Types Of Ones Research Articles

Overexpression of Ginkbilobin-2 homologous domain gene improves tolerance to Phytophthora cinnamomi in somatic embryos of Quercus suber

In recent decades an extensive mortality and decline of Quercus suber populations mainly caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi has been observed. In the current study, a chestnut gene homologous to ginkbilobin-2 (Cast_Gnk2-like), which in Ginkgo biloba codifies an antifungal protein, was transferred into cork oak somatic embryos of three different embryogenic lines by Agrobacterium mediated transformation. The transformation efficiency varied on the genotype from 2.5 to 9.2%, and a total of 22 independent transformed lines were obtained. The presence of Cast_Gnk2-like gene in transgenic embryos was verified in all lines by PCR. The number of transgene copies was estimated by qPCR in embryogenic lines with high proliferation ability and it varied between 1 and 5. In addition, the expression levels of Cast_Gnk2-like gene were determined in the embryogenic lines, with higher levels in lines derived from the genotype ALM6-WT. Transgenic plants were obtained from all transgenic lines and evaluated after cold storage of the somatic embryos for 2 months and subsequent transfer to germination medium. In vitro tolerance tests made under controlled conditions and following zoospore treatment showed that plants overexpressing Cast_Gnk2-like gene improved tolerance against Pc when compared to wild type ones.

Less is more: CRISPR/Cas9-based mutations in DND1 gene enhance tomato resistance to powdery mildew with low fitness costs

Powdery mildew (PM), triggered by Oidium neolycopersici, represents a significant threat and a major concern for the productivity of tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum L.). The presence of susceptibility (S) genes in plants facilitates pathogen proliferation and their dysfunction can lead to a recessively inherited broad-spectrum and durable type of resistance. Past studies have demonstrated that disrupting the function of DND1 (Defense No Death 1) increases plant resilience against various pathogens, such as powdery mildew (PM), but this comes at the cost of negatively affecting the overall health and vigor of the plant. To investigate the possibility of minimizing the adverse effects of the dnd1 mutation while boosting disease resistance, a CRISPR-Cas9 construct with four single guide RNAs targeting three exons of SlDND1 (Solyc02g088560.4.1) was designed and introduced into the tomato variety Moneymaker (MM) through Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation. Three T1 lines (named E1, E3 and E4) were crossed with MM and then selfed to produce TF2 families. All the TF2 plants in homozygous state dnd1/dnd1, showed reduced PM symptoms compared to the heterozygous (DND1/dnd1) and wild type (DND1/DND1) ones. Two full knock-out (KO) mutant events (E1 and E4) encoding truncated DND1 proteins, exhibited clear dwarfness and auto-necrosis phenotypes, while mutant event E3 harbouring deletions of 3 amino acids, showed normal growth in height with less auto-necrotic spots. Analysis of the 3D structures of both the reference and the mutant proteins revealed significant conformational alterations in the protein derived from E3, potentially impacting its function. A dnd1/dnd1 TF2 line (TV181848-9, E3) underwent whole-genome sequencing using Illumina technology, which confirmed the absence of off-target mutations in selected genomic areas. Additionally, no traces of the Cas9 gene were detected, indicating its elimination through segregation. Our findings confirm the role of DND1 as an S-gene in tomato because impairment of this gene leads to a notable reduction in susceptibility to O. neolycopersici. Moreover, we provide, for the first time, a dnd1 mutant allele (E3) that exhibits fitness advantages in comparison with previously reported dnd1 mutant alleles, indicating a possible way to breed with dnd1 mutants.

Expression of the alfalfa gene MsMDHAR in Arabidopsis thaliana increases water stress tolerance.

The ascorbate-glutathione pathway plays an essential role in the physiology of vascular plants, particularly in their response to environmental stresses. This pathway is responsible for regulating the cellular redox state, which is critical for maintaining cell function and survival under adverse conditions. To study the involvement of the alfalfa monodehydroascorbate reductase (MsMDHAR) in water stress processes, Arabidopsis thaliana plants constitutively expressing the sequence encoding MsMDHAR were developed. Transgenic events with low and high MsMDHAR expression and ascorbate levels were selected for further analysis of drought and waterlogging tolerance. Under water stress, Arabidopsis transgenic plants generated higher biomass, produced more seeds, and had larger roots than wild type ones. This higher tolerance was associated with increased production of waxes and chlorophyll a at the basal level, greater stomatal opening and stability in regulating the relative water content and reduced H2O2 accumulation under stress conditions in transgenic plants. Overall, these results show that MsMDHAR is involved in plant tolerance to abiotic stresses. The data presented here also emphasises the potential of the MsMDHAR enzyme as a plant breeding tool to improve water stress tolerance.

Diffuse tumors: Molecular determinants shared by different cancer types

Most cancer types have both diffuse and non-diffuse subtypes, which have rather distinct morphologies, namely scattered tiny tumors vs. one solid tumor, and different levels of aggressiveness. However, the causes for forming such distinct subtypes remain largely unknown. Using the diffuse and non-diffuse gastric cancers (GCs) as the illustrative example, we present a computational study based on the transcriptomic data from the TCGA and GEO databases, to address the following questions: (i) What are the key molecular determinants that give rise to the distinct morphologies between diffuse and non-diffuse cancers? (ii) What are the main reasons for diffuse cancers to be generally more aggressive than non-diffuse ones of the same cancer type? (iii) What are the reasons for their distinct immunoactivities? And (iv) why do diffuse cancers on average tend to take place in younger patients? The study is conducted using the framework we have previously developed for elucidation of general drivers cancer formation and development. Our main discoveries are: (a) the level of (poly-) sialic acids deployed on the surface of cancer cells is a significant factor contributing to questions (i) and (ii); (b) poly-sialic acids synthesized by ST8SIA4 are the key to question (iii); and (c) the circulating growth factors specifically needed by the diffuse subtype dictate the answer to question (iv). All these predictions are substantiated by published experimental studies. Our further analyses on breast, prostate, lung, liver, and thyroid cancers reveal that these discoveries generally apply to the diffuse subtypes of these cancer types, hence indicating the generality of our discoveries.

A CPF-like phosphatase module links transcription termination to chromatin silencing

The interconnections between co-transcriptional regulation, chromatin environment, and transcriptional output remain poorly understood. Here, we investigate the mechanism underlying RNA 3' processing-mediated Polycomb silencing of Arabidopsis FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC). We show a requirement for ANTHESIS PROMOTING FACTOR 1 (APRF1), a homolog of yeast Swd2 and human WDR82, known to regulate RNA polymerase II (RNA Pol II) during transcription termination. APRF1 interacts with TYPE ONE SERINE/THREONINE PROTEIN PHOSPHATASE 4 (TOPP4) (yeast Glc7/human PP1) and LUMINIDEPENDENS (LD), the latter showing structural features found in Ref2/PNUTS, all components of the yeast and human phosphatase module of the CPF 3' end-processing machinery. LD has been shown to co-associate invivo with the histone H3 K4 demethylase FLOWERING LOCUS D (FLD). This work shows how the APRF1/LD-mediated polyadenylation/termination process influences subsequent rounds of transcription by changing the local chromatin environment at FLC.

Finding Pattern in the Noise: Persistent Implicit Statistical Knowledge Impacts the Processing of Unpredictable Stimuli.

Humans can extract statistical regularities of the environment to predict upcoming events. Previous research recognized that implicitly acquired statistical knowledge remained persistent and continued to influence behavior even when the regularities were no longer present in the environment. Here, in an fMRI experiment, we investigated how the persistence of statistical knowledge is represented in the brain. Participants (n = 32) completed a visual, four-choice, RT task consisting of statistical regularities. Two types of blocks constantly alternated with one another throughout the task: predictable statistical regularities in one block type and unpredictable ones in the other. Participants were unaware of the statistical regularities and their changing distribution across the blocks. Yet, they acquired the statistical regularities and showed significant statistical knowledge at the behavioral level not only in the predictable blocks but also in the unpredictable ones, albeit to a smaller extent. Brain activity in a range of cortical and subcortical areas, including early visual cortex, the insula, the right inferior frontal gyrus, and the right globus pallidus/putamen contributed to the acquisition of statistical regularities. The right insula, inferior frontal gyrus, and hippocampus as well as the bilateral angular gyrus seemed to play a role in maintaining this statistical knowledge. The results altogether suggest that statistical knowledge could be exploited in a relevant, predictable context as well as transmitted to and retrieved in an irrelevant context without a predictable structure.

Raw meat-based diet for pets: a neglected source of human exposure to Salmonella and pathogenic Escherichia coli clones carrying mcr, Portugal, September 2019 to January 2020.

BackgroundThe pet industry is expanding worldwide, particularly raw meat-based diets (RMBDs). There are concerns regarding the safety of RMBDs, especially their potential to spread clinically relevant antibiotic-resistant bacteria or zoonotic pathogens.AimWe aimed to investigate whether dog food, including RMBD, commercially available in Portugal can be a source of Salmonella and/or other Enterobacteriaceae strains resistant to last-line antibiotics such as colistin.MethodsFifty-five samples from 25 brands (21 international ones) of various dog food types from 12 suppliers were screened by standard cultural methods between September 2019 and January 2020. Isolates were characterised by phenotypic and genotypic methods, including whole genome sequencing and comparative genomics.ResultsOnly RMBD batches were contaminated, with 10 of 14 containing polyclonal multidrug-resistant (MDR) Escherichia coli and one MDR Salmonella. One turkey-based sample contained MDR Salmonella serotype 1,4,[5],12:i:- ST34/cgST142761 with similarity to human clinical isolates occurring worldwide. This Salmonella exhibited typical antibiotic resistance (bla TEM + strA-strB + sul2 + tet(B)) and metal tolerance profiles (pco + sil + ars) associated with the European epidemic clone. Two samples (turkey/veal) carried globally dispersed MDR E. coli (ST3997-complexST10/cgST95899 and ST297/cgST138377) with colistin resistance (minimum inhibitory concentration: 4 mg/L) and mcr-1 gene on IncX4 plasmids, which were identical to other IncX4 circulating worldwide.ConclusionSome RMBDs from European brands available in Portugal can be a vehicle for clinically relevant MDR Salmonella and pathogenic E. coli clones carrying genes encoding resistance to the last-line antibiotic colistin. Proactive actions within the One Health context, spanning regulatory, pet-food industry and consumer levels, are needed to mitigate these public health risks.

Exclusion of HDAC1/2 complexes by oncogenic nuclear condensates

Nuclear condensates have been shown to regulate cell fate control, but its role in oncogenic transformation remains largely unknown. Here we show acquisition of oncogenic potential by nuclear condensate remodeling. The proto-oncogene SS18 and its oncogenic fusion SS18-SSX1 can both form condensates, but with drastically different properties and impact on 3D genome architecture. The oncogenic condensates, not wild type ones, readily exclude HDAC1 and 2 complexes, thus, allowing aberrant accumulation of H3K27ac on chromatin loci, leading to oncogenic expression of key target genes. These results provide the first case for condensate remodeling as a transforming event to generate oncogene and such condensates can be targeted for therapy. One sentence summary: Expulsion of HDACs complexes leads to oncogenic transformation.

Episodic eruptions of young accreting stars: the key role of disc thermal instability due to Hydrogen ionization

ABSTRACT In the classical grouping of large magnitude episodic variability of young accreting stars, FU Ori type objects (FUORs) outshine their stars by a factor of ∼100, and can last for up to centuries; EX Lupi type ones (EXORs) are dimmer, and last months to a year. A disc Hydrogen ionization thermal instability (TI) scenario was previously proposed for FUORs but required unrealistically low disc viscosity. In the last decade, many intermediate-type objects, for example, FUOR-like in luminosity and spectra but EXOR-like in duration were found. Here, we show that the intermediate-type bursters Gaia20eae, PTF14jg, Gaia19bey, and Gaia21bty may be naturally explained by the TI scenario with realistic viscosity values. We argue that TI predicts a dearth (desert) of bursts with peak accretion rates between 10−6 ${\rm {\rm M}_{\odot }}$ yr−1$\lesssim \dot{M}_{\rm burst} \lesssim 10^{-5}$ ${\rm {\rm M}_{\odot }}$ yr−1, and that this desert is seen in the sample of all the bursters with previously determined $\dot{M}_{\rm burst}$. Most classic EXORs (FUORs) appear to be on the cold (hot) branch of the S-curve during the peak light of their eruptions; thus TI may play a role in this class differentiation. At the same time, TI is unable to explain how classic FUORs can last for up to centuries, and overpredicts the occurrence rate of short FUORs by at least an order of magnitude. We conclude that TI is a required ingredient of episodic accretion operating at R ≲ 0.1 au, but additional physics must play a role at larger scales. Knowledge of TI inner workings from related disciplines may enable its use as a tool to constrain the nature of this additional physics.

Assessment of the estimation methods for the normal boiling point of liquid organic hydrogen carriers

Liquid organic hydrogen carrier (LOHC) presents a promising solution for hydrogen storage. However, its development has been impeded by the absence of normal boiling point (NBP) data for hydrogenation products, especially saturated alicyclic compounds. This gap spurs the search for a reliable and convenient estimation method to aid in the screening of new mediums and the design of chemical processes. Thanks to the intrinsic simplicity, 17 group contribution models were selected and evaluated to identify the optimal ones for different types of alicyclic compounds. The best-performing model was subsequently refined. Furthermore, two models tailored for predicting the NBP of saturated alicyclic compounds were proposed using classical approaches and artificial neural networks. The results indicate that the GCN and GM models yield lower errors in estimating the NBP of alicyclic hydrocarbons, while the GIC2 model performs better for heterocyclic compounds. The developed models are more accurate compared to the existing models. Notably, the neural-network-based model exhibits excellent performance. These models are expected to provide useful insights for large-scale screening of LOHCs for hydrogen storage.

Address Energy Delivery Technologies Based on The Hybrid Electrodynamic Processes

An effective tool has been identified for transferring technologies for processing food raw materials onto the rails of the nano-eco-industry — these are hybrid processes in electrodynamic devices. The aim of the work is a comprehensive study of hybrid processes in microwave electrodynamic systems. To achieve the goal, an experimental stand was created, which made it possible to visually confirm the effects of mechanical diffusion and establish the influence of key parameters on the kinetics and energy of hybrid processes. The working section — a model of a capillary-porous structure — was a bundle of calibrated glass tubes. When processing experimental data, the dependences of the influence of field power, channel diameter, temperature, and beam orientation on the kinetics and energy of the hybrid process were obtained. The most significant result of the work is the use of certain modes of organizing hybrid processes to control the extraction process in electrodynamic devices of three types: volumetric, film and circulation. Tests of these structures confirmed the formulated hypotheses of the formation of a hybrid process. The importance of the work lies in the fact that it is shown that the effect of mechanical diffusion is most powerfully manifested in electrodynamic extractors of the circulation type and energy consumption in electrodynamic extractors of the volumetric type is 1.4 times lower, film extractors are 1.5 times lower, and circulation type ones are 1.9 times lower, than in devices of traditional design.

Authentic specimens of Juncaceae names stored in the Herbarium of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv

Background. The Herbarium of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (LW) is one of the oldest herbaria in Ukraine. It was established in 1783 by Prof. B. Schiwerek. At present, its holdings are estimated at 300,000 specimens, including about 2000 type ones. Scientific processing of herbarium collections, their digitization, and cataloging are in progress. In 2002, the Herbarium of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv was included in the State Register of Scientific Objects of Ukraine that have the national heritage status. The aim of this study was to compile a list of Juncaceae type specimens of the Herbarium LW. Material and Methods. In the Herbarium LW, specimens of Juncaceae were analyzed. The authentic specimens of other herbaria were studied on JSTOR Global Plants. Using SimpleMappr, we created a map of loci classici of the type specimens names housed in this herbarium. Acronyms of herbaria are given according to the Index Herbariorum. Results. In the Herbarium of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, we found authentic specimens of six names: Juncus bulbosus var. salinus Schur, Juncus czetzii Schur, Juncus kotschyi Boiss., Juncus lampocarpus var. viviparus Schur, Juncus transsilvanicus Schur, Luzula alpigena Schur. For each name, we provide: 1) nomenclatural citation, 2) information from the protologue, 3) the text of the herbarium label of the type specimen kept in the Herbarium LW, 4) herbarium specimen number, 5) notes. Most of the authentic specimens are kept in F. Schur’s nominative collection. Conclusions. Six authentic specimens of Juncaceae are kept in the Herbarium LW: one isolectotype and 5 syntypes. Collectors of type specimens are F. Schur and T. Kotschy. The geographic areas of the Juncaceae type collection include 2 countries: Romania and Iran. At present, all of these names belong to synonyms.

Evaluation of Immunohistochemical Expression of ALK-1 in Gliomas, WHO Grade 4 and Its Correlation with IDH1-R132H Mutation Status.

Glioblastoma (GB), a grade 4 glioma is the most common primary malignant brain tumor in adults. Recently, the mutation status of isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) has been crucial in the treatment of GB. IDH mutant cases display a more favorable prognosis than IDH-wild type ones. The anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is expressed as a receptor tyrosine kinase in both the developing central and peripheral nervous systems. Increasing lines of evidence suggest that ALK is over-expressed in GB and represents a potential therapeutic target. The goal of the current study was to investigate ALK-1 immunohistochemical expression in gliomas, grade 4, besides its correlation with IDH1-R132H mutation status and the clinicopathological parameters of the tumors. Seventy cases of gliomas, grade 4 were tested for immunohistochemical expression of ALK-1 & IDH1-R132H in the tumor cells. ALK-1 immunoexpression was detected in 22.9% of our cases and IDH1-R132H mutation was detected in 12.9% of them. ALK-1 expression (100%) was only detected in the more aggressive IDH R132H-negative GBs. ALK-1 expression was also noted in the larger-sized tumors, more in males and patients older than the mean age. Conclusion: Our results suggest that mutations in ALK-1 may predict a more dismal prognosis since ALK expression was only noted in IDH-R132H negative GBs known to have a considerably poorer outcome compared to IDH-R132H mutant cases. GBs with detectable ALK-protein expression could potentially experience substantial clinical advantages through the utilization of newly introduced ALK inhibitors allowing personalized treatment to a subset of patients. Hence, future studies targeting ALK in IDH wildtype Glioblastomas including clinical trials on larger scales are recommended.

Identification of determinate sesame lines (Sesamum indicum L.): A step forward in vegetable oil

An experiment was conducted at Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bihar in the year 2020 and 2021 during summer season with 11 elite lines Sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) including two national checks (GT-10, TKG-22 and one zonal check JTS-08) to identify genotypes that had determinate habit so that the capsules matured uniformly. Three lines, BRT-04, BRT-08 and BRT-10, were identified as determinate plant type ones and BRT- 09 was identified as semi determinate type.

Optimal implicit single-step time integration methods with equivalence to the second-order-type linear multistep methods for structural dynamics: Accuracy analysis based on an analytical framework

This paper presents a comprehensive study of the second-order-type time integration methods family encompassing the linear multistep (LMS) methods, the single-step methods, and the LMS equivalent single-step methods for structural dynamics. An analytical accuracy framework for algorithm design, convergence, and optimization is developed, where the obstacles encountered in algorithms construction, convergence accuracy, algorithms equivalence, accuracy measurement, and accuracy optimization in traditional accuracy frameworks are well addressed. Rigorous accuracy analysis successively to the second-order-type LMS (LMS2) methods, the single-step methods, and the LMS2 equivalent single-step methods aims to reveal optimal algorithms with desirable numerical properties. First, independent implicit algorithms including the velocity type and the acceleration type LMS2 methods except the displacement type ones are newly revealed in the LMS2 methods family with second-order convergence and A-stability, and three error constants that can play essential roles in the accuracy measurement and algorithm optimization are developed. Second, a single-step methods family where the displacement, velocity, and acceleration can achieve the same order of accuracy simultaneously is revealed in a generalized 16-parameters methods family, which contains numerous conventional single-step single-solve methods as subfamily methods. It is found that the unit consistent and non-consistent representations show a significant difference in the local truncation error, stability, and convergence performances. Third, a family of accuracy-improved single-step methods with algorithmic equivalence, which is stricter than the traditional spectral equivalence, to the LMS2 methods is revealed. It is clarified that the difference between the methods with equivalence can significantly influence their convergence accuracy, and the error constants concept of the LMS2 methods can be extended to the single-step method with algorithmic equivalence. Last, an algorithm optimization strategy is developed based on the error constants and the ultimate spectral radius, and an optimal single-step method with a single parameter to control the accuracy and numerical dissipation is revealed analytically without empirical assumptions. The optimal method is second-order accurate, unconditionally stable, overshooting acceptable, and equivalent to an optimal route between the Houbolt method and the trapezoidal rule, and its numerical performance is verified by the spectral accuracy and two numerical examples.

TaFLZ54D enhanced salt stress tolerance of wheat by interacting with TaSGT1a and TaPP2Ca

FCS-like zinc finger (FLZ) gene family are C2-C2 zinc finger proteins taking part in seed dormancy, resistance to Myzus persicae 1, sucrose signaling and abiotic stresses. However, the function, especially the molecular mechanism of FLZs are not well understood now. In this study, we characterized 120 FLZs in wheat and revealed the function and mechanism of TaFLZ54D increasing salt stress tolerance in transgenic wheat. Expression analysis demonstrated TaFLZ54D was induced by NaCl treatment and has the highest expression level under NaCl treatment among 120 FLZs. Over-expression of TaFLZ54D increased wheat salt stress tolerance and the transgenic plants have higher level of SOD and POD enzyme activity, soluble sugar content, lower Na+/K+ ratio and MDA content than the wild type ones. Potassium ion transmembrane transporters and serine/threonine kinase inhibitor proteins showed differential expression between TaFLZ54D transgenic wheat and the wild type. Yeast two hybrid and luciferase complementation assay revealed TaSGT1a and TaPP2Ca were the direct interaction proteins of TaFLZ54D. To sum up, TaFLZ54D enhanced salt stress tolerance through interacting with TaSGT1a and TaPP2Ca to decrease Na+ absorption and mitigate oxidative stress. The interaction between TaFLZ54D and TaSGT1a or TaPP2Ca indicated a linker between salt stress tolerance of TaFLZ54D and the ubiquitination degradation of negative regulatory proteins.

Characterization of SEC14 family in wheat and the function of TaSEC14-7B in salt stress tolerance

Phospholipids are important components of plant biofilms and signal transduction. They are divided into glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. Phosphatidylinositol (PI) is an intracellular glycerophospholipid. SEC14s are PI transporter proteins that are widely presented in eukaryotic. They take part in membrane transportation, inositol phosphate metabolism and adversity stress response. To date, systematic analysis of the SEC14 gene family in wheat, especially the function of SEC14 in salt stress tolerance has not been reported. In this study, 106 SEC14 family members have been identified in wheat. Then, a salt inducible Sec14 family member TaSEC14-7B was selected for further functional study in response to salt stress. Expression analysis demonstrated TaSEC14-7B was induced by NaCl, PEG treatment and localized both in the cell membrane and nucleus. TaSEC14-7B over-expressing Arabidopsis increased salt stress tolerance. Under salt stress, the transgenic plants displayed higher germination rate, longer primary root length, more soluble sugar accumulation, higher antioxidant enzyme activity and lower oxidative damage than the wild type plants. Also, at the presence of NaCl stress, the expression level of ABF4, P5CS, PLC4 and AtPLC7 genes was higher in TaSEC14 transgenic Arabidopsis than in the wild type ones. All these results lay a foundation for further study of Sec14 in wheat.

Peculiarities of Humorous Dialogues of the Japanese Comic Performance Genre of Manzai

Introduction. Researchers have pointed out that dialogue itself may be considered from the point of view of intercultural interaction. This is connected with the process of forming intercultural foreign language communicative competence that at recent times has been frequently carried out through information and communication technologies etc. Due to that, we have chosen as the object of our research the humorous dialogues of the Japanese comic performance genre of manzai, which we retrieved from the educational and entertainment video (one of the means of edutainment technology). Methods. Based on the classification of the peculiarities of the dialogues such as communicative, psychological, and linguistic ones developed by Ukrainian researchers we made an analysis of the Japanese dialogues of manzai genre and distinguished their functional types. Results. The analysis of the mentioned above dialogues revealed that first of all the dialogues may be considered as the ones of the combined type from the point of view of their functions. As well as we have clarified that dialogical unities of the analyzed dialogues often may have combinations of peculiarities such as psychological and linguistic ones or linguistic and communicative ones. Also, we have defined the peculiarity which provides the comic effect in these dialogues and serves as the base for what dialogue of such kind is developing. Conclusion. To sum up, it was found that the mentioned above peculiarities of the dialogues play a significant role in the process of forming intercultural foreign language communicative competence. Therefore, we consider this research useful for developing exercises for Japanese language students to form competence in dialogical speech using the educational and entertainment videos of the Japanese comic performance genre of manzai.

Donor-Acceptor molecule with TICT character: a new design strategy for organic photothermal material in solar energy

Organic photothermal materials, particular the donor–acceptor (D-A) type ones, have attracted increased attention because they could efficiently transform solar energy to heat in an environmentally friendly manner. So far, there are many strategies to improve the fluorescence of D-A type molecules, while how to quench the fluorescence via non-radiative decay process and thus maximize the solar-thermal conversion efficiency is rarely investigated. Herein, a new design strategy is proposed to overcome this bottleneck, that is, formatting a unique twisted intramolecular charge-transfer (TICT) excitation state for the D-A type molecule. To demonstrate this new design strategy, three D-A molecules TPA-BTO, TPA-BTO-Py+ and GTPA-BTO-Py+ are synthesized with the consideration of employing stronger donor/acceptor moieties. The photophysical measurements and theoretical calculations reveal that these molecules display strong tendency to form TICT state, and the stronger donor/acceptor would significantly promote the TICT-based non-radiative decay process. Consequently, the target molecule GTPA-BTO-Py+ is totally non-fluorescent and could efficiently transform the absorbed solar energy to heat. Further combined with the wide absorption up to 1300 nm, GTPA-BTO-Py+ solid displays a high solar-thermal conversion efficiency of 20.5%. Finally, the utility of GTPA-BTO-Py+ as highly efficient photothermal material in solar energy is highlighted by water evaporation and thermoelectric generation.

Construction of versatile yeast plasmid vectors transferable by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation and their application to bread-making yeast strains

Agrobacterium-mediated transformation (AMT) potentially has great advantages over other DNA introduction methods: e.g., long DNA and numerous recipient strains can be dealt with at a time merely by co-cultivation with donor Agrobacterium cells. However, AMT was applied only to several laboratory yeast strains, and has never been considered as a standard gene-introduction method for yeast species. To disseminate the AMT method in yeast species, it is necessary to develop versatile AMT plasmid vectors including shuttle type ones, which have been unavailable yet for yeasts. In this study, we constructed a series of AMT plasmid vectors that consist of replicative (shuttle)- and integrative-types and harbor a gene conferring resistance to either G418 or aureobasidin A for application to prototrophic yeast strains. The vectors were successfully applied to five industrial yeast strains belonging to Saccharomyces cerevisiae after a modification of a previous AMT protocol, i.e., simply inputting a smaller number of yeast cells to the co-cultivation than that in the previous protocol. The revised protocol enabled all five yeast strains to generate recombinant colonies not only at high efficiency using replicative-type vectors, but also readily at an efficiency around 10-5 using integrative one. Further modification of the protocol demonstrated AMT for multiple yeast strains at a time with less labor. Therefore, AMT would facilitate molecular genetic approaches to many yeast strains in basic and applied sciences.