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International audience; Dianthus chinensis is widely used as a landscaping plant in rock gardens and has high commercial value. However, few studies of this plant's regeneration and genetic transformation have been reported. In this study, cotyledons of D. chinensis were used as explants for regeneration and infection with Agrobacterium. The results indicated that the efficiency of regeneration was markedly improved by using 1-naphthylcetic acid (NAA). The cotyledons were cocultured with Agrobacterium tumefaciens EHA105 containing pK7GWIWG2-GFP plasmids for 15-20 min. Transgenic regenerated plants were obtained by kanamycin (80 mg.L-1) screening. qRT-PCR results confirmed the expression of GFP and the DcIPT1 (which is related to cell division) gene in the transgenic DcIPT1 plants of D. chinensis. The results show that the proliferation ability of transgenic DcIPT1 plants is enhanced. Overall, we report the successful establishment of a reliable and efficient method for cotyledon transformation and plant regeneration in D. chinensis based on the combination of infection with Agrobacterium and plant regeneration. This work will contribute to functional gene research and genetic improvement of Dianthus species plants.

Molecularly imprinted polymers, developed 50 years ago, have garnered enormous attention as receptor-like materials. Lately, molecularly imprinted polymers have been employed as a specific target tool in favor of cancer diagnosis and therapy by the selective recognition of tumor cells. Although the molecular imprinting technology has been well-innovated recently, the cell still remains the most challenging target for imprinting. In this review, we summarize the advances in the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers suitable for the selective recognition of tumor cells. Through a sustained effort, three strategies have been developed including peptide-imprinting, polysaccharide-imprinting, and whole-cell imprinting, which have resulted in inspiring applications in effective cancer diagnosis and therapy. The major challenges and perspectives on the further directions related to the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymers were also outlined.

An SNP mutation in the miR172 target site of the DcAP2L gene is associated with a double flower phenotype in Dianthus chinensis., The double flower is a highly important breeding trait that affects the ornamental value in many flowering plants. To get a better understanding of the genetic mechanism of double flower formation in Dianthus chinensis, we have constructed a high-density genetic map using 140 F2 progenies derived from a cross between a single flower genotype and a double flower genotype. The linkage map was constructed using double-digest restriction site-associated DNA sequencing (ddRAD-seq) with 2353 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping analysis was conducted for 12 horticultural traits, and major QTLs were identified for nine of the 12 traits. Among them, two major QTLs accounted for 20.7% and 78.1% of the total petal number variation, respectively. Bulked segregant RNA-seq (BSR-seq) was performed to search accurately for candidate genes associated with the double flower trait. Integrative analysis of QTL mapping and BSR-seq analysis using the reference genome of Dianthus caryophyllus suggested that an SNP mutation in the miR172 cleavage site of the A-class flower organ identity gene APETALA2 (DcAP2L) is responsible for double flower formation in Dianthus through regulating the expression of DcAG genes.

This paper is related to research on parallelization techniques for the simulation of electromagnetic transients (EMTs). It presents a new approach based on a parallel-in-time equation grouping and reordering (PEGR) technique whose original theoretical formulation is modified, extended and generalized from state-space to the modified-augmented-nodal analysis (MANA) formulation method. The highly efficient sparse linear solver KLU is incorporated in the approach for power system network matrix solution. The proposed approach is implemented with OpenMP Multithreading for CPU-based parallelization. Test results show that EMT simulations can be accelerated by exploiting the intrinsic independency of certain solution procedures using the PEGR technique.

Flowers with more petals are of more ornamental value. It is well known that AGAMOUS (AG) is the core member of the C-class gene which plays an essential role in double flower formation and identification of stamens and carpels in Arabidopsis thaliana. We searched C-class genes in the genome of the carnation, and found two AG orthologs (DcaAGa, DcaAGb). Phylogenetic analysis showed that the two genes were closely related to the euAG subclade. Then we searched the genomes of other Caryophyllales plants (Beta vulgaris, Spinacia oleracea, Chenopodium quinoa) for C-class genes, and found that their C-class genes all belonged to the euAG subclade. Semi-quantitative PCR (sq-PCR) analysis indicated that the expression of DcaAG genes in the single flower phenotype was higher than that in the double flower phenotype. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis showed that the expressions of DcaAG genes in the flower bud were significantly different from those in the root, stem, and leaf between the single and double flower phenotype carnations, and that DcaAG genes were specifically expressed in the stamen and carpel of carnation. Moreover, the expression of other floral organ identity genes (AP1 and AP2, PI and AP3, SEP1 and SEP3 corresponding to the A-, B-, and E-class of genes, respectively) showed no significant difference in all floral organs between the single and double flower phenotype carnations, suggesting that C-class (DcaAG) genes might play an important role in the double flower phenotype in carnation. Petal loss or decrease, precocious flowering, silique shortening, and seed sterility were observed in 35S::DcaAGa and 35S::DcaAGb transgenic Arabidopsis plants. All these results show that DcaAG genes might affect the petal number negatively and have a specific function in stamen and carpel development in carnation.

A series of Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Eu(2+) phosphors with a broad emitting band have been synthesized by a traditional solid state reaction. The crystal structural and photoluminescence properties of Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Eu(2+) are investigated. The different crystallographic sites of Eu(2+) in Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Eu(2+) phosphors have been verified by means of their photoluminescence (PL) properties and decay times. Energy transfer between Eu(2+) ions, analyzed by excitation, emission, and PL decay behavior, has been indicated to be a dipole-dipole mechanism. Moreover, the luminescence quantum yield as well as the thermal stability of the Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Eu(2+) phosphor have been investigated systematically. The as-prepared Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Eu(2+) phosphor can act as a promising candidate for n-UV convertible white LEDs.

International audience; Dianthus is a large genus containing many species with high ornamental economic value. Extensive breeding strategies permitted an exploration of an improvement in the quality of cultivated carnation, particularly in flowers. However, little is known on the molecular mechanisms of flower development in carnation. Here, we report the identification and description of MADS-box genes in carnation (DcaMADS) with a focus on those involved in flower development and organ identity determination. In this study, 39 MADS-box genes were identified from the carnation genome and transcriptome by the phylogenetic analysis. These genes were categorized into four subgroups (30 MIKCc, two MIKC*, two M alpha, and five M gamma). The MADS-box domain, gene structure, and conserved motif compositions of the carnation MADS genes were analysed. Meanwhile, the expression of DcaMADS genes were significantly different in stems, leaves, and flower buds. Further studies were carried out for exploring the expression of DcaMADS genes in individual flower organs, and some crucial DcaMADS genes correlated with their putative function were validated. Finally, a new expression pattern of DcaMADS genes in flower organs of carnation was provided: sepal (three class E genes and two class A genes), petal (two class B genes, two class E genes, and one SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE (SVP)), stamen (two class B genes, two class E genes, and two class C), styles (two class E genes and two class C), and ovary (two class E genes, two class C, one AGAMOUS-LIKE 6 (AGL6), one SEEDSTICK (STK), one B sister, one SVP, and one Ma). This result proposes a model in floral organ identity of carnation and it may be helpful to further explore the molecular mechanism of flower organ identity in carnation.

A series of tunable blue–green–yellow emitting Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Ce3+/Tb3+/Mn2+ phosphors have been synthesized by a traditional solid state reaction. The PL and PLE properties of Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Ce3+/Tb3+/Mn2+ have been investigated. Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2:Ce3+,Tb3+ exhibits two dominating bands situated at 356 nm and 547 nm, which originate from the allowed 5d–4f transition of the Ce3+ ions and the 5D4 → 7FJ (J = 6, 5, 4, 3, 2) transition of Tb3+ ions, respectively. The Mn2+ ions substitute Ba2+ and emit orange light centered at 571 nm. The dominating energy transfer processes from Ce3+ to Tb3+ and Mn2+ in the Ba4Gd3Na3(PO4)6F2 host were investigated and have been demonstrated to be the resonant type via a dipole–quadrupole interaction mechanism. The critical distances of Ce3+ and Tb3+, and Ce3+ and Mn2+ are 9.97–13.29 A and 7.67 A, respectively. The blue, green, and yellow colors can be tuned by the ratio of Ce3+/Tb3+/Mn2+, indicating that the phosphor may potentially be used as a tunable blue–green–yellow emitting phosphor for UV light-emitting diodes.

Cymbidium goeringii Rchb.f. is an important ornamental plant with a striking well-differentiated lip. Its complex floral architecture presents an exciting opportunity to examine perianth development. In flowering plants, class A, B and E floral homeotic genes play key roles in the specification of perianth identity. In this study, we used a cDNA library of wild-type C. goeringii flower buds for transcriptome sequencing. Eighteen candidate class A, B and E genes (including AP1/FUL-, AP2-, DEF-, GLO-, SEP- and AGL6-like genes) were identified. Quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) results showed that CgDEF1, CgSEP2 and CgAGL6-1 were strongly detected only in the sepals and petals and were significantly downregulated in the lips. CgDEF3, CgDEF4 and CgAGL6-3 were highly expressed in the lips and lip-like petals but were only minimally detected in the sepals. Yeast two-hybrid analysis indicated that CgDEF1 and CgGLO formed a heterodimer. CgAGL6-1/CgSEP2 and CgDEF1 formed higher-order protein complexes with the assistance of the CgGLO protein, and both CgAGL6-1 and CgSEP2 formed a heterodimer. CgDEF3/CgDEF4 could interact independently with CgGLO and CgAGL6-3, respectively, while CgDEF3 and CgDEF4 also formed heterodimers with the assistance of the CgGLO. Based on a comprehensive analysis relating these gene expression patterns to protein interaction profiles, the mechanism of sepal/petal/lip determination was studied in C. goeringii. Furthermore, a hypothesis explaining the sepal/petal/lip determination of C. goeringii is proposed. The lip-quartet (CgDEF3/CgDEF4/CgAGL6-3/CgGLO) promoted lip formation, whereas the sepal/petal-quartet (CgDEF1/CgAGL6-1/CgSEP2/CgGLO) promoted sepal/petal formation. These results enrich the current knowledge regarding the mechanism and pathways of perianth formation in orchids.

Aquaporins (AQPs) are essential channel proteins that execute multi-functions throughout plant growth and development, including water transport, uncharged solutes uptake, stress response, and so on. Here, we report the first genome-wide identification and characterization AQP (BvAQP) genes in sugar beet (Beta vulgaris), an important crop widely cultivated for feed, for sugar production and for bioethanol production. Twenty-eight sugar beet AQPs (BvAQPs) were identified and assigned into five subfamilies based on phylogenetic analyses: seven of plasma membrane (PIPs), eight of tonoplast (TIPs), nine of NOD26-like (NIPs), three of small basic (SIPs), and one of x-intrinsic proteins (XIPs). BvAQP genes unevenly mapped on all chromosomes, except on chromosome 4. Gene structure and motifs analyses revealed that BvAQP have conserved exon-intron organization and that they exhibit conserved motifs within each subfamily. Prediction of BvAQPs functions, based on key protein domains conservation, showed a remarkable difference in substrate specificity among the five subfamilies. Analyses of BvAQPs expression, by mean of RNA-seq, in different plant organs and in response to various abiotic stresses revealed that they were ubiquitously expressed and that their expression was induced by heat and salt stresses. These results provide a reference base to address further the function of sugar beet aquaporins and to explore future applications for plants growth and development improvements as well as in response to environmental stresses.

In order to meet the demand of fast electromagnetic transient simulation for large-scale interconnected power systems, a new method of GPU based parallel matrix exponential algorithm for power system electromagnetic transient simulation is presented in this paper. Firstly, the hardware structure and programming model of GPU are introduced. Then the high data parallelism based on matrix exponential integration algorithm is proposed. Then, a simulation test is carried out for a wind farm system including 17 WTGs. The accuracy and efficiency of the proposed method are verified. The results show that the speed of parallel computing based on GPU is about 2 times faster than that of CPU and Matlab/SimPowerSystems.