A Rapid Alkalinization Factor-like Peptide EaF82 Impairs Tapetum Degeneration during Pollen Development through Induced ATP Deficiency.

In plants, the timely degeneration of tapetal cells is essential for providing nutrients and other substances to support pollen development. Rapid alkalinization factors (RALFs) are small, cysteine-rich peptides known to be involved in various aspects of plant development and growth, as well as defense against biotic and abiotic stresses. However, the functions of most of them remain unknown, while no RALF has been reported to involve tapetum degeneration.

First Peoples' knowledge leads scientists to reveal 'fairy circles' and termite linyji are linked in Australia.

In the past, when scientists encountered and studied 'new' environmental phenomena, they rarely considered the existing knowledge of First Peoples (also known as Indigenous or Aboriginal people). The scientific debate over the regularly spaced bare patches (so-called fairy circles) in arid grasslands of Australian deserts is a case in point. Previous researchers used remote sensing, numerical modelling, aerial images and field observations to propose that fairy circles arise from plant self-organization.

Psychometric Evaluation of Single-Item Relationship Satisfaction, Love, Conflict, and Commitment Measures.

Issues in applied survey research, including minimizing respondent burden and ensuring measures' brevity for smartphone administration, have intensified efforts to create short measures. We conducted two studies on the psychometric properties of single-item satisfaction, love, conflict, and commitment measures. Study 1 was longitudinal, surveying college-age dating couples at three monthly waves ( =121, 84, and 68 couples at the respective waves).

Warm acclimation alters antioxidant defences but not metabolic capacities in the Antarctic fish, .

The Southern Ocean surrounding the Western Antarctic Peninsula region is rapidly warming. Survival of members of the dominant suborder of Antarctic fishes, the Notothenioidei, will likely require thermal plasticity and adaptive capacity in key traits delimiting thermal tolerance. Herein, we have assessed the thermal plasticity of several cellular and biochemical pathways, many of which are known to be associated with thermal tolerance in notothenioids, including mitochondrial function, activities of aerobic and anaerobic enzymes, antioxidant defences, protein ubiquitination and degradation in cardiac, oxidative skeletal muscles and gill of warm acclimated to 4°C for 22 days or 5°C for 42 days.

Functional dynamics of vegetated model patches: The minimum patch size effect for canopy restoration.

For the past two centuries coastal zones have been suffering seagrass loss resulting in a network of vegetated patches which are barely interconnected and which may compromise the ecological services provided by the canopy. To optimize management efforts for successful restoration strategies, questions need to be addressed about what appropriate canopy architectural considerations are required under certain hydrodynamic conditions. In this study, a set of laboratory experiments were conducted in which hydrodynamic conditions, plant densities and vegetated patch lengths were varied to determine minimum patch lengths for successful management strategies.

Transformation of Long-Lived Albino 'Golden Pothos' and Restoring Chloroplast Development.

Chloroplasts are organelles responsible for chlorophyll biosynthesis, photosynthesis, and biosynthesis of many metabolites, which are one of key targets for crop improvement. Elucidating and engineering genes involved in chloroplast development are important approaches for studying chloroplast functions as well as developing new crops. In this study, we report a long-lived albino mutant derived from a popular ornamental plant 'Golden Pothos' which could be used as a model for analyzing the function of genes involved in chloroplast development and generating colorful plants.

An innovative educational program for addressing health disparities in translational cancer research.

North Carolina Central University (NCCU) and Duke Cancer Institute implemented an NCI-funded Translational Cancer Disparities Research Partnership to enhance translational cancer research, increase the pool of underrepresented racial and ethnic group (UREG) researchers in the translational and clinical research workforce, and equip UREG trainees with skills to increase diversity in clinical trials. The Cancer Research Education Program (C-REP) provided training for UREG graduate students and postdoctoral fellows at Duke and NCCU. An innovative component of C-REP is the Translational Immersion Experience (TIE), which enabled Scholars to gain knowledge across eight domains of clinical and translational research (clinical trials operations, data monitoring, regulatory affairs, UREG accrual, biobanking, community engagement, community outreach, and high-throughput drug screening).

Machine learning uncovers the most robust self-report predictors of relationship quality across 43 longitudinal couples studies.

Given the powerful implications of relationship quality for health and well-being, a central mission of relationship science is explaining why some romantic relationships thrive more than others. This large-scale project used machine learning (i.e.

Unravelling the metabolism black-box in a dynamic wetland environment using a hybrid model framework: Storm driven changes in oxygen budgets.

Estimating gross primary production and ecosystem respiration from oxygen data is performed widely in aquatic systems, yet these estimates can be challenged by high advective fluxes of oxygen. In this study, we develop a hybrid framework linking data-driven and process-based modelling to examine the effect of storm events on oxygen budgets in a constructed wetland. After calibration against measured flow and water temperature data over a two-month period with three storm events, the model was successfully validated against high frequency dissolved oxygen (DO) data exhibiting large diurnal fluctuations.

Mineral profiling of muscle and hepatic tissues of Australian Merino, Damara and Dorper lambs: Effect of weight loss.

Seasonal weight loss (SWL) is a major constraint to extensive animal production systems. The Australian sheep production is based on merino sheep, a European breed not tolerant to SWL. Tolerant alternative breeds such as the fat-tailed Damara and the Dorper have been increasingly used in Australia and elsewhere, due to their robustness.

In vitro comparison of shear bond strengths of ceramic orthodontic brackets with ceramic crowns using an aluminium oxide air abrasion etchant.

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine if there are differences between the shear bond strengths of 3 types of ceramic brackets when bonded to different ceramic substrates using an aluminium oxide air abrasion etchant protocol.

Materials And Methods: Substrate groups consisting of thirty-six lithium disilicate (e.max® CAD) samples and thirty-six lithium silicate infused with zirconia (CELTRA® DUO) samples were fabricated to replicate the facial surface of a left maxillary central incisor.

Amino acid profiles of muscle and liver tissues of Australian Merino, Damara and Dorper lambs under restricted feeding.

Seasonal weight loss (SWL) is a major constraint in extensive animal production systems in the tropics and Mediterranean. The objective of this study was to characterize the amino acid profile of muscle and hepatic tissues of Australian Merino, Damara and Dorper lambs under restricted feeding to evaluate the impact of SWL at the metabolic and physiological levels. SWL induced generalized muscle protein breakdown among restricted groups of all breeds, with varying intensity.

Air, Water Vapor, and Aerosol Transport through Textiles with Surface Functional Coatings of Metal Oxides and Metal-Organic Frameworks.

Currently, air permeable chemical/biological (CB) protective garments are based on activated carbon technology, which reduces moisture vapor transport needed for evaporative cooling and has potential to absorb and concentrate toxic materials. Researchers are exploring classes of sorbent materials that can selectively accumulate and decompose target compounds for potential to enhance protective suits and allow for novel filtration devices. Here, the metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) UiO-66-NH and HKUST-1 have been identified as such materials.

Investigation of the Corrosion Behavior of Atomic Layer Deposited Al₂O₃/TiO₂ Nanolaminate Thin Films on Copper in 0.1 M NaCl.

Fifty nanometers of Al₂O₃ and TiO₂ nanolaminate thin films deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) were investigated for protection of copper in 0.1 M NaCl using electrochemical techniques. Coated samples showed increases in polarization resistance over uncoated copper, up to 12 MΩ-cm² as measured by impedance spectroscopy.

The ovine hepatic mitochondrial proteome: Understanding seasonal weight loss tolerance in two distinct breeds.

Seasonal weight loss (SWL) is a primary constraint for farmers in the Mediterranean and tropics. One cost-effective solution to SWL is utilizing breeds like the Damara sheep that have adapted to deal with nutritional stress. Previous studies concluded that one of the adaptation mechanisms of SWL is a specialized fatty acid metabolism.

Controls on iron(II) fluxes into waterways impacted by acid mine drainage: A Damköhler analysis of groundwater seepage and iron kinetics.

When acidic groundwater flows into an aquatic system the sediment water interface (SWI) acts as a transition zone between the groundwater and lake water, and often exhibits strong physical and biogeochemical gradients. The fate of groundwater-borne solutes, such as Fe(II), is determined by the balance between the exposure time during transport across the SWI and the reaction time within the SWI, however the relative role of groundwater seepage rates and iron kinetics on acidity generation in lakes is unknown. Porewater seepage velocities, porewater chemical profiles, and limnological data were collected across multiple field campaigns over the last two decades, in acid Mine Lake 77, in Lusatia, Germany.

Local hydrodynamics at edges of marine canopies under oscillatory flows.

Canopy fragmentation increases both spatial heterogeneity and patch edges which, in turn, is then likely to modify the local hydrodynamics in the canopy. The orientation of the edge versus the wave and current field is also expected to play an important role in determining wave attenuation and sheltering at the edge of a canopy. We investigated the effect a longitudinal edge (i.

Ovine liver proteome: Assessing mechanisms of seasonal weight loss tolerance between Merino and Damara sheep.

The effect of feed restriction on the liver protein profiles of two different breeds of sheep was studied. We compared Merino with the Damara, breeds with respectively low and high tolerance to nutritional stress. Each breed was grouped into two nutritional treatments: restricted (12-14% loss of live weight) and control (maintenance).

The loss of hemoglobin and myoglobin does not minimize oxidative stress in Antarctic icefishes.

The unusual pattern of expression of hemoglobin (Hb) and myoglobin (Mb) among Antarctic notothenioid fishes provides an exceptional model system for assessing the impact of these proteins on oxidative stress. We tested the hypothesis that the lack of oxygen-binding proteins may reduce oxidative stress. Levels and activity of pro-oxidants and small-molecule and enzymatic antioxidants, and levels of oxidized lipids and proteins in the liver, oxidative skeletal muscle and heart ventricle were quantified in five species of notothenioid fishes differing in the expression of Hb and Mb.

Invasive Macrophytes Control the Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Temperature and Dissolved Oxygen in a Shallow Lake: A Proposed Feedback Mechanism of Macrophyte Loss.

Submerged macrophytes can have a profound effect on shallow lake ecosystems through their ability to modify the thermal structure and dissolved oxygen levels within the lake. Invasive macrophytes, in particular, can grow rapidly and induce thermal gradients in lakes that may substantially change the ecosystem structure and challenge the survival of aquatic organisms. We performed fine-scale measurements and 3D numerical modeling at high spatiotemporal resolution to assess the effect of the seasonal growth of L.

UiO-66-NH Metal-Organic Framework (MOF) Nucleation on TiO, ZnO, and AlO Atomic Layer Deposition-Treated Polymer Fibers: Role of Metal Oxide on MOF Growth and Catalytic Hydrolysis of Chemical Warfare Agent Simulants.

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) chemically bound to polymeric microfibrous textiles show promising performance for many future applications. In particular, Zr-based UiO-66-family MOF-textiles have been shown to catalytically degrade highly toxic chemical warfare agents (CWAs), where favorable MOF/polymer bonding and adhesion are attained by placing a nanoscale metal-oxide layer on the polymer fiber preceding MOF growth. To date, however, the nucleation mechanism of Zr-based MOFs on different metal oxides and how product performance is affected are not well understood.

Large-Area Nanolattice Film with Enhanced Modulus, Hardness, and Energy Dissipation.

We present an engineered nanolattice material with enhanced mechanical properties that can be broadly applied as a thin film over large areas. The nanolattice films consist of ordered, three-dimensional architecture with thin-shell tubular elements, resulting in favorable modulus-density scaling (n ~ 1.1), enhanced energy dissipation, and extremely large material recoverability for strains up to 20% under normal compressive loading.