The Fagopyrum genus includes two cultivated species, namely common buckwheat (F. esculentum Moench) and Tartary buckwheat (F. tataricum Gaertn.), and more than 25 wild buckwheat species. The goal of ...breeders is to improve the properties of cultivated buckwheat with methods of classical breeding, with the support of biotechnological methods or a combination of both. In this paper, we reviewed the possibility to use transcriptomics, genomics, interspecific hybridization, tissue cultures and plant regeneration, molecular markers, genetic transformation, and genome editing to aid in both the breeding of buckwheat and in the identification and production of metabolites important for preserving human health. The key problems in buckwheat breeding are the unknown mode of inheritance of most traits, associated with crop yield and the synthesis of medicinal compounds, low seed yield, shedding of seeds, differential flowering and seed set on branches, and unknown action of genes responsible for the synthesis of buckwheat metabolites of pharmaceutical and medicinal interest.
Antifreeze proteins (AFPs) are synthesized by diverse non-mammalian species, allowing them to survive in severely cold environments. Since the 1990s, the scientific literature reports their use for ...low-temperature preservation of germplasm. The aim of this systematic review was to compile available scientific evidence regarding the use of AFP for low-temperature preservation of several reproductive specimens. Internet databases were consulted using the terms: “antifreeze protein” OR “AFP” OR “antifreeze glycoprotein” OR “AFGP” OR “ice-binding protein” OR “IBP” OR “thermal hysteresis protein” AND “cryopreservation”. From 56 articles, 87 experiments testing AFPs in low-temperature preservation of gametes, embryos or reproductive tissues/cells were fully analyzed and outcomes were annotated. A positive outcome was considered as a statistically significant improvement on any parameter evaluated after low-temperature preservation with AFP, whereas a negative outcome included worsening of any evaluated parameter, in comparison to untreated groups or groups treated with a lower concentration of AFP. The findings indicated that research on the use of AFP as a cryoprotectant for reproductive specimens has increased markedly over the past decade. Some experiments reported both positive and negative results, which depended, on AFP concentration in the preservation media. Variation in the outcomes associated with species was also observed. Among the 66 experiments conducted in mammals, 77.3% resulted in positive, and 28.8% in negative outcomes after the use of AFP. In fishes, positive and negative outcomes were observed in 71.4% and 33.3% of 21 experiments, respectively. Most positive outcomes included preserving cell post-warming survival. The beneficial effect of AFP supports its use in cryobiological approaches used in human and veterinary medicines and animal protein industry. Moreover, combination of different AFP types, or AFP with antioxidants, or even the use of AFP-biosimilar, comprise some promising approaches to be further explored in cryopreservation.
•AFP has been shown to be efficient cryoprotectants for mammalian and fish cells and tissues.•AFP improve reproductive cells activity after thawing/warming.•AFP I and III appear to be more effective for reproductive cell/tissue cryopreservation.•Chemically synthesized AFP or AFP-like molecule can be a potential use.
Background
Information on the impact of hormonal protocols for cervical dilation on the quality of ovine embryos is scarce.
Methods
To compare the quality of embryos after cervical dilation protocol, ...ewes (n = 64) were allocated into either a treated group (100 μg estradiol benzoate intravenous and 0.12 mg cloprostenol intramuscularly, 12 hours before embryo collection plus 100 iu oxytocin intravenous 15 minutes before the collection procedure) or a control group (saline). Luteal function was analysed using ultrasonography and P4 measurement. Some collected embryos were frozen/thawed for gene expression, others were cultured in vitro, frozen/thawed for gene expression, and the remaining embryos were fixed for the apoptosis test (TUNEL test).
Results
The treatment reduced fluid (p=0.04) and structure (p=0.03) recovery rates, but the morphological quality, development stage, and apoptosis incidence of the embryos were not affected by treatment. The corpora lutea of the control group had greater blood perfusion (p = 0.002) and greater P4 concentrations at 6, 9, and 12 h after the treatment (p < 0.0001). The expression of BAX, BCL2, PRDX1, and HSP90 genes were not affected by the treatment. However, the embryos in the treated group had fewer NANOG and OCT4 transcripts than control embryos (p = 0.008; p = 0.006, respectively). After culture, there was no difference between the groups in any gene.
Conclusion
The hormonal protocol for cervical dilation reduced the efficiency of embryo collection. In addition, the treatment induced luteolysis and a transient alteration of embryo gene expression, however there were no detectable changes in embryo morphological quality, development stage, or incidence of apoptosis.
According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as of July 11, 2016, the reported average incidence of children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was 1 ...in 68 (1.46%) among 8-year-old children born in 2004 and living within the 11 monitoring sites’ surveillance areas in the United States of America (USA) in 2012. ASD is a multifaceted neurodevelopmental disorder that is also considered a hidden disability, as, for the most part; there are no apparent morphological differences between children with ASD and typically developing children. ASD is diagnosed based upon a triad of features including impairment in socialization, impairment in language, and repetitive and stereotypic behaviors. The increasing incidence of ASD in the pediatric population and the lack of successful curative therapies make ASD one of the most challenging disorders for medicine. ASD neurobiology is thought to be associated with oxidative stress, as shown by increased levels of reactive oxygen species and increased lipid peroxidation, as well as an increase in other indicators of oxidative stress. Children with ASD diagnosis are considered more vulnerable to oxidative stress because of their imbalance in intracellular and extracellular glutathione levels and decreased glutathione reserve capacity. Several studies have suggested that the redox imbalance and oxidative stress are integral parts of ASD pathophysiology. As such, early assessment and treatment of antioxidant status may result in a better prognosis as it could decrease the oxidative stress in the brain before it can induce more irreversible brain damage. In this review, many aspects of the role of oxidative stress in ASD are discussed, taking into account that the process of oxidative stress may be a target for therapeutic interventions.
Raziskovalno vprašanje (RV): Kakšen mora biti učinkovit vodja, da skupaj z zaposlenimi dosega cilje organizacije? Katerih vrst nagrad se poslužujejo vodje za uspešno motivacijo zaposlenih ob nadurnem ...delu? Na kakšen način se vodje spopadajo z obremenjenostjo zaposlenih pri nadurnem delu? Namen: Namen članka je raziskati, na kakšne način vodje dosegajo cilje organizacije, katerih vrst nagrad se poslužujejo za motivacijo ob nadurnem delu ter kako se spopadajo s obremenjenostjo zaposlenih ob nadurnem delu. Metoda: Raziskavo smo izvedli s pomočjo kvalitativne metode. Pri kvalitativni metodi smo izvedli deset pol strukturiranih intervjujev z vodji v različnih gospodarskih panogah z namenom preučevanja stališč vodij, kakšen je za njih učinkovit vodja, katerih vrst nagrad se poslužujejo ob nadurnem delu ter kako se pri povečanem obsegu dela, kot je nadurno delo, spopadajo s preobremenjenostjo zaposlenih. Kvalitativne podatke smo obdelali s pomočjo spletnega programa Atlas.ti in ugotovitve uparili s teoretičnimi ugotovitvami. Rezultati: Rezultati kvalitativne raziskave so pokazali, da mora imeti učinkovit vodja dobro razvite komunikacijske veščine, mora znati postaviti jasne cilje, motivirati zaposlene ter si pridobiti zaupanje zaposlenih, da lahko skupaj z zaposlenimi dosega zastavljene cilje. Intervjuvani vodje so izpostavili, da se za motivacijo ob nadurnem delu največkrat poslužujejo finančnih nagrad. Vodje se poslužujejo tudi pohval in priznanj, nudijo priložnosti za napredovanje ter zaposlenim omogočijo prost dan. V izogib preobremenjenosti zaposlenih ob nadurnem delu, vodje poskrbijo za dobro organizirano delo, zaposlenim nudijo podporo in razumevanje, zagotovijo počitek in sprostitev, ustrezno razporedijo delovni čas med zaposlenimi, prilagodijo urnik ter skušajo čim bolj učinkovito obvladovati stres v delovni sredini, ki jo vodijo. Organizacija: Učinkovito vodenje in motivacija zaposlenih v organizacijah, sta ključna dejavnika za zagotavljanje uspešnosti v organizaciji. Nadurno delo je pomembno pri organizaciji dela in usklajevanju delovnih procesov v proizvodni organizaciji. Če bi organizacija upoštevala rezultate, ki so bili pridobljeni s strani vodij, bi bila to pridobitev za organizacijo saj bi s tem zagotavljali večjo produktivnost in učinkovitost zaposlenih. Družba: Učinkovito vodenje in motivacija zaposlenih pri nadurnem delu lahko pomagata povečati produktivnost in konkurenčnost organizacij, kar pa lahko vodi v gospodarsko rast. Originalnost: Originalnost raziskave je v tem, da se osredotoča na raziskovanje učinkovitega vodenja in motivacije zaposlenih ob nadurnem delu v različnih gospodarskih panogah v jugovzhodni regiji. Omejitve/nadaljnje raziskovanje: Vzorec je bil omejen na vodje v različnih gospodarskih panogah v jugovzhodni regiji, zato je potrebno biti previden pri ekstrapolaciji zaključkov o učinkovitem vodenju in motivaciji zaposlenih ob nadurnem delu na druge regije ali gospodarske panoge. Raziskava se osredotoča na nadurno delo in njegove posledice za zaposlene, vendar ne upošteva drugih dejavnikov, kot so na primer organizacijska kultura, struktura ali politike podjetja, ki bi lahko vplivali na učinkovito vodenje in motivacijo zaposlenih.
Using extended sets of cosmological hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy clusters, we present a detailed study of scaling relations between total cluster mass and three mass proxies based on X-ray ...observable quantities: temperature of the intracluster medium (ICM), gas mass and the product of the two, YX
=M
gas
T. Our analysis is based on two sets of high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations performed with the TreePM-SPH gadget code. The first set includes about 140 clusters with masses above 5 × 1013
h
−1 M⊙, with 30 such clusters having mass above 1015
h
−1 M⊙. All such clusters have been simulated in two flavours, both with non-radiative physics and including cooling, star formation, chemical enrichment and the effect of supernova feedback triggering galactic ejecta. The extensive statistics offered by this set of simulated clusters is used to quantify the robustness of the scaling relations between mass proxies and total mass, to determine their redshift evolution and to calibrate their intrinsic scatter and its distribution. Furthermore, we use a smaller set of clusters including 18 haloes with masses above 5 × 1013
h
−1 M⊙, four of which are more massive than 1015
h
−1 M⊙, to test the robustness of mass proxies against change in the physical processes that are included in the simulations to describe the evolution of the intracluster medium. Each cluster is simulated in seven different flavours to study the effects of (i) thermal conduction, (ii) artificial viscosity, (iii) cooling and star formation, (iv) galactic winds and (v) active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback.
As a general result, we find the M-Y
X scaling relation to be the least sensitive to variations in the ICM physics, its slope and redshift evolution always being very close to the predictions of the self-similar model. As regards the scatter around the best-fitting relations, its distribution is always close to a log-normal one. M
gas is the mass proxy with the smallest scatter in mass, with values of σln M
≃ 0.04-0.06 depending on the physics included in the simulation and with a mild dependence on redshift. In terms of the mass-temperature relation, it is the one with the largest scatter, with σln M
≳ 0.1 at z= 0 increasing to ≳0.15 at z= 1. The intrinsic scatter in the M-Y
X relation is slightly larger than that in the M-M
gas relation, with σln M
≃ 0.06 at z= 0 and 0.08 at z= 1. These results confirm that both Y
X and M
gas mass proxies are well suited for cosmological applications in future large X-ray surveys. As a word of caution, we point out that the analysis presented in this paper does not include the observational effects expected when measuring temperature by fitting X-ray spectra and gas mass from X-ray surface-brightness profiles. A detailed assessment of such effects will be the subject of a forthcoming paper.
This study investigated the feasibility of applying fixed‐time (cryopreserved) embryo transfer in ewes. Embryos (n = 106) were non‐surgically recovered from superovulated donors (n = 39) on day 6–7 ...after oestrus. Straws containing one or two embryos (morulae and/or blastocysts) subjected to either slow freezing (SF, n = 62) or vitrification (VT, n = 44) were randomly used within fixed‐time embryo transfer on Day 8.5. Recipient ewes were nulliparous (n = 58) bearing corpora lutea after synchronous oestrous induction protocol. The pregnancy rate was higher (p = .03) in SF (39.4%) than VT (16.9%) and survival rate tended (p = .08) to be higher in SF than in VT (25.8% vs. 15.9%). Lambing rates were similar (p = .13) between SF (20.9%) and VT (15.9%). Embryos recovered by non‐surgical route after cervical dilation treatment and later cryopreserved by either slow freezing or vitrification produced reasonable pregnancy rates after FTET.
The aim of this work was to define a differential marker profile for pregnancy complications near delivery.
We enrolled pregnant women who were referred to the outpatient pregnancy clinic of the ...University Medical Center, Ljubljana, Slovenia, due to symptoms of pregnancy complications and women with a history of pregnancy complications attending the high-risk hospital clinic for close surveillance. They were evaluated for prior risk and were tested for biophysical and biochemical markers at the time of enrolment. Biochemical markers included the pro- and anti-angiogenic markers, along with additional previously reported markers of potential value, all tested by various formats of immuno-diagnostics. Biophysical markers included blood pressure, sonographic markers, and EndoPAT. Statistical differences were determined with Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests for continuous parameters, and Pearson χ2 for categorical values. p < 0.05 was considered significant.
The cohort included 125 pregnant patients, 31 developed preeclampsia (PE) alone (13 were <34 weeks' gestation), 16 had intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) alone (12 were <34 weeks), 42 had both IUGR and PE (22 were <34 weeks), and 15 had an iatrogenic preterm delivery (PTD; 6 were <34 weeks). Twenty-one were unaffected and delivered a healthy baby at term. Mean arterial blood pressure and proteinuria were significantly higher in PE and PE+IUGR but not in pure IUGR or PTD. In PE, IUGR, and PE+IUGR, the levels of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt-1) and soluble endoglin (sEng) were significantly higher, while placental growth factor (PlGF) was very low compared to unaffected controls and PTD. PE, IUGR, and PE+IUGR also had a high anti-angiogenic ratio (sFlt-1/PlGF) and a low proangiogenic ratio of PlGF/(sFlt-1+Eng). Levels of inhibin A were significantly higher in pure PE across subgroups but had many extreme values, which made it a poor differentiator. Higher uterine artery Doppler pulsatility indexes were detected in PE, IUGR, and PE+IUGR, with similar resistance indexes and peaks of systolic velocity. A significantly different marker level between PE and IUGR was found using arterial stiffness that was 10 times higher in PE; concurrently with an increase of the reactive hyperemia index, both were accompanied by a slight increase in placental protein 13. Higher tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) differentially identified iatrogenic very early PTD (<34 weeks).
Arterial stiffness can serve as a major marker to differentiate PE (with/without IUGR) from pure IUGR near delivery. TNFα can differentiate iatrogenic early PTD from other complications of pregnancy and term IUGR.
Research in the field of sensing has focused on tailoring the responsiveness of materials through the variation in materials properties achieved via functionalization of the mesoporous matrix. pH ...indicator dyes capable of protonation/deprotonation reactions are known to display different forms, resulting in changes in colour. This research focused on the preparation of mesoporous substrates SBA-15 with integrated pH indicator dye o-cresolsulphonephtalein (cresol red) grafted with (3-aminopropy)trimethoxysilane (gaining functionalized-SBA-15 material) in order to gain a colour change response following release of the dye. UV-Vis reflectance and absorbance spectra were used to evaluate forms of cresol red. The textural properties, including specific surface area, pore size distribution and pore volume were evaluated using nitrogen sorption, and XRD analysis was conducted to evaluate crystallinity of the material and pore ordering. The presence of 3-aminopropyl groups was determined by thermal decomposition using TGA–DSC/MS. The functionalized SBA-15 materials loaded with cresol red mostly retained ordering of the pores and showed a slight reduction in surface area. Functionalization changed the surface properties of the material. In the non-functionalized SBA-15, cresol red was present in both double (H2L) and single (HL−) protonated forms, whereas in the functionalized SBA-15 the deprotonated L2−form prevailed. Through desorption experiments cresol red was successfully desorbed from selected sample to different media. The change of colour caused by alterations in the form of the dye once released from the mesoporous silica material into the medium was confirmed. The form of cresol red released was determined by the pH of the medium.
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•Novel SBA-15 based materials were prepared for potential application in sensing.•Materials were loaded with cresol red and functionalized with 3-aminopropyl groups.•The influence of functionalization on the properties of materials was investigated.•Change in form of cresol red due to the 3-aminopropyl to SBA-15 binding was proven.•Changes in the colour and cresol red forms were confirmed after dye release test.
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