Drought stress, being the inevitable factor that exists in various environments without recognizing borders and no clear warning thereby hampering plant biomass production, quality, and energy. It is ...the key important environmental stress that occurs due to temperature dynamics, light intensity, and low rainfall. Despite this, its cumulative, not obvious impact and multidimensional nature severely affects the plant morphological, physiological, biochemical and molecular attributes with adverse impact on photosynthetic capacity. Coping with water scarcity, plants evolve various complex resistance and adaptation mechanisms including physiological and biochemical responses, which differ with species level. The sophisticated adaptation mechanisms and regularity network that improves the water stress tolerance and adaptation in plants are briefly discussed. Growth pattern and structural dynamics, reduction in transpiration loss through altering stomatal conductance and distribution, leaf rolling, root to shoot ratio dynamics, root length increment, accumulation of compatible solutes, enhancement in transpiration efficiency, osmotic and hormonal regulation, and delayed senescence are the strategies that are adopted by plants under water deficit. Approaches for drought stress alleviations are breeding strategies, molecular and genomics perspectives with special emphasis on the omics technology alteration i.e., metabolomics, proteomics, genomics, transcriptomics, glyomics and phenomics that improve the stress tolerance in plants. For drought stress induction, seed priming, growth hormones, osmoprotectants, silicon (Si), selenium (Se) and potassium application are worth using under drought stress conditions in plants. In addition, drought adaptation through microbes, hydrogel, nanoparticles applications and metabolic engineering techniques that regulate the antioxidant enzymes activity for adaptation to drought stress in plants, enhancing plant tolerance through maintenance in cell homeostasis and ameliorates the adverse effects of water stress are of great potential in agriculture.
Most evidence of the association between maternal depression and children's development is limited by being cross-sectional. To date, few studies have modelled trajectories of maternal depressive ...symptoms from pregnancy through the early postpartum years and examined their association with social emotional and behavior functioning in preschool children. The objectives of this study were to: 1) identify distinct groups of women defined by their trajectories of depressive symptoms across four time points from mid-pregnancy to one year postpartum; and 2) examine the associations between these trajectories and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors.
We analyzed data from the All Our Families (AOF) study, a large, population based pregnancy cohort of mother-child dyads in Alberta, Canada. The AOF study is an ongoing pregnancy cohort study designed to investigate relationships between the prenatal and early life period and outcomes for children and mothers. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. Children's behavioral functioning at age 3 was assessed using the Behavior Scales developed for the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth. Longitudinal latent class analysis was conducted to identify trajectories of women's depressive symptoms across four time points from pregnancy to 1 year postpartum. We used multivariable logistic regression to assess the relationship between trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms and children's behavior, while adjusting for other significant maternal, child and psychosocial factors.
1983 participants met eligibility criteria. We identified four distinct trajectories of maternal depressive symptoms: low level (64.7%); early postpartum (10.9%); subclinical (18.8%); and persistent high (5.6%). In multivariable models, the proportion of children with elevated behavior symptoms was highest for children whose mothers had persistent high depressive symptoms, followed by mothers with moderate symptoms (early postpartum and subclinical trajectories) and lowest for minimal symptoms. After accounting for demographic, child and psychosocial factors, the relationships between depression trajectories and child hyperactivity/inattention, physical aggression (subclinical trajectory only) and separation anxiety symptoms remained significant.
These findings suggest both externalizing and internalizing children's behaviors are associated with prolonged maternal depressive symptoms. There is a good case for the need to move beyond overly simplistic clinical cutoff approaches of depressed/not depressed in screening for perinatal depression. Women with elevated depressive symptoms at clinical and subclinical levels need to be identified, provided with evidence-based treatment, and monitored with repeat screening to improve maternal mental health outcomes and reduce the risk of associated negative outcomes on children's early social-emotional and behavior development.
Neural crest cells migrate to the embryonic heart and transform into a small number of cardiomyocytes, but their functions in the developing and adult heart are unknown. Here, we show that neural ...crest derived cardiomyocytes (NC-Cms) in the zebrafish ventricle express Notch ligand jag2b, are adjacent to Notch responding cells, and persist throughout life. Genetic ablation of NC-Cms during embryogenesis results in diminished jag2b, altered Notch signaling and aberrant trabeculation patterns, but is not detrimental to early heart function or survival to adulthood. However, embryonic NC-Cm ablation results in adult fish that show severe hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), altered cardiomyocyte size, diminished adult heart capacity and heart failure in cardiac stress tests. Adult jag2b mutants have similar cardiomyopathy. Thus, we identify a cardiomyocyte population and genetic pathway that are required to prevent adult onset HCM and provide a zebrafish model of adult-onset HCM and heart failure.
This paper presents the performance comparison of a dual-band conventional antenna with a split-ring resonator (SRR)- and electromagnetic bandgap (EBG)-based dual-band design operating at 2.4 GHz and ...5.4 GHz. The compactness and dual-frequency operation in the legacy Wi-Fi range of this design make it highly favorable for wearable sensor network-based Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Considering the current need for wearable antennas, wash cotton (with a relative permittivity of 1.51) is used as a substrate material for both conventional and metamaterial-based antennas. The radiation characteristics of the conventional antenna are compared with the EBG and SRR ground planes-based antennas in terms of return loss, gain, and efficiency. It is found that the SRR-based antenna is more efficient in terms of gain and surface wave suppression as well as more compact in comparison with its two counterparts. The compared results are found to be based on two distinct frequency ranges, namely, 2.4 GHz and 5.4 GHz. The suggested SRR-based antenna exhibits improved performance at 5.4 GHz, with gains of 7.39 dbi, bandwidths of 374 MHz, total efficiencies of 64.7%, and HPBWs of 43.2 degrees. The measurements made in bent condition are 6.22 db, 313 MHz, 52.45%, and 22.3 degrees, respectively. The three considered antennas (conventional, EBG-based, and SRR-based) are designed with a compact size to be well-suited for biomedical sensors, and specific absorption rate (SAR) analysis is performed to ensure user safety. In addition, the performance of the proposed antenna under bending conditions is also considered to present a realistic approach for a practical antenna design.
Small extracellular vesicles called exosomes are produced by cells and contain a range of biomolecules, including proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids. Exosomes have been implicated in the development ...and spread of cancer, and recent studies have shown that their contents may be exploited as biomarkers for early detection and ongoing surveillance of the disease. In this review article, we summarize the current knowledge on exosomes as biomarkers of cancer. We discuss the various methods used for exosome isolation and characterization, as well as the different types of biomolecules found within exosomes that are relevant for cancer diagnosis and prognosis. We also highlight recent studies that have demonstrated the utility of exosomal biomarkers in different types of cancer, such as lung cancer, breast cancer, and pancreatic cancer. Overall, exosomes show great promise as noninvasive biomarkers for cancer detection and monitoring. Exosomes have the ability to transform cancer diagnostic and therapeutic paradigms, providing promise for more efficient and individualized. This review seeks to serve as an inspiration for new ideas and research in the never-ending fight against cancer. Moreover, further studies are needed to validate their clinical utility and establish standardized protocols for their isolation and analysis. With continued research and development, exosomal biomarkers have the potential to revolutionize cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Adversity in childhood and depression in pregnancy Wajid, Abdul; van Zanten, Sander Veldhuyzen; Mughal, Muhammad Kashif ...
Archives of women's mental health,
04/2020, Letnik:
23, Številka:
2
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been found to be associated with various health conditions; however, there is dearth of evidence on the relationship between ACEs and prenatal depression. ...This study was conducted to determine the association between overall ACE score and prenatal depression symptoms, assess the moderating effect of social support and partner support on this relationship, and determine the association between individual ACE scores and prenatal depression. A secondary analysis was conducted of data from an RCT that assessed the feasibility of e-screening for maternal mental health among 636 pregnant women recruited from antenatal clinics. Two logistic regression models were built to reach our objectives. Over 80% of the participants were older than 25 years and had education beyond high school. Eighteen percent of the women had an ACE score of four or more. Univariable analysis found a 2.5-fold increase in the odds of prenatal depression for women with an ACEs score of ≥ 4. When examining the overall ACE score, lack of social support during pregnancy AOR = 4.16; 95%CI (2.10–10.35) and partner’s relationship AOR = 2.23; 95%CI (1.12–4.44) were associated with prenatal depression while among the individual ACE scores, living with a person who went to prison was found to be associated with prenatal depression even when controlled for all variables. No moderating effect was found. These findings suggest for the improvement of partner’s relationship and provision of social support before women conceive, in order to mitigate the effect of these adversities.
The two-dimensional atomically thin insulator hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) constitutes a new paradigm in tunnel based devices. A large band gap, along with its atomically flat nature without ...dangling bonds or interface trap states, makes it an ideal candidate for tunnel spin transport in spintronic devices. Here, we demonstrate the tunneling of spin-polarized electrons through large area monolayer h-BN prepared by chemical vapor deposition in magnetic tunnel junctions. In ferromagnet/h-BN/ferromagnet heterostructures fabricated on a chip scale, we show tunnel magnetoresistance at room temperature. Measurements at different bias voltages and on multiple devices with different ferromagnetic electrodes establish the spin polarized tunneling using h-BN barriers. These results open the way for integration of 2D monolayer insulating barriers in active spintronic devices and circuits operating at ambient temperature, and for further exploration of their properties and prospects.
One year after a virulent Newcastle disease virus (vNDV) outbreak in Pakistan, the causative strain was present in vaccinated chickens of multiple farms despite the existence of high-average ...NDV-specific antibody titers (>4.75 log2). The data suggest a possible role of vaccinated birds as reservoirs of vNDV.
Chlorpyrifos (ChF) is an organophosphate pesticide that is widely used in agricultural fields and indoor for controlling pests. Aquatic ecosystems are the recipients of various pesticide residues due ...to leaching spray drift and agricultural runoff and pose toxicity for aquatic organisms. Therefore, the current study was designed to investigate the oxidative stress enzymes and histological alterations in the vital organs of tilapia due to ChF exposure. LC50 (24 h) was calculated as 52.78 μg/l by exposing tilapia with different acute concentrations of ChF. For assessment of sub-lethal toxicity of ChF, the fish were divided into four groups (ChF1, ChF2, ChF3, and control group). ChF1 group was treated with 1/15th of LC50, whereas ChF2 and ChF3 groups were treated with 1/10th and 1/5th of LC50, respectively for 14 days. After that, ChF induced changes in oxidative stress enzymes and histological alterations were evaluated. It was found that the level of glutathione S-transferase (GST), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) increased significantly in the liver of ChF-treated tilapia. Histological study of liver tissues showed an increased number of Kupffer cells, hydropic degeneration, necrosis, and hemorrhage. In the spleen of treated fish, increased melanomacrophage centers, necrosis, and congestion were detected. Disorganized muscle fibers, cardiac muscle fiber degeneration, and coagulative necrosis were observed in the heart of ChF-treated fish. It is concluded that sub-lethal concentrations of ChF can induce oxidative stress and histological alterations in the tissues of tilapia.