Investigating Cu-Site Doped Cu-Sb-S Nanoparticles Using Photoelectron and Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy.

Tetrahedrite (CuSbS) and famatinite (CuSbS) are good candidates for green energy applications because they possess promising thermoelectric and photovoltaic properties as well as contain earth-abundant and nontoxic constituents. Herein, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS), and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) methods examined inherent electronic properties and interatomic magnetic interactions of Cu-site doped tetrahedrite and famatinite nanomaterials. An energy-efficient modified polyol method was utilized for the synthesis of tetrahedrite and famatinite nanoparticles doped on the Cu-site with Zn, Fe, Ni, Mn, and Co.

Rising rates of starch degradation during daytime and trehalose 6-phosphate optimize carbon availability.

Many plants, including Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), accumulate starch in the light and remobilize it to support maintenance and growth at night. Starch synthesis and degradation are usually viewed as temporally separate processes. Recently, we reported that starch is also degraded in the light.

Influence of starch deficiency on photosynthetic and post-photosynthetic carbon isotope fractionations.

Carbon isotope (13C) fractionations occurring during and after photosynthetic CO2 fixation shape the carbon isotope composition (δ13C) of plant material and respired CO2. However, responses of 13C fractionations to diel variation in starch metabolism in the leaf are not fully understood. Here we measured δ13C of organic matter (δ13COM), concentrations and δ13C of potential respiratory substrates, δ13C of dark-respired CO2 (δ13CR), and gas exchange in leaves of starch-deficient plastidial phosphoglucomutase (pgm) mutants and wild-type plants of four species (Arabidopsis thaliana, Mesembryanthemum crystallinum, Nicotiana sylvestris, and Pisum sativum).

Changes in resource partitioning between and within organs support growth adjustment to neighbor proximity in seedlings.

In shade-intolerant plants, the perception of proximate neighbors rapidly induces architectural changes resulting in elongated stems and reduced leaf size. Sensing and signaling steps triggering this modified growth program have been identified. However, the underlying changes in resource allocation that fuel stem growth remain poorly understood.

Repression of and Orthologs in Potato Increases Tuber Starch Bound Phosphate With Concomitant Alterations in Starch Physical Properties.

To examine the roles of starch phosphatases in potatoes, transgenic lines were produced where orthologs of and () were repressed using RNAi constructs. Although repression of either or inhibited leaf starch degradation, it had no effect on cold-induced sweetening in tubers. Starch amounts were unchanged in the tubers, but the amount of phosphate bound to the starch was significantly increased in all the lines, with phosphate bound at the C6 position of the glucosyl units increased in lines repressed in and in the C3 position in lines repressed in expression.

Design and Use of a Digitally Controlled Device for Accurate, Multiplexed Gas Exchange Measurements of the Complete Foliar Parts of Plants.

Performing accurate measurements of photosynthetic and respiration rates is vital to a large proportion of plant-based studies. While several commercial systems exist to perform such measurements, few are ideal for whole-plant measurements of small herbaceous plants such as Arabidopsis and none offer the capacity for simultaneous analysis of multiple plants. We, therefore, designed a multi-chamber, computer-controlled, infrared gas analyzer-coupled system for the continuous measurement of gas exchange in whole-plant shoots or rosettes.

Leaf Starch Turnover Occurs in Long Days and in Falling Light at the End of the Day.

We investigated whether starch degradation occurs at the same time as starch synthesis in Arabidopsis () leaves in the light. Starch accumulated in a linear fashion for about 12 h after dawn, then accumulation slowed and content plateaued. Following decreases in light intensity, the rate of accumulation of starch declined in proportion to the decline in photosynthesis if the decrease occurred <10 h after dawn, but accumulation ceased or loss of starch occurred if the same decrease in light intensity was imposed more than 10 h after dawn.

Analysis of genes involved in glycogen degradation in Escherichia coli.

Escherichia coli accumulate or degrade glycogen depending on environmental carbon supply. Glycogen phosphorylase (GlgP) and glycogen debranching enzyme (GlgX) are known to act on the glycogen polymer, while maltodextrin phosphorylase (MalP) is thought to remove maltodextrins released by GlgX. To examine the roles of these enzymes in more detail, single, double and triple mutants lacking all their activities were produced.

A Pragmatic Approach to Getting Published: 35 Tips for Early Career Researchers.

It is trite to say "publish or perish," yet many early career researchers are often at a loss on how to best get their work published. With strong competition and many manuscripts submitted, it is difficult to convince editors and reviewers to opt for acceptance. A pragmatic approach to publishing may increase one's odds of success.

Diverse Exopolysaccharide Producing Bacteria Isolated from Milled Sugarcane: Implications for Cane Spoilage and Sucrose Yield.

Bacterial deterioration of sugarcane during harvesting and processing is correlated with significant loss of sucrose yield and the accumulation of bacterial polysaccharides. Dextran, a homoglucan produced by Leuconostoc mesenteroides, has been cited as the primary polysaccharide associated with sugarcane deterioration. A culture-based approach was used to isolate extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) producing bacterial strains from milled sugarcane stalks.

A whole-plant chamber system for parallel gas exchange measurements of Arabidopsis and other herbaceous species.

Background: Photosynthetic assimilation of carbon is a defining feature of the plant kingdom. The fixation of large amounts of carbon dioxide supports the synthesis of carbohydrates, which make up the bulk of plant biomass. Exact measurements of carbon assimilation rates are therefore crucial due to their impact on the plants metabolism, growth and reproductive success.

Virus-induced gene silencing as a scalable tool to study drought tolerance in plants.

Here we describe the methodology of using virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) as a powerful and scalable tool to screen the function of genes that participate in adaptation to drought. Silencing of endogenous gene expression in Nicotiana benthamiana is achieved by systemic infection of the aerial parts of the plant with a virus engineered to contain homologous fragments of the target gene(s) of interest. Silenced plant material can be consistently produced with little optimization in less than 1 month without specialized equipment, using only simple cloning and transformation techniques.

Virus-induced multiple gene silencing to study redundant metabolic pathways in plants: silencing the starch degradation pathway in Nicotiana benthamiana.

Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is a rapid technique that allows for specific and reproducible post-transcriptional degradation of targeted mRNA. The method has been proven efficient for suppression of expression of many single enzymes. The metabolic networks of plants, however, often contain isoenzymes and gene families that are able to compensate for a mutation and mask the development of a silencing phenotype.

Virus-induced gene silencing of plastidial soluble inorganic pyrophosphatase impairs essential leaf anabolic pathways and reduces drought stress tolerance in Nicotiana benthamiana.

The role of pyrophosphate in primary metabolism is poorly understood. Here, we report on the transient down-regulation of plastid-targeted soluble inorganic pyrophosphatase in Nicotiana benthamiana source leaves. Physiological and metabolic perturbations were particularly evident in chloroplastic central metabolism, which is reliant on fast and efficient pyrophosphate dissipation.