Highly Efficient Nanoscale Analysis of Plant Stomata and Cell Surface Using Polyaddition Silicone Rubber.

Stomata control gas exchange and water transpiration and are one of the most important physiological apparatuses in higher plants. The regulation of stomatal aperture is closely coordinated with photosynthesis, nutrient uptake, plant growth, development, and so on. With advances in scanning electron microscopy (SEM), high-resolution images of plant stomata and cell surfaces can be obtained from detached plant tissues. However, this method does not allow for rapid analysis of the dynamic variation of plant stomata and cell surfaces in situ under nondestructive conditions. In this study, we demonstrated a novel plant surface impression technique (PSIT, Silagum-Light as correction impression material based on A-silicones for all two-phase impression techniques) that allows for precise analysis of plant stomata aperture and cell surfaces. Using this method, we successfully monitored the dynamic variation of stomata and observed the nanoscale microstructure of soybean leaf trichomes and dragonfly wings. Additionally, compared with the analytical precision and the time used for preparing the observation samples between PSIT and traditional SEM, the results suggested that the analytical precision of PSIT was the same to traditional SEM, but the PSIT was more easy to operate. Thus, our results indicated that PSIT can be widely applied to the plant science field.

The integrated information architecture: a pilot study approach to leveraging logistics management with regard to influenza preparedness.

Pandemic influenza is considered catastrophic to global health, with severe economic and social effects. Consequently, a strategy for the rapid deployment of essential medical supplies used for the prevention of influenza transmission and to alleviate public panic caused by the expected shortage of such supplies needs to be developed. Therefore, we employ integrated information concepts to develop a simulated influenza medical material supply system to facilitate a rapid response to such a crisis. Various scenarios are analyzed to estimate the appropriate inventory policy needed under different pandemic influenza outbreaks, and to establish a mechanism to evaluate the necessary stockpiles of medications and other requirements in the different phases of the pandemic. This study constructed a web-based decision support system framework prototype that displayed transparent data related to medical stockpiles in each district and integrated expert opinion about the best distribution of these supplies in the influenza pandemic scenarios. A data collection system was also designed to gather information through a daily VPN transmitted into one central repository for reporting and distribution purposes. This study provides timely and transparent medical supplies distribution information that can help decision makers to make the appropriate decisions under different pandemic influenza outbreaks, and also attempts to establish a mechanism of evaluating the stockpiles and requirements in the different phases of the pandemic.

Bacterial diversity in paclobutrazol applied agricultural soils.

The aim of this study was to investigate the bacterial communities on paclobutrazol [(2RS, 3RS)-1-(4-Chlorophenyl)-4, 4-dimethyl-2-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl) pentan-3-ol]-applied agricultural soils by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified 16S rDNA gene fragments. Three different agricultural soil samples were collected from paclobutrazol applied mango and waxapple orchards, peanut fields and untreated rice fields as a control for DGGE analysis. The DGGE pattern of PCR- generated 16S rDNA gene fragments indicated that the bacterial populations from four paclobutrazol-applied soils of peanut fields were closely related to each other and two paclobutrazol-applied soils of mango and waxapple orchards harbored closely related bacterial communities. But, paclobutrazol-free agricultural soils comprised relatively a different bacterial group. However, the bacterial populations of mango and waxapple orchard are completely different from the bacterial communities of peanut field. Further purification and sequence analysis of 40 DGGE bands followed by phylogenetic tree assay showed similar results that soil bacteria from paclobutrazol applied mango and waxapple orchard are phylogenetically related. Based on the phylogenetic analysis, the clone M-4 was clad 100 % (bootstrap value) with Mycobacterium sp. The Mycobacterium sp. has been proved to degrade the phenolic compounds such as phenol, 4-chlorphenol, 2,4-dichlorophenol and paclobutrazol molecule containing chlorobenzene ring.

The development of dentist practice profiles and management.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES: With the current large computerized payment systems and increase in the number of claims, unusual dental practice patterns to cover up fraud are becoming widespread and sophisticated. Clustering the characteristic of dental practice patterns is an essential task for improving the quality of care and cost containment. This study aims at providing an easy, efficient and practical alternative approach to developing patterns of dental practice profiles. This will help the third-party payer to recognize and describe novel or unusual patterns of dental practice and thus adopt various strategies in order to prevent fraudulent claims and overcharges. METHODOLOGY: Knowledge discovery (or data mining) was used to cluster the dentists' profiles by carrying out clustering techniques based on the features of service rates. It is a hybrid of the knowledge discovery, statistical and artificial neural network methodologies that extracts knowledge from the dental claim database. RESULTS: The results of clustering highlight characteristics related to dentists' practice patterns, and the detailed managerial guidance is illustrated to support the third-party payer in the management of various patterns of dentist practice. CONCLUSION: This study integrates the development of dentists' practice patterns with the knowledge discovery process. These findings will help the third-party payer to discriminate the patterns of practice, and also shed more light on the suspicious claims and practice patterns among dentists.

Using quality report cards for reshaping dentist practice patterns: a pre-play communication approach.

Rationale, aims and objectives Understanding how information disclosure influences dentists' patterns of practice change is important in developing quality-improvement policies and cost containment. Thus, using quality report cards is a promising strategy for investigating whether dentists will reshape their patterns of practice because of the influence of peer comparison. Methods Based on the coordination game, a data warehouse decision support system (DWDSS) was used as a pre-play communication instrument, along with the disclosure of quality report cards, which allow dentists to search their own service rates of dental restoration and restoration replacement as well as compare those results with others. Results and conclusions The group using the DWDSS had a greater decrease in two indicators (i.e. service rates of dental restoration and restoration replacement) than the dentists who did not use it, which implies that the DWDSS is a useful facility for helping dentists filter and evaluate information for establishing the maximum utility in their practice management. The disclosure of information makes significant contributions to solving managerial problems associated with dentists' deviation of practice patterns.

Aviglycine and propargylglycine inhibit conidial germination and mycelial growth of Fusarium oxysporumf. sp. luffae.

Two inhibitors, aviglycine and propargylglycine, were tested for their ability to suppress methionine synthesis thus inhibit conidial germination and mycelial growth of Czapek-Dox liquid medium grown Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. luffaemuM. The linear inhibition range for mycelial growth was about 7.6-762.9 microM. Although aviglycine did not completely inhibit both conidial germination and mycelial growth, it showed significant inhibitory effect at 1.5 microM. The inhibition range for propargylglycine against conidial germination and mycelial growth were from 0.08 to 8841 microM and from 0.8 to 884.1 microM, respectively. Propargylglycine inhibited conidial germination and mycelial growth at a concentration of 8841 muM. The EC(50) values of aviglycine were 1 microM for conidial growth and 122 microM for mycelial growth, and the EC(50) values of propargylglycine were 47.7 microM for conidial growth and 55.6 muM for mycelial growth. Supplement of methionine released inhibition of aviglycine or propargylglycine to conidial germination. In addition, a mixture of aviglycine (1.5 microM) and propargylglycine (8841 microM) showed additive inhibitive effect than applied alone on 10 isolates. From these results, both aviglycine and propargylglycine exhibited inhibitory activity, and suggest that they can provide potential tools to design novel fungicide against fungal pathogens.

Hydrogen peroxide-induced chilling tolerance in mung beans mediated through ABA-independent glutathione accumulation.

Transient oxidative shock induced by pretreatment of leaves with H2O2 effectively increased chilling tolerance in mung bean and Phalaenopsis. Seedlings of the chilling-tolerant (V3327) cultivar of mung bean (Vignaradiata L.) were employed to study the mechanism of H2O2-induced chilling tolerance. Pretreatment with 200 mM H2O2 increased survival rates of seedlings chilled at 4°C for 36 h from 30% to 70%. The same treatment also lowered the electrolyte leakage from 86% to 21%. Time-course analysis immediately after the treatment demonstrated that exogenous application of H2O2 did not alter the endogenous H2O2 level of the plants. This observation suggests that the primary receptor for the exogenous H2O2 is localized on the leaf surface or in some other way isolated from the endogenous H2O2 pool. Oxidative shock inhibited the induction of the antioxidant enzymes, ascorbate peroxidase and catalase; however, it substantially increased glutathione content both under chilling and control conditions. Combined pretreatment of mung bean plants with abscisic acid and H2O2 showed no synergistic effect on glutathione content and decreased survival rate relative to treatment with either compound alone. These results suggest that the H2O2-induced chilling tolerance in these plants might be mediated by an elevation of glutathione content and is independent of the ABA mechanism of chilling protection.

H2O2 treatment induces glutathione accumulation and chilling tolerance in mung bean.

Mung bean (Vigna radiata L. cv. TN5, a chilling-sensitive cultivar) was employed to evaluate the importance of glutathione in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced chilling tolerance. Seeds germinated at 25°C for 7d were subjected to different periods of chilling treatment, prior to analysis of the glutathione contents of their leaves. In a comparison of acclimation temperatures from 2-12°C, it was found that an 8°C acclimation for 36 h induced a 5.7-fold increase, the highest glutathione level among the temperatures tested. Seedlings acclimated at 8°C for 36 h showed 97% survival after a 36-h, 4°C chilling stress, compared with 33% survival of non-acclimated plants. Pretreatment with 200 mM H2O2 for 12 h before a 36-h, 4°C chilling treatment increased glutathione levels by 30% and reduced electrolyte leakage to 43%, relative to the untreated control. Treated seedlings also showed a survival rate of 71% after the same chilling treatment. Application of 1 mM buthionine sulfoximine, a specific inhibitor of glutathione synthesis, reversed the protection against chilling stress provided to seedlings either by acclimation at 8°C for 36 h or H2O2 pretreatment. The role of glutathione in chilling acclimation or H2O2-pretreatment-induced chilling tolerance is thus confirmed.