Feasibility of lowering soybean planting density without compromising nitrogen fixation and yield

Adjusting soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] density can be critical to reduce inter-plant competition for water, nutrients, and sunlight, and to increase intercepted radiation, photosynthesis, and biomass production. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of soybean-population density on soybean nodulation, plant nutrient status, yield, and grain quality. Three field experiments were performed in southern Brazil with soybean cultivar BRS 284, of indeterminate growth type and maturity group 6.6, at 80,000 and 320,000 plants ha–1. For N supply plants were dependent either largely on biological fixation of atmospheric N—with a naturalized population of Bradyrhizobium or inoculated with Bradyrhizobium japonicum strain CNPSo 2050—or largely on N fertilizer—200 kg N ha–1, split-applied at sowing and R1 growth stage. The lower plant density resulted in increased nodulation parameters (number and mass), but plant nutritional status—evaluated by the diagnosis and recommendation integrated system (DRIS) method—in general was not affected. Seed oil content increased by 3.4%, but protein decreased by 4.5% at the lower plant density. The N source affected nodulation, but not nutritional status or grain yield. Although plant density was reduced by 75%, yield decreased by 16% during only one of the three cropping seasons. These results indicate a high plasticity of soybean to adapt photosynthesis and N fixation to different plant densities. Furthermore, planting at the lower density has the advantages of lower input costs and less susceptibility to environmental and plant nutritional stresses.Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos VegetalesFil: De Luca, Marcos Javier. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales; Argentina. Universidade Estadual de Londrina. Departamento Microbiologia; Brasil. Embrapa Soja; BrasilFil: Nogueira, Marco Antonio. Embrapa Soja; Brasil. Universidade Estadual de Londrina. Departamento Microbiologia; BrasilFil: Hungria, Mariangela. Embrapa Soja; Brasil. Universidade Estadual de Londrina. Departamento Microbiologia; Brasi

Editorial: the thyroid and Covid-19, volume II

Coronaviruses are enveloped RNA viruses of wide distribution in humans associated with mild respiratory disease. By contrast, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) is one of those coronaviruses that can cause fatal illness. In late December 2019, an outburst of pneumonia of unknown cause in Wuhan, China, was identified as the early stage of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak, and the SARS-CoV-2 was found responsible (1). Two main proteins expressed by SARS-CoV-2 are essential for the manifestations of COVID-19. The first is the transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2), which acts on the transcription and replication of the virus. The second is the Spike protein found on the surface of viral particles, which binds to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) in tissue cells and is a determinant for transmitting infection. Therefore, SARS-CoV-2 infection depends on two steps: ACE2 receptor recognition via Spike protein and cell membrane fusion via transmembrane protease (2). ACE2 is expressed in different tissues, and the thyroid is no exception (3). It has been shown that the thyroid gland has high expression levels of ACE2, which may explain the direct effects on the thyroid parenchyma, making it more susceptible to viral attack (3). SARS-CoV-2 infection can lead to thyroid diseases by severely destroying parafollicular and follicular epithelial cells, leading to follicle rupture. As a result, SARS-CoV-2 virus infections are associated with inflammatory thyroid diseases such as subacute thyroiditis, Graves’ disease, thyrotoxicosis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, and euthyroid patient syndrome (4). As regards thyroid cancer, the COVID-19 pandemic has also affected its traditional management, and the consequences of this strategic change are largely unknown. Furthermore, it is intriguing that if the virus attacks the thyroid gland, it can also modulate thyroid cancer behavior (5).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Evolutionary study of verbal fluency in normal school-age children, belonging to two different socioeconomic levels

Se entiende por fluidez verbal el número de palabras que un sujeto puede produciren un período de tiempo estipulado y dentro de categorías especificadas en lademanda. Se evaluaron 220 niños de 1º ,4º y 6º grado provenientes de dos nivelessocioeconómicos diferentes. Las categorías comprendieron nombres propios,animales, frutas, verduras y palabras que tuvieran las letras F, A y S comoiniciales. El número de palabras correctamente producidas es el indicador delgrado de fluidez verbal y se lo comparó entre las diferentes categorías, segúnedad/grado escolar y nivel socio económico. En el análisis lingüístico seagruparon las palabras en base a categorías lingüísticas. Simultáneamente seadministraron la prueba de Vocabulario y pruebas ejecutivas como el TrailMaking A Y B, dibujo del Reloj, Dígitos y la prueba WMT. A fin de evaluar larelación con el lenguaje, las funciones ejecutivas y el grado de compromiso con latarea. Se evaluaron los resultados estadísticamente y se establecieroncorrelaciones. Fueron coincidentes con aquellos disponibles de otros estudios.Verbal fluency is defined as the number of words produced pertaining to a selected category, within a limited period of time. 202 children of school age divided in 1st, 4th and 6th grades, from two different socioeconomic levels were evaluated. Phonological (F, A, S) and Semantic categories were tested (names, animals, fruits and vegetables) together with Vocabulary, Executive tests (Trail Making A & B, Clock Drawing, Digits) and the Word Memory Test (WMT) were also performed. Data were statistically treated in the usual way, and a linguistic evaluation was also performed. All categories and tests were compared within each category in relationship with age and socioeconomic leves. Correlatios between categories were also performed. Results were coincident with previous available dataFil: Nogueira, Guillermo Javier. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Nogueira, Florencia. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Demagistri, Maria Silvina. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Olivera Mizgan, Sebastián. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología; ArgentinaFil: Rubiales, Josefina. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología. Centro de Investigación en Procesos Básicos, Metodologías y Educación; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Mar del Plata; ArgentinaFil: Lopez, Soledad Susana. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología. Centro de Investigación en Procesos Básicos, Metodologías y Educación; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Naveira, Liliana. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Psicología; Argentin

Reorganization of perineuronal nets in the medial Preoptic Area during the reproductive cycle in female rats

Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are aggregations of extracellular matrix associated with specific neuronal populations in the central nervous system, suggested to play key roles in neural development, synaptogenesis and experience-dependent synaptic plasticity. Pregnancy and lactation are characterized by a dramatic increase in neuroplasticity. However, dynamic changes in the extracellular matrix associated with maternal circuits have been mostly overlooked. We analyzed the structure of PNNs in an essential nucleus of the maternal circuit, the medial preoptic area (mPOA), during the reproductive cycle of rats, using the Wisteria floribunda (WFA) label. PNNs associated to neurons in the mPOA start to assemble halfway through gestation and become highly organized prior to parturition, fading through the postpartum period. This high expression of PNNs during pregnancy appears to be mediated by the influence of estrogen, progesterone and prolactin, since a hormonal simulated-gestation treatment induced the expression of PNNs in ovariectomized females. We found that PNNs associated neurons in the mPOA express estrogen receptor α and progesterone receptors, supporting a putative role of reproductive hormones in the signaling mechanisms that trigger the assembly of PNNs in the mPOA. This is the first report of PNNs presence and remodeling in mPOA during adulthood induced by physiological variables

SPH-ALE Scheme for Weakly Compressible Viscous Flow with a Posteriori Stabilization

[Abstract] A highly accurate SPH method with a new stabilization paradigm has been introduced by the authors in a recent paper aimed to solve Euler equations for ideal gases. We present here the extension of the method to viscous incompressible flow. Incompressibility is tackled assuming a weakly compressible approach. The method adopts the SPH-ALE framework and improves accuracy by taking high-order variable reconstruction of the Riemann states at the midpoints between interacting particles. The moving least squares technique is used to estimate the derivatives required for the Taylor approximations for convective fluxes, and also provides the derivatives needed to discretize the viscous flux terms. Stability is preserved by implementing the a posteriori Multi-dimensional Optimal Order Detection (MOOD) method procedure thus avoiding the utilization of any slope/flux limiter or artificial viscosity. The capabilities of the method are illustrated by solving one- and two-dimensional Riemann problems and benchmark cases. The proposed methodology shows improvements in accuracy in the Riemann problems and does not require any parameter calibration. In addition, the method is extended to the solution of viscous flow and results are validated with the analytical Taylor–Green, Couette and Poiseuille flows, and lid-driven cavity test cases.This research was funded by Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades of the Spanish Government Grant #RTI2018-093366-B-I00, by the Consellería de Educación e Ordenación Universitaria of the Xunta de Galicia (grant#ED431C 2018/41)Xunta de Galicia; ED431C 2018/4

Very high-order method on immersed curved domains for finite difference schemes with regular Cartesian grids

A new very high-order technique for solving conservation laws with curved boundary domains is proposed. A Finite Difference scheme on Cartesian grids is coupled with an original ghost cell method that provide accurate approximations for smooth solutions. The technology is based on a specific least square method with restrictions that enables to handle general Robin conditions. Several examples in two-dimensional geometries are presented for the unsteady Convection–Diffusion equation and the Euler equations. A fifth-order WENO scheme is employed with matching fifth-order reconstruction at the boundaries. Arbitrary high-order reconstruction for smooth flows is achievable independently of the underlying differential equation since the method works as a black-box dedicated to boundary condition treatment.This work has been partially supported by the Ministerio de Economı́a y Competitividad (grant #DPI2015- 68431-R) and #RTI2018-093366-B-I00 of the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades of the Spanish Government and by the Consellerı́a de Educación e Ordenación Universitaria of the Xunta de Galicia (grants #GRC2014/039 and #ED431C 2018/41), cofinanced with FEDER, Spain funds and the Universidade da Coruña, Spain. J. Fernandez-Fidalgo gratefully acknowledges the contributions of the IACOBUS Program, Spain and the INDITEX-UDC, Spain grant that have partially financed the present work. S. Clain acknowledges the financial support by FEDER – Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional, Portugal, through COMPETE 2020 – Programa Operational Fatores de Competitividade, and the National Funds through FCT — Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal, project No. UID/FIS/04650/2013 and project No. POCI-01-0145-FEDER-02811

MLS-SPH-ALE: A Review of Meshless-FV Methods and a Unifying Formulation for Particle Discretizations

Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature.[Abstract:] Mesh-based and particle methods were conceived as two different discretization strategies to solve partial differential equations. In the last two decades computational methods have diversified and a myriad of hybrid formulations that combine elements of these two approaches have been developed to solve Computational fluid dynamics problems. In this work we present a review about the meshless-FV family of methods, an analysis is carried out showing that the MLS-SPH-ALE method can be considered as a general formulation from which a set of particle-based methods can be recovered. Moreover, we show the relations between the MLS-SPH-ALE method and the finite volume method. The MLS-SPH-ALE method is a versatile particle-based method that was developed to circumvent the consistency issues of particle methods caused by the use of the kernel approximation. The MLS-SPH-ALE method is developed from the differential equation in ALE form using the partition unity property which is automatically fulfilled by the Moving Least Squares approximation.The authors gratefully acknowledge the support provided by the [Grant PID2021-125447OB-I00] funded by MCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033 and by “ERDF A way of making Europe”, and the funds by [Grant TED2021–129805B-I00] funded by MCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033 and by the “European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR”. They also acknowledge the funding provided by the Xunta de Galicia (Grant #ED431C 2022/06). J. Fernández-Fidalgo acknowledges the support provided by “Ayudas para la recualificación del sistema universitario español para 2021–2023. Modalidad Margarita Salas RSU.UDC.MS20" by the Ministerio de Universidades of the Spanish Government and European Union through the NextGenerationEU funds.Xunta de Galicia; ED431C 2022/0

Social Learning for Facilitating Dialogue and Understanding of the Ecosystem Services Approach: Lessons from a Cross-Border Experience in the Alboran Marine Basin

Social learning (SL) appears to have considerable potential to enhance the impact of the ecosystem services approach (ESA) discourse on policy and society. However, empirical research to better understand the processes that support SL, the effects it generates, and the conditions that enable such learning is limited. This study assesses the ability of SL to enhance dialogue and understanding of the ESA to support transformative social change in governance practice in the Alboran Marine Basin. To do so, we conducted a specifically designed SL process oriented towards the ESA as a governance approach in this marine region. The SL process was developed through three interlinked workshops involving scientists, decision-makers and local users from Spain and Morocco, the two countries that share the governance of this social-ecological system. The results revealed that the SL process progressively facilitated (i) a more inclusive and constructive ecosystem services dialogue, (ii) a better understanding of the social-ecological system in which the actors were embedded, (iii) an enhanced recognition of science-policy-society complementarities to address sustainability issues, and (iv) a gradual social transformation towards more sustainable and equitable governance. Via the SL process, a variety of factors were identified as contributing to the creation of four relevant conditions that facilitated its successful operationalisation. These conditions included (i) the generation of trust and shared understanding, (ii) the facilitation of knowledge exchanges between actor groups across frontiers, (iii) the promotion of more democratic participation, and (iv) the co-production of practical outcomes. These contextual insights provided empirical evidence of the prominent role SL can play to enhance dialogue and understanding of the ESA for supporting its adoption as governance practice. On this basis, it is argued that operationalising SL in those processes focused on making the ESA relevant to policy and society is pivotal to its implementation in governance practice

Inovação tecnológica, padrões de difusão e diversificação: uma resenha da literatura

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Maize growth promotion by inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense and metabolites of Rhizobium tropici enriched on lipo-chitooligosaccharides (LCOs)

There is an increasing interest in the development and use of inoculants carrying plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) in crops of agronomic interest. The great majority of the inoculants commercialized worldwide contain rhizobia for legume crops, but the use of PGPB as Azospirillum spp. for non-legume is expanding, as well as of inoculants combining microorganisms and microbial metabolites. In this study we evaluated the effects of inoculants containing Azospirillum brasilense with or without metabolites of Rhizobium tropici strain CIAT 899 highly enriched in lipo-chitooligosaccharides (LCOs) in six field experiments performed for three summer crop seasons in Brazil with maize (Zea mays L.). Inoculants and metabolites were applied either at sowing by seed inoculation, or by leaf spray at the V3 stage of plant growth. Improvement in shoot dry weight (SDW) and total N accumulated in shoots (TNS) by single, but especially by dual inoculation was observed in some of the experiments. Statistically significant increases in grain yield in relation to the non-inoculated control were observed in five out of six experiments when maize was inoculated with Azospirillum supplied with enriched metabolites of R. tropici applied by seed or leaf spray inoculation. The results give strength to the development of a new generation of inoculants carrying microorganisms and microbial molecules