Comparative Analysis of Plastic Flow and Grain Refinement in Pure Aluminium Subjected to Simple Shear-Based Severe Plastic Deformation Processing

In the present work, effects of loading scheme and strain reversal on structure and hardness evolution have been studied by using high pressure torsion (HPT) and twist extrusion (TE) techniques. High purity aluminium (99.99%) was processed at room temperature up to a maximum total equivalent strain of ε[max] ≈ 8 by TE, and HPT in monotonic and reversal deformation modes with strain increment Δε[max] = 1. Minimum subgrain sizes reached in this study were 1.6 µm for TE and 1.1 µm for HPT. It was revealed that microstructural change with straining was a common consequence of severe plastic deformation (SPD) processing and was not affected significantly by the loading scheme. Among the SPD methods used in this study, HPT in monotonic regime produced the smallest grain size, while the most homogeneous microstructure was obtained by TE due to specific vortex-like flow field imposed by the tool geometry

Expression of the CCCH-tandem zinc finger protein gene OsTZF5 under a stress-inducible promoter mitigates the effect of drought stress on rice grain yield under field conditions

Increasing drought resistance without sacrificing grain yield remains an ongoing challenge in crop improvement. In this study, we report that Oryza sativa CCCH‐tandem zinc finger protein 5 (OsTZF5) can confer drought resistance and increase grain yield in transgenic rice plants. Expression of OsTZF5 was induced by abscisic acid, dehydration and cold stress. Upon stress, OsTZF5‐GFP localized to the cytoplasm and cytoplasmic foci. Transgenic rice plants overexpressing OsTZF5 under the constitutive maize ubiquitin promoter exhibited improved survival under drought but also growth retardation. By introducing OsTZF5 behind the stress‐responsive OsNAC6 promoter in two commercial upland cultivars, Curinga and NERICA4, we obtained transgenic plants that showed no growth retardation. Moreover, these plants exhibited significantly increased grain yield compared to non‐transgenic cultivars in different confined field drought environments. Physiological analysis indicated that OsTZF5 promoted both drought tolerance and drought avoidance. Collectively, our results provide strong evidence that OsTZF5 is a useful biotechnological tool to minimize yield losses in rice grown under drought conditions

Regional differences in desensitization of c-Fos expression following repeated self-stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle in the rat.

The acute self-stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle was reported to induce the expression of c-Fos, the protein product of c-fos, an immediate early gene, in the central nervous system. In the present study, we examined regional changes in c-Fos expression in several reward-related areas of rat brain in response to short- and long-term exposure to self-stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle. Short-term one-hour stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle for one day after training, which evoked steady self-stimulation behavior, significantly increased the number of c-Fos-positive neurons bilaterally in all of 15 brain structures assayed, as compared to the non-stimulation control. Among them, structures showing a larger number of the stained neurons on the stimulated side were the anterior olfactory nucleus, amygdala, medial caudate-putamen complex, lateral septum, bed nucleus of the stria terminals, ventral pallidum, substantia innominata, lateral preoptic area, medial preoptic area, lateral hypothalamus rostral to the stimulating electrodes, and substantia nigra. Long-term stimulation of the medial forebrain bundle once daily for five successive days, which maintained consistently stable self-stimulation behavior, also increased the number of c-Fos-positive neurons in the aforementioned structures, as compared to the control. However, the long-term rewarding stimulation diminished the increased number of labeled neurons, as compared to the short-term rewarding stimulation. Seven areas, medial caudate-putamen complex, ventral pallidum, substantia innominata, lateral preoptic area, medial preoptic area, rostral lateral hypothalamus and substantia nigra, showed asymmetrical, ipsilateral predominance after the short- and long-term stimulation. However, the stained neuron count in those areas after the long-term stimulation was reduced to less than 50% of that found after the short-term stimulation with the exception of lateral preoptic area and rostral lateral hypothalamus. The results suggest that the development of desensitization of c-Fos response may differ among the reward-relevant brain regions as a consequence of repeated self-stimulation. They also indicate that a larger portion of neurons in the lateral preoptic area and rostral lateral hypothalamus may be implicated in both short- and long-term self-stimulations of the medial forebrain bundle

HOW TO MOTIVATE DE-MOTIVATED JAPANESE COLLEGE EFL LEARNERS

In Japan, English is a significant part of everyday life. We see English advertising signs all around us, we use English loan-words in Japanese written and spoken communication, and many Japanese songs incorporate English into their lyrics (Aspinall, 2003). On the other hand, it is known to scholars that many Japanese students are de-motivated to study English. Hasegawa (2004) reports that 71% of junior high school students and 77% of senior high school students are not motivated to study English. Among the reasons for de-motivation are the lack of perceived relevance of English learning and the lack of confidence in capabilities. Thus, this present study focuses on the following four areas as tools to help de-motivated students become re-motivated and to enable them to sustain that motivation to study English throughout the 2016 academic year: (1) the four sources of self-efficacy beliefs (Bandura, 1977); (2) the establishment of concrete EFL study reasons for future careers; (3) the development of time management skills; and (4) the understanding of effective self-regulated learning. 210 Japanese college freshmen in four different proficiency groups participated in this study. It was found that when focus was placed on sources of self-efficacy, students in all the proficiency groups were able to significantly improve their English listening skills throughout the academic year, and that students in general were able to sustain relatively high self-efficacy beliefs about their English listening skills. However, a sharp decline was found in the number of students who were able to sustain that motivation during the two-month summer break. It is suggested that ample examples of concrete English study reasons that are associated with students' future careers as well as activities for visualization (Sampson, 2012) might need to be implemented into our pedagogic approach to help our freshmen put their acquired knowledge into action during the summer break.  Article visualizations

SELF-EFFICACY OF ENGLISH LISTENING SKILLS IN JAPANESE COLLEGE EFL LEARNERS: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE ANALYSES

The present study employed both quantitative and qualitative analyses to better understand the causes of unmotivated and distracted behaviors among students. Furthermore, the essential development of a cycle of self-regulated learning (Ambrose et al., 2010) was focused upon to promote better learning strategies and to maintain motivation to study English. Our participants were 200 Miyazaki Municipal University freshmen in Japan. Based upon the quantitative and qualitative analyses, we found that (1) all the students except for advanced students made significant improvements on TOEIC during the first term.; (2) all the students except for intermediate II students made significant improvements on self-efficacy; (3) a positive correlation between English listening skills and self-efficacy was found; (4) the establishment of (new) concrete English study reasons have to be prioritized before English activities targeted to enhance self-efficacy can help Japanese college EFL freshmen sustain their motivation to study English; (5) much more consideration needs to be given to help Japanese college EFL learners understand the importance of study plans to carry out necessary tasks to improve their English listening skills; (6) time management skills to prioritize English study need to be taught to help distracted freshmen set a time to improve their English listening skills; and (7) individualized educational guidance sessions need to be re-implemented in our English curricular activities to help Japanese college EFL freshmen understand the significance of time management skills, and of self-regulated skills.   Article visualizations

A Model for the Development of the Rhizobial and Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Symbioses in Legumes and Its Use to Understand the Roles of Ethylene in the Establishment of these two Symbioses

We propose a model depicting the development of nodulation and arbuscular mycorrhizae. Both processes are dissected into many steps, using Pisum sativum L. nodulation mutants as a guideline. For nodulation, we distinguish two main developmental programs, one epidermal and one cortical. Whereas Nod factors alone affect the cortical program, bacteria are required to trigger the epidermal events. We propose that the two programs of the rhizobial symbiosis evolved separately and that, over time, they came to function together. The distinction between these two programs does not exist for arbuscular mycorrhizae development despite events occurring in both root tissues. Mutations that affect both symbioses are restricted to the epidermal program. We propose here sites of action and potential roles for ethylene during the formation of the two symbioses with a specific hypothesis for nodule organogenesis. Assuming the epidermis does not make ethylene, the microsymbionts probably first encounter a regulatory level of ethylene at the epidermis–outermost cortical cell layer interface. Depending on the hormone concentrations there, infection will either progress or be blocked. In the former case, ethylene affects the cortex cytoskeleton, allowing reorganization that facilitates infection; in the latter case, ethylene acts on several enzymes that interfere with infection thread growth, causing it to abort. Throughout this review, the difficulty of generalizing the roles of ethylene is emphasized and numerous examples are given to demonstrate the diversity that exists in plants

The scope of sublime: Longinus " On the Sublime'

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