Therefore, this study provides new insights into phloem-mediated resource allocation and its effects on plant root system architecture.”
“Accurate targeting is crucial for the irradiation of a small-volume animal brain. We propose an original method, based on a polymer gel, to determine the accuracy and reproducibility of irradiation using a new stereotactic frame.

An in-house designed rat stereotactic frame, compatible with the Gamma Knife, was constructed. The rat brain was then removed through a small burr hole and the intracranial cavity was washed and filled with a polymer gel.

This “”gel brain”" was irradiated by Gamma Knife and the irradiated volumes and coordinates were measured after the irradiation.

The position of the polymerized areas revealed that the stereotactic frame was able to accurately reproduce the same position of irradiation in each animal. The small standard deviation GSK923295 in vivo demonstrated selleck kinase inhibitor the high reproducibility.

The polymer gel confirmed the ability of the rat stereotactic frame to accurately and reproducibly

position a small animal for precise radiosurgery procedures.”
“Soil salinity is an increasing menace that affects agriculture across the globe. Plant adaptation to high salt concentrations involves integrated functions, including control of Na+ uptake, translocation and compartmentalization. Na+ transporters belonging to the HKT family have

been shown to be involved in tolerance to mild salt stress in glycophytes such as Arabidopsis, wheat and rice by contributing to Na+ exclusion from aerial tissues. Here, we have analysed the role of click here the HKT transporter HKT2;1, which is permeable to K+ and Na+, in barley, a relatively salt-tolerant crop that displays a salt-including behaviour. In Xenopus oocytes, HvHKT2;1 co-transports Na+ and K+ over a large range of concentrations, displaying low affinity for Na+, variable affinity for K+ depending on external Na+ concentration, and inhibition by K+ (K-i approximately 5 mM). HvHKT2;1 is predominantly expressed in the root cortex. Transcript levels are up-regulated in both roots and shoots by low K+ growth conditions, and in shoots by high Na+ growth conditions. Over-expression of HvHKT2;1 led to enhanced Na+ uptake, higher Na+ concentrations in the xylem sap, and enhanced translocation of Na+ to leaves when plants were grown in the presence of 50 or 100 mM NaCl. Interestingly, these responses were correlated with increased barley salt tolerance. This suggests that one of the factors that limits barley salt tolerance is the capacity to translocate Na+ to the shoot rather than accumulation or compartmentalization of this cation in leaf tissues. Thus, over-expression of HvHKT2;1 leads to increased salt tolerance by reinforcing the salt- including behaviour of barley.