Preservation of Mimosa tenuiflora Antiaflatoxigenic Activity Using Microencapsulation by Spray-Drying

Mimosa tenuiflora aqueous extract (MAE) is rich in phenolic compounds. Among them, condensed tannins have been demonstrated to exhibit a strong antioxidant and antiaflatoxin B1 activities in Aspergillus flavus. Since antioxidant capacity can change with time due to environmental interactions, this study aimed to evaluate the ability of encapsulation by spray-drying of Mimosa tenuiflora aqueous extract to preserve their biological activities through storage. A dry formulation may also facilitate transportation and uses. For that, three different wall materials were used and compared for their efficiency. Total phenolic content, antioxidant activity, antifungal and antiaflatoxin activities were measured after the production of the microparticles and after one year of storage at room temperature. These results confirmed that encapsulation by spray-drying using polysaccharide wall materials is able to preserve antiaflatoxin activity of Mimosa tenuiflora extract better than freezing.

CHANGE IN THE VITREUOSNESS GRAIN OF DURUM WHEAT IN THE BREEDING PROCESS IN THE MIDDLE VOLGA REGION

The vitreousness of grain is an important trait taken into account by the state standards of many countries when determining its quality class. When creating new cultivars, this trait is controlled at all stages of breeding. The article presents the results of studying the vitreousness of grain cultivars of Samara Research Institute of Agriculture, related to the 4 stages of breeding covering the periods - 1957-1990 (stage I), 2003-2004 (stage II), 2007-2008 (stage III), 2012-2018 (stage IV). The study was carried out on the experimental field of Samara Research Institute of Agriculture during 2012-2020. Experimental plots with an accounting area of 20.0 m2 were placed in randomized blocks. Vitreousness was determined by the percentage of vitreous grains on the endosperm section in refined grain samples taken in 3 field replicates. The evaluation of the data obtained was carried out on the basis of 2-factor, one-way dispersion and correlation analyzes, parameters of stability and responsiveness according to the methods of Kilchevsky, Khotyleva, Eberhart-Russell, Khangildin, Nettevich. The dispersion of grain vitreousness was determined by environmental conditions – 61.2%, genotype factors and genotype/environmental interactions – 9.3% and 19.0%, respectively. Progress in breeding relative to the first stage was observed at the 2nd and 4th stages and was absent at the 3rd stage. According to the absolute values of vitreousness (91.8-94.3%), 4 cultivars were distinguished - Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya, Bezenchukskaya krepost, Bezenchukskaya nivaand Bezenchukskaya 210, belonging to the 4th stage. Values close to these (89.2-89.6%) were noted in the varieties of the 2nd stage - Bezenchukskaya stepnaya and Pamyaty Chekhovicha. Successful breeding for the vitreousness of durum wheat grain is associated with an improvement in the parameters of the stability of the formation of a trait in a variety of environmental conditions. Reliable genotypic correlations of glassiness, grain yield and macaroni color show the effectiveness of simultaneous selection for these traits. The absence of significant correlations of grain vitreousness with vegetation parameters, and quality, suggests the possibility of obtaining the necessary recombinations in the selection process. Genotypic correlation coefficients show the possibility of breeding productive cultivars with a high vitreousness of grain and a varied combination of parameters of the growing season and grain quality. Cultivars of the 4th stage, Bezenchukskaya zolotistaya and Bezenchukskaya krepost, were proposed as a initial material in breeding for grain vitreousness

Students evaluation of interaction with the components of the educational environment of the university in the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods

The forced transition to distance learning due to the pandemic led to a qualitative change in the components of the educational environment of the university The purpose of article is a comparative analysis of students' evaluation of the educational environment (spatial-subject, communicative and technological components) in regular education before the pandemic and during the transition to distance forms of education during the pandemic. Based on this, a hypothesis was put forward about the correlation between the stage of a student’s subjecthood and the eco-psychological type of his interactions with each of the components of the educational environment in the regular (traditional) and distance (virtual) learning modes. The test subjects were students of the second and fifth years of engineering specialties (N = 159; M = 20.3; SD = 1.5; 68 per cent of girls). To diagnose the evaluation of the interaction of the components of the educational environment, we used the questionnaire, which allows us to evaluate the correlation of each component of the environment with the Eco-psychological types of subject-environmental interactions on an interval scale (from object-object to subject-subject). To assess the stages of the formation of a student’s subjecthood in educational activity, the author modified G. Kelly’s grid, with the help of which the ideographic research method was implemented. The influence of the components of the educational environment on students was determined by stepwise regression analysis. The study identified the stages of the formation of a student’s subjecthood "journeyman" (subject-object and object-subject type), "student" (subject-joint type), "critic" and "creator" (generative subject type) of traditional and digital educational environments. In particular, the increased frequency of the “apprentice” stage of a student’s subjecthood testifies to the dominance of reproductive technologies in teaching both in the traditional (33%) and in the “digital” (22%) environment. In the technological component of the traditional educational environment in the pre-pandemic period, a correlation was revealed with a number of stages of the formation of a student’s subjecthood "observer" (0,20), "journeyman" (0,21), "student" (0,20), "master" (0,17) and "creator" (0,22). Whereas in regard to the “digital” environment, only one inversely proportional relationship with the severity of the “creator” stage (-0,19) in the object-object type of interaction was revealed.

Contribution of Gut Microbiota to Immune Tolerance in Infants

The prevalence of food allergy has increased in recent years, especially among the pediatric population. Differences in the gut microbiota composition between children with FA and healthy children have brought this topic into the spotlight as a possible explanation for the increase in FA. The gut microbiota characteristics are acquired through environmental interactions starting early in life, such as type of delivery during birth and breastfeeding. The microbiota features may be shaped by a plethora of immunomodulatory mechanisms, including a predominant role of Tregs and the transcription factor FOXP3. Additionally, a pivotal role has been given to vitamin A and butyrate, the main anti-inflammatory metabolite. These observations have led to the study and development of therapies oriented to modifying the microbiota and metabolite profiles, such as the use of pre- and probiotics and the determination of their capacity to induce tolerance to allergens that are relevant to FA. To date, evidence supporting these approaches in humans is scarce and inconclusive. Larger cohorts and dose-titration studies are mandatory to evaluate whether the observed changes in gut microbiota composition reflect medical recovery and increased tolerance in pediatric patients with FA. In this article, we discuss the establishment of the microbiota, the immunological mechanisms that regulate the microbiota of children with food allergies, and the evidence in research focused on its regulation as a means to achieve tolerance to food allergens.

Control of Thruster-Assisted, Bipedal Legged Locomotion of the Harpy Robot

Fast constraint satisfaction, frontal dynamics stabilization, and avoiding fallovers in dynamic, bipedal walkers can be pretty challenging. The challenges include underactuation, vulnerability to external perturbations, and high computational complexity that arise when accounting for the system full-dynamics and environmental interactions. In this work, we study the potential roles of thrusters in addressing some of these locomotion challenges in bipedal robotics. We will introduce a thruster-assisted bipedal robot called Harpy. We will capitalize on Harpy’s unique design to propose an optimization-free approach to satisfy gait feasibility conditions. In this thruster-assisted legged locomotion, the reference trajectories can be manipulated to fulfill constraints brought on by ground contact and those prescribed for states and inputs. Unintended changes to the trajectories, especially those optimized to produce periodic orbits, can adversely affect gait stability and hybrid invariance. We will show our approach can still guarantee stability and hybrid invariance of the gaits by employing the thrusters in Harpy. We will also show that the thrusters can be leveraged to robustify the gaits by dodging fallovers or jumping over large obstacles.

Association between rs20456 and rs6930913 of Kinesin-Like Family 6 and Hypertension in a Chinese Cohort

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between kinesin-like family 6 (KIF6) polymorphisms and hypertension in a northeast Chinese cohort. In this study, two single nucleotide polymorphisms of KIF6 (rs20456 and rs6930913) and their haplotype were analyzed in 382 hypertension patients and 378 controls with SHEsis analysis platform, and the gene-environmental interactions were evaluated with logistic regression analysis. After adjusting for confounding factors, significantly lower risk of hypertension was observed in participants with genotype TC (0.416 (CI 0.299–0.578), p < 0.001 ) and CC (0.577 (0.389–0.857), p = 0.007 ) of rs20456 compared with TT. For rs6930913, allele T (0.522 (0.386–0.704), p < 0.001 ), genotype TT (0.325 (0.205–0.515), p < 0.001 ), and genotype CT (0.513 (0.379–0.693), p < 0.001 ) were significantly associated with lower risk of hypertension than allele C and CC genotype, respectively. Gene-environment analyses confirmed the significant influence on hypertension by the interactions between genotypes distribution in rs20456 (CT: p = 0.036 , TT: p = 0.022 ) and smoking status. No interactions were found between smoking and rs6930913, except those with dominant or recessive genetic models (both P s = 0.006 ). There were no interactions between KIF6 and overweight (all P s > 0.05 ). Haplotype analyses showed that CC ( p = 0.005 ) and TC ( p = 0.001 ) of rs20456 and rs6930913 were significantly associated with a statistically increased risk of hypertension. The false-positive report probability (FPRP) analysis was used to verify significant findings. In conclusions, KIF6 might affect the susceptibility of hypertension. The allele C (rs20456) and allele T (rs690913) were inclined to protect individuals from hypertension both in genotype and haplotype analyses.

Impact of future elevated carbon dioxide on C3 plant resistance to biotic stresses

Before the end of the century, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) levels are predicted to increase to ~900 ppm. This will dramatically affect plant physiology and influence environmental interactions and, in particular, plant resistance to biotic stresses. This review is a broad survey of the current research on the effects of elevated CO2 (eCO2) on phytohormone-mediated resistance of C3 agricultural crops and related model species to pathogens and insect herbivores. In general, while plants grown in eCO2 often have increased constitutive and induced salicylic acid levels and suppressed induced jasmonate levels, there are exceptions that implicate other environmental factors, such as light and nitrogen fertilization in modulating these responses. Therefore, this review sets the stage for future studies to delve into understanding the mechanistic basis behind how eCO2 will affect plant defensive phytohormone signaling pathways under future predicted environmental conditions that could threaten global food security to inform the best agricultural management practices.

Ecological Dynamics and Microbial Treatments against Oomycete Plant Pathogens

In this review, we explore how ecological concepts may help assist with applying microbial biocontrol agents to oomycete pathogens. Oomycetes cause a variety of agricultural diseases, including potato late blight, apple replant diseases, and downy mildew of grapevine, which also can lead to significant economic damage in their respective crops. The use of microbial biocontrol agents is increasingly gaining interest due to pressure from governments and society to reduce chemical plant protection products. The success of a biocontrol agent is dependent on many ecological processes, including the establishment on the host, persistence in the environment, and expression of traits that may be dependent on the microbiome. This review examines recent literature and trends in research that incorporate ecological aspects, especially microbiome, host, and environmental interactions, into biological control development and applications. We explore ecological factors that may influence microbial biocontrol agents’ efficacy and discuss key research avenues forward.

The predator-dependent replicator dynamics

Ecological interactions are central to understanding evolution. For example, Darwin noticed that the beautiful colours of the male peacock increase the chance of successful mating. However, the colours can be a threat because of the increased probability of being caught by predators. Eco-evolutionary dynamics takes into account environmental interactions to model the process of evolution. The selection of prey types in the presence of predators may be subjected to pressure on both reproduction and survival. Here, we analyze the evolutionary game dynamics of two types of prey in the presence of predators. We call this model \textit{the predator-dependent replicator dynamics}. If the evolutionary time scales are different, the number of predators can be assumed constant, and the traditional replicator dynamics is recovered. However, if the time scales are the same, we end up with sixteen possible dynamics: the combinations of four reproduction’s games with four predation’s games. We analyze the dynamics and calculate conditions for the coexistence of prey and predator. The main result is that predators can change the equilibrium of the traditional replicator dynamics. For example, the presence of predators can induce polymorphism in prey if one type of prey is more attractive than the other, with the prey ending with a lower capture rate in this new equilibrium. Lastly, we provide two illustrations of the dynamics, which can be seen as rapid feedback responses in a predator-prey evolutionary arm’s race.

Kyushu and Okinawa Population Study (KOPS): a large prospective cohort study in Japan

PurposeThe Kyushu and Okinawa Population Study (KOPS) was established to investigate gene–environmental interactions in non-communicable diseases in Japan. Besides collecting blood samples and anthropometric measurements, we also obtained medical histories, psychological status and lifestyle habits, including physical activities and dietary patterns.ParticipantsKOPS is a community-based prospective cohort study and consists of participants from four southwestern areas in Japan. Baseline surveys were conducted between 2004 and 2007 (wave 1), and 2009 and 2012 (wave 2) at the sites of municipality-based health check-ups. A total of 17 077 participants were included, comprising 10 697 participants of wave 1 and 6380 participants of wave 2; the median age in both groups was 61 years. Among them, 3006 individuals participated in both wave 1 and wave 2 surveys.Findings to dateWe have focused on either risk or confounding factors for non-communicable diseases. We have assessed the clinical utility of the newly developed biomarkers for impaired glucose tolerance, such as urinary myo-inositol and glycated albumin, and atherosclerosis, such as small dense low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. We have conducted an international collaborative study with Framingham Offspring Study to investigate ethnic differences in impaired glucose tolerance and cardiovascular diseases. We have found that insulin resistance and deficiency might account for the ethnic differences in impaired glucose tolerance and cardiovascular disease risks. As gene–environmental interaction analyses, we found a synergic effect of interleukin 28B single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and gender on the spontaneous elimination of hepatitis C, and a beneficial interaction of SNPs of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and gender on the impact of physical activity. In addition, we reported eight novel loci contributing to the development and severity of coronary artery disease from a large genome-wide association study.Future plansWe plan to investigate further the clinical utility of the newly developed biomarkers and the gene–environmental interactions using prospective data.