The influence of long-term inputs of catch crops and cereal straw on yield, protein composition and technological quality of a spring and a winter wheat

Under conditions of restricted nitrogen (N) input such as in organic farming systems, crop N uptake must rely on N mineralised from applied animal manure, crop residues and native soil organic matter. Scarcity of N may impede the production of quality grain for bread production, and input and retention of N in soil are therefore important parameters for soil fertility. Toretain N in the crop-soilsystem, catch crops may be grown in breaks between main crops where they provide a significant sink for N mineralised in late summer and autumn (Thomsen, 2005). In corporation of straw may likewise retain mineralised N by microbial immobilisation (Christensen, 1986) and will also directly add to the N mineralisation potential when the N supplied in the straw accumulates (Thomsen & Christensen, 2004). Under northern European conditions, winter wheat may generally be of lower quality than spring wheat, but winter wheat has a higher yield potential. When the N uptake is mainly based on N mineralised from either applied or indigenous soil organic matter, however, this may even out the quality difference between winter and spring wheat as the longer growing season of winter wheat may boost its N utilisation. Growing conditions are highly important for protein quantity whereas main lygenetic factors influence protein composition (Amesetal., 1999; Luoetal., 2000). Wheat grain proteins have been classified as albumins, globulins, gliadins and glutenins on the basis of their solubility (Osborne, 1907). Reverse-phase (RP) high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) allows the quantitative determination of these different flour protein groups together with single proteins (α5-, α1,2-, α-, γc-type gliadins, x- and γ-type high (HMW) and low (LMW) molecular weights subunits of glutenin) (Wieser & Seilmeier, 1998). The proteins can also be divided into polymers (glutenins) or monomers (gliadins, albumins, globulins) based on their aggregating properties. The polymeric proteins are critical for governing wheat flour processing properties, and their quantity and size distribution reliably measured by size-exclusion (SE) HPLC techniques have been shown to be important indicators of baking quality (Dachkevitch & Autran, 1989; Bateyetal., 1991). The aim of this study was to examine whether wheat yield and baking quality determined by chromatographic techniques together with rheological and chemical quality measurements could be improved by combining agronomic strategies consisting of wheat cultivars and long-term organic matter inputs. The variables tested were (A) a winter wheat and a spring wheat cultivar, (B) three catch crop strategies and (C) four straw incorporation rates

Vinterhvede og vårhvede - efterafgrøder påvirkede udbyttet men ikke kvaliteten

Kvælstofoptaget i afgrøder stammer dels fra minerali-sering fra jordens organiske materiale dels fra evt. tilført gødning. Jordens evne til at frigive kvælstof ved mineralisering, og dermed dens evne til at forsyne en afgrøde med kvælstof, påvirkes bl.a. af dyrknings-systemet, herunder hvor meget organisk materiale der tilføres jorden f.eks. i form af afgrøderester. Planters evne til at udnytte mineraliseret kvælstof afhænger bl.a. af vækstsæsonens længde. Det forven-tedes derfor, at afgrøder med lang vækstsæson bedre er i stand til at udnytte en høj mineralisering end afgrøder med kort vækstsæson

Clathrin-dependent endocytosis of membrane-bound RANKL in differentiated osteoclasts

Bone is continuously repaired and remodelled through well-coordinated activity of osteoblasts that form new bone and osteoclasts, which resorb it. Osteoblasts synthesize and secrete two key molecules that are important for osteoclast differentiation, namely the ligand for the receptor of activator of nuclear factor κB (RANKL) and its decoy receptor osteoprotegerin (OPG). Active membrane transport is a typical feature of the resorbing osteoclast during bone resorption. Normally, one resorption cycle takes several hours as observed by monitoring actin ring formation and consequent disappearance in vitro. During these cyclic changes, the cytoskeleton undergoes remarkable dynamic rearrangement. Active cells show a continuous process of exocytosis that plays an essential role in transport of membrane components, soluble molecules and receptor-mediated ligands thus allowing them to communicate with the environment. The processes that govern intracellular transport and trafficking in mature osteoclasts are poorly known. The principal methodological problem that have made these studies difficult is a physiological culture of osteoclasts that permit observing the vesicle apparatus in conditions similar to the in vivo conditions. In the present study we have used a number of morphological approaches to characterize the composition, formation and the endocytic and biosynthetic pathways that play roles in dynamics of differentiation of mature bone resorbing cells using a tri-dimensional system of physiologic coculture

Optical memory based on ultrafast wavelength switching in a bistable microlaser

We propose an optical memory cell based on ultrafast wavelength switching in coupled-cavity microlasers, featuring bistability between modes separated by several nanometers. A numerical implementation is demonstrated by simulating a two-dimensional photonic crystal microlaser. Switching times of less than 10 ps, switching energy around 15--30 fJ and on-off contrast of more than 40 dB are achieved. Theoretical guidelines for optimizing the performance of the memory cell in terms of switching time and energy are drawn.Comment: to appear in Optics Letter

Instability and entanglement of the ground state of the Dicke model

Using tools of quantum information theory we show that the ground state of the Dicke model exhibits an infinite sequence of instabilities (quantum-phase-like transitions). These transitions are characterized by abrupt changes of the bi-partite entanglement between atoms at critical values $\kappa_j$ of the atom-field coupling parameter $\kappa$ and are accompanied by discontinuities of the first derivative of the energy of the ground state. We show that in a weak-coupling limit ($\kappa_1\leq \kappa \leq \kappa_2$) the Coffman-Kundu-Wootters (CKW) inequalities are saturated which proves that for these values of the coupling no intrinsic multipartite entanglement (neither among the atoms nor between the atoms and the field) is generated by the atom-field interaction. We analyze also the atom-field entanglement and we show that in the strong-coupling limit the field is entangled with the atoms so that the von Neumann entropy of the atomic sample (that serves as a measure of the atom-field entanglement) takes the value $S_A={1/2}\ln (N+1)$. The entangling interaction with atoms leads to a highly sub-Poissonian photon statistics of the field mode.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Heisenberg scaling precision in multi-mode distributed quantum metrology

We consider the estimation of an arbitrary parameter φ, such as the temperature or a magnetic field, affecting in a distributed manner the components of an arbitrary linear optical passive network, such as an integrated chip. We demonstrate that Heisenberg scaling precision (i.e. of the order of 1/N, where N is the number of probe photons) can be achieved without any iterative adaptation of the interferometer hardware and by using only a simple, single, squeezed light source and well-established homodyne measurements techniques. Furthermore, no constraint on the possible values of the parameter is needed but only a preliminary shot-noise estimation (i.e. with a precision of) easily achievable without any quantum resources. Indeed, such a classical knowledge of the parameter is enough to prepare a single, suitable optical stage either at the input or the output of the network to monitor with Heisenberg-limited precision any variation of the parameter to the order of without the need to iteratively modify such a stage

Lamellar and «club-shaped» corpuscular nerve endings in human gingival mucosa. A light and electron microscopic study

A study on the presence of corpuscular nerve endings in human gingival mucosa was performed using both light and transmission electron microscopic (TEM) techniques. Both round and oval lamellar corpuscles were detected by light microscopy. They were located either subepithelially, close to the basement membrane, or within the papillae, deeply invaginated into the overlying epithelium. TEM techniques showed convoluted structures with unmyelinated fibre arborizations leading to an afferent fibre supported by the so called lamellar cells. The presence of blood vessels, collagenous fibrils, desmosome-like junctions, cytoplasmic organelles, as well as the similarity with some previously described mechanoreceptors, suggested the role of such corpuscular nerve endings in transmitting a nervous impulse induced by mechanical stimulation. Other simpler structures were also observed and named «club-shaped» corpuscles: they could support the more complex ones in responding to the strengths and the movements directly influencing the gingival mucosa.La présence de terminaisons nerveuses corpusculaires dans la muqueuse gingivale humaine a été observée tant en microscopie optique qu’en microscopie électronique à transmission. En microscopie optique on a remarqué des corpuscules lamellaires ronds et ovalaires, qui étaient localisés tant au dessous de l’épithélium, tout près de la membrane basale, qu’au dedans des papilles, profondément insérés dans l’épithélium.En microscopie électronique on a observé des structures convolutées pourvues d’arborisations de fibres nerveuses sans myéline qui vont se réunir dans une fibre afférente supportée par des cellules dites lamellaires. La présence de vaisseaux, de fibrilles collagènes, de jonctions telles que desmoses, d’inclusions cytoplasmiques autant que la ressemblance avec quelques mécanorécepteurs décrits en littérature, suggérait un rôle de ces terminaisons nerveuses corpusculaires en envoyant un impulse nerveux induit par une stimulation mécanique. On a aussi observé des corpuscules plus simples appelés «club-shaped» qui pourraient supporter les plus complexes dans la réponse aux forces et aux mouvements qui influencent directement la muqueuse gingivale

Inhibition of bone resorption by Tanshinone VI isolated from Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge

During the last decade, a more detailed knowledge of molecular mechanisms involved in osteoclastogenesis has driven research efforts in the development and screening of compound libraries of several small molecules that specifically inhibit the pathway involved in the commitment of the osteoclast precursor cells. Natural compounds that suppress osteoclast differentiation may have therapeutic value in treating osteoporosis and other bone erosive diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or metastasis associated with bone loss. In ongoing investigation into anti-osteoporotic compounds from natural products we have analyzed the effect of Tanshinone VI on osteoclasts differentiation, using a physiologic three-dimensional osteoblast/bone marrow model of cell co-culture. Tanshinone VI is an abietane diterpene extracted from the root of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge (Labiatae), a Chinese traditional crude drug, “Tan-Shen”. Tashinone has been widely used in clinical practice for the prevention of cardiac diseases, arthritis and other inflammation-related disorders based on its pharmacological actions in multiple tissues. Although Tanshinone VI A has been used as a medicinal agent in the treatment of many diseases, its role in osteoclast-related bone diseases remains unknown. We showed previously that Tanshinone VI greatly inhibits osteoclast differentiation and suppresses bone resorption through disruption of the actin ring; subsequently, we intended to examine the precise inhibitory mechanism of Tanshinone VI on osteoclast differentiating factor. This study shows, for the first time, that Tanshinone VI prevents osteoclast differentiation by inhibiting RANKL expression and NFkB induction

Investigation of Anti-Relaxation Coatings for Alkali-Metal Vapor Cells Using Surface Science Techniques

Many technologies based on cells containing alkali-metal atomic vapor benefit from the use of anti-relaxation surface coatings in order to preserve atomic spin polarization. In particular, paraffin has been used for this purpose for several decades and has been demonstrated to allow an atom to experience up to 10,000 collisions with the walls of its container without depolarizing, but the details of its operation remain poorly understood. We apply modern surface and bulk techniques to the study of paraffin coatings, in order to characterize the properties that enable the effective preservation of alkali spin polarization. These methods include Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, atomic force microscopy, near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We also compare the light-induced atomic desorption yields of several different paraffin materials. Experimental results include the determination that crystallinity of the coating material is unnecessary, and the detection of C=C double bonds present within a particular class of effective paraffin coatings. Further study should lead to the development of more robust paraffin anti-relaxation coatings, as well as the design and synthesis of new classes of coating materials.Comment: 12 pages, 12 figures. Copyright 2010 American Institute of Physics. This article may be downloaded for personal use only. Any other use requires prior permission of the author and the American Institute of Physics. The following article appeared in the Journal of Chemical Physics and may be found at http://link.aip.org/link/?JCP/133/14470

Breakthrough pain in oncology: a longitudinal study.

Abstract CONTEXT: Existing studies on breakthrough pain (BP) have reported different prevalence rates because of different settings, populations, and assessment methods. These studies have used cross-sectional designs, and the relationship of BP with analgesic treatment has not been evaluated. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to longitudinally assess BP in cancer patients admitted to oncology units. METHODS: A consecutive sample of patients admitted to oncology centers was selected. At admission (T0), three months after admission (T3), and six months after admission (T6), data on background pain and BP were recorded. BP was assessed in terms of its intensity, duration, number of episodes, onset with movement, spontaneous relief after stopping activity, limitation of physical activity, and effectiveness of analgesics. RESULTS: Three hundred two patients completed the study. At T0, T3, and T6, 39%, 38%, and 33% patients, respectively, had continuous pain (P=0.294). Pain intensity significantly decreased (P=0.004 and 0.027 at T3 and T6, respectively). Most patients had BP at T0 (87.1%), T3 (80.9%), and T6 (73.2%), and there was a significant decrease in the prevalence of BP over time (P=0.016). Of 149 patients with BP, pain on movement was recorded in 43.6%, 43.4%, and 32.4% at T0, T3, and T6, respectively (P=0.228). Pain spontaneously decreased or ceased when stopping physical activity in 66%, 56%, and 62% at T0, T3, and T6, respectively (P=0.537). Pain on movement strongly limited physical activity in most patients. CONCLUSION: These data expand current information about BP and underline the need for a longitudinal assessment of a phenomenon that is invariably dependent on stage of disease, patient, and therapeutic factors