Leaf-applied sodium chloride promotes cadmium accumulation in durum wheat grain

Cadmium (Cd) accumulation in durum wheat grain is a growing concern. Among the factors affecting Cd accumulation in plants, soil chloride (Cl) concentration plays a critical role. The effect of leaf NaCl application on grain Cd was studied in greenhouse-grown durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. durum, cv. Balcali-2000) by immersing (10 s) intact flag leaves into Cd and/or NaCl-containing solutions for 14 times during heading and dough stages. Immersing flag leaves in solutions containing increasing amount of Cd resulted in substantial increases in grain Cd concentration. Adding NaCl alone or in combination with the Cd-containing immersion solution promoted accumulation of Cd in the grains, by up to 41%. In contrast, Zn concentrations of grains were not affected or even decreased by the NaCl treatments. This is likely due to the effect of Cl complexing Cd and reducing positive charge on the metal ion, an effect that is much smaller for Zn. Charge reduction or removal (CdCl2 0 species) would increase the diffusivity/lipophilicity of Cd and enhance its capability to penetrate the leaf epidermis and across membranes. Of even more significance to human health was the ability of Cl alone to penetrate leaf tissue and mobilize and enhance shoot Cd transfer to grains, yet reducing or not affecting Zn transfer

Properties of Modified Riemannian Extensions

Let M be an n-dimensional differentiable manifold with a symmetric connection ∇ and T*M be its cotangent bundle. In this paper, we study some properties of the modified Riemannian extension ğ∇, c on T*M defined by means of a symmetric (0, 2)-tensor field c on M. We get the conditions under which T*M endowed with the horizontal lift HJ of an almost complex structure J and with the metric ğ∇, c is a Kähler-Norden manifold. Also curvature properties of the Levi-Civita connection of the metric ğ∇, c are presented.Пусть M - n-мерное дифференцируемое многообразие с симметричной связностью ∇ а T*M - его кокасательное расслоение. В статье изучены некоторые свойства модифицированного риманова расширения ğ ∇, c на T*M, которое определяется с помощью симметричного (0, 2)-тензорного поля c на M. Получены условия, при которых T*M, наделенное горизонтальным лифтом HJ почти комплексной структуры J и метрикой ğ∇, c, является многообразием Kэлера-Нордена. Также представлены свойства кривизны связности Леви- Чивита метрики ğ ∇ , c.Нехай M — n-мірний диференційовний многовид із симетричного зв'язністго ∇, а T*M — його кодотичне розшарування. В статті вивчено деякі властивості модифікованого ріманова розширення ğ ∇, c на T*M, яке визначається за допомогою симетричного (0, 2)-тензорного поля с на М. Отримано умови, за яких T*M, наділене горизонтальним ліфтом HJ майже комплексної структури J і метрикого ğ∇, c, є многовидом Келера-Нордена. Також представлені властивості кривини зв'язності Леві-Чівіти метрики ğ∇, c

Incisional hernia treatment with polypropylene graft: results of 10 years

Purpose: To report herein our results of tension-free repair of large incisional hernia with polypropylene mesh using a modification of the method that was described by Usher. Method: Two hundred ninety-one patients who were operated on between January 1994 and December 2004 were studied. Two hundred thirty-two patients were female (79.7%), and 59 were male (20.3%). The average follow-up period was 55 months. The patients were evaluated for infection, recurrences, hematoma and seroma formation, sinuses and enterocutaneous fistula formation. Results: Infection was observed in eight patients (2.7%). Graft removal due to infection was encountered only in two patients (0.6%). Recurrence was observed in six patients (2.1%). Two patients (0.6%) developed hematoma while another two developed seroma. No patient developed enterocutaneous fistula. Conclusion: By using our modified technique wecan decrease the expected complications after tension-free repair of large incisional hernias. © Springer-Verlag 2006

Quantitative trait loci conferring grain mineral nutrient concentrations in durum wheat 3 wild emmer wheat RIL population

Mineral nutrient malnutrition, and particularly deficiency in zinc and iron, afflicts over 3 billion people worldwide. Wild emmer wheat, Triticum turgidum ssp. dicoccoides, genepool harbors a rich allelic repertoire for mineral nutrients in the grain. The genetic and physiological basis of grain protein, micronutrients (zinc, iron, copper and manganese) and macronutrients (calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and sulfur) concentration was studied in tetraploid wheat population of 152 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), derived from a cross between durum wheat (cv. Langdon) and wild emmer (accession G18-16). Wide genetic variation was found among the RILs for all grain minerals, with considerable transgressive effect. A total of 82 QTLs were mapped for 10 minerals with LOD score range of 3.2–16.7. Most QTLs were in favor of the wild allele (50 QTLs). Fourteen pairs of QTLs for the same trait were mapped to seemingly homoeologous positions, reflecting synteny between the A and B genomes. Significant positive correlation was found between grain protein concentration (GPC), Zn, Fe and Cu, which was supported by significant overlap between the respective QTLs, suggesting common physiological and/or genetic factors controlling the concentrations of these mineral nutrients. Few genomic regions (chromosomes 2A, 5A, 6B and 7A) were found to harbor clusters of QTLs for GPC and other nutrients. These identified QTLs may facilitate the use of wild alleles for improving grain nutritional quality of elite wheat cultivars, especially in terms of protein, Zn and Fe

Designing Excited States: Theory-Guided Access to Efficient Photosensitizers for Photodynamic Action

Cataloged from PDF version of article.The in silico design of tetraradical S 1 states was validated experimentally through synthesis, followed by characterization including phosphorescence measurements, use of trap molecules, and cell culture studies, leading to a series of orthogonal dimers of Bodipy chromophores with remarkable singlet oxygen efficiencies (see picture). A new path for the rational development of efficient photosensitizers is thus revealed. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Trajectories and Keyframes for Kinesthetic Teaching: A Human-Robot Interaction Perspective

Presented at the 7th ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction, March 5-8, 2012, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.Kinesthetic teaching is an approach to providing demonstrations to a robot in Learning from Demonstration whereby a human physically guides a robot to perform a skill. In the common usage of kinesthetic teaching, the robot's trajectory during a demonstration is recorded from start to end. In this paper we consider an alternative, keyframe demonstrations, in which the human provides a sparse set of consecutive keyframes that can be connected to perform the skill. We present a user-study (n = 34) comparing the two approaches and highlighting their complementary nature. The study also tests and shows the potential benefits of iterative and adaptive versions of keyframe demonstrations. Finally, we introduce a hybrid method that combines trajectories and keyframes in a single demonstratio

Enhanced transmission through sub-wavelength apertures by using metamaterials

In this chapter, the role of complex artificial structures in enhancing the power transmission through sub-wavelength apertures is discussed. Such devices are aimed at exciting highly localized resonances in order to increase the aperture equivalent magnetic and electric dipole moments. Some examples, based on epsilon-near-zero metamaterials (ENZ), frequency selective surfaces (FSSs) and split-ring resonators (SRRs) at microwaves, and silver nano-particle pairs at terahertz scale, are presented. Such structures may find applications in different fields, such as high-resolution spatial filters, ultra-diffractive imaging systems, high-capacity optical memories, enhanced light throughput tips for near-field scanning optical microscopes, etc. © 2011 by World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved