Search

Abstract Aim This study aimed to examine the usefulness of forensic information on suicide deaths in Japan for epidemiological studies on suicide and determine the factors that lead people with suicidal ideation to seek psychiatric care prior to attempting suicide. Methods We focused on forensic information of 514 suicide deaths that occurred in Osaka City in 2019. First, to examine whether the data used in this study can be generalized to these cases, we compared the information on suicide deaths officially published by Osaka City with that used in this study, utilizing Pearson's χ2 test. Next, the forensic data were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression analysis to confirm the relationship between demographic factors and the likelihood of having a history of psychiatric consultation before suicide. Results Both the official information and the data used in this study showed a higher number of males than females who died by suicide, with no significant differences in values between the data sets. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed significant correlations. More females were associated with seeking a psychiatric consultation. However, those with regular jobs or students were more likely to avoid a psychiatric consultation. Conclusion The findings of this study provide insights into the phenomenon of suicide deaths by using a forensic perspective. The results of this study suggest that psychiatric consultation may be effective in reducing deaths by suicide. Forensic data should be incorporated into the formulation of suicide‐prevention policies in Japan to conduct a more multifaceted analysis and improve suicide‐prevention measures.

Abstract Adenoid cystic carcinoma (ACC) of the trachea is a rare disease that is slow growing and has a risk of distant metastasis. The standard treatment for ACC of the trachea is surgery, but this tumor is often unresectable. In definitive radiotherapy using photons for unresectable ACC of the trachea, it is sometimes difficult to deliver a sufficient dose to the target without exceeding the tolerable dose to the surrounding normal tissues. Here, we report two cases of ACC of the trachea that received a high dose (74 Gy [relative biological effectiveness]) of proton beam therapy and achieved long‐term survival.

Abstract Objective Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) is a milder variant of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), a lethal X‐linked muscular disorder. Here, we aim to investigat the clinical involvement of skeletal, respiratory, cardiac, and central nervous systems in patients with BMD, as well as genotype–phenotype relationships. Methods This nationwide cohort study investigated the clinical manifestations and genotype–phenotype relationships in 225 patients with BMD having in‐frame deletion from 22 medical centers. The primary outcome was to elucidate the association of genotype with skeletal muscle, respiratory, cardiac, and central nervous system disorders. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data. Results The average age of the subjects was 31.5 (range, 1–81) years. Initial symptoms of BMD were muscular (60%), followed by asymptomatic hypercreatine kinasemia (32.4%) and central nervous system disorders (5.3%). Gait disturbance was observed in 53.8% of patients and the average age at wheelchair introduction was 36.5 years. The ventilator introduction rate was 6.7% at an average age of 36.6 years. More than 30% of patients had an abnormal electrocardiogram and approximately 15% had heart failure symptoms. Cardiac function on echocardiography varied significantly among the patients. The frequencies of seizures and intellectual/developmental disability were 8.0% and 16.9%, respectively. Exon 45–47deletion (del) was the most common (22.6%), followed by exon 45–48del (13.1%). Patients with exon 45–49del patients demonstrated severe skeletal muscle damage. Patients with exon 45–47del and exon 45–55del patients did not require ventilator use. Interpretation The study provides important prognostic information for patients and clinicians to establish therapy plans and to implement preventative medicine.

ABSTRACTIn Kenya and many other African countries, improving rice productivity is vital for future food security. To improve rice productivity in Kenya, near-isogenic lines (NIL) were developed by introducing Gn1a and WFP, genes that function to increase grain number per panicle by increasing secondary and primary rachis-branches, into NERICA 1, a registered variety in Kenya. The aim of this study was to determine whether the introduction of these genes has the potential to improve rice productivity under tropical highland conditions in central Kenya. Field experiments were conducted in 2016 and 2017 at a lowland rice field in Mwea, Kenya, under different nitrogen fertilization conditions using three lines of NERICA 1 introgressed with Gn1a and/or WFP (NIL-Gn1a, NIL-WFP, and NIL-Gn1a+WFP) and their recurrent parents, NERICA 1. Two years of field experiments revealed that the introgression lines enhanced grain yield by increasing the number of primary and secondary rachis-branches and the number of grains per panicle. Gn1a and WFP showed additive effects and the introgression of both genes alleviated the negative effects on yield components observed in the introgressed lines, resulting in higher grain yield. Sufficient nitrogen fertilization was required to increase yield in the single-gene introgression lines. However, the line with both Gn1a and WFP achieved reasonable yields even under low fertilizer conditions in Mwea, Kenya. As these introgression lines have similar growing characteristics to their parent variety, they are expected to contribute to increased rice production in Kenya and similar environments in sub-Saharan Africa.

Exon-skipping therapy is a promising treatment strategy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), which is caused by loss-of-function mutations in the DMD gene encoding dystrophin, leading to progressive cardiomyopathy. In-frame deletion of exons 3–9 (Δ3–9), manifesting a very mild clinical phenotype, is a potential targeted reading frame for exon-skipping by targeting actin-binding domain 1 (ABD1); however, the efficacy of this approach for DMD cardiomyopathy remains uncertain. In this study, we compared three isogenic human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) expressing Δ3–9, frameshifting Δ3–7, or intact DMD. RNA sequencing revealed a resemblance in the expression patterns of mechano-transduction-related genes between Δ3–9 and wild-type samples. Furthermore, we observed similar electrophysiological properties between Δ3–9 and wild-type hiPSC-CMs; Δ3–7 hiPSC-CMs showed electrophysiological alterations with accelerated CaMKII activation. Consistently, Δ3–9 hiPSC-CMs expressed substantial internally truncated dystrophin protein, resulting in maintaining F-actin binding and desmin retention. Antisense oligonucleotides targeting exon 8 efficiently induced skipping exons 8–9 to restore functional dystrophin and electrophysiological parameters in Δ3–7 hiPSC-CMs, bringing the cell characteristics closer to those of Δ3–9 hiPSC-CMs. Collectively, exon-skipping targeting ABD1 to convert the reading frame to Δ3–9 may become a promising therapy for DMD cardiomyopathy.

Heteroatom-embedded buckybowl molecules provide a fundamental molecular framework that has potential applications in various research fields. However, selective introduction of heteroatoms into buckybowls is challenging, and thus, studies investigating the effect of introduced heteroatoms have been limited. Here, we report the synthesis of pyridine-fused azacorannulene molecules. The influence of nitrogen atoms introduced into the peripheral positions on the structural, electronic, and optical properties is discussed.

This paper proposes an application to statistically predict the accuracy of single-image geometric camera calibration that uses given 2D-3D correspondences. Deriving both camera intrinsics and extrinsics from correspondences between a single image and a 3D shape, is important for the scene analysis when the optical system of the camera is lost, such as in the analyses of traffic accidents. It is unclear whether the single-image calibration will be successful in practice, particularly when the number of 2D-3D correspondences is small, even if we could assign accurate correspondences by manual labor. To this end, we perform a systematic evaluation of the camera parameter accuracy using synthetic environments. Based on the statistics observed during the experiments, our application predicts the calibration accuracy from simple variables (e.g., the area that correspondences could be given). Since the prediction process does not rely on 3D shapes, it provides an estimate of the success of the calibration before time-consuming processes, i.e., 3D scanning and 2D-3D correspondence mapping.

Biometric person authentication comprises two tasks: the identification task (i.e., one-to-many matching) and the verification task (i.e., one-to-one matching). In this paper, we propose a loss function called batch hard contrastive loss (BHCn) for the deep learning-based verification task. For this purpose, we consider batch mining techniques developed in the identification task and translate them to the verification task. More specifically, inspired by batch mining triplet losses to learn a relative distance for the identification task, we propose BHCn to learn an absolute distance that better represents verification in general. Our method preserves the identity-agnostic nature of the contrastive loss by selecting the hardest pair of samples for each pair of identities in a batch instead of selecting the hardest pair for each sample. We validate the effectiveness of the proposed method in cross-view gait recognition using three networks: a lightweight input, structure, and output network we call GEI + CNN (Gait Energy Image Convolutional Neural Network) as well as the widely used GaitSet and GaitGL, which have sophisticated inputs, structures, and outputs. We trained these networks with the publicly available silhouette-based datasets, the OU-ISIR Gait Database Multi-View Large Population (OU-MVLP) dataset and the Institute of Automation Chinese Academy of Sciences Gait Database Multiview (CASIA-B) dataset. Experimental results show that the proposed BHCn outperforms other loss functions, such as a triplet loss with batch mining as well as the conventional contrastive loss.

Grain yield of rice consists of sink capacity and grain filling. There are some genes known to contribute to sink capacity, but few genes associated with grain filling are known. We conducted a genetic analysis on yield-related traits by using a chromosome segment substitution line population that have introgression from DV85, an aus variety of rice, in the background of T65, a japonica variety. Refined whole-genome genotypes of the 43 TD-CSSLs were obtained by genotyping-by-sequencing. The effects of previously detected quantitative trait loci (QTLs), qNSC1 and qNSC2, were confirmed by the amount of non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) at 5 days after heading (DAH). The CSSL for qSWTR11, the QTL for decrease in shoot weight during the maturity stage, showed the highest NSC at 5 DAH and lowest at 35 DAH. The brown rice yield of these lines were not stably significant. Most of the sink-related traits correlated between the 2 tested years, but most of the grain-filling traits did not show correlation between the 2 years. Correlation analysis revealed that the sink capacity is stable and primarily determines the yield, and grain filling is more affected by the environment. In addition, biomass production before heading and during the maturity stage contributes to higher yield in TD-CSSLs, and the amount of translocation of stem reserve does not affect much to the yield. We conclude that higher NSC at the heading stage and rapid decrease in shoot biomass during the maturity stage did not directly contribute to the yield formation in the japonica genetic background.

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still prevalent in the world. Exercise is important to maintain our health while dealing with infectious diseases. Social distancing is more important during exercise because we may not be able to wear masks to avoid breathing problems, heatstroke, etc. To maintain social distancing during exercise, we develop a close-contact detection system using a single camera especially for sports in schools and gyms. We rely on a single camera because of the deployment cost. The system recognizes people from a video and estimates the interpersonal distance for close-contact detection. The challenge is the occlusion of people, which leads to false negatives in close-contact detection. To solve the problem, we leverage the observation that most false negatives in human detection are caused by occlusion owing to other people. This is because there are few obstacles in sports facilities. Based on the above observation, we assume that a person still exists near the last detected position even when s/he disappears in the proximity of other people. For evaluation, we recorded 834 videos that were 112 min long in total including various scenarios with 2724 close-contacts. The results show that the F1-score of close-contact detection and tracking are 83.6% and 67.3%, respectively. We also confirmed that the start and end time errors are within 1 s for more than 80% of the close-contacts.

Abstract Postmenopausal osteoporosis is crucial condition that reduces the QOL of affected patients just like aged type osteoporosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of short-range UV-LED irradiation in postmenopausal osteoporosis using ovariectomized mice. Preliminary experiments identified the time of onset of osteoporosis after ovariectomy (8 weeks) in our model. We have set up a total of 4 groups (n = 8/group); vitamin D-repletion with UV irradiation (Vit.D+UV+), vitamin D-repletion without UV irradiation (Vit.D+UV−), vitamin D-deficiency with UV irradiation (Vit.D-UV+), vitamin D-deficiency without UV irradiation (Vit.D-UV−), and. From 8 weeks after ovariectomy, UV was irradiated for 24 weeks. At the time of 16 and 24 weeks’ irradiation, serum Vit.D levels, various markers of bone metabolism, bone mineral density, and bone strength were evaluated, and histological analyses were performed. In addition, muscle strength was analyzed. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25 (OH) D] levels at 40 and 48 weeks of age were increased in the Vit.D-UV+ group compared to the Vit.D-UV−group. Cortical thickness evaluated with micro-CT and strength of bone were significantly higher in Vit.D-UV+ group than those in Vit.D-UV− group. There was no difference in muscle strength between Vit.D-UV+ group and Vit.D-UV− group. No obvious adverse effects were observed in UV-irradiated mice including skin findings. Short-range UV irradiation may ameliorate postmenopausal osteoporosis associated with a state of vitamin D deficiency.

Sago palm (Metroxylon sagu Rottb.) photosynthetic performance was evaluated under drought conditions through leaf gas exchange and chlorophyll a fluorescence measurement. Drought has an impact on sago palm’s leaf gas exchange parameters and its chlorophyll fluorescence of PSII. Stomatal limitations were found to be the main factor limiting photosynthetic activities of sago palm under drought conditions. Photosynthetic rate decreased following the inhibition in the PSII reaction center. Early detection of interference upon the efficiency of the PSII reaction center due to drought stress was recorded by chlorophyll a fluorescence measurement.

We propose a framework for multi-age group gait video translation in which, for the first time, individuality-preserving aging patterns in walking style are learnt. More specifically, we build our framework on an existing multi-domain image translation model. Because the existing multi-domain image translation model was originally designed for a still image, we extend it to gait video by introducing a motion-augmented network architecture with three streams, where gait period, period-normalized phase-synchronized gait video, and its frame difference sequence are each input to one stream. We then train the network to ensure three aspects: aging effect (using an age group classification loss), individuality preservation (using a reconstruction loss), and gait realism (using an adversarial loss). Our framework quantitatively and qualitatively outperforms state-of-the-art age progression/regression methods on the largest gait database, OULP-Age, with respect to both age group classification and identity recognition.

This paper describes a deep learning approach to classify physically fatigued and non-fatigued gait cycles via a recurrent neural network (RNN), where each gait cycle is represented as a time series of three-dimensional coordinates of body joints. Gait cycles inherently have large intra-class variations caused by gait stance differences (e.g., which foot is supporting/swinging) at the beginning of each gait cycle, which makes it difficult to identify subtle differences induced by fatigue. To overcome these difficulties, we introduce a supporting foot-aware RNN model in a multi-task learning framework for better fatigue detection. More specifically, the RNN model has two branches of layers: one is assigned to the main task of fatigue classification and the other is assigned to the auxiliary task of estimating the first supporting foot in the gait cycles. We collected physically fatigued and non-fatigued gait cycles from eight subjects and conducted experiments to evaluate the accuracies of the proposed multi-task model in comparison to a single-task model. As a result, the proposed method achieved an overall area under curve (AUC) of 0.860 for fatigue classification in a leave-one-subject-out cross-validation, and an AUC of 0.915 in a leave-one-day-out evaluation. It can be concluded from the experimental results that a fatigue detection system for daily use, especially for screening purposes, is very feasible on the basis of the proposed approach.

Cold tolerance of New Rice for Africa (NERICA) and their parent varieties was evaluated under natural air temperature conditions of Kenyan tropical highlands using the multiple-sown field evaluation method. Rice varieties were cultivated 10 times to expose them to a shift in temperature during 20-day periods before heading (critical period), measuring the average daily mean temperature during the critical period (Tmean) for each variety and filled grain ratio, which was used as an indicator of cold tolerance. Tmean of each variety was low in 6 out of 10 experiments. In the remaining four high-temperature experiments, there were no significant varietal differences in filled grain ratio. In the six low-temperature experiments, all varieties experienced 20.1−21.5°C Tmean. After comparison under virtually the same cold stress, NERICA 1, 3, 4, 7−10, 12, 17, 18, and WAB 56–104 were judged as cold-tolerant; NERICA 2, 5, 11, 13, and 14, and WAB 56–50 and 181–18 were moderately tolerant, and NERICA 6, 15, and 16 were cold-susceptible varieties. These evaluations generally corresponded with previous experimental results under temperature-controlled environments, showing the practicality of multiple-sown field cold tolerance evaluation in Kenya. It also indicated that NERICA varieties, which recorded different levels of cold tolerance and whose average number of days to heading in all experiments were 66−78, are suitable as a set of standard check varieties in this region to evaluate cold tolerance of rice varieties with this range of days to heading.

Cropping calendar optimization contributes to an increase in rice yield. Information on the seasonal variation in grain yield and climate conditions is necessary to determine an appropriate cropping calendar. We sought to find the optimal cropping calendar in Mwea, Kenya, in a tropical highland in equatorial East Africa. We conducted a series of 58 experiments using a local popular rice variety, Basmati 370, between 2013 and 2016, using a secured water supply and adequate blast control, sowing every 15 days. The grain yield was 0–2 t ha−1 when the variety was sown between March and June. This poor grain yield was attributable to the low temperature and low solar radiation from May to September. In contrast, the grain yield was always more than 3 t ha−1 when the variety was sown between July and February. Sowing Basmati 370 between March and June is not recommended, because it may lead to a suboptimal yield due to cold stress. The current cropping calendar (July–December or August–January) is acceptable even under abundant year-round water supply, but sowing between October and February is a good alternative sowing period for single rice cropping. Rice production per year is expected to increase to >100% with the introduction of double cropping by adding cultivation from between January and February before the current cropping calendar. These findings serve as useful references for considering and determining the appropriate calendar options for single and double cropping of rice in tropical highlands in equatorial East Africa.

Abstract Background Because cisplatin (CDDP) decreases upon light exposure, it is necessary to prevent such exposure during administration. However, the shielding conditions employed are not uniform. Therefore, in this study, we examined the shielding effects of four shading covers, which are commonly used to ensure the stability of CDDP in clinical settings. Methods Four shielding conditions, along with a control, were tested under a 1000-Lux white fluorescent lamp at room temperature: aluminum foil (Al), brown shading cover (BSC), yellow shading cover (YSC), milky-white anti-exposure cover (MAC), and no shading cover (NSC). Under each shielding condition, the relationship between the wavelength and transmittance was monitored in the range of 200–800 nm. CDDP was diluted to three concentration levels: 50, 100, and 250 μg/mL. Furthermore, the amount of remaining CDDP and the pH in the solutions were measured for 120 h. Results We found that BSC, YSC, and MAC conditions allowed various levels of transmittance; however, Al could not completely transmit light at all wavelengths. Moreover, we showed that the CDDP decreased under MAC and NSC conditions in a time-dependent manner, whereas this decrease was prevented under Al, BSC, and YSC conditions till 120 h. We also demonstrated increases in pH under MAC and NSC conditions in a time-dependent manner, which was prevented under Al, BSC, and YSC conditions till 120 h. Similar results were observed for all three CDDP concentration levels. The results also indicated the approximate relationship between the amount of remaining CDDP and the pH increase. Conclusions Considering the opacity of each cover, our results suggest that BSC and YSC are useful and effective for minimizing CDDP degradation in clinical settings. Our results also indicate the alternatives for preparing, storing, and administering CDDP in clinical facilities, making the treatment schedule more flexible. Cumulatively, these findings indicate that the use of the appropriate shading covers, such as BSC or YSC, prevents the decrease in CDDP under fluorescent lighting, potentially contributing to achieving its full therapeutic effect.

In Kenya’s rice-growing areas, Basmati varieties have been produced in monoculture since the late 1980s. This has resulted in the breakdown of the resistance (R) gene-mediated response of the local Basmati varieties to blast disease caused by Pyricularia oryzae. To improve blast resistance in Kenyan Basmati varieties, continuous identification of R genes and suitable breeding materials for Basmati are necessary. Longistaminata chromosome segment introgression lines (LCSILs) with the Kernel Basmati genetic background, developed using a rice line called potential low-input adaptable-1 (pLIA-1) derived from a cross between Taichung 65 (T65) (a rice variety in the Japonica Group) and O. longistaminata, are expected to contain useful blast R genes derived from O. longistaminata or T65. In this study, we investigated the genetic variation of blast R genes in LCSILs and their parents by using a new international differential system for designating blast races based on the gene-for-gene theory and molecular characterization using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers. LCSILs and their parents were classified into three groups—A, B1, and B2—based on reaction patterns to the standard differential blast isolates (SDBIs). Group A, including pLIA-1, showed the highest resistance in all groups, followed by groups B1 and B2. Kernel Basmati in group B1 was considered to possess Pik-p or Pi7(t), Pi19(t), and other unknown R genes. In addition to these R genes, LCSIL 6, 12, 27, 28, and 40, in group A, were determined to possess one of Pish, Piz-t, or both genes that confer resistance to the Kenyan blast races. These lines can be used for efficiently pyramiding blast R genes in the local Basmati varieties.

Molecular markers play a crucial role in the improvement of rice. To benefit from these markers, genotyping is carried out to identify the differences at a specific position in the genome of individuals. The advances in sequencing technologies have led to the development of different genotyping techniques such as genotyping-by-sequencing. Unlike PCR-fragment-based genotyping, genotyping-by-sequencing has enabled the parallel sequencing and genotyping of hundreds of samples in a single run, making it more cost-effective. Currently, GBS is being used in several pre-breeding programs of rice to identify beneficial genes and QTL from different rice genetic resources. In this review, we present the current advances in the utilization of genotyping-by-sequencing for the development of rice pre-breeding materials and the improvement of existing rice cultivars. The challenges and perspectives of using this approach are also highlighted.

Validating the accuracy of land cover products using a reliable reference dataset is an important task. A reliable reference dataset is produced with information derived from ground truth data. Recently, the amount of ground truth data derived from information collected by volunteers has been increasing globally. The acquisition of volunteer-based reference data demonstrates great potential. However information given by volunteers is limited useful vegetation information to produce a complete reference dataset based on the plant functional type (PFT) with five specialized forest classes. In this study, we examined the availability and applicability of FLUXNET information to produce reference data with higher levels of reliability. FLUXNET information was useful especially for forest classes for interpretation in comparison with the reference dataset using information given by volunteers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we aimed to clarify the effects of different water management strategies on dry matter production and yield performance of New Rice for Africa (NERICA) varieties. Dry matter production of NERICA 1 and NERICA 5 was compared with that of Yumenohatamochi, a Japanese upland variety, and Hinohikari, a Japanese lowland variety under three water regimes, i.e. continuously flooded, supplemental irrigation, and non-irrigation (rainfed). Total carbohydrate content in the panicles under different watering regimes was more closely related to post-heading photosynthates than pre-heading reserve assimilates. Dry matter production during ripening tended to decrease under low soil water conditions, whereas the dry matter translocated from the leaf and stem to the panicle tended to increase. Consequently, the distribution ratio of post-heading photosynthates in the total carbohydrate content declined in response to the reduction in available soil moisture. These results indicate that the total carbohydrate content vary depending on the soil water conditions. In NERICAs, dry matter production during ripening was lower than that in Japanese varieties, indicating that their dependence on pre-heading reserve assimilates was greater. In particular, post-heading photosynthate content of NERICA 1 was strongly affected by the variation in water management in comparison with that of other varieties. The decrease in crop growth rate during ripening in NERICA 1 can be mainly attributed to the lower post-heading photosynthate content. Thus, the ability of NERICA 1 to assimilate carbon after heading was considered to be potentially low, which has to be improved to achieve higher yield.

This study evaluated the effect of three N fertilization levels 60 (low), 120 (medium), and 180 (high) kg N ha−1 and soil moisture content gradients created by a line-source sprinkler on the expression of plasticity in lateral root branching and dry matter production (DMP) of upland new rice for Africa (NERICA) 1 and 4. There were no significant differences in DMP between NERICA 1 and 4 under well-watered, mild drought, and severe drought conditions regardless of N level. In contrast, under moderate drought (12–21% v/v of soil moisture content [SMC] in 2011 and 16–24% v/v of SMC in 2012), NERICA 1 had significantly higher shoot dry weight, total root length (TRL), lateral root length, and branching index than NERICA 4 at medium and high N; however, there was no significant difference between the two NERICAs in DMP at low N. TRL of NERICA 1 was significantly higher under moderate drought than well-watered conditions, but only with medium and high N. Regardless of N level, moderate drought did not enhance NERICA 4’s root system. Thus, NERICA 1’s root system exhibited plastic development, promoting lateral root branching at medium and high N. These morphological changes were associated with the greater DMP in NERICA 1 than NERICA 4 under moderate drought, whereas the lack of such plasticity at low N meant genotypic differences in DMP were obscured. Our findings implied that N application can improve upland NERICA productivity under moderate drought conditions, but differences in variety and field conditions may influence efficacy.

Abstract Under high soil water levels, an imbalance occurs in the utilization of photosynthate between supporting vegetative growth and storage as starch. This results in a reduction in the density of dry matter in the stem and increased plant size. On the other hand, biomass yield and starch yield are considered to be low. This study examined the response of sago palm (Metroxylon sagu Rottb.) seedlings to 50 and 80% soil water levels. To determine the response of the plant, several parameters were observed during the experiment: N, P, and K uptake, leaf photosynthesis, plant morphological growth, and sugar content in plants. It was found that the sago palm was able to show good growth performance under both 50 and 80% soil water levels. However, 50% soil water level is preferable due to trends in N, P, and K uptake, leaf photosynthetic rate, morphological growth performance, and also because no loss of starch is evident in the petiole or root.

Aims: This study investigated effects of narrow-range ultraviolet irradiation (UVR) by a new UV–LED device on vitamin D supply and changes of bone in senescence-accelerated mouse P6 (SAMP6) with vitamin D deficiency. Main methods: We used female SAMP6 mice as a senile osteoporotic model. We set a total of 3 groups (n = 4 per group); D-UVR+ group (vitamin D deficient–dietary and UVR), D- (vitamin D deficient–dietary), and D+ groups (vitamin D contained–dietary). Mice in the D-UVR + group were UV–irradiated (305nm) with 1 kJ/m2 twice a week for 12 weeks from 20 to 32 weeks of age. Serum 25(OH)D, 1,25(OH)2D, and micro–computed tomography (CT) were assessed over time. Mechanical test, and histological assay were performed for femurs removed at 32 weeks of age. Key findings: UVR increased both serum 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)2D levels at 4 and 8 weeks–UVR in the D-UVR+ group compared with that in the D- group (P < 0.05, respectively). Relative levels of trabecular bone mineral density in micro–CT were higher in the D-UVR+ group than in the D- group at 8 weeks–UVR (P = 0.048). The ultimate load was significantly higher in the D-UVR+ group than in the D- group (P = 0.036). In histological assay, fewer osteoclasts and less immature bone (/mature bone) could be observed in the D-UVR+ group than in the D- group, significantly. Significance: UVR may have possibility to improve bone metabolism associated with vitamin D deficiency in SAMP6 mice.

In Africa, cold temperatures occur in the highlands of East and Southern Africa and in some areas of the Sahel region of West Africa leading to substantial rice yield losses. Cold tolerance (CT) at booting stage on basis of spikelet fertility after cold water irrigation was evaluated using F2 population derived from a cross between temperate japonica, Hananomai, and tropical japonica, WAB56-104. Two Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for CT were detected on chromosome 8 and 10 with enhanced effects on the trait coming from Hananomai and WAB56-104 allele, respectively. The QTLs explained 30% and 33% of phenotypic variation in spikelet fertility, respectively. CT was negatively correlated with panicle number (r = −0.35, p

In rainfed lowland rice ecosystem, rice plants are often exposed to alternating recurrences of waterlogging and drought due to erratic rainfall. Such soil moisture fluctuation (SMF) which is completely different from simple or progressive drought could be stressful for plant growth, thereby causing reduction in yield. Root plasticity is one of the key traits that play important roles for plant adaptation under such conditions. This study aimed to evaluate root plasticity expression and its functional roles in dry matter production and yield under SMF using Nipponbare, KDML 105 and three backcross inbred lines (BILs) and to identify QTL(s) associated with root traits in response to SMF at two growth stages using Nipponbare/KDML105 F2 plants. A BIL, G3-3 showed higher shoot dry matter production and yield than Nipponbare due to its greater ability to maintain stomatal conductance concomitant with greater root system development caused by promoted production of nodal and lateral roots under SMF. QTLs were identified for total nodal root length, total lateral root length, total root length, number of nodal roots, and branching index under SMF at vegetative and reproductive stages. The QTLs detected at vegetative and reproductive stages were different. We discuss here that relationship between root system of G3-3 and the detected QTLs. Therefore, G3-3 and the identified QTLs could be useful genetic materials in breeding program for improving the adaptation of rice plants in target rainfed lowland areas.