Length Of Life Cycle Research Articles

A multi-step mathematical model-based predictive strategy for software release timing during testing stage

Mathematically precise modeling is important to be established to accurately examine the quantitative relationship between software testing and software reliability. Software testing process is complex since it is concerned with various factors such as test case execution, defect debugging, tester expertise, test case selection, and so forth. For this reason, it is required to be meticulous in formulating the software testing process in a manner which is mathematically concise. The software release life cycle or sequential release timeline, referring to the process related to the development, testing and distribution of a software product comprises several critical stages, and the length of this particular life cycle reveals variations depending on different factors like the type of product, the intended use of it, industry security, general standards and compliance. One consideration software engineers have is related to the release date of the software so that future commitments about the software’s release time can be formulated beforehand. In view of these aspects, a multi-step strategy for predicting software release dates is proposed in the current study along with the following stages: firstly, the proposed technique selects the utmost reliability growth model that very well fits the observed test data halfway through the testing period, and then employs it to forecast the probable date of release. This technique entails approximating the unknown parameters of suitable Software Reliability Growth Models (SRGMs). Finally, the chosen SRGM is used to forecast the release date of the software under test by fitting it to available fault data. The proposed method is straightforward and applied to test on a total of ten actual datasets collected from the literature. The results of the proposed technique reveal that in the majority of the situations, nearly exact approximation of date of release can be made halfway through the testing period. Moreover, the proposed method’s performance is also compared to that of a number of previous strategies present in the literature. The outcomes obtained by our study demonstrate that the proposed strategy may be used to forecast the release date of software in practical situations.

The contribution of animal antibiotic use to antibiotic resistance in human infections: Panel evidence from Denmark

Antibiotic use (ABU) in animals is postulated to be a major contributor to selection of antibiotic resistance (ABR) which subsequently causes infections in human populations. However, there are few quantifications of the size of this association. Denmark, as a country with high levels of pig production and strong ABR surveillance data, is an ideal case study for exploring this association.This study compiles a dataset on ABU across several animal species and antibiotic classes, and data on the rate of antibiotic resistance (ABR) in humans across key pathogens, in Denmark over time (2010−2020). Panel data regressions (fixed effects, random effects, first difference and pooled ordinary least squares) were used to test the association between the level of ABR in human isolates and the level of ABU in animals.A positive relationship was identified between ABR in humans and ABU in cattle, with some evidence of a positive relationship for poultry and companion animals, and a negative relationship for fish, although the latter is likely driven by confounding factors. When lagging ABU by one year, the effect of ABU in cattle and companion animals remained similar, the effect of ABU in poultry fell in size, and ABU in fish was no longer significant, perhaps due to differences in life cycle length among animal species. Additional covariates were explored, including pet populations, agricultural production and GDP per capita (at purchasing power parity), but these results were limited by the statistical power of the dataset. Under all models, animal ABU determined only a minority of the change in human ABR levels in this context with adjusted R2 ranging from 0.19 to 0.44.This paper supports the role of animal ABU in determining human ABR levels but suggests that, despite comprising a large portion of systemwide ABU, it only explains a minority of the variation. This is likely driven in part by data limitations, and could also be due to a persistence of ABR once resistance has emerged, suggesting a significant role for socioeconomic and transmission factors in bringing ABR down to desirable levels.

Harvesting Silk Fibers from Plodia interpunctella: Role of Environmental Rearing Conditions in Fiber Production and Properties.

Silk fibers are produced by a wide variety of insects. The silkworm Bombyx mori (Bombyx) was domesticated because the physical properties of its silk fibers were amenable to the production of fine textiles. Subsequently, engineers have regenerated silk fibroin to form biomaterials. The monocular focus on Bombyx silk has underutilized the expanse of diverse silk proteins produced by more than 100,000 other arthropods. This vast array of silk fibers could be utilized for biomedical engineering challenges if sufficient rearing and purification processes are developed. Herein, we show that the moth, Plodia interpunctella (Plodia), represents an alternative silk source that is easily reared in highly regulated culture environments allowing for greater consistency in the silk produced. We controlled the temperature, resource availability (larvae/gram diet), and population density (larvae/mL) with the goal of increasing silk fiber production and improving homogeneity in Plodia silk proteins. We determined that higher temperatures accelerated insect growth and reduced life cycle length. Furthermore, we established initial protocols for the production of Plodia silk with optimal silk production occurring at 24 °C, with a resource availability of 10 larvae/gram and a population density of 0.72 larvae/mL. Population density was shown to be the most prominent driving force of Plodia silk mat formation among the three parameters assessed. Future work will need to link gene expression, protein production and purification, and resulting mechanical properties as a function of environmental cues to further transition Plodia silk into regenerated silk fibroin biomaterials.

Characterization and pathogenicity of Pratylenchus vandenbergae stat. nov. (Tylenchina: Pratylenchidae), a highly pathogenic root‐lesion nematode parasitizing crops in Kenya and South Africa

AbstractA highly fecund root‐lesion nematode parasitizing a variety of crops was discovered and found to be widespread in Kenya and South Africa. These populations were molecularly identical to Pratylenchus teres teres and P. teres vandenbergae based on D2‐D3 of 28S rDNA and Hsp90 sequences. However, based on morphological differences with the original description of P. teres and its different geographical distribution, Pratylenchus vandenbergae stat. nov., previously known as subspecies P. teres vandenbergae, is recognized as a separate species. This species is characterized by a slightly offset labial region with three annuli, en face morphology belonging to Group II, lateral field with four incisures with two outer bands areolated as observed under a light microscope and the inner band also partially areolated at the vulva region as observed in scanning electron microscopy view, a robust stylet (14–17 μm) with rounded knobs and subcylindrical tail with annulated tail tip. This important and common species remained largely under the radar, probably due to identifications based only on sequence similarity, including mislabelled Pratylenchus bolivianus sequences in GenBank. Pathogenicity of P. vandenbergae stat. nov. in finger millet roots was confirmed through acid fuchsin staining, and reproduction and pathogenicity tests in maize, soybean, sunflower and tomato plants demonstrated its capacity to affect crop growth. Life cycle comparison with P. penetrans in vitro showed a similar life cycle length but significantly higher fecundity. Finally, significant differences in pathogenicity and reproduction of P. vandenbergae stat. nov. were found both at genotype level (finger millet genotypes OKHALE‐1 & KNE1034) and crop level (maize, soybean, sunflower and tomato plants).

Climate change impacts on insect pests for high value specialty crops in California

California is a global leader in production and supply of walnuts and almonds, and the state is the largest producer of peaches in the U.S. These crops have an important contribution to the California's agricultural economy. Damages to these crops from lepidopteran pests, mainly from Codling moth (Cydia pomonella) (family: Tortricidae), Peach twig borer (Anarsia lineatella) (family: Gelechiidae) and Oriental fruit moth (Grapholita molesta) (family: Tortricidae), are still high, despite the improvement in pest management activities. Given that temperature increase can directly impact the rate of growth and development of these pests, it is important to understand to what extent dynamics of these pests will change in future in California. The objective of this study was to quantify changes in the biofix, lifecycle length, and number of generations for these pests for the entire Central Valley of California. Using a well-established growing-degree days (GDD) model calibrated and validated using observations from orchards of California, and climate change projections from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phases 5 and 6 (CMIP5 and CMIP6) General Circulation Models, we found that biofix dates of these pests are expected to shift earlier by up to 28 days, and length of generations is expected to be shortened by up to 19 days, and up to 1.4 extra generations of these pests can be added by the end of the century depending on the scenario. Results from this work would enable industries to prioritize development of practices that are more effective in the long run, such as developing better cultural and biological pest solutions and insect tolerant varieties. Growers and researchers can take proactive actions to minimize future risks associated with these damaging pests. This work can be scalable to other pests and regions to understand regional dynamics of damaging agricultural pests under climate change.

A Review of Rapid Generation Advancement (RGA) in Crop Improvement

The use of the speed breeding method is widely considered to be the wave of the future in plant breeding. The term "speed breeding" is used to describe a rapid generational advancement technique that is used to minimise the time it takes from seed to seed, therefore reducing the length of a crop plant's typical life cycle. Plants that are not sensitive to light may have as many as six generations in a single year using this method, whereas other plants can only expect two or three generations every year. With this technique, the photoperiodic and temperature needs of crops produced in controlled-poly homes may be altered. This methodology, when combined with other cutting-edge tools like genome editing and high-throughput genotyping systems, may help breed new kinds of crops at a much quicker pace. Spacefaring food producers: NASA first conceived of this notion. Breeder's equation may be used to determine whether speed breeding is applicable to a certain crop. Light, photoperiodic regime, temperature, and humidity modification make up the backbone of the fast-breeding formula. Accelerated breeding, expedited genomic selection, improved transgenic and CRISPR-Cas9 pipelines, and the investigation of critically important agricultural plant physiological properties are just some of the numerous uses for this approach.

Structural variations and environmental specificities of flowering time-related genes in Brassica napus.

We found that the flowering time order of accessions in a genetic population considerably varied across environments, and homolog copies of essential flowering time genes played different roles in different locations. Flowering time plays a critical role in determining the life cycle length, yield, and quality of a crop. However, the allelic polymorphism of flowering time-related genes (FTRGs) in Brassica napus, an important oil crop, remains unclear. Here, we provide high-resolution graphics of FTRGs in B. napus on a pangenome-wide scale based on single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and structural variation (SV) analyses. A total of 1337 FTRGs in B. napus were identified by aligning their coding sequences with Arabidopsis orthologs. Overall, 46.07% of FTRGs were core genes and 53.93% were variable genes. Moreover, 1.94%, 0.74%, and 4.49% FTRGs had significant presence-frequency differences (PFDs) between the spring and semi-winter, spring and winter, and winter and semi-winter ecotypes, respectively. SNPs and SVs across 1626 accessions of 39 FTRGs underlying numerous published qualitative trait loci were analyzed. Additionally, to identify FTRGs specific to an eco-condition, genome-wide association studies (GWASs) based on SNP, presence/absence variation (PAV), and SV were performed after growing and observing the flowering time order (FTO) of plants in a collection of 292 accessions at three locations in two successive years. It was discovered that the FTO of plants in a genetic population changed a lot across various environments, and homolog copies of some key FTRGs played different roles in different locations. This study revealed the molecular basis of the genotype-by-environment (G × E) effect on flowering and recommended a pool of candidate genes specific to locations for breeding selection.

White Lupin (Lupinus albus L.), an Alternative Legume for Animal Feeding in the Mediterranean Area

Interest in white lupine has increased in recent years in animal nutrition due to its balanced protein and lipid content, phytochemical compounds, and low alkaloid content. Agronomic traits, nutrients, and antioxidant phenols of six white lupin genotypes grown in a Mediterranean area were explored. Genotypes significantly differed in growth stages and life cycle length (from 172 to 204 days after sowing), plant height (from 36.1 to 97.2 cm), seed yield (from 1.02 to 3.50 Mg ha−1), and yield components. Seed yield was positively correlated with the number of seeds per pod and the thousand-seed weight. Across the average of genotypes, a high protein content (397 g kg−1), a low fiber content (133 g kg−1), and oil content (116 g kg−1) with a high oleic acid (453–509 g kg−1) and low erucic acid content (8–17 g kg−1) were found. The n3/n6 ratio varied from 1:1 to 1:4. Ecotype G showed the highest TPC, DPPH•, and ABTS•+ and Multitalia showed the highest content of Apigenin 1 and 2 derivatives. The lowest alkaloid content was recorded in Volos, Luxor, and Lublanc. Overall, this species can be considered a suitable feed crop and a valuable ingredient in animal nutrition due to its overall nutritional profile. At present, only Volos, Luxor, and Lublanc can be suggested in animal nutrition due to the low alkaloid content. Nonetheless, interesting agronomic and quality traits in Multitalia and the two ecotypes suggest room for breeding to reduce their antinutritional factors.

Lifecycle cost evaluation of turnouts on a reinforced concrete base for especially heavy-duty track sections

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the economic efficiency of turnouts on a reinforced concrete base under harsh operating conditions by providing a model of their lifecycle and costing their maintenance and repair works. The article analyses failures in turnouts of Projects 2750 and 2768 and the costs of their elimination along two operational railway lines: O-N, V-S. An analysis of the data revealed that 90 % of the costs related to turnout failures were due to speed limit warnings and a mere 10 % of the costs were due to track possessions. The cost of turnout maintenance was calculated for four options (the 1st option was O-N, 1st track; the 2nd option was O-N, 2nd track; the 3rd option was V-S, 1st track; the 4th option was V-S, 2nd track). The calculation revealed that the highest maintenance cost per turnout related to the first track of the V-S direction. The model, cost elements and lifecycle cost for turnouts of Projects 2768 and 2750 from their installation to disposal is justified. While analysing the average annual total lifecycle cost of a turnout, it was concluded that option 3 (the V-S section, 1st track) had the highest lifecycle cost due to excessive operating time and no works on the complete replacement of metal parts. The optimal life cycle length for turnouts of Projects 2768 and 2750 is in the range of 1000-1200 million tons of gross running hours with required replacement of the metal parts of turnouts upon reaching them 0.6 of standard running tonnage.

Age of puberty, life cycle length, and reproductive investment in female fur seals

Purpose: assessment of age at puberty, life cycle length, and reproductive contribution in female fur seals over the life cycle.Method: analysis of materials on the return of tags from fur seals from the generations of 1979–1997, obtained during the harem period at the Central site of the Northern rookery (Bering Island) in 1982–2014.Novelty: For the first time, the life cycles of female fur seals from the generations of 1979–1997 have been completely traced. Information is presented on the duration of the life cycle of female fur seals, the age of entry into reproduction, and the reproductive contribution of females during the life cycle. The individual variability of life cycle parameters in female fur seals is shown.Results: The age of the first exit of females to the rookery ranged from 2 to 17 years. During the study period, females spent from 1 to 17 breeding seasons on the haulout. The duration of the life cycle is subject to significant individual variation: only less than 5% of the females spent more than 10 breeding seasons on the rookery, about a third of the females went to the rookery more than 6 times, about half — more than 4 times, and about a third of the females went to the rookery 2–3 times. Almost half (44.2%) of puppies are born during the 2nd — 3rd reproductive season, more than 95% of puppies are born during the 2nd — 9th reproductive seasons, and only about 5% of female puppies are born during the 10th 17 reproductive seasons. At the age of three, only 0.4% of puppies were born by females; at the age of 4–8 years — 57.6% of puppies; at the age of 9–13 years — 30.8%; at the age of 14–19 years — 10.3% and at the age of 20–22 years — 0.9% of puppies. Skipping breeding seasons is an adaptation of females to high maternal costs for offspring.

Coping with global warming: Adult thermal thresholds in four pestiferous Anastrepha species determined under experimental laboratory conditions and development/survival times of immatures and adults under natural field conditions.

Climate change, particularly global warming, is disturbing biological processes in unexpected ways and forcing us to re-study/reanalyze the effects of varying temperatures, among them extreme ones, on insect functional traits such as lifespan and fecundity/fertility. Here we experimentally tested, under both laboratory and field conditions, the effects of an extreme range of temperatures (5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, and 45 °C, and the naturally varying conditions experienced in the field), on survivorship/lifespan, fecundity, and fertility of four pestiferous fruit fly species exhibiting contrasting life histories and belonging to two phylogenetic groups within the genus Anastrepha: A. ludens, A. obliqua, A. striata, and A. serpentina. In the field, we also measured the length of the entire life cycle (egg to adult), and in one species (A. ludens), the effect on the latter of the host plant (mango and grapefruit). Under laboratory conditions, none of the adults, independent of species, could survive a single day when exposed to a constant temperature of 45 °C, but A. striata and A. serpentina females/males survived at the highly contrasting temperatures of 5 and 40 °C at least 7 days. Maximum longevity was achieved in all species at 15 °C (375, 225, 175 and 160 days in A. ludens, A. serpentina, A. striata and A. obliqua females, respectively). Anastrepha ludens layed many eggs until late in life (368 days) at 15 °C, but none eclosed. Eclosion was only observed in all species at 20 and 30 °C. Under natural conditions, flies lived ca. 100 days less than in the laboratory at 15 °C, likely due to the physiological cost of dealing with the highly varying environmental patterns over 24 h (minimum and maximum temperatures and relative humidity of ca. 10–40 °C, and 22–100%, respectively). In the case of A. ludens, the immature’s developmental time was shorter in mango, but adult survival was longer than in grapefruit. We discuss our results considering the physiological processes regulating the traits measured and tie them to the increasing problem of global warming and its hidden effects on the physiology of insects, as well as the ecological and pest management implications.

Assessing the climate impacts of oat straw as a raw material

Straw is an interesting renewable feedstock for various high-value products, such as textile fibers. However, straw encompass to soils maintains a good soil structure, fertility, and carbon storage. Despite the availability of previous research on this topic, uncertainties remain regarding the climate and soil impacts of straw collection. This study aims to show the carbon footprint (CF) of straw collection compared with that of soil encompass. The goal is to demonstrate uncertainties related to initial data and methodological assumptions on whether straw is regarded as a waste or a coproduct and illustrate where more measured data is needed. Life cycle assessment method was used to conduct this study and the data therein were gotten from literature. The results show that straw removal can lead to reduced greenhouse gas emissions in comparison to soil encompass because of reduced nitrogen fertilizing needs and subsequent N2O emissions. However, there is high uncertainty related to soil organic carbon (SOC) and N2O emission changes because of straw removal. It is also possible that greenhouse gas emissions increase due to straw removal. Straw seems to have a relatively low CF, especially when it is regarded as a waste. Coproduct interpretation significantly increases the emissions allocated for straw. Straw also stores carbon, and its total CF can be negative. The life cycle length of the straw-based end products determines how long carbon can be stored before it is released back into the atmosphere. Total greenhouse gas emission balance at a system level can be defined only when also straw refining and manufacturing of replaced final products are considered. Additional information is needed, especially on soil emissions (N2O and CH4) and impacts on SOC storage, to ensure the sustainability of straw-based products.

The Influence of Applications of Bio-Inputs Derived from Macroalgae and Bacteria on a Phaseolus vulgaris L. Crop

The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), is one of the most relevant legumes worldwide, as a source of protein, fiber, carbohydrates, and biologically important minerals. In recent decades, bean production increased significantly, especially in developing countries, where the availability of animal protein is often in short supply. However, a large portion of this agricultural production has been achieved in an unsustainable manner, through the intensive use of non-renewable agrochemicals, which in both the short and long term negatively affect soil fertility. To address this problem, the use of sustainable and renewable bio-inputs derived from macroalgae, and microorganisms may be amongst solutions required. Extracts of seaweeds have been shown to be biodegradable and non-toxic both for treated plants and consumers. This study aimed to evaluate the influence of the application of three bio-inputs made from different organisms on a common bean variety (BRSMG Realce) by analysing plant physiology and productivity, pod morphology, nutritional and mineral characterization of the bean. The study also aimed to evaluate the length of BRSMG Realce crop life cycle and compare its nutritional value with other commonly consumed varieties. Six treatments were performed: T0 - Control; T1 - Calmar® (soil - 100 kg/ha); T2 - Profertil® (foliar - 0.5%(v/v)); T3 - Albit® (leaf - 0.02%(v/v)); T4 - Calmar® ((100 kg/ha) + Profertil® (0.5%(v/v)); T5 - Calmar® ((100 kg/ha) + Albit® (0.02% (v/v)). The leaf chlorophyll index revealed significant increases for T2, T4 and T5, compared to control. In general, the treatments related to the pods morphology showed significant increases in the length/width ratio. In terms of productivity, significant increases were found with T1, T4 and T5. In the analysis of the nutritional value of dried beans there were significant increases in the contents of fiber in T1, protein in T4 and T5 and carbohydrates for T1, T2 and T3. For mineral composition, there were increases in the phosphorus content of T2, T4 and T5 beans. When the cooked beans were analysed, T4 and T1 produced a greater amount of ash and proteins, as compared to control. The applications of bio-inputs in the bean crop (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) exerted several positive and significant effects, mainly on the CCI, productivity, pod morphology as well as cooked bean nutritional values. It was verified that BRSMG Reakce has the potential to be included in the Portuguese diet.

Operationalising ethics in artificial intelligence for healthcare: a framework for AI developers

Artificial intelligence (AI) offers much promise for improving healthcare. However, it runs the looming risk of causing individual and societal harms; for instance, exacerbating inequalities amongst minority groups, or enabling compromises in the confidentiality of patients’ sensitive data. As such, there is an expanding, unmet need for ensuring AI for healthcare is developed in concordance with human values and ethics. Augmenting “principle-based” guidance that highlight adherence to ethical ideals (without necessarily offering translation into actionable practices), we offer a solution-based framework for operationalising ethics in AI for healthcare. Our framework is built from a scoping review of existing solutions of ethical AI guidelines, frameworks and technical solutions to address human values such as self-direction in healthcare. Our view spans the entire length of the AI lifecycle: data management, model development, deployment and monitoring. Our focus in this paper is to collate actionable solutions (whether technical or non-technical in nature), which can be steps that enable and empower developers in their daily practice to ensuring ethical practices in the broader picture. Our framework is intended to be adopted by AI developers, with recommendations that are accessible and driven by the existing literature. We endorse the recognised need for ‘ethical AI checklists’ co-designed with health AI practitioners, which could further operationalise the technical solutions we have collated. Since the risks to health and wellbeing are so large, we believe a proactive approach is necessary for ensuring human values and ethics are appropriately respected in AI for healthcare.

On the Issue of Management Teams’ Balance at the Business Entities

Although the term “balance” as like as provided terms “balance of interests”, “balance of accounts”, “balanced model” are used in lexicon of professional economists for more than one hundred years they still have no exact and well-known definitions. The most popular definitions of “balance” provided with the term “equilibrium” cannot be criticized, because each system after reaching equilibrium stops its development and may die. However, the sphere of practical using of balanced methods becomes wider. In last 10–15 years the term “balance” became widely used in system economic theory for solid base of natural and organic development of the economic systems on all the length of life cycle. In this connection there is great necessity to identify this term from the one side and establish its quantitative measurements, on the other side. In the present article we’d like to bring our personal deposit to decision these problems. According to natural disequilibrium of the economic systems, we approach logically held scientific definition of «balance» as well as original approach to accounting the index of system balance. For this aim we create the system model of an individual person as a straight participant of the economic relations. We also provide its organic including to general model of economic activities winch belong to the explored economical subject. On the base of symbiosis integrating system economic theory and changes management theory of Ishak Adizes we synthesize the algorithmic scheme of accounting system balanced index of management team for the explored system. Differently from the present schemes may be used on the nano level of modern economy which is provided with straight participants of the economic relations.

Captive breeding of odonate larvae: Effects of type of water, handling, and sex

AbstractBasic information on life histories, ecology, and behaviour for aquatic stages in many species of insects is difficult to obtain in the field. Here, a method to breed and monitor individual Odonata larvae in captivity is proposed. In total, 3788 individuals of six Odonata species – Rhionaeschna marchali (Rambur), Erythrodiplax abjecta (Rambur), Sympetrum gilvum (Selys), Ischnura chingaza Realpe, Ischnura cruzi De Marmels, and Mesamphiagrion laterale (Selys) – were reared individually in water‐filled plastic containers, whose size was increased to fit larval growth, at ambient temperature (12–34 °C, 12 h light per day, ca. 300 lux, and ad libitum food). We tested the effects of water type (habitat water, dechlorinated tap water, and drinking water), handling method, and sex on larval developmental time and number of instars. The number of instars was calculated as the mean number of moults for the individuals that successfully emerged as adults. Life cycle length was calculated by averaging the days over individuals that completed their development until emergence. The probability of achieving the adult stage was not significantly affected by the type of water, sex, or handling method. On the other hand, the number of instars was affected by species identity, and type of water, with fewer instars in water from the natural habitat, but not affected by sex or handling method. The duration of the life cycle was bimodal in most species, and was affected by type of water, but in an idiosyncratic, species‐specific way. The methodology proposed here allows monitoring and breeding large numbers of odonate larvae.

Transcription factor StABI5-like 1 binding to the FLOWERING LOCUS T homologs promotes early maturity in potato

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) maturity involves several important traits, including the onset of tuberization, flowering, leaf senescence, and the length of the plant life cycle. The timing of flowering and tuberization in potato is mediated by seasonal fluctuations in photoperiod and is thought to be separately controlled by the FLOWERING LOCUS T-like (FT-like) genes SELF-PRUNING 3D (StSP3D) and SELF-PRUNING 6A (StSP6A). However, the biological relationship between these morphological transitions that occur almost synchronously remains unknown. Here, we show that StABI5-like 1 (StABL1), a transcription factor central to abscisic acid (ABA) signaling, is a binding partner of StSP3D and StSP6A, forming an alternative florigen activation complex and alternative tuberigen activation complex in a 14-3-3-dependent manner. Overexpression of StABL1 results in the early initiation of flowering and tuberization as well as a short life cycle. Using genome-wide chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing and RNA-sequencing, we demonstrate that AGAMOUS-like and GA 2-oxidase 1 genes are regulated by StABL1. Phytohormone profiling indicates an altered gibberellic acid (GA) metabolism and that StABL1-overexpressing plants are insensitive to the inhibitory effect of GA with respect to tuberization. Collectively, our results suggest that StABL1 functions with FT-like genes to promote flowering and tuberization and consequently life cycle length in potato, providing insight into the pleiotropic functioning of the FT gene.

Study of some biological parameters of the oil palm tree leaf miner, Coelaenomenodera lameensis (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae, Hispinae) in a semi-controlled environment

The oil palm tree is the first source of fatty substances of vegetable origin in the world. However, its cultivation is strongly threatened by damage from Coelaenomenodera lameensis. The present study aimed at promotion a good knowledge of its biology in order to better manage its populations. Thus, some biological parameters of this pest were studied by means of cage breeding (September 2015-December 2017) on an plot ofLa Mé station of National Agronomic Research Center located 30 km North-East of Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire. The results revealed that the development of C. lameensis passes successively through stages egg, larva, nymph, internal adult and external adult stages. Also, the female lays an average of 137.48 ± 62.04 eggs and the number of individuals gradually decreases from egg stage to adult stage. The average life cycle length was 94.5 ± 7.94 days with a sex ratio of 1.34 ± 0.25 in favor of males. In addition, the mean lifespan was shorter in females than in males with respectively, 103.24 ± 10.25 days and 127.34 ± 21.41 days. All these parameters constitute potential indicators of C. lameensis biology and could help to put in place good strategies for control of its populations.

Inventory Replenishment Policies for Two Successive Generations of Technology Products Under Permissible Delay in Payments

In this age of digitalization, when every industry is undergoing technological disruption, there is a big role of digital gadgets and technology products. A key feature of these digital gadgets is the short length of the product life cycle, since the newer and more advanced generations of technologies are developed regularly to replace the earlier conventional technologies. The traditional EOQ models that assume a constant demand cannot be used here. This research paper formulates an inventory optimization model for the multi-generational products under the trade credits and the credit-linked and innovation diffusion dependent demand. The study also performs a numerical illustration of the proposed model, and establishes important dynamics among the key variables. It also performs the sensitivity analysis with the cost of credit and the trade credit period. The paper concludes with the managerial implications for the inventory practitioners and the possible areas of extension for this research in the future.

Global population dynamics of a single species structured with distinctive time-varying maturation and self-limitation delays

<p style='text-indent:20px;'>We consider the classical Nicholson's blowflies model incorporating two distinctive time-varying delays. One of the delays corresponds to the length of the individual's life cycle, and another corresponds to the specific physiological stage when self-limitation feedback takes place. Unlike the classical formulation of Nicholson's blowflies equation where self-regulation appears due to the competition of the productive adults for resources, the self-limitation of our considered model can occur at any developmental stage of an individual during the entire life cycle. We aim to find sharp conditions for the global asymptotic stability of a positive equilibrium. This is a significant challenge even when both delays are held at constant values. Here, we develop an approach to obtain a sharp and explicit criterion in an important situation where the two delays are asymptotically apart. Our approach can be also applied to the non-autonomous Mackey-Glass equation to provide a partial solution to an open problem about the global dynamics.</p>