223 research outputs found
Critical Issues in the Study of Magnesium Transport Systems and Magnesium Deficiency Symptoms in Plants
Magnesium (Mg) is the second most abundant cation in living cells. Over 300 enzymes are known to be Mg-dependent, and changes in the Mg concentration significantly affects the membrane potential. As Mg becomes deficient, starch accumulation and chlorosis, bridged by the generation of reactive oxygen species, are commonly found in Mg-deficient young mature leaves. These defects further cause the inhibition of photosynthesis and finally decrease the biomass. Recently, transcriptome analysis has indicated the transcriptinal downregulation of chlorophyll apparatus at the earlier stages of Mg deficiency, and also the potential involvement of complicated networks relating to hormonal signaling and circadian oscillation. However, the processes of the common symptoms as well as the networks between Mg deficiency and signaling are not yet fully understood. Here, for the purpose of defining the missing pieces, several problems are considered and explained by providing an introduction to recent reports on physiological and transcriptional responses to Mg deficiency. In addition, it has long been unclear whether the Mg deficiency response involves the modulation of Mg2+ transport system. In this review, the current status of research on Mg2+ transport and the relating transporters are also summarized. Especially, the rapid progress in physiological characterization of the plant MRS2 gene family as well as the fundamental investigation about the molecular mechanism of the action of bacterial CorA proteins are described
Evolution of Fluorine Abundances with the \nu-Process
We calculate the evolution of fluorine in the solar neighborhood with the
\nu-process of core-collapse supernovae, the results of which are in good
agreement with the observations of field stars. The \nu-process operating in
supernovae causes the [F/O] ratio to plateau at [O/H] < -1.2, followed by a
rapid increase toward [O/H] ~ -0.5 from the contribution of Asymptotic Giant
Branch stars. The plateau value of [F/O] depends on the neutrino luminosity
released by core-collapse supernovae and may be constrained by using future
observations of field stars at low metallicities. For globular clusters, the
handful of [F/O] measurements suggest that the relative contribution from
low-mass supernovae is smaller in these systems than in the field.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, Accepted for publication in ApJ
Star Formation Activity Beyond the Outer Arm II: Distribution and Properties of Star Formation
The outer Galaxy beyond the Outer Arm represents a promising opportunity to
study star formation in an environment vastly different from the solar
neighborhood. In our previous study, we identified 788 candidate star-forming
regions in the outer Galaxy (at galactocentric radii 13.5
kpc) based on Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mid-infrared (MIR)
all-sky survey. In this paper, we investigate the statistical properties of the
candidates and their parental molecular clouds derived from the Five College
Radio Astronomy Observatory (FCRAO) CO survey. We show that the molecular
clouds with candidates have a shallower slope of cloud mass function, a larger
fraction of clouds bound by self-gravity, and a larger density than the
molecular clouds without candidates. To investigate the star formation
efficiency (SFE) at different , we used two parameters: 1) the
fraction of molecular clouds with candidates and 2) the monochromatic MIR
luminosities of candidates per parental molecular cloud mass. We did not find
any clear correlation between SFE parameters and at of
13.5 kpc to 20.0 kpc, suggesting that the SFE is independent of environmental
parameters such as metallicity and gas surface density, which vary considerably
with . Previous studies reported that the SFE per year (SFE/yr)
derived from the star-formation rate surface density per total gas surface
density, HI plus H, decreases with increased . Our results might
suggest that the decreasing trend is due to a decrease in HI gas conversion to
H gas.Comment: 40 pages, 26 figures, 5 tables, accepted for publication in Ap
Visualization of precut DSAEK and pre-stripped DMEK donor corneas by intraoperative optical coherence tomography using the RESCAN 700
Background: To report the feasibility of intraoperative spectral domain optical coherence tomography (OCT) using the RESCAN 700 for the visualization and evaluation of precut Descemet\u27s stripping automated endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK) and prestripped Descemet\u27s membrane endothelial keratoplasty (DMEK) donor tissue. Methods: Precut DSAEK (n = 11), prestripped DMEK (n = 4) preserved in a viewing chamber were examined by intraoperative OCT. Wholly intact donor corneas for penetrating keratoplasty (PK) (n = 8) were also examined as controls. The obtained images were analyzed qualitatively for characteristics of each type of donor. Results: For each type of donor, characteristic images were consistently obtained by intraoperative OCT in both the front and back views through the viewing chamber. In wholly intact donors for PK, appearance of normal corneal curvature and stromal texture with high reflectivity of epithelium and endothelium cell layers were clearly visualized. In precut DSAEK donors, precut lines were characteristically visualized in addition to the intact donor cornea images. In prestripped DMEK donors, identical OCT images to the intact donor cornea were noted when observed from the anterior surface. However, peripheral partial detachments of Descemet\u27s membrane were characteristically observed in all prestripped DMEK donors when viewed from the back of the viewing chamber. Conclusion: Rapid visualization and rough evaluation of donor tissues for PK, precut DSAEK and prestripped DMEK donor corneas by intraoperative OCT was consistently possible through the viewing chamber. Therefore, this device may be used as an alternative of AS-OCT when the eyebank does not have their own AS-OCT. Although the peripheral detachment in DMEK donors are quite common and clinically non-problematic in DMEK donor quality and subsequent DMEK surgeries, it may be useful to distinguish between wholly intact PK donors and prestripped DMEK donors, enabling to prevent mix-ups of donors, especially when several different types of keratoplasties are scheduled in a same day in one operating theater. © 2016 Kobayashi et al
Post-disaster mental health and psychosocial support in the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake: a qualitative study
publishedVersio
- …