Distillery anaerobic digestion residues as fertilizers for field vegetable crops: Performance and efficiency in mid-term successions

Understanding nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) of crops plays an important role in achieving sustainable production. Intensive agriculture has adversely affected social and environmental issues worldwide over the past few decades. Anaerobic digested residues from the distillery industry (DADRs) can be used in agriculture, thereby recycling valuable organic materials that can supply organic N. An experiment using DADRs in horticulture was conducted to evaluate the performance of different treatments on yield and NUE. The experiment was conducted for five years, growing lettuce, cauliflower, chicory, potato, Swiss chard, catalogna chicory, tomato, pepper, and melon in two different succession schemes. Five fertilization treatments were designed, including a mineral fertilization control, in which nitrogen (N) was supplied according to standard recommendations in the area. The other treatments were an unfertilized control and three treatments in which 50%, 75%, and 100% of the N were supplied by DADRs and the remaining with common chemical fertilizer. Major findings were: (1) Spring\u2013summer crops showed the lowest N-uptake and N recovery, during this period high chemical fertilization can cause environmental problems such as N leaching, and fertilization with 100% DADRs is a viable alternative; (2) fall\u2013winter crops can be fertilized by combining 50% mineral N and 50% organic N, supplying the nutrients required by the crops during the growing cycle

HMGA1 Modulates Gene Transcription Sustaining a Tumor Signalling Pathway Acting on the Epigenetic Status of Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Cells

Chromatin accessibility plays a critical factor in regulating gene expression in cancer cells. Several factors, including the High Mobility Group A (HMGA) family members, are known to participate directly in chromatin relaxation and transcriptional activation. The HMGA1 oncogene encodes an architectural chromatin transcription factor that alters DNA structure and interacts with transcription factors favouring their landing onto transcription regulatory sequences. Here, we provide evidence of an additional mechanism exploited by HMGA1 to modulate transcription. We demonstrate that, in a triple-negative breast cancer cellular model, HMGA1 sustains the action of epigenetic modifiers and in particular it positively influences both histone H3S10 phosphorylation by ribosomal protein S6 kinase alpha-3 (RSK2) and histone H2BK5 acetylation by CREB-binding protein (CBP). HMGA1, RSK2, and CBP control the expression of a set of genes involved in tumor progression and epithelial to mesenchymal transition. These results suggest that HMGA1 has an effect on the epigenetic status of cancer cells and that it could be exploited as a responsiveness predictor for epigenetic therapies in triple-negative breast cancers

Modeling rainfall-driven transport of Glyphosate in the vadose zone of two experimental sites in North-East Italy

A vertical one-dimensional analysis of infiltration processes and mobility of a tracer (potassium bromide) and a glyphosate-based herbicide, both subjected to hydrological forcing, was performed. Glyphosate is a widespread herbicide whose potential harmfulness and mobility under hydrological forcing have not been fully understood yet. Here, the spatio-temporal evolution of the two compounds was monitored for one year in two experimental sites (Settolo - Valdobbiadene, Colnù - Conegliano), located within the production area of the Prosecco wine (Treviso, Italy). In each experimental site the activities were carried out on two 25 m2 plots located at distances of 50-100 m from each other. The interpretative analyses considered rainwater infiltration as the driving mechanism of the herbicide transport and allowed us to obtain the calibration of a one-dimensional hydrologic model in each monitored plot. Different scenarios of the tracer evolution were simulated considering the pedologic properties of the shallower soil layers, the status of the plant coverage and of the root apparati, leading to a satisfactory reproduction of the observations in both the experimental sites. Modeling the mobility of the herbicide, considering also the degradation to its metabolite AMPA, proved to be more challenging, due to the tendency of glyphosate to be adsorbed to the soil matrix rather than be dissolved in water and transported toward deeper soil layers. Nevertheless, the analysis of model results for tracer and herbicide, compared with in situ observations, suggests that the transport of the glyphosate can take place even when it is adsorbed to the soil, through the movement, triggered by intense precipitation events, of microscopic soil particles within preferential flow paths

High-velocity collimated outflows in planetary nebulae: NGC 6337, He 2-186, and K 4-47

We have obtained narrow-band images and high-resolution spectra of the planetary nebulae NGC 6337, He 2-186, and K 4-47, with the aim of investigating the relation between their main morphological components and several low-ionization features present in these nebulae. The data suggest that NGC 6337 is a bipolar PN seen almost pole on, with polar velocities higher than 200 km/s. The bright inner ring of the nebula is interpreted to be the "equatorial" density enhancement. It contains a number of low-ionization knots and outward tails that we ascribe to dynamical instabilities leading to fragmentation of the ring or transient density enhancements due to the interaction of the ionization front with previous density fluctuations in the ISM. The lobes show a pronounced point-symmetric morphology and two peculiar low-ionization filaments whose nature remains unclear. The most notable characteristic of He 2-186 is the presence of two high-velocity (higher than 135 km/s) knots from which an S-shaped lane of emission departs toward the central star. K 4-47 is composed of a compact core and two high-velocity, low-ionization blobs. We interpret the substantial broadening of line emission from the blobs as a signature of bow shocks, and using the modeling of Hartigan, Raymond, & Hartman (1987), we derive a shock velocity of 150 km/s and a mild inclination of the outflow on the plane of the sky. We discuss possible scenarios for the formation of these nebulae and their low-ionization features. In particular, the morphology of K 4-47 hardly fits into any of the usually adopted mass-loss geometries for single AGB stars. Finally, we discuss the possibility that point-symmetric morphologies in the lobes of NGC 6337 and the knots of He 2-186 are the result of precessing outflows from the central stars.Comment: 16 pages plus 7 figures, ApJ accepted. Also available at http://www.iac.es/publicaciones/preprints.htm

The Genus Caesalpinia L. (Caesalpiniaceae): Phytochemical and Pharmacological Characteristics

The genus Caesalpinia (Caesalpiniaceae) has more than 500 species, many of which have not yet been investigated for potential pharmacological activity. Several classes of chemical compounds, such as flavonoids, diterpenes, and steroids, have been isolated from various species of the genus Caesalpinia. It has been reported in the literature that these species exhibit a wide range of pharmacological properties, including antiulcer, anticancer, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antirheumatic activities that have proven to be efficacious in ethnomedicinal practices. in this review we present chemical and pharmacological data from recent phytochemical studies on various plants of the genus Caesalpinia.Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG)Univ Fed Alfenas, Inst Chem, BR-37130000 Alfenas, MG, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Inst Environm Chem & Pharmaceut Sci, BR-09972 Diadema, SP, BrazilUniversidade Federal de São Paulo, Inst Environm Chem & Pharmaceut Sci, BR-09972 Diadema, SP, BrazilWeb of Scienc