A distinctive new species of Elaphoglossum (Dryopteridaceae) from lowland Bolivia

Elaphoglossum praetrepidans M. Kessler, characterized by long-creeping rhizomes with entire rhizome scales, ill-defined phyllopodia, linear-elliptic, firmly chartaceous blades lacking hydathodes, and ovate to lanceolate, basifixed to peltate, denticulate blade scales, is described based on a single specimen from lowland Bolivia. This combination of characters suggests affinity to Elaphoglossum section Lepidoglossa , but precludes placement in any of the established subsections within that section.  © 2008 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2008, 157 , 165–167.     

Delay and failure in treatment seeking after first onset of mental disorders in the World Health Organization's World Mental Health Survey Initiative

Data are presented on patterns of failure and delay in making initial treatmentcontact after first onset of a mental disorder in 15 countries in the WorldHealth Organization (WHO)''s World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys. Representativeface-to-face household surveys were conducted among 76,012 respondents aged18 and older in Belgium, Colombia, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan,Lebanon, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, People''s Republicof China (Beijing and Shanghai), Spain, and the United States. The WHO CompositeInternational Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) was used to assess lifetime DSM-IVanxiety, mood, and substance use disorders. Ages of onset for individual disordersand ages of first treatment contact for each disorder were used to calculatethe extent of failure and delay in initial help seeking. The proportion oflifetime cases making treatment contact in the year of disorder onset rangedfrom 0.8 to 36.4% for anxiety disorders, from 6.0 to 52.1% for mood disorders,and from 0.9 to 18.6% for substance use disorders. By 50 years, the proportionof lifetime cases making treatment contact ranged from 15.2 to 95.0% for anxietydisorders, from 7.9 to 98.6% for mood disorders, and from 19.8 to 86.1% forsubstance use disorders. Median delays among cases eventually making contactranged from 3.0 to 30.0 years for anxiety disorders, from 1.0 to 14.0 yearsfor mood disorders, and from 6.0 to 18.0 years for substance use disorders.Failure and delays in treatment seeking were generally greater in developingcountries, older cohorts, men, and cases with earlier ages of onset. Theseresults show that failure and delays in initial help seeking are pervasiveproblems worldwide. Interventions to ensure prompt initial treatment contactsare needed to reduce the global burdens and hazards of untreated mental disorders.     

Sodium Fluxes in Excised Citurs Roots under Steady-State Conditions, with Particular Reference to Salinity Resistance

Sodium influx and efflux rates from excised Citrus roots werestudied. The sodium fluxes in the free spaces of the roots ofthe salt-sensitive variety Sweet Lime and of the salt-resistantvariety Cleopatra Mandarin were very close to each other. Onthe other hand, the sodium fluxes from intracellular spaceswere considerably lower in the roots of variety Cleopatra Mandarin.The experimental findings were evaluated by compartmental analysisand the rate constants of the sodium fluxes calculated. Thepossible significance of these procedures for the study of saltresistance is indicated.     

Defoliation-Induced Stress in Nodules of White Clover: II. IMMUNOLOGICAL AND ENZYMIC MEASUREMENTS OF KEY PROTEINS

Changes in key nodule proteins following defoliation of whiteclover plants were assessed by measurements of enzyme activitiesand by use of antibodies to specific nodule proteins. Defoliation caused major declines in protein and leghaemoglobinlevels and in the activities of invertase, sucrose synthase,UDP glucose pyrophosphorylase, aspartate amino transferase,glutamine synthetase, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, and malatedehydrogenase. In continuously defoliated plants the activities of these noduleenzymes continued to decline throughout the course of the 17d experiment. In plants defoliated once and then allowed toregrow new leaves, nodule enzyme activities declined for 7 to10 d before increasing again to control levels by the end ofthe experiment. In this single defoliation/recovery treatmentonly the activities of PEP carboxylase and glutamine synthetasedeclined to a greater extent than the general decline in proteincontent. Alcohol dehydrogenase, increased in specific activityfollowing a single defoliation and only declined in nodulesof continuously defoliated plants. Amino peptidase activity declined in concert with other enzymeactivities described above. Endopeptidase activity, in contrast,increased significantly after 4 d following either a singleor continuous defoliation. In the plants allowed to regrow newleaves endopeptidase activity declined to control levels again,whereas in plants continuously defoliated the activity rose5-fold. However, endopeptidase increased only after significantdeclines in protein and other enzyme activities had alreadyoccurred. Western immunoblotting confirmed that the declines in glutaminesynthetase activity and leghaemoglobin levels were due to thedisappearance of antigen. Declines in nitrogenase componentsI and II indicated that bacteroid proteins were affected bydefoliation over the same time-scale as host plant encoded proteins.As new leaves grew and nodule N₂ fixation was reestablished,these specific nodule proteins were again detectable by immunoblotting. Key words: Trifolium repens, white clover, defoliation, nodules, enzymes, antibodies     

Influence of Ethidium Bromide on the Gibberellin-Induced Elongation of Cucumber Seedlings

Ethidium bromide, a DNA intercalating agent, acts synergistically with gibberellin on the elongation of cucumber seedling hypocotyls at concentrations of 0.05 and 1.0 μg per plant. At higher concentrations and when given prior to the GA treatment, ethidium bromide acts antagonistically with gibberellin.     

Distinct Influence of Root and Shoot Temperature on Nitrogen Fixation by White Clover

White clover (Trifolium repens L.) was grown in controlled environmentsto determine the distinct effects of root and shoot temperatureon the accumulation of total and fixed (¹⁵ N dilution) nitrogenat two levels of nitrate (10 and 75 mM). Nitrogen fixation(BNF) showed a positive response to higher shoot temperature(23 vs. 13 C day temperature), irrespective of whether or notroot temperature was increased in parallel. Low root temperature(5 C) caused a marked reduction in the accumulation of totalnitrogen at both nitrate levels, and led to a lower proportionof N derived from BNF. The temperature response of BNF was attributedfor the major part to an adaptation to the demand for fixedN. It is therefore concluded that BNF is not primarily responsiblefor the reduced clover growth at low temperatures. White clover, Trifolium repens L., temperature, nitrogen fixation, nitrate, root, shoot