Genotypic Variation in Growth and Physiological Response to Drought Stress and Re-Watering Reveals the Critical Role of Recovery in Drought Adaptation in Maize Seedlings

The critical role of mental imagery in human emotion: insights from Aphantasia

10.1101/726844 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Marcus Wicken ◽

Rebecca Keogh ◽

Joel Pearson

Keyword(s):

General Population ◽

Mental Imagery ◽

Visual Imagery ◽

Physiological Response ◽

Critical Role ◽

Special Population ◽

Human Emotion

AbstractOne proposed function of imagery is to make thoughts more emotionally evocative through sensory simulations. Here we report a novel test of this theory utilizing a special population with no visual imagery: Aphantasia. After using multi-method verification of aphantasia, we show that this condition, but not the general population, is associated with a flat-line physiological response to frightening written, but not perceptual scenarios, supporting imagery’s critical role in emotion.

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A review of drought adaptation in crop plants: changes in vegetative and reproductive physiology induced by ABA-based chemical signals

Australian Journal of Agricultural Research ◽

10.1071/ar05062 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 56 (11) ◽

pp. 1245 ◽

Cited By ~ 86

Author(s):

Fulai Liu ◽

Christian R. Jensen ◽

Mathias N. Andersen

Keyword(s):

Drought Stress ◽

Stomatal Closure ◽

Xylem Sap ◽

Reproductive Development ◽

Leaf Expansion ◽

Rhizobium Japonicum ◽

Soil Drying ◽

Drought Adaptation ◽

Chemical Signalling

This review discusses the role of abscisic acid (ABA)-based drought stress chemical signalling in regulating crop vegetative and reproductive development and its contributions to crop drought adaptation. Increased concentrations of ABA in the root induced by soil drying may maintain root growth and increase root hydraulic conductivity; both lead to an increase in water uptake and thereby postpone the development of water deficit in the shoot. Root ABA is also transported in the xylem to the shoot and is perceived at the acting sites, where it causes stomatal closure and reduced leaf expansion, thereby preventing dehydration of leaf tissues and enhancing the chance for survival under prolonged drought. ABA-based chemical signalling can be amplified by several factors, particularly increased pH in the xylem/apoplast, which retains anionic ABA. Such an increase in xylem pH detected in field-grown maize might have been brought about by reduced nitrate uptake by plants during soil drying. In contrast, xylem sap alkalinisation was not found in soybeans, which depend on fixing nitrogen through their association with Rhizobium japonicum. Evidence has also shown that the xylem-borne ABA can be transported to plant reproductive structures and influence their development, presumably by regulating gene expression that controls cell division and carbohydrate metabolic enzyme activity under drought conditions. The possible involvement of ABA in the up- and down-regulation of acid invertase in crop source (adult leaves) v. sink (young ovaries) organs indicates a crucial role of the hormone in balancing source and sink relationship in plants according to the availability of water in the soil. A novel irrigation technique named partial root-zone drying (PRD), has been developed to allow exploitation of ABA-based drought stress signalling to improve water-use efficiency (WUE) based on its roles in regulating stomatal aperture and leaf expansion. However, little is known about how crop reproductive development is regulated when irrigated under PRD. We suggest that more attention should be paid to the latter aspect as it directly relates to crop yield and quality.

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Evaluation of the differential osmotic adjustments between roots and leaves of maize seedlings with single or combined NPK-nutrient supply

Functional Plant Biology ◽

10.1071/fp06294 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 34 (3) ◽

pp. 228 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Christoph Studer ◽

Yuncai Hu ◽

Urs Schmidhalter

Keyword(s):

Drought Stress ◽

Plant Growth ◽

Root Growth ◽

Osmotic Adjustment ◽

Turgor Pressure ◽

Nutrient Supply ◽

Interactive Effects ◽

Maize Seedlings ◽

Turgor Maintenance

Many physiological mechanisms associated with nutrient supply have been implicated as improving plant growth under drought conditions. However, benefits to plant growth under drought might derive from an increased recovery of soil water through osmotic adjustment in the shoots and especially in the roots. Thus, experiments were carried out to investigate the effects of the nutrients N, P and K applied singly or in combination, on the osmotic adjustment and turgor maintenance in the roots and leaves of maize seedlings. The seedlings were harvested between 18 and 37 days after sowing according to the soil matric threshold potentials. Soil matric potentials and shoot and root biomass were determined at harvest. Turgor pressure and osmotic adjustment of the leaves and roots were estimated by measurements of their water and osmotic potentials. Results showed that plants with either of the combined fertilisation treatments NPK or NP grew faster at a given level of drought stress than those with no fertilisation, N, P or K applied individually or the combined nutrient treatments PK and NK. Among the fertiliser applications with either a single or two combined nutrients, plants treated with any of N, P or NP grew faster than those with either K or NK. The association between the interactive effects of nutrients and drought stress on the osmotic adjustment and turgor maintenance in roots may partially explain the role of nutrients in drought tolerance of maize seedlings. In particular, the roots exhibited a higher osmotic adjustment than the leaves for all nutrient treatments, suggesting that shoot growth shows a higher sensitivity to water deficit compared to root growth. We conclude that the maintained turgor of roots under drought stress obtained with an optimal nutrient supply results in better root growth and apparently promotes overall plant growth, suggesting that osmotic adjustment is an adaptation not only for surviving stress, but also for growth under such conditions.

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The Critical Role of Zinc in Plants Facing the Drought Stress

Agriculture ◽

10.3390/agriculture10090396 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 396

Author(s):

Muhammad Umair Hassan ◽

Muhammad Aamer ◽

Muhammad Umer Chattha ◽

Tang Haiying ◽

Babar Shahzad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Drought Stress ◽

Molecular Mechanisms ◽

Stress Proteins ◽

Critical Role ◽

Crop Productivity ◽

Plant Performance ◽

Future Research ◽

Cell Membrane Stability ◽

Crop Resistance

Drought stress affects plant growth and development by altering physiological and biochemical processes resulting in reduced crop productivity. Zinc (Zn) is an essential micronutrient that plays fundamental roles in crop resistance against the drought stress by regulating various physiological and molecular mechanisms. Under drought stress, Zn application improves seed germination, plant water relations, cell membrane stability, osmolyte accumulation, stomatal regulation, water use efficiency and photosynthesis, thus resulting in significantly better plant performance. Moreover, Zn interacts with plant hormones, increases the expression of stress proteins and stimulates the antioxidant enzymes for counteracting drought effects. To better appraise the potential benefits arising from optimum Zn nutrition, in the present review we discuss the role of Zn in plants under drought stress. Our aim is to provide a complete, updated picture in order to orientate future research directions on this topic.

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The critical role of mental imagery in human emotion: insights from fear-based imagery and aphantasia

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2021.0267 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 288 (1946) ◽

pp. 20210267

Author(s):

Marcus Wicken ◽

Rebecca Keogh ◽

Joel Pearson

Keyword(s):

Visual Imagery ◽

Physiological Response ◽

Emotional Response ◽

Physiological Responses ◽

Critical Role ◽

Special Population ◽

The Past ◽

Skin Conductance Levels ◽

Future Events

One proposed function of imagery is to make thoughts more emotionally evocative through sensory simulation, which can be helpful both in planning for future events and in remembering the past, but also a hindrance when thoughts become overwhelming and maladaptive, such as in anxiety disorders. Here, we report a novel test of this theory using a special population with no visual imagery: aphantasia. After using multi-method verification of aphantasia, we show that this condition, but not the general population, is associated with a flat-line physiological response (skin conductance levels) to reading and imagining frightening stories. Importantly, we show in a second experiment that this difference in physiological responses to fear-inducing stimuli is not found when perceptually viewing fearful images. These data demonstrate that the aphantasic individuals' lack of a physiological response when imaging scenarios is likely to be driven by their inability to visualize and is not due to a general emotional or physiological dampening. This work provides evidence that a lack of visual imagery results in a dampened emotional response when reading fearful scenarios, providing evidence for the emotional amplification theory of visual imagery.

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The Role of the SLP in Autism Spectrum Disorder Screening and Assessment

Perspectives on Language Learning and Education ◽

10.1044/lle15.2.50 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 50-59 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Amy Philofsky

Keyword(s):

Language Development ◽

Critical Role ◽

Children With Autism ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Children With Asd ◽

Prevalence Estimates ◽

Notable Increase ◽

Screening Assessment ◽

Critical Components

AbstractRecent prevalence estimates for autism have been alarming as a function of the notable increase. Speech-language pathologists play a critical role in screening, assessment and intervention for children with autism. This article reviews signs that may be indicative of autism at different stages of language development, and discusses the importance of several psychometric properties—sensitivity and specificity—in utilizing screening measures for children with autism. Critical components of assessment for children with autism are reviewed. This article concludes with examples of intervention targets for children with ASD at various levels of language development.

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