Ascorbate–Glutathione Oxidant Scavengers,Metabolome Analysis and Adaptation Mechanisms of Ion Exclusion in Sorghum under Salt Stress

Salt stress is one of the major significant restrictions that hamper plant development and agriculture ecosystems worldwide. Novel climate-adapted cultivars and stress tolerance-enhancing molecules are increasingly appreciated to mitigate the detrimental impacts of adverse stressful conditions. Sorghum is a valuable source of food and a potential model for exploring and understanding salt stress dynamics in cereals and for gaining a better understanding of their physiological pathways. Herein, we evaluate the antioxidant scavengers, photosynthetic regulation, and molecular mechanism of ion exclusion transporters in sorghum genotypes under saline conditions. A pot experiment was conducted in two sorghum genotypes viz. SSG 59-3 and PC-5 in a climate-controlled greenhouse under different salt concentrations (60, 80, 100, and 120 mM NaCl). Salinity drastically affected the photosynthetic machinery by reducing the accumulation of chlorophyll pigments and carotenoids. SSG 59-3 alleviated the adverse effects of salinity by suppressing oxidative stress (H₂O₂) and stimulating enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant activities (SOD, APX, CAT, POD, GR, GST, DHAR, MDHAR, GSH, ASC, proline, GB), as well as protecting cell membrane integrity (MDA, electrolyte leakage). Salinity also influenced Na⁺ ion efflux and maintained a lower cytosolic Na⁺/K⁺ ratio via the concomitant upregulation of SbSOS1, SbSOS2, and SbNHX-2 and SbV-Ppase-II ion transporter genes in sorghum genotypes. Overall, these results suggest that Na⁺ ions were retained and detoxified, and less stress impact was observed in mature and younger leaves. Based on the above, we deciphered that SSG 59-3 performed better by retaining higher plant water status, photosynthetic assimilates and antioxidant potential, and the upregulation of ion transporter genes and may be utilized in the development of resistant sorghum lines in saline regions.     

It's fun to do things together: Two cases of explorative user studies

This paper describes two explorative user studies conducted in a research project called Maypole. The purpose of the first user study was to understand how children thought communication with personal technologies could be fun. The second study focused on what children thought was fun in taking and editing digital images. In both studies, children aged 7–12 were given existing personal technologies to use in their own environment for one week. After that, a focus group was held with the children in order to discuss what they thought was fun in using the technologies.The results of the two user studies illustrate how fun in using personal technologies could relate to a user's social behaviour, and not only to human-computer interaction. Therefore, designers are encouraged to explore further the social aspects of fun in their creations. Moreover, the two studies illustrate some methodological problems in studying a user's experience of fun, which refer to a need for more public research on methods.     

Regional differences in returns to education for entrepreneurs versus wage earners

Many studies suggest that rates of return to schooling are lower for entrepreneurs than for employees, although the opposite has also been reported. This paper analyses the returns to education for entrepreneurs in urban and rural regions in Finland and compares these to the returns for wage earners. These areas show different rates of self-employment, higher rates being found in rural areas and lower rates in urban areas. The analysis is based on a rich, register-based dataset that includes a 7% random sample of all Finns. To avoid potential sources of bias, Mincer-type income equations are estimated using different estimation procedures. The results show regional variation in returns to education. In rural areas, returns to education are somewhat higher for entrepreneurs than for wage earners. Highly educated entrepreneurs especially gain advantage from their education. In urban areas as well as in the entire country, the returns for the two occupation groups are rather similar.     

Antioxidant activity of minor amounts of γ-tocopherol in natural triacylglycerols

The effects of minor amounts of γ-tocopherol on the oxidation of natural triacylglycerols (TAG) of rapeseed (RO) and butter oils (BO) were studied. Four different TAG materials were blended from chromatographically purified TAG that contained 100–25% of RO TAG. The RO TAG contained from <1 to 43 μg γ-tocopherol per gram of TAG, which corresponded to ≤6% of the total tocopherols in the original RO. The TAG were held at 40°C in the dark for 4 wk and followed at regular intervals by measurements of hydroperoxide formation by peroxide values and of secondary product formation by p-anisidine values at regular intervals. In all TAG, minor amounts of γ-tocopherol retarded oxidation. In RO TAG, concentrations as low as 11 μg/g of γ-tocopherol (1.5% of the total tocopherols in the original RO) were enough to decrease hydroperoxide and secondary product formation to 46 and 39%, respectively. The effect was even more important in TAG mixtures that contained BO TAG. There were no significant differences between oxidation of the RO TAG at 24 μg/g, the 75% RO TAG mixture at 11 μg/g, and the 50% RO TAG mixture at 3 μg/g of γ-tocopherol. Even at these minor levels, γ-tocopherol was a significant antioxidant, which is important in oxidation studies of purified model systems.     

Lingonberry juice improves endothelium-dependent vasodilatation of mesenteric arteries in spontaneously hypertensive rats in a long-term intervention

Phenolic compounds of berries, fruits and vegetables affect vascular health. Endothelium-dependent vasodilatation has an important role in blood pressure development by controlling the vascular tone. Endothelial cells produce and release various relaxing and contracting factors, like nitric oxide (NO), cyclo-oxygenase (COX)-derived prostanoids and endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF). The purpose of this study was to investigate whether 8 weeks treatment with Finnish berry juices, cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccos), lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) and blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum) affects blood pressure and vascular function of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). After 8 weeks treatment the mesenteric arteries of the rats were taken for vascular reactivity studies. Lingonberry treatment normalized the impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation seen in the cranberry, blackcurrant and control rats. In the arteries of lingonberry treated rats the relaxation was partly due to NO, but also dependent on EDHF. It can be concluded that long-term lingonberry juice treatment improves endothelium-dependent vasodilatation of SHR.     

Reversed-Phase high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis of triacylglycerol autoxidation products with ultraviolet and evaporative light-scattering detectors

The oxidation products of triacylgycerol standards (trilinolenin, trilinolein and triolein) and a natural mixture of rapeseed oil triacylglycerols were analyzed with a reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatographic method. The oxidation products were detected with ultraviolet (UV) and evaporative light-scattering detectors (ELSD). The chromatographic profiles obtained with these two detectors were similar for all samples except triolein. ELSD is a mass detector and can detect the oxidation products of triolein and other compounds that do not have conjugated dienes in their structure. The two detectors can be used in series. The sensitivity of ELSD approached that of the UV detector used. ELSD seems to be a good universal detector type for monitoring autoxidation products of edible oils.     

Mapping biomass and stress in the Sierra Nevada using lidar and hyperspectral data fusion

In this paper, we explored fusion of structural metrics from the Laser Vegetation Imaging Sensor (LVIS) and spectral characteristics from the Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) for biomass estimation in the Sierra Nevada. In addition, we combined the two sensors to map species-specific biomass and stress at landscape scale. Multiple endmember spectral mixture analysis (MESMA) was used to classify vegetation from AVIRIS images and obtain sub-pixel fractions of green vegetation, non-photosynthetic vegetation, soil, and shade. LVIS metrics, AVIRIS spectral indices, and MESMA fractions were compared with field measures of biomass using linear and stepwise regressions at stand (1 ha) level. AVIRIS metrics such as water band indices and shade fractions showed strong correlation with LVIS canopy height (r² = 0.69, RMSE = 5.2 m) and explained around 60% variability in biomass. LVIS variables were found to be consistently good predictors of total and species specific biomass (r² = 0.77, RMSE = 70.12 Mg/ha). Prediction by LVIS after species stratification of field data reduced errors by 12% (r² = 0.84, RMSE = 58.78 Mg/ha) over using LVIS metrics alone. Species-specific biomass maps and associated errors created from fusion were different from those produced without fusion, particularly for hardwoods and pines, although mean biomass differences between the two techniques were not statistically significant. A combined analysis of spatial maps from LVIS and AVIRIS showed increased water and chlorophyll stress in several high biomass stands in the study area. This study provides further evidence that lidar is better suited for biomass estimation, per se, while the best use of hyperspectral data may be to refine biomass predictions through a priori species stratification, while also providing information on canopy state, such as stress. Together, the two sensors have many potential applications in carbon dynamics, ecological and habitat studies.     

Margarines,butter and vegetable oils as sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were determined in Finnish butter, margarines and vegetable oils and their raw materials. In all the samples some degree of PAH contamination was found. The average per capita intake was estimated at 0.6 μg per day. The plant raw materials are supposed to be contaminated by combustion-derived atmospheric particles during the growing period. Inappropriate drying processes can substantially increase the contamination level. Deodorization processes used by food industry seem to decrease the total PAH levels significantly.     

Computational Study of Particle-Eddy Interaction in Sedimentation Tanks

Sedimentation tanks are used in the process industry to separate the solid particles from the slurry to get the clarified liquid. A detailed study of the hydrodynamics of sedimentation tanks is presented here using an Eulerian-Lagrangian approach to study the motion of solids in the tank. The model, in its present form, is applicable only to nonflocculent discrete (Type I) settling. It is shown that a typical particle-eddy interaction can be characterized by a lower cut-off size below which the particles would be entrained by the eddy; and an upper cut-off size above which the particle would continuously settle through the sedimentation tank in spite of the recirculation. The effect of inlet configuration on the flow field as well as on the settling characteristics has been investigated. The simulations show that both the upper and the lower cut-off sizes for a sedimentation tank are considerably reduced by providing a tulip type of inlet with a conical deflector as compared to a straight inlet.     

With whom do researchers collaborate and why?

Although research collaboration has been studied extensively, we still lack understanding regarding the factors stimulating researchers to collaborate with different kinds of research partners including members of the same research center or group, researchers from the same organization, researchers from other academic and non-academic organizations as well as international partners. Here, we provide an explanation of the emergence of diverse collaborative ties. The theoretical framework used for understanding research collaboration couples scientific and technical human capital embodied in the individual with the social organization and cognitive characteristics of the research field. We analyze survey data collected from Slovenian scientists in four scientific disciplines: mathematics; physics; biotechnology; and sociology. The results show that while individual characteristics and resources are among the strongest predictors of collaboration, very different mechanisms underlie collaboration with different kinds of partners. International collaboration is particularly important for the researchers in small national science systems. Collaboration with colleagues from various domestic organizations presents a vehicle for resource mobilization. Within organizations collaboration reflects the elaborated division of labor in the laboratories and high level of competition between different research groups. These results hold practical implications for policymakers interested in promoting quality research.