Increasing the production of horticultural crops is one of the most important challenges worldwide. Seed priming is a promising agricultural procedure for supporting growth and quality of economic crops. Among the most efficient seed priming agents that play a significant role in improving plant growth, chemical composition and bioactivity is melatonin (MT). This study was carried out to investigate the impact of MT priming on sprouting of three genotypes of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa) and their nutritive value. Different primary and secondary metabolites of the three genotypes (regalona, kvl-sra2, Q37) were quantified. MT priming promoted the growth of quinoa genotypes by increasing their biomass accumulation and total nutrient content. Regarding the effect of MT priming on pigments, there was an obvious upward trend in leaf pigments of regalona. Besides, our results showed that MT priming increased the vitamins content such as thiamin and tocopherol content. Essential amino acids, organic acids and unsaturated fatty acids were significantly higher in MT-primed plants relative to the corresponding controls. Further, MT priming enhanced the accumulation of total soluble sugar, polyphenols, and flavonoids, which contribute to higher antioxidant and antidiabetic activities. Interestingly, species-specific responses toward MT priming were noticeable, where kvl-sra2 sprouts showed the highest antioxidant and antidiabetic activities among the three-quinoa genotypes. Overall, the current results suggest that MT priming could be used as a powerful agricultural approach to improve the growth and functional food value of quinoa sprouts.

Dye-decolorizing peroxidases (DyPs) constitute a superfamily of heme-containing peroxidases that are related neither to animal nor to plant peroxidase families. These are divided into four classes (types A, B, C, and D) based on sequence features. The active site of DyPs contains two highly conserved distal ligands, an aspartate and an arginine, the roles of which are still controversial. These ligands have mainly been studied in class A-C bacterial DyPs, largely because no effective recombinant expression systems have been developed for the fungal (D-type) DyPs. In this work, we employ ancestral sequence reconstruction (ASR) to resurrect a D-type DyP ancestor, AncDyPD-b1. Expression of AncDyPD-b1 in Escherichia coli results in large amounts of a heme-containing soluble protein and allows for the first mutagenesis study on the two distal ligands of a fungal DyP. UV-Vis and resonance Raman (RR) spectroscopic analyses, in combination with steady-state kinetics and the crystal structure, reveal fine pH-dependent details about the heme active site structure and show that both the aspartate (D222) and the arginine (R390) are crucial for hydrogen peroxide reduction. Moreover, the data indicate that these two residues play important but mechanistically different roles on the intraprotein long-range electron transfer process. DATABASE: Structural data are available in the PDB database under the accession number 7ANV.

In this paper, we introduce for the first time, a closed-form solution for the memristor-based memory sneak-paths without using any gating elements. The introduced technique fully eliminates the effect of sneak-paths, by reading the stored data using multiple access points and evaluating a simple addition/subtraction on the different readings. The new method requires fewer reading steps compared to previously reported techniques, and has a very small impact on the memory density. To verify the underlying theory, the proposed system is simulated using Synopsys HSPICE showing the ability to achieve a 100% sneak-path error free memory. In addition, the effect of quantization bits on the system performance is studied.

In this paper, we investigate the read operation of memristor-based memories. We analyze the sneak paths problem and provide a noise margin metric to compare the various solutions proposed in the literature. We also analyze the power consumption associated with these solutions. Moreover, we study the effect of the aspect ratio of the memory array on the sneak paths. Finally, we introduce a new technique for solving the sneak paths problem by gating the memory cell using a three-terminal memistor device.

The utilization of low calorific value gases (LCVG) in combustion devices presents particular challenges in terms of ignition and sustained combustion stability due to the presence of non-combustible components. Moderate or intense low-oxygen dilution (MILD) combustion has emerged as a promising technology for LCVG combustion, offering numerous advantages such as high combustion efficiency, reduced pollutant emissions, and increased fuel flexibility. However, the current body of research in this area is fragmented, making it challenging to draw meaningful comparisons between studies and hindering its practical application. This paper provides a comprehensive review of conventional and MILD combustion of LCVG. To understand the impact of composition on combustion, the fuels are classified based on their composition of hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water. We also delve into the chemical and physical effects of composition, including reaction kinetics and turbulence mixing, and provide an overview of the burners and methods used in establishing MILD combustion. Furthermore, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models and chemical kinetics in MILD combustion are also thoroughly discussed. The presence of a large amount of dilution gas in LCVG increases the self-ignition temperature and ignition delay time of the mixture, making preheating the reactants a critical consideration. In MILD combustion, it is crucial to have an inlet reactant temperature higher than the self-ignition temperature (Tin>Tsi) to mitigate the difficulties associated with ignition and unstable combustion. The heat release in MILD combustion should be moderate to ensure that the combustion temperature does not become too high. The non-combustible components of LCVG are beneficial in this regard, as they allow for a temperature increase of less than the self-ignition temperature (ΔT<Tsi). Hydrogen is the most reactive component in LCVG, and its content directly impacts the establishment, efficiency, and pollutant emissions of MILD combustion. Carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and water act as diluents, helping to reduce NOx emissions in MILD combustion. Although a burner may have the potential to be used for MILD combustion, it must be optimised for LCVG with variable composition in order to achieve the lowest pollutant emissions. Further research is necessary to verify and improve simulation models and chemical kinetics. This article provides theoretical support for the practical application of MILD combustion of LCVG with variable composition. © 2024 Elsevier Ltd

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Remediation of soils contaminated with toxic metal(loid)s (TMs) and mitigation of the associated ecological and human health risks are of great concern. Sodium sulfide (Na2S) can be used as an amendment for the immobilization of TMs in contaminated soils; however, the effects of Na2S on the leachability, bioavailability, and uptake of TMs in highly-contaminated soils under field conditions have not been investigated yet. This is the first field-scale research study investigating the effect of Na2S application on soils with Hg, Pb and Cu contents 70-to-7000-fold higher than background values and also polluted with As, Cd, Ni, and Zn. An ex situ remediation project including soil replacement, immobilization with Na2S, and safe landfilling was conducted at Daiziying and Anle (China) with soils contaminated with As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn. Notably, Na2S application significantly lowered the sulfuric-nitric acid leachable TMs below the limits defined by Chinese regulations. There was also a significant reduction in the DTPA-extractable TMs in the two studied sites up to 85.9 % for Hg, 71.4 % for Cu, 71.9 % for Pb, 48.1 % for Cd, 37.1 % for Zn, 34.3 % for Ni, and 15.7 % for As compared to the untreated controls. Moreover, Na2S treatment decreased the shoot TM contents in the last harvest to levels lower than the TM regulation limits concerning fodder crops, and decreased the TM root-to-shoot translocation, compared to the untreated control sites. We conclude that Na2S has great potential to remediate soils heavily tainted with TMs and mitigate the associated ecological and human health risks.