Anteroposterior patterning in hemichordates and the origins of the chordate nervous system

The chordate central nervous system has been hypothesized to originate from either a dorsal centralized, or a ventral centralized, or a noncentralized nervous system of a deuterostome ancestor. In an effort to resolve these issues, we examined the hemichordate Saccoglossus kowalevskii and studied the expression of orthologs of genes that are involved in patterning the chordate central nervous system. All 22 orthologs studied are expressed in the ectoderm in an anteroposterior arrangement nearly identical to that found in chordates. Domain topography is conserved between hemichordates and chordates despite the fact that hemichordates have a diffuse nerve net, whereas chordates have a centralized system. We propose that the deuterostome ancestor may have had a diffuse nervous system, which was later centralized during the evolution of the chordate lineage.     

THE COMPARATIVE AND DEVELOPMENTAL MORPHOLOGY OF THE ROOT SYSTEM OF SELAGINELLA SELAGINOIDES (L.) LINK

All of the roots of Selaginella selaginoides are attached laterally to the base of the shoot, which has monopolar growth as is characteristic of Selaginella. The first three roots are produced by meristematic activity in the cortex of the hypocotyl as in several other species of Selaginella. The fourth root is produced in the same way as the first three, except that not all of the cortical cells which become meristematic mature into root tissue. Some of the meristematic tissue remains undifferentiated and continues to produce additional roots. Potentially an unlimited number of roots could be produced, but no plant was found to have more than eight. There is some secondary growth in the cortex of the basal swelling on the hypocotyl, but no secondary vascular tissue is produced and no cambium of any sort is ever organized. On the basis of comparisons with other living species of Selaginella. the centralized root system of S. selaginoides is interpreted as having been modified from a noncentralized type of root system by the persistence of the juvenile mode of root production.     

Vijayanagara: Authority and Meaning of a South Indian Imperial Capital

The meaning of the imperial capital can be understood as a necessary component of the system that constitutes the authority of its rulers. Urban form relates rulers' behavior to principles of order and to the forces that create this order. Architectural and urban morphology at Vijayanagara, the capital of the most important Hindu empire of medieval south India, embodied several meaningful aspects of royal behavior. Here are considered material elements that expressed the kings' activities as warrior and hunter, as promoter of prosperity and redistributor of wealth, and as maintainer of cosmic order. Three aspects of the city—the structure of the urban plan, the organization of movement, and the mythological associations of the site—asserted that the king embodied the power of Ramachandra, the divine hero-king.     

Histochemical localization in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ruta graveolens</Emphasis> cell cultures: elucidating the relationship between cellular differentiation and furanocoumarin production

Cell cultures of Ruta graveolens L. were used as a model system to study the relationship between cellular organization and furanocoumarin production. Relative contributions of individual cells were traced using a combination of biochemical and localization techniques in three types of cell cultures: dispersed, aggregated, and organized. The proportion of relative furanocoumarins produced varied with the organization level in cultures. Productive population in dispersed cell culture was 10% which increased to 17% and to 35% in aggregated and organized cell cultures, respectively. Large cell clusters accumulating furanocoumarins were restricted to organized cell cultures. In these lines, sites for psoralen, bergapten, and xanthotoxin accumulation were spatially separated from each other, which has been reported for the first time. Variation in production was due to change in relative size of productive population in the three types of cultures studied. A model has been proposed for differential furanocoumarin producing ability of cells based on differentiation levels.     

The Archaeology of Food Preference

Food preference is a socially constructed concept in which both consumers and producers define what is "good to eat." Staple crops and daily meals are an important component of these definitions, as the regular use of particular foods reinforces norms of identity. Food preferences also affect agricultural systems because choices among cultivars are based on social needs in addition to economic variables such as yield and caloric value. Through textual and archaeological evidence, the trajectory of rice production is examined for Sri Lanka, the Brahmaputra Valley, the Tamil region, and Vijayanagara. In these regions and elsewhere in South Asia, shared ideologies of food preference resulted in a consensus mode of agricultural production: Irrigation works increased the tax base for political leaders and the donation base for temple economies, but they also benefited local inhabitants who would have been able to partake of a preferred food on a more regular basis.     

BETYdb: a yield,trait, and ecosystem service database applied to second‐generation bioenergy feedstock production

Increasing demand for sustainable energy has led to research and development on the cultivation of diverse plant species for biomass production. To support the research and development required to domesticate and cultivate crops for bioenergy, we developed the Biofuel Ecophysiological Traits and Yields database (BETYdb). BETYdb is a centralized open‐access repository that facilitates organization, discovery, and exchange of information about plant traits, crop yields, and ecosystem functions. BETYdb provides user interfaces to simplify storage and discovery as well as programming interfaces that support automated and reproducible scientific workflows. Presently, BETYdb contains over forty thousand observations of plant traits, biomass yields, and ecosystem dynamics collected from the published articles and ongoing field studies. Over half of these records represent fewer than ten genera that have been intensively evaluated for biomass production, while the other half represent over two thousand plant species reflecting research on new crops, unmanaged ecosystems, and land use transitions associated with bioenergy. BETYdb has been accessed over twenty‐five thousand times and is used in the fields of bioenergy and ecosystem ecology to quantify yield potential and ecosystem functioning of crops and unmanaged systems under present and future climates. Here, we summarize the database contents and illustrate its applications. We show its utility in a new analysis that confirms that Miscanthus is twice as productive as switchgrass over a much wider range of environmental and management conditions than covered in previous analyses. We compare traits related to carbon uptake and water use of these species with each other and with two coppice shrubs, poplar and willow. These examples, along with a growing body of published research that used BETYdb, illustrate the scope of research supported through this open‐access database.     

Monoclonal tobacco cell lines with enhanced recombinant protein yields can be generated from heterogeneous cell suspension cultures by flow sorting

Plant cell suspension cultures can be used for the production of recombinant pharmaceutical proteins, but their potential is limited by modest production levels that may be unstable over long culture periods, reflecting initial culture heterogeneity and subsequent genetic and epigenetic changes. We used flow sorting to generate highly productive monoclonal cell lines from a heterogeneous population of tobacco BY‐2 cells expressing the human antibody M12 by selecting the co‐expressed fluorescent marker protein DsRed located on the same T‐DNA. Separation yielded ～35% wells containing single protoplasts and ～15% wells with monoclonal microcolonies that formed within 2 weeks. Thus, enriching the population of fluorescent cells from initially 24% to 90–96% in the six monoclonal lines resulted in an up to 13‐fold increase in M12 production that remained stable for 10–12 months. This is the first straightforward procedure allowing the generation of monoclonal plant cell suspension cultures by flow sorting, greatly increasing the potential of plant cells as an economical platform for the manufacture of recombinant pharmaceutical proteins.     

Key sectors in greenhouse gas emissions in Spain: An alternative input–output analysis

We develop an alternative input–output approach and apply it to the determination of key sectors in emissions. This methodology allows us to assess and classify the different productive sectors according to their greenhouse gas emissions and the role that they play in the productive structure, as well as the participation of their output in the total volume of production. In contrast with previous approaches, we do not focus on the responsibility of final demand, but on the responsibility of the total production of each sector. We apply our methodology to the 2014 input–output table for Spain provided by the World Input–Output Database (2016). The results show that the sectors that induce more emissions from other sectors are manufacture of food products, wholesale and retail trade, and construction. Those that are pulled to emit coincide with those that are relevant for their own final demand, being the most important electricity and gas provision, agriculture, and transportation. The classification obtained allows to orient the design of greenhouse gas emission mitigation policies for the different sectors.     

Technology and Cooperative Labour Among the Orokaiva

In human history technology has had an obvious in fluence on the labour process and division of labour. This paper looks at the impact of introduced technology on the size and composition of labour units required for productive work in Koropata, Papua New Guinea. Although new tools and weapons have made smaller working units more feasible for gardening, hunting and fishing, a network of kin is necessary to ensure long term production in the society. Hence housebuilding and acceptable marriages require the co-operation of kin. A knowledge of technology and co-operative forms should be complemented by an understanding of land ownership and relations of production, if any predictions are to be made about essential changes in organization of production. I claim that the latter has been retained in its essential aspects for subsistence-based production. For the historical involvement of Koropatans in cash-cropping, however, there has been an increasing alienation from the product and loss of control over the labour process as they have moved from the cultivation of rice, to coffee, to oil palm.     

Flexible and robust networks

We consider networks with two types of nodes. The v-nodes, called centers, are hyperconnected and interact with one another via many u-nodes, called satellites. This centralized architecture, widespread in gene networks, possesses two fundamental properties. Namely, this organization creates feedback loops that are capable of generating practically any prescribed patterning dynamics, chaotic or periodic, or having a number of equilibrium states. Moreover, this organization is robust with respect to random perturbations of the system.     

Achieving Dewaterization in Industrial Parks

Water resource management is a critical component of eco‐industrial parks. This article proposes a methodology, termed the water resource management model for industrial parks, that integrates a water input‐output table with water pinch technology. A case study of the Yixing Economic Development Zone (YEDZ) in China illustrates the methodology. Each sector's water utilization and direct and indirect intersectoral interactions of water and water pollutants in 2007 and 2015 are accounted for. It is proposed that water metabolism in 2015 could achieve certain objectives of water resource management in the YEDZ. In addition, future policies are proposed. The YEDZ needs to focus on improving various technologies regarding the manufacture of textiles, the manufacture of raw chemical materials and chemical products, and the production and supply of electric and heat power—which will promote the utilization of water cascading among sectors and encourage the reuse of treated water from wastewater treatment plants. Last, future work for water resource management is proposed.     

When is self-organization used in biological systems?

Self-organization, or decentralized control, is widespread in biological systems, including cells, organisms, and groups. It is not, however, the universal means of organization. I argue that a biological system will be self-organized when it possesses a large number of subunits, and these subunits lack either the communicational abilities or the computational abilities, or both, that are needed to implement centralized control. Such control requires a well informed and highly intelligent supervisor. I stress that the subunits in a self-organized system do not necessarily have low cognitive abilities. A lack of preadaptations for evolving a system-wide communication network can prevent the evolution of centralized control. Hence, sometimes even systems whose subunits possess high cognitive abilities will be self-organized.     

Early prediction of instability of Chinese hamster ovary cell lines expressing recombinant antibodies and antibody-fusion proteins

One of the most important criteria for the successful manufacture of a therapeutic protein (e.g., an antibody) is to develop a mammalian cell line that maintains stability of production. Problems with process yield, lack of effective use of costly resources, and a possible delay in obtaining regulatory approval of the product may ensue otherwise. Therefore the stability of expression in a number of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) derived production cell lines that were isolated using the glutamine synthetase (GS) selection system was investigated by defining a culture as unstable if the titer (which is a measure of productivity) of a cell line expressing an antibody or antibody-fusion protein declined by 20-30% or more as it underwent 55 population doublings. Using this criterion, a significant proportion of the GS-selected CHO production cell lines were observed to be unstable. Reduced antibody titers correlated with the gradual appearance of a secondary, less productive population of cells as detected with flow cytometric analysis of intracellular antibody content. Where tested, it was observed that the secondary population arose spontaneously from the parental population following multiple passages, which suggested inherent clonal instability. Moreover, the frequency of unstable clones decreased significantly if the host cell line from which the candidate production cell lines were derived was apoptotic-resistant. This data suggested that unstable cell lines were more prone to apoptosis, which was confirmed by the fact that unstable cell lines had higher levels of Annexin V and caspase 3 activities. This knowledge has been used to develop screening protocols that identify unstable CHO production cell lines at an early stage of the cell line development process, potentially reducing the cost of biotherapeutic development.     

Viability of Bioprinted Cellular Constructs Using a Three Dispenser Cartesian Printer

Tissue engineering has centralized its focus on the construction of replacements for non-functional or damaged tissue. The utilization of three-dimensional bioprinting in tissue engineering has generated new methods for the printing of cells and matrix to fabricate biomimetic tissue constructs. The solid freeform fabrication (SFF) method developed for three-dimensional bioprinting uses an additive manufacturing approach by depositing droplets of cells and hydrogels in a layer-by-layer fashion. Bioprinting fabrication is dependent on the specific placement of biological materials into three-dimensional architectures, and the printed constructs should closely mimic the complex organization of cells and extracellular matrices in native tissue. This paper highlights the use of the Palmetto Printer, a Cartesian bioprinter, as well as the process of producing spatially organized, viable constructs while simultaneously allowing control of environmental factors. This methodology utilizes computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing to produce these specific and complex geometries. Finally, this approach allows for the reproducible production of fabricated constructs optimized by controllable printing parameters.     

Impact of longevity on greenhouse gas emissions and profitability of individual dairy cows analysed with different system boundaries

Dairy production systems are often criticized as being major emitters of greenhouse gases (GHG). In this context, the extension of the length of the productive life of dairy cows is gaining interest as a potential GHG mitigation option. In the present study, we investigated cow and system GHG emission intensity and profitability based on data from 30 dairy cows of different productive lifetime fed either no or limited amounts of concentrate. Detailed information concerning productivity, feeding and individual enteric methane emissions of the individuals was available from a controlled experiment and herd book databases. A simplified GHG balance was calculated for each animal based on the milk produced at the time of the experiment and for their entire lifetime milk production. For the lifetime production, we also included the emissions arising from potential beef produced by fattening the offspring of the dairy cows. This accounted for the effect that changes in the length of productive life will affect the replacement rate and thus the number of calves that can be used for beef production. Profitability was assessed by calculating revenues and full economic costs for the cows in the data set. Both emission intensity and profitability were most favourable in cows with long productive life, whereas cows that had not finished their first lactation performed particularly unfavourably with regard to their emissions per unit of product and rearing costs were mostly not repaid. Including the potential beef production, GHG emissions in relation to total production of animal protein also decreased with age, but the overall variability was greater, as the individual cow history (lifetime milk yield, twin births, stillbirths, etc.) added further sources of variation. The present results show that increasing the length of productive life of dairy cows is a viable way to reduce the climate impact and to improve profitability of dairy production.     

Influence of cytoskeleton organization on recombinant protein expression by CHO cells

In this study, we assessed the importance of cytoskeleton organization in the mammalian cells used to produce therapeutic proteins. Two cytoskeletal genes, Actin alpha cardiac muscle 1 (ACTC1) and a guanosine triphosphate GTPase-activating protein (TAGAP), were found to be upregulated in highly productive therapeutic protein-expressing Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells selected by the deprivation of vitamin B5. We report here that the overexpression of the ACTC1 protein was able to improve significantly recombinant therapeutic production, as well as to decrease the levels of toxic lactate metabolic by-products. ACTC1 overexpression was accompanied by altered as well as decreased polymerized actin, which was associated with high protein production by CHO cell cultured in suspension. We suggest that the depolymerization of actin and the possible modulation of integrin signaling, as well as changes in basal metabolism, may be driving the increase of protein secretion by CHO cells.     

Action of Combinations of Light And Electric Current On Planaria

The physiological investigation of invertebrates is important for the study of the evolution of functions, and also for understanding the laws of interaction of functions and living structures in an elementary form. Flatworms (planaria) attract special attention because of the simple organization of their nervous system, which at the same time possesses the basic features of a centralized system in the form of cephalization and synaptic transmission.     

Simple representation of physiological regulations in a model of lactating female: application to the dairy goat

A dynamic model of the lactating dairy goat, combining a minimum of mechanistic representations of homeorhetic regulations and a long-term approach, was developed. It describes (i) the main changes in body weight, dry-matter intake, milk production and composition of a dairy goat; (ii) the succession of pregnancy and lactation throughout the productive life; and (iii) the major changes in dynamics induced by the female profile (production potential and body weight at maturity). The model adopts a 'pull' approach including a systematic expression of the production potential and not representing any feed limitation. It involves three sub-systems. The reproductive events sub-system drives the dynamics through time with three major events: service, kidding and drying off. It also accounts for the effect of production potential (kg of milk at the peak of lactation) and lactation number (potential reached at the fourth lactation). The regulating sub-system represents the homeorhetic mechanisms during pregnancy and lactation with two sets of theoretical hormones, one representing gestation and the other lactation. The operating sub-system describes the main physiological flows and the energetic requirements linked to these functions through a compartmental structure. Simulations were run in order to test (i) the behaviour of the model at the scale of the productive life for an average profile of female (60 kg at maturity and 4 kg of milk at peak); (ii) the sensitivity of the simulated dynamics (mainly milk production and body reserves) to the production potential and body weight at maturity; (iii) external validation with comparison of model outputs to data from the experimental flock of Grignon and data from the French milk record organization (French organism in charge of animal recording for dairy farmers). The results at the scale of one productive life show the model simulates a relevant set of dynamics. The sensitivity analysis suggests that the model fairly well simulates the link between a female's ability to produce and mobilise reserves. Finally, external validation confirms the model's ability to simulate a relevant set of physiological dynamics while pointing out some limits of the model (simulation of milk fat and protein content dynamics, for example). The results illustrate the relevance of the model in simulating biological dynamics and confirm the possibility of including minimum representations of homeorhetic regulations with a simple structure. This simplicity gives an opportunity to integrate this basic element in a herd simulator and test interactions between females' regulations and management rules.