Summary
Rice tungro disease (RTD) is a serious constraint in rice production across tropical Asia. RTD is caused by the interaction between Rice tungro spherical virus (RTSV) and Rice tungro ...bacilliform virus. RTSV resistance found in traditional cultivars has contributed to a reduction in the incidence of RTD in the field. Natural RTSV resistance is a recessive trait controlled by the translation initiation factor 4 gamma gene (eIF4G). The Y1059V1060V1061 residues of eIF4G are known to be associated with the reactions to RTSV. To develop new sources of resistance to RTD, mutations in eIF4G were generated using the CRISPR/Cas9 system in the RTSV‐susceptible variety IR64, widely grown across tropical Asia. The mutation rates ranged from 36.0% to 86.6%, depending on the target site, and the mutations were successfully transmitted to the next generations. Among various mutated eIF4G alleles examined, only those resulting in in‐frame mutations in SVLFPNLAGKS residues (mainly NL), adjacent to the YVV residues, conferred resistance. Furthermore, our data suggest that eIF4G is essential for normal development, as alleles resulting in truncated eIF4G could not be maintained in homozygous state. The final products with RTSV resistance and enhanced yield under glasshouse conditions were found to no longer contain the Cas9 sequence. Hence, the RTSV‐resistant plants with the novel eIF4G alleles represent a valuable material to develop more diverse RTSV‐resistant varieties.
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Aim. The aim of this retrospective study is to illustrate clinical utility and impact of pulmonary embolism (PE) diagnostics of up to date Ventilation/Perfusion SPECT (V/PSPECT) applying holistic ...interpretation criteria.
Material and methods. During a 2‐year period 2328 consecutive patients referred to V/PSPECT for clinically suspected PE were examined. Final diagnosis was established by physicians clinically responsible for patient care. To establish the performance of V/PSPECT negative for PE, patients were followed up by medical records for 6 months.
Results. Ventilation/Perfusion SPECT was feasible in 99% of the patients. Data for follow‐up were available in 1785 patients (77%). PE was reported in 607 patients (34%). Normal pattern was described in 420 patients (25%). Pathology other than PE such as a pneumonia, left heart failure, obstructive lung disease, tumour was described in 724 patients (41%). Report was nondiagnostic in 19 patients (1%). Six cases were classified as falsely negative because PE was diagnosed at follow‐up and was fatal in one case. Six cases were classified as falsely positive because the clinician decided not to treat. In 608 patients with final PE diagnosis, 601 patients had positive V/PSPECT (99%). In 1177 patients without final PE diagnosis 1153 patients had negative V/PSPECT (98%).
Conclusions. Holistic interpretation of V/PSPECT, yields high negative and positive predictive values and only 1% of nondiagnostic findings and was feasible in 99% of patients. It is a responsibility and a challenge of nuclear medicine to provide optimal care of patients with suspected PE by making V/PSPECT available.
Niobium doped biosolubility glasses in the Na–Ca–(Mg)–P–Si–O system were prepared by using an untypical two-step synthesis route. The parent glass was melted in air atmosphere at 1350 °C followed by ...re-melting the glass in Nb crucible with the addition of metallic Mg/Ca powder in the nitrogen atmosphere. The second melting step was carried out at 1450–1650 °C, using an induction furnace. The topography and structure of the obtained glasses were characterized by confocal microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction and infrared spectroscopic techniques. The chemical compositions were examined by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The glasses were found to be of grayish color, X-ray amorphous and having network connectivity between ~ 2.5 and 2.7. The network connectivity of re-melted glasses was lower than the one of the parent glass. The glass structure consists of a highly disrupted silicate network of predominantly
Q
2
groups as well as isolated orthophosphate tetrahedra. The parent glass contains nanocrystallites consisted of apatitic PO
4
3−
groups. The re-melted glasses contain non-apatitic or amorphous calcium phosphates. The obtained glass transition temperatures range from 530 to 568 °C and exhibit higher values for glassed doped with Ca metal. These glasses have improved thermal stability as compared to reference bioglasses. The biosolubility test in phosphate buffered saline solution (PBS) confirms that the glasses have biosolubility properties and HAp formation on the surfaces was observed.
Quasi-free scattering reactions of the type (p,2p) were measured for the first time exclusively in complete and inverse kinematics, using a 12C beam at an energy of ∼400 MeV/u as a benchmark. This ...new technique has been developed to study the single-particle structure of exotic nuclei in experiments with radioactive-ion beams. The outgoing pair of protons and the fragments were measured simultaneously, enabling an unambiguous identification of the reaction channels and a redundant measurement of the kinematic observables. Both valence and deeply-bound nucleon orbits are probed, including those leading to unbound states of the daughter nucleus. Exclusive (p,2p) cross sections of 15.8(18) mb, 1.9(2) mb and 1.5(2) mb to the low-lying 0p-hole states overlapping with the ground state (3/2−) and with the bound excited states of 11B at 2.125 MeV (1/2−) and 5.02 MeV (3/2−), respectively, were determined via γ-ray spectroscopy. Particle-unstable deep-hole states, corresponding to proton removal from the 0s-orbital, were studied via the invariant-mass technique. Cross sections and momentum distributions were extracted and compared to theoretical calculations employing the eikonal formalism. The obtained results are in a good agreement with this theory and with direct-kinematics experiments. The dependence of the proton–proton scattering kinematics on the internal momentum of the struck proton and on its separation energy was investigated for the first time in inverse kinematics employing a large-acceptance measurement.
Electrical properties of beryllium-alumino-silicate glasses containing sodium ions or sodium and lithium ions were studied with impedance spectroscopy technique over a frequency range from 10 mHz to ...1 MHz and at temperature range from 213 to 473 K. The frequency- and temperature-dependent conductivity spectra of individual single alkali glasses were superimposed by means of the Summerfield scaling. Mixed-alkali glasses do not overlap into a single master curve. Glasses doped with sodium ions exhibit significantly higher values of D.C. conductivity and lower activation energy (~0.63 eV) than glasses doped with both sodium and lithium ions (~0.95 eV). The observed mixed-alkali effect can be described by the dynamic structure model (DSM). The conductivity pre-exponential factors and activation energy follow the Meyer-Neldel rule in both glass series. It was observed that the replacement of SiO2 by BeO in single cation glasses resulted in decrease in activation energy and pre-exponential factor σ0. In mixed cations glasses similar effect found for D.C. conduction process parameters was assigned to influence of both oxides BeO and Al2O3.
•Electrical properties of M-Be-Al-Si-O glasses (M = Na and/or Li) were studied.•Single alkali glasses exhibit higher values of D.C. conductivity and lower activation energy than mixed alkali glasses.•Pre-exponential factors σ0 and activation energy follow the Meyer-Neldel rule in both glass series.•Replacement of SiO2 by BeO in Na-glasses decreased activation energy and factor σ0.•In Na-Li-glasses similar effect was assigned to influence of both oxides BeO and Al2O3.
The anaesthetic conserving device AnaConDa® (ACD) reflects exhaled anaesthetic agents thereby facilitating the use of inhaled anaesthetic agents outside operating theatres. Expired CO2 is, however, ...also reflected causing a dead space effect in excess of the ACD internal volume. CO2 reflection from the ACD is attenuated by humidity. This study tests the hypothesis that sevoflurane further attenuates reflection of CO2. An analysis of clinical implications of our findings was performed.
Twelve postoperative patients received mechanical ventilation using a conventional heat and moisture exchanger (HME, internal volume 50 ml) and an ACD (100 ml), the latter with or without administration of sevoflurane. The ACD was also studied with a test lung at high sevoflurane concentrations. Reflection of CO2 and dead space effects were evaluated with the single-breath test for CO2.
Sevoflurane reduced but did not abolish CO2 reflection. In patients, the mean dead space effect with 0.8% sevoflurane was 88 ml larger using the ACD compared with the HME (P<0.001), of which 38 ml was due to CO2 reflection. Our calculations show that with the use of the ACD, normocapnia cannot be achieved with tidal volume <6 ml kg−1 even when respiratory rate is increased.
An ACD causes a dead space effect larger than its internal volume due to reflection of CO2, which is attenuated but not abolished by sevoflurane administration. CO2 reflection from the ACD limits its use with low tidal volume ventilation, such as with lung protection ventilation strategies.
Clinical Trials NCT01699802.
The presence of a neutron halo in 15C has been demonstrated in several reaction experiments at intermediate energies. In the present study, the dynamical effects of this structure are observed for ...the first time at Coulomb barrier energies in the 15C + 208Pb quasi-elastic scattering at Elab=65 MeV, measured at the HIE-ISOLDE facility, CERN using the high-granularity detector array GLORIA. A combined continuum discretised coupled channels and coupled reaction channels calculation describes the data well and significant coupling effects due both to breakup and single-neutron stripping are identified.
After a brief historical overview of the field of physics with radioactive beams, we give an update of the most recent experimental achievements for nuclei at or beyond the nuclear driplines. ...Long-lived exotic nuclear states are discussed including multi-nucleon radioactivity and exotic isomers. Studies of correlations between decay products in three-body decays and analysis in a Jacobi-coordinate framework are discussed with special emphasis on the difficulty in the interpretations of data obtained in different reactions. We give examples of systematic studies that the vast amount of now existing data allows, such as shell closures, competition between single-particle states in isotopes, isotones and mirror nuclei. The Thomas-Ehrman shift, Garvey-Kelson-type mass relations and IMME analysis of isobaric multiplets with isospin
and 2 are also discussed as well as alternative interpretations in certain cases.
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