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Zarmina Islam,1 Parvathy Mohanan,2 Wajeeha Bilal,1 Taleen Hashmi,1 Zainab Rahmat,1 Ikran Abdi,3 Mehr Muhammad Adeel Riaz,4 Mohammad Yasir Essar5 1Faculty of Medicine, Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi, Pakistan; 2Medical University Sofia, Sofia, Bulgaria; 3Faculty of Medicine, Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Karachi, Pakistan; 4Punjab Medical College, Faisalabad, Pakistan; 5Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Mohammad Yasir EssarKabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan, Tel +992 117118300, Email Yasir.essar@gmail.comAbstract: Pakistan is currently facing two outbreaks, dengue and COVID-19; both have strained its healthcare system resulting in multiple concerns including the co-diagnosis of two. Due to poor healthcare capacity, low vaccination rate, increasing COVID-19 variants, socioeconomic disparities, and misinformation, it is inevitable that implications will prove to be damaging to both healthcare workers and civilians. Among these challenges, it is important to note the need for stronger epidemiological surveillance for both COVID-19 and dengue and the implementation of public health measures without endangering sources of livelihood. To sustain this, cooperation between WHO and Pakistan’s government must continue through smart lockdowns, dengue awareness campaigns, and double laboratory procedures.Keywords: dengue, COVID-19, Pakistan, healthcare infrastructure

Research aims: This study aims to describe the development of cost stickiness research over the past twenty years globally and presents a future research agenda. Design/Methodology/Approach: The method used in this study is a systematic literature review with a final research sample of 91 articles from 42 international journals indexed by Scopus Q1-Q4 and 20 articles from national journals indexed by SINTA 1-4. Research findings: This research found annual developments and fluctuations in cost stickiness research topics in international and national journals. Mapping of cost stickiness research exhibits that (1) the dominating antecedent variable is revenue change, (2) the popular consequence variable is accounting conservatism, (3) the most widely used theory is cost stickiness theory, (4) the majority of cost stickiness research used quantitative methods with secondary data, (5) the widely used population is public sector or profit-oriented companies, and (6) the proxy dominating cost stickiness research is SGA. Theoretical contribution/Originality: This research mapping is based on six critical aspects of cost stickiness and provides several suggestions for future research. It is expected that future research related to cost stickiness can use this research as a reference and inspiration. Research limitation/Implication: Several websites in national journals indexed by SINTA 1-4 could not be accessed due to errors, limiting the number of research samples in national journals. Hence, future research can expand the search for articles in SINTA 1-6 or through other pages/portals (such as Web of Science) to more comprehensively describe the development of cost stickiness research.

Abstract: Accounting Treatment for Corn Purpose: reveal the accounting treatment of corn in the form of definition, recognition, measurement, assessment, presentation and disclosure of corn accounting Method: This research method uses phenomenology through data collection by interviews, observation and documentation Results: Accounting recognition of corn is more appropriately recognized as inventory and its measurement is based on costs from planting to harvest. The valuation is based on the selling price minus costs and is presented in the form of a simple note. Corn accounting is more appropriately expressed based on Statement of Financial Accounting Standards 14 concerning inventory accounting. Novelty: discusses the accounting treatment of corn from the aspect of financial accounting standards Contribution: This research is for policies related to simple recording practices for farmers so they can see the profits and losses they make when farming. Abstrak: Perlakuan Akuntansi untuk Jagung Tujuan: mengungkap perlakuan akuntansi jagung berupa definisi, pengakuan, pengukuran, penilaian, penyajian dan pengungkapan akuntansi jagung Metode: metode penelitian ini menggunakan fenomenologi melalui pengumpulan data dengan wawancara, obeservasi dan dokumentasi Hasil: Pengakuan akuntansi jagung lebih tepat diakui sebagai persediaan dan pengukurannya berdasarkan biaya mulai menanam sampai panen. Penilaian didasarkan atas harga jual dikurangi dengan biaya-biaya dan disajikan dalam bentuk catatan yang sederhana. Akuntansi jagung lebih tepat diungkapkan berdasarkan Pernyataan Standar Akuntansi Keuangan 14 tentang akuntansi persediaan. Kebaruan: membahas perlakuan akuntansi jagung dari aspek standar akuntansi keuangan Kontribusi: kebijakan terkait praktik pencatatan sederhana bagi pelaku petani agar dapat melihat keuntungan dan kerugian yang diperoleh saat bertani.

PT HBZ is a construction company in the National Household Gas Network (Jargas) Program. The company wants to ensure that an appropriate supply chain design is implemented for PE pipe materials used in the construction of gas networks. This research provides an essential first step in the supply chain design process, namely determining the appropriate type of supply chain strategy. The analysis for determining the type of supply chain strategy in this research uses the uncertainty framework from Lee. There are two dimensions evaluated based on this framework, namely demand characteristics with seven aspects in them and supply characteristics with nine aspects in them. The analysis process for each aspect is based on quantitative and qualitative data obtained from document studies and interviews. The analysis results indicate that PE pipes belong to the functional product category with stable supply characteristics. The appropriate type of supply chain strategy for this condition is an efficient supply chain. This research also evaluates the alignment between selected types of supply chain strategy and the company's business/competitive strategy.

Abstract Artificial electronic synapses are commonly used to simulate biological synapses to realize various learning functions, regarded as one of the key technologies in the next generation of neurological computation. This work used a simple spin coating technique to fabricate polyimide (PI):graphene quantum dots(GQDs) memristor structure. As a result, the devices exhibit remarkably stable exponentially decaying postsynaptic suppression current over time, as interpreted in the spike-timing-dependent plasticity phenomenon. Furthermore, with the increase of the applied electrical signal over time, the conductance of the electrical synapse gradually changes, and the electronic synapse also shows plasticity dependence on the amplitude and frequency of the pulse applied. In particular, the devices with the structure of Ag/PI:GQDs/ITO prepared in this study can produce a stable response to the stimulation of electrical signals between millivolt to volt, showing not only high sensitivity but also a wide range of “feelings”, which makes the electronic synapses take a step forwards to emulate biological synapses. Meanwhile, the electronic conduction mechanisms of the device are also studied and expounded in detail. The findings in this work lay a foundation for developing brain-like neuromorphic modeling in artificial intelligence.

The high content of carbon compounds in palm fronds (OPF) makes them potentially useful as an adsorbent. The carbonization method was used for the adsorbent synthesis process. This process began with collecting palm frond waste and then drying and sifting the adsorbent particle. This process resulted in the escape particles with a size of 80 mesh and suspended particles with 120 mesh. Then this process continued by carbonizing the palm fronds with temperature variations starting from (400, 500, and 600°C) for 60 minutes to obtain Charcoal Oil Palm Fronts (COPF). The obtained COPF was determined for moisture and ash content and characterized using FTIR, XRD, and SEM to determine the surface, functional groups, degree of amorphism, crystallinity, and surface morphology. The adsorption efficiency of COPF was applied to the adsorption of Fe (III) in peat water under varying contact time, adsorbent mass, and peat water volume conditions. The water and ash content of COPF qualify the technical quality requirements for activated charcoal according to SNI 06-3730-1995. FTIR analysis detected the presence of vibrations of the C-O, O-H, C=O, C-C, and C-H functional groups on the COPF surface. The XRD pattern showed the existence of a semi-crystalline (002) and (100) plane structure, which is shown at scattering angles of 2θ = 22o and 42o. The surface morphology of COPF showed that as the carbonization temperature increased, the number of pores formed increased, and the pore size decreased. The best adsorption test results were obtained with a contact time of 30 minutes, an adsorbent mass of 1.00 g, and a peat water volume of 100 mL. The highest Fe adsorption efficiency was achieved by COPF 500, where the adsorbed mass was 0.054 mg. Increasing the carbonization temperature causes the water content to decrease and the ash content to increase. High water content and ash content cause a decrease in adsorption efficiency because they can cover the pores of the adsorbent.

Abstract A new 2D titanium carbide (Ti3C2), a low dimensional material of the MXene family has attracted remarkable interest in several electronic applications, but its unique structure and novel properties are still less explored in piezoelectric energy harvesters. Herein, a systematic study has been conducted to examine the role of Ti3C2 multilayers when it is incorporated in the piezoelectric polymer host. The 0.03 g/L of Ti3C2 has been identified as the most appropriate concentration to ensure the optimum performance of the fabricated device with a generated output voltage of about 6.0 V. The probable reasons might be due to the uniformity of nanofiller distribution in the polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) and the incorporation of Ti3C2 in a polymer matrix is found to enhance the β-phase of PVDF and diminish the undesired α-phase configuration. Low tapping frequency and force were demonstrated to scavenge electrical energy from abundant mechanical energy resources particularly human motion and environmental stimuli. The fabricated device attained a power density of 14 µW.cm−2 at 10.8 MΩ of load resistor which is considerably high among 2D material-based piezoelectric nanogenerators. The device has also shown stable electrical performance for up to 4 weeks and is practically able to store energy in a capacitor and light up a LED. Hence, the Ti3C2-based piezoelectric nanogenerator suggests the potential to realize the energy harvesting application for low-power electronic devices.

Abstract The Anzali international wetland is a valuable habitat to a wide variety of aquatic flora and fauna. This wetland ecosystem is being threatened due to various pollutants particularly the heavy metals discharging from different point and non-point sources. Concentration of various heavy metals (Cr, Pb, Hg, Cu, Zn, Cd, Ag and Ti) was examined in the water body and Azolla filiculoides (an exotic fern in the Anzali wetland). The samples regarding water and A. filiculoides were randomly carried out in three parts of the wetland (eastern, central and western parts) in May 2015. After preparing and digesting the samples, the concentration of the heavy metals was measured using ICP OES method. The obtained results showed that the concentration of Zn in water and A. filiculoides samples was higher than other heavy meals in all parts of the wetland (p

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is a free-floating aquatic plant and is known as one of the 100 most harmful invasive species. In the present research, 10 sampling sites were selected from various parts of the Anzali wetland watershed to study the habitat suitability of an invasive water hyacinth plant. 120 biotic data (60 presence samples and 60 absence samples) were monthly sampled with environmental variables (12 physical-chemical and structural variables) at each sampling site during one year. The results of the Mann-Whitney U test showed that except for the water and air temperature (p > 0.05 for both variables), there were significant differences among other variables (acidity, nitrate, orthophosphate, electrical conductivity, salinity, water depth, water flow velocity, dissolved oxygen, water turbidity, and bicarbonate) and presence and absence of water hyacinth (p < 0.01 for all variables). The results of the generalized linear model (GLM) also showed that except for the water and air temperatures (p > 0.05 for both variables), there was a significant difference between the occurrence probability pattern of presence/absence of plant in the sampling sites with the total of 10 variables (p < 0.01 for all variables).

In general, seed germination is improved by low-pressure plasma (LPP) treatment using precursors such as air, nitrogen, argon, or water (H2O). Here, H2O-based LPP treatment using the optimized parameters of 10 W and 10 s improves the germination of Bambara groundnut seeds by 22%. LPP increases the wettability and roughness of the seed hilum while oxidizing the surface with carboxyl and amine groups. In this H2O-based treatment of Bambara groundnut seeds, combinatory etching and chemical modification facilitated the imbibition process and increased the germination percentage. The success of this method has the potential to be scaled up to solve food security with seeds otherwise facing germination-related issues.

Infectious diseases HIV/AIDS is a global health problem. According to WHO (2000) reported that 58 million people in the world are infected with HIV, within the 22 million people died from AIDS or 7000 people die every day. HIV Infection caused decrease and disorder of humoral and cellular immunity. Intestinal mucosal normally shows a physiologic inflamation that account for intestinal mucosal integrity. Diarhhea in HIV infection due to immune deficiency can caused by pathogen and non pathogen. Acute and chronic diarrhea usually found in HIV infection patient, the latter is more frequent. HIV enteropathy cause chronic diarrhea without pathogen infection because intestinal mucous damage by HIV direct infection. Treatment is characterized as causative supportive and symptomatic treatment causal, supportive and Symptomatic. Immunonutrient is very important within management patient HIV/AIDS.

The aim of this study is to unearth the understanding of accounting student about ethics, both male and female. This study uses qualitative approach through hermeneutics. Data collection techniques used are interview, observation, and documentation. The analysis is based on data from 6 informants Result of the study shows that the interpretation of ethical behavior is similar between male and female accounting student. However, the understanding in ethics application in behavior is not the same between male and female accounting students. In general, female student has a better interpretation than that of male student.

Abstract: The Meaning of Accounting Information as Business Decision Making Base in Small and Micro Enterprises (SME). One of accounting function is to communicate economic information, which is economic reality of organization. The lack of use of financial reports by SMEs is because of the discrepancy in the term cost and benefit for small entrepreneurs, since in fact they are still capable to develop their skills without implementing accounting. This research is aimed to understand how accounting information used by the SMEs to develop their businesses.

Efektifitas pemecah gelombang dapat diukur dengan mengukur koefisien transmisi (KT). Semakin kecil koefisien transmisi maka semakin efektif pemecah gelombang ini. Pengujian model fisik dilakukan untuk mengetahui nilai koefisien transmisi dari Perforated Skirt Breakwater (PSB). Model PSB diuji dalam saluran gelombang 2-D di Laboratorium Gelombang Teknik Kelautan FTSL ITB, untuk mengetahui keefektifannya terhadap kategori gelombang panjang (periode prototipe, Tp = 7 detik). Penskalaan untuk model PSB menggunakan prinsip Keserupaan Froude dimana bilangan Froude model setara dengan bilangan Froude prototipe (Frm=Frp). Saluran gelombang dilengkapi dengan 5 sensor gelombang tipe tahanan listrik dan 8 saluran DAS (Data Acquisition System). Data tinggi gelombang (H) dan periode gelombang (T) diamati secara manual melalui pengamatan visual dan diperoleh melalui rekaman sensor gelombang (yang selanjutnya diproses menggunakan metode ”zero mean up-crossing”). Tinggi gelombang datang di depan PSB (Hi) dan tinggi gelombang transmisi di belakang PSB (Ht) diukur dan diproses untuk mendapatkan koefisien transmisi (KT). Selanjutnya, hubungan antara KT dan bilangan tak-berdimensi, kedalaman sirip / tinggi gelombang datang (S/Hi) dianalisis dan nilai koefisien transmisi (KT) untuk berbagai kondisi lingkungan diperoleh.

Pectinases are outstanding multienzymes, which have the potential to produce new emerging pectic-oligosaccharides (POS) via enzymatic hydrolysis of pectin. However, free pectinase is unable to undergo repeated reaction for the production of POS. This study proposed a sustainable biocatalyst of pectinases known as cross-linked pectinase aggregates (CLPA). Pectinase from Aspergillus aculeatus was successfully precipitated using 2 mg/mL pectinase and 60 % acetone for 20 min at 20 °C, which remained 36.3 % of its initial activity. The prepared CLPA showed the highest activity recovery (85.0 %), under the optimised conditions (0.3 % (v/v) starch and glutaraldehyde mixture (St/Ga), 1.5: 1 of St/Ga, 25 °C, 1.5 h). Furthermore, pectin-degrading enzymes from various sources were used to produce different CLPA. The alteration of pectinase secondary structure gave high stability in acidic condition (pH 4), thermostability, deactivation energy and half-life, and improved storage stability at 4 °C for 30 days. Similarly to their free counterpart, the CLPA exhibited comparable enzymatic reaction kinetics and could be reused eight times with approximately 20 % of its initial activity. The developed CLPA does not only efficaciously produced POS from pectin as their free form, but also exhibited better operational stability and reusability, making it more suitable for POS production., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Main Conclusion: Legumes manage both symbiotic (indirect) and non-symbiotic (direct) nitrogen acquisition pathways. Understanding and optimising the direct pathway for nitrate uptake will support greater legume growth and seed yields. Legumes have multiple pathways to acquire reduced nitrogen to grow and set seed. Apart from the symbiotic N 2 -fixation pathway involving soil-borne rhizobia bacteria, the acquisition of nitrate and ammonia from the soil can also be an important secondary nitrogen source to meet plant N demand. The balance in N delivery between symbiotic N (indirect) and inorganic N uptake (direct) remains less clear over the growing cycle and with the type of legume under cultivation. In fertile, pH balanced agricultural soils, NO 3 - is often the predominant form of reduced N available to crop plants and will be a major contributor to whole plant N supply if provided at sufficient levels. The transport processes for NO 3 - uptake into legume root cells and its transport between root and shoot tissues involves both high and low-affinity transport systems called HATS and LATS, respectively. These proteins are regulated by external NO 3 - availability and by the N status of the cell. Other proteins also play a role in NO 3 - transport, including the voltage dependent chloride/nitrate channel family (CLC) and the S-type anion channels of the SLAC/SLAH family. CLC's are linked to NO 3 - transport across the tonoplast of vacuoles and the SLAC/SLAH's with NO 3 - efflux across the plasma membrane and out of the cell. An important step in managing the N requirements of a plant are the mechanisms involved in root N uptake and the subsequent cellular distribution within the plant. In this review, we will present the current knowledge of these proteins and what is understood on how they function in key model legumes (Lotus japonicus, Medicago truncatula and Glycine sp.). The review will examine their regulation and role in N signalling, discuss how post-translational modification affects NO 3 - transport in roots and aerial tissues and its translocation to vegetative tissues and storage/remobilization in reproductive tissues. Lastly, we will present how NO 3 - influences the autoregulation of nodulation and nitrogen fixation and its role in mitigating salt and other abiotic stresses., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Over the years, worsening climate change has led to multiple spells of heavy rain and floods in Pakistan, with the 2022 floods ranked as the deadliest in world history. To top it off, decades of political instability, mental health stigma, and lack of psychological support have tipped the after-effects over the edge. These floods have taken a toll on more than 13 000 people, with inaccessibility to vital necessities leading to further deaths every week. Local and international support is imminent for better handling of the crisis and reducing the incidence of post-traumatic stress disorders and other mental health-related issues., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.)

Cotton leaf curl virus (CLCuV) causes devastating losses to fiber production in Central Asia. Viral spread across Asia in the last decade is causing concern that the virus will spread further before resistant varieties can be bred. Current development depends on screening each generation under disease pressure in a country where the disease is endemic. We utilized quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping in four crosses with different sources of resistance to identify single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers associated with the resistance trait to allow development of varieties without the need for field screening every generation. To assist in the analysis of multiple populations, a new publicly available R/Shiny App was developed to streamline genetic mapping using SNP arrays and to also provide an easy method to convert and deposit genetic data into the CottonGen database. Results identified several QTL from each cross, indicating possible multiple modes of resistance. Multiple sources of resistance would provide several genetic routes to combat the virus as it evolves over time. Kompetitive allele specific PCR (KASP) markers were developed and validated for a subset of QTL, which can be used in further development of CLCuV-resistant cotton lines.

The deadly earthquake in southeast Afghanistan on June 22, 2022 was a tragedy amidst the country's humanitarian crisis. It cost more than a thousand people's lives, caused three times more injuries, and destroyed many houses, mainly in Spera, Giyan, and Barmal districts. WHO and other NGOs responded to incidence, focusing on physical injuries, food shortage, and shelter, while mental health was not adequately emphasized. Almost half of the Afghanistan population suffers from mental disorders due to decades of civil war, economic instability, and natural disasters. The recent earthquake further exacerbates the mental conditions among earthquake victims and their families, making them vulnerable to severe mental disorders. The absence of local mental facilities and proper roads delayed the early response and made the follow-up difficult leading to serious mental issues and costly management. Although WHO and HealthNet TPO sent their mental health professionals to consult the earthquake victims and train health care workers, the sociocultural beliefs made the approach difficult and its result suspicious. Moreover, the stigma around mental health and the lack of female HCWs stop people from seeking mental healthcare., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2022 The Author(s).)

Plant bioactive compounds are important sources for the development of food, nutraceutical, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical products. Ultrasound-assisted extraction is one of the promising methods in the extraction of plant bioactive compounds. The ultrasonic-assisted extraction is accepted as a green extraction technique due to its high performance with less solvent and time consumption, as well as suitable for thermo-sensitive compounds. The objective of this paper is to review the recent advancement of ultrasound-assisted extraction for bioactive compounds from plant material. The mechanism and advantages of ultrasound-assisted extraction are discussed, particularly focusing on the extraction of bioactive compounds such as phenolics, flavonoids, thymols, saponins and proteins. Previous studies on the optimization of extraction variables are systematically reviewed to reveal their significant contribution to the yield and quality change of bioactive compounds. Ultrasonic technology has also been combined with other processing technologies to improve food quality, stability, safety and security. Therefore, ultrasound-assisted extraction is effective to recover bioactive compounds from plant materials and enhance the processing of food industries., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Cyanobacteria are the most abundant oxygenic photosynthetic organisms inhabiting various ecosystems on earth. As with all other photosynthetic organisms, cyanobacteria release oxygen as a byproduct during photosynthesis. In fact, some cyanobacterial species are involved in the global nitrogen cycles by fixing atmospheric nitrogen. Environmental factors influence the dynamic, physiological characteristics, and metabolic profiles of cyanobacteria, which results in their great adaptation ability to survive in diverse ecosystems. The evolution of these primitive bacteria resulted from the unique settings of photosynthetic machineries and the production of bioactive compounds. Specifically, bioactive compounds play roles as regulators to provide protection against extrinsic factors and act as intracellular signaling molecules to promote colonization. In addition to the roles of bioactive metabolites as indole alkaloids, terpenoids, mycosporine-like amino acids, non-ribosomal peptides, polyketides, ribosomal peptides, phenolic acid, flavonoids, vitamins, and antimetabolites for cyanobacterial survival in numerous habitats, which is the focus of this review, the bioactivities of these compounds for the treatment of various diseases are also discussed.

The recently emerged coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which has been characterised as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), is impacting all parts of human society including agriculture, manufacturing, and tertiary sectors involving all service provision industries. This paper aims to give an overview of potential host reservoirs that could cause pandemic outbreak caused by zoonotic transmission. Amongst all, continues surveillance in slaughterhouse for possible pathogens transmission is needed to prevent next pandemic outbreak. This paper also summarizes the potential threats of pandemic to agriculture and aquaculture sector that control almost the total food supply chain and market. The history lesson from the past, emerging and reemerging infectious disease including the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2002, Influenza A H1N1 (swine flu) in 2009, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in 2012 and the recent COVID-19 should give us some clue to improve especially the governance to be more ready for next coming pandemic., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Bacillus lehensis G1 is an alkaliphilic bacterium that is capable of surviving in environments up to pH 11. Secretome related to bacterial acclimation in alkaline environment has been less studied compared to cytoplasmic and membrane proteome. The aim of this study was to gain better understanding of bacterial acclimation to alkaline media through analyzing extracellular proteins of B. lehensis. The pH range for B. lehensis growth was conducted, and two-dimensional electrophoresis and MALDI-TOF/TOF MS analysis were conducted to characterize changes in protein profiling in B. lehensis cultured at pH 8 and pH 11 when compared with those cultured at pH 10 (optimal growth pH). B. lehensis could grow well at pH ranging from 8 to 11 in which the bacteria showed to posses thinner flagella at pH 11. Proteomic analyses demonstrated that five proteins were up-regulated and 13 proteins were down-regulated at pH 8, whereas at pH 11, 14 proteins were up-regulated and 8 were down-regulated. Majority of the differentially expressed proteins were involved in the cell wall, main glycolytic pathways, the metabolism of amino acids and related molecules and some proteins of unknown function. A total of 40 differentially expressed protein spots corresponding to 33 proteins were identified; including GlcNAc-binding protein A, chitinase, endopeptidase lytE, flagellar hook-associated proteins and enolase. These proteins may play important roles in acclimation to alkaline media via reallocation of cell wall structure and changes to cell surface glycolytic enzymes, amino acid metabolism, flagellar hook-associated proteins and chaperones to sustain life under pH-stressed conditions., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.)

Salinity threat is estimated to reduce global rice production by 50%. Comprehensive analysis of the physiological and metabolite changes in rice plants from salinity stress (i.e. tolerant versus susceptible plants) is important to combat higher salinity conditions. In this study, we screened a total of 92 genotypes and selected the most salinity tolerant line (SS1-14) and most susceptible line (SS2-18) to conduct comparative physiological and metabolome inspections. We demonstrated that the tolerant line managed to maintain their water and chlorophyll content with lower incidence of sodium ion accumulation. We also examined the antioxidant activities of these lines: production of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and catalase (CAT) were significantly higher in the sensitive line while superoxide dismutase (SOD) was higher in the tolerant line. Partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) score plots show significantly different response for both lines after the exposure to salinity stress. In the tolerant line, there was an upregulation of non-polar metabolites and production of sucrose, GABA and acetic acid, suggesting an important role in salinity adaptation. In contrast, glutamine and putrescine were noticeably high in the susceptible rice. Coordination of different strategies in tolerant and susceptible lines show that they responded differently after exposure to salt stress. These findings can assist crop development in terms of developing tolerance mechanisms for rice crops.

Bacillus lehensis G1 is a cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) producer, which can degrade starch into cyclodextrin. Here, we present the proteomics data of B. lehensis cultured in starch-containing medium, which is related to the article "Proteome-based identification of signal peptides for improved secretion of recombinant cyclomaltodextrin glucanotransferase in Escherichia coli " (Ling et. al, in press). This dataset was generated to better understand the secretion of proteins involved in starch utilization for bacterial sustained growth. A 2-DE proteomic technique was used and the proteins were tryptically digested followed by detection using MALDI-TOF/TOF. Proteins were classified into functional groups using the information available in SubtiList webserver (http://genolist.pasteur.fr/SubtiList/).

Cotton leaf curl disease (CLCuD) after its first epidemic in 1912 in Nigeria, has spread to different cotton growing countries including United States, Pakistan, India, and China. The disease is of viral origin-transmitted by the whitefly Bemisia tabaci , which is difficult to control because of the prevalence of multiple virulent viral strains or related species. The problem is further complicated as the CLCuD causing virus complex has a higher recombination rate. The availability of alternate host crops like tomato, okra, etc., and practicing mixed type farming system have further exaggerated the situation by adding synergy to the evolution of new viral strains and vectors. Efforts to control this disease using host plant resistance remained successful using two gene based-resistance that was broken by the evolution of new resistance breaking strain called Burewala virus. Development of transgenic cotton using both pathogen and non-pathogenic derived approaches are in progress. In future, screening for new forms of host resistance, use of DNA markers for the rapid incorporation of resistance into adapted cultivars overlaid with transgenics and using genome editing by CRISPR/Cas system would be instrumental in adding multiple layers of defense to control the disease-thus cotton fiber production will be sustained.

Background: Paratyphoid fever caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi A is becoming a serious health problem in Asian countries particularly Pakistan, China and India and situation is aggravated by current unavailability of a licensed vaccine. This study was designed to purify the O-specific polysaccharides (OSP) produced by an isolate of Salmonella Paratyphi A from Pakistan and detect antigenicity of extracted lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and purified OSP pioneerly in South Asian region as candidate for conjugate vaccine preparation., Results: S . Paratyphi A isolates were identified through PCR using primers of fliC - a gene (329 bp) and confirmed via nested PCR using fliC -nested primers (289 bp). Yield of the LPS of S . Paratyphi A isolate was 40 mg/L of the bacterial culture using hot phenol method. The purified LPS revealed the characteristic ladder like pattern of S . Paratyphi A LPS on SDS-PAGE with silver staining. Purified OSP obtained by acid hydrolysis yielded 23 mg/L of culture broth and was not detected by silver staining. Antigenic interaction of the purified LPS and OSP with hyper immune mice sera was confirmed by single precipitin line evaluated through immunodiffusion assay. The antigenicity was found well intact., Conclusions: The purified antigenic OSP from S. Paratyphi A may have the potential to be coupled with a carrier protein to develop low cost conjugate vaccine candidates against S. Paratyphi A in paratyphoid endemic regions.

This study was focused on plant genomic DNA extraction and sequencing from five commonly used medicinal herbs, namely Impatiens balsamina, Ficus deltoidea, Centella asiatica, Andrographis paniculata and Orthosiphon aristatus. This molecular technique is another highly reliable alternative for plant species identification besides phytochemical profiling. Three cetyl hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) based methods with slight modification on incubation time, salt content and other additives were used for DNA extraction. The CTAB method of Doyle and Doyle produced higher DNA concentration from L balsamina, most probably due to the presence of ammonium acetate in the washing buffer and longer incubation time (2 h). The CTAB based method was suitable for A. paniculata because a high DNA concentration of acceptable quality was obtained for all the modified methods. However, Ο. aristatus was likely to have a lower DNA concentration (33-87 μg/g) and quality, probably due to the high concentration of phenolic compounds, particularly rosmarinic acid. The extracted genomic DNA was effectively amplified by a polymerase chain reaction using a universal primer of internal transcribed spacer (ITS), particularly AB 101 and AB 102 at the optimum annealing temperature of 48°C. The DNA sequences were analyzed by phenetic analysis and it was found that they have high similarity with the nucleotide sequences of ITS regions for similar plant species in the GenBank database of the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

A new and rapid protocol for optimum callus production and complete plant regeneration has been assessed in Malaysian upland rice (Oryza sativa) cv. Panderas. The effect of plant growth regulator (PGR) on the regeneration frequency of Malaysian upland rice (cv. Panderas) was investigated. Mature seeds were used as a starting material for callus induction experiment using various concentrations of 2,4-D and NAA. Optimal callus induction frequency at 90% was obtained on MS media containing 2,4-D (3 mg L(-1)) and NAA (2 mg L(-1)) after 6 weeks while no significant difference was seen on tryptophan and glutamine parameters. Embryogenic callus was recorded as compact, globular and light yellowish in color. The embryogenic callus morphology was further confirmed with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis. For regeneration, induced calli were treated with various concentrations of Kin (0.5-1.5 mg L(-1)), BAP, NAA and 0.5 mg L(-1) of TDZ. The result showed that the maximum regeneration frequency (100%) was achieved on MS medium containing BAP (0.5 mg L(-1)), Kin (1.5 mg L(-1)), NAA (0.5 mg L(-1)) and TDZ (0.5 mg L(-1)) within four weeks. Developed shoots were successfully rooted on half strength MS free hormone medium and later transferred into a pot containing soil for acclimatization. This cutting-edge finding is unique over the other existing publishable data due to the good regeneration response by producing a large number of shoots.

Physiological and ecological constraints that cause the slow growth and depleted production of crops have raised a major concern in the agriculture industry as they represent a possible threat of short food supply in the future. The key feature that regulates the stress signaling pathway is always related to the reactive oxygen species (ROS). The accumulation of ROS in plant cells would leave traces of biomarkers at the genome, proteome, and metabolome levels, which could be identified with the recent technological breakthrough coupled with improved performance of bioinformatics. This review highlights the recent breakthrough in molecular strategies (comprising transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics) in identifying oxidative stress biomarkers and the arising opportunities and obstacles observed in research on biomarkers in rice. The major issue in incorporating bioinformatics to validate the biomarkers from different omic platforms for the use of rice-breeding programs is also discussed. The development of powerful techniques for identification of oxidative stress-related biomarkers and the integration of data from different disciplines shed light on the oxidative response pathways in plants.

Introduction: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are immunosuppressive, but we lack an understanding of how these adult stem cells are in turn affected by immune cells and the surrounding tissue environment. As MSCs have stromal functions and exhibit great plasticity, the influence of an inflamed microenvironment on their responses is important to determine. MSCs downregulate microglial inflammatory responses, and here we describe the mutual effects of coculturing mouse bone marrow MSCs with BV2 microglia in a lipopolysaccharide (LPS) inflammatory paradigm., Methods: Mouse MSCs were cultured from femoral and tibial bone marrow aspirates and characterized. MSCs were cocultured with BV2 microglia at four seeding-density ratios (1:0.2, 1:0.1, 1:0.02, and 1:0.01 (BV2/MSC)), and stimulated with 1 μg/ml LPS. In certain assays, MSCs were separated from BV2 cells with a cell-culture insert to determine the influence of soluble factors on downstream responses. Inflammatory mediators including nitric oxide (NO), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 2 (CCL2) were measured in cocultures, and MSC and BV2 chemotactic ability determined by migration assays., Results: We demonstrated MSCs to increase expression of NO and IL-6 and decrease TNF-α in LPS-treated cocultures. These effects are differentially mediated by soluble factors and cell-to-cell contact. In response to an LPS stimulus, MSCs display distinct behaviors, including expressing IL-6 and very high levels of the chemokine CCL2. Microglia increase their migration almost fourfold in the presence of LPS, and interestingly, MSCs provide an equal impetus for microglia locomotion. MSCs do not migrate toward LPS but migrate toward microglia, with their chemotaxis increasing when microglia are activated. Similarly, MSCs do not produce NO when exposed to LPS, but secrete large amounts when exposed to soluble factors from activated microglia. This demonstrates that certain phenotypic changes of MSCs are governed by inflammatory microglia, and not by the inflammatory stimulus. Nonetheless, LPS appears to "prime" the NO-secretory effects of MSCs, as prior treatment with LPS triggers a bigger NO response from MSCs after exposure to microglial soluble factors., Conclusions: These effects demonstrate the multifaceted and reciprocal interactions of MSCs and microglia within an inflammatory milieu.

Aim: To assess the capacity to isolate and expand mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) from bone marrow of CBA/Ca, ICR and Balb/c mice., Methods: Bone marrow of tibia and femur were flushed, cultured and maintained in supplemented Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium. MSC immunophenotype of cultures were tracked along increasing passages for positivity to CD106, Sca-1 and CD44 and negativity to CD45, CD11b and MHC class II. Differentiation capacity of MSC towards osteogenic and adipogenic lineages were also assessed., Results: MSC were successfully cultured from bone marrow of all 3 strains, albeit differences in the temporal expression of certain surface antigens. Their differentiation into osteocytes and adipocytes were also observed. MSC from all 3 mouse strains demonstrated a shift from a haematopoietic phenotype (CD106(-)CD45(+)CD11b(+)Sca-1(low)) to typical MSC phenotype (CD106(+)CD45(-)CD11b(-)Sca-1(high)) with increasing passages., Conclusion: Information garnered assists us in the decision of selecting a mouse strain to generate MSC from for downstream experimentation.

The immunoregulatory properties of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) have been demonstrated on a wide range of cells. Here, we describe the modulatory effects of mouse bone marrow-derived MSC on BV2 microglia proliferation rate, nitric oxide (NO) production and CD40 expression. Mouse bone marrow MSC were co-cultured with BV2 cells at various seeding density ratios and activated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We show that MSC exert an anti-proliferative effect on microglia and are potent producers of NO when stimulated by soluble factors released by LPS-activated BV2. MSC suppressed proliferation of both untreated and LPS-treated microglia in a dose-dependent manner, significantly reducing BV2 proliferation at seeding density ratios of 1:0.2 and 1:0.1 (p<.05). Co-culturing MSC with BV2 cells at different ratios revealed interesting dynamics in NO production. A high number of MSC significantly increases NO in co-cultures whilst a lower number reduces NO. The increased NO levels in co-cultures may be MSC-derived, as we also show that activated BV2 cells stimulate MSC to produce NO. Cell-cell interaction is not a requirement for this effect as soluble factors released by activated BV2 cells alone do stimulate MSC to produce high levels of NO. Although NO is implicated as a mediator for T cell proliferation, it does not appear to play a major role in the suppression of microglia proliferation. Additionally, MSC reduced the expression of the microglial co-stimulator molecule, CD40. Collectively, these regulatory effects of MSC on microglia offer insight into the potential moderating properties of MSC on inflammatory responses within the CNS., (Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)