Plant Secondary Metabolites—Missing Pieces in the Soil Organic Matter Puzzle of Boreal Forests

Processes underlying soil organic matter (SOM) transformations are meeting growing interest as SOM contains more carbon (C) than global vegetation and the atmosphere combined. Therefore, SOM is a crucial element of the C cycle, especially in ecosystems rich in organic matter, such as boreal forests. However, climate change may shift the fate of this SOM from C sink into C source, accelerating global warming. These processes require a better understanding of the involved mechanisms driving both the C cycle and the interlinked nitrogen (N) cycle. SOM transformations are balanced by a network of interactions between biological, chemical and physical factors. In this review, we discuss the findings of the most recent studies to the current state of knowledge about the main drivers in SOM transformations. We focus on plant-derived secondary metabolites, as their biochemical traits, especially interactions with soil microbial communities, organic N compounds and enzymes make them potential regulators of SOM decomposition. However, these regulatory abilities of plant-derived compounds are not fully explored.Peer reviewe

Tannins and Their Complex Interaction with Different Organic Nitrogen Compounds and Enzymes : Old Paradigms versus Recent Advances

Tannins, an abundant group of plant secondary compounds, raise interest in different fields of science, owing to their unique chemical characteristics. In chemical ecology, tannins play a crucial role in plant defense against pathogens, herbivores, and changing environmental conditions. In the food industry and in medicine, tannins are important because of their proven positive effect on human health and disease treatment, Such wide interests fueled studies on tannin chemistry, especially on their flagship ability to precipitate proteins. In this Review, we expand the basic knowledge on tannin chemistry to the newest insights from the field. We focus especially on tannin reactions with different non-protein organic N compounds, as well as the complex interactions of tannins with enzymes, resulting in either an increase or decrease in enzyme activity.Peer reviewe

Fast and reliable method to estimate global DNA methylation in plants and fungi with high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC)-ultraviolet detection and even more sensitive one with HPLC-mass spectrometry

Abstract: DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) methylation is one of the epigenetic modifications of DNA, acting as a bridge between genotype and phenotype. Thus, disruption of DNA methylation pattern has tremendous consequences for organism development. Current methods to determine DNA methylation suffer from methodological drawbacks like high requirement of DNA and poor reproducibility of chromatograms. Here we provide a fast and reliable method using high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC)-ultraviolet (UV) detector and even more sensitive one with HPLC- mass spectrometry (MS) and we test this method with various plant and fungal DNA isolates. We optimized the preparation of the DNA degradation step to decrease background noise, we improved separation conditions to provide reliable and reproducible chromatograms and conditions to measure nucleotides in HPLC-MS. We showed that global DNA methylation level can be accurately and reproducibly measured with as little as 0.2 µM for HPLC-UV and 0.02 µM for HPLC-MS of methylated cytosine

Species-dependent responses of crop plants to polystyrene microplastics

Abstract: Only recently there has been a strong focus on the impacts of microplastics on terrestrial crop plants. This study aims to examine and compare the effects of microplastics on two monocotyledonous (barley, Hordeum vulgare and wheat, Triticum aestivum), and two dicotyledonous (carrot, Daucus carota and lettuce, Lactuca sativa) plant species through two complimentary experiments. First, we investigated the effects of low, medium, and high (103, 105, 107 particles per mL) concentrations of 500 nm polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) on seed germination and early development. We found species-dependent effects on the early development, with microplastics only significantly affecting lettuce and carrot. When acutely exposed during germination, PS-MPs significantly delayed the germination of lettuce by 24%, as well as promoted the shoot growth of carrot by 71% and decreased its biomass by 26%. No effect was recorded on monocot species. Secondly, we performed a chronic (21 d) hydroponic experiment on lettuce and wheat. We observed that PS-MPs significantly reduced the shoot growth of lettuce by up to 35% and increased its biomass by up to 64%, while no record was reported on wheat. In addition, stress level indicators and defence mechanisms were significantly up-regulated in both lettuce and wheat seedlings. Overall, this study shows that PS-MPs affect plant development: impacts were recorded on both germination and growth for dicots, and responses identified by biochemical markers of stress were increased in both lettuce and wheat. This highlights species-dependent effects as the four crops were grown under identical conditions to allow direct comparison. For future research, our study emphasizes the need to focus on crop specific effects, while also working towards knowledge of plastic-induced impacts at environmentally relevant conditions

Expectations of disabled persons and physiotherapists towards sexual rehabilitation

Wstęp. Kluczowym elementem w prowadzeniu skutecznej rehabilitacji seksualnej jest nie tylko odpowiednia wiedza, ale również zrozumienie potrzeb i oczekiwań pacjentów. Celem pracy było porównanie oczekiwań osób z uszkodzeniem narządu ruchu i fizjoterapeutów wobec rehabilitacji seksualnej. Materiał i metody. W badaniach ankietowych wzięło udział 100 fizjoterapeutów (77 K i 23 M) oraz 66 osób niepełnosprawnych (39 K i 27 M) z uszkodzeniem narządu ruchu. W ankiecie zadano pytania dotyczące roli rehabilitacji seksualnej w kompleksowym modelu rehabilitacji oraz oczekiwanego zakresu działań, jakie powinna obejmować. Wyniki. Obydwie grupy doceniają rolę kontaktów seksualnych w życiu codziennym. U większości (67%) niepełnosprawnych inicjacja miała miejsce po zaistnieniu niepełnosprawności, co przełamuje stereotypowy obraz możliwości seksualnych osób niepełnosprawnych. Zarówno niepełnosprawni, jak i fizjoterapeuci nadają wysoką rangę rehabilitacji seksualnej w holistycznym modelu rehabilitacji. Za podstawowe jej cele badani uznali przełamywanie mitów, lęków i stereotypów poprzez informowanie społeczeństwa oraz indywidualne dostosowanie odpowiednich pozycji seksualnych. Wykazano istotną zależność (p < 0,05) między wskazywaniem na ważną rolę rehabilitacji seksualnej a samodzielnym poszukiwaniem wiedzy na ten temat. Znaczna część niepełnosprawnych nigdy w procesie usprawniania nie spotkała się z problematyką rehabilitacji seksualnej. Informacji oczekuje się przede wszystkim od lekarzy, psychologów i fizjoterapeutów. Wnioski: 1. Wśród niepełnosprawnych rosną oczekiwania wobec rehabilitacji seksualnej, jednak mają oni problemy ze znalezieniem odpowiedniej wiedzy w tym zakresie. Należy więc rozszerzyć zakres szkoleń dla osób, od których oczekują oni pomocy w pierwszej kolejności (lekarzy, fizjoterapeutów). 2. Powszechna wiedza dotycząca seksualności osób niepełnosprawnych oparta jest w znacznej mierze na stereotypach, dlatego ich przełamywanie powinno być jednym z głównych celów rehabilitacji seksualnej.Introduction. Key element in conducting the effective sexual rehabilitation (SR) is not only an adequate knowledge, but also understanding needs and expectations of patients. Comparing expectations of persons with motor disability and physiotherapists towards the sexual rehabilitation was a purpose of the work. Material and method. One hundred physiotherapists took part in the questionnaire examination (77 female and 23 male) and 66 persons with motor disability (39 female and 27 male). In questionnaire form questions about role of the SR in the comprehensive model of the rehabilitation were asked as well as expected range of activities it should contain. Results. Both groups appreciate the role of sexual contacts in the everyday life. At the majority (67%) of disabled the initiation took place after becoming disable, what is breaking the stereotyped image of their sexual possibilities. Both disabled persons and physiotherapists are giving the sexual rehabilitation high rank in the holistic model of rehabilitation. For SR basic aims examined persons recognized firstly breaking myths, fears and stereotypes by informing the society and secondly individual adapting appropriate sexual positions. An essential relation was demonstrated (p < 0.05) between pointing at the important role of the sexual rehabilitation and independent seeking the knowledge onto this subject. The considerable part of disabled persons never met with issues of the SR. The proper information should be available mainly from doctors, psychologists and physiotherapists. Conclusions. 1. In group of disabled persons expectations towards the sexual rehabilitation are growing, but they have problems with finding adequate knowledge in this subject. Special courses should be led for persons, from which they expect the help at first (doctors, physiotherapists). 2. The common knowledge about the sexuality of disabled is mostly based on stereotypes, that&#8217;s why breaking them should be one of the main aims of the sexual rehabilitation

Restriction of plant roots in boreal forest organic soils affects the microbial community but does not change the dominance from ectomycorrhizal to saprotrophic fungi

Boreal forest soils store significant amounts of carbon and are cohabited by saprotrophic and ectomycorrhizal fungi (ECM). The 'Gadgil effect' implies antagonistic interactions between saprotrophic fungi and ECM. Plant photosynthates support the competitive fitness of the ECM, and may also shape the soil bacterial communities. Many 'Gadgil effect' experiments have focused on litter layer (O-L) or have litter and root-fragments present, and thus possibly favor the saprotrophs. We compared how the restriction of plant roots and exudates affect soil microbial community structures in organic soil (mixed O-F and O-H). For this, we established a 3-yr field experiment with 3 different mesh treatments affecting the penetration of plant roots and external fungal hyphae. Exclusion of plant photosynthates induced modest changes in both fungal and bacterial community structures, but not to potential functionality of the microbial community. The microbial community was resilient towards rather short-term disturbances. Contrary to the 'Gadgil effect', mesh treatments restricting the entrance of plant roots and external fungal hyphae did not favor saprotrophs that originally inhabited the soil. Thus, we propose that different substrate preferences (fresh litter vs. fermented or humified soil), rather than antagonism, maintain the spatial separation of saprotrophs and mycorrhizal fungi in boreal forest soils.Peer reviewe

Site fertility and soil water-table level affect fungal biomass production and community composition in boreal peatland forests

A substantial amount of below-ground carbon (C) is suggested to be associated with fungi, which may significantly affect the soil C balance in forested ecosystems. Ergosterol from in-growth mesh bags and litterbags was used to estimate fungal biomass production and community composition in drained peatland forests with differing fertility. Extramatrical mycelia (EMM) biomass production was generally higher in the nutrient-poor site, increased with deeper water table level and decreased along the length of the recovery time. EMM biomass production was of the same magnitude as in mineral-soil forests. Saprotrophic fungal biomass production was higher in the nutrient-rich site. Both ectomycorrhizal (ECM) and saprotrophic fungal community composition changed according to site fertility and water table level. ECM fungal community composition with different exploration types may explain the differences in fungal biomass production between peatland forests. Melanin-rich Hyaloscypha may indicate decreased turnover of biomass in nutrient-rich young peatland forest. Genera Lactarius and Laccaria may be important in nutrient rich and Piloderma in the nutrient-poor conditions, respectively. Furthermore, Paxillus involutus and Cortinarius sp. may be important generalists in all sites and responsible for EMM biomass production during the first summer months. Saprotrophs showed a functionally more diverse fungal community in the nutrient-rich site.Peer reviewe

Inorganic–organic nanocomposites of CdSe nanocrystals surface-modified with oligo- and poly(fluorene) moieties

We report a facile grafting-from strategy towards the synthesis of inorganic–organic composites of semiconductor nanocrystals and wide-bandgap polymers. Amino-functional fluorenes have been used as co-ligands for CdSe nanocrystals, thus enabling us to design their surface directly during the synthesis. Highly monodisperse, strongly emitting CdSe nanocrystals have been obtained. Subsequently, a straightforward Yamamoto C–C coupling protocol was used to carry out surface polymerisation, hence modifying CdSe nanocrystals with oligo- and poly(fluorene) moieties. Both amino-fluorene capped CdSe nanocrystals and the resulting nanocrystal–polymer composites were characterized in detail by optical and FT-IR spectroscopy, TEM, AFM, and gel permeation chromatography, showing their potential as novel functional inorganic–organic hybrid materials

Influence of Physical Activity on Reduction of Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

The purpose of this study was to determine if physical activity of different intensity has an effect on reduction of delayed onset muscle soreness. Eighty women divided into two groups participated in the study. Subjects from Group 1 participated in the training of upper libs, whereas subjects from group 2 &ndash; in the training of lower limbs. Tests of power of upper limbs &ndash; the active overhang on the bar (Gr. 1) and power of lower limbs &ndash; the vertical jump test (Gr. 2), visual analog scale of pain (VAS) and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) were used as investigative tools. The majority of studied women were characterized by the high level of physical activity. Physical activity level had strong positive correlation (r = 0.54; p &lt; 0.001) with the reduction of pain. Taking into account the partition according to the kind of physical activity, there was observed some significant correlation between the diminution of delayed onset muscle soreness and the level of moderate activity and walking (relocating). Physical activity level positively correlated with the reduction of delayed onset muscle soreness. Moderate physical activity and walking proved to be the most beneficial from the reduction of delayed onset muscle soreness point of view

Association of single nucleotide polymorphism (rs741301) of the ELMO1 gene with diabetic kidney disease in Polish patients with type 2 diabetes: a pilot study

Introduction: Multifactorial pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease (DKD) consists of a combination of metabolic, environmental, and genetic factors. A genome-wide association study has shown that ELMO1 is a candidate gene for DKD occurrence and progression. The aim of this study was to assess the association of a single nucleotide polymorphism (rs741301) of the ELMO1 gene with DKD in Polish patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Material and methods: This was a case/control study of 272 T2DM patients with or without DKD. Patients were divided into groups depending on DKD definition according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the National Kidney Foundation (NKF). The association of the rs741301 polymorphism with DKD was assessed in the whole study group as well as in the subgroups stratified according to the presence of DKD. Results: There was no association between rs741301 polymorphisms and the presence of DKD in relation to the ADA definition (p = 0.6) or the NKF definition (p = 0.5) of DKD and with estimated glomelural filtration rate (eGFR) value reflecting the stage of the chronic kidney disease (p = 0.8). Conclusions: Even though the results of this study are negative, there is still a great need for larger studies assessing the genetic susceptibility to DKD to identify patients who are particularly prone to this complication