Boron Stress Responsive MicroRNAs and Their Targets in Barley

Boron stress is an environmental factor affecting plant development and production. Recently, microRNAs (miRNAs) have been found to be involved in several plant processes such as growth regulation and stress responses. In this study, miRNAs associated with boron stress were identified and characterized in barley. miRNA profiles were also comparatively analyzed between root and leave samples. A total of 31 known and 3 new miRNAs were identified in barley; 25 of them were found to respond to boron treatment. Several miRNAs were expressed in a tissue specific manner; for example, miR156d, miR171a, miR397, and miR444a were only detected in leaves. Additionally, a total of 934 barley transcripts were found to be specifically targeted and degraded by miRNAs. In silico analysis of miRNA target genes demonstrated that many miRNA targets are conserved transcription factors such as Squamosa promoter-binding protein, Auxin response factor (ARF), and the MYB transcription factor family. A majority of these targets were responsible for plant growth and response to environmental changes. We also propose that some of the miRNAs in barley such as miRNA408 might play critical roles against boron exposure. In conclusion, barley may use several pathways and cellular processes targeted by miRNAs to cope with boron stress

Compulsory admissions of patients with mental disorders : State of the art on ethical and legislative aspects in 40 European countries

Copyright: This record is sourced from MEDLINE/PubMed, a database of the U.S. National Library of MedicineBACKGROUND.: Compulsory admission procedures of patients with mental disorders vary between countries in Europe. The Ethics Committee of the European Psychiatric Association (EPA) launched a survey on involuntary admission procedures of patients with mental disorders in 40 countries to gather information from all National Psychiatric Associations that are members of the EPA to develop recommendations for improving involuntary admission processes and promote voluntary care. METHODS.: The survey focused on legislation of involuntary admissions and key actors involved in the admission procedure as well as most common reasons for involuntary admissions. RESULTS.: We analyzed the survey categorical data in themes, which highlight that both medical and legal actors are involved in involuntary admission procedures. CONCLUSIONS.: We conclude that legal reasons for compulsory admission should be reworded in order to remove stigmatization of the patient, that raising awareness about involuntary admission procedures and patient rights with both patients and family advocacy groups is paramount, that communication about procedures should be widely available in lay-language for the general population, and that training sessions and guidance should be available for legal and medical practitioners. Finally, people working in the field need to be constantly aware about the ethical challenges surrounding compulsory admissions.Peer reviewe

The Phrenic Component of Acute Schizophrenia – A Name and Its Physiological Reality

Decreased heart rate variability (HRV) was shown for unmedicated patients with schizophrenia and their first-degree relatives, implying genetic associations. This is known to be an important risk factor for increased cardiac mortality in other diseases. The interaction of cardio-respiratory function and respiratory physiology has never been investigated in the disease although it might be closely related to the pattern of autonomic dysfunction. We hypothesized that increased breathing rates and reduced cardio-respiratory coupling in patients with acute schizophrenia would be associated with low vagal function. We assessed variability of breathing rates and depth, HRV and cardio-respiratory coupling in patients, their first-degree relatives and controls at rest. Control subjects were investigated a second time by means of a stress task to identify stress-related changes of cardio-respiratory function. A total of 73 subjects were investigated, consisting of 23 unmedicated patients, 20 healthy, first-degree relatives and 30 control subjects matched for age, gender, smoking and physical fitness. The LifeShirt®, a multi-function ambulatory device, was used for data recording (30 minutes). Patients breathe significantly faster (p<.001) and shallower (p<.001) than controls most pronouncedly during exhalation. Patients' breathing is characterized by a significantly increased amount of middle- (p<.001), high- (p<.001), and very high frequency fluctuations (p<.001). These measures correlated positively with positive symptoms as assessed by the PANSS scale (e.g., middle frequency: r = 521; p<.01). Cardio-respiratory coupling was reduced in patients only, while HRV was decreased in patients and healthy relatives in comparison to controls. Respiratory alterations might reflect arousal in acutely ill patients, which is supported by comparable physiological changes in healthy subjects during stress. Future research needs to further investigate these findings with respect to their physiological consequences for patients. These results are invaluable for researchers studying changes of biological signals prone to the influence of breathing rate and rhythm (e.g., functional imaging)

Compulsory admissions of patients with mental disorders : State of the art on ethical and legislative aspects in 40 European countries

Background. Compulsory admission procedures of patients with mental disorders vary between countries in Europe. The Ethics Committee of the European Psychiatric Association (EPA) launched a survey on involuntary admission procedures of patients with mental disorders in 40 countries to gather information from all National Psychiatric Associations that are members of the EPA to develop recommendations for improving involuntary admission processes and promote voluntary care. Methods. The survey focused on legislation of involuntary admissions and key actors involved in the admission procedure as well as most common reasons for involuntary admissions. Results. We analyzed the survey categorical data in themes, which highlight that both medical and legal actors are involved in involuntary admission procedures. Conclusions. We conclude that legal reasons for compulsory admission should be reworded in order to remove stigmatization of the patient, that raising awareness about involuntary admission procedures and patient rights with both patients and family advocacy groups is paramount, that communication about procedures should be widely available in lay-language for the general population, and that training sessions and guidance should be available for legal and medical practitioners. Finally, people working in the field need to be constantly aware about the ethical challenges surrounding compulsory admissions.Peer reviewe

Effect of airborne particle on SO2-calcite reaction

In modern urban atmosphere, sulphur dioxide (SO2) attacks calcite (CaCO3) in calcareous stone-producing gypsum (CaSO4 . 2H(2)O) which forms crust at rain sheltered surfaces and accelerates erosion at areas exposed to rain. The airborne particles collected on stone surfaces have always been considered to enhance the gypsum crust formation and thus it is believed that they should be removed from the surface to decrease the effects of SO2. In this study, our aim was to investigate this event by carrying out a series of experiments in laboratory using pure calcium carbonate powder to represent calcareous stone. Sodium montmorillonite, activated carbon, ferric oxide, vanadium pentoxide and cupric chloride were mixed in the pure calcium carbonate powder as substitutes of the airborne particles in the polluted atmosphere. The samples have been exposed at nearly 10 ppmv SO2 concentrations at 90% relative humidity conditions in a reaction chamber for several days. The mineralogical composition of the exposed samples were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and infrared spectrometer (IR). Sulphation reaction products, calcium sulphite hemihydrate, gypsum and unreacted calcite, were determined quantitatively using IR. Exposed samples have also been investigated morphologically using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Experimental results reveal that calcium sulphite hemihydrate is the main reaction product of the SO2-calcite reaction. It turns out that airborne particles play an important catalytic role in the oxidation of calcium sulphite hemihydrate into gypsum, although their presence does not very significantly affect the extent of sulphation reaction. This behaviour of airborne particles is explained by the presence of liquid film on the calcium carbonate surface when a series of reactions in the gas-liquid-solid interfaces takes place

Phytochemical analysis of the essential oils of 10 endemic Cephalaria species from Turkey

WOS: 000318292300009PubMed ID: 22757667The volatile composition of 10 endemic Cephalaria (Dipsacaceae) species (Cephalaria gazipashensis, Cephalaria lycica, Cephalaria paphlagonica, Cephalaria elmaliensis, Cephalaria stellipilis, Cephalaria scoparia, Cephalaria isaurica, Cephalaria cilicica, Cephalaria elazigensis var. purpurea and Cephalaria davisiana) was investigated. The essential oil mixtures were obtained by steam distillation in a Clevenger-type apparatus. Twenty-eight components were identified by GC-FID and GC-MS techniques. While total volatile percentages ranged from 68.99% to 84.57%, the total essential oil yields ranged between 38.15% and 64.05%. Geraniol, -cedrene and p-cymene were determined as the main components. Geraniol was detected as a major component in C. cilicica (14.64%), and -cedrene was detected as a major component with 26.03% for C. lycica, 16.93% for C. scoparia, 13.01% for C. davisiana and 10.94% for C. paphlagonica. Cephalaria scoparia, C. davisiana and C. gazipashensis have considerable amount of p-cymene as 12.86%, 12.70% and 11.16%, respectively. This was the first essential oil report concerning the Cephalaria genus.TUBITAKTurkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [107T028]; EBILTEMEge University [2008BIL003]; Research Grant Office of Ege UniversityEge University [2009FEN080]We are grateful to ARGE-FAR (Ege University) for running GC/GC-MS analysis, and TUBITAK (107T028), EBILTEM (2008BIL003) and Research Grant Office of Ege University (2009FEN080) for their financial support. We also thank to Assist. Prof. Dr H. Ertas for his valuable discussions

Effects of farm type on food production, landscape openness, grassland biodiversity, and greenhouse gas emissions in mixed agricultural-forestry regions

Context: The global demand for food is expected to continue increasing for decades, which may drive both agricultural expansion and intensification. The associated environmental impacts are potentially considerable but will depend on how the agricultural sector develops. Currently, there are contrasting regional developments in agriculture; expansion and/or intensification in some regions and abandonment in others, as well as changes in the type of farming. However, the environmental consequences of changes in farm type are not well understood.Objective: We have evaluated the impacts of farm type on food production and three key environmental variables & mdash;landscape openness, grassland biodiversity and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions & mdash;in three marginal agricultural regions in Sweden.Methods: We do this by first dividing the population of farms in each region into types, based on their land-use and livestock holdings using an innovative clustering method. Thereafter we analysed changes in production activities for farm types over time and evaluated the environmental and food-production impacts, where landscape openness is quantified using a novel indicator.Results and conclusion: Our results show that there is not one single farm type that would simultaneously maximize food production, grassland biodiversity, and landscape openness, whilst minimizing GHG emissions. However, there exists considerable potential to manage the trade-offs between food production and these environmental variables. For example, by reducing land use for dairying and instead increasing both cropping for food production and extensive livestock grazing to maintain landscape openness and biodiversity-rich semi natural pastures, it would keep food production at similar levels.Significance: Our farm typology allows us to assess the multifunctionality of farming, by relating contrasting production activities to multiple ecosystem services, grassland biodiversity and GHG emissions for informing policy towards more sustainable agriculture. We have demonstrated this with examples under Swedish conditions, but it should to a large extent also be applicable for other countries