Regeneration Ecology of Chrysopogon aucheri and Cymbopogon jwarancusa in Grasslands of Upland Balochistan , Pakistan

Field experiments were conducted to investigate the seed attributes, movements and fates of dispersal units, and seedling establishment of Chrysopogon aucheri and Cymbopogon jwarancusa in a representative grassland ecosystem in upland Balochistan, Pakistan. Cymbopogon jwarancusa had more filled and viable caryopses than Chrysopogon aucheri. Seeds (spikelets) of both species had similar morphological features. Chrysopogon aucheri had one dispersal unit, a triplet spikelet. Cymbopogon jwarancusa had four types of dispersal units: a paired spikelet, a partial raceme, an entire raceme, and a partial inflorescence comprised of two racemes. Paired spikelets and partial racemes of Cymbopogon jwarancusa had greater mean dispersal distances (94 and 101 cm) from the edge of the basal crown of marked plants to the ground surface than triplet spikelets of Chrysopogon aucheri (79 cm). Spikelets of Cymbopogon jwarancusa and Chrysopogon aucheri moved mean distances of 26 and 32 cm, respectively, on the ground surface before becoming trapped in a microhabitat. The mean angle of dispersal for both species was toward the northeast, according to the prevailing wind direction. An ant (Tica verona) was the only detected seed (spikelet) predator for Chrysopogon aucheri. Both species had a weakly persistent soil seed bank, with higher amounts of seeds found under plant canopies compared to open interspaces. The recruitment of Chrysopogon aucheri and Cymbopogon jwarancusa seedlings from the natural seed bank was monitored in seven different microhabitats under natural and above-normal precipitation regimes . Above-normal precipitation increased seedling recruitment for both species in all microhabitats. Cymbopogon jwarancusa had higher seedling densities than Chrysopogon auchfiri. Seedling survival and tiller development for both species were greatest in the gravel microhabitat in the natural precipitation treatment. Monsoon rains in late July enhanced emergence of both species from recently dispersed seeds but emerged seedlings did not survive to the end of the growing season. The field studies indicate that Cymbopogon jwarancusa has a greater regeneration potential than Chrysopogon aucheri in this grassland ecosystem in upland Balochistan. It may be difficult to increase the composition of Chrysopogon aucheri, the more desirable species in these grasslands, when using management techniques that rely on natural regeneration

Lipase inhibitory activity of chlorophyll <i>a</i>, isofucosterol and saringosterol isolated from chloroform fraction of <i>Sargassum thunbergii</i>

<div><p>Three compounds (chlorophyll <i>a</i>, isofucosterol and saringosterol) were isolated from chloroform fraction of <i>Sargassum thunbergii</i> extract. The three compounds had two- to fourfold lower lipase inhibitory activity than that of the CHCl₃:MeOH (C:M) (100:1) fraction (fraction I, 83.78% at 1 mg/mL). These results suggested that the high lipase inhibitory activity of fraction I was attributable to the actions of the three compounds. Therefore, <i>S. thunbergii</i> has potential for application as an anti-obesity agent.</p></div

Additional file 1 of Sex-specific disparities in disease activity scores among patients with axial spondyloarthritis and their implications for evaluating the response to tumor necrosis factor alpha inhibitor therapy

Supplementary Material

Sustained Water Oxidation with Surface- and Interface-Engineered WO₃/BiVO₄ Heterojunction Photoanodes

Photoelectrochemical water splitting is a promising way of producing green hydrogen from water by utilizing solar energy and a suitable semiconductor material. However, most of the semiconductor materials suffer from severe photocorrosion. To overcome this issue, we demonstrate that a stable and efficient photoanode can be achieved in a surface- and interface-engineered WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode with a conformal TiO2 protective layer and FeOOHNiOOH cocatalyst layer. Herein, a WO3/BiVO4 heterojunction photoanode was first fabricated by a combination of hydrothermal and solution drop-casting methods. A surface and interface of the photoanode was strategically engineered using an ultrathin TiO2 protective layer by atomic layer deposition and a subsequent FeOOHNiOOH cocatalyst layer by photoelectrochemical deposition to achieve a record photocurrent density up to 4.6 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs RHE with long-term photostability under simulated AM 1.5G light exposure. Therefore, this work provides an avenue for the fabrication of efficient photoanodes for photoelectrochemical water splitting

Purification of recombinant hGH under optimized conditions.

<p>(A) Scheme of His-hGH purification from <i>E. coli</i>. The arrow indicates the overall yield of hGH at each step in the purification process. (B) Purification of His-hGH. Elutions from each column were separated on a 4–12% SDS-polyacrylamide gel and analyzed by Coomassie blue staining. (C) Scheme of His-hGH purification from <i>E. coli</i>. (D) Purification of untagged hGH. Elutions were analyzed as in (B).</p

NB2-11 cell proliferation assay of purified hGH.

<p>Nb2-11 cells were arrested by serum deprivation and then incubated for 48 h in the presence of control hGH (□), His-hGH (▴), untagged hGH (○), or BSA (◆) at the indicated concentrations. Cell numbers were determined as described in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0056168#s2" target="_blank">Material and Methods</a>, and averages from three independent experiments are graphed and presented as mean ± standard error.</p

Characterization of purified hGH.

<p>(A) RP-HPLC chromatograms of purified hGH. Separation was performed by isocratic elution using trifluoroacetic acid-water-acetonitrile. Vertical axis units represent mV detector output. (B) Analytical size exclusion chromatography (SEC) of purified hGH. (C) MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis of purified intact hGH. Spectra were acquired over the <i>m/z</i> range 15000–45000 Da in the positive ion mode.</p

Circular dichroism (CD) analysis of purified hGH.

<p>The CD spectra of control hGH, His-hGH and untagged hGH were scanned in the UV range 190–250 nm.</p

Solubilization of hGH under various extraction conditions.

<p>The solubility of hGH, expressed either at 37°C or 16°C, was determined by evaluating the effects of Triton X-100 (A), Tween 20 (B), NaCl (C), KCl (D), buffer volumes (E), and β-mercaptoethanol (F). The levels of soluble hGH were quantified and graphed as described in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0056168#pone-0056168-g001" target="_blank">Figure 1</a>.</p

Solubility comparison of recombinant hGH expressed at different temperatures.

<p>(A) The levels of insoluble versus soluble hGH upon induction at various temperatures. <i>E. coli</i> BL21 cells expressing recombinant hGH were grown to an OD₆₀₀ of 0.6 at 37°C and then induced at the indicated temperatures. Cells were lysed, and the pelleted (P) and soluble (S) fractions were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and Coomassie blue staining (upper panel). The levels of soluble hGH were quantified and graphed by a densitometry assay using ImageQuant™ TL 5.2 analysis software (<i>bottom</i>). The values are plotted as mean ± standard error. (B) Increased solubility of hGH expressed at reduced temperature. Protein samples obtained with induction at either 37°C (<i>upper</i>) or 16°C (<i>bottom</i>) were separated on a 4–12% SDS-PAGE and visualized by Coomassie blue staining. U, uninduced; I, induced; L, lysis; P, pelleted; S, soluble; asterisk; lysozyme.</p