Plant hormones in interactions with the environment

Plants are continuously exposed to a myriad of external signals such as fluctuating nutrients availability, drought, heat, cold, high salinity, or pathogen/pest attacks that can severely affect their development, growth, and fertility. As sessile organisms, plants must therefore be able to sense and rapidly react to these external inputs, activate efficient responses, and adjust development to changing conditions. In recent years, significant progress has been made towards understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying the intricate and complex communication between plants and the environment. It is now becoming increasingly evident that hormones have an important regulatory role in plant adaptation and defense mechanisms

Privacy sets for constrained space-filling

The paper provides typology for space filling into what we call "soft" and "hard" methods along with introducing the central notion of privacy sets for dealing with the latter. A heuristic algorithm based on this notion is presented and we compare its performance on some well-known examples

Seedlings’ strategy to overcome a soil barrier

The impact of the plant hormone ethylene on seedling development has long been recognized; however, its ecophysiological relevance is unexplored. Three recent studies demonstrate that ethylene is a critical endogenous integrator of various environmental signals including mechanical stress, light, and oxygen availability during seedling germination and growth through the soil

Methods in Molecular Biology

The history of auxin and cytokinin biology including the initial discoveries by father–son duo Charles Darwin and Francis Darwin (1880), and Gottlieb Haberlandt (1919) is a beautiful demonstration of unceasing continuity of research. Novel findings are integrated into existing hypotheses and models and deepen our understanding of biological principles. At the same time new questions are triggered and hand to hand with this new methodologies are developed to address these new challenges

Spatiotemporal mechanisms of root branching

The fundamental tasks of the root system are, besides anchoring, mediating interactions between plant and soil and providing the plant with water and nutrients. The architecture of the root system is controlled by endogenous mechanisms that constantly integrate environmental signals, such as availability of nutrients and water. Extremely important for efficient soil exploitation and survival under less favorable conditions is the developmental flexibility of the root system that is largely determined by its postembryonic branching capacity. Modulation of initiation and outgrowth of lateral roots provides roots with an exceptional plasticity, allows optimal adjustment to underground heterogeneity, and enables effective soil exploitation and use of resources. Here we discuss recent advances in understanding the molecular mechanisms that shape the plant root system and integrate external cues to adapt to the changing environment

Ehrenpreis András (1589-1662) - az anabaptisták püspöke és az anabaptisták kutatása a szlovák történetírásban = András Ehrenpreis (1589–1662) Bishop of the Anabaptists and the research of the Anabaptists in Slovak historiography

A tanulmány bemutatja Ehrenpreis András (1589–1662) püspök, a hutteriták kiemelkedő személyiségének életútját és munkásságát. A hutteriták a reformáció radikális anabaptista ágát képviselték. A felekezet tagjai a 16. században Alsó-Magyarországon (a mai Nyugat –Szlovákiában) és Morvaországban telepedtek le. Ehrenpreis András kiemelkedő pozícióját az anabaptista vallási-társadalmi mozgalom történetében Robert Friedmann történész hangsúlyozta, amikor a „Hutteriták második megalapítójának” nevezte. Ehrenpreis András a dél-németországi Illingen településen született. Anabaptista lett, feleségével és gyermekeivel 1596-ban Morvaországba költözött. 1621-ben Nové Mlynyben az Ige szolgájává választották. Az anabaptisták Morvaországból való kiűzése után a Magyar Királyságban, Ószombaton (Sobotište) telepedett le – egy diaszpóra falu új központjában. 1639-ben a hutteriták tizenkettedik vezetőjévé vált. 23 éves szolgálat után püspökként halt meg. Mivel Ehrenpreis András tevékenysége közvetlenül kapcsolódott a társadalom általános állapotához, cselekedeteinek értelmezésekor fontos azokat az akkori kontextusban látni (harmincéves háború, a Habsburg-ellenes felkelések, járványok, kedvezőtlen éghajlati viszonyok, a lakosság militarizálása stb). 2014-ben a szerző bemutatta Ehrenpreis Andrással és az anabaptisták történetével kapcsolatos kutatási eredményeit „A reformációtól az egyházalapításig: a szepesváraljai zsinat 400. évfordulójára“ c. nemzetközi konferencián („Od reformácie po založenie cirkvi k 400. výročiu synody v Spišskom Podhradí”). Ez a tanulmány egy bővített és átdolgozott verziója az említett konferencia kötetében megjelent munkájának, amely a következő címen jelent meg: Benková, Eva: Andrej Ehrenpreis – predstavený (biskup) novokrstencov v 17. storočí. In Kónya, Peter – Kónyová, Annamária (eds.). Od reformácie po založenie cirkvi k 400. výročiu synody v Spišskom Podhradí. Prešov : Vydavateľstvo Prešovskej univerzity, 2015. 349–360

Systems approaches to study root architecture dynamics

The plant root system is essential for providing anchorage to the soil, supplying minerals and water, and synthesizing metabolites. It is a dynamic organ modulated by external cues such as environmental signals, water and nutrients availability, salinity and others. Lateral roots (LRs) are initiated from the primary root post-embryonically, after which they progress through discrete developmental stages which can be independently controlled, providing a high level of plasticity during root system formation. Within this review, main contributions are presented, from the classical forward genetic screens to the more recent high-throughput approaches, combined with computer model predictions, dissecting how LRs and thereby root system architecture is established and developed

All roads lead to auxin: Post-translational regulation of auxin transport by multiple hormonal pathways

Auxin is a key hormonal regulator, that governs plant growth and development in concert with other hormonal pathways. The unique feature of auxin is its polar, cell-to-cell transport that leads to the formation of local auxin maxima and gradients, which coordinate initiation and patterning of plant organs. The molecular machinery mediating polar auxin transport is one of the important points of interaction with other hormones. Multiple hormonal pathways converge at the regulation of auxin transport and form a regulatory network that integrates various developmental and environmental inputs to steer plant development. In this review, we discuss recent advances in understanding the mechanisms that underlie regulation of polar auxin transport by multiple hormonal pathways. Specifically, we focus on the post-translational mechanisms that contribute to fine-tuning of the abundance and polarity of auxin transporters at the plasma membrane and thereby enable rapid modification of the auxin flow to coordinate plant growth and development

Neuro-Linguistic Programming and Managerial Communication

Neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) can be considered as a tool for the identification and change of communication behaviour. NLP is based on the concept of the construct of behaviour created by the series of stages, which are perceived as one action. In this chapter, the attention is paid to the NLP characteristics, NLP techniques, mainly to representational systems, rapport, pacing and leading. The chapter presents the results from the research of the assessment of NLP based on comparing the respondents who attended NLP trainings and those who did not attend NLP trainings and comparing managers and non-managers. The research results indicate the effectiveness of NLP in the context of managerial communication