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Abstract Conyza species are important weeds in global agriculture, especially due to their capacity to evolve resistance to multiple herbicide mechanisms of action. We aimed to evaluate the frequency and distribution of resistance to glyphosate and chlorimuron-ethyl in Conyza spp. populations from Brazil. Seed samples were collected from grain production areas across nine Brazilian states over five consecutive years (2014 to 2018). Prior to resistance monitoring trials, dose-response assays were conducted to determine a single dose of glyphosate or chlorimuron-ethyl to discriminate resistant and susceptible populations. Resistance monitoring based on plant responses to the application of discriminatory doses of glyphosate (960 g ha-1) or chlorimuron-ethyl (20 g ha-1). Populations were classified as resistant, moderately resistant, or susceptible to either herbicide. While glyphosate resistance was highly frequent (71.2%) in all the five years, chlorimuron-ethyl resistant populations occurred at 39.8% of the total. The frequency of multiple resistance to both herbicides (35.3%) was proportional to the occurrence of chlorimuron-ethyl resistance (39.6%). Resistance to glyphosate and to chlorimuron-ethyl were found across all states evaluated.

Abstract Background: The application of Acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACCase) inhibitors prior to sowing of grass crops may result in crop damage due to residual effect of these herbicides in soil. The hypotheses was that different corn hybrids and ACCase herbicides can result in different plant-back intervals after burndown treatments. Objective: This work was planned to determine safe plant-back periods for three corn hybrids where ACCase herbicides clethodim and haloxyfop-methyl are applied. Methods: Herbicides were sprayed at 21, 14, 7, 2 and 0 days before sowing (DBS) at 192 g a.i. ha-1 (clethodim) and 120 g a.i. ha-1 (haloxyfop-methyl). Individual experiments were carried out with three hybrids: KWS9110 and 2B587 with glyphosate and glufosinate tolerance and Enlist with aryloxyphenoxypropionate tolerance. Results: Haloxyfop-methyl resulted in higher damage potential compared to clethodim for the hybrids KWS9110 and 2B587. For these hybrids, significant crop stand and grain yield reductions were observed mainly when haloxyfop was applied closer to sowing date (7, 2 and 0 DBS). Conclusions: Based on the effects on corn grain yield, a safe plant-back period for haloxyfop was estimated to be 8 and 11 days for the hybrids KWS9110 and 2B587, respectively. For the Enlist corn hybrid, there were no yield decreases, even when haloxyfop was applied at 0 DBS. Clethodim did not affect corn yield of any hybrid in any application time.

The evolution of glyphosate resistance (GR) in weeds is an increasing problem. Glyphosate has been used intensively on wild poinsettia (Euphorbia heterophylla L.) populations for at least 20 years in GR crops within South America. We investigated the GR mechanisms in a wild poinsettia population from a soybean field in southern Brazil. The GR population required higher glyphosate doses to achieve 50% control (LD50) and 50% dry mass reduction (MR50) compared to a glyphosate susceptible (GS) population. The ratio between the LD50 and MR50 of GR and GS resulted in resistance factors (RF) of 6.9-fold and 6.1-fold, respectively. Shikimate accumulated 6.7 times more in GS than in GR when leaf-discs were incubated with increasing glyphosate concentrations. No differences were found between GR and GS regarding non-target-site mechanisms. Neither population metabolized glyphosate to significant levels following treatment with 850 g ha-1 glyphosate. Similar levels of 14C-glyphosate uptake and translocation were observed between the two populations. No differences in EPSPS expression were found between GS and GR. Two target site mutations were found in all EPSPS alleles of homozygous resistant plants: Thr102Ile + Pro106Thr (TIPT—mutation). Heterozygous individuals harbored both alleles, wild-type and TIPT. Half of GR individuals were heterozygous, suggesting that resistance is still evolving in the population. A genotyping assay was developed based on the Pro106Thr mutation, demonstrating high efficiency to identify homozygous, heterozygous or wild-type EPSPS sequences across different plants. This is the first report of glyphosate-resistant wild-poinsettia harboring an EPSPS double mutation (TIPT) in the same plant.

Wild poinsettia (Euphorbia heterophylla L.) is an important weed species in southern Brazil, especially due to the evolution of multiple herbicide resistance (e.g., acetolactate synthase (ALS)- inhibitors, protoporphyrinogen oxidase inhibitors, and glyphosate). The mechanism of resistance to imazamox was investigated in two wild poinsettia populations (R1 and R2) from southern Brazil and compared to a known susceptible (S) population. Imazamox dose-response experiments revealed high levels of resistance: 45-fold and 224.5-fold based on dry biomass reduction, for R1 and R2, respectively. Extremely high concentrations of imazamox (20,000 µM) were not sufficient to provide 50% inhibition of ALS enzyme activity (I50) for R1 or R2. Hence, resistance levels were estimated to be greater than 123-fold for both populations based on in vitro ALS assays. The ALS gene from all R1 and R2 plants had a Trp574Leu mutation. A genotyping assay was developed to discriminate resistant and susceptible alleles based on the Trp574Leu mutation.

Agricultural systems are in need of low-cost, safe antibiotics to protect crops from pests and diseases. Peptaibiotics, a family of linear, membrane-active, amphipathic polypeptides, have been shown to exhibit antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activity, and to be inducers of plant resistance against a wide range of phytopathogens. Peptaibiotics belong to the new generation of alternatives to agrochemicals, aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the One Health approach toward ensuring global food security and safety. Despite that, these fungi-derived, non-ribosomal peptides remain surprisingly understudied, especially in agriculture, where only a small number has been tested against a reduced number of phytopathogens. This lack of adoption stems from peptaibiotics' poor water solubility and the difficulty to synthesize and purify them in vitro, which compromises their delivery and inclusion in formulations. In this review, we offer a comprehensive analysis of peptaibiotics' classification, biosynthesis, relevance to plant protection, and mode of action against phytopathogens, along with the techniques enabling researchers to extract, purify, and elucidate their structure, and the databases holding such valuable data. It is also discussed how chemical synthesis and ionic liquids could increase their solubility, how genetic engineering and epigenetics could boost in vitro production, and how omics can reduce screenings' workload through in silico selection of the best candidates. These strategies could turn peptaibiotics into effective, ultra-specific, biodegradable tools for phytopathogen control., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Cases of weed resistant to herbicides have changed the dynamics of agricultural areas in Brazil, and in recent years, Erigeron species have caused major problems to farmers in the country, mainly in relation to the ineffectiveness of herbicide treatments used. The objective of this study was to confirm the cross-resistance to ALS inhibitors in populations of Erigeron sumatrensis as well as to investigate the existence of mutations in the site of action of ALS-inhibiting herbicides. To do this, 30 populations collected in the 2016/2017 crop season were grown in a greenhouse. Dose-response (chlorimuron-ethyl and cloransulam-methyl), inhibition of cytochrome P-450 with malathion, and ALS gene sequencing experiments were carried out in the F1 generations of two fleabane populations. The results proved the cross-resistance to chlorimuron-ethyl and cloransulam-methyl herbicides applied in the post-emergence of the resistant population of E . sumatrensis . The higher activity of P450 enzymes is unlikely responsible for the resistance of the population studied. The resistance mechanism found in R was the target site mutation Pro197Ser at the ALS gene. This is the first study in Brazil to identify a target-site change as a survival mechanism in E . sumatrensis for the resistance to ALS-inhibiting herbicides.

The present work introduces combination of superparamagnetic iron oxides (SPIONs) and hexamolybdenum cluster ([{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] 2- ) units within amino-decorated silica nanoparticles (SNs) as promising design of the hybrid SNs as efficient cellular contrast and therapeutic agents. The heating generated by SNs doped with SPIONs (Fe 3 O 4 @SNs) under alternating magnetic field is characterized by high specific absorption rate (SAR = 446 W/g). The cluster units deposition onto both Fe 3 O 4 @SNs and "empty" silica nanoparticles (SNs) results in Fe 3 O 4 @SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] and SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] with red cluster-centered luminescence and ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) under the irradiation. The monitoring of spin-trapped ROS by ESR spectroscopy technique indicates that the ROS-generation decreases in time for SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] and [{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] 2- in aqueous solutions, while it remains constant for Fe 3 O 4 @SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ]. The cytotoxicity is low for both Fe 3 O 4 @SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] and SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ], while the flow cytometry indicates preferable cellular uptake of the former versus the latter type of the nanoparticles. Moreover, entering into nucleus along with cytoplasm differentiates the intracellular distribution of Fe 3 O 4 @SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] from that of SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ], which remain in the cell cytoplasm only. The exceptional behavior of Fe 3 O 4 @SNs[{Mo 6 I 8 }I 6 ] is explained by residual amounts of iron ions at the silica surface., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest There are no conflicts to declare., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This report introduces both synthesis and in vitro biological behaviour of dual magnetic-fluorescent silica nanoparticles. The amino group-decoration of 78 nm sized silica nanoparticles enables their efficient internalization into motoneurons, which is visualized by the red fluorescence arising from [Ru(dipy)3]2+ complexes encapsulated into a silica matrix. The internalized nanoparticles are predominantly located in the cell cytoplasm as revealed by confocal microscopy imaging. The magnetic function of the nanoparticles resulted from the incorporation of 17 nm sized superparamagnetic iron oxide cores into the silica matrix, enabling their responsivity to magnetic fields. Fluorescence analysis revealed the "on-off" switching of Ca2+ influx under the application and further removal of the permanent magnetic field. This result for the first time highlights the movement of the nanoparticles within the cell cytoplasm in the permanent magnetic field as a promising tool to enhance the neuronal activity of motoneurons.

Background/aim: Estrogen receptor α (ERα) and Ki-67 are strong prognostic and predictive markers in woman breast cancer. This study aimed to evaluate the immunoexpression of prognostic factor markers ERα, Ki-67 proliferation index (Ki-67 PI) and the mitotic activity index (MAI) in mammary tumors induced by 1-methyl-1-nitrosourea (MNU) in female Sprague-Dawley rats submitted to lifelong exercise training., Materials and Methods: Thirty female rats were injected with MNU and randomly divided into two groups: sedentary and exercised., Results: All neoplasms from both groups were ERα-positive with an H-score ≥20. Statistically significant differences were not found in the ERα H-score, Ki-67 PI and MAI between groups. The absolute value of ERα H-score was higher in the exercised group, while the Ki-67 PI and MAI were higher in the sedentary group., Conclusion: Tumors from the exercised group were less proliferative and more differentiated, suggesting that long-term exercise training had positive effects on mammary carcinogenesis., (Copyright© 2016 International Institute of Anticancer Research (Dr. John G. Delinassios), All rights reserved.)

The catalyst-assisted nucleation and growth mechanisms for many kinds of nanowires and nanotubes are pretty well understood. At times, though, 1D nanostructures form without a catalyst and the argued growth modes have inconsistencies. One such example is the catalyst-free growth of aluminium borate nanowires. Here we develop an in-situ catalyst-free room temperature growth route for aluminium nanowires using the electron beam in a transmission electron microscope. We provide strong experimental evidence that supports a formation process that can be viewed as a phase transition in which the generation of free-volume induced by the electron beam irradiation enhances the atomic mobility within the precursor material. The enhanced atomic mobility and specific features of the crystal structure of Al5BO9 drive the atomic rearrangement that results in the large scale formation of highly crystalline aluminium borate nanowires. The whole formation process can be completed within fractions of a second. Our developed growth mechanism might also be extended to describe the catalyst-free formation of other nanowires.