cognitive prognosis and treatment, we propose that dynamic proxies of CR should be included in neuropsychological assessments of patients with brain damage.

En las sociedades andinas actuales las relaciones de parentesco determinan el tipo de matrimonio y el patrón de residencia posmarital que garantizan el manejo de los recursos, la supervivencia y la estabilidad reproductiva de la población. Sin embargo, es escasa la información disponible en el Área Andina Centro-Sur (AACS) para explicar los sistemas de parentesco durante el poblamiento original del territorio y su impacto en la estructura de las poblaciones locales posteriores a la conquista y colonización europea. En el presente trabajo se investiga el patrón residencial en dos sectores del AACS a partir de datos bioarqueológicos disponibles para el Noroeste Argentino y Norte de Chile. La información necesaria pudo ser recuperada a partir de la arqueología y de la antropología física regional. La muestra proviene de 8 localidades y 44 sitios con fechados que cubren el intervalo cronológico desde 3000 aC hasta 1450 dC, desde grupos arcaicos tempranos hasta comunidades agroalfareras tardías. Se emplearon 1.897 observaciones y 27 variables craneométricas. El análisis se realizó con técnicas estadísticas multivariadas: el cálculo de la varianza generalizada (determinante de la matriz de varianzas y covarianzas) para cada sexo y la estimación de los estadísticos de distancia (D2) y divergencia fenotípica (Fst) entre grupos y sexos. Los resultados revelan el efecto de distintos flujos migratorios que determinaron la estructura de las poblaciones. En todos los casos la varianza generalizada masculina es mayor que la femenina indicando una mayor variabilidad entre sitios y una mayor actividad migratoria. Los valores de D2 y Fst femeninos son mayores entre regiones y localidades con una menor tasa migratoria. Estos resultados indican, en general, la prevalencia de una estrategia de supervivencia basada en un sistema de parentesco que favoreció un modelo de residencia matrilocal.

The rate coefficients, k(T= 11.7 – 64.4 K), for the gas-phase reaction between OH radicals and acetone, CH3C(O) CH3, have been measured using the pulsed CRESU (French acronym for Reaction Kinetics in a Uniform Supersonic Flow) technique, the most suitable one to cool down gases below the freezing point without gas condensation. The experimental k(T) was found to increase as temperature was lowered and is several orders of magnitude higher for low temperature than k(300 K). No pressure dependence of k(20 K) and k(64 K) was observed, while k(50 K) at the largest gas density is twice higher than the average values found at lower gas densities. The obtained values of k(11.7 K) and k(21.1 K) were 2.45’10-10 and 1.39’10-10 cm3 molecule-1 s-1, respectively.

In recent years, modified graphene has been used in various biomedical applications due to its excellent properties that allow the development of devices capable of detecting macromolecules within the human organism, also for biomolecular analysis, discovery of biomarkers, bioimaging and target delivery. These applications involve interactions between enzymes, proteins, peptides, DNA, RNA, etc. and modified graphene, therefore the study and the theoretical and experimental investigation of these interactions is essential for the development of nanobio-technology. For example, many applications based on using modified graphene to detect macromolecules require studying the changes in the properties of doped graphene when interacting with macromolecules. In this work, DFT and molecular dynamics methods were used to obtain results of the changes in energy density of states of graphene doped with iron when it is made to interact with coenzyme A. Besides, we presented a study of molecular dynamics in order to determine the quantum factors that guide the interaction graphene-coenzyme A. The system was studied in aqueous medium which it was simulated by the dielectric constant of water. The results confirm that the methodology presented in this work can be used to theoretically detect various macromolecules.

Kemptide (sequence: LRRASLG) is a synthetic peptide holding the consensus recognition site for the catalytic subunit of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA). cAMP-independent protein kinases that phosphorylate kemptide were stimulated in Trypanosoma equiperdum following glucose deprivation. An enriched kemptide kinase-containing fraction was isolated from glucose-starved parasites using sedimentation throughout a sucrose gradient, followed by sequential chromatography on diethylaminoethyl-Sepharose and Sephacryl S-300. The trypanosome protein possesses a molecular mass of 39.07–51.73 kDa, a Stokes radius of 27.4 Ǻ, a sedimentation coefficient of 4.06 S and a globular shape with a frictional ratio f/fo = 1.22–1.25. Optimal enzymatic activity was achieved at 37 °C and pH 8.0, and kinetic studies showed Km values for ATP and kemptide of 11.8 ± 4.1 and 24.7 ± 3.8 µm, respectively. The parasite enzyme uses ATP and Mg2+ and was inhibited by other nucleotides and/or analogues of ATP, such as cAMP, AMP, ADP, GMP, GDP, GTP, CTP, β,γ-imidoadenosine 5′-triphosphate and 5′-[p-(fluorosulfonyl)benzoyl] adenosine, and by other divalent cations, such as Zn2+, Mn2+, Co2+, Cu2+, Ca2+ and Fe2+. Additionally, the trypanosome kinase was inhibited by the PKA-specific heat-stable peptide inhibitor PKI-α. This study is the first biochemical and enzymatic characterization of a protein kinase from T. equiperdum.

Boring sponges are an important component of bioeroder assemblages in tropical coral reefs. They are considered as a potential threat for coral reef health, and the increase of dead corals is expected to promote their abundance. The relationship between the availability of dead coral substrata and the development of boring sponge assemblages was evaluated during El Niño 2015–16 at five reefs from Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico. Environment and substrate quality were assessed. Overall, environment conditions remained normal in relation to previous studies in the area. Only water temperature showed unusually high records at all sites and coincided with bleaching and mortality of corals, possibly caused by the effects of the El Niño event. Abundance of boring sponges in dead corals and coral rubble was lower than during previous studies. Although sponge abundance was not directly related to cover of both dead corals and coral rubble, cover of dead corals showed a high correlation with the variation in the structure of sponge assemblages across sites. Cliona vermifera dominated sponge assemblages at all sites, and its abundance was high under conditions of high cover of live corals and low cover of bleached corals. Since overall sponge abundance responded in a similar way, these results suggest that boring sponge assemblages dominated by C. vermifera are enhanced by conditions favourable for corals. Our results imply that El Niño events in the Mexican Pacific are not likely to cause immediate population outbreaks of boring sponges.

Polistes paper wasps can be used to monitor trace metal contaminants, but the effects of pollution on the health of these insects are still unknown. We evaluated, in a south-eastern area of Spain, whether workers of Polistes dominula collected at urban and rural sites differ in health of midgut tissue and in fluctuating asymmetry, an estimate of developmental noise. We found that wasps collected at the urban sites had abundant lead (Pb)-containing spherites, which were less visible in wasps from the rural sites. Evident ultrastructural alterations in the epithelium of the midgut of the wasps collected at the urban sites included broken and disorganized microvilli, a high amount and density of heterochromatin in the nucleus of epithelial cells, cytoplasmic vacuolization and mitochondrial disruptions. Altogether, these findings suggest a negative effect on the transmembrane transport and a less efficient transcription. On the contrary, a healthy epithelium was observed in wasps from the rural sites. These differences may be preliminarily linked with levels of lead pollution, given that wasps from urban sites had double the Pb concentrations of wasps from rural sites. Level of fluctuating asymmetry was unrelated to wasp origin, thus suggesting no link between developmental noise and Pb-driven pollution.

What explains business views regarding policy preferences in the Eurozone crisis? Although recent literature examines the impact of the crisis on citizen views, few studies examine business preferences towards adjustment policies. We present unique data from a new representative survey of 500 high-level firm representatives from Spain to test theories about such preferences, in particular views about the euro, fiscal austerity, and wage devaluation, as well as plausible mechanisms for such preferences. We test three broad families of theories to explain such preferences, focusing on the role of structural firm characteristics, economic hardship, and political leanings of firm managers. We find that first, there is a strong conservative position regarding all of these policies. Second, we find that contra conventional approaches to explaining preferences, for the domestic policies (but not for euro views), the political leanings of firms matter much more than baseline structural characteristics. Third, we find that surprisingly economic hardship does not cause firms to demand more left-wing policies, as it might for voters; in fact, firms that have suffered are likely to be more skeptical of such measures. These findings indicate the need to better measure political orientations of firm respondents and suggest that this is a larger division among firms than previously recognized.

Grounded in self-determination theory, the aim of this study was to develop a scale with adequate psychometric properties to assess motivation for teaching and to explain some outcomes of secondary education teachers at work. The sample comprised 584 secondary education teachers. Analyses supported the five-factor model (intrinsic motivation, identified regulation, introjected regulation, external regulation and amotivation) and indicated the presence of a continuum of self-determination. Evidence of reliability was provided by Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability and average variance extracted. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses supported the partial invariance (configural and metric) of the scale in different sub-samples, in terms of gender and type of school. Concurrent validity was analyzed by a structural equation modeling that explained 71% of the work dedication variance and 69% of the boredom at work variance. Work dedication was positively predicted by intrinsic motivation (ß = .56, p < .001) and external regulation (ß = .29, p < .001) and negatively predicted by introjected regulation (ß = –.22, p < .001) and amotivation (ß = –.49, p < .001). Boredom at work was negatively predicted by intrinsic motivation (ß = –.28, p < .005) and positively predicted by amotivation (ß = .68, p < .001). The Motivation for Teaching Scale in Secondary Education (Spanish acronym EME-ES, Escala de Motivación por la Enseñanza en Educación Secundaria) is discussed as a valid and reliable instrument. This is the first specific scale in the work context of secondary teachers that has integrated the five-factor structure together with their dedication and boredom at work.

This Research Paper addresses the hypothesis that using teatcups with automatic valves, without cutting off the vacuum prior to cluster removal, could increases the risk of mastitis and affect other milking variables on goats. A first trial used 46 intramammary infection (IMI)-free goats that had been milked with normal teatcups (without automatic valves) during a pre-experimental period of 8 ± 2 d postpartum. These animals were divided into two groups (n = 23), randomly assigning each group to teatcups with automatic valves (teatcups A) or without automatic valves (teatcups B) for a 20-week experimental period. During this period, several strategies were applied to increase teat exposure to pathogens in both experimental groups. In the first eight weeks of the experimental period, the new IMI rate per gland was significantly higher (P < 0·05) in the group of animals milked with teatcups A (6 of 46; 13%) than in the group milked with teatcups B (1 of 46; 2%). However, throughout the rest of the experimental period the same number of glands appeared with new IMI (n = 7) in both animal groups. SCC was higher in goats milked with teatcups A, but no significant differences were found in the remaining variables (milk production and composition, frequency of liner slips + teatcup fall-off). In a second experiment, in a crossover design (54 goats in fourth month of lactation, 2 treatments – teatcups A and B – in 2 experimental periods each lasting 1 week), no differences were observed in total milk, average milk flow, total milking time or teat thickness changes after milking between both teatcups. However, teatcups A worsened slightly the maximum milk flow. We concluded that the use of teatcups with automatic valves, without cutting off the vacuum prior to cluster removal, increases the risk of mastitis on goat livestock farms.