101 research outputs found
Phytomelatonin: Assisting plants to survive and thrive
This review summarizes the advances that have been made in terms of the identified functions of melatonin in plants. Melatonin is an endogenously-produced molecule in all plant species that have been investigated. Its concentration in plant organs varies in different tissues, e.g., roots versus leaves, and with their developmental stage. As in animals, the pathway of melatonin synthesis in plants utilizes tryptophan as an essential precursor molecule. Melatonin synthesis is inducible in plants when they are exposed to abiotic stresses (extremes of temperature, toxins, increased soil salinity, drought, etc.) as well as to biotic stresses (fungal infection). Melatonin aids plants in terms of root growth, leaf morphology, chlorophyll preservation and fruit development. There is also evidence that exogenously-applied melatonin improves seed germination, plant growth and crop yield and its application to plant products post-harvest shows that melatonin advances fruit ripening and may improve food quality. Since melatonin was only discovered in plants two decades ago, there is still a great deal to learn about the functional significance of melatonin in plants. It is the hope of the authors that the current review will serve as a stimulus for scientists to join the endeavor of clarifying the function of this phylogenetically-ancient molecule in plants and particularly in reference to the mechanisms by which melatonin mediates its multiple actions
Potential benefits of melatonin in organ transplantation: a review
Organ transplantation is a useful therapeutic tool for patients with end-stage organ failure; however, graft rejection is a major obstacle in terms of a successful treatment. Rejection is usually a consequence of a complex immunological and nonimmunological antigen-independent cascade of events, including free radical-mediated ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI). To reduce the frequency of this outcome, continuing improvements in the efficacy of antirejection drugs are a top priority to enhance the long-term survival of transplant recipients. Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) is a powerful antioxidant and ant-inflammatory agent synthesized from the essential amino acid L-tryptophan; it is produced by the pineal gland as well as by many other organs including ovary, testes, bone marrow, gut, placenta, and liver. Melatonin has proven to be a potentially useful therapeutic tool in the reduction of graft rejection. Its benefits are based on its direct actions as a free radical scavenger as well as its indirect antioxidative actions in the stimulation of the cellular antioxidant defense system. Moreover, it has significant anti-inflammatory activity. Melatonin has been found to improve the beneficial effects of preservation fluids when they are enriched with the indoleamine. This article reviews the experimental evidence that melatonin is useful in reducing graft failure, especially in cardiac, bone, otolaryngology, ovarian, testicular, lung, pancreas, kidney, and liver transplantation
Amino acid residues critical for RNA-binding in the N-terminal domain of the nucleocapsid protein are essential determinants for the infectivity of coronavirus in cultured cells
The N-terminal domain of the coronavirus nucleocapsid (N) protein adopts a fold resembling a right hand with a flexible, positively charged β-hairpin and a hydrophobic palm. This domain was shown to interact with the genomic RNA for coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV). Based on its 3D structure, we used site-directed mutagenesis to identify residues essential for the RNA-binding activity of the IBV N protein and viral infectivity. Alanine substitution of either Arg-76 or Tyr-94 in the N-terminal domain of IBV N protein led to a significant decrease in its RNA-binding activity and a total loss of the infectivity of the viral RNA to Vero cells. In contrast, mutation of amino acid Gln-74 to an alanine, which does not affect the binding activity of the N-terminal domain, showed minimal, if any, detrimental effect on the infectivity of IBV. This study thus identifies residues critical for RNA binding on the nucleocapsid surface, and presents biochemical and genetic evidence that directly links the RNA binding capacity of the coronavirus N protein to the viral infectivity in cultured cells. This information would be useful in development of preventive and treatment approaches against coronavirus infection
Search for the Rare Decays J/Psi --> Ds- e+ nu_e, J/Psi --> D- e+ nu_e, and J/Psi --> D0bar e+ e-
We report on a search for the decays J/Psi --> Ds- e+ nu_e + c.c., J/Psi -->
D- e+ nu_e + c.c., and J/Psi --> D0bar e+ e- + c.c. in a sample of 5.8 * 10^7
J/Psi events collected with the BESII detector at the BEPC. No excess of signal
above background is observed, and 90% confidence level upper limits on the
branching fractions are set: B(J/Psi --> Ds- e+ nu_e + c.c.)<4.8*10^-5, B(J/Psi
--> D- e+ nu_e + c.c.) D0bar e+ e- + c.c.)<1.1*10^-5Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure
Study of J/psi decays to Lambda Lambdabar and Sigma0 Sigma0bar
The branching ratios and Angular distributions for J/psi decays to Lambda
Lambdabar and Sigma0 Sigma0bar are measured using BESII 58 million J/psi.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
Measurement of \chi_cJ--> K+K-K+K-
Using 14M psi(2S) events taken with the BES-II detector, chi_cJ-->K+K-K+K-
decays are studied. For the four-kaon final state, the branching fractions are
B(chi_c0,1,2 -->K+K-K+K-)=(3.48\pm 0.23\pm 0.47)\times 10^{-3}, (0.70\pm
0.13\pm 0.10)\times 10^{-3}, and (2.17\pm 0.20\pm 0.31)\times 10^{-3}. For the
\phi K+K- final state, the branching fractions, which are measured for the
first time, are B(chi_c0,1,2-->\phi K+K-)=(1.03\pm 0.22\pm 0.15)\times 10^{-3},
(0.46\pm 0.16\pm 0.06)\times 10^{-3}, and (1.67\pm 0.26\pm 0.24)\times 10^{-4}.
For the \phi\phi final state, B(chi_{c0,2}-->\phi\phi)=(0.94\pm 0.21\pm
0.13)\times 10^{-3} and (1.70\pm 0.30\pm 0.25)\times 10^{-3}.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure
Partial wave analyses of J/psi to gamma pi^+ pi^- and gamma pi^0 pi^0
Results are presented on J/psi radiative decays to pi^+pi^- and pi^0pi^0
based on a sample of 58M J/psi events taken with the BESII detector. Partial
wave analyses are carried out using the relativistic covariant tensor amplitude
method in the 1.0 to 2.3 GeV/c^2 pipi mass range. There are conspicuous peaks
due to the f_2(1270) and two 0^++ states in the 1.45 and 1.75 GeV/c^2 mass
regions. The first 0^++ state has a mass of 1466\pm 6\pm 20 MeV/c^2, a width of
108^{+14}_{-11}\pm 25 MeV/c^2, and a branching fraction B(J/psi \to \gamma
f_0(1500) \to\gamma \pi^+\pi^-) = (0.67\pm0.02\pm0.30) \times 10^{-4}. Spin 0
is strongly preferred over spin 2. The second 0^++ state peaks at
1765^{+4}_{-3}\pm 13 MeV/c^2 with a width of 145\pm8\pm69 MeV/c^2. If this 0^++
is interpreted as coming from f_0(1710), the ratio of its branching fractions
to pipi and K\bar K is 0.41^{+0.11}_{-0.17}.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
Precison Measurements of the Mass, the Widths of Resonance and the Cross Section at GeV
By analyzing the values measured at 68 energy points in the energy region
between 3.650 and 3.872 GeV reported in our previous paper, we have precisely
measured the mass, the total width, the leptonic width and the leptonic decay
branching fraction of the to be MeV, MeV,
eV and , respectively, which result in
the observed cross section nb at MeV. We have also measured for the continuum light hadron production in the
region from 3.650 to 3.872 GeV.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figure
Measurements of the cross sections for at 3.650, 3.6648, 3.773 GeV and the branching fraction for
Using the BES-II detector at the BEPC Collider, we measured the lowest order
cross sections and the values () for inclusive hadronic event
production at the center-of-mass energies of 3.650 GeV, 3.6648 GeV and 3.773
GeV. The results lead to which is the
average of these measured at 3.650 GeV and 3.6648 GeV, and at GeV. We determined the lowest order cross
section for production to be at 3.773 GeV, the branching fractions for
decays to be , and , which result in the total non-
branching fraction of decay to be .Comment: 11 pages, 5 figure
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