A molecular framework for lc controlled locule development of the floral meristem in tomato

Malformed tomato fruit with multiple locules is a common physiological disorder that significantly affects the quality of tomatoes. Research has shown that the occurrence of malformed fruit in tomatoes is closely linked to the number of locules, and two key QTLs, lc and fas, are involved in controlling this trait. It has been observed that lc has a relatively weaker effect on increasing locule number, which is associated with two SNPs in the CArG repressor element downstream of the SlWUS. However, the precise molecular mechanism underlying lc is not yet fully understood. In this study, we investigated the role of lc in tomato locule development. We found that the number of floral organs and fruit locules significantly increased in tomato lc knockout mutants. Additionally, these mutants showed higher expression levels of the SlWUS during carpel formation. Through cDNA library construction and yeast one-hybrid screening, we identified the MADS-box transcription factor SlSEP3, which was found to bind to lc. Furthermore, we observed an increase in floral organs and fruit locules similar to the lcCR plant on SlSEP3 silencing plants. However, it should be noted that the lc site is located after the 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of SlWUS in the tomato genome. As a result, SlSEP3 may not be able to exert regulatory functions on the promoter of the gene like other transcription factors. In the yeast two-hybrid assay, we found that several histone deacetylases (SlHDA1, SlHDA3, SlHDA4, SlHDA5, SlHDA6, SlHDA7, and SlHDA8) can interact with SlSEP3. This indicated that SlSEP3 can recruit these proteins to repress nucleosome relaxation, thereby inhibiting SlWUS transcription and affecting the number of locules in tomato fruit. Therefore, our findings reveal a new mechanism for lc playing a significant role in the genetic pathway regulating tomato locule development

Why Are Outcomes Different for Registry Patients Enrolled Prospectively and Retrospectively? Insights from the Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF).

Background: Retrospective and prospective observational studies are designed to reflect real-world evidence on clinical practice, but can yield conflicting results. The GARFIELD-AF Registry includes both methods of enrolment and allows analysis of differences in patient characteristics and outcomes that may result. Methods and Results: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) and ≥1 risk factor for stroke at diagnosis of AF were recruited either retrospectively (n = 5069) or prospectively (n = 5501) from 19 countries and then followed prospectively. The retrospectively enrolled cohort comprised patients with established AF (for a least 6, and up to 24 months before enrolment), who were identified retrospectively (and baseline and partial follow-up data were collected from the emedical records) and then followed prospectively between 0-18 months (such that the total time of follow-up was 24 months; data collection Dec-2009 and Oct-2010). In the prospectively enrolled cohort, patients with newly diagnosed AF (≤6 weeks after diagnosis) were recruited between Mar-2010 and Oct-2011 and were followed for 24 months after enrolment. Differences between the cohorts were observed in clinical characteristics, including type of AF, stroke prevention strategies, and event rates. More patients in the retrospectively identified cohort received vitamin K antagonists (62.1% vs. 53.2%) and fewer received non-vitamin K oral anticoagulants (1.8% vs . 4.2%). All-cause mortality rates per 100 person-years during the prospective follow-up (starting the first study visit up to 1 year) were significantly lower in the retrospective than prospectively identified cohort (3.04 [95% CI 2.51 to 3.67] vs . 4.05 [95% CI 3.53 to 4.63]; p = 0.016). Conclusions: Interpretations of data from registries that aim to evaluate the characteristics and outcomes of patients with AF must take account of differences in registry design and the impact of recall bias and survivorship bias that is incurred with retrospective enrolment. Clinical Trial Registration: - URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier for GARFIELD-AF (NCT01090362)

Risk profiles and one-year outcomes of patients with newly diagnosed atrial fibrillation in India: Insights from the GARFIELD-AF Registry.

BACKGROUND: The Global Anticoagulant Registry in the FIELD-Atrial Fibrillation (GARFIELD-AF) is an ongoing prospective noninterventional registry, which is providing important information on the baseline characteristics, treatment patterns, and 1-year outcomes in patients with newly diagnosed non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). This report describes data from Indian patients recruited in this registry. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 52,014 patients with newly diagnosed AF were enrolled globally; of these, 1388 patients were recruited from 26 sites within India (2012-2016). In India, the mean age was 65.8 years at diagnosis of NVAF. Hypertension was the most prevalent risk factor for AF, present in 68.5% of patients from India and in 76.3% of patients globally (P < 0.001). Diabetes and coronary artery disease (CAD) were prevalent in 36.2% and 28.1% of patients as compared with global prevalence of 22.2% and 21.6%, respectively (P < 0.001 for both). Antiplatelet therapy was the most common antithrombotic treatment in India. With increasing stroke risk, however, patients were more likely to receive oral anticoagulant therapy [mainly vitamin K antagonist (VKA)], but average international normalized ratio (INR) was lower among Indian patients [median INR value 1.6 (interquartile range {IQR}: 1.3-2.3) versus 2.3 (IQR 1.8-2.8) (P < 0.001)]. Compared with other countries, patients from India had markedly higher rates of all-cause mortality [7.68 per 100 person-years (95% confidence interval 6.32-9.35) vs 4.34 (4.16-4.53), P < 0.0001], while rates of stroke/systemic embolism and major bleeding were lower after 1 year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Compared to previously published registries from India, the GARFIELD-AF registry describes clinical profiles and outcomes in Indian patients with AF of a different etiology. The registry data show that compared to the rest of the world, Indian AF patients are younger in age and have more diabetes and CAD. Patients with a higher stroke risk are more likely to receive anticoagulation therapy with VKA but are underdosed compared with the global average in the GARFIELD-AF. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION-URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT01090362

Who provides liquidity, and when?

We model competition for liquidity provision between high-frequency traders (HFTs) and slower execution algorithms (EAs) designed to minimize investors’ transaction costs. Under continuous pricing, EAs dominate liquidity provision by using aggressive limit orders to stimulate HFTs’ market orders. Under discrete pricing, HFTs dominate liquidity provision if the bid-ask spread is binding at one tick. If the tick size (minimum price variation) is not binding, EAs choose between stimulating HFTs and providing liquidity to non-HFTs. Transaction costs increase with the tick size but can be negatively correlated with the bid-ask spread when all traders can provide liquidity.This research is supported by National Science Foundation grant 1,352,936 (jointly with the Office of Financial Research at the US Department of the Treasury) and National Science Foundation grant 1,838,183

Research on Irrigation System of Limited Water Supply for Soybean Crops in Shanxi Province

International audienceThe limited water supply irrigation system for soybean crops in Shanxi Province was studied. The irrigation data of Limin experimental station in Linfen City, Shanxi Province had been selected. Frequency calculation of rainfall data of Limin was made, choosing 2010, 1993 and 1997 respectively as the sample year of plain water year (50%), water year dry year (75%) and special drought year (95%) of Limin. The Jensen model as the basis for calculation was selected, calculating the actual yield value of crop according to the actual crop water requirement, crop maximum water demand, sensitive index value and maximum crop yield at each stage. Through the selection of the number of days of irrigation, the optimization model of irrigation times was established. The limiting condition is the maximum actual yield. The quota irrigation system of soybean crops in different hydrological years was determined. According to calculation results, each target year was three times, with the highest amount of water

THE OBJECTIVE AND IMPLEMENTATION OF DYNAMIC VISUALIZATION OF SPATIO-TEMPORAL GEOGRAPHICAL PROCESSES

ABSTRACT: The Spatio-temporal data is the description of the time, space, and attribute information of the geographic spatiotemporal process, which reflects the spatio-temporal process information of geographical phenomenon changing with the time on the earth-surface space. The spatio-temporal process information is complex and changing. Thus according to the objective of dynamic visualization of geographic process, a break-through dynamic visualization method was developed in this paper to express the geographical spatio-temporal evolution process intuitively

Auxin guides germ-cell specification in Arabidopsis anthers

International audienceSignificance Germ cells (GCs) (i.e., the cells that are committed to meiosis and gametogenesis) are key carriers for eukaryotes to complete their life cycle, transmitting their genetic information from one generation to the next while generating variations to integrate environmental changes. Compared to what has been known in animals, very little is known about how the GCs in plants are segregated from somatic cells. This work demonstrates that auxin is a key factor guiding GC specification in Arabidopsis anthers. Local auxin biosynthesis interacts with the transcription of SPOROCYTELESS/NOZZLE and a progressive GC specification itself to form a dynamic feedback circuit that ensures the completion of GC specification

High-Resolution Small RNAs Landscape Provides Insights into Alkane Adaptation in the Marine Alkane-Degrader <i>Alcanivorax dieselolei</i> B-5

Alkanes are widespread in the ocean, and Alcanivorax is one of the most ubiquitous alkane-degrading bacteria in the marine ecosystem. Small RNAs (sRNAs) are usually at the heart of regulatory pathways, but sRNA-mediated alkane metabolic adaptability still remains largely unknown due to the difficulties of identification. Here, differential RNA sequencing (dRNA-seq) modified with a size selection (~50-nt to 500-nt) strategy was used to generate high-resolution sRNAs profiling in the model species Alcanivorax dieselolei B-5 under alkane (n-hexadecane) and non-alkane (acetate) conditions. As a result, we identified 549 sRNA candidates at single-nucleotide resolution of 5′-ends, 63.4% of which are with transcription start sites (TSSs), and 36.6% of which are with processing sites (PSSs) at the 5′-ends. These sRNAs originate from almost any location in the genome, regardless of intragenic (65.8%), antisense (20.6%) and intergenic (6.2%) regions, and RNase E may function in the maturation of sRNAs. Most sRNAs locally distribute across the 15 reference genomes of Alcanivorax, and only 7.5% of sRNAs are broadly conserved in this genus. Expression responses to the alkane of several core conserved sRNAs, including 6S RNA, M1 RNA and tmRNA, indicate that they may participate in alkane metabolisms and result in more actively global transcription, RNA processing and stresses mitigation. Two novel CsrA-related sRNAs are identified, which may be involved in the translational activation of alkane metabolism-related genes by sequestering the global repressor CsrA. The relationships of sRNAs with the characterized genes of alkane sensing (ompS), chemotaxis (mcp, cheR, cheW2), transporting (ompT1, ompT2, ompT3) and hydroxylation (alkB1, alkB2, almA) were created based on the genome-wide predicted sRNA–mRNA interactions. Overall, the sRNA landscape lays the ground for uncovering cryptic regulations in critical marine bacterium, among which both the core and species-specific sRNAs are implicated in the alkane adaptive metabolisms

A Scenario-based risk framework for determining consequences of different failure modes of earth dams

Failure modes for earth dams are extensively reviewed and analysed using a three-pronged approach including a literature review, physical observations of a representative earth dam site and finite element structural analysis of the dam wall. Several failure scenarios are used for predicting consequences in terms of downstream inundation and damage. The fluid flow component is performed using the mesh-free smoothed particle hydrodynamics method. For a representative earthen dam, piping and landslip are identified as key failure modes based on a combination of finite element analysis, theory and physical observations. Inundation behaviour is very different for the two failure modes. The landslip failure is the most critical one for the dam studied with flood water breaking the river bank and affecting surrounding property and farmland. For the piping failures, water flow from the initial pipes formed for significant periods before they collapse, but the flow rates are small compared with that of the much larger landslip mode. After failure, fragments of the collapsing wall block the breach and can considerably restrict the flood discharge. In some cases, the water pressure is able to push the obstructing material downstream and some minor flooding occurs, but in others cases the breach can remain blocked with little flooding occurring. A prototype risk framework is developed using the small database of the pre-computed flooding scenarios and key variables that affect inundation such as water level in the reservoir. This can be used to estimate inundation maps for as yet non-computed scenarios through interpolation and superposition techniques. The implementation of the risk framework is demonstrated by the estimation of inundation maps for two in-between non-computed reservoir levels. Inundation due to multiple breaches is also estimated by superposition of three single-breach scenarios. Results are compared against the simulated multiple breach. A preliminary implementation of this risk framework into a geographic information system is also described.42 page(s

Improvement of solid particle erosion and corrosion resistance using TiAlSiN/Cr multilayer coatings

The TiAlSiN/Cr multilayer coatings with different thicknesses of chromium (Cr) layers were designed and prepared by high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) and direct current magnetron sputtering (DCMS) for the improvement of their solid particle erosion and corrosion resistance. The structure-property relationship was investigated by the systematic characterization of the microstructure, hardness, Young's modulus, toughness, solid particle erosion resistance, and corrosion properties of those coatings. The results reveal that the TiAlSiN layers consisted of the TiN crystalline phase and amorphous phase. As the Cr layers thickness increased, the grain growth of the Cr layers was columnar with a strong Cr (110)-preferred orientation. Compared with the TiAlSiN coating, the TiAlSiN/Cr multilayer coatings showed significantly improved toughness and corrosion performance. The toughness, H/E ratio, erosion resistance at impact angle of 90 degrees, and corrosion resistance of the TiAlSiN/Cr multilayer coatings firstly increased when the Cr layer thickness increased up to 21 nm, before decreasing with a further increase of Cr layer thickness. Our results show that the TiAlSiN/Cr multilayer coatings with the Cr layer thickness of 21 nm exhibit enhanced toughness, excellent erosion resistance, and corrosion resistance together with high hardness