Irrigation and fertilization are key practices for improving the fruit quality and yield of vegetables grown in greenhouses. We carried out an experiment in a solar greenhouse spanning three ...consecutive growing seasons to evaluate the effects of irrigation and fertilization on the fruit yield and quality, water use efficiency (WUE) and fertilizer partial factor productivity (PFP) of tomatoes. Interactions between irrigation and fertilization treatments and individual factors of irrigation and fertilization significantly (p < 0.01) affected fruit yield, WUE and PFP. WUE and fruit yield and quality were more sensitive to changes in irrigation than to changes in fertilizer, but PFP showed the opposite trend. Interestingly, the treatment with moderate irrigation (W2: 75% ET
) and high fertilizer level (F1: 240N-120P
O
-150K
O kg ha
) was twice ranked first after a combinational evaluation. In conclusion, the proper application of drip fertigation (W2F1) may be a good compromise for solar greenhouse-grown tomatoes with regard to fruit yield and quality, WUE, and PFP. The present study sheds light on the contributions of these practices, clarifies their impacts, and provides a basis for evaluating and selecting better management practices for growing greenhouse vegetables.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
•We investigated the effect of plastic film mulching and nitrogen fertilization on maize yield.•The average soil temperature of the mulching treatment increased 2.3°C before July and nearly 1.2°C ...after July.•The trend for soil nitrate-N content distribution revealed symmetrical shapes along the center of furrows.•We recommend an optimal practice for field management of maize.
In the semi-arid region of the Loess Plateau in China, the use of alternative field management practices is essential for sustainable agriculture. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of mulching and fertilization on the soil temperature, soil water content, soil nitrate-N content and grain yield of maize. The experiment was conducted over three consecutive years and used randomly assigned field plots with five replicates. The six treatments consisted of no fertilizer without plastic film (CK), no fertilizer with plastic film (ZM), basal fertilizer without plastic film (BN), basal fertilizer with plastic film (BM), basal and top dressing without plastic film (BTN) and basal and top dressing with plastic film (BTM). The soil temperature of the 10-cm mulching treatment was significantly higher than that of the no-mulching treatment, and the average soil temperature of the mulching treatment increased by 2.3°C before July and nearly 1.2°C after July. The soil water content in the mulching treatment was significantly higher than that in the no-mulching treatment at 0–60cm, which was not significantly different from the 140–200cm depth. The trend in the soil nitrate-N content distribution revealed symmetrical shapes along the center of the furrows, and the standard symmetrical distribution reduced gradually with an increase in soil depth under the plastic film mulching conditions. The soil nitrate-N content under basal fertilizer was 1.65 times higher than that without fertilizer at 0–10cm at 36 days after sowing. The soil nitrate-N content in the topsoil was reduced from 48.67 to 30.77mg/kg after 58 days. We found that plastic film mulching with basal fertilizer increased maize yield by 10.61%, 9.48%, and 15.36%, and top dressing increased the yield by 16.61%, 20.94%, and 12.24% over the three consecutive years. A treatment involving plastic film mulching, basal fertilizer and top dressing is recommended. Further studies are required to investigate the effect of mulching on increased soil temperature, soil water content and soil nitrate-N content, which simultaneously affect yield, and to determine the effects on the field microclimate.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Mulching and nitrogen are critical drivers of crop production for smallholders of the Loess Plateau in China. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of mulching and nitrogen ...fertilizer on the soil water content, soil nitrate-N content and vertical distribution in maize root-zone. The experiment was conducted over two consecutive years and used randomly assigned field plots with three replicates. The six treatments consisted of no fertilizer without plastic film (CK), plastic film mulching with no basal fertilizer and no top dressing (MN0), basal fertilizer with no top dressing and no mulching (BN1), plastic film mulching and basal fertilizer with no top dressing (MN1), basal fertilizer and top dressing with no mulching (BN2) and plastic film mulching with basal fertilizer and top dressing (MN2). In the top soil layers, the soil water content was a little high in the plastic film mulching than that without mulching. The mean soil water content from 0 to 40 cm without mulching were 3.35% lower than those measured in the corresponding mulching treatments in 31 days after sowing in 2012. The mulching treatment increased the soil nitrate-N content was observed in the 0-40-cm soil layers. The results indicate that high contents of soil nitrate-N were mainly distributed at 0-20-cm at 31 days after sowing in 2012, and the soil nitrate-N concentration in the MN2 treatment was 1.58 times higher than that did not receive fertilizer. The MN2 treatment greatly increased the soil nitrate-N content in the upper layer of soil (0-40-cm), and the mean soil nitrate-N content was increased nearly 50 mg kg-1 at 105 days after sowing compared with CK treatment in 2012. The soil nitrate-N leaching amount in MN1 treatment was 28.61% and 39.14% lower than BN1 treatment, and the mulch effect attained to 42.55% and 65.27% in MN2 lower than BN2 in both years. The yield increased with an increase in the basal fertilizer, top dressing and plastic film mulching, and the grain yield increase ranged from 31.41% to 83.61% in two consecutive years. The MN1 and MN2 treatment is recommended because it increased the grain yield and improved the fertilizer use efficiency, compared with the no-mulching treatment.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The water shortage in China, particularly in Northwest China, is very serious. There is, therefore, great potential for improving the water use efficiency (WUE) in agriculture, particularly in areas ...where the need for water is greatest. A two-season (2012 and 2013) study evaluated the effects of irrigation and fertilizer rate on tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill., cv. “Jinpeng 10”) growth, yield, and WUE. The fertilizer treatment significantly influenced plant height and stem diameter at 23 and 20 days after transplanting in 2012 and 2013, respectively. As individual factors, irrigation and fertilizer significantly affected the leaf expansion rate, but irrigation × fertilizer had no statistically significant effect on the leaf growth rate at 23 days after transplanting in 2012. Dry biomass accumulation was significantly influenced by fertilizer in both years, but there was no significant difference in irrigation treatment in 2012. Our study showed that an increased irrigation level increased the fruit yield of tomatoes and decreased the WUE. The fruit yield and WUE increased with the increased fertilizer rate. WUE was more sensitive to irrigation than to fertilization. An irrigation amount of 151 to 208 mm and a fertilizer amount of 454 to 461 kg·ha−1 (nitrogen fertilizer, 213.5–217 kg·ha−1; phosphate fertilizer, 106.7–108 kg·ha−1; and potassium fertilizer, 133.4–135.6 kg·ha−1) were recommended for the drip fertigation of tomatoes in greenhouse.
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FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
Gastric cancer stem cells (CSCs) are the main causes of metastasis and drug resistance. We previously indicated that miR-375 can inhibit Helicobacter pylori-induced gastric carcinogenesis; here, we ...aim to explore the effects and mechanisms of miR-375 on gastric cancer (GC) cell stemness.
Lentivirus infection was used to construct GC cells with ectopic expression of miR-375. In vitro and in vivo experiments, including analysis of tumor spheroid formation, CD44+ sub-population with stemness, stemness marker expression, and tumor-initiating ability, were performed to evaluate the effects of miR-375 on the stemness of GC cells. Furthermore, microarray and bioinformatics analysis were performed to search the potential targets of miR-375 in GC cells. Luciferase reporter, RNA immunoprecipitation, and RNA-FISH assays were carried out to verify the targeting of miR-375. Subsequently, combined with tissue microarray analysis, erastin-resistant GC cells, transmission electron microscopy, a series of agonists and oxidative stress markers, the underlying mechanisms contributing to miR-375-mediated effects were explored.
MiR-375 reduced the stemness of GC cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, SLC7A11 was identified as a direct target of miR-375 and miR-375 attenuated the stemness of GC cells mainly through triggering SLC7A11-dependent ferroptosis.
MiR-375 can trigger the ferroptosis through targeting SLC7A11, which is essential for miR-375-mediated inhibition on GC cell stemness. These results suggest that the miR-375/SLC7A11 regulatory axis could serve as a potential target to provoke the ferroptosis and thus attenuate the stemness of GC cells.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Abstract Multistage fluid activities play an important role in the interaction between jadeitite and symplectite coronas; therefore, we studied the compositional zoning and evolution of ...representative Myanmar jadeitite. Under the influence of multistage Ca-, Na-, and Si-rich fluid activity, some minerals in Myanmar jadeitite formed symplectite coronas with concentric rings and multilayer metasomatic reaction rim structures. Additionally, the concentrations of Cr and Fe decrease from the core to the peripheral jadeite minerals, whereas the concentration of Si markedly increases. There is almost no Si or Ca in the chromite core, and the concentrations of Si and Ca increase sharply in rims composed of uvarovite. Due to Cr diffusion, the edge of the jadeite adjacent to kosmochlor is Cr-rich and Al-poor. The different element concentrations indicate that the uvarovite formed from the presence of a chromite and jadeite interaction, Si in the kosmochlor after metasomatism or an external Ca-rich fluid. One possible explanation for the formation of kosmochlor is the interaction between chromite and a Na- and Si-rich fluid. Also, Ca-rich fluid could have first interacted with chromite and formed uvarovite; subsequently, a Na-rich fluid could have entered and become saturated with kosmochlor, leading to the formation of kosmochlor surrounding the uvarovite.
Purpose: Many studies have evaluated the associations between pre-diagnostic circulating C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and colorectal cancer risk, but their results are inconsistent. ...We therefore conducted a meta-analysis to investigate these associations. Methods: A comprehensive literature search up to October 2013 was undertaken in PubMed. Pooled relative risk (RR) estimates and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) were used to calculate estimated effect. Results: Eighteen studies on CRP comprising a total of 4,706 colorectal cancer cases were included in this meta-analysis. The summary RR of colorectal cancer for one unit change in natural logarithm (ln) CRP was 1.12 95 % CI (1.05–1.21). There was statistically significant heterogeneity among studies (p = 0.006; I² = 51.7 %). After excluding the studies contributing most to the heterogeneity, summary estimate was essentially unchanged. In addition, the association was significant for colon cancer RR = 1.13, 95 % CI (1.05–1.21), not for rectal cancer RR = 1.03, 95 % CI (0.90–1.17). We also found that CRP was significantly associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer among men, but not among women. There were six studies on IL-6 that involved a total of 1,068 colorectal cancer cases. The pooled RR of colorectal cancer for one unit change in ln IL-6 was 1.10 (95 % CI 0.88–1.36), and no statistically significant heterogeneity was found (p = 0.175; I² = 34.8 %). Conclusion: Our results suggest that pre-diagnostic circulating CRP is associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer. However, there is no significant association between IL-6 and colorectal cancer risk.
Gastric cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Although
Helicobacter pylori
(
H. pylori
) is considered to be a critical risk factor, the molecular mechanisms ...underlying
H. pylori
-induced gastric carcinogenesis are still poorly defined. Recently, accumulating studies have revealed that microRNAs play key roles in development, differentiation, immune regulation, and even carcinogenesis. This study was performed to explore the mechanism of microRNA-375 (miR-375) in
H. pylori
promotion of gastric carcinogenesis. It was shown that miR-375 was down-regulated in response to
H. pylori
infection in gastric epithelial cell lines; this finding was quite opposite to the expression patterns of pro-inflammatory cytokines observed in a co-culture cell model. Moreover, the ectopic expression of miR-375 aggravated cell proliferation and migration. It was further observed that Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) was a bona fide target of miR-375 and further activated signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and other downstream target molecules. Both gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments showed that decreased miR-375 expression could mimic the oncogenic effects of the JAK2–STAT3 pathway. In addition, pretreatment with siRNAs targeting JAK2 prevented gastric epithelial cells from increasing proliferation and migration even in response to
H. pylori
infection. For the first time, our results demonstrate that the JAK2–STAT3 pathway regulated by miR-375 is involved in
H. pylori
-induced inflammation; this pathway promotes neoplastic transformation by affecting the expression of BCL-2 and TWIST1, hence offering a potential therapeutic target for inflammation-related cancers, especially those related to
H. pylori
.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
With increasing passenger flows and construction scale, metro systems in metropolises have entered a new era of networking operation and become the most effective way to alleviate and decrease ...traffic congestion. However, frequent occurrence of random failures and malicious attacks pose a serious threat to metro security and reliability. Thus, it is necessary to quantitatively evaluate the vulnerability of the metro network to different failures or attacks from a networking perspective. Based on the complex network theory, this study took the Shanghai Metro Network (SMN) as an example to investigate vulnerability of a weighted metro network in responding to random failures as well as malicious attacks. In particular, compared to topological networks, the vulnerability of weighted networks was analyzed to investigate how traffic and spatial constraints influence the transport system’s vulnerability, since topological features of complex networks are often associated with the weights of the edges and spatial constraints. Simulation results show that the SMN is robust against random failures but fragile for malicious attacks. The vulnerability analysis of weighted properties shows that all targeted attacks are capable to shatter the network’s communication or transport properties at a very low level of removed nodes and the highest betweenness attack strategy is the most effective mode to cause destructive effects on SMN among five attack or failure strategies. The inclusion of passenger flows provides evidence for the view that topological networks cannot convey all the information of a real-world network and traffic flow in the network should be considered as one of the key features in the finding and development of defensive strategies. Our results provide a richer view on complex weighted networks in real-world and possibilities of risk analysis and policy decisions for the metro operation department.
MiRNA is a type of small non-coding RNA, by regulating downstream gene expression that affects the progression of multiple diseases, especially cancer. MiRNA can participate in the biological ...processes of tumor, including proliferation, invasion and escape, and exhibit tumor enhancement or inhibition. The tumor immune microenvironment contains numerous immune cells. These cells include lymphocytes with tumor suppressor effects such as CD8+ T cells and natural killer cells, as well as some tumor-promoting cells with immunosuppressive functions, such as regulatory T cells and myeloid-derived suppressor cells. MiRNA can affect the tumor immune microenvironment by regulating the function of immune cells, which in turn modulates the progression of tumor cells. Investigating the role of miRNA in regulating the tumor immune microenvironment will help elucidate the specific mechanisms of interaction between immune cells and tumor cells, and may facilitate the use of miRNA as a predictor of immune disorders in tumor progression. This review summarizes the multifarious roles of miRNA in tumor progression through regulation of the tumor immune microenvironment, and provides guidance for the development of miRNA drugs to treat tumors and for the use of miRNA as an auxiliary means in tumor immunotherapy.
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