Identification and characterization of popular rice (Oryza sativa L.) varieties through chemical tests

Identification and characterization of crop varieties are crucial for ensuring the genetic purity of seeds. The present investigation was carried out to identify suitable chemical methods that are fast, reliable and easy for seed analysts, breeders and seed producers for identification of a variety. Twenty-five popular rice varieties in the seed supply chain of Tamil Nadu were subjected to phenol, modified phenol, NaOH, aroma, gelatinization temperature (alkali spreading value), GA3 and 2,4-D tests. The results of the experiment revealed that phenol and modified phenol tests changed the colour of TKM 9 and TRY 1 variety to brown but no colour change was observed in the variety I.W. Ponni variety. The NaOH test is useful for the identification of TKM 9 variety as it changed the colourless solution to red. GA3 and 2,4-D tests characterized the varieties based on the shoot growth into two and three groups respectively. However, all the variety lacked aroma and exhibited a high gelatinization temperature

Empirical and Numerical Analysis of Aerodynamic Drag on a Typical SUV Car Model at Different Locations of Vortex Generator

The aerodynamic characteristics are concerned with the fuel consumption rate and the stability of a high speed vehicle. The current research aims at studying the aerodynamic behavior of a typical SUV vehicle model mounted with the vortex generator (VG) at various linear positions with reference to its rear roof edge. The flow field around the vehicle model was observed at different wind speed conditions. It had been determined that at the instance of lower wind speed, the VG had minimal effects of aerodynamic drag on the vehicle body. However, at the instance of higher wind speed conditions the magnitude of the drag force decreased significantly. Vehicles move at higher speeds in the highways, location of the VG varied towards the upstream of the vehicle due to early flow separation. Therefore test were conducted at different wind speeds and locations of VG. The numerical simulation conduced in this study provides flow characteristics around the vehicle model for different wind speeds. The realizable k−ε model was used to simulate and validate the empirical results in an effective manner. By using experimental data, the drag was reduced by 9.04 % at the optimized VG location. The results revealed that the induced aerodynamic drag would determine the best car shape. This paper provides a better understanding of VG positioning for enhanced flow separation control

Effect Of Pre-freeze Addition Of Cysteine Hydrochloride And Reduced Glutathione On Post-thaw Sperm Parameters And Field Fertility In Jersey Crossbred Bull Semen

The present study was aimed to assess the effect of pre-freeze addition of cysteine hydrochloride and glutathione (GSH) on post-thaw sperm functional parameters and field fertility. The experimental bulls aged 4 to 6 years were used for the present study. A total of 36 ejaculates, 6 ejaculates from each bull (n=6) were collected and divided in to three groups, group I (control), group II (5mM cysteine hydrochloride) and group III (5mM GSH). The extended semen samples were added with @5mM additives, filled in mini straw using automatic filling and sealing machine (IMV, France) and cryopreserved in liquid nitrogen. Post-freeze seminal traits were also recorded after thawing at 37oC for 30 seconds. Post thaw livability was significantly (p< 0.01) higher in GSH group as compared to cysteine and control groups. The loss of acrosomal integrity was significantly (p< 0.01) lower in GSH group than cysteine and control groups. Analysis of variance for post thaw motility parameters (Forward progressive and Total motility) has revealed that significant difference (p< 0.05) between the good and poor freezer in the group II and there was no difference in the group I and III under study at 0 and 1 hr incubation period and at 2 hrs the group III and at 4 hrs group I has revealed significance difference (p< 0.05).The curvilinear velocity (VCL) and amplitude of lateral head displacement (ALH) values were significantly (P<0.05) higher in GSH than the cysteine and control groups. The Mitochondrial membrane potential (per cent) had no significance difference between the treatment groups. The present study indicates that the addition of cysteine and GSH suggestive of reducing lipid peroxide levels. The conception rate (%) in glutathione (68) added semen was significantly (p>0.05) higher than cysteine (58) and control (49) groups. The post-thaw sperm progressive forward motility (r=0.4) had moderate but, no significant correlation with conception rate. However post-thaw VSL (r=0.7), loss of acrosomal integrity (r=-0.8) and mitochondrial membrane potential (r=0.9) had significant (p< 0.05) correlation with field fertility. The present study indicates that the use of glutathione as semen additives may be recommended for improving semen quality and overall augmentation of pregnancy in cows. The present study suggests that pre-freeze addition of glutathione was found to be better than cysteine in improving sperm fertility

A multi-disciplinary perspective on emergent and future innovations in peer review [version 1; peer review: 2 approved with reservations]

Peer review of research articles is a core part of our scholarly communication system. In spite of its importance, the status and purpose of peer review is often contested. What is its role in our modern digital research and communications infrastructure? Does it perform to the high standards with which it is generally regarded? Studies of peer review have shown that it is prone to bias and abuse in numerous dimensions, frequently unreliable, and can fail to detect even fraudulent research. With the advent of Web technologies, we are now witnessing a phase of innovation and experimentation in our approaches to peer review. These developments prompted us to examine emerging models of peer review from a range of disciplines and venues, and to ask how they might address some of the issues with our current systems of peer review. We examine the functionality of a range of social Web platforms, and compare these with the traits underlying a viable peer review system: quality control, quantified performance metrics as engagement incentives, and certification and reputation. Ideally, any new systems will demonstrate that they out-perform current models while avoiding as many of the biases of existing systems as possible. We conclude that there is considerable scope for new peer review initiatives to be developed, each with their own potential issues and advantages. We also propose a novel hybrid platform model that, at least partially, resolves many of the technical and social issues associated with peer review, and can potentially disrupt the entire scholarly communication system. Success for any such development relies on reaching a critical threshold of research community engagement with both the process and the platform, and therefore cannot be achieved without a significant change of incentives in research environments

Microfluidic Chip for Molecular Amplification of Influenza A RNA in Human Respiratory Specimens

A rapid, low cost, accurate point-of-care (POC) device to detect influenza virus is needed for effective treatment and control of both seasonal and pandemic strains. We developed a single-use microfluidic chip that integrates solid phase extraction (SPE) and molecular amplification via a reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to amplify influenza virus type A RNA. We demonstrated the ability of the chip to amplify influenza A RNA in human nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) and nasopharyngeal swab (NPS) specimens collected at two clinical sites from 2008–2010. The microfluidic test was dramatically more sensitive than two currently used rapid immunoassays and had high specificity that was essentially equivalent to the rapid assays and direct fluorescent antigen (DFA) testing. We report 96% (CI 89%,99%) sensitivity and 100% (CI 95%,100%) specificity compared to conventional (bench top) RT-PCR based on the testing of n = 146 specimens (positive predictive value = 100%(CI 94%,100%) and negative predictive value = 96%(CI 88%,98%)). These results compare well with DFA performed on samples taken during the same time period (98% (CI 91%,100%) sensitivity and 96%(CI 86%,99%) specificity compared to our gold standard testing). Rapid immunoassay tests on samples taken during the enrollment period were less reliable (49%(CI 38%,61%) sensitivity and 98%(CI 98%,100%) specificity). The microfluidic test extracted and amplified influenza A RNA directly from clinical specimens with viral loads down to 103 copies/ml in 3 h or less. The new test represents a major improvement over viral culture in terms of turn around time, over rapid immunoassay tests in terms of sensitivity, and over bench top RT-PCR and DFA in terms of ease of use and portability

Proteostasis Dysregulation in Pancreatic Cancer

The most common form of pancreatic cancer, pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), has a dismal 5-year survival rate of less than 5%. Radical surgical resection, in combination with adjuvant chemotherapy, provides the best option for long-term patient survival. However, only approximately 20% of patients are resectable at the time of diagnosis, due to locally advanced or metastatic disease. There is an urgent need for the identification of new, specific, and more sensitive biomarkers for diagnosis, prognosis, and prediction to improve the treatment options for pancreatic cancer patients. Dysregulation of proteostasis is linked to many pathophysiological conditions, including various types of cancer. In this review, we report on findings relating to the main cellular protein degradation systems, the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS) and autophagy, in pancreatic cancer. The expression of several components of the proteolytic network, including E3 ubiquitinligases and deubiquitinating enzymes, are dysregulated in PDAC, which accounts for approximately 90% of all pancreatic malignancies. In the future, a deeper understanding of the emerging role of proteostasis in pancreatic cancer has the potential to provide clinically relevant biomarkers and new strategies for combinatorial therapeutic options to better help treat the patients.Peer reviewe

Justify your alpha

Benjamin et al. proposed changing the conventional “statistical significance” threshold (i.e.,the alpha level) from p ≤ .05 to p ≤ .005 for all novel claims with relatively low prior odds. They provided two arguments for why lowering the significance threshold would “immediately improve the reproducibility of scientific research.” First, a p-value near .05provides weak evidence for the alternative hypothesis. Second, under certain assumptions, an alpha of .05 leads to high false positive report probabilities (FPRP2 ; the probability that a significant finding is a false positive