Contrasting Rootstock-Mediated Growth and Yield Responses in Salinized Pepper Plants (Capsicum annuum L.) Are Associated with Changes in the Hormonal Balance

Salinity provokes an imbalance of vegetative to generative growth, thus impairing crop productivity. Unlike breeding strategies, grafting is a direct and quick alternative to improve salinity tolerance in horticultural crops, through rebalancing plant development. Providing that hormones play a key role in plant growth and development and stress responses, we hypothesized that rootstock-mediated reallocation of vegetative growth and yield under salinity was associated with changes in the hormonal balance. To test this hypothesis, the hybrid pepper variety (Capsicum annuum L. “Gacela F1”) was either non-grafted or grafted onto three commercial rootstocks (Creonte, Atlante, and Terrano) and plants were grown in a greenhouse under control (0 mM NaCl) and moderate salinity (35 mM NaCl) conditions. Differential vegetative growth versus fruit yield responses were induced by rootstock and salinity. Atlante strongly increased shoot and root fresh weight with respect to the non-grafted Gacela plants associated with improved photosynthetic rate and K⁺ homeostasis under salinity. The invigorating effect of Atlante can be explained by an efficient balance between cytokinins (CKs) and abscisic acid (ABA). Creonte improved fruit yield and maintained the reproductive to vegetative ratio under salinity as a consequence of its capacity to induce biomass reallocation and to avoid Na⁺ accumulation in the shoot. The physiological responses associated with yield stability in Creonte were mediated by the inverse regulation of CKs and the ethylene precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid. Finally, Terrano limited the accumulation of gibberellins in the shoot thus reducing plant height. Despite scion compactness induced by Terrano, both vegetative and reproductive biomass were maintained under salinity through ABA-mediated control of water relations and K⁺ homeostasis. Our data demonstrate that the contrasting developmental and physiological responses induced by the rootstock genotype in salinized pepper plants were critically mediated by hormones. This will be particularly important for rootstock breeding programs to improve salinity tolerance by focusing on hormonal traits.     

Characterizing the measures on the unit circle with exact quadrature formulas in the space of polynomials

In the present paper we characterize the measures on the unit circle for which there exists a quadrature formula with a fixed number of nodes and weights and such that it exactly integrates all the polynomials with complex coefficients. As an application we obtain quadrature rules for polynomial modifications of the Bernstein measures on [−1,1], having a fixed number of nodes and quadrature coefficients and such that they exactly integrate all the polynomials with real coefficients.     

Analyzing Architectural Evolution Issues of Multimedia Frameworks

The growing complexity in the development of Web-based services in general, and multimedia services in particular, makes necessary the application of sound development methods. New multimedia devices, coding algorithms, network protocols, etc., are continually appearing but, unfortunately, current solutions for developing multimedia applications do not accurately support architectural evolution issues for already deployed applications. Thus, the latest Software Engineering technologies should be applied to the development of open, reusable, and high-quality multimedia and Web-based software. In this paper, we apply component and framework technologies, two of the current trends in Software Engineering, to the development of multimedia services over the Web, presenting and comparing widespread solutions in use today.     

Closed loop torque SVM-DTC based on robust super twisting speed controller for induction motor drive with efficiency optimization

This paper presents a space vector modulation (SVM) based Direct Torque Control strategy (DTC) for induction motor (IM) in order to overcome the drawbacks of the classical DTC. SVM can reduce the high torque and flux ripples by preserving a fixed switching frequency. This technique is known by the closed loop torque SVM-DTC. Moreover, the control scheme performance is improved by inserting a second order sliding mode super twisting controller in the outer loop for speed regulation. This nonlinear technique ensures a good dynamic and high robustness against external disturbance. Furthermore, the IM energy optimization is treated in the second objective of this paper. A proposed model based loss minimization strategy is presented for efficiency optimization. This strategy chooses an optimal flux magnitude for each applied load torque. The proposed optimized SVM-DTC algorithm will be investigated by simulation and real time implementation using Matlab/Simulink with real time interface based on dSpace 1104 signal card.     

Modeling of reverse osmosis flux of aqueous solution containing glucose

The aim of the paper is to model the permeate flux during reverse osmosis (RO) of a highly concentrated glucose solution using the osmotic pressure model. Such a model accounts for the effect of the concentration polarization phenomenon on the permeate flux. To apply this model the viscosity, the osmotic pressure of solution and the diffusion coefficient of glucose were estimated. Using mathematical simulation software, the values of mass transfer coefficient for different concentrations of glucose (5, 10, 15 and 20 wt%) and at different feed flow rate were determined. The experimental permeate flux values conducted on flat RO membranes (Type HR-99) agreed well with the values calculated by the osmotic pressure model, as shown by statistical analysis.     

Magnetic and specific heat studies of the frustrated Er2Mn2O7 compound

A new Er2Mn2O7 compound was synthesized by the ceramic method and its crystal structure was characterized using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The magnetic properties were investigated using a BS2 magnetometer and the heat capacity was studied using a quantum design (PPMS). The structural study revealed that this compound was monophasic and crystallized in the monoclinic system with the P2/M space group. Magnetization measurements were carried out in the temperature range of 1.8-200 K under an applied magnetic field of 0.05 T. A crossover from a room temperature paramagnetic phase to an antiferromagnetic one at low temperature was detected from the magnetic study. The magnetic susceptibility, in the paramagnetic region above 40 K, was found to present a simple Curie-Weiss type behavior. From the specific heat (CP) measurements in magnetic fields up to 5 T, we noted the presence of a wide peak characteristic of a second order mag-neto-structural transition.     

GVLiDAR: an interactive web-based visualization framework to support geospatial measures on lidar data

In recent years lidar technology has experienced a noticeable increase in its relevance and usage in a number of scientific fields. Therefore, software capable of handling lidar data becomes a key point in those fields. In this article, we present GPU-based viewer lidar (GVLiDAR), a novel web framework for visualization and geospatial measurement of lidar data point sets. The design of the framework is focused on achieving three key objectives: performance in terms of real-time interaction, functionality, and online availability for the lidar datasets. All lidar files are pre-processed and stored in a lossless data structure, which minimizes transfer requirements and offers an on-demand lidar data web framework.     

The composition of fatty acids in the tissues of Tunisian swordfish (Xiphias gladius)

The objective of this study was to compare the composition of fatty acids stored in the various parts of swordfish. Muscle and organ sections of a series of swordfish samples were collected. Their chemical analysis allowed the classification of swordfish as a semi-fatty fish, with its byproducts totalling 35.6% of the total fatty acids (TFA) and its white and red muscles (MR) 7.2%. The highest contents were found in the liver (26%), the gonads (4.7%) and the red muscle (RM) (4.5%). The UFA/SFA ratio as recommended by nutritionists is 3; in the liver, skin and RM samples this ratio was, respectively, 3.5, 2.8 and 2.7. There is a high level of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) in swordfish. More than 40% of the muscular tissues are made up of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of the n-3 series (EPA + DHA). The byproducts contain more than 30% of monounsaturated acids characterised by the fatty acids of the n-9 series and particularly by oleic acid.     

Use of Phosphate Rock for the Removal of Ni2+ from Aqueous Solutions: Kinetic and Thermodynamics Studies

A study was carried out in batch conditions to examine the removal of nickel ions from an aqueous solution by phosphate rock. The effect of different sorption parameters, such as initial metal concentration, equilibration time, solution pH, and temperature on the amount of Ni2+ sorbed was studied and discussed. The sorption process followed pseudo-second-order kinetics with necessary time of 2?h to reach equilibrium. The maximum removal obtained is at initial pH around 8. Nickel uptake was quantitatively evaluated using the Langmuir and Dubinin–Kaganer–Radushkevich model. The Langmuir adsorption isotherm constant corresponding to adsorption capacity, Q0, was found to be 7.63?mg/g. The possibility of metal recovery was investigated using several eluting agents. The desorbed amount of nickel decreased continuously with increasing pH, and increased with increasing Ca2+ concentration in leaching solution.