Effects and relative toxicity of heavy metals on Cuscuta reflexa

The effects of four concentrations (0.5, 1, 5 and 10 μg mL^?1) of the heavy metals Hg, As, Pb, Cu, Cd, and Cr on some senescence variables of Cuscuta reflexa Roxb. were studied. All of the treatments, except 0.5 μg mL^?1, decreased Hill reaction activity, chlorophyll and protein contents and dry matter percentage in biomass and increased tissue permeability over control data. The harmful effects of the metals were best visible at 10 μg mL^?1. The general order of sensitivity was As > Cd > Pb > Hg > Cu > Cr (absolute metal concentration). The data suggest that Cuscuta reflexa shows tolerance to the heavy metals tested up to 0.5 μg mL^?1.     

Sequence-dependent pausing of single lambda exonuclease molecules

Lambda exonuclease processively degrades one strand of duplex DNA, moving 5'-to-3' in an ATP-independent fashion. When examined at the single-molecule level, the speeds of digestion were nearly constant at 4 nanometers per second (12 nucleotides per second), interspersed with pauses of variable duration. Long pauses, occurring at stereotypical locations, were strand-specific and sequence-dependent. Pause duration and probability varied widely. The strongest pause, GGCGAT TCT, was identified by gel electrophoresis. Correlating single-molecule dwell positions with sequence independently identified the motif GGCGA. This sequence is found in the left lambda cohesive end, where exonuclease inhibition may contribute to the reduced recombination efficiency at that end.     

High gamma power is phase-locked to theta oscillations in human neocortex

We observed robust coupling between the high- and low-frequency bands of ongoing electrical activity in the human brain. In particular, the phase of the low-frequency theta (4 to 8 hertz) rhythm modulates power in the high gamma (80 to 150 hertz) band of the electrocorticogram, with stronger modulation occurring at higher theta amplitudes. Furthermore, different behavioral tasks evoke distinct patterns of theta/high gamma coupling across the cortex. The results indicate that transient coupling between low- and high-frequency brain rhythms coordinates activity in distributed cortical areas, providing a mechanism for effective communication during cognitive processing in humans.