Changes of Photosynthetic Parameters in Melatonin-Treated Wheat Subjected to Drought.

Drought stress affects many aspects of plant biochemistry, with photosynthesis being one the most significantly impaired physiological processes. Melatonin is a natural antioxidant with growth-regulating properties in plants. Its diverse physiological functions have been extensively studied in recent decades.

Effects of Melatonin Pre- and Post-Drought Treatment on Oxidative Stress Markers and Expression of Proline-Related Transcripts in Young Wheat Plants.

Wheat can tolerate a mild water deficit, but prolonged drought causes a number of detrimental physiological changes resulting in a substantial decrease in productivity. The present study evaluates the potential of the natural plant growth regulator melatonin to alleviate the negative effects of moderate drought in two Bulgarian winter wheat cultivars at the early vegetative stage. Melatonin doses of 75 µM were root-supplemented 24 h before or after the stress period.

Impact of Silver Nanoparticle Treatment and Chitosan on Packaging Paper's Barrier Effectiveness.

In this study, a comparative analysis of silver nanoparticles treatment and chitosan coating on packaging paper barrier properties was carried out. In order to examine the water, grease, and antibacterial barrier properties of silver nanoparticle-treated and chitosan-coated laboratory-obtained paper samples, a mixture of bleached softwood and hardwood celluloses was used. In order to conduct the comparative analysis SEM, water contact angle, Cobb, and Kit tests were carried out on a cellulose sample, and four paper samples (three of them treated with silver nanoparticles-1, 2, and 3 mL/20 cm or chitosan coated-0.

Drought Protective Effects of Exogenous ABA and Kinetin on Lettuce: Sugar Content, Antioxidant Enzyme Activity, and Productivity.

Drought is an environmental stressor that significantly impacts plant growth and development. Comprehending the complexity of drought stress and water utilization in the context of plant growth and development holds significant importance for sustainable agriculture. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of exogenously applied phytohormones on lettuce ( L.

Respiratory outcomes and survival after unplanned extubation in the NICU: a prospective cohort study from the SEPREVEN trial.

Objective: To compare reintubation rates after planned extubation and unplanned extubation (UE) in patients in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), to analyse risk factors for reintubation after UE and to compare outcomes in patients with and without UE.

Design: Prospective, observational study nested in a randomised controlled trial (SEPREVEN/Study on Epidemiology and PRevention of adverse EVEnts in Neonates). Outcomes were expected to be independent of the intervention tested.

Biochemical Alterations in Triticale Seedlings Pretreated with Selective Herbicide and Subjected to Drought or Waterlogging Stress.

Waterlogging and drought disrupt crop development and productivity. Triticale is known to be relatively tolerant to different stress factors. In natural conditions, plants are rather subjected to multiple environmental factors.

Divergent Cross-Adaptation of Herbicide-Treated Wheat and Triticale Affected by Drought or Waterlogging.

Widely used agrochemicals that do not exert negative effects on crops and selectively target weeds could influence plant resilience under unfavorable conditions. The cross-adaptation of wheat ( L.) and triticale (× Wittm.

Dynamics of Polyamines, Proline, and Ethylene Metabolism under Increasing Cold in Winter Oilseed Rape.

Cold stress is among the most important environmental factors reducing the yield of crops. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of increasing cold stress conditions on winter oilseed rape polyamines, proline, and ethylene metabolism in acclimated and non-acclimated winter oilseed rape. This study was carried out under controlled conditions in the laboratory.

The Physiological Responses of Wheat and Maize Seedlings Grown under Water Deficit Are Modulated by Pre-Application of Auxin-Type Plant Growth Regulators.

The physiological responses of wheat and maize seedlings to exogenous auxin-type compounds 1-[2-chloroethoxycarbonyl-methyl]-4-naphthalenesulfonic acid calcium salt (TA-12) and 1-[2-dimethylaminoethoxicarbonylmethyl]naphthalene chlormethylate (TA-14) application prior to polyethyleneglycol-6000 (PEG) treatment were studied. PEG treatment inhibited seedlings growth and caused alterations in their antioxidant defence which was crop-specific. PEG increased the non-enzymatic antioxidants along with inhibition of enzymatic antioxidant activity in wheat, while in maize the opposite effects were found.

Data on immunogenicity and reactogenicity to COVID-19 vaccination among patients receiving maintenance dialysis.

Compared with the general population, patients receiving maintenance dialysis are at increased risk for morbidity and mortality associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Currently, data on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-specific immunity post-vaccination in patients on maintenance dialysis are scarce given that the effectiveness of the vaccines has not been explicitly tested in this population due to their common exclusion from SARS-CoV-2 vaccination trials. We herein present data of the specific cellular (interferon-γ and interleukin-2 ELISpot assays) and humoral immune responses (dot plot array and chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay) at 4 weeks and 6 weeks following a single dose or a complete homologous dual dose SARS-CoV-2 vaccine regimen in 60 adult patients on maintenance dialysis (six with a history of COVID-19).

Immunogenicity and reactogenicity of homologous mRNA-based and vector-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccine regimens in patients receiving maintenance dialysis.

Patients receiving maintenance dialysis (MD) are vulnerable to COVID-19-related morbidity and mortality. Currently, data on SARS-CoV-2-specific cellular and humoral immunity post-vaccination in this population are scarce. We conducted a prospective single-center study exploring the specific cellular (interferon-γ and interleukin-2 ELISpot assays) and humoral immune responses (dot plot array and chemiluminescent microparticle immunoassay [CMIA]) at 4 weeks and 6 weeks following a single dose or a complete homologous dual dose SARS-CoV-2 vaccine regimen in 60 MD patients (six with a history of COVID-19).

Modulation of Physiological Stress Response of L. to Glyphosate by Brassinosteroid Application.

The potential of brassinosteroids to modulate the physiological responses of winter wheat ( L.) to herbicide stress was evaluated. Young winter wheat seedlings were treated with 24-epibrassinolide (EBL) and 24 h later were sprayed with glyphosate.

Physiological Responses of Wheat Seedlings to Soil Waterlogging Applied after Treatment with Selective Herbicide.

Waterlogging impairs crop development and considerably affects plant productivity worldwide. Wheat is sensitive to waterlogging. Serrate (Syngenta) is a selective herbicide controlling annual grass and broadleaf weeds for use in wheat.

Elevated Temperature Induced Adaptive Responses of Two Lupine Species at Early Seedling Phase.

This study aimed to investigate the impact of climate warming on hormonal traits of invasive and non-invasive plants at the early developmental stage. Two different lupine species-invasive Lindl. and non-invasive L.

Assessment of the Biochemical Responses of Wheat Seedlings to Soil Drought after Application of Selective Herbicide.

Drought is a major environmental constrain with a deleterious effect on plant development leading to a considerable reduction of crop productivity worldwide. Wheat is a relatively drought tolerant crop during the vegetative stage. The herbicide Serrate (Syngenta) is a preparation containing two active chemical substances with different modes of action, which inhibit the biosynthesis of fatty and amino acids.

Concentrations of Interleukin-1ß in Gingival Crevicular Fluid and Saliva - a Potential Diagnostic Biomarker of Periodontal Diseases.

Introduction: Bacterial challenge in periodontal diseases activates both local and systemic immune responses of a macroorganism by increasing multiple proinflammatory factors that can be discovered in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and in saliva. We tested the hypothesis that IL-1β concentration in GCF and saliva correlates with periodontal health and diseases. Materials and methods: The study included 62 people (mean age 36±14 yrs), divided into three groups - patients with periodontitis (24 people), patients with gingivitis (19 people) and periodontally healthy people (19 people).

hESC-derived immune suppressive dendritic cells induce immune tolerance of parental hESC-derived allografts.

Background: With their inherent capability of unlimited self-renewal and unique potential to differentiate into functional cells of the three germ layers, human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) hold great potential in regenerative medicine. A major challenge in the application of hESC-based cell therapy is the allogeneic immune rejection of hESC-derived allografts.

Methods: We derived dendritic cell-like cells (DCLs) from wild type and CTLA4-Ig/PD-L1 knock-in hESCs, denoted WT DCLs and CP DCLs.

Foliar Application of Polyamines Modulates Winter Oilseed Rape Responses to Increasing Cold.

Cold stress is one of the most common abiotic stresses experienced by plants and is caused by low temperature extremes and variations. Polyamines (PAs) have been reported to contribute in abiotic stress defense processes in plants. The present study investigates the survival and responses of PA-treated non-acclimated (N) and acclimated (A) winter oilseed rape to increasing cold conditions.

Kinetic investigation of dilute acid hydrolysis of hardwood pulp for microcrystalline cellulose production.

This work presents a kinetic investigation of dilute sulfuric acid hydrolysis of bleached hardwood kraft pulp. The temperature-time dependence shows fast xylose extraction during the initial period of the process, while the glucose content increases slowly and permanently over the period. A conversion of xylose into furfural and furfural-derived chromophores is observed.

Extracellular vesicles from T cells overexpress miR-146b-5p in HIV-1 infection and repress endothelial activation.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection promotes a generalized activation of host responses that involves not only CD4 T cells, but also cells of the microenvironment, which are not directly infected, such as endothelial cells. The mechanisms triggering HIV-1-associated vascular alterations remain poorly understood. Extracellular vesicles (EVs), implicated in cell-to-cell communication, have been recently described as carriers of microRNAs (miRNAs).

Wild-Type p53 Promotes Cancer Metabolic Switch by Inducing PUMA-Dependent Suppression of Oxidative Phosphorylation.

The tumor suppressor p53 is somatically mutated in half of all human cancers. Paradoxically, the wild-type p53 (WTp53) is often retained in certain human cancers, such as hepatocarcinoma (HCC). We discovered a physiological and oncogenic role of WTp53 in suppressing pyruvate-driven oxidative phosphorylation by inducing PUMA.

Three novel SLC2A1 mutations in Bulgarian patients with different forms of genetic generalized epilepsy reflecting the clinical and genetic diversity of GLUT1-deficiency syndrome.

Purpose: GLUT1-deficiency syndrome (GLUT1-DS) is a metabolic brain disorder with a great clinical heterogeneity underlined by various mutations in the SLC2A1 gene which make the clinical and genetic diagnosis complicated. The purpose of our study is to investigate the genetic defects affecting the SLC2A1 gene in a group of Bulgarian patients with genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE), and to bring new insights into the molecular pathology of GLUT1-DS that would strengthen the genotype-phenotype correlations and improve the diagnostic procedure.

Methods: We have performed sequencing analysis of the SLC2A1 gene in thirty-eight Bulgarian patients with different forms of GGE having emerged in childhood followed by array comparative genome (aCGH) hybridization in patients with severe forms of GLUT1-DS who display extraneurological features.

Biogenesis of Pro-senescent Microparticles by Endothelial Colony Forming Cells from Premature Neonates is driven by SIRT1-Dependent Epigenetic Regulation of MKK6.

Senescent cells may exert detrimental effect on microenvironment through the secretion of soluble factors and the release of extracellular vesicles, such as microparticles, key actors in ageing and cardiovascular diseases. We previously reported that sirtuin-1 (SIRT1) deficiency drives accelerated senescence and dysfunction of endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFC) in PT neonates. Because preterm birth (PT) increases the risk for cardiovascular diseases during neonatal period as well as at adulthood, we hypothesized that SIRT1 deficiency could control the biogenesis of microparticles as part of a senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) of PT-ECFC and investigated the related molecular mechanisms.