In-vitro and In-vivo management of Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood and Rhizoctonia bataticola (Taub.) Butler in cotton using organic’s

Root-knot nematodes Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood and Rhizoctonia bataticola (Taub.) Butler, fungus, are very dangerous root damaging pathogens. Present study was planned to establish a chemical control of these root deteriorating pathogens under lab conditions as well as in field. Maximum death rate of nematode juveniles and minimum numbers of nematode eggs hatched were recorded in plates treated with Cadusafos (Rugby® 100G) @12 g/100 ml and Cartap® (4% G) @9g/100 ml. Chemical treatment of Rhizoctonia bataticola with Trifloxystrobin + Tebuconazole (Nativo®) @0.2 g/100 ml and Mancozeb + Matalaxyl (Axiom) @0.25 g/100 ml significantly controlled the mycelial growth in plates. The best treatments tested in laboratory were applied in field as protective and curative treatments. Results proved that chemical control of root-knot nematode and root rot fungi by tested chemicals at recommended time and dose is a significant management technique under field conditions.     

Effect of combination between inducer resistance chemicals and systemic fungicides on management of sweet melon downy mildew

The efficiency of some inducer resistance chemicals (IRCs) like bion, chitosan, humic acid and salicylic acid as well as the fungicides like Folu-Gold, Galben Copper, Previcure-N and Redomil Gold Mancozeb on management of sweet melon downy mildew, caused by Pseudoperonospora cubensis was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. Also, the efficiency of the alternation between the sprayed two fungicides and IRCs on management of the disease and the produced fruit yield and its total soluble solids (TSS) under field conditions were assessed. The inhibitory effect of the IRCs and the tested fungicides on sporangial germination of P. cubensis resulted in a significant reduction in the germinated sporangia. In addition, IRCs were less effective than the fungicides. Disease management revealed the same trend of the in vitro experiment when they sprayed fungicides on sweet melon plants artificially inoculated with the sporangia of the causal fungus under greenhouse conditions. Furthermore, under field conditions, spraying sweet melon plants with the two tested fungicides was the most efficient in decreasing the disease and increasing fruit yield and its TSS, to somewhat, followed by the alternation between them and the tested IRCs. In addition, IRCs treatments showed the lowest efficiency in this regard.     

Deriving metabolic engineering strategies from genome-scale modeling with flux ratio constraints

Optimized production of bio-based fuels and chemicals from microbial cell factories is a central goal of systems metabolic engineering. To achieve this goal, a new computational method of using flux balance analysis with flux ratios (FBrAtio) was further developed in this research and applied to five case studies to evaluate and design metabolic engineering strategies. The approach was implemented using publicly available genome-scale metabolic flux models. Synthetic pathways were added to these models along with flux ratio constraints by FBrAtio to achieve increased (i) cellulose production from Arabidopsis thaliana; (ii) isobutanol production from Saccharomyces cerevisiae; (iii) acetone production from Synechocystis sp. PCC6803; (iv) H₂ production from Escherichia coli MG1655; and (v) isopropanol, butanol, and ethanol (IBE) production from engineered Clostridium acetobutylicum. The FBrAtio approach was applied to each case to simulate a metabolic engineering strategy already implemented experimentally, and flux ratios were continually adjusted to find (i) the end-limit of increased production using the existing strategy, (ii) new potential strategies to increase production, and (iii) the impact of these metabolic engineering strategies on product yield and culture growth. The FBrAtio approach has the potential to design “fine-tuned” metabolic engineering strategies in silico that can be implemented directly with available genomic tools.     

Health assessment of freshwater fish species from Albasini Dam,outside a DDT-sprayed area in Limpopo province,South Africa: a preliminary study

During 2006 to 2008, the water, sediment and fish in Albasini Dam, used as a reference site outside a DDT-sprayed area, had been found to be as affected as those in the nearby DDT-sprayed area were. Accordingly, the aim of the current study, conducted in 2014, was to determine the health status of fish from Albasini Dam by means of a histology-based fish health assessment protocol. High levels of nitrates, as well as the organochlorine pesticides aldrin, dieldrin, chlordane and methoxychlor, were found in the water. Fish muscle tissue contained pesticides, including methoxychlor. A semi-quantitative histological assessment on Clarias gariepinus, Coptodon rendalli and Oreochromis mossambicus showed diverse histopathology in selected target organs, with the gills being most affected. Notably, the testis tissue of one C. rendalli was filled with eosinophilic liquid, characteristic of necrosis. Microscopic intersex was found in two of the nine O. mossambicus sampled. This is the second time that intersex as microscopic testicular oocytes has been reported in O. mossambicus in South Africa. This finding perhaps indicates that reproduction may be compromised and this will be investigated further. The presence of intersex and other histopathology in organs could be early warning signs of the declining water quality in this dam.     

蛙类声音通讯研究进展

声音通讯包含鸣声的产生、传播及对鸣声的感知与行为响应。对大多数无尾两栖类而言,雄性个体间的竞争(即雄雄竞争)、雌性配偶识别与选择几乎完全依赖声音通讯,因此准确及时的声音信息传递与接收对蛙类的生存和繁殖起着决定性作用。本文总结了蛙类鸣叫特征及其产生机制,归纳了声音通讯在蛙类性选择中的功能及协同进化,探讨了鸣声感知的神经机制及声音通讯的内分泌机制。最后对蛙类声音通讯研究方向进行了展望,并提出了可能的解决方案。     

Design,synthesis, and biological evaluation of water-soluble amino acid prodrug conjugates derived from combretastatin,dihydronaphthalene, and benzosuberene-based parent vascular disrupting agents

Targeting tumor vasculature represents an intriguing therapeutic strategy in the treatment of cancer. In an effort to discover new vascular disrupting agents with improved water solubility and potentially greater bioavailability, various amino acid prodrug conjugates (AAPCs) of potent amino combretastatin, amino dihydronaphthalene, and amino benzosuberene analogs were synthesized along with their corresponding water-soluble hydrochloride salts. These compounds were evaluated for their ability to inhibit tubulin polymerization and for their cytotoxicity against selected human cancer cell lines. The amino-based parent anticancer agents 7, 8, 32 (also referred to as KGP05) and 33 (also referred to as KGP156) demonstrated potent cytotoxicity (GI₅₀ = 0.11–40 nM) across all evaluated cell lines, and they were strong inhibitors of tubulin polymerization (IC₅₀ = 0.62–1.5 μM). The various prodrug conjugates and their corresponding salts were investigated for cleavage by the enzyme leucine aminopeptidase (LAP). Four of the glycine water-soluble AAPCs (16, 18, 44 and 45) showed quantitative cleavage by LAP, resulting in the release of the highly cytotoxic parent drug, whereas partial cleavage (<10–90%) was observed for other prodrugs (15, 17, 24, 38 and 39). Eight of the nineteen AAPCs (13–16, 42–45) showed significant cytotoxicity against selected human cancer cell lines. The previously reported CA1-diamine analog and its corresponding hydrochloride salt (8 and 10, respectively) caused extensive disruption (at a concentration of 1.0 μM) of human umbilical vein endothelial cells growing in a two-dimensional tubular network on matrigel. In addition, compound 10 exhibited pronounced reduction in bioluminescence (greater than 95% compared to saline control) in a tumor bearing (MDA-MB-231-luc) SCID mouse model 2 h post treatment (80 mg/kg), with similar results observed upon treatment (15 mg/kg) with the glycine amino-dihydronaphthalene AAPC (compound 44). Collectively, these results support the further pre-clinical development of the most active members of this structurally diverse collection of water-soluble prodrugs as promising anticancer agents functioning through a mechanism involving vascular disruption.     

Looking to the future: key points for sustainable management of northern Great Plains grasslands

The grasslands of the northern Great Plains (NGP) region of North America are considered endangered ecosystems and priority conservation areas yet have great ecological and economic importance. Grasslands in the NGP are no longer self‐regulating adaptive systems. The challenges to these grasslands are widespread and serious (e.g. climate change, invasive species, fragmentation, altered disturbance regimes, and anthropogenic chemical loads). Because the challenges facing the region are dynamic, complex, and persistent, a paradigm shift in how we approach restoration and management of the grasslands in the NGP is imperative. The goal of this article is to highlight four key points for land managers and restoration practitioners to consider when planning management or restoration actions. First, we discuss the appropriateness of using historical fidelity as a restoration or management target because of changing climate, widespread pervasiveness of invasive species, the high level of fragmentation, and altered disturbance regimes. Second, we highlight ecosystem resilience and long‐term population persistence as alternative targets. Third, because the NGP is so heavily impacted with anthropogenic chemical loading, we discuss the risks of ecological traps and extinction debt. Finally, we highlight the importance of using adaptive management and having patience during restoration and management. Consideration of these four points will help management and restoration of grasslands move toward a more successful and sustainable future. Although we specifically focus on the NGP of North America, these same issues and considerations apply to grasslands and many other ecosystems globally.     

Microbial biofilms: new catalysts for maximizing productivity of long-term biotransformations

The performance of biocatalytic reactions is often hampered by product and/or substrate toxicity and short-term reaction times due to instable biocatalysts. Microbes in biofilms show a remarkable resistance against biocides and form stable communities. In nature, especially in environments characterized by harsh conditions such as heavily contaminated sites, cells grow pre-dominantly in biofilms, which enable them to cope with physiological stress. This robustness was utilized to design a bioprocess concept based on catalytic biofilms for stable long-term transformations of toxic reactants. Sixty-nine bacterial strains have been screened to find organisms suitable for biofilm-based biotransformations. This included host strains important for recombinant enzyme expression and strains isolated from biofilters or contaminated soils. Nearly all organisms with bioremediation potential showed good biofilm forming capacities. Pseudomonas sp. strain VLB120DeltaC was chosen as a model organism due to its excellent biofilm forming capacity and its well-studied capability of catalyzing asymmetric epoxidations. A tubular reactor was used for the biotransformation of styrene to (S)-styrene oxide as a model reaction. The process was stable for at least 55 days at a maximal volumetric productivity of 16 g/(L(aq) day) and a yield of 9 mol%. In situ product extraction prevented product inhibition of the catalyst. Biofilm physiology and dynamics are characterized during the biotransformation and limitations and advantages of this reaction concept are discussed.