Search

Although recent studies have reported stimulatory effect of trinexapac-ethyl (TE) on eucalyptus growth, there is no consensus regarding the best dose to promote this response. Since TE acts in the gibberellin (GA) biosynthesis pathway, the study of hormonal crosstalk between the leaves and the shoot apical bud (SAB) can provide important information for understanding the positive effect previously reported. We evaluate the TE dose–response curve for eucalyptus growth in different soil moisture conditions (well watered—WW and 40% of field capacity—40-FC) and its effects on plant physiology, as well as the hormonal crosstalk between the leaves and SAB. TE caused a 49% increase in WW eucalypt growth, but not to plants under 40-FC. Estimated dose for the greatest stimulatory effect on WW eucalypt plants is 202 g a.i. ha−1. TE did not cause an increase in the plants' photosynthetic characteristics up to 15 days after application (DAA), suggesting a later increase in the eucalypt's primary metabolism. Conversely to what have been reported for monocot crops, TE caused a fivefold increase in leaf GA1 as a short-term effect (05 DAA), but significantly decreased SAB-GA1 concentration. Leaf concentrations of indole-3-acetic acid, salicylic acid, abscisic acid and N6-isopentenyladenine also increased. TE caused changes in both 13-hydroxylated (GA20, GA1 and GA8) and non-13-hydroxylated (GA9, GA4 and GA34) GA metabolic pathways in an organ-specific manner. Our results provide information to support the use of this plant growth regulator in eucalyptus plantations, as well as insights into the hormonal crosstalk between leaves and SAB in response to TE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have shown that any magnetic field (MF) applied to microalgae modifies its cultivation conditions and may favor biomolecule production since it interacts with the microorganisms and affect their growth. As a result, there are changes in concentrations and compositions of biomass and biomolecules. This review aims at updating MF applications to microalga cultures that were reported by studies conducted in the last 5 years. It shows the main studies that reached positive results of carbohydrate, lipid, protein and pigment production. Effects of MFs may be positive, negative or null, depending on some factors, such as intensity, exposure time, physiological state of cells and application devices. Therefore, this review details cultivation conditions used for reaching high concentration of biomolecules, explains the action of MFs on microalgae and describes their applicability to the biorefinery concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb (Alligator weed) and Eichhornia crassipes (Mart) Solms (Water hyacinth) are invasive species worldwide, generally affect native aquatic ecosystem. E. crassipes (water hyacinth) is found to be more aggressive invader than A. philoxeroides. To safeguard aquatic flora, fauna and to reduce invasive weeds it is suggested to use allelochemicals than chemicals. Investigations indicated that allelopathy potential of A. philoxeroides play an important role in suppressing water hyacinth at higher concentration. A study was conducted in year 2020-21 at AICRP-weed management, UAS, Bangalore, to investigate the allelopathic effect of aqueous extracts of A. philoxeroides plant parts on the growth E. crassipes. The results indicated that the spraying of allelochemicals present in the A. philoxeroides at lower concentration at the initial days after spray showed stimulatory effect likely due to the growth promoting effects of the nutrients present in the extracts. At higher concentration the allelo chemicals in different concentration in different plant part of A. philoxeroides had varying inhibitory effect on growth of water hyacinth. The inhibitory effect ranged from 2.09 to 78.13 per cent due to presence of allelochemicals in the form of phenolic compounds at different concentrations in different plant parts. The findings elucidate that there is mechanism of the biological invasion of E. crassipes by A.philoxeroides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lane changing behavior is one of the most important tasks in driving. Cooperative lane change based on vehicle-vehicle (V2V) communication technology is getting extensive attention due to its potential to improve traffic safety and increase efficiency. In order to explore the internal mechanism of cooperative lane change behavior, the cooperative car-following model considering the stimulatory effect of lane-changing types is proposed in this paper. We investigate three lane changing types (free lane change, forced lane change, and cooperative lane change) to impact cooperative lane changing behavior. Based on this analysis, cooperative level function is presented. By using linear stability theory, the stability criterion of the proposed model is obtained. Simulation scenarios are set in three typical situations (starting process, stopping process and perturbation process) to analyze FVD model, cooperative driving for non-lane mode and cooperative driving for lane-changing mode. Simulation results indicate that cooperative driving of lane-changing mode has larger stable region compared to FVD model, cooperative driving for non-lane mode. Furthermore, the higher the level of cooperation, the greater the area of stability. Meanwhile, the simulation experiment also shows that response capability and smoothness of cooperative driving for lane-changing mode is be effectively promoted to the acceleration, velocity evolution.

Background: Asparaginases are known to be the cornerstone for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and are used for treatment in all pediatric regimens as well as in the majority of adult treatment protocols. Clinical hypersensitivity reactions against commercially available asparaginase have resulted in the failure in the treatment of ALL in more than 60% of cases. Thus, it is required to search for serologically different asparaginases from new organisms for patients exhibiting sensitivity to one formulation of asparaginase. Materials & Methods: The experiments were conducted in 250 mL flasks containing 100 mL of M9 broth medium and incubated at 35˚C for 48 h with shaking 100 rpm. The bacterium produced an extracellular asparaginase enzyme in which a heavy metal-rich medium was influenced—considering that this idea, enzyme activity was marked at the presence of metal salts such as FeCl3, ZnCl2, CoCl2, MgCl2, CaCl2, CuSO4, KCl and NaCl with the different concentrations as 0-3% W/V. Results: In this research, we isolated a bacterium that belonged to staphylococcus species named strain MGM1 and deposited to NCBI by accession number of KT361190. The results showed that Na+, Fe2+, and K+ were inducted to enzyme production, and Zn2+ had no effects, while Cu2+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ inhibited enzyme activity when their concentrations increased up to 1%. Conclusion: This study aimed to investigate the effects of different ions on the activity of the enzyme in the blood and fluid of the body. Such compounds are vital elements in the blood, and therefore, their effect on the enzyme is very important, So This experiment suggests that asparaginase could be affected by the metals.

Cold atmospheric pressure plasmas (CAPPs) have been widely used for pre‐sowing treatment in agriculture to accelerate seed germination; however, information on their application to pre‐transplant seedlings is scarce. The roles of the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) on guard cell aperture that control air exchange with the environment were investigated after CAPPs treatment.In this study, Arabidopsis thaliana seedling growth was evaluated under CAPPs treatment at different doses. Besides, the optimal growth stimulation dose was selected to further evaluate changes in ABA, ROS, Ca2+ and stomatal aperture during growth.The expression of most ABA signalling genes were aslo examined to investigate the mechanism.CAPPs treatment for 1 min significantly promoted Arabidopsis seedling growth; the ABA concentration in seedlings increased and peaked 48 h after treatment but was lower than in the control after 96 h. Transcript levels of most ABA signalling genes were markedly enhanced at 48 h, although their transcripts were significantly downregulated after 96 h. CAPPs treatment also reduced stomatal aperture after 24 h and accelerated ROS accumulation in guard cells. The Ca2+ concentration in the treatment group was markedly higher than in the control at 24 and 96 h.The results suggest that CAPPs treatment accelerates ABA accumulation in Arabidopsis at early growth stages and ABA regulates ROS and Ca2+ concentrations to affect stomatal aperture, and both ABA and stoma size are affected in CAPPs stimulation of Arabidopsis seedling growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have reported that trinexapac-ethyl (TE) stimulates growth of well-watered (WW) eucalypt plants. However, the physiological and hormonal changes in response to this chemical remain unclear. Furthermore, there are reports that this chemical attenuates drought responses in grasses. This research investigated the hormonal and physiological response of Eucalyptus urograndis (Clone 1407) plants treated with TE, cultivated under WW and drought conditions. The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse up to 42 days after application of 0, 90 and 150 g ha−1 of TE. Eucalypt growth, hormone concentration, gas exchange, maximum quantum yield of photosystem II and total relative chlorophyll content were evaluated. TE increased growth of WW plants by up to 65%. Drought restricted the stimulatory effects of TE on eucalypt growth, despite an increase of at least 102% in gibberellin A 4 (GA 4), trans -zeatin (tZ) and N 6-isopentenyladenine (iP) concentrations after application. GA 4 stood out as an indicator of drought stress as it increased almost 6-fold compared to WW eucalypt. TE caused a hormonal imbalance in eucalypt up to 42 days after application, increasing GA 1 concentration as a short-term effect (8 days) and GA 8 as a medium-term effect (42 days). Gibberellin homeostasis was not reestablished until 42 days after TE treatment. These results provide insights into eucalypt hormonal response to TE. Future research should be conducted under field conditions to understand how long such positive effects would be detected over time in short-rotation eucalypt plantations. • Trinexapac-ethyl increased well-watered eucalypt growth by up to 65%. • Trinexapac-ethyl increased GA 1 biosynthesis as a short-term effect, followed by GA 8. • Gibberellin A 4 stood out as a drought stress indicator, increasing almost 6-fold. • Under drought, trinexapac-ethyl increased cytokinin biosynthesis, which may lessen the stress. • Drought restricted stimulatory effects of trinexapac-ethyl on growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seeds of the tree tomato (Solanum betaceum Cav.) were treated with allelopathic plant extracts: ferula gum (FER, 0.2 g gum L-1, 25°C, 24 h), lantana petal extract (LAN, 4 g dried petal L-1, 25°C, 24 h) and marigold petal extract (TAG, 4 g dried petal L-1, 25°C, 24 h) along with an untreated control to determine the effect of these extracts on seedling emergence and performance. The pre-sowing influence of the allelopathic extracts (FER, LAN and TAG) on the emergence percentage (%), mean emergence time (days), emergence index, coefficient of velocity of emergence (%), seedling length (cm), seedling fresh weight (mg), seedling dry weight (mg), and stimulatory allelopathic index (%) was investigated in tree tomato seeds. The results revealed that pre-sowing treatment with the studied allelopathic plant extracts showed higher seedling emergence and performance. The greatest advantage of the pre-sowing treatment was observed in the TAG treatment. Allelopathic TAG treatment resulted in 15% higher seedling emergence rates, 3.3 d faster mean emergence time, 153 mg heavier seedling weights, and higher emergence index compared to untreated seeds. In addition, the effect of allelopathic FER and LAN treatments was better than the control.

Copyright of Agronomía Colombiana is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Drug-drug interaction (DDI) is one of causes of adverse drug events and can result in lifethreatening consequences. Organic anion-transporting polypeptide (OATP) 2B1 is a major uptake transporter in the intestine and contributes to transport various clinically used therapeutic agents. The intestine has a high risk of DDI, because it has a special propensity to be exposed to a high concentration of drugs. Thus, understanding drug interaction mediated by OATP2B1 in the absorption process is important for the prevention of adverse drug events, including decrease in the therapeutic effect of co-administered drugs. Acute drug interaction occurs through the direct inhibitory effect on transporters, including OATP2B1. Moreover, some compounds such as clinically used drugs and food components have an acute stimulatory effect on transport of co-administered drugs by OATP2B1. This review summarizes the acute stimulatory effect on the transport mediated by OATP2B1 and discusses the mechanisms of the acute stimulatory effects of compounds. There are two types of acute stimulatory effects, substrate-independent and -dependent interactions on OATP2B1 function. The facilitating translocation of OATP2B1 to the plasma membrane is one of causes for the substrate-independent acute stimulatory effect. On the contrary, the substrate-dependent effect is based on the direct binding to the substrate-binding site or allosteric progesterone-binding site of OATP2B1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medicinal plants have been identified and used as primary sources in prevention and treatment of pulmonary diseases (mainly obstructive pulmonary diseases) from ancient times due to various pharmacological activities. In this review, the stimulatory effects of extracts, some fractions and constituents of medicinal plants on β2-adrenoceptors which could be used as possible therapeutic agents in the future were reviewed. Various databases including; Medline, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Google Scholar were searched using stimulatory effect, β2-adrenoceptors, possible mechanism, tracheal smooth muscle (TSM), medicinal plants and their constituents as keywords from 1985 to 2017. All studied plants including; Nigella sativa, Rosa damascena, Thymus vulgaris, Carum copticom, Carum carvi, Zataria multiflora, Crocus sativus, Cuminum cyminum, Liomnia acidissima, Portulaca oleraceae, Satureja hortensis, Ephedra sinica and Achillea millefolium showed relaxant effect on tracheal smooth muscle with a stimulatory effect on β2-adrenoceptors mechanism. The studied plants and their constituents could be of therapeutic value in clinical practice as a bronchodilatory drug by β2-adrenoceptors stimulatory mechanism for treatment of obstructive pulmonary diseases.

Background: Asparaginases are known to be the cornerstone for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and are used for treatment in all pediatric regimens as well as in the majority of adult treatment protocols. Clinical hypersensitivity reactions against commercially available asparaginase have resulted in the failure in treatment of ALL in more than 60% of cases. Thus, it is required to search for serologically different asparaginases from new organisms for patients exhibiting sensitivity to one formulation of asparaginase. Materials & Methods: The experiments were conducted in 250 mL flasks containing 100 mL of M9 broth medium and incubated at 35˚C for 48 h with shaking 100 rpm. The bacterium produced an extracellular asparaginase enzyme in which a heavy metal-rich medium was influenced. Considering this idea, enzyme activity was marked at the presence of metal salts such as FeCl3, ZnCl2, CoCl2, MgCl2, CaCl2, CuSO4, KCl and NaCl with the different concentrations as 0-3% W/V. Results: In this research, we isolated a bacterium belonged to staphylococcus species named strain MGM1 and deposited to NCBI by accession number of KT361190. The results showed that Na+, Fe2+ and K+ were inducted to enzyme production and Zn2+ had no effects on enzyme activity, while Cu2+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ inhibited enzyme activity when their concentrations increased up to 1%. Conclusion: This study aimed to investigate the effects of different ions on the activity of the enzyme in the blood and fluid of the body. Such compounds are vital elements in the blood and therefore, their effect on the enzyme is very important So This experiment suggests that asparaginase could be affected by the metals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medicinal plants have been identified and used as primary sources in prevention and treatment of pulmonary diseases (mainly obstructive pulmonary diseases) from ancient times due to various pharmacological activities. In this review, the stimulatory effects of extracts, some fractions and constituents of medicinal plants on β2-adrenoceptors which could be used as possible therapeutic agents in the future were reviewed. Various databases including; Medline, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Google Scholar were searched using stimulatory effect, β2-adrenoceptors, possible mechanism, tracheal smooth muscle (TSM), medicinal plants and their constituents as keywords from 1985 to 2017. All studied plants including; Nigella sativa, Rosa damascena, Thymus vulgaris, Carum copticom, Carum carvi, Zataria multiflora, Crocus sativus, Cuminum cyminum, Liomnia acidissima, Portulaca oleraceae, Satureja hortensis, Ephedra sinica and Achillea millefolium showed relaxant effect on tracheal smooth muscle with a stimulatory effect on β2-adrenoceptors mechanism. The studied plants and their constituents could be of therapeutic value in clinical practice as a bronchodilatory drug by β2-adrenoceptors stimulatory mechanism for treatment of obstructive pulmonary diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Di-rhamnolipid and mixed rhamnolipid were added to rice straw degrading system to investigate their mechanism of stimulatory effect. By batch adsorption experiments, it was shown that the equilibrium adsorption time of rhamnolipids on rice straw single system was the shortest (50 min). The adsorption capacity of Trichoderma reesei single system was the strongest, whose Q e,exp for di-rhamnolipid and mixed rhamnolipid was 10.57 × 10 −2 mg·g −1 and 8.13 × 10 −2 mg·g −1 , respectively. The adsorption of rhamnolipids on consortia system was not the simple adduct of the two single systems. The adsorption of rhamnolipids on the three different systems might belong to chemisorptions. SEM and FTIR analyses were used to observe the morphology and to analyze the chemical functions in lignocellulosic biomass degradation with rhamnolipid. It was shown that after addition of rhamnolipids, the basic tissue in rice straw was severely destroyed and hydrogen bond was formed between biosurfactant and bacteria in lignocellulose degrading system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weed management systems in almost all Brazilian coffee plantations allow herbicide spray to drift on crop plants. In order to evaluate if there is any effect of the most commonly used herbicide in coffee production, glyphosate, on coffee plants, a range of glyphosate doses were applied directly on coffee plants at two distinct plant growth stages. Although growth of both young and old plants was reduced at higher glyphosate doses, low doses caused no effects on growth characteristics of young plants and stimulated growth of older plants. Therefore, hormesis with glyphosate is dependent on coffee plant growth stage at the time of herbicide application.Os sistemas de manejo de plantas daninhas em quase todos os pomares de café do Brasil permitem que o herbicida pulverizado sofra deriva sobre a cultura. Com objetivo de avaliar se há algum efeito do glyphosate, herbicida mais comumente utilizado em pomares de café, sobre as plantas de café, uma ampla faixa de doses do herbicida foi aplicada diretamente sobre plantas de café em dois distintos estádios de crescimento da planta. Embora o crescimento de ambas as plantas novas e velhas tenha sido reduzido em doses mais altas de glyphosate, baixas doses não causaram efeitos sobre características de crescimento de plantas novas e estimularam o crescimento das mais velhas. Portanto, o efeito hormético do glyphosate é dependente do estádio de crescimento da planta de café no momento da aplicação do herbicida.

Low level laser therapy (LLLT) has been used successfully in biomedicine and some of the results are thought to be related to cell proliferation. The effects of LLLT on cell proliferation is debatable because studies have found both an increase and a decrease in proliferation of cell cultures. Cell culture is an excellent method to assess both effects and dose of treatment. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of 635nm and 670nm laser irradiation of H.Ep.2 cells in vitro using MTT (3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide). The cells were obtained from squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the larynx and were routinely processed from defrost to the experimental condition. Twenty-four hours after transplantation the cells were irradiated with doses ranging from 0.04 to 0.48J/cm² for seven consecutive days (5 mW diode lasers: 635nm or 670nm, beam cross-section ~1mm) at local light doses between 0.04 and 0.48J/cm². The results showed that 635nm laser light did not significantly stimulate the proliferation of H.Ep.2 cells at doses of 0.04J/cm² to 0.48J/cm², However, 670nm laser irradiation led to an increased cell proliferation when compared to both control and 635nm irradiated cells. The best cell proliferation was found with 670nm laser irradiated cultures exposed to doses of doses of 0.04 to 0.48J/cm². We conclude that both dose and wavelength are factors that may affect cell proliferation of H.Ep.2 cells.

Although the ecological safety of nanomaterials is of widespread concern, their current ambient concentrations are not yet sufficient to cause serious toxic effects. Thus, the nontoxic bioimpact of nanomaterials in wastewater treatment has attracted increasing attention. In this study, the effect of nano zinc oxide (nZnO), one of the most widely used nanomaterials, on the anaerobic biodegradation of methyl orange (MO) by Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 was comprehensively investigated. High-dosage nZnO (>0.5 mg/L) caused severe toxic stress on S. oneidensis MR-1, resulting in the decrease in decolorization efficiency. However, nZnO at ambient concentrations could act as nanostimulants and promote the anaerobic removal of MO by S. oneidensis MR-1, which should be attributed to the improvement of decolorization efficiency rather than cell proliferation. The dissolved Zn2+ was found to contribute to the bioeffect of nZnO on MO decolorization. Further investigation revealed that low-dosage nZnO could promote the cell viability, membrane permeability, anaerobic metabolism, as well as related gene expression, indicating that nZnO facilitated rather than inhibited the anaerobic wastewater treatment under ambient conditions. Thus, this work provides a new insight into the bioeffect of nZnO in actual environment and facilitates the practical application of nanomaterials as nanostimulants in biological process. • High concentration of nZnO inhibited azo dye degradation by S. oneidensis MR-1. • Low-dose nZnO exposure facilitated anaerobic biodecolorization of methyl orange. • Anaerobic bioeffect of nZnO depended on the dissolved Zn2+. • NZnO influenced cell viability, membrane permeability, and anaerobic metabolism. • Gene expression of S. oneidensis MR-1 was subjected to nZnO dosage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been well established that gamma rays at low doses have stimulatory effects on plant growth and development. However, our knowledge regarding the molecular mechanism underlying the growth stimulation remains limited. In this study, we report the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and abscisic acid (ABA) in the growth stimulation using irradiated Arabidopsis seeds. The results indicated that 50 Gy gamma irradiation presented maximal beneficial effects on germination index, root length, and fresh weight. The contents of hydrogen peroxide (HO) and activities of antioxidant enzymes under gamma irradiation were markedly higher than those of controls. ROS scavenging significantly suppressed the growth of the irradiated plants. Furthermore, endogenous ABA was induced under low-dose gamma irradiation. The growth stimulation and elevated HO level were affected in the irradiated ABA-deficient mutant aba2- 1 compared with the mutant control. Transcriptional expression analysis of selected genes revealed that several genes for ABA biosynthesis were upregulated, and the genes for ABA catabolic pathway and transport were differentially regulated in response to low-dose gamma irradiation. Our results suggest that ROS and ABA signaling play an essential role in the stimulatory effects of low-dose gamma irradiation and that ROS, as secondary molecules, mediate ABA signal transduction under irradiation in response to stress factors during plant growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Fullerene, routinely considered as bacteriostat, was found having stimulatory effect. [•] Fullerene enriched several bacteria in a denitrifying microbial community. [•] Growth and metabolic activities of a Bacillus isolate were promoted by fullerene. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Supplements with readily metabolizable organic substrates were investigated to increase the biomass and enhance degradation of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) due to the low biomass yield of MTBE which has been one of the factors for low-rate MTBE degradation. The influence of various organic substrates on the rate of aerobic degradation of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) by Methylibium petroleiphilum PM1 was investigated, and only yeast extract (YE), beef extract and tryptone exhibited stimulatory effect. With the concentration of each substrate being 100mg/L, the average MTBE removal rate could increase to 1.29, 1.20 and 1.04mg/(Lh), respectively, in comparison with 0.71mg/(Lh) when carried out in medium without addition. The stimulatory effects of YE addition, as well as induction period required by MTBE degradation, varied dramatically with the storage conditions, pre-culture medium and concentrations of the inoculums. The extent of stimulatory effects of YE might be closely related to the proportion of induction period in the total time of MTBE-degradation. The removal efficiency increased from about 50% to 90.5% with the addition of YE in a packed-bed reactor loaded with calcium alginate immobilized cells. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: To study the mechanism(s) of the relaxant effects of Crocus sativus (Iridaceae), the stimulatory effect of aqueous-ethanolic extracts of this plant and one of its constituent, safranal was examined on β-adrenoceptors in tracheal chains of guinea pigs. The β 2-adrenergic stimulatory was tested by performing the cumulative concentration–response curves of isoprenaline-induced relaxation of pre-contracted isolated guinea pig tracheal chains. The studied solutions were included two concentrations of aqueous-ethanolic extract from Crocus sativus (0.1 and 0.2g%), safranal (1.25 and 2.5μg), 10nM propranolol, and saline. The study was done in two different conditions including: non-incubated (group 1, n=9) and incubated tissues with 1μM chlorpheniramine (group 2, n=6). The results showed clear leftward shifts in isoprenaline curves obtained in the presence of only higher concentration of the extract in group 1and its both concentrations in group 2 compared with that of saline. The EC50 (the effective concentration of isoprenaline, causing 50% of maximum response) obtained in the presence of both concentrations of the extract (0.17±0.06 and 0.12±0.02) and safranal (0.22±0.05 and 0.22±0.05) in group 1 and only in the presence of two concentrations of the extract (1.16±0.31 and 0.68±0.21) in group 2 was significantly lower compared to saline (1.00±0.22 and 4.06±1.04 for groups 1 and 2, respectively) (p<0.05–0.001). The maximum responses obtained in the presence of both concentrations of the extract and safranal in group 1 were significantly lower than that of saline (p<0.005 for all cases). All values (CR−1=(EC50 obtained in the presence of active substances/EC50, obtained in the presence of saline)−1) obtained in the presence of higher concentrations of extract in group 1, its both concentrations and higher concentration of safranal in group 2 were negative and there were significant differences in this value between propranolol and those obtained in the presence of extract and safranal (p<0.05 to p<0.001). The results indicated a relatively potent stimulatory effect of the extract from Crocus sativus on β 2-adrenoceptors which is partially due to its constituent, safranal. A possible inhibitory effect of the plant on histamine (H1) receptors was also suggested. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) varieties of soybean and cotton have been widely adopted in South America, but defoliation by the southern armyworm Spodoptera eridania (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) has increased in these crops. This issue may be linked to the low inherent susceptibility of the larvae to some Bt toxins. However, this hypothesis was not yet tested, nor was the potential sublethal effects of the toxins on larval development of southern armyworm. Here we determined the response of southern armyworm larvae exposed to Bt toxins representative of those used in soybean and cotton cultivars. In concentration-response bioassays, whereas a low median lethal concentration (LC 50) value was found for Cry2Aa (11 ng/cm2), higher LC 50 values were found for Cry1F (>3000 ng/cm2) and Cry1Ac (>10000 ng/cm2). Larval growth of the southern armyworm showed a hormesis-like response when the larvae were reared on artificial diet containing increasing Cry1Ac concentrations. Such enhanced larval growth was also observed when fresh foliage of Cry1Ac soybean or its lyophilized tissue in an artificial diet were fed to the larvae. Although the foliage of the dual-toxin Bt cotton producing Cry1Ac + Cry2Ab killed all larvae, its lyophilized leaf tissue caused no significant larval mortality when diluted 25 times. These results indicate that southern armyworm larvae have low inherent susceptibility to Cry1Ac and Cry1F toxins, while the Cry1Ac Bt toxin can enhance its larval growth. In addition, Cry1Ac + Cry2Ab Bt cotton may not meet the high-dose condition for the southern armyworm. These findings have important implications for pest management of the southern armyworm, which is discussed. Image 1 • Southern armyworm (Spodoptera eridania) larvae can infest fields of some Bt crops. • The larvae had high tolerance to Cry1Ac and Cry1Fa but not to Cry2Aa. • The larvae grew on Cry1Ac-containing diet in a hormesis-like fashion. • Cry1Ac soybean foliage or its lyophilized leaf tissue caused enhanced larval growth. • Cry1Ac + Cry2Ab Bt cotton foliage killed all larvae but may not reach a high dose. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• GLs boosted enzymatic hydrolysis yield of Avicel and GVL/H 2 O pretreated corn stover. • GLs showed comparable enhancement in cellulose enzymatic hydrolysis as surfactants. • GLs had low cellulases adsorption capacity and weak binding strength. • Less enzyme adsorption of GLs was owing to low zeta-potential and high S/G ratio. The impact of lignin extracted from γ-valerolactone/water (GVL/H 2 O) pretreatment of corn stover on the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose was investigated. Two lignin samples were separated and named as GL25 and GL75 according to the amounts of sulfuric acid (25 mM and 75 mM) used in the GVL/H 2 O pretreatment. With the addition of 2 g/L of GL25 and GL75, the glucan conversion of enzymatic hydrolysis of Avicel improved markedly from 28.0% to 37.4% and 31.3%, respectively. Moreover, the improvement of glucan conversion increased when increasing the loadings of GL25 and GL75. A similar observation was made when GVL/H 2 O pretreated corn stover was the substrate. The results of the cellulase adsorption experiments showed that the GLs had a lower maximum cellulase adsorption capacity and binding strength compared to that of acid-insoluble lignin. Further structural characterization of the GLs revealed that they had a low zeta-potential and hydrophobicity, but a high Syringyl/Guaiacyl ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current climate change scenario may affect water availability in the soil, impacting the agricultural sector. Planting of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) has increased because of its potential for cultivation under drought conditions during the off-season in Brazil and its high potential for use in biofuel production. There are several reports about the potential of low doses of glyphosate to promote plant growth and development (hormesis). Despite the concept of glyphosate hormesis being well established, little is known about any mitigating effect on plants under water deficit conditions. The hypothesis raised is that low doses of glyphosate promote water stress tolerance during the growth and reproductive phases of C. tinctorius exposed to different water regimes., Results: In regimes with and without water deficiency, growth of plants treated with low doses of glyphosate increased, reaching a maximum stimulus amplitude of ~ 131% of control. However, plants under water deficit required lower doses to achieve maximum growth and development. They maintained photosynthetic rates at the level of well-watered plants because they had reduced stomatal conductance and transpiration. Gains in plant height and leaf area were the same as for controls., Conclusions: Low doses of glyphosate can act as mitigators of water deficit in C. tinctorius, allowing plants to maintain their metabolism, reaching levels close to those of plants without water stress, as observed for plant height and leaf area. Our findings indicate that there are even greater implications for understanding glyphosate hormesis in plants under drought conditions, given the current climate change scenario. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry., (© 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.)

Drug-drug interaction (DDI) is one of causes of adverse drug events and can result in life-threatening consequences. Organic anion-transporting polypeptide (OATP) 2B1 is a major uptake transporter in the intestine and contributes to transport various clinically used therapeutic agents. The intestine has a high risk of DDI, because it has a special propensity to be exposed to a high concentration of drugs. Thus, understanding drug interaction mediated by OATP2B1 in the absorption process is important for the prevention of adverse drug events, including decrease in the therapeutic effect of co-administered drugs. Acute drug interaction occurs through the direct inhibitory effect on transporters, including OATP2B1. Moreover, some compounds such as clinically used drugs and food components have an acute stimulatory effect on transport of co-administered drugs by OATP2B1. This review summarizes the acute stimulatory effect on the transport mediated by OATP2B1 and discusses the mechanisms of the acute stimulatory effects of compounds. There are two types of acute stimulatory effects, substrate-independent and -dependent interactions on OATP2B1 function. The facilitating translocation of OATP2B1 to the plasma membrane is one of causes for the substrate-independent acute stimulatory effect. On the contrary, the substrate-dependent effect is based on the direct binding to the substrate-binding site or allosteric progesterone-binding site of OATP2B1., (© 2019 Shenyang Pharmaceutical University. Published by Elsevier B.V.)