Melting the wall: plant parasitism entails pectin modification.

Phtheirospermum japonicum shows induced expression of PjPME and PjPMEI genes during haustoria development in rice and Arabidopsis with increased PME activity, which leads to the modulated cell wall during parasitism. Moreover, how PME and PMEI proteins interact and balance during haustoria development remains elusive.

A protective role for nitric oxide and salicylic acid for arsenite phytotoxicity in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

Nitric oxide (NO) and salicylic acid (SA) are important signaling molecules in plant system. In the present study both NO and SA showed a protective role against arsenite (AsIII) stress in rice plants when supplied exogenously. The application of NO and SA alleviated the negative impact of AsIII on plant growth. Nitric oxide supplementation to AsIII treated plants greatly decreased arsenic (As) accumulation in the roots as well as shoots/roots translocation factor. Arsenite exposure in plants decreased the endogenous levels of NO and SA. Exogenous supplementation of SA not only enhanced endogenous level of SA but also the level of NO through enhanced nitrate reductase (NR) activity, whether AsIII was present or not. Exogenously supplied NO decreased the NR activity and level of endogenous NO. Arsenic accumulation was positively correlated with the expression level of OsLsi1, a transporter responsible for AsIII uptake. The endogenous level of NO and SA were positively correlated to each other either when AsIII was present or not. This close relationship indicates that NO and SA work in harmony to modulate the signaling response in AsIII stressed plants.

Strengthening adherence to Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) monitoring and support: operation research to identify barriers and facilitators in Nepal.

BACKGROUND: Anti Retroviral Therapy (ART) is the cornerstone for comprehensive health sector response to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) treatment, care and support. Adherence of at least 95% is needed to keep HIV under control, as per World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. This study was aimed at identifying the overall adherence level of, and barriers and facilitators to adherence for patients taking ART in different clinics in all five development regions of Nepal. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among ART clients receiving free ART from Government of Nepal ART clinics. A total of 435 clients taking ART from twelve ART clinics in different regions of Nepal, aged fifteen years and above were interviewed on one-and-one basis using questionnaires developed in reference to Adult AIDS Clinical Trial Group (AACTG) toolkit among them data from 404 were analyzed after cleaning. Data was entered and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software where the P value of < 0.05 was accepted as being statistically significant. RESULTS: The overall adherence in the last month (missed less than three pills total) was 94.8% (383 out of 404). The main barrier to ART adherence was the fear of side effects (among 61.9% of the non adherent population) which included dizziness (18.1%) and headaches (15.4%). The standard wristwatch (39%) was found to be the most useful aid in enabling timely consumption of medication. Educational status (P = 0.018), drug using habits (P = 0.039) and the conducive environment at ART clinics (P = 0.004) were significantly associated with ART adherence. CONCLUSION: Improving better adherence may require a more holistic approach to treatment regimen and adapting it to patient daily routines. This study identifies issues such as pill count for assessing adherence, better access to health care facilities by clients, better access to medication, as well as improved nutritional support issues for better adherence by the population in the future.

Evaluation of total phenolic compounds and insecticidal and antioxidant activities of tomato hairy root extract.

Tomatoes are one of the most consumed crops in the whole world because of their versatile importance in dietary food as well as many industrial applications. They are also a rich source of secondary metabolites, such as phenolics and flavonoids. In the present study, we described a method to produce these compounds from hairy roots of tomato (THRs). Agrobacterium rhizogenes strain A4 was used to induce hairy roots in the tomato explants. The Ri T-DNA was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction amplification of the rolC gene. Biomass accumulation of hairy root lines was 1.7-3.7-fold higher compared to in vitro grown roots. Moreover, THRs efficiently produced several phenolic compounds, such as rutin, quercetin, kaempferol, gallic acid, protocatechuic acid, ferulic acid, colorogenic acid, and caffeic acid. Gallic acid [34.02 µg/g of dry weight (DW)] and rutin (20.26 µg/g of DW) were the major phenolic acid and flavonoid produced by THRs, respectively. The activities of reactive oxygen species enzymes (catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase) were quantified. The activity of catalase in THRs was 0.97 ± 0.03 mM H2O2 min(-1) g(-1), which was 1.22-fold (0.79 ± 0.09 mM H2O2 min(-1) g(-1)) and 1.59-fold (0.61 ± 0.06 mM H2O2 min(-1) g(-1)) higher than field grown and in vitro grown roots, respectively. At 100 µL/g concentration, the phenolic compound extract caused 53.34 and 40.00% mortality against Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera litura, respectively, after 6 days. Surviving larvae of H. armigera and S. litura on the phenolic compound extract after 6 days showed 85.43 and 86.90% growth retardation, respectively.