Effects of temperature and radiation on lettuce growing.

Lettuces were planted in the spring at 20 X 25 cm in glasshouses with several temperature regimes and differing light transmission (43-76%), and the effects were determined of air temperature and radiation on the percentage soil cover and yield. With heated, lightly heated and unheated glasshouses the time from planting to almost 100% soil cover was 33, 47 and 54 days, respectively, equivalent to about 600 degree-days. Variations in the total radiation received during these periods were marked. Growth in terms of fresh weight increase was slow initially under all conditions, but when the plants had attained about 60 g fresh weight they grew rapidly, and subsequent fresh weight increases were closely correlated with total radiation. (Abstract retrieved from CAB Abstracts by CABI’s permission

Inhibition of growth and metabolism of Chlorella and some other plant types by calcium dipicrylamine and other poisons

If potassium is obtained from sea-water by precipitation with calcium dipicrylamine, potassium fertilizers and sea-water will be contaminated with a little dipicrylamine. The influence of calcium dipicrylamine on metabolism of Chlorella and some other aquatic and terrestrial plants was therefore studied. It inhibited photosynthesis even at lower concentrations (10 -6-10 -5M), than other inhibitors such as ethyl urethane, phenyl urethane, hydroxylamine, 2,4-dinitrophenol and sodium azide. Autotrophic growth was inhibited at almost the same concentration. But heterotrophic growth of Chlorella was less inhibited. Respiration was stimulated by up to 60 %, even at 10 -2M. At this concentration, glucose-stimulated respiration was 50 % inhibited but at least partly reversibly. The same degree of inhibition (not reversible by washing) was observed with light saturation as with light limitation in Chlorella photosynthesis. This suggested a specific enzyme- inhibitor, influencing certain dark reactions as well as the energy transfer in photosynthesis. Lower temperatures severely increased inhibition of photosynthesis in Chlorella.Despite inhibition of growth and photosynthesis at low concentrations in water culture, the compound was less harmful in the field through the high adsorptive capacity of soil, especially of humus. Only with extreme artificial contamination was there a decrease in yield.<p/

Omecamtiv mecarbil in precision-cut living heart failure slices: A story of a double-edged sword

Heart failure (HF) is a rapidly growing pandemic while medical treatment options remain limited. Omecamtiv mecarbil (OM) is a novel HF drug that directly targets the myosin heads of the cardiac muscle. This study used living myocardial slices (LMS) from patients with HF to evaluate the direct biomechanical effects of OM as compared to dobutamine. LMS were produced from patients with end-stage HF undergoing cardiac transplantation or left ventricular assist device implantation and cultured under electromechanical stimulation (diastolic preload: ca. 1 mN, stimulation frequency: 0.5 Hz). Dobutamine and omecamtiv mecarbil (OM) were administered on consecutive days and biomechanical effects were continuously recorded with dedicated force transducers. OM and dobutamine significantly increased contractile force to a similar maximum force, but OM also increased median time-to-peak with 48 % (p = 0.046) and time-to-relaxation with 68 % (p = 0.045). OM administration led to impaired relaxation of HF LMS with increasing stimulation frequencies, which was not observed with dobutamine. Furthermore, the functional refractory period was significantly shorter after administration of OM compared to dobutamine (235 ms (200–265) vs. 270 ms (259–283), p = 0.035). In conclusion, OM increased contractile force and systolic duration of HF LMS, indicating an improvement in cardiac function and normalization of systolic time intervals in patients with HF. Conversely, OM slowed relaxation, which could lead to diastolic filling abnormalities. As such, OM showed benefits on systolic function on one hand but potential hindrances of diastolic function on the other hand