Organic soil amendments are increasingly being examined for their potential for soil restoration. In this paper, different composted plant residues consisting of leguminous (red clover,
Trifolium ...pratense L.) (TP) and non-leguminous (rapeseed,
Brassica napus L.) (BN) plants and the combination of both plant residues (red clover
+
rapeseed,
Trifolium pratense L.
+
Brassica napus L. at a ratio 1:1) (TP
+
BN) were applied during a period of 4 years for restoring a Xelloric Calciorthid soil located near Seville (Guadalquivir Valley, Andalusia, Spain). The effect of the organic soil amendments on plant cover, soil physical (structural stability, bulk density), chemical (C/N ratio), and biological properties (microbial biomass, soil respiration and enzymatic activities (dehydrogenase, urease, β-glucosidase, phosphatase and arylsulfatase activities)) were determined. Organic amendments were applied at rate of 7.2 and 14.4
t organic matter
ha
−1. All composted plant residues had a positive effect on soil physical properties. At the end of the experimental period and at the high rate, soil structural stability was highest in the BN (28.3%) treatment, followed by the TP
+
BN (22.4%) and the TP (14.5%) treatments and then the control. Soil bulk density was higher in the BN (30.9%), followed by TP
+
BN (26.2%) and TP (16.1%) treatments with respect to the control. However, soil biological properties (biomass C and the enzymatic activities) were particularly improved by the TP
+
BN treatment, followed by TP, BN and the control. After 4 years, the percentage of plant cover increased 87.2% in the TP
+
BN amended soil with respect to the control, followed by TP (84.1%) and BN (83.8%). These differences were attributed to the different chemical composition of the composts applied to the soils and their mineralization, controlled by the soil C/N ratio. The application of TP
+
BN compost with a C/N ratio of 18, resulted a more favourable soil biological properties and plant cover than the application of TP (C/N ratio
=
8.8) and BN (C/N ratio
=
47.7) composts.
•We present an overview of native promoter structure and function.•The use and application of promoters in transgenics are emphasized.•Use of cis-acting regulatory elements in synthetic promoters is ...highlighted.•A new approach of developing and using synthetic introns in promoters is presented.•Different promoter gene expression validation approaches are compared.
Studies of promoters that largely regulate gene expression at the transcriptional level are crucial for improving our basic understanding of gene regulation and will expand the toolbox of available promoters for use in plant biotechnology. In this review, we present a comprehensive analysis of promoters and their underlying mechanisms in transcriptional regulation, including epigenetic marks and chromatin-based regulation. Large-scale prediction of promoter sequences and their contributing cis-acting elements has become routine due to recent advances in transcriptomic technologies and genome sequencing of several plants. However, predicted regulatory sequences may or may not be functional and demonstration of the contribution of the element to promoter activity is essential for confirmation of regulatory sequences. Synthetic promoters and introns provide useful approaches for functional validation of promoter sequences. The development and improvement of gene expression tools for rapid, efficient, predictable, and high-throughput analysis of promoter components will be critical for confirmation of the functional regulatory element sequences identified through transcriptomic and genomic analyses.
Microalgae are very effective microorganisms for CO2 capturing and a promising source of lipids for biodiesel as well as other interesting compounds. Many different ways of exploitation of these ...organisms are being tested. This work presents a review of the state of the art of the research and development of thermochemical conversion of microalgae with a special focus on pyrolysis and hydrothermal liquefaction. Aspects related to the type of reactors, the products obtained and the analytical applications are covered. The actual reaction scheme of pyrolysis of microalgae is extremely complex because of the formation of over hundreds of intermediate products. Various kinetic models reported in the literature and in a previous study with experimental validations are presented in this review to provide the current status of the study.
A simple, soft, and fast microwave-assisted hydrothermal method was used for the preparation of nanocrystalline cobalt ferrite powders from commercially-available Fe(NO3)3∙9H2O, Co(NO3)2∙6H2O, ...ammonium hydroxide, and tetrapropylammonium hydroxide (TPAH). The synthesis was conducted in a sealed-vessel microwave reactor specifically designed for synthetic applications, and the resulting products were characterized by XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, and HR-TEM. After a systematic study of the influence of the microwave variables (temperature, reaction time and nature of the bases), highly crystalline CoFe2O4 nanoparticles with a high uniformity in morphology and size, were directly obtained by heating at 130 °C for 20 min using the base TPAH. Dense ceramics of cobalt ferrite were prepared by non-conventional, microwave sintering of synthesized nanopowders at temperatures of 850–900 °C. The magnetic properties of both the nanopowders and the sintered specimens were determined in order to establish their feasibility as a permanent magnet.
Ti-doped BiFeO3 ceramics prepared by a mixed-oxide route were structurally characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and high-resolution ...transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), giving evidence of the formation of an inner structure at the nanometric scale. The observed nanograins are separated by Ti-rich areas that originate due to the tendency of the titanium dopant to segregate from the perovskite lattice. Such a peculiar nanostructure is responsible for the changes produced in both the electrical and the magnetic properties of BiFeO3 upon titanium doping: the Ti-rich interfaces act as resistive layers that increase the direct-current (dc) resistivity of the material, while the existence of structural domains in the scale of tens of nanometers causes a ferrimagnetic-like behavior with a huge coercive field (on the order of 20 kOe), even at room temperature.
Genetic events mediating transformation from premalignant monoclonal gammopathies (MG) to multiple myeloma (MM) are unknown. To obtain a comprehensive genomic profile of MG from the early to late ...stages, we performed high-resolution analysis of purified plasma cells from 20 MGUS, 20 smoldering MM (SMM) and 34 MM by high-density 6.0 SNP array. A progressive increase in the incidence of copy number abnormalities (CNA) from MGUS to SMM and to MM (median 5, 7.5 and 12 per case, respectively) was observed (P=0.006). Gains on 1q, 3p, 6p, 9p, 11q, 19p, 19q and 21q along with 1p, 16q and 22q deletions were significantly less frequent in MGUS than in MM. Although 11q and 21q gains together with 16q and 22q deletions were apparently exclusive of MM status, we observed that these abnormalities were also present in minor subclones in MGUS. Overall, a total of 65 copy number-neutral LOH (CNN-LOH) were detected. Their frequency was higher in active MM than in the asymptomatic entities (P=0.047). A strong association between genetic lesions and fragile sites was also detected. In summary, our study shows an increasing genomic complexity from MGUS to MM and identifies new chromosomal regions involved in CNA and CNN-LOH.
•T serum levels regulate DHT serum levels by down-regulating the transcript levels of srd5a.•DHT triggers the onset of the meiotic phase of spermatogenesis.•DHT is involved in the regulation of E2 ...serum levels.
In teleosts, spermatogenesis is regulated by pituitary gonadotropins and sex steroids. 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), derived from testosterone (T) through the action of 5α-reductase, has recently been suggested to play a physiologically important role in some fish species. In this study, gilthead seabream, Sparus aurata L., males received an implant of 1μgT/g body mass (bm) or vehicle alone and, 7days later, 1mg finasteride (FIN, an inhibitor of 5α-reductase)/kg bm or vehicle. Serum levels of T, 11-ketotestosterone (11KT), DHT and 17β-estradiol (E2), and the mRNA levels of the main enzymes involved in their synthesis, were analysed. T promoted a transient increase in the serum levels of T, 11KT and E2 but a decrease in those of DHT at day 15 following T injection, in accordance with the up-regulation of mRNA levels of the enzymes involved in T transformation to 11KT (coding genes: cyp11b1 and hsd11b) and the down-regulation of mRNA levels of the enzyme responsible for T transformation to DHT (coding gene: srd5a). Interestingly, a similar effect was observed when FIN was injected. However, when fish were injected with T and FIN successively (T+FIN), control levels were not recovered at the end of the experimental period (28days). DHT seems to regulate E2 serum levels via the down-regulation of mRNA levels of aromatase (coding gene: cyp19a1a), which is needed for the transformation of T into E2. The testis histology, together with the proliferative rates recorded upon T, FIN or T+FIN treatment, suggests that DHT is involved in the onset of the meiotic phase of spermatogenesis.
This study sought to analyze the clinical impact of the degree and improvement of mitral regurgitation in TAVR recipients, validate the main imaging determinants of this improvement, and assess the ...potential candidates for double valve repair with percutaneous techniques.
Many patients with severe aortic stenosis present with concomitant mitral regurgitation (MR). Cardiac imaging plays a key role in identifying prognostic factors of MR persistence after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) and for planning its treatment.
A total of 1,110 patients with severe aortic stenosis from 6 centers who underwent TAVR were included. In-hospital to 6-month follow-up clinical outcomes according to the degree of baseline MR were evaluated. Off-line analysis of echocardiographic and multidetector computed tomography images was performed to determine predictors of improvement, clinical outcomes, and potential percutaneous alternatives to treat persistent MR.
Compared with patients without significant pre-TAVR MR, 177 patients (16%) presented with significant pre-TAVR MR, experiencing a 3-fold increase in 6-month mortality (35.0% vs. 10.2%; p < 0.001). After TAVR, the degree of MR improved in 60% of them. A mitral annular diameter of >35.5 mm (odds ratio: 9.0; 95% confidence interval: 3.2 to 25.3; p < 0.001) and calcification of the mitral apparatus by multidetector computed tomography (odds ratio: 11.2; 95% confidence interval: 4.03 to 31.3; p < 0.001) were independent predictors of persistent MR. At least 14 patients (1.3% of the entire cohort, 13.1% of patients with persistent MR) met criteria for percutaneous mitral repair with either MitraClip (9.3%) or a balloon-expandable valve (3.8%).
Significant MR is not uncommon in TAVR recipients and associates with greater mortality. In more than one-half of patients, the degree of MR improves after TAVR, which can be predicted by characterizing the mitral apparatus with multidetector computed tomography. According to standardized imaging criteria, at least 1 in 10 patients whose MR persists after TAVR could benefit from percutaneous mitral procedures, and even more could be treated with MitraClip after dedicated pre-imaging evaluation.
The International GNSS Service (IGS) Working Group on Ionosphere was created in 1998. Since then, the Scientific community behind IGS, in particular CODE, ESA, JPL and UPC, have been continuosly ...contributing to reliable IGS combined vertical total electron content (VTEC) maps in both rapid and final schedules. The details on how these products are being generated, performance numbers, proposed improvement as far as VTEC evolution trends during near one Solar Cycle, are summarized in this paper. The confirmation of (1) the good performance of the IGS combined VTEC maps, and (2) the characteristic VTEC variability periods, are two main results of this work.
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