A design method of high-compatibility horn for broad-bandwidth transducer.

Broad-bandwidth transducers are one of the main areas of focus for the development of power ultrasonic systems, which address the issues that the contactless transformer system cannot track transducer frequency and narrowband transducers are not compatible with different tools. This paper aims to investigate the potential capabilities of broad-bandwidth transducers in terms of compatibility with different horns and to propose a design method for highly compatible tools. The frequency equation of horn is nondimensionalized to calculate relative frequency errors δ. The effects of shape, dimensionless size, and order number on δ are investigated based on the equation. A compatibility range is proposed, and the relationship between it and the required relative bandwidth of the transducer is investigated. Various horns were designed, and the corresponding simulations, impedance measurements, and resonance experiments were conducted to explore the effects of these factors on δ, amplitude, and the quality factor Q. These experiments also verified the feasibility of using a broad-bandwidth transducer that is compatible with different tools. Finally, the application scenarios of the three horns are summarized based on a comparison of their matching ability, amplitude, operational stability, and compatibility range.

Gene expression analysis of resistant and susceptible rice cultivars to sheath blight after inoculation with Rhizoctonia solani.

BACKGROUND: Rice sheath blight, caused by Rhizoctonia solani Kühn (teleomorph: Thanatephorus cucumeris), is one of the most severe diseases in rice (Oryza sativa L.) worldwide. Studies on resistance genes and resistance mechanisms of rice sheath blight have mainly focused on indica rice. Rice sheath blight is a growing threat to rice production with the increasing planting area of japonica rice in Northeast China, and it is therefore essential to explore the mechanism of sheath blight resistance in this rice subspecies. RESULTS: In this study, RNA-seq technology was used to analyse the gene expression changes of leaf sheath at 12, 24, 36, 48, and 72 h after inoculation of the resistant cultivar 'Shennong 9819' and susceptible cultivar 'Koshihikari' with R. solani. In the early stage of R. solani infection of rice leaf sheaths, the number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the inoculated leaf sheaths of resistant and susceptible cultivars showed different regularity. After inoculation, the number of DEGs in the resistant cultivar fluctuated, while the number of DEGs in the susceptible cultivar increased first and then decreased. In addition, the number of DEGs in the susceptible cultivar was always higher than that in the resistant cultivar. After inoculation with R. solani, the overall transcriptome changes corresponding to multiple biological processes, molecular functions, and cell components were observed in both resistant and susceptible cultivars. These included metabolic process, stimulus response, biological regulation, catalytic activity, binding and membrane, and they were differentially regulated. The phenylalanine metabolic pathway; tropane, piperidine, and pyridine alkaloid biosynthesis pathways; and plant hormone signal transduction were significantly enriched in the early stage of inoculation of the resistant cultivar Shennong 9819, but not in the susceptible cultivar Koshihikari. This indicates that the response of the resistant cultivar Shennong 9819 to pathogen stress was faster than that of the susceptible cultivar. The expression of plant defense response marker PR1b gene, transcription factor OsWRKY30 and OsPAL1 and OsPAL6 genes that induce plant resistance were upregulated in the resistant cultivar. These data suggest that in the early stage of rice infection by R. solani, there is a pathogen-induced defence system in resistant rice cultivars, involving the expression of PR genes, key transcription factors, PAL genes, and the enrichment of defence-related pathways. CONCLUSION: The transcriptome data revealed the molecular and biochemical differences between resistant and susceptible cultivars of rice after inoculation with R. solani, indicating that resistant cultivars have an immune response mechanism in the early stage of pathogen infection. Disease resistance is related to the overexpression of PR genes, key transcriptome factors, and PAL genes, which are potential targets for crop improvement.

Effects of phenolic acids from ginseng rhizosphere on soil fungi structure, richness and diversity in consecutive monoculturing of ginseng.

Ginseng yield and quality are seriously compromised by consecutive monoculturing in northeastern China. The imbalance of soil fungi communities and autotoxicity of ginseng are the major factors in consecutive monoculturing ginseng crops. Soil fungal communities were identified using Illumina MiSeq sequencing, applied to soils that consecutively cultured ginseng (CCG) for six years and new forest soil (NFS), or receiving application of phenolic acids (PAs). The CCG field received five treatments with five different phenolic acids, including gallic acid (GA), salicylic acid (SA), 3-phenylpropionic acid (3-PA), benzoic acid (BA) and cinnamic acid (CA), which were detected from ginseng rhizosphere in consecutive cropping soil. Fungal richness, fungi diversity, community composition, relative taxon abundances, root rot disease, and growth rate were compared among the different treatments. 579 fungal operational taxonomic units at 97% ITS sequence identity were found among 201,617 sequence reads derived from 18 separate soil samples. Members of the phylum Ascomycota dominated the soil fungal communities, and putative pathogens, such as Fusarium, Gibberella and Nectriaceae_unclassified which may include the abundant sexual morph of Cylindrocarpon destructans, showed higher relative abundances in the CCG fields. Compared to the CCG and NFS fields, PAs (except CA) enhanced the fungi richness and decreased fungi diversity. Cluster analysis indicated that the PAs (except CA) changed the fungi structure in a uniform way. PAs stimulate root rot disease and enhance disease severity, restricting plant growth. The results suggest that the PAs (except CA) may enhance the fungi richness, decrease the fungi diversity and changed the fungi structure to increase fungal pathogen loads, which could explain the declined yield and quality of ginseng in consecutively monocultured ginseng crops.

Formation of sclerotia in Sclerotinia ginseng and composition of the sclerotial exudate.

BACKGROUND: Sclerotinia ginseng is a major devastating soil-borne pathogen of ginseng that can cause irreparable damage and large economic losses. This pathogen produces sclerotia, which are among the most persistent resting structures produced by filamentous fungi. The production of an exudate is a common feature of sclerotial development. METHODS: S. ginseng was cultured on 10 different media and the following parameters were measured: mycelial growth rate (mm/day), initial formation time of exudate droplets, total quantity of exudate, number of sclerotia per dish, and sclerotial fresh/dry weight. The composition of the sclerotial exudate was analyzed using four methods (high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, flame atomic absorption spectrometry, and Nessler's reagent spectrophotometry). RESULTS: We found that PDA was the optimal medium for exudate production, while SDA medium resulted in the highest mycelial growth rate. The earliest emergence of exudate droplets from sclerotia was on OA-YE and V8 media. The largest amount of sclerotia and the smallest sclerotia were produced on V8 medium. The maximum and minimum dry/fresh weight were obtained on MEA medium and V8 medium, respectively. The exudate contained organic acids (oxalic acid, gallic acid, ferulic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, and tannic acid), carbohydrates (inositol, glucose, and trehalose), various ions (potassium, sodium, and magnesium), and ammonia. DISCUSSION: The functions of the identified compounds are discussed within the context of pathogenicity, sclerotial development, and antimicrobial activity. Our findings provide information about the production of sclerotia and the composition of sclerotial exudate that may be useful to develop strategies to control this disease.

Comparative Transcriptomics Reveals Differential Gene Expression Related to Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Resistance in the Octoploid Strawberry.

The strawberry is an important fruit worldwide; however, the development of the strawberry industry is limited by fungal disease. Anthracnose is caused by the pathogen Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and leads to large-scale losses in strawberry quality and production. However, the transcriptional response of strawberry to infection with C. gloeosporioides is poorly understood. In the present study, the strawberry leaf transcriptome of the 'Yanli' and 'Benihoppe' cultivars were deep sequenced via an RNA-seq analysis to study C. gloeosporioides resistance in strawberry. Among the sequences, differentially expressed genes were annotated with Gene Ontology terms and subjected to pathway enrichment analysis. Significant categories included defense, plant-pathogen interactions and flavonoid biosynthesis were identified. The comprehensive transcriptome data set provides molecular insight into C. gloeosporioides resistance genes in resistant and susceptible strawberry cultivars. Our findings can enhance breeding efforts in strawberry.

[Influence of exogenous ginsenosides on new forest soil microbial communities].

Ginsenosides are the main active ingredient and allelochemicals of Panax ginseng, and they play an important role in ginseng growth and in ecological adaptation. To study the influence of ginsenosides on soil microbial communities, the method of given exogenous total ginsenosides of different concentrations were used to study the influence of ginsenosides on new forest soil microbial community, evaluate the change of metabolic activity of microbial community and investigate the ecological effect of ginsenosides on soil microbial community. Results showed that, exogenous total ginsenosides promoted metabolic activity of microbial community in new forest soil at different concentrations compared with the control after 10 d and 40 d treatment. After 10 d,except for the Evenness index, all of the other indices indicated that the functional diversity of the soil microbial community in the new forest firstly increased then decreased with increase of the total ginsenosides concentration. The Substrate richness for 0.01 g•L⁻¹ soil treatment was significantly different from that of the control. After 20 d, 30 d and 40 d, except for the Evenness index, all of the other indices indicated that the functional diversity of the soil microbial community in the new forest increased with total ginsenosides. These results suggested that ginsenosids can change soil microbial community and microbial metabolic activity, which alter soil microbial ecology and accordingly affect the growth of ginseng with accumulation of ginsenosides in the soil.

Antifeedant and oviposition-deterring activity of total ginsenosides against Pieris rapae.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the antifeedant and oviposition-deterring activity of total ginsenosides against P. rapae. Total ginsenosides exhibited increased antifeedant effects against P. rapae. The highest nonselective and selective antifeedant activity were observed at 2.0% concentration where ginsenosides caused antifeedant percentages of 86.09 and 88.90, respectively. The total ginsenosides showed significantly oviposition-deterring activity of 77.78% against oviposition of P. rapae at 1.0% concentration. Total ginsenosides had antifeeding activity against P. rapae and inhibitory effects on its oviposition. Ginsenosides could be used as an agent to prepare botanical new pesticidal formulations.

Chemotactic response of Ginseng bacterial soft-rot to Ginseng root exudates.

Our purpose was to evaluate chemotactic response of Ginseng bacterial soft-rot to ginseng root exudates. The exudates of plant roots has a significant influence on the population changes of rhizosphere microorganisms and chemotaxis is an important way in which many pathogens sense the signals of host plants and invade the host plants. In this study, with the capillary method, we tested the chemotactic responses of Ginseng bacterial soft-rot for three ginseng roots exudates under four chemotactic parameters (concentration, temperature, pH and time). The results showed that the chemotatic response of the Ginseng bacterial soft-rot for the ginseng roots exudates at the water layer where pH = 7 and the concentration was 0.0125 mg/L reached its peak value under the circumstance that the exudates was cultivated for 60 min at 25 °C. The chemotatic ratios were respectively 124.89% and 89.44%. For the butanol extract layer and the petroleum ether faction at the concentration of 0.125 mg/L and the pH value at 7, the ginseng roots exudatess reached peak values at 25 °C and 30 °C and 60 min and 75 min respectively, and the chemotatic ratios were respectively 139.64% and101.87%, and 115.29% and 81.36%. The three ginseng roots exudates had positive effects for the chemotaxis of the Ginseng soft-rot bacteria, but the effect declined as the concentration increased.

Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside Induces Apoptosis and Inhibits Migration of Tumor Necrosis Factor-α-Treated Rat Aortic Smooth Muscle Cells.

Blueberries are rich in anthocyanins (ACNs), which have recently been noted to protect against atherosclerosis development in mice. Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G), a member of blueberry ACN family, can inhibit the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α)-induced proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). However, the effects of C3G on VSMC apoptosis and migration remain unclear. This study was thus conducted to examine whether and how C3G affected the apoptosis and migration of rat aortic smooth muscle cells (RASMCs) challenged by TNF-α. Primary cultured RASMCs were pretreated with C3G (25, 50 or 100 µM) for 2 h and then stimulated with TNF-α (10 ng/ml) for additional 24 h. Our results illustrated that C3G pretreatment induced significant apoptosis in TNF-α-stimulated RASMCs in a dose-dependent way, which was accompanied with increased cleaved caspase-3, caspase-9 and Bax and decreased Bcl-2. Moreover, RASMC migration was enhanced by TNF-α, but markedly suppressed by C3G pretreatment. The expressions and activities of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and MMP-9 were inhibited by C3G. In addition, TNF-α-enhanced nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) subunit p65 and phosphorylation of NF-κB inhibitor α (IκBα) in RASMCs were attenuated by C3G. In summary, our study reveals that C3G can induce significant apoptosis in TNF-α-treated RASMCs and markedly inhibit their migration.

Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside attenuates acute lung injury in sepsis rats.

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is a complex syndrome with high mortality, which often induces acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Cyanidin-3-O-glucoside (C3G), the most active anthocyanin in the blueberry extracts, has been demonstrated to have pulmonary protective effects in some ALI models. This study aims to evaluate the potential protective effect of C3G on sepsis-evoked ALI in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) was performed on Sprague-Dawley rats to establish sepsis-induced ALI model. Rats were injected intraperitoneally with 10 or 30 mg/kg of C3G after CLP and then the survival was recorded every 12 h for 96 h. The pulmonary protective effects of C3G on CLP-induced ALI were evaluated at 24 h after CLP. RESULTS: The results demonstrated that C3G treatment significantly improved the survival rate of CLP rats and attenuated CLP-induced lung injury, including reduction of lung wet/dry weight ratio, protein leak, infiltration of leukocytes, and myeloperoxidase activity. In addition, C3G markedly decreased malondialdehyde content and increased superoxide dismutase activity and glutathione level. Serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1ß, and interleukin-6 were also decreased by C3G administration, as well as protein expression of cyclooxygenase-2 and production of prostaglandin E2 in the lung. Furthermore, C3G treatment upregulated protein expression of inhibitors of NF-κBα and downregulated expressions of nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB) p65 and p-p65 in the lung, thereby inhibiting the NF-κB-DNA binding activity. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that C3G exerts pulmonary protective effects on CLP-induced ALI rats. The effect may be associated with NF-κB signaling pathway suppression.

Proteomic analysis of differentially expressed proteins induced by salicylic acid in suspension-cultured ginseng cells.

In this study, optimized 2-DE sample preparation methodologies were established for suspension-cultured ginseng cells. Three commonly used protein extraction methods (Trichloroacetic acid-acetone, urea/thiourea and phenol extraction method) were evaluated for proteomic analysis of suspension cultures of ginseng. A comparative analysis of suspension-cultured ginseng cells proteome induced by salicylic acid (SA) was reported. The results demonstrated that phenol extraction method was the best method based on protein extraction efficiency and the good quality of 2-DE patterns for suspension-cultured ginseng cells. Fifteen differentially expressed proteins induced by salicylic acid in suspension-cultured ginseng cells were identified by MALDI-TOF-MS. These identified proteins were involved in defense and stress response, energy metabolism, signal transduction/transcription, protein synthesis and metabolism, and photosynthesis. Chaperonin 60, related to defense responses, was more abundant in suspension-cultured ginseng cells after application of SA. Vacuolar ATPase subunit B was newly induced in SA treatment.

[Genetic diversity of Ascochyta anemones isolates in Liaoning Province of Northeast China].

Windflower leaf spot is a newly reported leaf disease in China, and becomes very serious in the protected field of windflower (Pulsitilla chinensis) in Liaoning Province. In this study, a random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis was made on the 25 Ascochyta anemones isolates from 5 main P. chinensis production areas in the Province and 5 Ascochyta spp. isolates presented by the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. A total of 108 polymorphic DNA bands sized 200-2000 bp were obtained by using 11 random primers. The NTSYS cluster analysis showed that the genetic similarity coefficient of the 30 Ascochyta isolates was 0.56-0.98, and these isolates could be divided into 4 genetic groups when the similarity coefficient was 0.62, suggesting that the pathogens of windflower leaf spot in the Province had rich genetic diversity. There existed definite correlations between the RAPD clustering groups and their geographic distribution, and an obvious genetic difference among the isolates from different host sources.

[Simultaneous determination of five lignans in Schisandra chinensis by HPLC].

OBJECTIVE: To develop a HPLC quantitative method for determination of schisandrin, schisandrol B, schisantherin A, deoxyschisandrin and gamma-schisandrin in Fructus Schisandrae. METHOD: A symmetry C18 column (4.6 mm x 250 mm, 5 microm) was used with methanol (A) and water (B) as mobile phases, in gradient elution. The gradient program was as follows: 0-36 min, changed from 60% A to 66% A, 36-65 min, to 80% A, 65-70 min, kept for 80% A, 70-75 min, to 100% A. The flow rate was 0.5 mL x min(-1) and detection wavelength was set at 254 nm. RESULT: The linearities of schisandrin, schisandrol B, schisantherin A, deoxyschisandrin and gamma-schisandrin were in the ranges of 0.0214. 160 (r = 0.9999), 0.020-4.000 (r = 0.9999), 0.021-4.240 (r = 0.9999), 0.020-3.960 (r = 0.9999) and 0.021-4.200 (r = 0.9999). The average recoveries were 104.8%, 104.2%, 102.7%, 104.6%, 104.5%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The method developed in this study was reliable, and can be used for the quality control of the fruits of S. chinensis.