PREPs: An Open-Source Software for High-Throughput Field Plant Phenotyping.

An open-source software for field-based plant phenotyping, Precision Plots Analyzer (PREPs), was developed using Window.NET. The software runs on 64-bit Windows computers.

High-Throughput Yield Prediction of Diallele Crossed Sugar Beet in a Breeding Field Using UAV-Derived Growth Dynamics.

Data-driven techniques could be used to enhance decision-making capacity of breeders and farmers. We used an RGB camera on an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to collect time series data on sugar beet canopy coverage (CC) and canopy height (CH) from small-plot breeding fields including 20 genotypes per season over 3 seasons. Digital orthomosaic and digital surface models were created from each flight and were converted to individual plot-level data.

Improved Field-Based Soybean Seed Counting and Localization with Feature Level Considered.

Developing automated soybean seed counting tools will help automate yield prediction before harvesting and improving selection efficiency in breeding programs. An integrated approach for counting and localization is ideal for subsequent analysis. The traditional method of object counting is labor-intensive and error-prone and has low localization accuracy.

Effects of Different Types of Additional Fertilizers on Root-associated Microbes of Napa Cabbage Grown in an Andosol Field in Japan.

The effects of different types of additional fertilizations (a compound fertilizer and Chiyoda-kasei) on the root-associated microbes of napa cabbage grown in an Andosol field were investigated by molecular community ana-lyses. Most of the closest known species of the bacterial sequences whose relative abundance significantly differed among fertilizers were sensitive to nitrogen fertilization and/or related to the geochemical cycles of nitrogen. The fungal community on the roots of napa cabbage was dominated by two genera, Bipolaris and Olpidium.

Noradrenaline increases intracellular Ca concentration in epithelial cells via α-adrenoceptors in isolated mouse ileal crypts.

The stimulation of α-adrenoceptors caused a transient increase of intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca]) monitored by ratiometry using Fura-2 in epithelial cells including enterochromaffin cells in isolated mouse ileal crypts, while stimulation of α-and β-adrenoceptors had no effect. The effect of noradrenaline was suppressed by α-adrenoceptor antagonists, but not by α-and β-adrenoceptor antagonists, and partially suppressed by Ni and nicardipine, but not by ω-conotoxin and ω-agatoxin. These results suggest that noradrenaline causes an increase of [Ca] by the influx of extracellular Ca through certain Ca channels via α-adrenoceptors in epithelial cells of mouse ileal crypts.

Methotrexate mediates the integrity of intestinal stem cells partly through nitric oxide-dependent Wnt/β-catenin signaling in methotrexate-induced rat ileal mucositis.

This study aimed to elucidate the role of nitric oxide (NO) in intestinal stem cells in methotrexate-induced ileal mucositis in rats. Methotrexate induced the mRNA expressions of the Wnt/β-catenin target genes Wnt3a, Sox9, and Lgr5 and the Wnt-antagonist gene sFRP-1 and the protein expressions of Lgr5 and sFRP-1. Methotrexate also induced Lgr5+ cells and lysozyme+ cells.

Administration of cyclophosphamide to rats induces pica and potentiates 5-hydroxytryptamine synthesis in the intestine without causing severe intestinal injury.

The effects of cyclophosphamide on 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) synthesis in the intestinal tissue of rats were investigated. Rats received 120 mg/kg cyclophosphamide intraperitoneally as a single administration, and kaolin and food intake was measured by an automatic monitoring apparatus. Ileal tissues were collected at either 24 or 72 h after administration.

Abnormal Pressure Stress Reduces Interleukin-1β-Induced Cyclooxygenase-2 Expression in Cultured Rat Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells.

Elevated mechanical stress on blood vessels associated with hypertension has a direct effect on the function of vascular endothelial cells and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). In the present study, we have identified the effect of pulsatile pressure stress on cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression induced by interleukin (IL)-1β in cultured rat VSMCs. VSMCs were isolated from aortic media of Wistar rats and cultured.

Easy MPE: Extraction of Quality Microplot Images for UAV-Based High-Throughput Field Phenotyping.

Microplot extraction (PE) is a necessary image processing step in unmanned aerial vehicle- (UAV-) based research on breeding fields. At present, it is manually using ArcGIS, QGIS, or other GIS-based software, but achieving the desired accuracy is time-consuming. We therefore developed an intuitive, easy-to-use semiautomatic program for MPE called Easy MPE to enable researchers and others to access reliable plot data UAV images of whole fields under variable field conditions.

Effects of nafamostat mesilate on 5-hydroxytryptamine release from isolated ileal tissues induced by anti-cancer drugs in rats.

Administration of cisplatin and methotrexate significantly increased 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) release from intestinal tissues isolated at 72 h after administration in rats. Daily administration with nafamostat mesilate, a potent serine protease inhibitor, significantly inhibited the release of 5-HT induced by methotrexate, but not by cisplatin, in a dose-dependent manner. When applied to isolated ileal tissues in vitro, nafamostat mesilate also significantly inhibited the release of 5-HT induced by methotrexate, but not by cisplatin, in a concentration-dependent manner.

Role of Nitric Oxide in the Change of 5-Hydroxytryptamine Synthesis in the Intestine by a Consecutive Administration of Methotrexate to Rats.

This study aimed to investigate whether the consecutive administration of methotrexate affects 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) synthesis in the rat small intestine. Rats received methotrexate at a dose of 12.5 mg/kg intraperitoneally on 4 consecutive days.

The role of nitric oxide in small intestine differs between a single and a consecutive administration of methotrexate to rats.

The role of nitric oxide (NO) on intestinal mucosal injury induced by single or consecutive administration of methotrexate was investigated in a rodent model. Rats received methotrexate intraperitoneally either as a single administration (50 mg/kg) or as a consecutive administration (12.5 mg/kg/day) for 4 days.

Potentiation of Glucagon-Like Peptide-2 Dynamics by Methotrexate Administration in Rat Small Intestine.

The aim of this study was to clarify the relationship between chemotherapy-induced mucositis and endogenous glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) dynamics in the small intestine following treatment with either methotrexate or 5-fluorouracil. Rats were injected intraperitoneally with a single dose of either 50 mg/kg methotrexate or 100 mg/kg 5-fluorouracil. At 24 and 72 h after drug administration, ileal tissues and plasma were used to investigate GLP-2 dynamics.

Nitric oxide plays a critical role in methotrexate-induced hyperplasia of enterochromaffin cells containing 5-hydroxytryptamine in rat small intestine.

The role of nitric oxide (NO) in the changes in enterochromaffin cells and ileal 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) content induced by a single i.p. administration of methotrexate was investigated in rats.

A Weakly Supervised Deep Learning Framework for Sorghum Head Detection and Counting.

The yield of cereal crops such as sorghum ( L. Moench) depends on the distribution of crop-heads in varying branching arrangements. Therefore, counting the head number per unit area is critical for plant breeders to correlate with the genotypic variation in a specific breeding field.

DHA and 19,20-EDP induce lysosomal-proteolytic-dependent cytotoxicity through de novo ceramide production in H9c2 cells with a glycolytic profile.

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and their CYP-derived metabolites, epoxydocosapentaenoic acids (EDPs), are important fatty acids obtained from dietary sources. While it is known that they have significant biological effects, which can differ between cell type and disease state, our understanding of how they work remains limited. Previously, we demonstrated that DHA and 19,20-EDP triggered pronounced cytotoxicity in H9c2 cells correlating with increased ceramide production.

Docosahexaenoic acid suppresses angiotensin II-induced A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration under pulsatile pressure stress.

Elevated mechanical stress applied to vascular walls is well known to modulate vascular remodeling and plays a part in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. On the other hand, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, has been shown to protect against several types of cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis and hypertension. The aim of this study was to clarify the effect of pulsatile pressure stress and DHA on angiotensin II-induced proliferation and migration in A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs).

Cisplatin increases the number of enterochromaffin cells containing substance P in rat intestine.

We previously reported that cisplatin potentiated ileal 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) metabolism and caused pathological changes with an inflammatory response in the delayed phase (72 h) after administration to rats. In the present study, we further investigated the time-dependent effect of cisplatin on ileal 5-HT metabolism and the effects of combining cisplatin and anti-inflammatory drugs on ileal tryptophan hydroxylase expression and pica (the consumption of non-nutritive materials such as kaolin). Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression was significantly increased at 24 h after cisplatin (5 mg/kg, intraperitoneal) administration.

Effect of Docosahexaenoic Acid on Voltage-Independent Ca Entry Pathways in Cultured Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells Stimulated with 5-Hydroxytryptamine.

We previously reported that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) inhibits an increase in intracellular Ca concentration ([Ca]) in cultured rat vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) through a mechanism involving mainly voltage-dependent Ca channels; however, the effect of DHA on voltage-independent pathways, such as store-operated and receptor-operated Ca entry, and Ca entry through Na/Ca exchanger (NCX), has not been clarified. In the present study, we investigated the effect of DHA treatment on the expression of transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) channels, capacitative Ca entry, and Ca entry through NCX in rat cultured VSMCs stimulated with 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). RT-PCR analysis detected TRPC1, TRPC4, and TRPC6 mRNA in cultured VSMCs.

Methotrexate causes acute hyperplasia of enterochromaffin cells containing substance P in the intestinal mucosa of rats.

This study aimed to investigate the acute and chronic effect of methotrexate on the intestinal substance P metabolism after a single administration to rats. Methotrexate caused a significant increase in the number of substance P-containing cells in the ileal mucosa both at 24 and 96 h. Most of enterochromaffin cells expressing l-tryptophan hydroxylase contained substance P.

Cellular function and signaling pathways of vascular smooth muscle cells modulated by sphingosine 1-phosphate.

Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) plays important roles in cardiovascular pathophysiology. S1P and/or S1P, rather than S1P receptors, seem to be predominantly expressed in vascular endothelial cells, while S1P and/or S1P, rather than S1P receptors, seem to be predominantly expressed in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). S1P has multiple actions, such as proliferation, inhibition or stimulation of migration, and vasoconstriction or release of vasoactive mediators.

Visible Light Image-Based Method for Sugar Content Classification of Citrus.

Visible light imaging of citrus fruit from Mie Prefecture of Japan was performed to determine whether an algorithm could be developed to predict the sugar content. This nondestructive classification showed that the accurate segmentation of different images can be realized by a correlation analysis based on the threshold value of the coefficient of determination. There is an obvious correlation between the sugar content of citrus fruit and certain parameters of the color images.

Administration of olanzapine as an antiemetic agent changes glucose homeostasis in cisplatin-treated rats.

We investigated the effects of olanzapine on cisplatin-induced pica (the consumption of non-nutrient materials such as kaolin) and glucose homeostasis in rats to clarify the effects of olanzapine when used as an anti-emetic drug. Rats were injected intraperitoneally (i.p.

Extracellular MCT4 is a possible indicator for skeletal muscle MHC fiber type change.

Biochemical markers that indicate fiber type rearrangement in myosin heavy chain (MHC) have been used to evaluate the effectiveness of exercise and/or rehabilitation therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate whether measures of extracellular monocarboxylate transporter 4 (MCT4) protein can help in the detection of MHC fiber type variation. Human skeletal muscle cells (HSkMCs) were succumbed to high atmospheric pressure.