A Synthesis of Six Recent Studies on Numerosity Abilities in an Ant

Working on the numerosity ability of the ant Myrmica sabuleti, we have already summarized for the readers’ convenience our previous papers in two successive publications. Since that time, we have produced six more papers on the subject, and we thought it was time to present a summary of them. These studies deal with the ants’ ability in expecting the following element in an arithmetic or a geometric sequence, as well as with the required similarity between visual cues and the maximum horizontal and vertical distance between such cues enabling the ants to mentally add them up. The experimental methods that were used in these studies are here only briefly reported and their most important results are concisely related, as the extended information can be found in these six papers here summarized. We present novel tables and figures for illustrating this synthesis.

Reviewer Acknowledgements

Journal of Biology and Life Science (JBLS) would like to acknowledge the following reviewers for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Many authors, regardless of whether JBLS publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review for this issue.Reviewers for Volume 12, Number 2Geonyzl Lepiten Alviola, Davao Doctors College, PhlippinesJeriels Matatula, Indonesian Silvicultural Community, IndonesiaJosé Max Barbosa de Oliveira Junior, Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará, BrazilRagab A. El-Mergawi, National Research Centre, EgyptRajaa Ahmed Mahmoud, University of Basrah, Iraq Kelvin LeeEditorial AssistantJournal of Biology and Life Science-------------------------------------------Macrothink Institute5348 Vegas Dr.#825Las Vegas, Nevada 89108United StatesTel: 1-702-953-1852 ext.510Fax: 1-702-420-2900E-mail: [email protected]: http://jbls.macrothink.org

Environmental Factors as Determinants of Health in New Jersey, USA

There is a well-documented association between socioeconomic factors and community health. While environmental conditions are considered in most public health evaluations, they have the least weighted values of all the metrics measured. The U.S. state of New Jersey has a very robust, long-standing environmental protection program combined with some of the highest educational attainment, employment, and income levels in the country. These conditions may have re-positioned or re-prioritized those societal factors that traditionally dominate health outcomes, placing greater emphasis on environmental factors. This paper seeks to evaluate whether in New Jersey at the county level the long-established connection between health status and environmental quality conditions needs to be re-defined. Because of its high per capita income, well-educated population, and strong industrial and service sector employment base, New Jersey residents are fairly healthy, and New Jersey is generally placed within the top ten healthiest places to live in the United States. Thus, this state is well positioned to assess the relative importance that releases to air, water, and soil may play in determining health outcomes. This is due to the state’s long history of significant pollution of its air, water, and soil coupled with a strong, effective regulatory program that slowly is achieving meaningful improvements to environmental quality.Five data sets related to discharges to the air, water, or soil were compiled and tested separately against two New Jersey specific community health indices. The health surveys include the New Jersey Hospital Association’s 2019 report on social gaps and their impact on health (CHART) and the nationwide America’s Health Rankings (UHF). A Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient was used to compare each state’s health ranking – both CHART and UHF - with the independent variable, environmental exposure data sets. The analysis found that there are no meaningful correlations between the environmental exposure data sets and the CHART or UHF county health rankings. This suggests that environmental factors may be over-weighted given the level of state and federal regulatory protection programs already in place within New Jersey. Policy makers should now consider two shifts in public health strategy: encouraging economic growth in areas with underperforming health outcomes so as to maximize those determinants that do most impact positive outcomes (insurance, income, etc.) coupled with aggressive enforcement of existing environmental regulations to protect communities from the possible consequences of that expanded development.

Building a Conceptual Framework from Polyvagal Theory to Explore Effect of Maternal Speech on Neural Development in Premature Infants

The objective of this review was to evaluate the application of Polyvagal theory to: (1) explore relationships between maternal speech and neural development in premature infants; (2) explain influences of moderators, mediators, and confounding variables of early developmental exposure to maternal speech on neural development in premature infants. A positivist ontological approach was undertaken to explore and evaluate the application of Polyvagal theory in the research area of the effect of maternal speech on neural development or heart rate variability in premature infants. The Polyvagal theory was determined to be an effective theory for describing the effect of early developmental exposure to maternal speech on neural development. Major propositions are presented based on the proposed conceptual model, which integrates previous research on exposure to maternal speech, to ultimately enhance neural development in premature infants.

Maize Milling and Modifying Atmospheric Conditions Limit Formation of Aflatoxin B1 by Aspergillus Flavus

Occurrence of mycotoxins in foods poses a serious health concern all over the world. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most toxic, with widest occurrence in various foods, but mainly in cereals and nuts and its accumulation depends on substrate and environmental factors. This study investigated the how physical status (milling) of maize kernels and atmospheric conditions (aeration, moisture and temperature) affect production of aflatoxin B1 by Aspergillus flavus (ATCC 28862). Intact kernels and flour were incubated for up to 20 days in open and partially sealed petri dishes under controlled temperatures of 25 ºC, 30 ºC and 37 ºC and initial moisture contents of 27%, 22%, 18%, 15% and 12%. It was found that on average, significantly higher (p < 0.05) aflatoxin B1 level was accumulated in intact kernels (145.7 µg/kg) as compared to milled kernels (2.2 µg/kg). Also, none of the samples incubated under partially sealed conditions, compared to up to 100% of the samples incubated in open atmosphere had detectable levels of aflatoxin B1 after 20 days. Fungal growth was not affected by milling or aeration, but sporulation was low at 37 ºC and high at 25 ºC and 30 ºC. The findings of this study provide baseline information on how conditions can be modified to control postharvest accumulation of aflatoxin B1 in cereals.

Isolation of Xylanase Producing Strains, Optimization of Fermentation Conditions and Research on Enzymatic Properties

In this study, we successfully isolated a strain of Aspergillus oryzae TR08, which produced xylanase secreted to the outside of the cell productively. The enzyme activity and specific activity in the fermentation broth of this strain reached peak values of 451 IU/mL and 1963 IU/mg after 156 h of fermentation. A single factor experiment was designed, and it was found that the strain was adjusted to the initial pH of the fermentation broth to 7.5 in a shaker at 180 rpm and 32 °C. After 156 h of fermentation, the enzyme activity reached a maximum of 1264 IU/mL. The optimal reaction temperature and pH value of the xylanase were 55 °C and 7.5, respectively, and it had excellent acid and alkali resistance and a wide pH activity range. The xylanase was increased the catalytic activity by 15% in 0.25 mM Fe3+, and the biological activity of the enzyme was not affected in the sodium dodecyl sulfate environment.

Reviewer Acknowledgements

Journal of Biology and Life Science (JBLS) would like to acknowledge the following reviewers for their assistance with peer review of manuscripts for this issue. Many authors, regardless of whether JBLS publishes their work, appreciate the helpful feedback provided by the reviewers. Their comments and suggestions were of great help to the authors in improving the quality of their papers. Each of the reviewers listed below returned at least one review for this issue.Reviewers for Volume 12, Number 1Bonam Srinivasa Reddy, INSERM, FranceBratko Filipic, CIETO, SloveniaBruno Edson-Chaves, USP&UECE, BrazilChandra S Bathula, Louisiana State University, USADamir Suljevic, University of Sarajevo, Bosnia and HerzegovinaMaciej Jarzębski, Poznan University of Life Sciences, PolandMeltem Sesli, Turkish Biotechnology, TurkeyNatalia Tkachuk, T.H. Shevchenko National University “Chernihiv Colehium”, UkraineRajaa Ahmed Mahmoud, University of Basrah, IraqSridhar Mandali, UCLA, USATayseer Ibrahim Alnaggar, Ain Shams University & Najran University, EgyptXiaohuang Cao, Guangdong Ocean University, ChinaYuliana, Udayana University, Indonesia Kelvin LeeEditorial AssistantJournal of Biology and Life Science-------------------------------------------Macrothink Institute5348 Vegas Dr.#825Las Vegas, Nevada 89108United StatesTel: 1-702-953-1852 ext.510Fax: 1-702-420-2900E-mail: [email protected]: http://jbls.macrothink.org

Adptatives Responses of the Species Ethmalosa fimbriata in Biétri Bay, a Highly Disturbed Environment

The growth and size at first sexual maturity of the species Ethmalosa fimbriata were studied in two sites in the Ebrié lagoon: Bietri, a highly anthropized environment and Vitré 2, a reference site. Growth parameters estimated from size frequencies showed that growth in both size and weight was faster in females than in males regardless of habitat. On the other hand, specimens from Biétri bay have a slower growth rate than those from Vitré 2. In Bietri bay, individuals are characterized by early sexual maturity. They reach sexual maturity at the age of 0.55 years (about 7 months), corresponding to a size of 6.13 cm for males and 8.42 cm for females; whereas in Vitré 2, they reach sexual maturity at the age of 0.82 years (about 10 months) corresponding to a size of 10.22 cm and 12.94 cm for males and females respectively. These results show that in a highly antropic environment, the growth of Ethmalosa fimbriata is affected and individuals reproduce earlier.

Size Distribution, Length-Weight Relationship and Condition Index of Tagelus adansonii Bosc 1801 (Mollusca: Bivalvia, Solecurtidae) in the Joal-Fadiouth Lagoon (Senegal)

Size distribution, length-weight relationship and condition index are some of the many parameters that contribute to the study of the growth, environmental conditions and reproduction of an aquatic species. For Tagelus adansonii, only a few studies were carried out on these parameters. This species is a bivalve of the solecurtidae family only found on the East Atlantic Coast between Mauritania and Angola. The objective of this study was to examine the biometric relationships as well as size and condition index variations, within the perspective of resource management. In this study, the average size obtained (47.78mm) from the monthly sampling in Joal Fadiouth lagoon was smaller compared to sizes obtained in other countries for the same genus and species. The size frequency distribution is unimodal, the most abundant class is 45-50mm. The mean condition index is 18.41±16.47 using the formula by Beninger and Lucas (1984). The values of the condition indices varied throughout the duration of the study. In the period of cold-to-warm transition (June) the maximum values of the condition indices were observed, while in the period of warm-to-cold transition (November to December), the minimum values were registered. The allometry is positive (3.07) in Joal as in most studies on this genus.

Inhibitory Effects of Cortex Dictamni Aqueous Extract on Dipeptidyl Peptidase I and Chymase Activities and the Screening of Active Ingredients in Cortex Dictamni Based on Molecular Docking Technique

Dipeptidyl peptidase I (DPPI) and chymase, the granulo-proteases produced and released by mast cells, are important targets of anti-inflammatory drug research and development. Cortex Dictamni is a definite nature drug with anti-inflammatory activity, but the mechanism is unclear and effects of Cortex Dictamni on DPPI and chymase are unknown. This study focuses on effects of Cortex Dictamni aqueous extract (CDAE) on DPPI and chymase activities using cell model, bio-molecular interactions and the Molecular docking study by Discovery Studio (DS) analysis. The results showed that CDAE could significantly inhibit DPPI and chymase activities in vitro and in living rat spleen lymphocytes. Molecular docking simulation demonstrated that Troxerutin, the one of the active compounds of Cortex Dictamni, formed a hydrogen bond with amino acid ILE429 and a strong hydrophobic interaction with TYR64 CYS234 PRO279 ALA382 of DPPI. These interactions allow Troxerutin to form a stable complex with the DPPI, implicating that Troxerutin might be a potential natural inhibitor of DPPI. Dictamnoside M, another active compound of Cortex Dictamni formed hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions within the binding pocket of chymase domain and form a stable complex with the chymase. Dictamnoside M maybe a potential natural inhibitor of chymase. This study suggested a new nature inhibitor Cortex Dictamni and its active components with the anti-inflammatory effects.