Native supported membranes on planar polymer supports and micro-particle supports

To bridge soft biological materials and hard inorganic materials is an interdisciplinary scientific challenge. Despite of experimental difficulties, the deposition of native biological membranes on supports is a straightforward strategy. This review provides an overview of advances in the fabrication and characterization of native biological membranes on planar polymer supports and micro-particles.     

Reduced root mycorrhizal colonization as affected by phosphorus fertilization is responsible for high cadmium accumulation in wheat

Plant and Soil - Grass pea is a legume species with recognized resistance to several diseases and thus important for the improvement of related major legume crops. It is infected by the soil-borne...     

Cationic-modified PVA as a dry strength additive for rice straw fibers

Extensive research has shown that non-wood fibers are able to be substituted for wood fibers. The major shortcoming of non-fibers is their high silica content that causes some operational problems in mills, and hence silica should be kept in pulps. By keeping silica in pulps, however, the mechanical properties of papers are reduced, and a dry strength additive may be required. In this study, cationic polyvinyl alcohols (C-PVA) with two different molecular weights were prepared, and employed as dry strength additives. The adsorption of polymers on rice straw fibers obtained via soda-air-anthraquinone (AQ) pulping under various conditions was investigated thoroughly. Convincing results demonstrated that high molecular weight polymers performed more efficiently on dry strength enhancements of papers, while they adsorbed less than lower molecular weight polymers on fibers. However, the stiffness of fibers was increased to a larger extent by applying a higher molecular weight C-PVA.