Intercropping Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis L.) with maize, oilseed rape and onion during rabi season

A study was conducted at Ludhiana (Punjab) during rabi season to evaluate the performanceof Japanese mint (Mentha arvensis) as an intercrop with maize (Zea mays), oilseed rape (Brassicanapus) and onion (Allium cepa).  The fresh herb yield was highest (204.3 q ha-1) in sole Japanesemint treatment which was statistically on par with Japanese mint + one row of onion (192.4q ha-1).  Oil yield was highest in sole Japanese mint (163.1 l ha-1).  Japanese mint equivalentoil yield was highest in Japanese mint + one row of onion (273.0 l ha-1) which was on parwith Japanese mint + two rows of onion (265.6 l ha-1).  The gross returns were also highestin Japanese mint + one row of onion (Rs 65,520 ha-1). &nbsp

Arousal of Cancer-Associated Stroma: Overexpression of Palladin Activates Fibroblasts to Promote Tumor Invasion

Background: Cancer-associated fibroblasts, comprised of activated fibroblasts or myofibroblasts, are found in the stroma surrounding solid tumors. These myofibroblasts promote invasion and metastasis of cancer cells. Mechanisms regulating the activation of the fibroblasts and the initiation of invasive tumorigenesis are of great interest. Upregulation of the cytoskeletal protein, palladin, has been detected in the stromal myofibroblasts surrounding many solid cancers and in expression screens for genes involved in invasion. Using a pancreatic cancer model, we investigated the functional consequence of overexpression of exogenous palladin in normal fibroblasts in vitro and its effect on the early stages of tumor invasion. Principal Findings: Palladin expression in stromal fibroblasts occurs very early in tumorigenesis. In vivo, concordant expression of palladin and the myofibroblast marker, alpha smooth muscle actin (a-SMA), occurs early at the dysplastic stages in peri-tumoral stroma and progressively increases in pancreatic tumorigenesis. In vitro introduction of exogenous 90 kD palladin into normal human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) induces activation of stromal fibroblasts into myofibroblasts as marked by induction of a-SMA and vimentin, and through the physical change of cell morphology. Moreover, palladin expression in the fibroblasts enhances cellular migration, invasion through the extracellular matrix, and creation of tunnels through which cancer cells can follow. The fibroblast invasion and creation of tunnels results from the development o

From gut dysbiosis to altered brain function and mental illness: mechanisms and pathways

The human body hosts an enormous abundance and diversity of microbes, which perform a range of essential and beneficial functions. Our appreciation of the importance of these microbial communities to many aspects of human physiology has grown dramatically in recent years. We know, for example, that animals raised in a germ-free environment exhibit substantially altered immune and metabolic function, while the disruption of commensal microbiota in humans is associated with the development of a growing number of diseases. Evidence is now emerging that, through interactions with the gut-brain axis, the bidirectional communication system between the central nervous system and the gastrointestinal tract, the gut microbiome can also influence neural development, cognition and behaviour, with recent evidence that changes in behaviour alter gut microbiota composition, while modifications of the microbiome can induce depressive-like behaviours. Although an association between enteropathy and certain psychiatric conditions has long been recognized, it now appears that gut microbes represent direct mediators of psychopathology. Here, we examine roles of gut microbiome in shaping brain development and neurological function, and the mechanisms by which it can contribute to mental illness. Further, we discuss how the insight provided by this new and exciting field of research can inform care and provide a basis for the design of novel, microbiota-targeted, therapies.GB Rogers, DJ Keating, RL Young, M-L Wong, J Licinio, and S Wesseling

Spectrophotometric studies of lower oxidation states of technetium

The spectrophotometric behaviour of lower oxidation states oftechnetium, obtained by reducing pertechnetate under different conditions by various methods, has been examined. Contrary to some of the previously advanced conclusions regarding the ascorbic acid reduction of pertechnetate, it was found that the technetium is reduced to a quadrivalent state. The latter product does not appear to involve a tightly-bound ascorbate species; neither does it significantly react or complex with [alpha]-picolinic acid to give a new species.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/32188/1/0000246.pd