Effect of light-induced changes in leaf anatomy on intercellular and cellular components of mesophyll resistance for CO2 in Fagus sylvatica.

Mesophyll resistance for CO2 diffusion (rm) is one of the main limitations for photosynthesis and plant growth. Breeding new varieties with lower rm requires knowledge of its distinct components. We tested new method for estimating the relative drawdowns of CO2 concentration (c) across hypostomatous leaves of Fagus sylvatica. This technique yields values of the ratio of the internal CO2 concentrations at the adaxial and abaxial leaf side, cd/cb, the drawdown in the intercellular air space (IAS), and intracellular drawdown between IAS and chloroplast stroma, cc/cbd. The method is based on carbon isotope composition of leaf dry matter and epicuticular wax isolated from upper and lower leaf sides. We investigated leaves from tree-canopy profile to analyse the effects of light and leaf anatomy on the drawdowns and partitioning of rm into its inter- (rIAS) and intracellular (rliq) components. Validity of the new method was tested by independent measurements of rm using conventional isotopic and gas exchange techniques. 73% of investigated leaves had adaxial epicuticular wax enriched in 13C compared to abaxial wax (by 0.50‰ on average), yielding 0.98 and 0.70 for average of cd/cb and cc/cbd, respectively. The rIAS to rliq proportion were 5.5:94.5% in sun-exposed and 14.8:85.2% in shaded leaves. cc dropped to less than half of the atmospheric value in the sunlit and to about two-thirds of it in shaded leaves. This method shows that rIAS is minor but not negligible part of rm and reflects leaf anatomy traits, i.e. leaf mass per area and thickness.

Adjustable coupling and in situ variable frequency electron paramagnetic resonance probe with loop-gap resonators for spectroscopy up to X-band.

In standard electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, the frequency of an experiment is set and the spectrum is acquired using the magnetic field as the independent variable. There are cases in which it is desirable instead to fix the field and tune the frequency such as when studying avoided level crossings. We have designed and tested an adjustable frequency and variable coupling EPR probe with loop-gap resonators (LGRs) that works at a temperature as low as 1.8 K. The frequency is tuned by adjusting the height of a dielectric piece of sapphire inserted into the gap of an LGR; coupling of the microwave antenna is varied with the height of the antenna above the LGR. Both coupling antenna and dielectric are located within the cryogenic sample chamber, but their motion is controlled with external micrometers located outside the cryostat. The frequency of the LGR (∼4 GHz) can be adjusted by more than 1 GHz (>25%). To cover a wide range of frequencies, different LGRs can be designed to cover frequencies up to X-band. We demonstrate the operation of our probe by mapping out avoided crossings for the Ni4 molecular nanomagnet to determine the tunnel splittings with high precision.

Stomatal function, density and pattern, and CO2 assimilation in Arabidopsis thaliana tmm1 and sdd1-1 mutants.

Stomata modulate the exchange of water and CO2 between plant and atmosphere. Although stomatal density is known to affect CO2 diffusion into the leaf and thus photosynthetic rate, the effect of stomatal density and patterning on CO2 assimilation is not fully understood. We used wild types Col-0 and C24 and stomatal mutants sdd1-1 and tmm1 of Arabidopsis thaliana, differing in stomatal density and pattern, to study the effects of these variations on both stomatal and mesophyll conductance and CO2 assimilation rate. Anatomical parameters of stomata, leaf temperature and carbon isotope discrimination were also assessed. Our results indicate that increased stomatal density enhanced stomatal conductance in sdd1-1 plants, with no effect on photosynthesis, due to both unchanged photosynthetic capacity and decreased mesophyll conductance. Clustering (abnormal patterning formed by clusters of two or more stomata) and a highly unequal distribution of stomata between the adaxial and abaxial leaf sides in tmm1 mutants also had no effect on photosynthesis. Except at very high stomatal densities, stomatal conductance and water loss were proportional to stomatal density. Stomatal formation in clusters reduced stomatal dynamics and their operational range as well as the efficiency of CO2 transport.

Structure, mechanical characteristics and in vitro degradation, cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and mutagenicity of novel biodegradable Zn-Mg alloys.

Zn-(0-1.6)Mg (in wt.%) alloys were prepared by hot extrusion at 300 °C. The structure, mechanical properties and in vitro biocompatibility of the alloys were investigated. The hot-extruded magnesium-based WE43 alloy was used as a control. Mechanical properties were evaluated by hardness, compressive and tensile testing. The cytotoxicity, genotoxicity (comet assay) and mutagenicity (Ames test) of the alloy extracts and ZnCl2 solutions were evaluated with the use of murine fibroblasts L929 and human osteosarcoma cell line U-2 OS. The microstructure of the Zn alloys consisted of recrystallized Zn grains of 12 µm in size and fine Mg2Zn11 particles arranged parallel to the hot extrusion direction. Mechanical tests revealed that the hardness and strength increased with increasing Mg concentration. The Zn-0.8 Mg alloys showed the best combination of tensile mechanical properties (tensile yield strength of 203 MPa, ultimate tensile strength of 301 MPa and elongation of 15%). At higher Mg concentrations the plasticity of Zn-Mg alloys was deteriorated. Cytotoxicity tests with alloy extracts and ZnCl2 solutions proved the maximum safe Zn(2+) concentrations of 120 µM and 80 µM for the U-2 OS and L929 cell lines, respectively. Ames test with extracts of alloys indicated that the extracts were not mutagenic. The comet assay demonstrated that 1-day extracts of alloys were not genotoxic for U-2 OS and L929 cell lines after 1-day incubation.

Structural characteristics and corrosion behavior of biodegradable Mg-Zn, Mg-Zn-Gd alloys.

In this research, binary Mg-Zn (up to 3 wt% Zn) and ternary Mg-Zn-Gd (up to 3 wt% Gd, 3 wt% Zn) alloys were prepared by induction melting in an argon atmosphere. The structures of these alloys were characterized using light and scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometry, X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence. In addition, Brinell hardness measurements were taken to supplement these studies. Corrosion behavior was evaluated by immersion tests and potentiodynamic measurements in a physiological solution (9 g/l NaCl). Depending on the composition, structures of the as-cast alloys contained α-Mg dendrites, MgZn, Mg5Gd and Mg3Gd2Zn3 phases. Compared to pure Mg, zinc improved the corrosion resistance of binary Mg-Zn. Gadolinium also improved the corrosion resistance in the case of Mg-1Zn-3Gd alloy. The highest corrosion rate was observed for Mg-3Zn-3Gd alloy. Our results improve the understanding of the relationships between the structure and corrosion behavior of our studied alloy systems.

Structure, mechanical properties, corrosion behavior and cytotoxicity of biodegradable Mg-X (X=Sn, Ga, In) alloys.

As-cast Mg-Sn, Mg-Ga and Mg-In alloys containing 1-7 wt.% of alloying elements were studied in this work. Structural and chemical analysis of the alloys was performed by using light and scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometry, x-ray diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and glow discharge spectrometry. Mechanical properties were determined by Vickers hardness measurements and tensile testing. Corrosion behavior in a simulated physiological solution (9 g/l NaCl) was studied by immersion tests and potentiodynamic measurements. The cytotoxicity effect of the alloys on human osteosarcoma cells (U-2 OS) was determined by an indirect contact assay. Structural investigation revealed the dendritic morphology of the as-cast alloys with the presence of secondary eutectic phases in the Mg-Sn and Mg-Ga alloys. All the alloying elements showed hardening and strengthening effects on magnesium. This effect was the most pronounced in the case of Ga. All the alloying elements at low concentrations of approximately 1 wt.% were also shown to positively affect the corrosion resistance of Mg. But at higher concentrations of Ga and Sn the corrosion resistance worsened due to galvanic effects of secondary phases. Cytotoxicity tests indicated that Ga had the lowest toxicity, followed by Sn. The most severe toxicity was observed in the case of In.

Mechanical and corrosion properties of newly developed biodegradable Zn-based alloys for bone fixation.

In the present work Zn-Mg alloys containing up to 3wt.% Mg were studied as potential biodegradable materials for medical use. The structure, mechanical properties and corrosion behavior of these alloys were investigated and compared with those of pure Mg, AZ91HP and casting Zn-Al-Cu alloys. The structures were examined by light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and tensile and hardness testing were used to characterize the mechanical properties of the alloys. The corrosion behavior of the materials in simulated body fluid with pH values of 5, 7 and 10 was determined by immersion tests, potentiodynamic measurements and by monitoring the pH value evolution during corrosion. The surfaces of the corroded alloys were investigated by SEM, energy-dispersive spectrometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It was found that a maximum strength and elongation of 150MPa and 2%, respectively, were achieved at Mg contents of approximately 1wt.%. These mechanical properties are discussed in relation to the structural features of the alloys. The corrosion rates of the Zn-Mg alloys were determined to be significantly lower than those of Mg and AZ91HP alloys. The former alloys corroded at rates of the order of tens of microns per year, whereas the corrosion rates of the latter were of the order of hundreds of microns per year. Possible zinc doses and toxicity were estimated from the corrosion behavior of the zinc alloys. It was found that these doses are negligible compared with the tolerable biological daily limit of zinc.