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Trichomes are specialized structures that originate from epidermal cells of organs in higher plants. The cotton fiber is a unique single-celled trichome that elongates from the seed coat epidermis. Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) fibers and trichomes are models for cell differentiation. In an attempt to elucidate the intercellular factors that regulate fiber and trichome cell development, we identified a plasmodesmal b-1,3-glucanase gene (designated GhPdBG) controlling the opening and closing of plasmodesmata in cotton fibers. Structural and evolutionary analysis showed haplotypic variation in the promoter region of the GhPdBG gene among 352 cotton accessions, but high conservation in the coding region. GhPdBG was expressed predominantly in cotton fibers and localized to plasmodesmata (PD). Expression patterns of PdBG that corresponded to PD permeability were apparent during fiber development in G. hirsutum and G. barbadense. The PdBG-mediated opening-closure of PD appears to be involved in fiber development and may account for the contrasting fiber traits of these two species. Ectopic expression of GhPdBG revealed that it functions in regulating fiber and trichome length and/or density by modulating plasmodesmatal permeability. This finding suggests that plasmodesmal targeting of GhPdBG, as a switch of intercellular channels, regulates single-celled fiber and trichome development in cotton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a diagnosis plan is proposed to settle the detection and isolation problem of open switch faults in high-speed railway traction system traction inverters. Five entropy forms are discussed and compared with the traditional fault detection methods, namely, discrete wavelet transform and discrete wavelet packet transform. The traditional fault detection methods cannot efficiently detect the open switch faults in traction inverters because of the low resolution or the sudden change of the current. The performances ofWavelet Packet Energy Shannon Entropy (WPESE), Wavelet Packet Energy Tsallis Entropy (WPETE) with different non-extensive parameters,Wavelet Packet Energy Shannon Entropy with a specific sub-band (WPESE3,6), Empirical Mode Decomposition Shannon Entropy (EMDESE), and Empirical Mode Decomposition Tsallis Entropy (EMDETE) with non-extensive parameters in detecting the open switch fault are evaluated by the evaluation parameter. Comparison experiments are carried out to select the best entropy form for the traction inverter open switch fault detection. In addition, the DC component is adopted to isolate the failure Isolated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT). The simulation experiments show that the proposed plan can diagnose single and simultaneous open switch faults correctly and timely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pot experiment was conducted to study the effects of poultry-mushroom waste compost (PMWC), NPK 16-16-16 (NPK) and their combined applications on vegetative growth and yield of okra [Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench] during June-November 2014. The experiment included nine treatments: Unfertilized control (T1), NPK 2.5 g/kg (T2), NPK 5 g/kg (T3), NPK 10 g/kg (T4), NPK 2.5 g/kg+PMWC 120 g/kg (T5), NPK 5 g/kg+PMWC 120 g/kg (T6), PMWC 60 g/kg (T7), PMWC 120 g/kg (T8) and PMWC 240 g/kg (T9). Results showed that all fertilizations increased growth and yield of okra compared with no fertilization. 10 g/kg NPK (T4) greatly inhibited the growth of plant height before 30 days after sowing (DAS) and leaf growth before 15 DAS, with maximum numbers (19.17) of flowers and minimum fruit-setting rate (35.26%). 5 g/kg NPK combined with 120 g/kg PMWC (T6) advanced maximum growth rate of plant height and most greatly enhanced early flowering. T9 with 240 g/kg PMWC obtained maximum numbers (9.83) of fruits. Individual applications of NPK (T2, T3 and T4) significantly promoted more fallen leaves and higher defoliation ratio at 90 DAS over other treatments and decreased the fruit-setting rate as increasing NPK levels. Individual applications of PMWC increased plant height, leaf number and fruit number with increasing PMWC levels. As mentioned above, application of 240 g/kg PMWC is recommended in south-eastern China for its highest yield, low cost of production and maintenance of soil fertility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]