"Snow lotus" is a famous Chinese Materia Medica derived from species of the genus Saussurea (Compositae). To differentiate three representative easily-confused snow lotus herbs, namely, Saussurea involucrata (Kar. et Kir.) Sch.-Bip, Saussurea laniceps Hand.-Mazz., and Saussurea medusa Maxim., macroscopic features of the three herbs were systemically observed, and microscopic features were compa...

The study was designed to examine the hypothesis that chicory (Cichorium intybus) and Lotus sp. (Lotus corniculatus) have the potential to affect the naturally acquired nematode burden in grazed lambs. Organic male castrate lambs (48) with a naturally acquired parasite burden grazed replicate combination plots (0.6 ha) of chicory, Lotus corniculatus, perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) and whit...

We investigate how to achieve a sense of dramatic presence (the perception of being “in” a story, playing the role of one of its characters), with the aim of building systems that can offer the same. Improvisational theatre might serve as a model for this experience, where there is no guiding plot; each of its actors shares responsibility for the collaborative emergence of a story. We describe ...

Our continued investigation into the experience of improvisers as they construct narrative in improvisational theatre provides a meaningful decomposition of its atomic unit, the offer. Our study was conducted with improvisers performing improv “games” in their theatre with each performance video recorded. Individual participants were selectively shown individual performances before being interv...

Lotus-type porous nickel, which has long straight pores aligned in one direction, was fabricated by utilizing moisture during unidirectional solidification in argon atmosphere. We studied the effect of the quantity of hydrogen in the atmosphere on the fabrication of lotus-type porous nickel. Adding hydrogen in the atmosphere, it was expected that the porosity of the lotus-type porous nickel wit...

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of potato and lotus leaf extract intake on body composition, abdominal fat, and blood lipid concentration in female university students. METHODS A total of 19 female university students participated in this 8-week study, and they were randomly assigned into 2 groups; potato and lotus leaf extract (skinny-line) administered group...

We report results from in vivo measurements, using oxygen isotope discrimination techniques, of fluxes through the alternative and cytochrome respiratory pathways in thermogenic plant tissue, the floral receptacle of the sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera). Fluxes through both pathways were measured in thermoregulating flowers undergoing varying degrees of thermogenesis in response to ambient tempe...

Perenniality and vegetative re-growth vigour represent key agronomic traits in forage legume (Fabaceae) species. The known determinants of perenniality include the conservation of the vegetative meristem during and after the flowering phase, and the separation of flowering from senescence. The ability of the plants to store nutrient resources in perennial organs and remobilize them may also pla...

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous non-coding RNAs with important regulatory functions in plant development and stress responses. However, their population abundance in lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn) has so far been poorly described, particularly in response to stresses. In this work, submergence-related miRNAs and their target genes were systematically identified, compared, and validated at th...

Objectives: Zizyphus lotus L. is a medicinal plant, used in traditional medicine for its multiple therapeutic properties. The aim of the present study was to determine the antidiabetic and antioxidant effects of aqueous extracts of different parts of Zizyphus lotus in diabetic Wistar rats. Research methods and procedures: The male Wistar rats were rendered diabetic by intraperitoneal (i.p.) inj...