Impact of biotic and abiotic factors on lac production and peoples’ livelihood improvement in India-An overview

In India, Madhya Pradesh is the third largest lac producing state after Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, as they contribute 12, 16 and 60%, respectively in total country’s lac production. Lac is produced in ten out of eleven agro-climatic zones of Madhya Pradesh. In total lac production of the state, Baisakhi (Butea monosperma, inoculated in October-November) crop contributes 76% followed by 19% by Katki (Butea monosperma, inoculated in June-July), 3% by Aghani (Schleichera oleosa, inoculated in June-July) and 2% by Jethwi (Schleichera oleosa, inoculated in January-February). Ranchi was leading lac producing district followed by Simdega, Gumla, Khunti of Jharkhand and Seoni district of Madhya Pradesh. Increasing summer temperature up to 45 ?C, the country’s lac production was declined from 20,050 tons in 2003-04 to 16978 tons in 2014-15. In case of biotic factors, Tachardiaephagus tachardiae and Tetrastichus purpureus are the most abundant lac associated parasites and Eublemma amabilis and Pseudohypatopa pulverea are the most destructive key predators of lac insects. By combating these hindrances, lac cultivation generated an employment for 16-160 man days. Lac cultivation produces maximum gross return (Rs. 9,77,600) from 100 Kusum host plants, and the highest Benefit-Cost (6.80) ratio was recorded for Ber-kusumi (Ziziphus mauritiana- Schleichera oleosa) crop in Ranchi, Jharkhand. In this context, the study finds out obstacles in lac production of India and suggests some control measures to improve lac producing peoples’ livelihood. &nbsp

Efficacy of different herbicides against weed flora in Onion

ABSTRAC

Spatial surface-pattern analyses and boundary detection techniques applied in forest ecology

[EN] We review methods for uni- and multivariate surface pattern analysis and boundary detection used in forest ecology. A continuous surface pattern is defined as the locations of points (trees) in the space and the associated variable or variables. We illustrate useful methods to describe spatial patterns and infer the generating processes. We show the statistical basis and applied examples of univariate methods for binary (join counts) and quantitative variables (Moran and Geary correlograms, semivariograms, fractal dimension). We explain the calculus and interpretation of multivariate methods to describe surface patterns (Mantel test and correlogram) and their relationships with ordination methods. Finally, we show examples of techniques for boundary detection. Most analysed patterns corresponded to Pinus uncinata forests from the upper altitudinal limit in the Pyrenees or from a relict population. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each methodology and their applications in forest ecology.[ES] En este trabajo se revisan los métodos de análisis univariable y multivariable de los patrones de superficies y de detección de fronteras más utilizados en ecología forestal. El patrón de superficies es un patrón espacial continuo definido por las posiciones de los puntos (árboles) en el espacio y una o varias variables asociadas a cada punto. Se ilustran métodos útiles para describir patrones espaciales e inferir los procesos que los generaron. Se muestra el fundamento estadístico y ejemplos aplicados de métodos de análisis univariables para variables binarias (conteo contiguo) y cuantitativas (correlogramas de Moran y Geary, semivariogramas, dimensión fractal). Se detalla el cálculo e interpretación de métodos multivariables para la descripción de patrones de superficies (correlograma y test de Mantel) y su relación con los métodos de ordenación. Finalmente, se muestran ejemplos de métodos para la detección de fronteras. La mayor parte de los patrones reales analizados provienen de bosques de Pinus uncinata del límite altitudinal superior en los Pirineos o bien de una población relíctica. Se discuten las ventajas y desventajas de cada metodología y sus aplicaciones en ecología forestal.Los datos de Vinuesa se obtuvieron en el proyecto AMB95-0160 (CICyT).Peer reviewe

Distinct roles for Arabidopsis SUMO protease ESD4 and its closest homolog ELS1

SUMO conjugation affects a broad range of processes in Arabidopsis thaliana, including flower initiation, pathogen defense, and responses to cold, drought and salt stress. We investigated two sequence-related SUMO-specific proteases that are both widely expressed and show that they differ significantly in their properties. The closest homolog of SUMO protease ESD4, ESD4-LIKE SUMO PROTEASE 1 (ELS1, alternatively called AtULP1a) has SUMO-specific proteolytic activity, but is functionally distinct from ESD4, as shown by intracellular localization, mutant phenotype and heterologous expression in yeast mutants. Furthermore, we show that the growth defects caused by loss of ESD4 function are not due to increased synthesis of the stress signal salicylic acid, as was previously shown for a SUMO ligase, indicating that impairment of the SUMO system affects plant growth in different ways. Our results demonstrate that two A. thaliana SUMO proteases showing close sequence similarity have distinct in vivo functions

Slx8 removes Pli1-dependent protein-SUMO conjugates including SUMOylated Topoisomerase I to promote genome stability

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

A diterpene alkaloid from the needles of Taxus baccata

114-11

Nintedanib targets KIT D816V neoplastic cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells of systemic mastocytosis

The KIT D816V mutation is found in >80% of patients with systemic mastocytosis (SM) and is key to neoplastic mast cell (MC) expansion and accumulation in affected organs. Therefore, KIT D816V represents a prime therapeutic target for SM. Here, we generated a panel of patient-specific KIT D816V induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from patients with aggressive SM and mast cell leukemia to develop a patient-specific SM disease model for mechanistic and drug-discovery studies. KIT D816V iPSCs differentiated into neoplastic hematopoietic progenitor cells and MCs with patient-specific phenotypic features, thereby reflecting the heterogeneity of the disease. CRISPR/Cas9n-engineered KIT D816V human embryonic stem cells (ESCs), when differentiated into hematopoietic cells, recapitulated the phenotype observed for KIT D816V iPSC hematopoiesis. KIT D816V causes constitutive activation of the KIT tyrosine kinase receptor, and we exploited our iPSCs and ESCs to investigate new tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting KIT D816V. Our study identified nintedanib, a US Food and Drug Administration-approved angiokinase inhibitor that targets vascular endothelial growth factor receptor, platelet-derived growth factor receptor, and fibroblast growth factor receptor, as a novel KIT D816V inhibitor. Nintedanib selectively reduced the viability of iPSC-derived KIT D816V hematopoietic progenitor cells and MCs in the nanomolar range. Nintedanib was also active on primary samples of KIT D816V SM patients. Molecular docking studies show that nintedanib binds to the adenosine triphosphate binding pocket of inactive KIT D816V. Our results suggest nintedanib as a new drug candidate for KIT D816V-targeted therapy of advanced SM.Peer reviewe

Standards of pathology in the diagnosis of systemic mastocytosis: recommendations of the EU-US cooperative group

Pathology plays a central role in the diagnosis of systemic mastocytosis (SM), its delineation from other neoplasms and reactive conditions, and in monitoring of SM under therapy. The morphologic hallmark of SM is the accumulation of spindle-shaped, hypogranulated mast cells (MCs) in bone marrow (BM) and other extracutaneous tissues. Four of the 5 World Health Organization–defined diagnostic criteria (ie, compact MC aggregates [=major criterion]; atypical MC morphology; activating KIT point mutations; aberrant expression of CD25 and/or CD2 and/or CD30 in MCs [=minor criteria]) can be addressed by the pathologist. The final classification of SM variants as either BM mastocytosis, indolent SM, smoldering SM, aggressive SM (ASM), SM with an associated hematologic neoplasm (SM-AHN), or MC leukemia (MCL) has important prognostic significance and requires the integration of certain morphological, clinical, radiological, and biochemical data, referred to as B- and C-findings. Substantial diagnostic challenges may be posed to the pathologist and clinician especially in the so-called advanced SM variants, that is, ASM, MCL, and SM-AHN. In this article, updated recommendations of the EU-US Cooperative Group regarding standards of pathology in the diagnosis of SM, presented during the year 2020 Working Conference held in September in Vienna, are reported.T. I. George was supported by the ARUP Institute for Clinical and Experimental Pathology. K. Hartmann was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation, grant number 310030_207705. D. D. Metcalfe, J. J. Lyons, and M. Carter were supported by the Division of Intramural Research, National Institutes of Allergic and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health (NIH). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the NIH. P. Valent was supported by the Austrian Science Funds (FWF), projects F4701-B20 and F4704-B20

Visualization of proteomics data using R and bioconductor.

Data visualization plays a key role in high-throughput biology. It is an essential tool for data exploration allowing to shed light on data structure and patterns of interest. Visualization is also of paramount importance as a form of communicating data to a broad audience. Here, we provided a short overview of the application of the R software to the visualization of proteomics data. We present a summary of R's plotting systems and how they are used to visualize and understand raw and processed MS-based proteomics data.LG was supported by the European Union 7th Framework Program (PRIME-XS project, grant agreement number 262067) and a BBSRC Strategic Longer and Larger grant (Award BB/L002817/1). LMB was supported by a BBSRC Tools and Resources Development Fund (Award BB/K00137X/1). TN was supported by a ERASMUS Placement scholarship.This is the final published version of the article. It was originally published in Proteomics (PROTEOMICS Special Issue: Proteomics Data Visualisation Volume 15, Issue 8, pages 1375–1389, April 2015. DOI: 10.1002/pmic.201400392). The final version is available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pmic.201400392/abstract

Cooperation of Sumoylated Chromosomal Proteins in rDNA Maintenance

SUMO is a posttranslational modifier that can modulate protein activities, interactions, and localizations. As the GFP-Smt3p fusion protein has a preference for subnucleolar localization, especially when deconjugation is impaired, the nucleolar role of SUMO can be the key to its biological functions. Using conditional triple SUMO E3 mutants, we show that defects in sumoylation impair rDNA maintenance, i.e., the rDNA segregation is defective and the rDNA copy number decreases in these mutants. Upon characterization of sumoylated proteins involved in rDNA maintenance, we established that Top1p and Top2p, which are sumoylated by Siz1p/Siz2p, most likely collaborate with substrates of Mms21p to maintain rDNA integrity. Cohesin and condensin subunits, which both play important roles in rDNA stability and structures, are potential substrates of Mms21, as their sumoylation depends on Mms21p, but not Siz1p and Siz2p. In addition, binding of cohesin and condensin to rDNA is altered in the mms21-CH E3-deficient mutant