Deep sequencing of Suppression Subtractive Hybridisation drought and recovery libraries of the non-model crop Trifolium repens L.

Open Access Journal; Published online: 23 Feb. 2017White clover is a short-lived perennial whose persistence is greatly affected by abiotic stresses, particularly drought. The aim of this work was to characterize its molecular response to water deficit and recovery following re-hydration to identify targets for the breeding of tolerant varieties. We created a white clover reference transcriptome of 16,193 contigs by deep sequencing (mean base coverage 387x) four Suppression Subtractive Hybridization (SSH) libraries (a forward and a reverse library for each treatment) constructed from young leaf tissue of white clover at the onset of the response to drought and recovery. Reads from individual libraries were then mapped to the reference transcriptome and processed comparing expression level data. The pipeline generated four robust sets of transcripts induced and repressed in the leaves of plants subjected to water deficit stress (6,937 and 3,142, respectively) and following re-hydration (6,695 and 4,897, respectively). Semi-quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to verify the expression pattern of 16 genes. The differentially expressed transcripts were functionally annotated and mapped to biological processes and pathways. In agreement with similar studies in other crops, the majority of transcripts up-regulated in response to drought belonged to metabolic processes, such as amino acid, carbohydrate, and lipid metabolism, while transcripts involved in photosynthesis, such as components of the photosystem and the biosynthesis of photosynthetic pigments, were up-regulated during recovery. The data also highlighted the role of raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFOs) and the possible delayed response of the flavonoid pathways in the initial response of white clover to water withdrawal. The work presented in this paper is to our knowledge the first large scale molecular analysis of the white clover response to drought stress and re-hydration. The data generated provide a valuable genomic resource for marker discovery and ultimately for the improvement of white clover

Preliminary definitions for the sonographic features of synovitis in children

Objectives Musculoskeletal ultrasonography (US) has the potential to be an important tool in the assessment of disease activity in childhood arthritides. To assess pathology, clear definitions for synovitis need to be developed first. The aim of this study was to develop and validate these definitions through an international consensus process. Methods The decision on which US techniques to use, the components to be included in the definitions as well as the final wording were developed by 31 ultrasound experts in a consensus process. A Likert scale of 1-5 with 1 indicating complete disagreement and 5 complete agreement was used. A minimum of 80% of the experts scoring 4 or 5 was required for final approval. The definitions were then validated on 120 standardized US images of the wrist, MCP and tibiotalar joints displaying various degrees of synovitis at various ages. Results B-Mode and Doppler should be used for assessing synovitis in children. A US definition of the various components (i.e. synovial hypertrophy, effusion and Doppler signal within the synovium) was developed. The definition was validated on still images with a median of 89% (range 80-100) of participants scoring it as 4 or 5 on a Likert scale. Conclusions US definitions of synovitis and its elementary components covering the entire pediatric age range were successfully developed through a Delphi process and validated in a web-based still images exercise. These results provide the basis for the standardized US assessment of synovitis in clinical practice and research

Dinâmica de carbono em um solo cultivado com capim-Bermuda Tifton 85 e irrigado com esgoto tratado.

O objetivo desta pesquisa foi avaliar as variações no estoque e composição isotópica do C (?13C) no solo em uma pastagem de capim-Bermuda Tifton 85 (Lins/SP) irrigada com água e efluente secundário de esgoto tratado. O delineamento experimental foi o de blocos completos casualizados com seis tratamentos: SI (controle, sem irrigação e sem fertilização), A100 (água potável + 520 kg de N ha-1 ano-1); E0, E33, E66 e E100 (irrigação com esgoto tratado + 0, 33, 66 e 100% de 520 kg de N ha-1 ano-1). Amostras de efluente/água e solo foram coletadas no período de janeiro de 2004 a outubro de 2007. Os tratamentos receberam entre 420 a 1500 mm de esgoto tratado e água por ano, correspondendo a uma entrada pelo esgoto tratado de 640 a 2300 kg ha-1 ano-1 de C total (29% de C particulado total, 55% de C inorgânico dissolvido, 14% de C orgânico dissolvido). Utilizando como referência o estoque de C de SI, o menor decréscimo ocorreu em E33 (-1,2 Mg ha-1) e o maior em A100 (-7,9 Mg ha-1). As entradas de C orgânico pelo esgoto tratado não afetaram a composição isotópica do C do solo, sendo que o empobrecimento isotópico, de 0,7 a 1,2 ?, observado no solo dos tratamentos irrigados foi provavelmente resultante da desproteção física e mineralização de carbono orgânico, de plantas C3, remanescente no solo

Water distribution networks optimization considering unknown flow directions and pipe diameters

Water Distribution Networks (WDN) are present in a large number of industrial processes and urban centers. Reservoirs, pipes, nodes, loops, and pumps compose WDN and their design can be formulated as an optimization problem. The main objective is the minimization of the network cost, which depends on the pipe diameters and flow directions known a priori. However, in the design of new WDN in real industrial problems, flow directions are unknown. In the present paper, a disjunctive Mixed Integer NonLinear Programming (MINLP) model is proposed for the synthesis of WDN considering unknown flow directions. Two case studies are employed to test the model and global optimization techniques are used in its solution. Results show that the global optima WDN cost with the correct flow directions is obtained for the studied cases without the necessity of using additional software to calculate pressure drops and velocities in the pipes.The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development —CNPq (Brazil), the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel —Process 88881.171419/2018-01 –CAPES (Brazil) and the Ministério de Economía, Industria y Competitividad CTQ2016-77968-C3-02-P (FEDER, UE)

External codes for multiple unicast networks via interference alignment

We introduce a formal framework to study the multiple unicast problem for a coded network in which the network code is linear over a finite field and fixed. We show that the problem corresponds to an interference alignment problem over a finite field. In this context, we establish an outer bound for the achievable rate region and provide examples of networks where the bound is sharp. We finally give evidence of the crucial role played by the field characteristic in the problem.</p

HYBRID GENETIC ALGORITHM TO THE SYNTHESIS OF OPTIMAL HEAT EXCHANGER NETWORKS

In this paper a new systematic is proposed, interfacing Pinch Analysis and Genetic Algorithms (GA). Initially the optimal ∆Tmin is found by using a genetic algorithm. In a second step, with the optimal ∆Tmin, the pinch point is obtained, and the problem is divided in two regions, below and above it. The optimal HEN is obtained for each side of the pinch and the final HEN is achieved. An example from the literature was solved using the proposed systematic. Results show the applicability of the proposed methodology, obtaining a cost value lower than those presented in the literature

The Effects of Ketogenic Diet on Insulin Sensitivity and Weight Loss, Which Came First: The Chicken or the Egg?

The ketogenic diet (KD) is, nowadays, considered an interesting nutritional approach for weight loss and improvement in insulin resistance. Nevertheless, most of the studies available in the literature do not allow a clear distinction between its effects on insulin sensitivity per se, and the effects of weight loss induced by KDs on insulin sensitivity. In this review, we discuss the scientific evidence on the direct and weight loss mediated effects of KDs on glycemic status in humans, describing the KD’s biochemical background and the underlying mechanisms