Foliar application of mepiquat chloride and nitrogen improves yield and fiber quality traits of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.).

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is one of the most important cash crops primarily grown for fiber. It is a perennial crop with indeterminate growth pattern.

Perceptions and attitudes towards climate change in fishing communities of the Sudd Wetlands, South Sudan.

Unlabelled: The Sudd in South Sudan, formed by the White Nile's Baḥr al-Jabal section, is one of the largest and most important wetlands in the world. Communities in the region almost exclusively depend on fisheries for food and livelihoods. Although threatened by over-exploitation and habitat changes, fish populations are also affected by climate change.

Microbial Consortium Associated with Crustacean Shells Composting.

Soil microbes play an essential role in the biodegradation of crustacean shells, which is the process of sustainable bioconversion to chitin derivatives ultimately resulting in the promotion of plant growth properties. While a number of microorganisms with chitinolytic properties have been characterized, little is known about the microbial taxa that participate in this process either by active chitin degradation or by facilitation of this activity through nutritional cooperation and composting with the chitinolytic microorganisms. In this study, we evaluated the transformation of the soil microbiome triggered by close approximation to the green crab shell surface.

Hotspot siRNA Confers Plant Resistance against Viral Infection.

A hallmark of antiviral RNA interference (RNAi) is the production of viral small interfering RNA (vsiRNA). Profiling of vsiRNAs indicates that certain regions of viral RNA genome or transcribed viral RNA, dubbed vsiRNA hotspots, are more prone to RNAi-mediated cleavage for vsiRNA biogenesis. However, the biological relevance of hotspot vsiRNAs to the host innate defence against pathogens remains to be elucidated.

A Reflection on the Tensions of Acting in Dual Roles of Doctoral Researcher and Practitioner when Evaluating a Lifestyle Intervention for Breast Cancer Patients.

This reflection was completed as part of a doctoral project to develop and trial a lifestyle intervention for people following the completion of their treatment for breast cancer. In this study the graduate student acted in the dual roles of nutrition practitioner and researcher. This article uses the experience, reflection, action (ERA) cycle of reflection to consider some of the tensions faced due to the divergent priorities and requirements of these two roles.

Effects of Chilling Stress on Morphological, Physiological, and Biochemical Attributes of Silage Corn Genotypes during Seedling Establishment.

Chilling stress is one of the major abiotic stresses which hinder seedling emergence and growth. Herein, we investigated the effects of chilling/low temperature stress on the morphological, physiological, and biochemical attributes of two silage corn genotypes during the seedling establishment phase. The experiment was conducted in a growth chamber, and silage corn seedlings of Yukon-R and A4177G-RIB were grown at optimum temperature up to V3 stage and then subjected to five temperature regimes (25 °C as control, 20 °C, 15 °C, 10 °C, and 5 °C) for 5 days.

A multimodal analytical method to simultaneously determine monoacetyldiacylglycerols, medium and long chain triglycerides in biological samples during routine lipidomics.

Background: Monoacetyldiglycerides (MAcDG), are acetylated triglycerides (TG) and an emerging class of bioactive or functional lipid with promising nutritional, medical, and industrial applications. A major challenge exists when analyzing MAcDG from other subclasses of TG in biological matrices, limiting knowledge on their applications and metabolism.

Methods: Herein a multimodal analytical method for resolution, identification, and quantitation of MAcDG in biological samples was demonstrated based on thin layer chromatography-flame ionization detection complimentary with C30-reversed phase liquid chromatography-high resolution accurate mass tandem mass spectrometry.

First insights into the honey bee () brain lipidome and its neonicotinoid-induced alterations associated with reduced self-grooming behavior.

Introduction: Honey bees () play key roles in food production performing complex behaviors, like self-grooming to remove parasites. However, the lipids of their central nervous system have not been examined, even though they likely play a crucial role in the performance of cognitive process to perform intricate behaviors. Lipidomics has greatly advanced our understanding of neuropathologies in mammals and could provide the same for honey bees.

Exploring Nanogeochemical Environments: New Insights from Single Particle ICP-TOFMS and AF4-ICPMS.

Nanogeochemistry is an emerging focus area recognizing the role of nanoparticles in Earth systems. Engineered nanotechnology has cultivated advanced analytical techniques that are also applicable to nanogeochemistry. Single particle inductively coupled plasma ICP-time-of-flight-mass spectrometry (ICP-TOF-MS) promises a significant step forward, as time-of-flight mass analyzers enable simultaneous quantification of the entire atomic mass spectrum (∼7-250 / ).

Response and recovery of Nile tilapia exposed to diesel oil - Behavioral, hemato-biochemical and morphological changes of erythrocytes.

Pollution caused by petroleum oil in several manners is becoming a threat to aquatic ecosystem. Hence, we carried out an experiment to investigate how diesel oil affects biota behavior, physiological attributes and how they recover by using Nile tilapia () as a model organism. Nile tilapia of two different treatment groups were exposed to 0.

Understanding the Adaptive Mechanisms of Plants to Enhance Phosphorus Use Efficiency on Podzolic Soils in Boreal Agroecosystems.

Being a macronutrient, phosphorus (P) is the backbone to complete the growth cycle of plants. However, because of low mobility and high fixation, P becomes the least available nutrient in podzolic soils; hence, enhancing phosphorus use efficiency (PUE) can play an important role in different cropping systems/crop production practices to meet ever-increasing demands in food, fiber, and fuel. Additionally, the rapidly decreasing mineral phosphate rocks/stocks forced to explore alternative resources and methods to enhance PUE either through improved seed P reserves and their remobilization, P acquisition efficiency (PAE), or plant's internal P utilization efficiency (IPUE) or both for sustainable P management strategies.

More Than Movement: Exploring Motor Simulation, Creativity, and Function in Co-developed Dance for Parkinson's.

Dance is an enjoyable, non-therapy-focused activity that may provide a range of benefits for people with Parkinson's. The internal simulation of movement through observation, imitation, and imagery, is intrinsic to dance and may contribute to functional improvements for people with Parkinson's. This study explored the feasibility and potential benefits of a dance program designed by a collaborative team of dance artists, researchers, physiotherapists, and people living with Parkinson's.

Climate change impact on fungi in the atmospheric microbiome.

The atmospheric microbiome is one of the least studied microbiomes of our planet. One of the most abundant, diverse and impactful parts of this microbiome is arguably fungal spores. They can be very potent outdoor aeroallergens and pathogens, causing an enormous socio-economic burden on health services and annual damages to crops costing billions of Euros.

Spinach-based RNA mimicking GFP in plant cells.

Spinach RNA-mimicking GFP (S-RMG) has been successfully used to monitor cellular RNAs including microRNAs in bacterium, yeast, and human cells. However, S-RMG has not been established in plants. In this study, we found that like bacterial, yeast, and human cellular tRNAs, plant tRNAs such as tRNA can protect and/or stabilize the Spinach RNA aptamer interaction with the fluorophore DFHBI enabling detectable levels of green fluorescence to be emitted.

Why should we care about high temporal resolution monitoring of bioaerosols in ambient air?

This is the first time that atmospheric concentrations of individual pollen types have been recorded by an automatic sampler with 1-hour and sub-hourly resolution (i.e. 1-minute and 1-second data).

Multiple Fungi May Connect the Roots of an Orchid () and Ash () in Western Newfoundland.

Showy lady's slipper ( Walter, Orchidaceae) and black ash ( Marshall, Oleaceae) often co-occur in close proximity in fens in western Newfoundland, Canada. Metabarcoding of DNA extracted from root samples of both species following surface sterilization, and others without surface sterilization was used to determine if there were shared fungal endophytes in the roots of both species that could form a common mycorrhizal network between them. A wide variety of fungi were recovered from primers amplifying the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer region (ITS2).

Relevance of international partnerships in the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

To achieve Sustainable Development Goal SDG 17, which focuses on international cooperation, partnerships, will be vital. In this comment, we examine the key obstacles such as vested economic interests that will need to be overcome for the successful implementation of SDG 17.

Linking calcium and RNAi signaling in plants.

The genetic link between calcium signaling and RNA interference (RNAi) has remained undiscovered until now. A new study shows that wound-triggered calcium flux acts as an initial messenger for priming RNAi for its role in plant antiviral defense. This paves the way to investigate plant development and response to (a)biotic stresses.

Effects of Environmental Enrichment on Dog Behaviour: Pilot Study.

Environmental enrichment (EE) can be used to enhance the environment of various animals. The aim of this pilot study was to determine the effects of seven EE activities (Bonding, Bubble machine, Conspecific play, Interactive toy, Playhouse, Stuffed food toy and Tug play) on dog behaviour, pre- and post-EE for dogs housed in an office environment during training as part of an assistance dog training programme. EE activities resulted in a significant increase in the frequency of relaxation behaviours ( < 0.

Mobile RNA - Biological Relevance and Biotechnological Potential.

Many systemically mobile mRNAs have been revealed in phloem. However, very few of them have been found to be of clear signaling functions. One of such rare examples is the mobile () mRNA despite the continuous debate about its mobility and biological relevance to the control of flowering time in plants.

Bioaerosols on the atmospheric super highway: An example of long distance transport of Alternaria spores from the Pannonian Plain to Poland.

Alternaria spores are pathogenic to agricultural crops, and the longest and the most severe sporulation seasons are predominantly recorded in rural areas, e.g. the Pannonian Plain (PP) in South-Central Europe.

Atmospheric transport reveals grass pollen dispersion distances.

Identifying the origin of bioaerosols is of central importance in many biological disciplines, such as human health, agriculture, forestry, aerobiology and conservation. Modelling sources, transportation pathways and sinks can reveal how bioaerosols vary in the atmosphere and their environmental impact. Grass pollen are particularly important due to their widely distributed source areas, relatively high abundance in the atmosphere and high allergenicity.

The Use of Intrinsic Markers for Studying the Migratory Movements of Bats.

Mortality of migratory bat species at wind energy facilities is a well-documented phenomenon, and mitigation and management are partially constrained by the current limited knowledge of bat migratory movements. Analyses of biochemical signatures in bat tissues ("intrinsic markers") can provide information about the migratory origins of individual bats. Many tissue samples for intrinsic marker analysis may be collected from living and dead bats, including carcasses collected at wind energy facilities.