Olvera-Mendoza EI¹, SI Lara-Cabrera¹, C Sáenz-Romero², R Lindig-Cisneros³

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.85, pp. 169-175, 2016, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2016.85.169

Abstract To quantify the effect on genetic diversity of restoring tree populations in an area under the influence of an urban heat island, we evaluated the genetic diversity of 72 Ceiba aesculifolia individuals, from a restoration experiment established from 2170 to 2260 m a.s.l. Reintroduced individuals were compared with the provenance from which the seeds were obtained, and two external provenances, for a total of 123 individuals. Samples were analyzed with three AFLP primer combinations. Polymorphisms of 38.4 to 62.5% were obtained. Genetic diversity estimated with the Simpson index ranged from 0.14 to 0.2. The provenances in More >

López-España RG¹, S Hernández-Verdugo¹, S Parra-Terraza¹, F Porras¹, Antonio Pacheco-Olvera¹, A Valdez-Ortiz², T Osuna-Enciso³, MD Muy-Rangel³

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.85, pp. 131-141, 2016, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2016.85.131

Abstract Wild pepper (Capsicum annuum L. var. glabriusculum) is a valuable genetic resource for food and agriculture. The patterns of variation of 12 morphological traits of 17 populations of wild pepper collected across a latitudinal and climate gradients in northwestern Mexico were analyzed in a uniform greenhouse experiment. The morphological traits data were axamined by univariate and multivarite analysis. The relationship between phenotypic variation and latitude of population origen was tested using linear regression analysis. We found high variation within and among populations for most of the measured traits. Populations were clearly differentiated by univariate analysis of variance… More >

Li RS¹, YJ Tao², FJ Liu², X Hu², QL Xu², KY Li²

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.85, pp. 87-93, 2016, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2016.85.087

Abstract The grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) and flatpod peavine (Lathyrus cicera L.) are the most economically important and widely cultivated Lathyrus species. However, their utilization is limited due to the presence of their endogenous toxin β-N-oxalyl-L-α, β-diaminopropionic acid (β-ODAP). Thus, a β-ODAP free variety should be developed through some plant breeding technique like either mutational breeding or genetic-manipulation. In this circumstance, the plant regeneration of Lathyrus species becomes a bottleneck. In the present study, an efficient system for in vitro regeneration of L. sativus with high β-ODAP levels, and L. cicera with low β-ODAP levels, was developed from different explants (axillary… More >

Claudia G. REIDES^1,2, Romina M. LASAGNI VITAR^1,2, Agustina PEVERINI¹, Natasha S. JANEZIC¹, Ailen G. HVOZDA ARANA¹, Sandra M. FERREIRA^1,2, Susana F. LLESUY^1,2*

BIOCELL, Vol.40, No.1, pp. 51-54, 2016, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2016.40.051

Abstract The purpose of this study was to evaluate the redox status changes of primary visual targets in the rat brain of a high pressure-induced glaucoma model. The animal model consisted of inducing ocular hypertension by cauterizing two episcleral veins on the left eye. The markers of oxidative damage and the oxidative balance evaluated in the brain seven days postoperative were: nitrites concentration, levels of non-enzymatic antioxidants and antioxidant enzymes activity.
The increase in the nitrite content, which could be the result of the enhancement in the production of nitrogen species, and in the activity of NADPH… More >

María P BENAVIDES¹, Susana M GALLEGO¹, Facundo RAMOS ARTUSO², Mariana CHECOVICH³, Andrea GALATRO^*

BIOCELL, Vol.40, No.1, pp. 1-6, 2016, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2016.40.001

Abstract Plants are exposed to environmental stress, in natural and agricultural conditions.Nitric oxide (NO), a small gaseous molecule which plays important roles in plants, has been involved in many physiological processes, and emerged as an important endogenous signaling molecule in the adaptation of plants to biotic and abiotic stress. NO is produced from a variety of enzymatic and non enzymatic sources, which are not yet fully understood. Also, NO and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) can produce posttranslational modifications affecting protein function. Nitrate reductase, a key enzyme in the nitrogen metabolism, is a proposed source of NO More >

Pranav S. Sapkal^1*, Abhaykumar M. Kuthe¹, Divya Ganapathy², Shantanu C. Mathankar³, Sudhanshu Kuthe⁴

Molecular & Cellular Biomechanics, Vol.13, No.2, pp. 115-136, 2016, DOI:10.3970/mcb.2016.013.131

Abstract Biphasic calcium phosphate scaffolds with 20/80 HA/TCP ratio were fabricated using the 3D-Bioplotting system to heal critical size defects in rabbit tibia bone. Four different architectures were printed in a layer by layer fashion with lay down patterns viz. (a) 0°– 90°, (b) 0°– 45°– 90°– 135°, (c) 0°–108°– 216° and (d) 0°– 60°– 120°. After high-temperature sintering scaffolds were coated with collagen and were further characterized by (FTIR) Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, (SEM) Scanning Electron Microscopy, (XRD) X-Ray diffraction, Porosity analysis and Mechanical testing. Scaffold samples were tested for its ability to induce cytotoxicity… More >

Wenxiang Xu^1,2,3,4, Ganquan Yang⁵, Peng Lan², Huaifa Ma¹

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.52, No.1, pp. 25-40, 2016, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2016.052.025

Abstract Understanding the excluded volume of anisotropic particle is of great importance in the evaluation of continuum percolation and random packing behaviors of soft/hard particle systems in heterogeneous disordered media. In this work, we obtain the excluded volumes of several anisotropic convex particles including prolate spheroids, oblate spheroids, spherocylinders, and Platonic particles, using theoretical and numerical approaches. According to the second virial coefficient, we first present a theoretical scheme for determining the excluded volumes of anisotropic particles. Also, the mean tangent diameters of anisotropic convex particles are formulated by the quantitative stereology. Subsequently, Monte Carlo simulations… More >

H.-S. Wang^1,2, H. Jiang^3,4, B. Yang²

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.51, No.3, pp. 145-161, 2016, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2016.051.145

Abstract Potential field due to line sources residing on slender heterogeneities is involved in various areas, such as heat conduction, potential flow, and electrostatics. Often dipolar line sources are either prescribed or induced due to close interaction with other objects. Its calculation requires a higher-order scheme to take into account the dipolar effect as well as net source effect. In the present work, we apply such a higher-order line element method to analyze the potential field with cylindrical slender heterogeneities. In a benchmark example of two parallel rods, we compare the line element solution with the More >

A. M. Abd-Alla^1,2,3, Mohamed I. A. Othman^1,4, S. M. Abo-Dahab^1,5

CMC-Computers, Materials & Continua, Vol.51, No.2, pp. 63-79, 2016, DOI:10.3970/cmc.2016.051.063

Abstract The aim of this paper is to study the reflection of plane harmonic waves from a semi-infinite elastic solid under the effect of magnetic field in a vacuum. The expressions for the reflection coefficients, which are the relations of the amplitudes of the reflected waves to the amplitude of the incident waves, are obtained. Similarly, the reflection coefficient ratio variations with the angle of incident under different conditions are shown graphically. Comparisons are made with the results predicted by the dual-phase-lag model and Lord-Shulman theory in the presence and absence of magnetic field. More >

Feng Xi^*, Jianghao Ye^†

Oncology Research, Vol.23, No.1-2, pp. 53-59, 2015, DOI:10.3727/096504015X14459480491740

Abstract Hexokinase 2 (HK2) has been identified as an oncogene in some malignant diseases such as breast cancer and ovarian cancer. However, the role of HK2 in lung cancer remains unclear. In this study, we explored the functional role of HK2 in lung cancer cell proliferation and tumorigenesis and determine its expression profile in lung cancer. HK2 expression was increased in primary lung cancer tissues of patients. Knocking down HK2 expression by small interfering RNA (siRNA) inhibited cell proliferation in lung cancer cells and nude mice. Thus, HK2 is required for sustained proliferation and survival of More >