In this paper, we provide efficient algorithms for solving the weighted center problems in a cactus graph. In particular, an O(n log n) time algorithm is proposed that finds the weighted 1-center in a cactus graph, where n is the number of vertices in the graph. For the weighted 2-center problem, an O(n log n) time algorithm is devised for its continuous version and showed that its discrete ver...

Toll receptors transduce signals that activate Rel-family transcription factors, such as NF-κB, by directing proteolytic degradation of inhibitor proteins. In mammals, the IκB Kinase (IKK) phosphorylates the inhibitor IκBα. A βTrCP protein binds to phosphorylated IκBα, triggering ubiquitination and proteasome mediated degradation. In Drosophila, Toll signaling directs Cactus degradation via a s...

Screened potted cactus,Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill., plants containing pairs of adult male and female cactus moths, Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), were placed in a cactus Þeld in St. Marks, FL, to measure oviposition patterns under ambient conditions. Results showed a narrow window for oviposition during third and sixth day of adult femaleÕs life. Peak oviposition act...

Herbivory has long been recognized as a significant driver of plant population dynamics, yet its effects along environmental gradients are unclear. Understanding how weather modulates plant-insect interactions can be particularly important for predicting the consequences of exotic insect invasions, and an explicit consideration of weather may help explain why the impact can vary greatly across ...

A cactus graph is a connected graph in which any two cycles have at most one vertex in common. Let γ(G) and γc(G) be the domination number and connected domination number of a graph G, respectively. We can see that γ(G) ≤ γc(G) for any graph G. S. Arumugam and J. Paulraj Joseph [1] have characterized trees, unicyclic graphs and cubic graphs with equal domination and connected domination numbers...

Wild Cardon cactus seeds were inoculated with Azospirillum brasilense strains Cd and Sp-245 to improve seed germination and seedling growth parameters. Differential germination responses were related to the bacterial strain. A. brasilense Cd (the type strain for the species A. brasilense) significantly decreased seed germination. A. brasilense Sp245 (a known beneficial bacteria for cereal plant...

Nectar-feeding bats show morphological, physiological, and behavioral adaptations for feeding on nectar. How they find and localize flowers is still poorly understood. While scent cues alone allow no precise localization of a floral target, the spatial properties of flower echoes are very precise and could play a major role, particularly at close range. The aim of this study is to understand th...

Analysis of sexual selection and sexual isolation in Drosophila mojavensis and its relatives has revealed a pervasive role of rearing substrates on adult courtship behavior when flies were reared on fermenting cactus in preadult stages. Here, we assessed expression of contact pheromones comprised of epicuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) from eclosion to 28 days of age in adults from two populations ...

Pereskia bleo, a leafy cactus, is a medicinal plant native to West and South America and distributed in tropical and subtropical areas. It is traditionally used as a dietary vegetable, barrier hedge, water purifier, and insect repellant and for maintaining health, detoxification, prevention of cancer, and/or treatment of cancer, hypertension, diabetes, stomach ache, muscle pain, and inflammator...

Prophenoloxidases (PPOs) are key enzymes of the melanization reaction, which is a prominent defense mechanism of arthropods. The mosquito Aedes aegypti has ten PPO genes in the genome, four of which (PPO1, PPO3, PPO5, and PPO8) were expressed in response to microbial infection. Cactus depletion resulted in transcriptional activation of these four genes, suggesting this up-regulation to be under...