Natural Resistance of Sri Lankan Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Varieties to Broad-Spectrum Herbicides (Glyphosate and Glufosinate)

Since studies on herbicide-resistant rice (HRR) are limited in Sri Lanka, the present study conducted to screen the naturally existing glyphosate and glufosinate resistance in traditional and inbred rice varieties. Six traditional varieties and nineteen inbred lines were selected for the study. Complete randomized design with three pots with 10 replicates for each herbicide concentration was employed. Optimal concentrations of glyphosate (0.5 gl−1) and glufosinate (0.05 gl−1) were applied at 3–4 leaf stages. Varieties ≥50% survival percentage was considered as resistant to respective herbicides. Twelve varieties showed resistance (≥50%) at 0.5 gl−1 glyphosate concentration. Survived plants were monitored and agro-morphological and yield characters/parameters were measured. Fifteen varieties were to glufosinate at 0.05 gl−1. Even though no significant differences (p > 0.05) were observed in growth parameters across control and treated plants, there was a yield penalty. Nine varieties (At362, Bg352, Bg359, Bg366, Bg369, Bg379-2, Bg403, Bg454, and Pachchaperumal) indicated moderate resistance to both glyphosate and glufosinate. The emerged HRRs indicated varying responses of agro-morphological and yield characters across the type of herbicide and the variety. Glyphosate reduced the growth parameters and yield penalty compared to glufosinate treated varieties. These HRR varieties have a higher potential in rice breeding programs and in developing HR rice varieties in future

Synthesis of (Z)-organylthioenynes using KF/Al2O3/solvent as recyclable system

AbstractPEG-400 and glycerol were successfully used as recyclable solvents for the synthesis of several organylthioenynes in good to excellent yields and high selectivity using solid supported catalyst (KF/Al2O3). This easy, general and improved method furnishes the corresponding alkenyl sulfides preferentially with Z configuration. The catalytic system and the glycerol or PEG-400 can be reused up to three times without previous treatment with comparable activity

Should I stay or should I go? Using bibliometrics to identify the international mobility of highly educated Greek manpower

This paper explores the mobility of the highly educated young Greek scholars. This is made possible through a bibliometric analysis of the affiliation countries of scholars who have published in peer reviewed journals indexed in Scopus. Approximately half of the researchers are identified from publications covered in Scopus for the period 2000–2019. A general taxonomy model is followed for analysing scientific mobility using affiliation changes. The greatest share of researchers (78.3%) appear to be static (74.6% in Greece and 3.7% abroad), whereas the mobile researcher category (21.7%) is divided into migrants (8.9%)—researchers who have left their country of origin—and travellers (12.8%)—researchers who gain additional affiliations while maintaining affiliation with their country of origin. According to the findings, the majority and especially the researcher elite (90.5%) did not sever ties with their country of origin, Greece, but instead built a chain of affiliations that linked nations together. Such chains are represented as groups of countries (clusters), in which the scientific connections between different countries can be visualised. It can be reasoned that the majority of researchers (70.3%) have a tendency to publish to a group of countries with ‘traditionally’ significant scientific impact

Developing the Greek Reference Index for the Social Sciences and Humanities

The Greek Reference Index for the Social Sciences and Humanities (GRISSH) is a service that collects, documents, stores and, where possible, provides access to peer-reviewed publications in the Social Sciences and the Humanities (SSH) by Greek publishers. It also provides long-term preservation for the digital and print files of the publications. The GRISSH was conceived by the National Documentation Centre (EKT) and the documentation and access platform is developed by the organization itself (OpenABEKT). The GRISSH is, in essence, a collaborative project that advances with the assistance and active participation of the publishing and scholarly community in Greece. It is intended as an essential reference service for the research and publishing community in Greece and abroad. The present contribution presents the goals, objectives and key benefits of the project; the evaluation criteria for the selection of content; the specifications for the development of the index; the methodology of documentation; the emerging collaborations with stakeholders. It also, present how the GRISSH project is aligned with the national and international agendas in view of a coordinated development and e-infrastructure that will support the sectors of academia, research and academic publishing

ProMyelocytic Leukemia protein (PML) controls breast cancer cell proliferation by modulating Forkhead transcription factors

he multitasking Promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein was originally recognized as a tumor suppressive factor, but more recent evidence has implicated PML in tumor cell pro‐survival actions and poor patient prognosis in specific cancer settings. Here, we report that inducible PMLIV expression inhibits cell proliferation as well as self‐renewal, and impairs cell cycle progression of breast cancer cell lines in a reversible manner. Transcriptomic profiling identified a large number of PML‐deregulated genes associated with various cell processes. Among them, cell cycle and division related genes and their cognitive regulators are highly ranked. In this study, we focused on previously unknown PML targets, namely the Forkhead transcription factors. PML suppresses the Forkhead box subclass M1 (FOXM1) transcription factor at both the RNA and protein level, along with many of its gene targets. We show that FOXM1 interacts with PMLIV primarily via its DNA binding domain and dynamically co‐localizes in PML nuclear bodies. In parallel, PML modulates the activity of FOXO3, a factor opposing certain FOXM1 activities, to promote cell survival and stress resistance. Thus, PMLIV affects the balance of FOXO3 and FOXM1 transcriptional programs by acting on discrete gene subsets to favour both growth inhibition and survival. Interestingly, PMLIV‐specific knockdown mimicked ectopic expression vis‐à‐vis loss of proliferative ability and self‐renewal, but also led to loss of survival ability as shown by increased apoptosis. We propose that divergent or similar effects on cell physiology may be elicited by high or low PMLIV levels dictated by other concurrent genetic or epigenetic cancer cell states that may additionally account for its disparate effects in various cancer types

A Practical Taxonomy of TAS-related Usecase Scenarios

This paper proposes a taxonomy of experimental usecase scenarios to facilitate research into trustworthy autonomous systems (TAS). Unable to identify an open-access repository of usecases to support our research, the project team embarked on development of an online library where fellow researchers would be able to find, share and recommend usecases to other practitioners in the field. To organise the library’s content, we needed a taxonomy and, informed by a commitment to responsible research and innovation (RRI), we prioritised stakeholder involvement to shape its development. Conflict arose, however, between the project team’s objective—a rigorous taxonomy focused on surfacing genuine “benchmarks” that can be used to test a multiplicity of variables in a range of domains under differing experimental conditions—and stakeholder expectation that the library would provide details of particular studies and results. How then can we reconcile project requirements with stakeholder preferences? A practical solution has to be found

More Than Trust: Compliance in Instantaneous Human-robot Interactions

Compliance is when a human positivelyresponds to a request or a recommendation given by a system.For example, when prompted, providing your thumbprint foran automated biometric scanner at the airport or starting towatch a new TV show on a streaming service ‘we think youwill love’. In trust-related research, compliance is frequentlyused as a behavioural measure of trust. When evaluating thecompliance-trust association in experimental settings, typically,the participants agree, when asked, that they complied becausethey trusted the system. We developed three scenarios ininstantaneous settings where compliance with an instructiondelivered by a robot would typically be ascribed to trust.However, rather than asking, ‘Did you trust?’, we asked, ‘Whydid you comply?’ In a thematic analysis of responses, wediscovered robot design characteristics and sources not relatedto the design that persuade humans to comply with instructionsdelivered by a robot.</p