Nest Characteristics and Prey Selection of Sceliphron destillatorium (Apoidea, Sphecidae) on the Territory of the Rivnenskyi Nature Reserve

The length and width of rat and ferret ventricular myocytes have been measured using a linear photodiode array; the volume of the myocytes has been calculated based on the assumption that the cells were elliptical cylinders. During a twitch contraction, there was a decrease in cell length, but no significant change in the calculated cell volume, because the cells increased in width. Inotropic interventions not only resulted in a greater shortening of the cell during each contraction, but also a greater increase in cell width. Changes in cell length, width and volume on changing the osmotic strength of the bathing solution have also been investigated. The increase in volume in hypotonic solution, and the decrease in hypertonic solution, were the result of changes in the cell width; there were no significant changes in the cell length. It is concluded from the latter experiment that the lateral compliance of a cell is greater than its longitudinal compliance, and, therefore, during a twitch contraction, when the cell shortens, the displacement of the cell contents from the two ends of the cell and the expansion of the cell laterally will not act as a large force to oppose shortening.

The effect of an aqueous extract of different varieties of potato plants on the morphological structure and viability of the causative agent of the ring rot - globulin-positive bacterium Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus (Cms) was studied. Six varieties of Solanum tuberosum L. potato plants were studied in vitro: Bellarosa, Zhukovsky ranniy, Lugovskoy, Lukyanovsky, Rosara, Sarma. All varieties differed in their resistance to pathogens. Bacteria were incubated in an aqueous extract of plants for 2 days, then the number of cells in the field of vision, the mortality rate and the width and length of bacterial cells were analysed. The obtained data indicated that the number of cells in the field of vision of a microscope following incubation in an aqueous potato extract, as well as the percentage of living cells, depends on the type of potato. The morphological characteristics (width and length of cells) of the bacterium also changed depending on the type of potato plants. The technique presented in the article is proposed as a means for quickly identifying potato resistance to pathogenic bacteria.

<bold>Objective</bold> <italic>Grimmia pilifera</italic> is a typical drought-tolerant saxicolous moss species，which is widely distributed in northern and southern provinces of China. Its growth is often limited by drought and barren growth environment，and it is one of the pioneers in nature.To study the differences and covariant characteristics of morphological and structural traits of <italic>G. pilifera</italic> in different microhabitats，so as to provide basic data for the study of the drought tolerance mechanism of mosses and the in-depth revelation of the adaptation mechanism of drought-tolerant saxicolous mosses in different microenvironments. <bold>Method</bold> <italic>G. pilifera</italic> individuals were used to study the differences and covariant characteristics of various traits in three microhabitats with different shading degrees.Habitat S₁ was bare rock shaded openly by bamboo individuals，habitat E was exposed rock，and habitat S₂ was bare rock shaded completely by Ficus pumila individuals.The 15 studied morphological and structural traits were 7 single plant traits（including middle blade angle，middle leaf length，middle hair length，up hair length，plant height，plant width with hairs，plant width without hairs.）and 8 stem and leaf microstructure traits（including stem length，stem width，cell length in stem，cell width in stem，stem cell density，thickness of leaf midrib，cell length in leaf，cell width in leaf.）.The variable coefficient of each trait was measured and calculated. <bold>Result</bold> Among the single plant traits，the maximum values of plant height，plant width，plant width（with leaf hairs），leaf angle，and middle leaf length all appeared in habitat S₁.Moreover，the minimum values were found mostly in habitat E，whereas the middle hair length showed the order of S₂&gt;E&gt;S₁.No matter what kind of microhabitat，the variability of hair length is higher than other traits.Among the stem and leaf microstructure traits，the cell length in stem，cell length in leaf，and cell width in leaf were significantly higher in habitat S₁ than that in habitat E，whereas the other five stem and leaf microstructural traits did not significantly differ among the three microhabitats（<italic>P</italic>&gt;0.05）.Leaf cells were the largest in habitat S₁，followed by habitat S₂，and the smallest in habitat E. All traits belonged to moderate to low degree of variation，with a certain plasticity.Principal component analysis revealed that the covariation characteristics of all 15 traits of <italic>G. pilifera</italic> were not completely consistent in various microhabitats and demonstrated obvious differentiation.The comprehensive growth performance of <italic>G. pilifera</italic> in habitat S₁ was relatively good. <bold>Conclusion</bold> Under three different microhabitats，the growth performance reflected by the morphological and structural traits of <italic>G. pilifera</italic> was as follows：S₁&gt;S₂&gt;E. A certain covariant trend existed among the functional traits，but differences existed among microhabitats，which result from long-term response and adaptation to different microenvironments.The results of this study can provide a theoretical basis for further exploring the response and adaptation of special plant groups such as mosses to different microhabitats.

GL3.3, a Novel QTL Encoding a GSK3/SHAGGY-like Kinase, Epistatically Interacts with GS3 to Produce Extra-long Grains in Rice

We determined the effects of exercise training and detraining on the morphological and mechanical properties of left ventricular myocytes in 4-month-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) randomly divided into the following groups: sedentary for 8 weeks (SED-8), sedentary for 12 weeks (SED-12), treadmill-running trained for 8 weeks (TRA, 16 m/min, 60 min/day, 5 days/week), and treadmill-running trained for 8 weeks followed by 4 weeks of detraining (DET). At sacrifice, left ventricular myocytes were isolated enzymatically, and resting cell length, width, and cell shortening after stimulation at a frequency of 1 Hz (~25°C) were measured. Cell length was greater in TRA than in SED-8 (161.30 ± 1.01 vs 156.10 ± 1.02 μm, P < 0.05, 667 vs 618 cells, respectively) and remained larger after detraining. Cell width and volume were unaffected by either exercise training or detraining. Cell length to width ratio was higher in TRA than in SED-8 (8.50 ± 0.08 vs 8.22 ± 0.10, P < 0.05) and was maintained after detraining. Exercise training did not affect cell shortening, which was unchanged with detraining. TRA cells exhibited higher maximum velocity of shortening than SED-8 (102.01 ± 4.50 vs 82.01 ± 5.30 μm/s, P < 0.05, 70 cells per group), with almost complete regression after detraining. The maximum velocity of relengthening was higher in TRA cells than in SED-8 (88.20 ± 4.01 vs70.01 ± 4.80 μm/s, P < 0.05), returning to sedentary values with detraining. Therefore, exercise training affected left ventricle remodeling in SHR towards eccentric hypertrophy, which remained after detraining. It also improved single left ventricular myocyte contractile function, which was reversed by detraining.

The processes involved in cell growth are extremely complicated even for a single cell organism such as Escherichia coli, while the relationship between growth rate and cell size is simple. We aimed to reveal the systematic link between them from the aspect of the genome-scale metabolic network. Since the growth rate reflects metabolic rates of bacteria and the cell size relates to phospholipid synthesis, a part of bacterial metabolic networks, we calculated the cell length from the cardiolipin synthesis rate, where the cardiolipin synthesis reaction is able to represent the phospholipid metabolism of Escherichia coli in the exponential growth phase. Combined with the flux balance analysis, it enables us to predict cell length and to examine the quantitative relationship between cell length and growth rate. By simulating bacteria growing in various nutrient media with the flux balance analysis and calculating the corresponding cell length, we found that the increase of the synthesis rate of phospholipid, the cell width, and the protein fraction in membranes caused the increase of cell length with growth rate. Different tendencies of phospholipid synthesis rate changing with growth rate result in different relationships between cell length and growth rate. The effects of gene deletions on cell size and growth rate are also examined. Knocking out the genes, such as tktA, tktB, yqaB, pgm, and cysQ, affects growth rate largely while affecting cell length slightly. Results of this method are in good agreement with experiments.

In this study, an underexpanded radial jet issuing from a small gap between two circular tubes facing each other is investigated numerically. Radial jet is formed, for example, downstream of high-pressure valves in piping system and of poppet valves in engines, and causes many industrial problems such as the noise generation and the fatigue failure of structure. In this study, the jet issuing from a small gap between two tubes with same diameter is numerically simulated. The flow field is assumed to be axisymmetric against the central axis of tubes and to be symmetric against the intermediate plane between the exits of two tubes. The axisymmetric Euler equations are solved using symmetric TVD (Total Variation Diminishing) scheme. The effects of nozzle pressure ratio and of diameter of circular tubes on the structure and the behavior of jets are examined. Typical cell structure of underexpanded jet appears in radial jet and the length of cell becomes smaller in downstream region because the jet spreads radially like a disc. The length and width of first cell are larger with higher nozzle pressure ratio. Many vortices are generated one after another near the jet boundary and move downstream, which cause the oscillation of jet. Outside of jet, two types of density waves are observed. One of them propagates toward the nozzle (toward the upstream region) and the other propagates in opposite direction. Focusing on the pressure change caused by the former waves, which is related to well-known screech, dominant frequency obtained by FFT analysis was found to become lower with higher pressure ratio and smaller diameter of tube.

1. The cell width of guinea-pig ventricular myocytes was measured using an optic device during patch-clamp experiments and the relationship between the ion channel flux and changes in cell volume was examined. 2. On superfusing myocytes with 50, 70, 150 and 200% osmotic solutions, the relative cell width changed to 121.1 (n = 4), 110.8 (n = 27), 87.1 (n = 6) and 82.6% (n = 6) of control, respectively. Changes in cell length were less than 2% in these test solutions. 3. The application of 300 nmol/L isoprenaline to myocytes swollen in the 70% hypotonic solution induced a decrease in cell width from 111.2 to 106.2% (n = 13). The application of isoprenaline in the isotonic solution also induced a decrease in cell width to 96.5% in eight of 13 cells. A membrane depolarization of 2-4 mV accompanied the isoprenaline-induced decrease in volume. In the remaining five cells, neither an obvious isoprenaline-induced decrease in volume nor membrane depolarization was observed. Under ruptured whole-cell voltage clamp conditions, the activation of inward isoprenaline-induced Cl- current decreased cell width. 4. Cell width was seen to either decrease or increase when a large outward or inward K+ current, respectively, was induced by shifting the holding potential or by applying 200 mumol/L pinacidil. Under gramicidin-perforated whole-cell clamp conditions, the cell width did not change, even when a large inward K+ current was induced. 5. When the test solution was applied to half of an elongated myocyte by using a micropipette, the cell width increased or decreased in the part exposed to the hypotonic or hypertonic test solutions, respectively. In contrast, in the other half of the elongated myocyte, the cell width responded in the opposite direction. 6. It is concluded that a continuous ionic flux through ion channels is capable of inducing changes in cell volume by generating a localized osmotic gradient across the cardiac sarcolemma.

Growth of areal density of HDD has been achieved by reducing both bit cell width and length. However, thermal instability of transition in high density media imposed difficult to further reduce bit cell length. Squarer bit was proposed in several papers[1]. This trends towards extremely narrower trackwidth imposes two severe difficulties on write heads, i.e. fabrication of narrow poles and generation of large field in order to overwrite on thermally stable media with high coercivity. In this study, we designed and fabricated self-aligned trench-pole write heads (SATP head) to overcome the above two difficulties and succeeded in proving the design.

The role of gibberellins in regulating the growth of tomato roots was investigated by comparing various cellular parameters in cultured roots of the gibberellin-deficient mutant gib-l/gib-l with those in roots of the near-isogenic wild-type. In addition, wild-type roots treated with 0·1 μM 2S,3S paclobutrazol, an inhibitor of gibberellin biosynthesis, and mutant roots treated with 0·1 μM GA3 were also compared: the former roots constitute a phenocopy of the mutant, whereas the latter roots appear to be ‘normalized’ and similar to wild-type. The elongation of mutant and phenocopied roots were similar, their maximum elongation rates being about half or two-thirds that of wild-type or GA3-treated mutant roots, respectively. These rates were interpreted in terms of the numbers and lengths of cells within the meristematic and non-meristematic portions of the elongation zone. Mean meristem length tended to be shorter in both the mutant and the 2S,3S paclobutrazol-treated wild-type roots than in the other two types of root. A major difference between the two pairs of mutant and normal roots was their mean final cell lengths: mean lengths of cortical cells of the mutant and 2S,3S paclobutrazol-treated roots were, respectively, 39% and 25% shorter than the mean length of wild-type roots. Final cell length in the GA3-treated mutant roots were similar to wild-type. By contrast, the diameters of mature cortical cells of the mutant and phenocopy were about 20% greater than the diameters of equivalent wild-type or ‘normalized’ mutant cells. The mean volumes of cortical cells in all four types of roots showed no significant differences. Knowledge of the distribution of cortical cell lengths, widths and volumes along the root axis, together with information about the rate of root elongation, permitted comparisons of the relative elemental growth rates of each of these three cellular parameters. The available evidence suggests that the level of endogenous gibberellins in mutant roots is lower than in wild-type roots. The present results, therefore, suggest that endogenous gibberellins are necessary for normal growth of cultured tomato roots and that they regulate the relative amounts of growth at the longitudinal and transverse walls of the cells which, in turn, affects the shape of the elongating cells.

Length and width of guard cells and variation in the appearance of stomata pores in the following Arum species: Arum italicum Mill., Arum maculatum var. maculatum L. and Arum maculatum var. immaculatum L. at Zablace and Normanci location, and Arum alpinum var. pannonicum Terpo., Arum alpinum var. intermedium Schur. in Bilje at the eastern Slavonia and Baranya region were investigated. With regard to guard cells length and width and variation in the appearance of stomata pores, stomata of certain Arum species are considered to be of larger dimensions (≯38 µm). Arum species grown at Zablace had the longest and widest guard cells as well as the greatest variation in the appearance of stomata pores, followed by those at Normanci, whereas species at Bilje location had the lowest values. The average length and width of the guard cells and variation in the appearance of stomata pores were larger at the lower than at the upper epidermis among each examined Arum species at each location. A significant difference i...

This paper presents a new description of the morphology of the planktonic dinoflagellate Stoeckeria algicida n. gen., n. sp. and a report of the sequence of the small subunit rDNA (SS rDNA) from cultured cells. The vegetative biflagellated cell, gametes, triflagellated planozygotes, and cyst stages of this heterotrophic species were observed in cultures. The vegetative biflagellated cells are oval, with the cell length being considerably larger than the cell width. The ranges (and mean, n=60) of cell length and width of live biflagellated cells satiated with the raphidophyte Heterosigma akashiwo were 14.4-20.8 microm (16.8) and 10.0-17.4 microm (12.9), respectively, while those of biflagellated cells starved for 3 d (n=60) were 7.3-15.9 microm (11.6) and 2.7-12.2 microm (7.3), respectively. Thin plates of the vegetative biflagellated cells were arranged in a Kofoidian series of Po, cp, X, 4', 2a, 7'', 6c, 6s, 5''', 0 (p), and 2''''. When properly aligned, the sequence of the SS rDNA of the biflagellated cells of S. algicida (GenBank Accession no. AJ841809) was 3% different from that of a dinoflagellate from Shepherd's Crook and 4% different from that of Cryptoperidiniopsoid sp. brodyi, Pfiesteria spp., or Pfiesteria-like species. In a maximum-likelihood-distance phylogenetic tree generated using the SS rDNA sequences, Pfiesteria spp., Pfiesteria-like species, and a dinoflagellate from Shepherd's Crook were closest to S. algicida, but these dinoflagellates were clearly divergent with S. algicida. Based on morphological and genealogical analyses, we suggest that this is a new species in a new genus.

Six diploid perennial ryegrass populations, two diploid F1 hybrid families and the autotetraploid cv. Tove were grown in a glasshouse and the mean length and mean width of epidermal cells on the abaxial leaf surface of young fully expanded leaves compared. The diploids varied in cell length by 26%, in cell width by 9% and in length: width ratio by 39%. The cells of cv. Tove were 25% longer and 12% wider than those of the highest ranking diploid and the length: width ratio 9% higher. The DNA contents per telophase root-tip cell nucleus of a large-celled and a small-celled diploid population were similar, suggesting that the variation in epidermal cell size among diploids was due to the action of specific genes and not to differences in genome size. The mean epidermal cell dimensions of four of the above populations growing as plots in a field trial employing three levels of fertiliser nitrogen and four harvesting frequencies were measured on three occasions. Varietal ranking in cell dimensions was consistent over the different managements and dates, and agreed well with the glasshouse results. The results indicate that measurements of leaf epidermal cell length and width can be useful aids both in breeding for herbage yield and in distinguishing varieties with similar flowering dates.

Small erythrocytes might be beneficial for blood rheology, as they contribute less to blood viscosity than large erythrocytes. We predicted that rheological disadvantages of larger erythrocytes could be alleviated by relatively smaller nucleus size in larger cells allowing higher flexibility and by more elongated shape. Across squamate reptiles, we found that species with larger erythrocytes tend to have smaller ratio of nucleus size to cell size (N : C ratio), but that larger erythrocytes tend to be rounder, not more elongated. Nevertheless, we document that in fact nucleus area changes with erythrocyte area more or less linearly, which is also true for the relationship between cell length and cell width. These linear relationships suggest that nucleus size and cell size, and cell width and cell length, might be constrained to largely proportional mutual changes. The shifts in widely used N : C ratio and elongation ratio (cell length/cell width) with cell size might be misleading, as they do not reflect adaptive or maladaptive changes of erythrocytes, but rather mathematically trivial scaling of the ratios of two variables with a linear relationship with non-zero intercepts. We warn that ratio scaling without analyses of underlying patterns of evolutionary changes can lead to misinterpretation of evolutionary processes.

Studies on the leaf epidermal morphological characteristics were conducted on the three varieties of brinjal (Solanum melongena L.) belonging to the family Solanaceae. The varieties used in the study were Bhavani Gold, Purple Round and Haritha. Fresh mature brinjal leaves were randomly selected from the three experimental genotypes, and the foliar epidermal features were studied by using light microscopy and SEM imaging. Measurements were taken with an ocular and stage micrometer using 10X and 40X magnifications. The photographs were taken from mounted slides. The stomatal count and each measurement represent the average of ten readings. The upper and lower epidermal surfaces of leaf were studied for stomatal features including, stomatal distribution, stomatal type, stomatal index, stomatal pore length, stomatal pore width, guard cell length, guard cell width, subsidiary cell length and width, epidermal cell type, epidermal cell length and width, trichome type, trichome length and width. Amphistomatous, anisocytic, and with more stomata on the lower epidermal surface than the upper epidermal surface were present in all leaf varieties. On the leaves, the abaxial stomatal index ranged from 68.19 mm-2 (Bhavani Gold) to 56.67 mm-2 (Purple Round) to 58.8 mm-2 (Haritha). While on the adaxial surface, it varied from 59.67 mm-2 (Bhavani Gold), 53.46 mm-2 (Purple Round) and 56.67 mm-2 (Haritha). The three varieties of this study exhibited similarities in the pattern of epidermal cell on the adaxial and abaxial surfaces and were irregular in shape. Among the three varieties epidermal cell become irregular in outline and trichomes were present on both leaf surfaces. It becomes stellate, non-glandular, glandular and 8-12 in number. The highest trichome length was obtained in Bhavani Gold (63 μm) followed by Haritha (57.5 μm) and Purple Round (43 μm) on the upper epidermis. On the lower epidermal region maximum length was obtained in Bhavani Gold (65.5 μm) followed by Haritha (53 μm) and Purple Round (44 μm).