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Different symbiotic and pathogenic plant-microbe interactions involve the production of cysteine- rich antimicrobial defensins. In Medicago truncatula, the expression of four MtDefMd genes, encoding arbuscular mycorrhiza-dependent defensins containing an N-terminal signal peptide and exhibiting some differences to non-symbiotic defensins, raised over the time of fungal colonization. Whereas the MtDefMd1 and MtDefMd2 promoters were inactive in cells containing young arbuscules, cells with fully developed arbuscules displayed different levels of promoter activities, indicating an up-regulation towards later stages of arbuscule formation. MtDefMd1 and MtDefMd2 expression was absent or strongly down-regulated in mycorrhized ram1-1 and pt4-2 mutants, known for defects in arbuscule branching or premature arbuscule degeneration, respectively. A ~97% knock-down of MtDefMd1/MtDefMd2 expression did not significantly affect arbuscule size. Although overexpression of MtDefMd1 in arbuscule-containing cells led to an up-regulation of MtRam1, encoding a key transcriptional regulator of arbuscule formation, no morphological changes were evident. Co-localization of an MtDefMd1-mGFP6 fusion with additional, subcellular markers revealed that this defensin is associated with arbuscules in later stages of their life-cycle. MtDefMd1-mGFP6 was detected in cells with older arbuscules about to collapse, and ultimately in vacuolar compartments. Comparisons with mycorrhized roots expressing a tonoplast marker indicated that MtDefMd1 acts during late restructuring processes of arbuscule-containing cells, upon their transition into a post-symbiotic state. © 2018 Uhe et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

The objective of this study is to quantify how much water is utilized by oak trees in an oak-hickory forest in Glenville, WV from the onset of leaf budding to peak growing season. Water use directly correlates with transpiration among plants, which is the water lost through stomata as a consequence of photosynthesis. Stomatal activity is also affected by environmental and atmospheric variables. A CR-1000 data logger equipped with Thermal Dissipation Probes (TDP) will be used to collect sap flow data every 30 minutes. The TDP will be placed in holes drilled through the cambium and into the xylem layer of each tree. An electrical charge of 3.02 volts is sent from the data logger to the topmost probe causing it to heat up, and the second probe measures the temperature difference every 30 minutes. The site selected for this project is a relatively dry site with west facing slope, 30-37% average slope and approximately 300 m in elevation. Three species of oaks that differ in their level of tolerance to water conditions will be used in the study, namely black oak, chestnut oak, and white oak. An Onset HOBO Weather Station will also be used to record local atmospheric variables such as precipitation, barometric pressure, wind speed/direction, temperature, humidity, photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), and soil moisture. The relationship of tree water use and atmospheric variables will be determined using correlation analysis.

Marcellus shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock that is part of the formation of a rock unit from the Devonian age. The Devonian age is roughly 390 million years old. This which shows a significant age for the Marcellus shale as well. The Marcellus shale was formed millions of years ago when the mud from the Devonian age sea hardened as it was deposited on the oxygen deprived sea floor. Because much of the United States was covered by oceans 390 million years ago, what is now West Virginia has a significant amount of Marcellus shale underneath its surface. Marcellus shale is very rich in organic materials and has been considered the major source of natural gas produced in the Appalachian Basin to this date. The shale formation in West Virginia is around 6,000 feet deep and the various gas fields are believed to contain more than 50 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas. The oil and gas business has boomed in this state over the years due to this excellent source of natural gas. Using spatial analysis in Geographic Information System, the location and extent of Marcellus wells will be determined. This study will use spatial data from WV Geological and Economic Survey, WV Department of Environmental Protection and WV GIS Technical Center. Maps of the entire state will be created to show the range of productive wells and the environmental factors that could possibly be affected as a result of constructing and maintaining the wells.

Background and Aims:There are few studies regarding utility of transcranial duplex sonography (TDS) in intracranial hemorrhage (IH). TDS is a non-invasive tool that can be easily used in patientu00b4s bed-side.Methods:Consecutive patients with spontaneous IH admitted to a stroke unit were recruited. TDS was performed within 12 hours of baseline CT and up to 3 control studies were scheduled every 24 hours. Included neurosonological markers were: hematoma volume (HV), midline shift (MLS), third ventricle diameter, pulsatility index and mean velocity (MV) in both MCAs and mean thickness of both optic nerve sheaths (MTONS). Correlation of HV and MLS between CT and TDS was analyzed if the time between both was less than 2 hours. As prognostic variables we evaluated early neurologic deterioration (END) and death during hospitalization (DDH).Results:33 patients were included (median age 74, 78% men). Median HV was 19 ml (11-52). A good correlation with CT was found (n=12) regarding both HV (ICC=0.93) and MLS (ICC=0.82). Crude logistic regression analysis showed an association of HV, MLS, mean velocity in ipsilateral MCA and MTONS with both END and DDH (p0.535 cm was independently associated with DDH (OR 8.5; P