Genetic analysis of yield and fruit traits in cantaloupe cultivars

The purpose of this research was to evaluate the combining ability of six local Iranian and one imported cantaloupe cultivar. Heritability of traits was estimated using a half‐diallel mating design. Seven parents and their crosses were evaluated in 2013 and 2014. The greatest general combining ability (GCA) for yield and fruit number was for “Rish‐baba” (0.53 kg/plant and 0.3, respectively). The cultivar “Ananasi” had the highest GCA for fruit weight and soluble solids content (SSC) (0.088 kg and 1.4, respectively). “Ananasi” presented the highest GCA values for fruit firmness, chlorophyll a and b and carotenoid content, as well as the highest total chlorophyll content. The cross Garmak × Rish‐baba showed the highest specific combining ability (SCA) for yield with heterosis value of 99%. High heritability estimates for SSC (0.52), flesh thickness (0.61) and concentration of chlorophyll a (0.7) were obtained. Although there were significant SCAs for yield, the parents are suggested to be improved prior to hybrid development. The parent “Ananasi” appears to be a suitable donor in breeding programmes.     

Total and reactive lysine contents in selected cereal-based food products

The aim of the study was to determine and compare reactive and total lysine contents in a range of breakfast cereal products. Crude fiber, fat, ash, and crude protein contents of 20 breakfast cereal products ranged from 4 to 38, 14 to 144, 7 to 32, and 52 to 253 g/kg, respectively. The concentrations of glutamic acid (18.7-32.1 g/100 g protein) and proline (4.7-10.8 g/100 g protein) were high while those of the amino acids methionine (1.2-2.0 g/100 g protein) and histidine (1.2-3.3 g/100 g protein) were relatively low. There was a strong relationship between reactive lysine determined using the guanidination and fluorodinitrobenzene methods (R = 0.99). The total lysine content, determined after conventional acid hydrolysis, ranged from 0.8 to 3.7 g/100 g protein, while the reactive lysine content (guanidination) ranged from 0.4 to 2.8 g/100 g protein. Reactive lysine was 20-54% lower than total lysine in the cereal products. The large differences between total and reactive lysine suggest a considerable loss of lysine in the breakfast cereals tested.     

The effects of UV irradiation exposure on the structure and properties of polypropylene/ZnO nanocamposite fibers

Unfilled polypropylene and polyropylene/ZnO nanocomposite fibers were produced using a melt spinning apparatus; then the fibers were exposed to UV irradiation. The structure and properties of the fibers were examined using scanning electron microscopy, tensile measurements, wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, birefringence measurements and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Following 150 hours of exposure to UV irradiation, some transverse cracks on the surface of unfilled polypropylene fibers were observed. It was observed that both carbonyl and hydroperoxide indexes, which are the criteria for the detection of UV degradation of the fibers, were increased due to the increase in the UV irradiation exposure time and the increase in these indexes was smaller for nanocomposite fibers than those of unfilled Polypropylene fibers. It was also observed that crystallinity, crystallite size and total molecular orientation of UV irradiated nanocomposite fibers were increased in comparison with non-irradiated nanocomposite fibers. It was also found that the extent of increase in molecular orientation of the fibers was higher comparing to that for the nanocomposite fibers due to the UV irradiation exposure for the unfilled polypropylene fibers. Tensile properties of both unfilled and nanocomposite fibers were decreased after UV irradiation; this reduction correlated with the extent of the increase in molecular degradation of the fibers, as determined by measuring carbonyl and hydroperoxide indexes.     

森林生态蓄水功能的经济评价(个案研究:伊朗扎格罗斯森林)(英文)

森林生态服务直接或间接地造福人类。本文利用模拟模型和地理信息系统作为工具,分析生态因子对生态系统服务功能的作用,评估了伊朗西部扎格罗斯森林对Bazoft河流域水源保护的经济价值。应用HEC-HMS模型中的曲线数字法对降雨量-径流进行了模拟。该模型需要输入土地覆被、土壤、短期降雨和流出数据。用观测数据并分阶段校对对拟合模型的功效进行了修订。测定了森林在4种设定的土地覆盖方案中保水性和减少地表径流量的作用以及土地用途改变对该区降雨量-径流行为的影响。结果表明:方案一假定该流域全被森林覆盖,总的流出量将最小,降雨初期损失将增加。用重置成本法估算了森林水文功能之保水性经济价值。评估结果表明,每公顷Bazoft河流域的森林可以蓄存84.8立方米水,年产值0.5 US$/m3。因此,每公顷BazoR河流域的森林保水性经济评价值是43US$。说明覆被森林有利于该流域经济发展,该研究有助于决策者选择适当的、经济可行的发展策略。     

Expression Analysis of mir-21 and mir-221 in Cancerous Tissues from Iranian Patients with Gastric Cancer

Background:

Early detection is a key to survival for gastric cancer. Molecular markers such as miRNA (microRNA) can have great importance in the early diagnosis of gastric cancer. Expression of miR-21 and miR-221 are deregulated in many types of human cancers. This study aimed to investigate the differences in miRNA expression patterns within the Iranian population.

Methods:

Total RNA was extracted from gastric cancer tissues and adjacent non-cancerous tissues from 32 patients. Expression levels of miR-21 and miR-221 were detected by Real time RT-PCR using a specific primer, with 5s rRNA as the internal reference gene.

Results:

Our data showed that the expression levels of miR-21 and miR-221 in gastric cancer samples were significantly higher than in paired non-cancerous samples (P < 0.05). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses yielded the area under the curve (AUC) values of 80.30 for miR-21 and 93.30 for miR-221, and combined ROC analysis revealed the highest AUC value of 96.90 in discriminating GC patients from healthy controls.

Conclusion:

It seems that miR-21 and miR-221 expression pattern in Iranian patients with gastric cancer are similar to any other population. Considering the increased expression level of two miRNAs in cancerous tissue compared to normal tissue as well as the area under ROC curve, miR-21 and miR-221 can be used for early detection of gastric cancer. Key Words: MicroRNAs, Tumor markers, Stomach neoplasms     

In vitro developmental potential of bovine nuclear transfer embryos derived from primary cultured cumulus cells

The in vitro development and the quality of blastocysts produced from the nuclear transfer (NT) embryos reconstituted from primary cultured cumulus cells (NT-cumulus) were examined compared to in vitro fertilized embryos (IVF) and NT embryos reconstituted from the embryonic blastomeres (NT-blastomere). The cleavage rate, and the development to blastocyst were the same for all three sets of embryos. The time required for blastocoel formation starting from the time of the initial cleavage was shorter for NT embryo groups than IVF ones. All experimental groups produced morphologically similar and normal blastocysts containing the same cell number. The percentage of the blastocysts with normal chromosomal complements were the same for NT-cumulus and IVF.     

Cold Hardiness Assessment in Seven Commercial Fig Cultivars (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ficus Carica</Emphasis> L.)

Freezing injury is one of the most restrictive dynamics issues that commercial fig producers are fronting. This study was aimed to compare cold hardiness among seven commercial fig cultivars at three different developmental stages. We investigated the association between freezing tolerance and soluble carbohydrate and proline fluctuations during acclimation in the one-year-old fig shoots. Using both electrolyte leakage measurement and tetrazolium stain test LT₅₀ values were calculated, which differentiate freezing tolerance among the studied cultivars. The results showed significant differences among the cultivars at three evaluation stages of dormancy. The average of cold winter resistance in studied cultivars in November, January, and March, were ?16.89, ?20.23, and ?21.35?°C, respectively. LT₅₀ electrolyte leakage, cold hardiness index, significantly varied among the fig cultivars. In November to January, ‘Atabaki’ and ‘Kashki’ cultivars showed the maximum of ?0.11?°C/per day, and the minimum of ?0.01?°C/per day of adaptation rate, respectively. Soluble carbohydrate (sugars) concentrations of shoot samples increased during cold acclimation from November (49?mg/g dry weight (DW)) to January (130?mg/g DW) and then decreased in March (93?mg/g DW). Proline content varied significantly among the cultivars in November and January. High correlations were observed between LT₅₀ values and the soluble carbohydrates content compared with proline. Soluble sugars content might be a better indication of cold hardiness than proline content in fig trees. ‘Atabaki’ cultivar showed a very good resistance to winter freezing in comparison to others cultivars, although it seems to be very sensitive to fall freezing. The outcome of this study can be considered for sustainable production and breeding programs in common figs.