Evidence That Supertriangles Exist in Nature from the Vertical Projections of Koelreuteria paniculata Fruit

Many natural radial symmetrical shapes (e.g., sea stars) follow the Gielis equation (GE) or its twin equation (TGE). A supertriangle (three triangles arranged around a central polygon) represents such a shape, but no study has tested whether natural shapes can be represented as/are supertriangles or whether the GE or TGE can describe their shape. We collected 100 pieces of Koelreuteria paniculata fruit, which have a supertriangular shape, extracted the boundary coordinates for their vertical projections, and then fitted them with the GE and TGE. The adjusted root mean square errors (RMSEadj) of the two equations were always less than 0.08, and >70% were less than 0.05. For 57/100 fruit projections, the GE had a lower RMSEadj than the TGE, although overall differences in the goodness of fit were non-significant. However, the TGE produces more symmetrical shapes than the GE as the two parameters controlling the extent of symmetry in it are approximately equal. This work demonstrates that natural supertriangles exist, validates the use of the GE and TGE to model their shapes, and suggests that different complex radially symmetrical shapes can be generated by the same equation, implying that different types of biological symmetry may result from the same biophysical mechanisms.

Chemical Compounds, Antitumor and Antimicrobial Activities of Dry Ethanol Extracts from Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm

Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm. is used in traditional medicine and has various established biological activities, however, the species is considered to be a potentially invasive alien tree species for Bulgarian flora. However, there is still much to be studied about the phytochemical and biological characteristics of the species. The present study aimed to determine the chemical composition of the ethanol extracts of aerial plant parts, by GC-MS analysis, and to thereby evaluate their in vitro antitumor and antibacterial properties. All three extracts were tested against the HT-29 and PC3 tumor cell lines using the MTT assay. Fifty-six components were identified from leaf, flower, and stem bark extracts, and over 10% were the following constituents: pyrogallol, α-terpinyl acetate, neryl acetate, and α-terpinyl isobutanoate. The oxygenated monoterpenes predominated in the extracts, followed by the oxygenated aliphatics and phenylpropanoids. Significant antiproliferative activity on the HT-29 cell line (IC50–21.44 µg/mL and 23.63 µg/mL, respectively) was found for the flower and leaf extracts. Antibacterial activity was established for the following bacteria strains: Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633, Bacillus cereus NCTC 10320, Escherichia coli ATCC 8739, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 6027, and Proteus vulgaris ATCC 6380. The stem bark and flower extracts showed better antimicrobial potential. K. paniculata could be considered as a potential source of biologically active substances with antitumor and antibacterial properties.

Transcriptome Profiles of Leaves and Roots of Goldenrain Tree (Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm.) in Response to Cadmium Stress

Cadmium (Cd) pollution is a widespread environmental problem. In this study, we explored the transcriptome and biochemical responses of goldenrain tree (Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm.) leaves and roots to Cd stress. Leaf and root growth decreased substantially under Cd stress (50 mg/L CdCl2), but leaf and root antioxidant mechanisms were significantly activated. In RNA-seq analysis, roots treated with 25 mg/L CdCl2 featured enriched GO terms in cellular components related to intracellular ribonucleoprotein complex, ribonucleoprotein complex, and macromolecular complex. In leaves under Cd stress, most differentially expressed genes were enriched in the cellular component terms intrinsic component of membrane and membrane part. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis and analysis of module–trait relations revealed candidate genes associated with superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) activities and malondialdehyde (MDA). Ten transcription factors responded to Cd stress expression, including those in C2H2, MYB, WRKY, and bZIP families. Transcriptomic analysis of goldenrain tree revealed that Cd stress rapidly induced the intracellular ribonucleoprotein complex in the roots and the intrinsic component of membrane in the leaves. The results also indicate directions for further analyses of molecular mechanisms of Cd tolerance and accumulation in goldenrain tree.

Some Naturalized and Wilded Woody Plants in the Vcinity of Tbilisi

The article deals with the contemporary condition of some naturalized and wilded woody plants in the vicinity of Tbilisi: Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm., Cercis siliquastrum L., Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle., Fraxinus ornus L. and the nature of their participation in phytocenoses. The research took place in Tbilisi surrounding, approximately in 20 places. The study revealed that Koelreuteria paniculata Laxm., Cercis siliquastrum L. Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle, Fraxinus ornus L., are distinguished by aggression, and those who have a high coefficient of multiplication, propagate well by seeds and root shoots. Besides, they get well into natural and artificial phytocenoses, and win in competition with local and introduced plants and micro groupings, causing their transformation. It is necessary to limit the spread of these introduced plants, in order to avoid complete destruction of local phytcenoses and decorative plants.

Optimization and Characterization of Novel and Non-Edible Seed Oil Sources for Biodiesel Production

Biodiesel mainly comes from edible oil, and there is little research on its yield from non-edible sources with low-cost oil. It is paramount to investigate the non-edible oil resources which may lead to advance the commercial feasibility of biodiesel and cost effectiveness as well as resolve the food issues. This chapter describes four novel non-edible seed oil sources comprising Koelreuteria paniculata, Rhus typhina, Acacia farnesiana and Albizzia julibrissin for biodiesel production. We aimed to optimize different reaction parameters for oil extraction, alkali-catalyzed transesterification process for maximal biodiesel production and finally evaluate its compatibility with mineral diesel. The optimization factors in transesterification included the molar ratio of methanol to oil, reaction time, stirring intensity, catalyst concentration and temperature. Two methods have been described including Soxhlet and mechanical for extraction of seed oil. The synthesized esters were evaluated and characterized through the nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR; 1H and 13C), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and the total conversion of crude oil to fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) were established. The inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Elemental Analyzer (EA) were used for evaluation of elemental concentration. The physico-chemical characterizations of the biodiesel, i.e., flash point, pour point, cloud point, and density were within the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM; D6751) and European Standards ((EN14214). Koelreuteria paniculata produced highest biodiesel oil content by Soxhlet extraction (28–30%) followed by the Albizzia julibrissin (19–24%), Acacia farnesiana (23%), Rhus typhina (20–22%). The density ranged from 0.83–0.87 @ 15°C (g/cm3) and the kinematic viscosity ranged from 3.75–6.3 (mm2/s) among all the plant sources. Koelreuteria paniculata had highest Na (5456.2), Cr (1246.8), Ni (658.36), and Al (346.87) elemental concentrations (μg/g) than other plant sources. The elemental percent of C, H, N, and O of biodiesel ranged from 72.54–76.86, 11.25–13.34, 1.97–2.73, and 9.86–12, respectively. In conclusion, these non-edible plant seeds offer a cheap source of renewable energy and can be easily grown on barren and wastelands and contribute to efficient biodiesel production to mitigate the energy crisis.