The key factor in the development of pulpal inflammation and apical periodontitis is the presence of bacteria [42]. It has been widely accepted that bacteria and/or their products are the main aetiological factors in the initiation and progress of these diseases [10]. Consequently, the central focus of root canal treatment has been directed towards the elimination of bacteria and their substrat...

Plant root systems have a key role in ecology and agronomy. In spite of fast increase in root studies, still there is no classification that allows distinguishing among distinctive characteristics within the diversity of rooting strategies. Our hypothesis is that a multivariate approach for "plant functional type" identification in ecology can be applied to the classification of root systems. T...

Root architectural traits are important for the selection of crops and cultivars that are most efficient in the acquisition of nutrients and water from soil. Increasingly laboratory-based methods are being used to screen large numbers of plants and to measure selected architectural traits. Our research with temperate cereals demonstrates that while such methods may allow numbers of root axes an...

Roots are the first organ to sense water deficit, and at the same time they extract virtually all those mineral nutrients from soil that are consumed by humans. Soil resource acquisition under challenging conditions such as drought is a primary limitation on plant productivity, resulting in low yields and thus food insecurity in the poorest countries. Indeed, in overall global agriculture, drou...

A character sum analog of the Macdonald-Morris constant term identity for the root system Gi is proved. The proof is based on recent evaluations of Selberg character sums and on a character sum analog of Dixon's summation formula. A conjectural evaluation is presented for a related sum.

The postembryonic developmental program of the plant root system is plastic and allows changes in root architecture to adapt to environmental conditions such as water and nutrient availability. Among essential nutrients, phosphorus (P) often limits plant productivity because of its low mobility in soil. Therefore, the architecture of the root system may determine the capacity of the plant to ac...