Culturally valuable minority crops provide a succession of floral resources for flower visitors in traditional orchard gardens

Agricultural intensification typically has detrimental effects on pollinator communities, but diverse cropping systems that contain sequentially-flowering crops have the potential to benefit pollinators through the provision of additional floral resources. In this study we investigate the importance of cultivated flora for flower visitors in ten agricultural gardens in South Sinai, Egypt. Insect-flower interactions in gardens and unmanaged plots were surveyed across a four-month period in two environmentally distinct years (pre-flood and post-flood). Despite containing an equal abundance and diversity of wild plants as unmanaged habitat, gardens supported a higher abundance and diversity of flower visitors due to the additional presence of cultivated flora. Visitation networks exhibited dramatic intra-annual changes in composition, with cultivated plants becoming increasingly important in later months. Trends were highly conserved across 2 years despite highly contrasting rainfall. Several key crop species were strongly involved in shaping the structure of the networks, the majority of which were herbs with strong cultural significance (fennel, rosemary, mint) and grown incidentally alongside the primary orchard crops. Minority crops are frequently overlooked in agricultural systems due to their low economic value, but we show that they can have a dramatic influence upon the structure of visitation networks, increasing both pollinator abundance and diversity, and emphasising the link between cultural practices and biodiversity conservation

Flower proteome: changes in protein spectrum during the advanced stages of rose petal development

Flowering is a unique and highly programmed process, but hardly anything is known about the developmentally regulated proteome changes in petals. Here, we employed proteomic technologies to study petal development in rose ( Rosa hybrida ). Using two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, we generated stage-specific (closed bud, mature flower and flower at anthesis) petal protein maps with ca. 1,000 unique protein spots. Expression analyses of all resolved protein spots revealed that almost 30% of them were stage-specific, with ca. 90 protein spots for each stage. Most of the proteins exhibited differential expression during petal development, whereas only ca. 6% were constitutively expressed. Eighty-two of the resolved proteins were identified by mass spectrometry and annotated. Classification of the annotated proteins into functional groups revealed energy, cell rescue, unknown function (including novel sequences) and metabolism to be the largest classes, together comprising ca. 90% of all identified proteins. Interestingly, a large number of stress-related proteins were identified in developing petals. Analyses of the expression patterns of annotated proteins and their corresponding RNAs confirmed the importance of proteome characterization.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47485/1/425_2005_Article_1512.pd

In vitro biocompatibility testing of collagen-calcium phosphate composites using human bone derived osteoblasts

Human bone derived osteoblasts were cultured on collagen-calcium phosphate composites. The ability of the substrates to support cell attachment, proliferation and bone formation was assessed using histochemical staining for alkaline phosphatase activity and immunolocalisation of transforming growth factor-beta 1 and type 1 collagen. The effect of calcium phosphate phase and crystal size was investigated and the calcified samples compared with uncalcified collagen. Osteoblasts adhere to the collagen-calcium phosphate composites and express a mature osteoblast phenotype in vitro. Cell adhesion was greater on unmineralised collagen than on the mineralised composites, however, these cells were less differentiated. The presence of larger crystals seemed to have a detrimental effect on the cells, reducing proliferation and alkaline phosphatase activity. There was no discernible difference between the effect of hydroxyapatite and octacalcium phosphate on the cells

Isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in primary human bone derived osteoblasts

Osteoblasts play a critical role in bone formation and mineralization, a process that depends on optimal calcium and phosphate homeostasis. Transcellular transport of free calcium [Ca2+], uptake of inorganic phosphate (P(i)) and numerous other transport systems in osteoblasts depend on a low intracellular Na+:K+ ratio furnished by (Na++K+)-stimulated adenosine triphosphatase (Na+,K+-ATPase), an enzyme embedded in the plasma membrane. In this study, we have examined, for the first time, the expression of the catalytic α and regulatory β subunit isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in primary human bone derived osteoblasts using isoform specific monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies. Immunofluorescence was used to detect the α1, β1 and β2 isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in dispersed osteoblasts. Laser scanning confocal microscopy also revealed an abundance of Na+,K+-ATPase isoforms in subcellular compartments. The existence of α1, β1 and β2 suggests that at least two major isozyme combinations of Na+,K+-ATPase are present in human bone (α1β1,α1β2)

Isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in primary human bone derived osteoblasts

Osteoblasts play a critical role in bone formation and mineralization, a process that depends on optimal calcium and phosphate homeostasis. Transcellular transport of free calcium [Ca2+], uptake of inorganic phosphate (P(i)) and numerous other transport systems in osteoblasts depend on a low intracellular Na+:K+ ratio furnished by (Na++K+)-stimulated adenosine triphosphatase (Na+,K+-ATPase), an enzyme embedded in the plasma membrane. In this study, we have examined, for the first time, the expression of the catalytic α and regulatory β subunit isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in primary human bone derived osteoblasts using isoform specific monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies. Immunofluorescence was used to detect the α1, β1 and β2 isoforms of Na+,K+-ATPase in dispersed osteoblasts. Laser scanning confocal microscopy also revealed an abundance of Na+,K+-ATPase isoforms in subcellular compartments. The existence of α1, β1 and β2 suggests that at least two major isozyme combinations of Na+,K+-ATPase are present in human bone (α1β1,α1β2)