Induction of stimulative parthenocarpy in Vitis vinifera L.

Stimulative parthenocarpy was induced in two varieties of Vitis vinifera L. Flame Tokay and Rose Muscat (local variety) out of eight varieties studied.In F l a m e T o k a y the delay or inhibition of bhe abscission of the calyptra and parthenocarpic development of the berries, was obtained with pre-bloom treatments (3 days before beginning of bloom) of 4CPA 30 ppm + KGA3 30 ppm. Induction and growth ,of parthenocarpic berries was most pronounced after post-bloom sprays (7 days after the end of bloom) with BA 1500 ppm + KGA3 80 ppm or 4CPA 30 ppm. A parthenocarpic development of the berries was also obtained with postbloom treatments of KGA3 at concentrations of 50 to 100 ppm. BA (Benzyladenine) alone had only a slight effect on the development of parthenocarpic berries. However, the results were surprisingly satisfactory when applied in combination with gibberellin (KGA3 80 ppm) or auxins. Treatments at bloom or after bloom with BA 800 ppm + KGA3 80 ppm increased bhe number of berries and cluster weight. Applications of BA 800 ppm + KGA3 80 ppm to Rose Musca t at the beginning of bloom resulted in clusters with practically all berries seedless. The artificially accelerated growth of the berries may provoke abortion of all the recently fecundated ovules and the non viability of the not fecundated ones. Clusters of the treated plants with an average of 520 flowers originated 501 parbhenocarpic berries (96%), whereas the control with an average 635 flowers per cluster gave a percentage of seeded + seedless berries of 14% only {95 berries per cluster). BA applied with auxin or gibberellin-like substances in full-bloom or after bloom produced seedless berries, which were smaller in size than the seeded berries of unsprayed clusters

A note on the invariant distribution of a quasi-birth-and-death process

The aim of this paper is to give an explicit formula of the invariant distribution of a quasi-birth-and-death process in terms of the block entries of the transition probability matrix using a matrix-valued orthogonal polynomials approach. We will show that the invariant distribution can be computed using the squared norms of the corresponding matrix-valued orthogonal polynomials, no matter if they are or not diagonal matrices. We will give an example where the squared norms are not diagonal matrices, but nevertheless we can compute its invariant distribution

Changes in the gene expression profile of Arabidopsis thaliana after infection with Tobacco etch virus

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>Tobacco etch potyvirus </it>(TEV) has been extensively used as model system for the study of positive-sense RNA virus infecting plants. TEV ability to infect <it>Arabidopsis thaliana </it>varies among ecotypes. In this study, changes in gene expression of <it>A. thaliana </it>ecotype L<it>er </it>infected with TEV have been explored using long-oligonucleotide arrays. <it>A. thaliana </it>L<it>er </it>is a susceptible host that allows systemic movement, although the viral load is low and syndrome induced ranges from asymptomatic to mild. Gene expression profiles were monitored in whole plants 21 days post-inoculation (dpi). Microarrays contained 26,173 protein-coding genes and 87 miRNAs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Expression analysis identified 1727 genes that displayed significant and consistent changes in expression levels either up or down, in infected plants. Identified TEV-responsive genes encode a diverse array of functional categories that include responses to biotic (such as the systemic acquired resistance pathway and hypersensitive responses) and abiotic stresses (droughtness, salinity, temperature, and wounding). The expression of many different transcription factors was also significantly affected, including members of the R2R3-MYB family and ABA-inducible TFs. In concordance with several other plant and animal viruses, the expression of heat-shock proteins (HSP) was also increased. Finally, we have associated functional GO categories with KEGG biochemical pathways, and found that many of the altered biological functions are controlled by changes in basal metabolism.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>TEV infection significantly impacts a wide array of cellular processes, in particular, stress-response pathways, including the systemic acquired resistance and hypersensitive responses. However, many of the observed alterations may represent a global response to viral infection rather than being specific of TEV.</p

Crossover versus Mutation: A Comparative Analysis of the Evolutionary Strategy of Genetic Algorithms Applied to Combinatorial Optimization Problems

Since their first formulation, genetic algorithms (GAs) have been one of the most widely used techniques to solve combinatorial optimization problems. The basic structure of the GAs is known by the scientific community, and thanks to their easy application and good performance, GAs are the focus of a lot of research works annually. Although throughout history there have been many studies analyzing various concepts of GAs, in the literature there are few studies that analyze objectively the influence of using blind crossover operators for combinatorial optimization problems. For this reason, in this paper a deep study on the influence of using them is conducted. The study is based on a comparison of nine techniques applied to four well-known combinatorial optimization problems. Six of the techniques are GAs with different configurations, and the remaining three are evolutionary algorithms that focus exclusively on the mutation process. Finally, to perform a reliable comparison of these results, a statistical study of them is made, performing the normal distribution z-test

Crossover vs. Mutation: A Comparative Analysis of the Evolutionary Strategy of Genetic Algorithms Applied to Combinatorial Optimization Problems

Since their first formulation, genetic algorithms (GA) have been one of the most widely used techniques to solve combinatorial optimization problems. The basic structure of the GA is known by the scientific community, and thanks to their easy application and good performance, GAs are the focus of a lot of research works annually. Although throughout history there have been many studies analyzing various concepts of GAs, in the literature there are few studies that analyze objectively the influence of using blind crossover operators for combinatorial optimization problems. For this reason, in this paper a deep study on the influence of using them is conducted. The study is based on a comparison of nine techniques applied to four well-known combinatorial optimization problems. Six of the techniques are GAs with different configurations, and the remaining three are evolutionary algorithms that focus exclusively on the mutation process. Finally, to perform a reliable comparison of these results, a statistical study of them is made, performing the normal distribution z-test

Expression of the Vesicular GABA Transporter within Neuromedin S\u3csup\u3e+\u3c/sup\u3e Neurons Sustains Behavioral Circadian Rhythms

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus is the site of a central circadian clock that orchestrates overt rhythms of physiology and behavior. Circadian timekeeping requires intercellular communication among SCN neurons, and multiple signaling pathways contribute to SCN network coupling. Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is produced by virtually all SCN neurons, and previous work demonstrates that this transmitter regulates coupling in the adult SCN but is not essential for the nucleus to sustain overt circadian rhythms. Here, we show that the deletion of the gene that codes for the GABA vesicular transporter Vgat from neuromedin-S (NMS)+ neurons—a subset of neurons critical for SCN function—causes arrhythmia of locomotor activity and sleep. Further, NMS-Vgat deletion impairs intrinsic clock gene rhythms in SCN explants cultured ex vivo. Although vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) is critical for SCN function, Vgat deletion from VIP-expressing neurons did not lead to circadian arrhythmia in locomotor activity rhythms. Likewise, adult SCN-specific deletion of Vgat led to mild impairment of behavioral rhythms. Our results suggest that while the removal of GABA release from the adult SCN does not affect the pacemaker’s ability to sustain overt circadian rhythms, its removal from a critical subset of neurons within the SCN throughout development removes the nucleus ability to sustain circadian rhythms. Our findings support a model in which SCN GABA release is critical for the developmental establishment of intercellular network properties that define the SCN as a central pacemaker

Cross-country migration linked to people who inject drugs challenges the long-term impact of national HCV elimination programmes

To the Editor: As of 2018, the majority of Western European countries – including Spain – have lifted restrictions to therapy based on disease severity in the context of HCV infections.1 Long overdue, most national elimination programmes now also include access to care for people who inject drugs (PWID), 2 who are at the core of ongoing HCV transmission.3 Macías et al.4 have recently shown in this Journal that high viral cure rates can be achieved in this group, hereby providing evidence that targeting PWID in treatment programmes is worthwhile. However, the extent to which such national efforts can reduce the HCV burden not only depends on the uptake into care and treatment success rates, it is also determined by the relative importance of within-country transmission and virus importation from elsewhere. As the chronic nature of most HCV infections hampers reliably reconstructing contact networks from patient interviews, virus genetic data can be a valuable alternative source of information for elucidating the geographic history of virus lineages (e.g. [5], [6]). Using such data, we have recently shown that for the most prevalent subtype among PWID in Spain (40%, 7), HCV1a, infections often link to infections abroad – in recent years >50% link to Western European countries, mostly European Union (EU) member states – as opposed to other infections ..

Quantum-Aware Software Defined Networks

Software Defined Networks (SDN) represent a major paradigm change in communications networks. It provides a level of abstraction and independence from the traditional networking practice that allows for a fast path of innovation and, specifically, opens new opportunities for Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) networks. In this contribution we explore the implications of this paradigm for the deployment of QKD in practice from the point of view of telecommunications? providers, network equipment manufacturers and applied research and development. We propose a generic quantum-aware SDN architecture and two applications, a generic end to end encryption one and other for the network infrastructure itself