Phylogeny of Abildgaardieae (Cyperaceae) Inferred from ITS and trnL–F Data

Within the tribe Abildgaardieae, the relationships between Fimbristylis and its relatives have not been certain, and the limits of Fimbristylis have been unclear, with Bulbostylis and Abildgaardia variously combined with it and each other. The relationships and limits of tribes Abildgaardieae and Arthrostylideae and their genera were evaluated across 49 representative species using parsimony and maximum likelihood analyses of ITS (nuclear ribosomal) and trnL–F (plastid) DNA sequence data separately and combined. The evolutionary reconstructions derived from sequences of cpDNA and nrDNA disagree about the position of tribe Arthrostylideae relative to Abildgaardieae; Arthrostylis and Actinoschoenus are either nested within Abildgaardieae (trnL–F data) or very closely related to this tribe (ITS data). The reconstructions also disagree about the monophyly of genus Abildgaardia (excluding A. vaginata). Crosslandia and A. vaginata form a clade that is nested within Fimbristylis. Bulbostylis is monophyletic and clearly separated from Fimbristylis. Further sampling of taxa and characters is needed to resolve and/or strengthen support for some of these ‘‘deep’’ and fine-scale relationships

Tourism development and marketing in difficult destinations, a case study of Iran

The thesis explores the issue of development and marketing tourism in a difficult destination. Although the notion of a difficult destination has no formal definition, it does imply a situation where for a combination of reasons both internal and external to a country, it is difficult to market it to potential tourists. Countries as diverse as Northern Ireland, Cuba, Lebanon, Ivory Coast and Zimbabwe are past and present examples. In this study the country used as the case study is the Islamic Republic of Iran. Since the Islamic Revolution in 1978, the country has experienced often turbulent political and economic change including volatile international relations with other countries, all factors which tend to jeopardise the development of international tourism. From a trawl of the relevant literature and also derived from the extensive work experience of the author in the Iranian tourism sector and also in marketing it abroad, three research questions were identified. First, to what extent do the internal barriers to tourism in Iran including culture in its many forms; religious issues; national policies relating to tourism; political issues; business issues; infrastructure; and human resources, make Iran a difficult destination to develop and market? Second, to what extent do external barriers including the present image of Iran in the main tourist-generating markets; travel restrictions to and within the country; the media and its role in shaping and reshaping destination image, make Iran a difficult destination to develop? Third, what strategies can be developed to lessen these barriers on the one hand, and promote tourism development on the other? Due to the paucity of available and reliable tourism data and the absence of previous studies, it was considered necessary to facilitate the research on a qualitative approach. Using the case study method and based on 25 interviews with key figures in four areas: government (8); tourism associations (5); academics (4); and tour operators (8), interviews were arranged using a semi-structured questionnaire. Interviews were conducted in Persian and translated back to English. Data was analysed using a thematic approach using the ten categories identified above. The case study approached produced a very rich source of information related to the research questions. The major findings centred on the suggestion that government did not practically appreciate or value the tourism sector. It was argued that government intervention since the Islamic Revolution was at best spasmodic, lacked coordination, and displayed no consistent approach to supporting the sector. The absence of any formal communication channel between government and the private sector to share and discuss issues of concern was evidence of this. Many of the interviewees believed that this situation was a consequence of senior clerics being concerned that foreign tourists would disregard and disrespect the culture and behavioural norms of the Islamic Republic. Interviewees strongly rejected this view as a misperception and stated that Iran's culture and traditions were the main reasons for tourists to come to the country, and that there was no evidence of tourists' misbehaving or lacking respect for social and religious norms. Of more concern as potential barriers to tourism development was the poor infrastructure, deficiencies in human resource training and planning, difficulties in accessing the country due to visa regulations and related facilitation issues such as failure to approve the use of credit cards. It was recognised that in recent years Iran had not received favourable international media attention. However, it was suggested that any misconceptions and errors of fact could be overcome through a media strategy devised jointly be government and the private sector and implemented on a consistent basis. Recommendations of the study include that government should prioritize tourism as an option for diversification of the country's oil-based economy; develop a formal communication channel with the private sector and some privatisation of current government services should be introduced on a staged basis; create a better image of Iran as a tourist destination; an approach be made to better inform and educate senior authorities about the potential of tourism as part of the country's development strategy; that tourism policies and plans be reviewed, changed as appropriate and necessary, and implementation strategies be agreed; and generally, that tourism initiatives are better coordinated. This is the first detailed study of the tourism sector in Iran based on industry expertise and opinion. It has been prepared in a period of economic and political turbulence and is presented very much as a foundation study. Further research is urgently required and among priority areas are: preparation of a human resources development plan; a review and analysis of existing tourism policies and plans; create a relevant and pro-active marketing strategy; specific legislative and financial support for tourism SMEs and small businesses. This research would help to betterinform decision-making for tourism and facilitate the use of Iran's tourism assets.The thesis explores the issue of development and marketing tourism in a difficult destination. Although the notion of a difficult destination has no formal definition, it does imply a situation where for a combination of reasons both internal and external to a country, it is difficult to market it to potential tourists. Countries as diverse as Northern Ireland, Cuba, Lebanon, Ivory Coast and Zimbabwe are past and present examples. In this study the country used as the case study is the Islamic Republic of Iran. Since the Islamic Revolution in 1978, the country has experienced often turbulent political and economic change including volatile international relations with other countries, all factors which tend to jeopardise the development of international tourism. From a trawl of the relevant literature and also derived from the extensive work experience of the author in the Iranian tourism sector and also in marketing it abroad, three research questions were identified. First, to what extent do the internal barriers to tourism in Iran including culture in its many forms; religious issues; national policies relating to tourism; political issues; business issues; infrastructure; and human resources, make Iran a difficult destination to develop and market? Second, to what extent do external barriers including the present image of Iran in the main tourist-generating markets; travel restrictions to and within the country; the media and its role in shaping and reshaping destination image, make Iran a difficult destination to develop? Third, what strategies can be developed to lessen these barriers on the one hand, and promote tourism development on the other? Due to the paucity of available and reliable tourism data and the absence of previous studies, it was considered necessary to facilitate the research on a qualitative approach. Using the case study method and based on 25 interviews with key figures in four areas: government (8); tourism associations (5); academics (4); and tour operators (8), interviews were arranged using a semi-structured questionnaire. Interviews were conducted in Persian and translated back to English. Data was analysed using a thematic approach using the ten categories identified above. The case study approached produced a very rich source of information related to the research questions. The major findings centred on the suggestion that government did not practically appreciate or value the tourism sector. It was argued that government intervention since the Islamic Revolution was at best spasmodic, lacked coordination, and displayed no consistent approach to supporting the sector. The absence of any formal communication channel between government and the private sector to share and discuss issues of concern was evidence of this. Many of the interviewees believed that this situation was a consequence of senior clerics being concerned that foreign tourists would disregard and disrespect the culture and behavioural norms of the Islamic Republic. Interviewees strongly rejected this view as a misperception and stated that Iran's culture and traditions were the main reasons for tourists to come to the country, and that there was no evidence of tourists' misbehaving or lacking respect for social and religious norms. Of more concern as potential barriers to tourism development was the poor infrastructure, deficiencies in human resource training and planning, difficulties in accessing the country due to visa regulations and related facilitation issues such as failure to approve the use of credit cards. It was recognised that in recent years Iran had not received favourable international media attention. However, it was suggested that any misconceptions and errors of fact could be overcome through a media strategy devised jointly be government and the private sector and implemented on a consistent basis. Recommendations of the study include that government should prioritize tourism as an option for diversification of the country's oil-based economy; develop a formal communication channel with the private sector and some privatisation of current government services should be introduced on a staged basis; create a better image of Iran as a tourist destination; an approach be made to better inform and educate senior authorities about the potential of tourism as part of the country's development strategy; that tourism policies and plans be reviewed, changed as appropriate and necessary, and implementation strategies be agreed; and generally, that tourism initiatives are better coordinated. This is the first detailed study of the tourism sector in Iran based on industry expertise and opinion. It has been prepared in a period of economic and political turbulence and is presented very much as a foundation study. Further research is urgently required and among priority areas are: preparation of a human resources development plan; a review and analysis of existing tourism policies and plans; create a relevant and pro-active marketing strategy; specific legislative and financial support for tourism SMEs and small businesses. This research would help to betterinform decision-making for tourism and facilitate the use of Iran's tourism assets

Improving the Utilisation of Germplasm of \u3cem\u3eTrifolium Spumosum\u3c/em\u3e L. By the Development of a Core Collection Using Ecogeographical and Molecular Techniques

A core collection is a sub-set encompassing more than 70% of the variability of all accessions held in a collection (Brown 1995), the development of one for Trifolium spumosum (bladder clover) could assist in future development of the cultivar within southern Australia. The aim of this work is to develop a core collection of Trifolium spumosum as a model for other pasture legume species using molecular and ecogeographical data

Improving the Utilisation of Germplasm of \u3cem\u3eTrifolium Spumosum\u3c/em\u3e L. By the Development of a Core Collection Using Ecogeographical and Molecular Techniques

A core collection is a sub-set encompassing more than 70% of the variability of all accessions held in a collection (Brown, 1995). The development of one for Trifolium spumosum (bladder clover) could assist in future development of the cultivar within southern Australia. The aim of this work is to develop a core collection of Trifolium spumosum as a model for other pasture legume species using molecular and ecogeographical data

Phylogeny of Cyperaceae Based on DNA Sequence Data–a New rbcL Analysis

Since the Monocots II meeting in 1998, significant new data have been published that enhance our systematic knowledge of Cyperaceae. Phylogenetic studies in the family have also progressed steadily. For this study, a parsimony analysis was carried out using all rbcL sequences currently available for Cyperaceae, including data for two new genera. One of the four subfamilies (Caricoideae) and seven of the 14 tribes (Bisboeckelereae, Cariceae, Cryptangieae, Dulichieae, Eleocharideae, Sclerieae, Trilepideae) are monophyletic. Subfamily Mapanioideae and tribe Chrysitricheae are monophyletic if, as the evidence suggests, Hellmuthia is considered a member of Cypereae. Some other features of our analysis include: well-supported Trilepideae and Sclerieae–Bisboeckelereae clades; a possible close relationship between Cryptangieae and Schoeneae; polyphyletic tribes Schoeneae and Scirpeae; the occurrence of Cariceae within the Dulichieae–Scirpeae clade, and a strongly supported clade, representing Cyperus and allied genera in Cypereae, sister to a poorly supported Ficinia–Hellmuthia– Isolepis–Scirpoides clade. Such patterns are consistent with other studies based on DNA sequence data. One outcome may be that only two subfamilies, Mapanioideae and Cyperoideae, are recognized. Much further work is needed, with efforts carefully coordinated among researchers. The work should focus on obtaining morphological and molecular data for all genera in the family

Demographic Profiles of Iranian Individuals with Personality Disorder

Background and Aim:Personality disorders (PDs) are widespread, rigid, and maladaptive with collections of traits that impair individuals and limit their capacity to function effectively. Recent studiesindicate that PDs are consistently associated with several demographic characteristics. The present study was conducted toinvestigate the differences between the demographic characteristics of DSM-5 Sections II and III PDs in an Iranian clinical sample. Materials and Methods:Data on the demographic distribution of DSM-5 Sections II and III PDs were derived from a total of 430 Iranian patients with PDs presenting to four clinical centers in Tehran using well-established measures. Different statistical analysis methods were used to compare demographic differences between DSM-5 Sections II and III PDs. These analyzes were performed using SPSS software V. 22. Results:Data analysis indicated that educational level, gender, age, marital status, average monthly household costs, and ethnicity had an impact on most PDs. In return, birth order accounted for the changes in only DSM-5 Section II histrionic PD. Conclusion:Current research reveals that certain demographic subgroups have an impact on PDs. Accordingly, the need for psychiatric services for these individuals needs to be explored

Readers of English Literature Confronting Quiet Members with Critical Literacy in the Act of Mentoring

In response to many years of a one-way teacher-oriented teaching approach in Iran, there have been some attempts in research to identify young learners as resourceful learning material themselves. Over a period of two semesters, the researchers as teacher-researcher and co-teacher full-time participant observer explore the diverse ways for inviting thirty English Literature majors to voice their own spontaneous learning challenges in reading English literature through mentorship; and characteristics of a popular mentor in critical reading practice and the ways in which a mentor may share her voice with mentees. For this purpose, a qualitative case-study methodology is conducted at Alzahra University (the only-woman university in Iran) for an in-depth understanding of the language and act of reading when Iranian women English literature readers participate in a mentorship interaction. The findings indicated that the mentors/mentees and the teacher create a subtle relationship throughout the semesters by sharing how to read and search for literary texts; how to review literary texts after hearing one another’s writing styles; how to voice their critiques with courage; how to overcome competition; and how to invite quiet members to their circles

Study of an exchange reaction between an anion and hydroxyl groups in the soils or clay minerals by isotope tracer method

The mechanism of phosphate adsorption by clay minerals was reported by Stout. He showed that the loss of water of kaolinite in the presence of KC1, K₂SO₄ or KH₂PO₄ was due to an exchange reaction between anion and hydroxyl groups from clay minerals. Also, Kelly and Midgley reported that the increase in pH of a colloidal system caused by phosphate fixation is taken as evidence for the exchange of phosphate ions with hydroxyl ions. Thomas found that the amount of sulfate which is held by an acid red soil increased with time and later Chao, Harward and Fang reported the soil constituents and properties on the adsorption of sulfate ions. A mechanism for sulfate adsorption by soil was proposed by Chang and Thomas. They reported that the adsorption of sulfate was due to the exchange reaction with hydroxyl ions on the soil. An attempt was made to tritiate the soils and clay minerals. It is believed that if the hydrogen of the hydroxyl ions in the soil or clay minerals can be labeled with tritium, then the exchange reaction between hydroxyl ions of soils or clay-minerals and anion may be measured directly from the tritium activity in the solution phase. The radioactivity in aqueous solutions was measured with a Packard Tri-Carb Liquid Scintillation Counter. Tritium counts were obtained at high voltage tap 7 and the amount of tritium released frorn one gram of tritiated soil after shaking with salt solutions of varying concentration is reported. In order to determine the nature of tritium in soil after an exchange reaction, aliquots of tritiated Aiken soil were heated separately at various temperatures (110-800°C) for one hour. The tritium activity which remained in the soil sample could be released by shaking the soil either with water or with salt solutions. This proved definitely the labeling of tritium in the OH group of soil-clay minerals. By the equilibration procedure and using double isotope technique the amount of sulfate or chloride adsorbed by the soil and tritium released was directly determined in the single sample. Results from radio salt showed that the tritium release was unchanged, but a positive adsorption for sulfate for both tritiated Aiken and Willamette soils was observed. The magnitude of sulfate adsorption increased with the increase of sulfate concentration. With a more concentrated solution, it did not induce an additional OH³ release of tritiated soils. Hence, the mechanism of exchange of sulfate adsorption and hydroxyl group in soil clay mineral as theorized by Chang and Thomas cannot be applied here. When the tritium activity is high in the form of hygroscopic or combined water, then the tritium activity in the hydroxyl ion released by an exchange with the adsorbed anion may not be large enough to be detected. In the chromatographic procedure, all hygroscopic and combined tritiated water was completely removed before the addition of 0.2 N salt solution. For this purpose water was percolated through the column and two mls increments of the effluent solution were colIected, The tritium activity in each increment was determined. In general, 30 to 35 mls of water were required for the column to reach a steady state. At this time, the salt solution was added and tritium release was measured. Results from chromatographic method using 0.2 N KH₂PO₄, K₂SO₄ or KC1 solutions did not support the concept of exchange of hydroxyl ions from clay minerals and anion

Editorial: Spectroscopy for Crop and Product Phenotyping

Spectroscopy is a viable technique for exploring plant biochemistry in an efficient, accurate and typically non-destructive manner (Schie et al., 2018). By taking advantage of the properties of plant biomolecules and metabolites in different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum, advances have been made that allow for investigations into previously inaccessible aspects of biology in real-time (Akhgar et al., 2020). Other important advances involve disease diagnostics, early stress detection and plant product quality assessment (Gemperline et al., 2016). High-throughput technologies for nucleotide sequence analysis and detection of sequence variation have been increasingly used for plant genotyping and other fields of genetic testing. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a simple and rapid method that can detect molecular genetic polymorphisms in basic and applied research applications. An important prospective use of PCR-based genotyping assays is to perform large-scale phenotyping analyses (Suyama and Matsuki, 2015), mutant screens, and comparative physiological analyses for Marker Assisted Breeding. This Research Topic highlights novel and innovative applications of all spectroscopic techniques that aim for characterization in plants in order to understand plant growth and productivity. Studies featuring impactful and innovative applications of well-established methodologies such as Raman spectroscopy, Near-infrared spectroscopy, Fluorescence resonance energy transfer, hyperspectral imaging, or a novel combination of spectrometric measurement techniques and novel spectrometric techniques were invited, resulting in 8 published articles. Infrared and Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) spectroscopy Infrared spectroscopy (Gillie et al., 2000) is becoming an increasingly popular and promising technology in agricultural and agri-food industries to measure intact, fresh, and unfrozen samples directly. The field of infrared spectroscopy is complex and comprehensive and could lead to specialized solutions for the agricultural sector in general, and for the viticultural industry in particular. Wyngaard et al., show that infrared spectroscopy is implemented for continuous monitoring of key metabolites in grapevine organs throughout the growing season. The observed spectral changes led to the classification of grapevine organs, providing individualized calibrations to compensate for the heterogeneity in grapevines, as well as developing more robust prediction models. Near-infrared spectroscopy is a non-destructive, fast, and low-cost method to measure the biochemicals for screening plant samples. Armstrong et al., investigate the feasibility of single kernel NIR spectroscopy for rapid determination of protein, oil, and weight in intact single sorghum seeds, highlighting the use of this non-destructive and quick method for screening these traits in sorghum breeding and industry applications. In the work of Ejaz et al., biochemical components of sorghum were predicted for enhancing grain sorting efficiency for food, feed, and fuel, using Fourier-transform NIR spectroscopy. Raman Spectroscopy-based Plant Pathology Diagnostics Raman spectroscopy (RS) is a label-free, non-invasive, non-destructive spectroscopic technique that is effective for studying the chemical structure of analyzed samples (Cialla-May et al., 2022). This technique has been widely used among biochemists, and has now found applications in agronomy, plant pathology and physiology for analysis of plant health status. Changes in plant biochemistry can be probed by Raman spectroscopy, allowing its use in confirmatory diagnosis of plant pathology. Dou et al., use RS to develop the diagnosis of Huanglongbing, a devastating disease caused by Candidatus Liberibacter spp. (Ca. L. asiaticus). By using a combination of HPLC and image studies of leaves, they created a ground truth concept demonstrating that a given signature in RS corresponds to increased p-coumaric acid and decreased lutein in infected grapefruit leaves. Since Raman spectroscopy can be used to resolve stress-induced changes in plant biochemistry on the molecular level, it represents a prospective and rapid technique for agronomy and plant pathology. Farber et al., show that RS can be used for highly accurate identification of stalk rot caused by Colletotrichum graminicola in maize at both early and late stages of disease progression, via spectroscopic analysis of both leaves and stalks. High-Resolution Microscopy and Spectrometry Approach The rhizosphere is a hotspot for microbial activity, organic carbon input, and carbon turnover in soils (Ilhardt et al., 2019). Several stand-alone and combinatorial methods have been developed to investigate the chemistry and the role of microbes in soil and the rhizosphere. Bandara et al., present a novel approach that allows simultaneous microbial identification and chemical analysis of the rhizosphere at a spatial resolution ranging from micro- to nanometers. This new method allows for comprehensive study of the spatio-temporal organization of nutrients and microbes in the rhizosphere at an unprecedented scale and provides a platform for a mechanistic understanding of complex patterns of interactions between roots, the microbiome and soil using a correlative microscopy approach. Lohse et al., present a novel workflow using laser desorption ionization combined with mass spectrometric imaging to directly analyze plant metabolites in a complex soil matrix. The target metabolites were detected with a spatial resolution of 25 μm in the root and surrounding soil, based on accurate masses using ultra-high mass resolution laser desorption ionization Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. Direct molecular imaging allows a non-targeted or targeted analysis of plant metabolites in undisturbed soil samples, paving the way to study the turnover of root-derived organic carbon in the rhizosphere with high chemical and spatial resolution. PCR genotyping Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) represent the smallest type of genetic differences in DNA between biological samples (Campbell et al., 2015). SNP analysis has emerged as one of the most powerful tools employed over a wide range of research, from small-scale student-led investigations of specific SNPs to high-throughput microarray technologies to analyze thousands of SNPs simultaneously. Kalendar et al., propose a modification to improve the version of the existing Allele-specific PCR method that is similar to the Kompetitive allele specific PCR (KASP) technique for genotyping SNPs based on fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). This new technique is based on the simultaneous presence of two components in the PCR: an allele-specific mixture (allele-specific and common primers), and a template-independent detector mixture that contains two to four universal probes and a single universal quencher oligonucleotide (Kalendar et al., 2022). The SNP site is positioned preferably at a penultimate base in each allele-specific primer, which increases the reaction specificity and allele discrimination. The proposed method was used for SNP genotyping in barley genes HvSAP16 and HvSAP8, and is suitable for bi-allelic uniplex, 3- or 4-allelic variants, or different SNPs in a multiplex format that can be used in a range of applications including medical, forensic, or any study involving SNP genotyping. Overall, the research collected on this Research Topic highlights innovative and promising applications of all spectroscopic techniques for characterizing plants to understand plant growth, productivity, and disease resistance, and for PCR-based genotyping to perform large-scale mutant screens, comparative analysis for Marker Assisted Breeding.Non peer reviewe