Artificial neural network and response surface methodology: a comparative analysis for optimizing rice straw pretreatment and saccharification

Abstract

The present study demonstrates a comparative analysis between the artificial neural network (ANN) and response surface methodology (RSM) as optimization tools for pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulosic rice straw. The efficacy for both the processes, that is, pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis was evaluated using correlation coefficient (R²) & mean squared error (MSE). The values of R² obtained by ANN after training, validation, and testing were 1, 0.9005, and 0.997 for pretreatment and 0.962, 0.923, and 0.9941 for enzymatic saccharification, respectively. On the other hand, the R² values obtained with RSM were 0.9965 for cellulose recovery and 0.9994 for saccharification efficiency. Thus, ANN and RSM together successfully identify the substantial process conditions for rice straw pretreatment and enzymatic saccharification. The percentage of error for ANN and RSM were 0.009 and 0.01 for cellulose recovery and for 0.004 and 0.005 for saccharification efficiency, respectively, which showed the authority of ANN in exemplifying the non-linear behavior of the system.     

Antimicrobial effect of different herbal plant extracts against different microbial population

This study evaluates the antimicrobial effects of ethanolic extract of five herbal plants; Guava (Psidium guajava), Sage (Salvia officinalis), Rhamnus (Ziziphusspina Christi), Mulberry (Morusalba L.), and Olive (Oleaeuropaea L) leaves against several microbial population representing Gram positive, Gram negative and Mollicutes; S. aureus, E. coli, Pasteurella multocida, B. cereus, Salmonella Enteritidis and M. gallisepticum using standard agar disc diffusion technique and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC). Different extracts reveal variable results against the microorganism under study. All extracts have no antibacterial potency for Mycoplasma gallisepticum except Psidium guajava. The results of minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and Minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the extracts against the six bacteria ranged from 625 to 5000 μg/ml. The used herbal extract could inhibit the selected microorganism under study with variable minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC).     

X‐ray crystallographic structure of BshB,the zinc‐dependent deacetylase involved in bacillithiol biosynthesis

Many gram‐positive bacteria produce bacillithiol to aid in the maintenance of redox homeostasis and degradation of toxic compounds, including the antibiotic fosfomycin. Bacillithiol is produced via a three‐enzyme pathway that includes the action of the zinc‐dependent deacetylase BshB. Previous studies identified conserved aspartate and histidine residues within the active site that are involved in metal binding and catalysis, but the enzymatic mechanism is not fully understood. Here we report two X‐ray crystallographic structures of BshB from Bacillus subtilis that provide insight into the BshB catalytic mechanism.     

橡胶树橡胶生物合成调控相关基因的表达相关性分析

该文通过qPCR获得了正常割胶条件下,9个茉莉酸信号途径关键环节基因HbCOI1、HbJAZ1、HbJAZ2、HbJAZ3、HbMYC1、HbMYC2、HbMYC3、HbMYC4、HbMYC5和6个橡胶生物合成相关基因HbHRT2、HbSRPP、HbREF、HbHMGR1、HbHRT1、HbGAPDH在5个橡胶树魏克汉种质和5个1981''IRRDB种质胶乳中的表达数据; 通过皮尔逊相关系数分析了这15个基因彼此间的表达相关性,分别获得105对基因的双变量相关系数(r12)和偏相关系数(r12.3),所有105对基因的双变量相关系数(︱r12︱)和偏相关系数(︱r12.3︱)的平均值分别为0.486 ± 0.220和0.304 ± 0.211,达到0.05的差异显著水平。其中,r12与r12.3方向相同的63对(60%),方向相反的42对(40%); ︱r12︱<︱r12.3︱的23对(21.905%),︱r12︱>︱r12.3︱的82对(78.095%); 双变量相关显著性P<0.05的76对(72.38%),P<0.01的59对(56.19%); 偏相关显著性P<0.05的21对(20%),P<0.01的16对(15.24%)。结果显示,这两条途径中的基因表达彼此相关,这为基因表达谱分析中普遍采用的前提假设“功能相关基因的表达相关”提供了进一步的实验证据,可用于挖掘、筛选和预测与橡胶生物合成相关的未知基因,为研究橡胶树产量形成的分子调控机理提供理论基础。     

Rapid reversal of a potentially constraining genetic covariance between leaf and flower traits in Silene latifolia

Genetic covariance between two traits generates correlated responses to selection, and may either enhance or constrain adaptation. Silene latifolia exhibits potentially constraining genetic covariance between specific leaf area (SLA) and flower number in males. Flower number is likely to increase via fecundity selection but the correlated increase in SLA increases mortality, and SLA is under selection to decrease in dry habitats. We selected on trait combinations in two selection lines for four generations to test whether genetic covariance could be reduced without significantly altering trait means. In one selection line, the genetic covariance changed sign and eigenstructure changed significantly, while in the other selection line eigenstructure remained similar to the control line. Changes in genetic variance–covariance structure are therefore possible without the introduction of new alleles, and the responses we observed suggest that founder effects and changes in frequency of alleles of major effect may be acting to produce the changes.     

Elevated rates of positive selection drive the evolution of pestiferousness in the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata,Say)

Contextualizing evolutionary history and identifying genomic features of an insect that might contribute to its pest status is important in developing early detection and control tactics. In order to understand the evolution of pestiferousness, which we define as the accumulation of traits that contribute to an insect population's success in an agroecosystem, we tested the importance of known genomic properties associated with rapid adaptation in the Colorado potato beetle (CPB), Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say. Within the leaf beetle genus Leptinotarsa, only CPB, and a few populations therein, has risen to pest status on cultivated nightshades, Solanum. Using whole genomes from ten closely related Leptinotarsa species native to the United States, we reconstructed a high‐quality species tree and used this phylogenetic framework to assess evolutionary patterns in four genomic features of rapid adaptation: standing genetic variation, gene family expansion and contraction, transposable element abundance and location, and positive selection at protein‐coding genes. Throughout approximately 20 million years of history, Leptinotarsa species show little evidence of gene family turnover and transposable element variation. However, there is a clear pattern of CPB experiencing higher rates of positive selection on protein‐coding genes. We determine that these rates are associated with greater standing genetic variation due to larger effective population size, which supports the theory that the demographic history contributes to rates of protein evolution. Furthermore, we identify a suite of coding genes under positive selection that are putatively associated with pestiferousness in the Colorado potato beetle lineage. They are involved in the biological processes of xenobiotic detoxification, chemosensation and hormone function.     

深圳近海公园植物群落结构特征及其与景观格局的相关性

城市公园植物群落为城市生态系统提供重要的生态服务。对深圳最具代表性的6个近海城市公园进行实地调查,同时结合高分辨率的遥感图像,分析其植物群落结构特征及其与公园内部景观格局的相关关系。结果表明：（1）共调查到近海公园植物108科310属471种,其中乡土植物82科169属231种。草本植物中乡土植物比例较高,而木本中乡土植物占比较低。（2）TS-4和H-1分别是近海公园最常见的乔灌群落类型和草本群落类型,其样地量分别占总量的39%和26%。常见群落的指示种多数具有热带性质并占据主体地位。（3）公园中灌木植物种数低于乔木和草本植物,但群落稳定性较高。（4）半自然型和人工型近海公园各类植物的相似性,以灌木层植物最低。（5）公园整体景观格局中,斑块密度与林地面积比、林地最大斑块面积比呈显著负相关（P<0.05）。（6）各层植物多样性也受到景观格局显著影响：草本层植物多样性与草地、林地的斑块形状复杂程度分别呈显著负相关（P<0.05）;灌木层植物多样性与林地、水体的景观破碎度呈显著负相关（P<0.05）;乔木层植物多样性与草地最大斑块指数呈显著负相关（P<0.05）。公园景观破碎度的增大可能会导致植被景观面积减少。建议在公园植物造景初期就要重视对灌木的运用,尤其是一些生态本底比较脆弱的公园,以提高植物群落的稳定性和低维护性。同时应尽可能保留大面积的核心植被生态斑块,更好地发挥其生态功能。研究结果可为城市公园的规划设计、植物群落的优化配置与城市生物多样性保护提供依据。     

Plant–plant facilitation increases with reduced phylogenetic relatedness along an elevation gradient

Environmental conditions can modify the intensity and sign of ecological interactions. The stress gradient hypothesis (SGH) predicts that facilitation becomes more important than competition under stressful conditions. To properly test this hypothesis, it is necessary to account for all (not a subset of) interactions occurring in the communities and consider that species do not interact at random but following a specific pattern. We aim to assess elevational changes in facilitation, in terms of species richness, frequency and intensity of the interaction as a function of the evolutionary relatedness between nurses and their associated species. We sampled nurse and their facilitated plant species in two 1000–2000 m. elevation gradients in Mediterranean Chile where low temperature imposes a mortality filter on seedlings. We first estimated the relative importance of facilitation as a mechanism adding new species to communities distributed along these gradients. We then tested whether the frequency and intensity of facilitation increases with elevation, taking into account the evolutionary relatedness of the nurse species and the facilitated species. We found that nurses increase the species richness of the community by up to 35%. Facilitative interactions are more frequent than competitive interactions (56% versus 44%) and facilitation intensity increased with elevation for interactions involving distantly related lineages. Our results highlight the importance of including an evolutionary dimension in the study of facilitation to have a clearer picture of the mechanisms enabling species to coexist and survive under stressful conditions. This knowledge is especially relevant to conserve vulnerable and threatened communities facing new climate scenarios, such as those located in Mediterranean-type ecosystems.