Homogeneous bubble nucleation limit of mercury under the normal working conditions of the planned European Spallation Source

In spallation neutron sources, liquid mercury is the subject of big thermal and pressure shocks, upon adsorbing the proton beam. These changes can cause unstable bubbles in the liquid, which can damage the structural material. While there are methods to deal with the pressure shock, the local temperature shock cannot be avoided. In our paper we calculated the work of the critical cluster formation (i.e. for mercury micro-bubbles) together with the rate of their formation (nucleation rate). It is shown that the homogeneous nucleation rates are very low even after adsorbing several proton pulses, therefore the probability of temperature induced homogeneous bubble nucleation is negligible.Comment: 22 Pages, 11 figures, one of them is colour, we plan to publish it in Eur. Phys. J.

Effect of water deficit and sowing date on oil and protein contents in soybean co-inoculated with Azospirillum brasilense.

The soybean chemical composition is strongly influenced by genetic factors, as well as their interaction with the environment and management practices. Among the environmental factors, water deficit and temperature are those that most contribute to modify the chemical composition of beans, especially oil and protein contents. The present study aimed to assess the effects of co-inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense on soybean oil and protein contents. Two field experiments were carried out on different sowing dates. The design consisted of randomized blocks, in a split-split-plot arrangement, with four replications, including two irrigation depths (25 % and 100 % of the ETc), two inoculation methods [Bradyrhizobium japonicum (strainsSemia 5079 and Semia 5080) and Azospirillum brasilense (strains AbV5 and AbV6 + Bradyrhizobium japonicum)] and two cultivars (ANTA 82 and TMG 132). The co-inoculation did not affect the oil and protein contents of beans for any of the assessed management conditions. The water deficit in the reproductive stage, combined with the sowing dates, altered the oil and protein contents in both the assessed cultivars, showing, respectively, a higher average protein and oil content in the beans for the cultivars TMG 132 and ANTA 82

Co-inoculation with Azospirillum brasilense in soybean cultivars subjected to water deficit.

Título em português: Coinoculação com Azospirillum brasilense em cultivares de soja submetidas a deficit hídric

Pkhd1

Autosomal-recessive polycystic kidney disease (ARPKD; MIM #263200) is a severe, hereditary, hepato-renal fibrocystic disorder that causes early childhood morbidity and mortality. Mutations in the polycystic kidney and hepatic disease 1 (PKHD1) gene, which encodes the protein fibrocystin/polyductin complex (FPC), cause all typical forms of ARPKD. Several mouse lines carrying diverse, genetically engineered disruptions in the orthologous Pkhd1 gene have been generated, but none expresses the classic ARPKD renal phenotype. In the current study, we characterized a spontaneous mouse Pkhd1 mutation that is transmitted as a recessive trait and causes cysticliver (cyli), similar to the hepato-biliary disease in ARPKD, but which is exacerbated by age, sex, and parity. We mapped the mutation to Chromosome 1 and determined that an insertion/deletion mutation causes a frameshift within Pkhd1 exon 48, which is predicted to result in a premature termination codon (UGA). Pkhd

Magneto-optical properties of MnBiAl thin films

Mn-Bi-Al thin films. were produced by sequential evaporation of the constituents, followed by an anneal at 300 °C. The temperature and composition dependencies of the Kerr rotation angle, absolute reflectivity, and magnetic anisotropy were measured. The results show that, up to 30 at. % Al concentration, the thin films retain the pure MnBi hexagonal structure. Further, for suitable Al content, the films have the same large Kerr rotation as MnBi. Pure MnBi films exhibit perpendicular anisotropy at room temperature and in-plane anisotropy for temperatures below 142 K. In contrast,. the Al-doped films prepared here have perpendicular anisotropy down to at least 85 K. The increased coercivities of the Al-doped films are attributed to the occupation of grain-boundary and interstitial sites of the NiAs-type hexagonal structure by the Al-atoms

Effect of drought and sowing time on content and oil and protein yields in soybean cultivars in Tocantins.

A composição química dos grãos de soja é determinada por fatores genéticos e ambientais. A disponibilidade hídrica, aliada à época de semeadura, são fatores ambientais de maior impacto na produção e definição da qualidade dos grãos. Objetivou-se neste estudo avaliar o teor e rendimento kg há-1 de óleo e proteína em grãos de soja, submetidos à déficit hídrico em duas épocas de semeadura (10/07 e 10/12/2014). Em cada época de semeadura, foi realizado um experimento em casa de vegetação na Universidade Federal do Tocantins, município de Palmas. O delineamento experimental utilizado em cada experimento foi inteiramente casualizado em esquema fatorial 4x2 com quatro repetições, representado por quatro sistemas de manejo (déficit hídrico nas fases de floração, enchimento do grão e maturação e sem déficit hídrico) e duas cultivares (TMG132RR e TMG1288RR). Os sistemas de manejo foram impostos com variações de 30% (déficit hídrico) a 70% (sem déficit hídrico) da água disponível no solo. Foi observado que os sistemas de manejo de irrigação e épocas de semeadura afetaram o rendimento de óleo e proteína. As épocas de semeadura tiveram maior influência nos teores de óleo e proteína do que os sistemas de manejo de irrigação. Os maiores teores de óleo e proteína foram observados na primeira e segunda épocas de semeadura respectivamente. A floração e o enchimento de grãos foram mais sensíveis ao déficit hídrico. As cultivares de soja avaliadas apresentaram resposta similar quanto ao déficit hídrico.The chemical composition of the soybeans grain is determined by genetic and environmental factors. The water availability, coupled with sowing, are environmental factors with the greatest impact in the production and definition of the quality of grain. The aim of this study was to evaluate the content and yield kg-1 for oil and protein in soybeans, submitted to water deficit in two sowing seasons (10/07 and 10/12/2014). In each sowing time, an experiment was conducted in a greenhouse at the Federal University of Tocantins, Palmas municipality. The experimental design used in each experiment was completely randomized in a 4x2 factorial design with four replications, represented by four management systems (water deficit in the flowering stage, grain filling and maturation and without water deficit) and two cultivars (TMG132RR and TMG1288RR). The management were imposed systems with variations of 30% (water deficit) to 70% (without water deficit) of available soil water. It was observed that the irrigation management systems and sowing dates affected the yield of oil and protein. Sowing dates had the greatest influence on levels of oil and protein than irrigation management systems. The highest levels of oil and protein were observed in the first and second sowing dates respectively. The evaluated soybean cultivars showed similar response as the water deficit.Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias y Forestale

Runx3 and T-box proteins cooperate to establish the transcriptional program of effector CTLs

Activation of naive CD8+ T cells with antigen induces their differentiation into effector cytolytic T lymphocytes (CTLs). CTLs lyse infected or aberrant target cells by exocytosis of lytic granules containing the pore-forming protein perforin and a family of proteases termed granzymes. We show that effector CTL differentiation occurs in two sequential phases in vitro, characterized by early induction of T-bet and late induction of Eomesodermin (Eomes), T-box transcription factors that regulate the early and late phases of interferon (IFN) γ expression, respectively. In addition, we demonstrate a critical role for the transcription factor Runx3 in CTL differentiation. Runx3 regulates Eomes expression as well as expression of three cardinal markers of the effector CTL program: IFN-γ, perforin, and granzyme B. Our data point to the existence of an elaborate transcriptional network in which Runx3 initially induces and then cooperates with T-box transcription factors to regulate gene transcription in differentiating CTLs

Physiological and biophysical alterations in maize plants caused by Colletotrichum graminicola infection verified by OJIP study.

Anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum graminicola (Ces.) Wils is among the most aggressive maize diseases worldwide, considerably hindering crop productivity. To investigate the responses underlying the host-pathogen interaction involved in anthracnose infection, we conducted two feld experiments in some of the main grain producing areas of the State of Tocantins, in Brazil. Four maize hybrids (with diferential tolerance to C. graminicola) were sown in February and March, 2017. Chlorophyll fuorescence measures were performed according to the OJIP protocol; additionally, SPAD readings were conducted and productivity components were assessed. Inoculation with the fungus spore suspension afected the response curve of the chlorophyll fuorescence transient, SPAD index, and productivity components. Anthracnose stalk rot caused 20-25% reduction in grain weight, 6?8% reduction in maize ear size, and 20-23% reduction in ear weight. Furthermore, plants experiencing C. graminicola rot showed reduced SPAD index and a 24-34% reduction in the activity indicator of PSII (PITotal). These changes in the photosynthetic apparatus were successfully observed via chlorophyll fuorescence measurements.bitstream/item/225788/1/tpp-2021.pdfFirst online