Very little is known about pollination and its effects on the yield and physicochemical properties of flowering plants in tropical countries. Wind and insect pollinators are among our natural resources because pollination is the most important ecosystem service performed by wind and insects, and is vital to the socio-economic status of human beings. In this experiment, different pollination methods for tomato plants were examined. Self-pollination was encouraged by covering the plants with a plastic sheet. Wind and insects were excluded from these plants, and thus only self-pollination was possible. The experiment occurred during the flowering stage. Wind-pollinated plants were covered with a muslin cloth, which excluded insects, and only wind could pass through the cloth. For insect pollination, plants remained uncovered, allowing free access to insects to pollinate the flowers. At fruit maturity, when fruits were completely red, fruits from each treatment were harvested on the same date and under the same conditions. Results illustrated the substantial importance of insects as pollinators of tomato crops. Open field had greater tomato yield and positive effects on physicochemical properties on fruit than under self and wind pollination.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common metastatic tumours. Tumour growth and metastasis depend on the induction of cell proliferation and migration by various mediators. Here, we report that the A Disintegrin and Metalloproteinase (ADAM) 8 is highly expressed in murine HCC tissues as well as in murine and human hepatoma cell lines Hepa1‐6 and HepG2, respectively. To establish a dose‐dependent role of different ADAM8 expression levels for HCC progression, ADAM8 expression was either reduced via shRNA‐ or siRNA‐mediated knockdown or increased by using a retroviral overexpression vector. These two complementary approaches revealed that ADAM8 expression levels correlated positively with proliferation, clonogenicity, migration and matrix invasion and negatively with apoptosis of hepatoma cells. Furthermore, the analysis of pro‐migratory and proliferative signalling pathways revealed that ADAM8 expression level was positively associated with expression of β1 integrin as well as with the activation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK), mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK), Src kinase and Rho A GTPase. Finally, up‐regulation of promigatory signalling and cell migration was also seen with a proteolytically inactive ADAM8 mutant. These findings reveal that ADAM8 is critically up‐regulated in hepatoma cells contributes to cell proliferation and survival and furthermore induces pro‐migratory signalling pathways independently of its proteolytic activity. By this, ADAM8 can promote cell functions most relevant for HCC growth and metastasis.

Acute and chronic liver inflammation is driven by cytokine and chemokine release from various cell types in the liver. Here, we report that the induction of inflammatory mediators is associated with a yet undescribed upregulation of the metalloproteinase ADAM8 in different murine hepatitis models. We further show the importance of ADAM8 expression for the production of inflammatory mediators in cultured liver cells. As a model of acute inflammation, we investigated liver tissue from lipopolysaccharide- (LPS-) treated mice in which ADAM8 expression was markedly upregulated compared to control mice. In vitro, stimulation with LPS enhanced ADAM8 expression in murine and human endothelial and hepatoma cell lines as well as in primary murine hepatocytes. The enhanced ADAM8 expression was associated with an upregulation of TNF-α and IL-6 expression and release. Inhibition studies indicate that the cytokine response of hepatoma cells to LPS depends on the activity of ADAM8 and that signalling by TNF-α can contribute to these ADAM8-dependent effects. The role of ADAM8 was further confirmed with primary hepatocytes from ADAM8 knockout mice in which TNF-α and IL-6 induction and release were considerably attenuated. As a model of chronic liver injury, we studied liver tissue from mice undergoing high-fat diet-induced steatohepatitis and again observed upregulation of ADAM8 mRNA expression compared to healthy controls. In vitro, ADAM8 expression was upregulated in hepatoma, endothelial, and stellate cell lines by various mediators of steatohepatitis including fatty acid (linoleic-oleic acid), IL-1β, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and TGF-β. Upregulation of ADAM8 was associated with the induction and release of proinflammatory cytokines (TNF-α and IL-6) and chemokines (CX3CL1). Finally, knockdown of ADAM8 expression in all tested cell types attenuated the release of these mediators. Thus, ADAM8 is upregulated in acute and chronic liver inflammation and is able to promote inflammation by enhancing expression and release of inflammatory mediators.

Fungus-growing termites are important pests for buildings and agriculture in Asia and Africa. This study assessed four insecticides (fipronil 5% SC, imidacloprid 20 SL, thiamethoxam 25 WG and chlorfenapyr 360 SC) for their toxicity and repellency to the fungus-growing termite, Odontotermes obesus (Rambur, 1842) (Blattodea: Termitidae: Macrotermitinae). The study was conducted at Ghazi University, Dera Ghazi Khan, Pakistan from September-October, 2016 and was undertaken to identify effective termiticides along with their optimal concentrations for future use in baits and localized treatments. The chemicals assessed were differed significantly in their toxicity. Chlorfenapyr and thiamethoxam were more toxic and faster acting with lower LC50 and LT50 values than imidacloprid and fipronil. The four chemicals were statistically similar at each concentration. Odontotermes obesus was not repelled by 0-20 mg/l chlorfenapyr, 0-40 mg/l fipronil, 0-80 mg/l imidacloprid or 0-20 mg/l thiamethoxam. These results suggest that chlorfenapyr, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam may be used as soil termiticides, whereas fipronil can be used both as soil termiticide and in termite baiting programs.

Pollinators are key components of the global biodiversity, providing vital ecosystem services of pollination to crops and wild plants. Understanding pollinator assemblage and how it changes spatially is important in order to device effective ecosystem management planning. This is the first empirical study to explore pollinator community structure in four widely isolated nature reserves of southern Punjab, Pakistan, i.e., the central agricultural plain (Pirowal Forest), the Indus delta plain (Ghazi Ghat Wetland), hilly mountains (Fort Munro), and a sandy desert (Lal Suhanra Forest). Six assemblage parameters, i.e., abundance, richness, dominance, evenness, Simpson index, and Shannon-Wiener index, were studied over seven consecutive months (February to August 2012). Maximum abundance and richness of the pollinators were recorded at Ghazi Ghat (1354 individuals and 84 species), followed by Pirowal (1331 individuals and 80 species), Lal Suhanra (1197 individuals and 77 species), and Fort Munro (808 individuals and 65 species). The highest values of Simpson and evenness indexes were recorded at Fort Munro, while the Shannon-Wiener and dominance indexes were highest at Ghazi Ghat and Pirowal. Species richness was highest for bees, while it was lowest for flies, yet the latter were the highest in abundance among the four pollinator groups. The current study is a first account of pollinator assemblage structure in four widely isolated forest reserves of Punjab, Pakistan. This will support ecosystem management planning, and opens doors for further research in order to reveal complexities in pollinator assemblage structure especially in relation with plant communities.

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