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Central giant cell granulomas (CGCG) are rare intraosseous osteolytic lesions of uncertain aetiology. Despite the benign nature of this neoplasia, the lesions can rapidly grow and become large, painful, invasive, and destructive. The identification of molecular drivers could help in the selection of targeted therapies for specific cases. TRPV4, KRAS and FGFR1 mutations have been associated with these lesions but no correlation between the mutations and patient features was observed so far. In this study, we analysed 17 CGCG cases of an Italian cohort and identified an interesting and significant (p=0.0021) correlation between FGFR1 mutations and age. In detail, FGFR1 mutations were observed frequently and exclusively in CGCG from young (18 years old) patients (4/5 lesions, 80%). Furthermore, the combination between ours and previously published data confirmed a significant difference in the frequency of FGFR1 mutations in CGCG from patients younger than 18 years at the time of diagnosis (9/23 lesions, 39%) when compared to older patients (1/31 lesions, 0.03%; p=0.0011), thus corroborating our observation in a cohort of 54 patients. FGFR1 variants in young CGCG patients could favour fast lesion growth, implying that they seek medical attention earlier. Our observation might help prioritise candidates for FGFR1 testing, thus opening treatment options with FGFR inhibitors.

The main aim of the present study was to examine the effects of the age group (U-15, U-17 and U-19) on change of direction (COD) performance and its specific physical determinants among young basketball male players. Thirty-one young male basketball players (13–18 years) volunteered to participate in this study. The sample was divided into 3 age groups (U-15, U-17, U-19). All the evaluations were carried out in the same order in 3 sessions as follows: 1) body composition, self-reported sexual maturation, COD performance, and intermittent endurance capacity; 2) reactive strength index (RSI), 15-m sprint, and repeated sprint ability (RSA) test; 3) vertical and horizontal jumps and lower-limb strength. The results showed significant differences between groups for age, sexual maturation, endurance capacity, horizontal and vertical jump performances, RSI, COD, RSA, and lower-limb strength (p < 0.05). Significant correlations were identified between COD performances and some physical determinants such as jumping ability and RSA performance (-0.43 < r < 0.85; p ≤ 0.05). In conclusion, there are age effects on COD performance and its specific physical determinants among young basketball male players. The associations between COD performance and its determinants should be considered by practitioners when programing athletic talent development for this population.

International audience; Purpose: To describe bleeding and thrombotic events and their risk factors in patients receiving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) for severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and to evaluate their impact on in-hospital mortality.Methods: The ECMOSARS registry included COVID-19 patients supported by ECMO in France. We analyzed all patients included up to March 31, 2022 without missing data regarding bleeding and thrombotic events. The association of bleeding and thrombotic events with in-hospital mortality and pre-ECMO variables was assessed using multivariable logistic regression models.Results: Among 620 patients supported by ECMO, 29% had only bleeding events, 16% only thrombotic events and 20% both bleeding and thrombosis. Cannulation site (18% of patients), ear nose and throat (12%), pulmonary bleeding (9%) and intracranial hemorrhage (8%) were the most frequent bleeding types. Device-related thrombosis and pulmonary embolism/thrombosis accounted for most of thrombotic events. In-hospital mortality was 55.7%. Bleeding events were associated with in-hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio (adjOR) = 2.91[1.94-4.4]) but not thrombotic events (adjOR = 1.02[0.68-1.53]). Intracranial hemorrhage was strongly associated with in-hospital mortality (adjOR = 13.5[4.4-41.5]). Ventilation duration before ECMO ≥ 7 days and length of ECMO support were associated with bleeding. Thrombosis-associated factors were fibrinogen ≥ 6 g/L and length of ECMO support.Conclusions: In a nationwide cohort of COVID-19 patients supported by ECMO, bleeding incidence was high and associated with mortality. Intracranial hemorrhage incidence was higher than reported for non-COVID patients and carried the highest risk of death. Thrombotic events were less frequent and not associated with mortality. Length of ECMO support was associated with a higher risk of both bleeding and thrombosis, supporting the development of strategies to minimize ECMO duration.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a contagious respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The clinical phenotypes are variable, ranging from spontaneous recovery to serious illness and death. On March 2020, a global COVID-19 pandemic was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO). As of February 2023, almost 670 million cases and 6,8 million deaths have been confirmed worldwide. Coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, contain a single-stranded RNA genome enclosed in a viral capsid consisting of four structural proteins: the nucleocapsid (N) protein, in the ribonucleoprotein core, the spike (S) protein, the envelope (E) protein, and the membrane (M) protein, embedded in the surface envelope. In particular, the E protein is a poorly characterized viroporin with high identity amongst all the β-coronaviruses (SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, HCoV-OC43) and a low mutation rate. Here, we focused our attention on the study of SARS-CoV-2 E and M proteins, and we found a general perturbation of the host cell calcium (Ca2+) homeostasis and a selective rearrangement of the interorganelle contact sites. In vitro and in vivo biochemical analyses revealed that the binding of specific nanobodies to soluble regions of SARS-CoV-2 E protein reversed the observed phenotypes, suggesting that the E protein might be an important therapeutic candidate not only for vaccine development, but also for the clinical management of COVID designing drug regimens that, so far, are very limited.

The study of acceleration waves for a rarefied polyatomic gas is carried out in planar, cylindrical and spherical geometry referring to the rational extended thermodynamics theory with 14 moments. The case of a rarefied monatomic gas is determined as a limit case, and the role of geometry and molecular degrees of freedom is investigated. In addition, the behaviour of an acceleration wave travelling inside an oscillating gas bubble is modelled by the 14-moment PDE system under adiabatic condition. We show that dissipation combined with hyperbolicity tends to inhibit shock formation, and that the dynamic pressure cannot be zero inside the oscillating bubble. This fact can produce observable effects even in the Navier–Stokes approximation, if the gas exhibits high bulk viscosity.

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) of Boussaâda has varietal diversity and a very important nutritional value in Algeria. Nevertheless, today the palm groves are threatened, not only climatically but also in terms of varietal diversity such as disappearance of varieties, the low production and even discharges serving mainly to vegetative propagation which can be used as a source of explants on in vitro somatic embryogenesis technique. The aim of this study is to use in vitro culture techniques to regenerate the phoenicicultural orchards at Boussaâda oasis. Two types of experimental protocol are used; firstly, to make an inventory in field in order to contain palm groves and then date palms existing; and the secondly is to applicant the somatic embryogenesis technique in the laboratory and then regenerate the good cultivar. Results indicate that plant growing is an important axis that needs to be developed in the oasis by introducing varieties to select the most suitable and profitable for a good diversification of cultivars and consequently the improvement of production.

Background: Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) are proteins that lack a predetermined 3D structure and play key cellular functions. IDPs are often involved in diseases and have been shown to be attractive targets for drug development. The IDPs have been intensively investigated, revealing important results. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the latest research bibliography since 2010, including the latest findings, major contributors, institutions, and journals. Methods: The bibliographic data were retrieved from PubMed from 2010 to 2020. The data collected were then analysed by VOSviewer software (version 1.6.11). Results: In this study, 4590 publications were retrieved for analysis. They have been published in 579 journals. Over 9683 organisations have contributed to IDP publications, with United States of America and Russia being in the first place. Human proteins are most studied for their IDP features and mainly in the context of diseases and drug design. Conclusion: This bibliometric study reveals that the trend of publications is increasing year by year. USA and Russia have contributed the most to the IDP research field. Moreover, it suggests that IDP research remains a challenging issue that is still open for original contributions and original applications.

13 Pág., Plant non-specific lipid transfer proteins (nsLTPs) are usually defined as small, basic proteins, with a wide distribution in all orders of higher plants. Structurally, nsLTPs contain a conserved motif of eight cysteines, linked by four disulphide bonds, and a hydrophobic cavity in which the ligand is housed. This structure confers stability and enhances the ability to bind and transport a variety of hydrophobic molecules. Their highly conserved structural resemblance but low sequence identity reflects the wide variety of ligands they can carry, as well as the broad biological functions to which they are linked to, such as membrane stabilization, cell wall organization and signal transduction. In addition, they have also been described as essential in resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses, plant growth and development, seed development, and germination. Hence, there is growing interest in this family of proteins for their critical roles in plant development and for the many unresolved questions that need to be clarified, regarding their subcellular localization, transfer capacity, expression profile, biological function, and evolution., KM was supported through funding by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Tunisia (CP_2019–2022), ZGK was funded by the Community of Madrid (FOODAL-CM_S2018/BAAA-4574). DPC was granted by Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and Banco Santander for a predoctoral Programa Propio grant. GHR was funded by European Commission (H2020-NMBP-X-KET-2017-768641 AllerScreening). JTA was funded by Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) co-founded by FEDER Thematic Networks and Cooperative Research Centers: ARADYAL (RD16/0006/0003). This work was also funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (LISSENTRA; PID2020-113629RB-I00).

Recently, predicting the native structures of proteins has become possible using computational molecular physics (CMP)─physics-based force fields sampled with proper statistics─but only for small proteins. Algorithms with better scaling are needed. We describe ML x MELD x MD, a molecular dynamics (MD) method that inputs residue contacts derived from machine learning (ML) servers into MELD, a Bayesian accelerator that preserves detailed-balance statistics. Contacts are derived from trRosetta-predicted distance histograms (distograms) and are integrated into MELD's atomistic MD as spatial restraints through parametrized potential functions. In the CASP14 blind prediction event, ML x MELD x MD predicted 13 native structures to better than 4.5 Å error, including for 10 proteins in the range of 115-250 amino acids long. Also, the scaling of simulation time vs protein length is much better than unguided MD: tsim ∼ e0.023N for ML x MELD x MD vs tsim ∼ e0.168N for MD alone. This shows how machine learning information can be leveraged to advance physics-based modeling of proteins.

The beekeeping sector has undergone considerable production variations over the past years due to adverse weather conditions, occurring more frequently as climate change progresses. These phenomena can be high-impact and cause the environment to be unfavorable to the bees' activity. We disentangle the honey production drivers with tree-based methods and predict honey production variations for hives in Italy, one of the largest honey producers in Europe. The database covers hundreds of beehive data from 2019-2022 gathered with advanced precision beekeeping techniques. We train and interpret the machine learning models making them prescriptive other than just predictive. Superior predictive performances of tree-based methods compared to standard linear techniques allow for better protection of bees' activity and assess potential losses for beekeepers for risk management.

17 Pág., Non-specific lipid transfer proteins (nsLTPs) are small, cysteine-rich proteins, a part of the pathogenesis-related protein family, and numerous of them act as positive regulators during plant disease resistance, growth, and reproduction. These proteins are involved also in the intracellular transfer of lipids, as well as in plant immune responses. Besides their differences in sequences, they show similar features in their structure. However, they show distinct lipid-binding specificities signifying their various biological roles that dictate further structural study. This study reports the identification, in silico characterization and purification of a novel member of the nsLTP2 protein family from durum wheat, TdLTP2. It was generated and purified using the combination of gel filtration chromatography and reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Its identity was detected by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF). TdLTP2 had been expressed in different stress to detect its localization; therefore, fluor-immunolocalization studies accomplished this data. In this approach, to assess the allergenicity of TdLTP2, thirty patients with baker's asthma were enrolled and ELISA to detect the presence of specific IgE antibodies tested their sera. Moreover, the lipid-binding properties of TdLTP2 were examined in vitro and validated using a molecular docking study. In summary, our results demonstrate a new addition of member in plant nsLTPs family, TdLTP2, which can develop a better understanding about its biological functions and shed light on future applications., This work was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation through the project LISENTRA, granted by the Spanish Research State Agency (PID2020-113629RBI00/AEI/10.13039/501100011033), the Comunidad de Madrid (FOODAL-CM: S2018/BAA4574) Spain, and a grant from the Ministry of Higher Education, and Scientific Research of Tunisia, and a grant from. There was no additional external funding received for this study

Brassicaceae plants, as an important source of primary and secondary metabolites, are becoming a research model in plant science. Plants have developed different ways to ward off environmental stress factors. This is lead to the activation of various defense mechanisms resulting in a qualitative and/or quantitative change in plant metabolite production. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) is being continuously produced in cell during normal cellular processes. Under stress conditions, there are excessive production of ROS causing progressive oxidative damage and ultimately cell death. Despite their destructive activity, ROS are considered as important secondary messengers of signaling pathway that control metabolic fluxes and a variety of cellular processes. Plant response to environmental stress depends on the delicate equilibrium between ROS production, and their scavenging. This balance of ROS level is required for performing its dual role of acting as a defensive molecule in signaling pathway or a destructive molecule. Efficient scavenging of ROS produced during various environmental stresses requires the action of several non-enzymatic as well as enzymatic antioxidants present in the tissues. In this review, we describe the ROS production and its turnover and the role of ROS as messenger molecules as well as inducers of oxidative damage in Brassicaceae plants. Further, the antioxidant defense mechanisms comprising of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants have been discussed. Keywords: Abiotic stress, Antioxidant defence, Brassicaceae, Oxidative stress, ROS

Aims Current cardiac telerehabilitation (CTR) interventions are insufficiently tailored to the preferences and competences of individual patients, which raises the question whether their implementation will increase overall participation and adherence to cardiac rehabilitation (CR). However, research on patient-specific factors that influence participation and adoption of CTR interventions is scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate which patient-related characteristics influence participation in a novel CTR intervention in patients with coronary artery disease. Methods and results This prospective observational substudy of the SmartCare-CAD randomized controlled trial evaluated patient characteristics of study participants as proxy for participation in a CTR intervention. We compared demographic, geographic, and health-related characteristics between trial participants and non-participants to determine which characteristics influenced trial participation. A total of 699 patients (300 participants and 399 non-participants; 84% male, mean age 64.3 ± 10.5 years) were included. Most of the non-participants refused participation because of insufficient technical skills or lack of interest in digital health (26%), or preferred centre-based CR (21%). Variables independently associated with non-participation included: higher age, lower educational level, shorter travelling distance, smoking, positive family history for cardiovascular disease, having undergone coronary artery bypass grafting; and a higher blood pressure, worse exercise capacity, and higher risk of depression before the start of CR. Conclusion Participation in CTR is strongly influenced by demographic and health-related factors such as age, educational level, smoking status, and both physical and mental functioning. Cardiac telerehabilitation interventions should therefore be redesigned with the involvement of these currently underrepresented patient subgroups.

The main objective of this study is to optimise a new composite for the depollution of contaminated water. This pollution can have adverse effects on both human health and the environment. The aim ...

Agave americana (A. americana) is a species that are considered as one of the most studied species and there are a large number of derived products, as well as applications of agave fibers. Here, we have exploited their applied potentialities through metabolic and biochemical abilities. In this case, we monitored the presence of terpenoides, phlobatanins, tannins, anthraquinone, puerarin, apigenin, carbohydrates and vitamin C. The proteins amount was estimated to be 8.13 mg.g−1(FM). In addition, the A. americana leave juice enzymological characterization consists of various enzymatic activities like protease (356 U. mL−1) and α-amylase (264 U. mL−1). The last one (AmyAga) was purified after two purification steps, their optimal activity is showed at 70 °C and pH 9. Eventually, those findings indicate their potential use in baking industry in which AmyAga upgrades some parameter’s like elasticity index, baking strength, humidity and fall time. We note also that vitamin C inhibitory capability towards some enzymes such as glucosidases that was 3 folds higher than those of exhibiting against amylases.

A novel arginine-modified Heliotrope leaf (Arg@HL) was used as adsorbent for the crystal violet (CV) dye adsorption in a batch process. The physicochemical and morphological composition of Arg@HL were characterized by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The experiments were carried out to investigate the factors that influence the dye uptake by the adsorbent, such as the contact time under agitation, adsorbent amount, initial dye concentration, temperature and pH of dye solution. The optimum conditions of adsorption were found on the batch scale as followed: CV concentration of 20 mg·L−1, an amount of 0.75 g·L−1 of the adsorbent, 90 min contact time, 6 pH and 25 °C temperature for Arg@HL. The results confirmed a second-order model explaining the dye crystal violet's adsorption's kinetics by Arg-Heliotrope leaves. The Langmuir model effectively defines the adsorption isotherms. The results revealed that the Arg@HL has the potential to be used as a low-cost adsorbent for the removal of CV dye from aqueous solutions. HIGHLIGHTS The first effort to use a low-cost arginine-modified Heliotrope leaves material as an adsorbent for crystal dye elimination by adsorption procedures.; CV dye was efficiently removed using Arg@HL.; Arg@HL exhibited high adsorption capacity for CV dye.; Adsorption process follows the Langmuir isotherm.

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is one of the most valuable forage crops having an intermediate salt-tolerant level. In this fact, twelve selected alfalfa from the south Tunisia oasis were subjected to salt stress looking for their adaptability against these abiotic constraints. Hence, this work reports the sodium chloride effect (150 mM) on the basis of biomass yield reduction. For this, some cultural, physiological, and biochemical parameters were monitored. Indeed, the relative water content, the stem and leaves aspects, chlorophyll content, protein amount, free proline amount, K+ and Na+ concentrations, protease and α-amylase activities, superoxide dismutase, and catalase ones were monitored. The findings give rise to no significant salinity effect on stem length and leaf number. However, there was a significant difference in leaf color for plants under salt stress. In addition, salinity decreases both fresh and dry weight of all cultivars. NaCl treatment significantly reduced chlorophyll content and the K+ ion accumulations. Also, under salt stress, there was higher proline accumulation, Na+, and proteins in all alfalfa cultivars than under control. Additionally, these findings noticed the increase of enzymatic scavenging system related to the activity of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and protease under salt stress condition. In contrast, the α-amylase activity decreased under salt treatment. It seems from the studied parameters that our 12 alfalfa oasis cultivars are tolerant to salt stress under oasis conditions.

Endophytic fungi are known to enhance plant growth and performance under salt stress. The current study investigated the growth, as well as biochemical and molecular properties of Phoenix dactylifera colonized with the mutualistic fungus Piriformospora indica, under control and salinity stress. Our findings indicated an increase in the plant biomass, lateral root density, and chlorophyll content of P. indica-colonized plants under both normal and salt stress conditions. Furthermore, there was a decline in the inoculated plants leaf and root Na+/K+ ratio. The colonization enhanced the levels of antioxidant enzymes such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, and peroxidase in plants. Increased ionic content of Zn and P were also found in salt-stressed date palm. The fungus colonization was also associated with altered expression levels of essential Na+ and K+ ion channels in roots like HKT1;5 and SOS1 genes. This alteration improved plant growth due to their preservation of Na+ and K+ ions balanced homeostasis under salinity stress. Moreover, it was confirmed that RSA1 and LEA2 genes were highly expressed in salt-stressed and colonized plant roots and leaves, respectively. The current study exploited P. indica as an effective natural salt stress modulator to ameliorate salinity tolerance in plants.

Mitochondria are increasingly recognized as cellular hubs to orchestrate signaling pathways that regulate metabolism, redox homeostasis, and cell fate decisions. Recent research revealed a role of mitochondria also in innate immune signaling; however, the mechanisms of how mitochondria affect signal transduction are poorly understood. Here, we show that the NF-κB pathway activated by TNF employs mitochondria as a platform for signal amplification and shuttling of activated NF-κB to the nucleus. TNF treatment induces the recruitment of HOIP, the catalytic component of the linear ubiquitin chain assembly complex (LUBAC), and its substrate NEMO to the outer mitochondrial membrane, where M1- and K63-linked ubiquitin chains are generated. NF-κB is locally activated and transported to the nucleus by mitochondria, leading to an increase in mitochondria-nucleus contact sites in a HOIP-dependent manner. Notably, TNF-induced stabilization of the mitochondrial kinase PINK1 furthermore contributes to signal amplification by antagonizing the M1-ubiquitin-specific deubiquitinase OTULIN. Overall, our study reveals a role for mitochondria in amplifying TNF-mediated NF-κB activation, both serving as a signaling platform, as well as a transport mode for activated NF-κB to the nuclear.

The xylophagous beetle

In this study, a new heteropolysaccharide extracted from

Catalase is a crucial enzyme in antioxidant defense systems protecting eukaryotes from oxidative stress. These proteins are present in almost all living organisms and play important roles in controlling plant responses to biotic and abiotic stresses by catalyzing the decomposition of H2O2. Despite their importance, little is known about their expression in the majority of monocotyledonous species. Here, we isolated and characterized two novel catalase genes from Triticum turgidum and Hordeum vulgare, designated as TtCAT1 and HvCAT1, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that TtCAT1 and HvCAT1 presented 492 aa and shared an important identity with other catalase proteins belonging to subfamily 1. Using bioinformatic analysis, we predicted the 3D structure models of TtCAT1 and HvCAT1. Interestingly, analysis showed that the novel catalases harbor a peroxisomal targeting signal (PTS1) located at their C-terminus portion, as shown for other catalase proteins. In addition, this motif is responsible for the in silico peroxisomal localization of both proteins. Finally, RT-qPCR analysis showed that TtCAT1 and HvCAT1 are highly expressed in leaves in normal conditions but faintly in roots. Moreover, both genes are upregulated after the application of different stresses such as salt, osmotic, cold, heavy metal, and hormonal stresses. The positive responses of TtCAT1 and HvCAT1 to the various stimuli suggested that these proteins can help to protect both species against environmental stresses.

BACKGROUND: In the United States (US), 61% of all suicide cases may involve firearms, and some evidence suggests that mental disorders may play a role in suicide by firearm. We performed the first systematic review and meta-analyses to investigate: (i) whether mental disorders are associated with suicide by firearm, and (ii) whether the risk of using a firearm compared with alternative means is associated with higher levels of suicide in individuals with a mental disorder\ud \ud METHODS AND FINDINGS: We searched twelve databases from inception to the 24th of May 2020. We retrieved 22 observational studies conducted in the US. Random-effects meta-analyses showed individuals who had a diagnosis of a mental disorder had lower odds (odds ratios (OR)= 0.50, 95% CI: 0.36 to 0.69; I2=100 (95% CI: 87 to 100%), of dying by suicide with a firearm than those who did not have a diagnosis of a mental disorder. Secondary analysis showed that decedents who had a mental health diagnosis resulted in lower odds of dying by suicide by using firearms than using other means\ud \ud LIMITATIONS: Risk of bias revealed a heterogeneous and poor definition of mental disorders as well as lack of control for potential demographic confounding factors. In the meta-analyses, studies were combined in the same analytic sample as 77% of these studies did not specify the type of mental disorder\ud \ud CONCLUSION: While our results seem to suggest that having a mental disorder may not be consistently associated with the odds of dying by suicide using a firearm, the presence of substantial heterogeneity and high risk of bias precludes any firm conclusions.

This study was directed towards the investigation of the chemical composition and antimicrobial properties of the essential oil of Tunisian halophyte

Genetic modification of crops has substantially focused on improving traits for desirable outcomes. It has resulted in the development of crops with enhanced yields, quality, and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. With the advent of introducing favorable traits into crops, biotechnology has created a path for the involvement of genetically modified (GM) crops into sustainable food production systems. Although these plants heralded a new era of crop production, their widespread adoption faces diverse challenges due to concerns about the environment, human health, and moral issues. Mitigating these concerns with scientific investigations is vital. Hence, the purpose of the present review is to discuss the deployment of GM crops and their effects on sustainable food production systems. It provides a comprehensive overview of the cultivation of GM crops and the issues preventing their widespread adoption, with appropriate strategies to overcome them. This review also presents recent tools for genome editing, with a special focus on the CRISPR/Cas9 platform. An outline of the role of crops developed through CRSIPR/Cas9 in achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) by 2030 is discussed in detail. Some perspectives on the approval of GM crops are also laid out for the new age of sustainability. The advancement in molecular tools through plant genome editing addresses many of the GM crop issues and facilitates their development without incorporating transgenic modifications. It will allow for a higher acceptance rate of GM crops in sustainable agriculture with rapid approval for commercialization. The current genetic modification of crops forecasts to increase productivity and prosperity in sustainable agricultural practices. The right use of GM crops has the potential to offer more benefit than harm, with its ability to alleviate food crises around the world.

The characterization of PR10 proteins has been conducted in many plant species. However, little is known about the roles of PvPR10 in response of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) to stress. Thus, for the first time a genome wide analysis revealed that the 34 genes of Bet v 1 family were divided into three major subfamilies according to phylogenetic relationship analysis from P. vulgaris and other plant species. The analysis uncovered that tandem duplication was the major force in the expansion of the Bet v 1 family genes in P. vulgaris and two other Fabaceae plants. Furthermore, the gene structure and motifs examination revealed that genes of Bet v 1 family were relatively conserved during evolution. Likewise, we recognized in the PvPR10 promoter regions several cis-regulatory elements related not only to abiotic and biotic stresses but also to phytohormones. In P. vulgaris, several PvPR10 genes exhibited differential expression profiles in many developmental tissues and organs. Notably, the expression profiles showed that essentially the two genes PvPR10-2 and PvPR10-3 genes were up-regulated under various treatments. Besides, the combined NaCl-JA stress enhanced their expressions in leaves and stems. Finally, we noticed that these inductions seem to be correlated with the enhancement of the expression of ABA biosynthesis PvNCED3 gene and the transcription factor PvDREB. Taken together, these data provide a foundation for further functional studies of certain PvPR10 that could be used in various stress tolerance improvements.

Catalase is a crucial enzyme in the antioxidant defense system protecting organisms from oxidative stress. Proteins of this kind play important roles in controlling plant response to biotic and abiotic stresses by catalyzing the decomposition of H2O2. The durum wheat catalase 1, TdCAT1, has been previously isolated and characterized. Here, using bio-informatic analysis, we showed that durum wheat catalase 1 TdCAT1 harbors different novel conserved domains. In addition, TdCAT1 contains various phosphorylation residues and S-Nitrosylation residues located at different positions along the protein sequence. TdCAT1 activity decreased after treatment with λ−phosphatase. On the other hand, we showed that durum wheat catalase 1 (TdCAT1) exhibits a low CAT activity in vitro, whereas a deleted form of TdCAT1 has better activity compared to the full-length protein (TdCAT460), suggesting that TdCAT1 could present a putative autoinhibitory domain in its C-terminal portion. Moreover, we showed that TdCAT1 positively regulates E. coli cells in response to salt, ionic and osmotic stresses as well as heavy metal stress in solid and liquid mediums. Such effects had not been reported and lead us to suggest that the durum wheat catalase 1 TdCAT1 protein could play a positive role in response to a wide array of abiotic stress conditions.

Pathogenesis-related protein-1 (PR-1) plays crucial roles in regulating plant responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. This study aimed to isolate and characterize the first PR-1 (AvPR-1) gene in oat (

In this paper, we introduced two classes of elements in the enveloping algebra [Formula: see text]: the double Young–Capelli bitableaux [Formula: see text] and the central Schur elements [Formula: see text], that act in a remarkable way on the highest weight vectors of irreducible Schur modules. Any element [Formula: see text] is the sum of all double Young–Capelli bitableaux [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] row (strictly) increasing Young tableaux of shape [Formula: see text]. The Schur elements [Formula: see text] are proved to be the preimages — with respect to the Harish-Chandra isomorphism — of the shifted Schur polynomials [Formula: see text]. Hence, the Schur elements are the same as the Okounkov quantum immanants, recently described by the present authors as linear combinations of Capelli immanants. This new presentation of Schur elements/quantum immanants does not involve the irreducible characters of symmetric groups. The Capelli elements [Formula: see text] are column Schur elements and the Nazarov elements [Formula: see text] are row Schur elements. The duality in [Formula: see text] follows from a combinatorial description of the eigenvalues of the [Formula: see text] on irreducible modules that is dual (in the sense of shapes/partitions) to the combinatorial description of the eigenvalues of the [Formula: see text]. The passage [Formula: see text] for the algebras [Formula: see text] is obtained both as direct and inverse limit in the category of filtered algebras, via the Olshanski decomposition/projection.

Pathogen-related proteins (PRs) are diversified proteins with a low molecular weight implicated in plant response to biotic and abiotic stress as well in regulating different functions in plant maturation. Interestingly, no systematical study has been conducted in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum subsp. durum). In the present study, 12 PR-1 genes encoding a CAP superfamily domain were identified in the genome of Triticum turgidum subsp. durum, which is an important cereal, using in silico approaches. Additionally, phylogenetic analysis showed that the PR-1 genes were classified into three groups based on their isoelectric point and the conserved motif domain. Moreover, our analysis showed that most of the TdPR-1 proteins presented an N-terminal signal peptide. Expression patterns analysis showed that the PR-1 gene family presented temporal and spatial specificity and was induced by different abiotic stresses. This is the first report describing the genome-scale analysis of the durum wheat PR-1 gene family, and these data will help further study the roles of PR-1 genes during stress responses, leading to crop improvement.

Childlessness has been increasing over the last decades in most European societies. Previous studies have mostly focused on the ‘involuntary’ component of childlessness, and factors affecting voluntary childlessness remained poorly understood. This article presents an analysis of the factors associated with the intention to be childless, and the realisation and stability of this intention in the short-term. The theory of planned behaviour is applied to relate childlessness intentions with their realisation and to explore the role of ideational factors on the variability of possible fertility outcomes. Results show that more than 90% of the respondents realised their desire to remain childless. Childlessness intentions, however, tend to be less stable than parenthood ones, at all ages with the exception of individuals aged 40 years or more. Individuals’ attitudes towards childbearing and perceived social pressure toward parenthood strongly correlate with the stability of the intentions toward childlessness or parenthood, whereas socio-economic characteristics and factors connected with individuals’ perceived control count for little. The study sheds light on people who voluntarily live without children and suggests that being childless is not always the result of opportunities and external constraints, but it could be a choice originating from personal and intimate domains of life.

Knowledge of agro-physiological traits associated with drought tolerance would be useful for developing breeding materials for drought-prone environments. This study was conducted to estimate genetic variability among nine durum wheat genotypes in response to drought. Our results indicated that the effect of the campaign, genotype, and genotype × interaction was significant for the thirteen variables measured, except for the relative water content. The variability observed was greater for grain yield, biomass, ear fertility, straw and economic yields, chlorophyll content, and cell integrity. Heritability was high for the number of grains per ear and the chlorophyll content; medium for thousand kernel weights, low for grain yield, biomass, and economic yield, and zero for the rest of the variables measured. The results also showed that the agro-morphological characters were significantly linked to each other, unlike the physiological characters which showed non-significant relation between them and with the agro-morphological characters. This suggests that among the varieties evaluated, the selection of those which are tolerant and with high yield potential should therefore be made on a case-by-case basis and not based on a specific physiological character, a marker of tolerance, highly correlated with yield grain. The nine varieties evaluated were subdivided into three divergent clusters of three varieties each. Cluster C1 consists of the least performing varieties, unlike the other two clusters which bring appreciable gains for several characteristics including grain yield, biomass, the weight of 1000 grains, straw yield, and ear fertility and a marked improvement in chlorophyll content and a significant reduction in damage to the cell membrane by thermal stress. In conclusion and following their divergence, it is suggested to use the varieties of clusters C2 and C3 in crossing with the varieties of cluster C1 to improve and reconcile stress tolerance and yield potential in the same genetic background.

With the global population predicted to grow by at least 25% by 2050, the need for sustainable production of nutritious foods is important for human and environmental health. Recent progress demonstrate that membrane transporters can be used to improve yields of staple crops, increase nutrient content and resistance to key stresses, including salinity, which in turn could expand available arable land. Exposure to salt stress affects plant water relations and creates ionic stress in the form of the cellular accumulation of Na+ and Cl- ions. However, salt stress also impacts heavily on the homeostasis of other ions such as Ca2+, K+, and NO3- and therefore requires insights into how transport and compartmentation of these nutrients are altered during salinity stress. Since Na+ interferes with K+ homeostasis, maintaining a balanced cytosolic Na+/K+ ratio has become a key salinity tolerance mechanism. Achieving this homeostatic balance requires the activity of Na+ and K+ transporters and/or channels. The aim of this review is to seek answers to this question by examining the role of major ions transporters and channels in ions uptake, translocation and intracellular homeostasis in plants.

Adequate training and collaboration skills for all the professional figures involved in animal rescue activities are needed. Nowadays the real challenge for all rescuers is to consider the multiple aspects of the human-animal-environment relationship that have changed profoundly throughout history and that make the COVID-19 pandemic unique in its kind. In this period the emergency to be addressed consists in providing the assistance of animals which belong to people who have died, been hospitalized or forced to isolate. A careful analysis of the different scenarios reveals that there is no single solution to intervene, but that it is necessary to find the most suitable alternative to individual cases. The aim of this paper is to offer specific indications to volunteers, veterinarians and not, in different scenarios not losing sight of the goal: to protect the welfare of the animal and its owner, avoiding the spread of the infection.