Plant biodiversity in a larch plantation from the view point of photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency in northeast China

Forest floor of larch species often provides growth habitat for many kinds of understory species because of relatively sparse structure in a larch canopy. A rich flora of forest understory species may play an essential role in maintaining fertility of a larch stand. An attempt was made to evaluate photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency (PNUE) of many understory and overstory species according to their Raunkiaer lifeform. By studying 72 perennial deciduous species in a larch plantation in northeast China, marked photosynthetic differences between phanerophytes (Ph) and other three lifeforms of chamaephytes (Ch), hemicryptophytes (He), and cryptophytes (Cr) were found, with marginal differences found among Ch, He, and Cr. Ph species had much lower PNUE, and much lower values of rate of nitrogen allocation to chlorophyll (Chl./N) and nitrogen allocation to carboxylation processes (V _cmax/N) were concurrently observed in Ph compared with the other three lifeforms. Ph had much lower leaf nitrogen per unit of projection area (N _area) and specific leaf area (SLA, cm² g^–1). At lower SLA, for Ph species the change of PNUE with SLA was small, but these changes became very large at higher SLA for Ch, He, and Cr species. Our findings indicate that leaf morphological change is important for clarifying photosynthesis differences among species with different lifeform.     

假苍耳的生活史进程中几种生理生化指标的变化

本文试图从生理生化的角度对假苍耳(Iva xanthifolia)生活史进程中可溶性糖类、赤霉素、单宁以及黄酮的变化进行探讨。通过对假苍耳在生长发育期间几种生理生化指标的测定,结果表明,在假苍耳生活史进程的不同阶段,其体内各种代谢产物的含量基本都在种子或芽阶段具有最高含量。此外,不同发育阶段可溶性还原糖含量的变化规律相似：芽＞花序＞苗＞成株＞种子。除在花序和苗阶段没有测到海藻糖,其他各阶段海藻糖的含量变化如下：芽＞成株＞种子。另外,只有在种子阶段检测到棉子糖,其含量为15.43 mg·g~(-1)。赤霉素含量的变化规律如下：种子＞芽≈苗≈花序＞成株。单宁含量的变化趋势：种子＞成株＞苗＞芽＞花序。黄酮含量的变化趋势：种子＞芽＞成株≈花序＞苗。值得注意的是,当单宁/黄酮的比值接近1时,植物体内需要的单宁和黄酮的含量则相对较低;相反,当单宁/黄酮的比值接近0时,植物体内需要的单宁和黄酮的含量则较高。     

A series of iridium complexes equipped with inert shields: Highly efficient bluish green emitters with reduced self-quenching effect in solid state

In this paper, we synthesize a series of cyclometalated ligands and their corresponding Ir(III) complexes using pentane-2,4-dione as the auxiliary ligand. We discuss the photophysical properties of these Ir(III) complexes in detail, including their UV-Vis absorption spectra, photoluminescence spectra in solid and liquid states, luminescence decay lifetimes, and luminescence quantum yields. The correlation between self-quenching effect and molecular structure is also investigated. It is found that these Ir(III) complexes are solid-emitting ones due to their reduced self-quenching in solid state. Theoretical calculation and experimental data reveal that the following two reasons should be responsible for the reduced self-quenching in solid state: (1) pentane-2,4-dione, phenyl, and triphenylamine moieties serve as inert shields for the excited state Ir(III) complexes; (2) the radiative decay process in these Ir(III) complexes is accelerated by the introduction of electron-donors, and thus partly immune from self-quenching caused by intermolecular action.     

Addition of HPMA affects seed germination, plant growth and properties of heavy saline-alkali soil in northeastern China: comparison with other agents and determination of the mechanism

China has a large area of inland saline-alkali land, equivalent to 40% of the total cultivated land in the country. The principal features of these lands are high salt content, high pH, and poor soil structure with low water infiltration and poor drainage. These conditions effectively prevent the exploitation of such land for agriculture. In this study, we have compared 17 soil conditioning agents for their abilities to promote seed germination and growth under both laboratory and field conditions. One of these, Hydrolyzed Polymaleic Anhydride (HPMA), was identified as a highly effective agent for soil improvement. Laboratory germination experiments and laboratory and field cultivation of a variety of plants both showed that addition of HPMA could significantly increase the germination percentage and plant growth rate. Distinct from other Ca-carrier agents such as gypsum, HPMA increases the dissolution of CaCO₃, which is abundant in the calcareous saline-alkali soils. This allows Ca²⁺ in soil solution to displace the over-abundant Na⁺ in the soil colloids. This process greatly improves soil properties such as the bulk density, which decreased, and the capillary soil rise height of water and soil water infiltration rate, which increased. Direct SEM and AFM imagery showed flocculent soil precipitation (soil aggregates) after HPMA addition, and a looser structure of those aggregates. The addition of HPMA also reduced the soil pH and EC. These changes in soil chemical and physical properties are a likely explanation for the soil improvement effected by HPMA. The high content of insoluble CaCO₃ in saline-alkali land such as that in northeastern China (up to 13%) favors the further exploration of HPMA as an ameliorative agent.     

Next-generation sequencing of the Chinese hamster ovary microRNA transcriptome: Identification, annotation and profiling of microRNAs as targets for cellular engineering

Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells are the predominant cell factory for the production of recombinant therapeutic proteins. Nevertheless, the lack in publicly available sequence information is severely limiting advances in CHO cell biology, including the exploration of microRNAs (miRNA) as tools for CHO cell characterization and engineering. In an effort to identify and annotate both conserved and novel CHO miRNAs in the absence of a Chinese hamster genome, we deep-sequenced small RNA fractions of 6 biotechnologically relevant cell lines and mapped the resulting reads to an artificial reference sequence consisting of all known miRNA hairpins. Read alignment patterns and read count ratios of 5' and 3' mature miRNAs were obtained and used for an independent classification into miR/miR* and 5p/3p miRNA pairs and discrimination of miRNAs from other non-coding RNAs, resulting in the annotation of 387 mature CHO miRNAs. The quantitative content of next-generation sequencing data was analyzed and confirmed using qPCR, to find that miRNAs are markers of cell status. Finally, cDNA sequencing of 26 validated targets of miR-17-92 suggests conserved functions for miRNAs in CHO cells, which together with the now publicly available sequence information sets the stage for developing novel RNAi tools for CHO cell engineering.     

Adaptive evolution of foraging-related traits in a predator-prey community

In this paper, with the method of adaptive dynamics and geometric technique, we investigate the adaptive evolution of foraging-related phenotypic traits in a predator-prey community with trade-off structure. Specialization on one prey type is assumed to go at the expense of specialization on another. First, we identify the ecological and evolutionary conditions that allow for evolutionary branching in predator phenotype. Generally, if there is a small switching cost near the singular strategy, then this singular strategy is an evolutionary branching point, in which predator population will change from monomorphism to dimorphism. Second, we find that if the trade-off curve is globally convex, predator population eventually branches into two extreme specialists, each completely specializing on a particular prey species. However, if the trade-off curve is concave-convex-concave, after branching in predator phenotype, the two predator species will evolve to an evolutionarily stable dimorphism at which they can continue to coexist. The analysis reveals that an attractive dimorphism will always be evolutionarily stable and that no further branching is possible under this model.     

Economic valuation of kelp forests in northern Chile: values of goods and services of the ecosystem

Kelp beds, besides being one of the most important benthic resources in northern Chile, provide a variety of environmental goods and services. In order to evaluate economically the wild kelp populations in northern Chile (26° to 32° S) more than simply their commercial value as a source of raw materials for alginate extraction, we used several economic indicators to holistically assess the value of a group of brown seaweeds of economic importance, Lessonia spp. and Macrocystis pyrifera: (1) market value of biomass as a source of raw material for extraction of alginic acid, (2) market value of associated species of economic importance, (3) value as a source of scientific information, (4) value as a climate buffer (CO₂ capture and release of O₂), (5) value of associated biodiversity (non-commercial species), (6) value as cultural heritage and (7) value as a reservoir of biodiversity. Existence values of kelp beds which estimate the willingness of citizens to pay and work without payment to preserve the ecosystem were calculated using the contingent valuation technique. The results indicate that kelp beds in northern Chile have a total value of US $540 million. Of this total, kelp fishery accounts for 75 % and associated-species fisheries account for 15 %. In this context, the economic value of Chilean kelp beds is mainly associated with the industry of alginate extraction. By contrast, existence value as a source of scientific information or environmental buffer for CO₂ capture or O₂ production represents only 9 % of the total value, representing a very low relative importance to society. The economic valuation of coastal resources and marine ecosystems is a complementary tool for decision making and implementation of public policies related to the conservation and sustainable exploitation of renewable resources and their ecosystems.     

Endothelium Trans Differentiated from Wharton's Jelly Mesenchymal Cells Promote Tissue Regeneration: Potential Role of Soluble Pro-Angiogenic Factors

Background

Mesenchymal stem cells have a high capacity for trans-differentiation toward many adult cell types, including endothelial cells. Feto-placental tissue, such as Wharton''s jelly is a potential source of mesenchymal stem cells with low immunogenic capacity; make them an excellent source of progenitor cells with a potential use for tissue repair. We evaluated whether administration of endothelial cells derived from mesenchymal stem cells isolated from Wharton''s jelly (hWMSCs) can accelerate tissue repair in vivo.

Methods

Mesenchymal stem cells were isolated from human Wharton''s jelly by digestion with collagenase type I. Endothelial trans-differentiation was induced for 14 (hWMSC-End14d) and 30 (hWMSC-End30d) days. Cell phenotyping was performed using mesenchymal (CD90, CD73, CD105) and endothelial (Tie-2, KDR, eNOS, ICAM-1) markers. Endothelial trans-differentiation was demonstrated by the expression of endothelial markers and their ability to synthesize nitric oxide (NO).

Results

hWMSCs can be differentiated into adipocytes, osteocytes, chondrocytes and endothelial cells. Moreover, these cells show high expression of CD73, CD90 and CD105 but low expression of endothelial markers prior to differentiation. hWMSCs-End express high levels of endothelial markers at 14 and 30 days of culture, and also they can synthesize NO. Injection of hWMSC-End30d in a mouse model of skin injury significantly accelerated wound healing compared with animals injected with undifferentiated hWMSC or injected with vehicle alone. These effects were also observed in animals that received conditioned media from hWMSC-End30d cultures.

Conclusion

These results demonstrate that mesenchymal stem cells isolated from Wharton''s jelly can be cultured in vitro and trans-differentiated into endothelial cells. Differentiated hWMSC-End may promote neovascularization and tissue repair in vivo through the secretion of soluble pro-angiogenic factors.