In this article, direct coating of ZnO on PECVD-grown multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) is achieved using atomic layer deposition (ALD). Transmission electron microscopy investigation shows that the deposited ZnO shell is continuous and uniform, in contrast to the previously reported particle morphology. The ZnO layer has a good crystalline quality as indicated by Raman and photoluminescen...

A survey was conducted to determine the density and species composition of viable seeds buried in four stands of a tropical montane forest at Parque Estadual Intervales, Brazil. The objective was to understand: (1) how numbers and composition of the soil seed bank change as the forest regrows, and (2) how such changes affect the species available for regeneration if forests of different ages ar...

Physical dormancy, a structural feature of the seed coat known as hard seededness, is an important characteristic for adaptation of plants against unstable and unpredictable environments. To dissect the molecular basis of qHS1, a quantitative trait locus for hard seededness in soybean (Glycine max (L) Merr.), we developed a near-isogenic line (NIL) of a permeable (soft-seeded) cultivar, Tachina...

The impact of various substrates and zinc oxide (ZnO) ultra thin seed layers prepared by atomic layer deposition on the geometric morphology of subsequent ZnO nanowire arrays (NWs) fabricated by the hydrothermal method was investigated. The investigated substrates included B-doped ZnO films, indium tin oxide films, single crystal silicon (111), and glass sheets. Scanning electron microscopy and...

Four wild and two cultivated soybeans were examined for the water imbibition and relationships with seed coat structure, histochemical and epicatechin content using light, fluorescence, electron microscope, and HPLC technique. Cultivated cultivars, Pungsan and Chungja showed the highest water permeability, while the wild soybean lines, YWS16 and YWS136 showed moderate, and YWS1420 and YWS1459 d...

It is well known that graphene (G) induces nanotoxicity towards living organisms. Here, a novel and biocompatible hydrated graphene ribbon (HGR) unexpectedly promoted aged (two years) seed germination. HGR formed at the normal temperature and pressure (120 days hydration), presented 17.1% oxygen, 0.9% nitrogen groups, disorder-layer structure, with 0.38 nm thickness ribbon morphology. Interesti...

We introduce an innovative approach to the simultaneous control of growth mode and magnetotransport properties of manganite thin films, based on an easy-to-implement film/substrate interface engineering. The deposition of a manganite seed layer and the optimization of the substrate temperature allows a persistent bi-dimensional epitaxy and robust ferromagnetic properties at the same time. Struc...

Peganum harmala L. (Zygophyllaceae) is one of the most famous medicinal plants used in traditional medicine of Iran. The aim of this study was to consider antibacterial effects of the methanolic extract of different parts of P. harmala including root, stem, leaf, flower and seed against some important human pathogenic bacteria. Antibacterial properties of methanolic extract of mentioned parts w...

conservation and restoration of biodiversity is very important for degraded rangeland ecosystems. it is necessary to assess the potential of soil seed bank as a major source of species. in this study, the soil seed bank size and composition were compared between exclosure and grazed areas. this was done in chahar-bagh rangelands in golestan province. soil was sampled in exclosure and grazing fr...

Tropical rainforests are known for their extreme biodiversity, posing a challenging problem in tropical ecology. Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain the diversity of tree species, yet our understanding of this phenomenon remains incomplete. Here, we consider the contribution of animal seed dispersers to the species diversity of trees. We built a multi-layer lattice model of trees whos...