Development and Evaluation of Peanut Germplasm with Resistance to Aspergillus flavus from Core Collection

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.), one of the main oil and cash crops in the world, is easily susceptible to Aspergillus flavus, resulting huge loss in its quality, so Aspergillus flavus infection greatly limits peanut production and industry in China. Therefore, it is imperative to develop new peanut germplasm with resistance to Aspergillus flavus in breeding program. The core collection is well accepted as a useful way to improve the efficiency of crop germplasm evaluation and utilization, which contains a subset of accessions from the entire collection that covers the most of available genetic information. In the present study, a total of 561 accessions of Chinese peanut core collection and 155 accessions of ICRISAT mini core collection were identified. Eight varieties with resistance to Aspergillus flavus invasion and aflatoxin production each were developed, including one (51002-6) with elite agronomic traits. The peanut germplasm with resistance to Aspergillus flavus invasion and aflatoxin production in ICRISAT mini core were more than those in Chinese peanut core collection. In addition, the percentages of accessions with resistance to Aspergillus flavus invasion in var. hypogaea, and accessions resistant to aflatoxin production in var. hirsuta were relatively high in comparison with others. Genetic diversity in the resistant peanut selections was evaluated based on morphological traits and SSR approach. ICG12625 with resistance to aflatoxin production and ICG4750 with resistance to aflatoxin invasion were evaluated by SSR, the genetic distance of them with high-yielding cultivars such as Zhonghua 5, Zhonghua 6 and Zhonghua 12 and Yuanza 9102 was larger. The primers were designed based on the conserved NBS-LRR domains of the disease resistance genes sequence, one RGA (Resistance gene analog) from genomic DNA of six different peanuts with resistance to Aspergillus flavus was obtained through PCR

Fast computation of observed cross section for ψ′→PP\psi^{\prime} \to PP decays

It has been conjectured that the relative phase between strong and electromagnetic amplitudes is universally $-90^{\circ}$ in charmonium decays. $\psi^{\prime}$ decaying into pseudoscalar pair provides a possibility to test this conjecture. However, the experimentally observed cross section for such a process is depicted by the two-fold integral which takes into account the initial state radiative (ISR) correction and energy spread effect. Using the generalized linear regression approach, a complex energy-dependent factor is approximated by a linear function of energy. Taking advantage of this simplification, the integration of ISR correction can be performed and an analytical expression with accuracy at the level of 1% is obtained. Then, the original two-fold integral is simplified into a one-fold integral, which reduces the total computing time by two orders of magnitude. Such a simplified expression for the observed cross section usually plays an indispensable role in the optimization of scan data taking, the determination of systematic uncertainty, and the analysis of data correlation.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure

Efficient and long-lived quantum memory with cold atoms inside a ring cavity

Quantum memories are regarded as one of the fundamental building blocks of linear-optical quantum computation and long-distance quantum communication. A long standing goal to realize scalable quantum information processing is to build a long-lived and efficient quantum memory. There have been significant efforts distributed towards this goal. However, either efficient but short-lived or long-lived but inefficient quantum memories have been demonstrated so far. Here we report a high-performance quantum memory in which long lifetime and high retrieval efficiency meet for the first time. By placing a ring cavity around an atomic ensemble, employing a pair of clock states, creating a long-wavelength spin wave, and arranging the setup in the gravitational direction, we realize a quantum memory with an intrinsic spin wave to photon conversion efficiency of 73(2)% together with a storage lifetime of 3.2(1) ms. This realization provides an essential tool towards scalable linear-optical quantum information processing.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Peanut Core Collection Established in China and Compared with ICRISAT Mini Core Collection

The core collection has been well accepted as a useful way to improve the efficiency of crop germplasm evaluation, conservation and utilization. Around 6 390 accessions of cultivated peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) have been collected in China. In order to characterize and utilize the germplasm more efficiently for further crop improvement, the available morphological and biochemical data were analyzed to develop a core collection. The entire collection was first stratified by botanical types and then grouped by origin locations. Based on the data of 15 morphological and biochemical characters, the accessions in each botanicalhttp://scholar.google.co.in/scholar?hl=en&q=allintitle%3A+%22Peanut+Core+Collection+Established+in+China+and+Compared+with+ICRISAT+Mini+Core+Collection%22&btnG=Search&as_sdt=0%2C5&as_ylo=&as_vis=0 type were clustered by SAS method. From each cluster, five to ten percent of the accessions were randomly selected to form a core collection consisting of 576 accessions, which was 9.01% of the entire collection. The genetic variation in the entire collec- tion was well presented in the core collection based on comparison of diversity index of the involved traits in both entire and core collections. Comparison between the newly selected Chinese peanut core collection and the introduced mini core collection con- sisting of 184 lines established at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) indicated that there were wider diversities in the var. hirsuta and vulgaris as well as in leaf length, leaf width, seed length, seed width in the Chinese core collection. The ICRISAT peanut collection had wider diversities in var. hypogaea and fastigiata as well as in plant height and number of total branches than Chinese peanut resource

Control of Cotton Fibre Elongation by a Homeodomain Transcription Factor GhHOX3

Cotton fibres are unusually long, single-celled epidermal seed trichomes and a model for plant cell growth, but little is known about the regulation of fibre cell elongation. Here we report that a homeodomain-leucine zipper (HD-ZIP) transcription factor, GhHOX3, controls cotton fibre elongation. GhHOX3 genes are localized to the 12th homoeologous chromosome set of allotetraploid cotton cultivars, associated with quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for fibre length. Silencing of GhHOX3 greatly reduces (\u3e80%) fibre length, whereas its overexpression leads to longer fibre. Combined transcriptomic and biochemical analyses identify target genes of GhHOX3 that also contain the L1-box cis-element, including two cell wall loosening protein genes GhRDL1 and GhEXPA1. GhHOX3 interacts with GhHD1, another homeodomain protein, resulting in enhanced transcriptional activity, and with cotton DELLA, GhSLR1, repressor of the growth hormone gibberellin (GA). GhSLR1 interferes with the GhHOX3–GhHD1 interaction and represses target gene transcription. Our results uncover a novel mechanism whereby a homeodomain protein transduces GA signal to promote fibre cell elongation

β-defensin 2 as an Adjuvant Promotes Anti-Melanoma Immune Responses and Inhibits the Growth of Implanted Murine Melanoma In Vivo

β-defensin 2 is a small antimicrobial peptide of the innate immune system and has been thought to regulate anti-tumor immunity. However, little is known on whether β-defensin 2 could modulate melanoma-specific NK and T cell responses. In this study, we first cloned the murine β-defensin 2 gene by RT-PCR and generated the β-defensin 2 stably expressing B16 cells (B16-mBD2). Subsequently, we evaluated whether vaccination with irradiated B16-mBD2 could modulate the growth of implanted B16 cells and determined the potential mechanisms underlying the action of B16-mBD2 vaccine in modulating the growth of B16 tumors in C57BL/6. We found that vaccination with irradiated B16-mBD2, but not with control B16-p or parental B16, inhibited the development and progression of B16 tumors, and prolonged the survival of tumor-bearing mice. However, vaccination with irradiated B16-mBD2 failed to inhibit the development of B16 tumors in the CD4+- or CD8+-depleted recipients. Furthermore, vaccination with irradiated B16-mBD2 stimulated strong NK activity and promoted potent B16-specific CTL responses, accompanied by augmenting IFN-γ and IL-12, but not IL-4, responses in the recipient mice. Moreover, vaccination with irradiated B16-mBD2 promoted the infiltration of CD8+ and CD4+ T, NK cells and macrophages in the tumor tissues. These data suggest β-defensin 2 may act as a positive regulator, promoting anti-tumor NK and T cell responses in vivo. Therefore, β-defensin 2 may be used for the development of immunotherapy for the intervention of melanoma

Anomalous tqγtq\gamma coupling effects in exclusive radiative B-meson decays

The top-quark FCNC processes will be searched for at the CERN LHC, which are correlated with the B-meson decays. In this paper, we study the effects of top-quark anomalous interactions $tq\gamma$ in the exclusive radiative $B\to K^*\gamma$ and $B\to\rho\gamma$ decays. With the current experimental data of the branching ratios, the direct CP and the isospin asymmetries, bounds on the coupling $\kappa_{tcR}^{\gamma}$ from $B\to K^*\gamma$ and $\kappa_{tuR}^{\gamma}$ from $B\to \rho\gamma$ decays are derived, respectively. The bound on $|\kappa_{tcR}^{\gamma}|$ from ${\mathcal B}(B\to K^{*}\gamma)$ is generally compatible with that from ${\mathcal B}(B\to X_{s}\gamma)$. However, the isospin asymmetry $\Delta(K^{*}\gamma)$ further restrict the phase of $\kappa_{tcR}^{\gamma}$, and the combined bound results in the upper limit, $\mathcal B(t\to c\gamma)<0.21$, which is lower than the CDF result. For real $\kappa_{tcR}^{\gamma}$, the upper bound on $\mathcal B(t\to c\gamma)$ is about of the same order as the $5\sigma$ discovery potential of ATLAS with an integrated luminosity of $10 {\rm fb}^{-1}$. For $B\to\rho\gamma$ decays, the NP contribution is enhanced by a large CKM factor $|V_{ud}/V_{td}|$, and the constraint on $tu\gamma$ coupling is rather restrictive, $\mathcal B(t\to u\gamma)<1.44\times 10^{-5}$. With refined measurements to be available at the LHCb and the future super-B factories, we can get close correlations between $B\to V \gamma$ and the rare $t\to q\gamma$ decays, which will be studied directly at the LHC ATLAS and CMS.Comment: 25 pages, 15 figures, pdflate

A millisecond quantum memory for scalable quantum networks

Scalable quantum information processing critically depends on the capability of storage of a quantum state. In particular, a long-lived storable and retrievable quantum memory for single excitations is of crucial importance to the atomic-ensemble-based long-distance quantum communication. Although atomic memories for classical lights and continuous variables have been demonstrated with milliseconds storage time, there is no equal advance in the development of quantum memory for single excitations, where only around 10 $\mu$s storage time was achieved. Here we report our experimental investigations on extending the storage time of quantum memory for single excitations. We isolate and identify distinct mechanisms for the decoherence of spin wave (SW) in atomic ensemble quantum memories. By exploiting the magnetic field insensitive state, ``clock state", and generating a long-wavelength SW to suppress the dephasing, we succeed in extending the storage time of the quantum memory to 1 ms. Our result represents a substantial progress towards long-distance quantum communication and enables a realistic avenue for large-scale quantum information processing.Comment: 11pages, 4 figures, submitted for publicatio