One in three chance UK loses AAA rating

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain has about a one in three chance of losing its AAA sovereign credit rating, a Reuters poll found on Thursday, a move that would put huge pressure on Chancellor George Osborne who is sticking with austerity even as the recession deepens.

"A worsening growth outlook threatens (Britain's) fiscal goals," said Nick Stamenkovic, macro strategist at RIA Capital Markets in Edinburgh. "The risk of losing AAA status is rising."

The poll of over 60 economists was taken after news on Wednesday that the economy contracted by 0.7 percent in the second quarter, deeper than even the most pessimistic forecast, and shrinking faster than the ailing euro zone.

A top-notch AAA rating in theory helps keep government borrowing rates low by guaranteeing investors that no matter what, their debts will be repaid.

The consensus probability of a downgrade, 35 percent, is up from 25 percent polled in March.

A slight majority said Osborne should not relax his hotly-contested fiscal austerity programme, which aims to eliminate the budget deficit, at 8 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), within five years.

The Bank of England will have to pick up the slack as the government proceeds with huge spending cuts and public service layoffs, increasing its bond purchase programme to a total of 400 billion pounds, probably in November, the poll found.

Aggressive fiscal tightening in euro zone countries such as Spain and Greece have led to even deeper economic contractions there, with Greece bordering on depression and facing a very real threat of ejection from the 17-member euro zone.

Both Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have a negative outlook for Britain's triple-A debt rating, warning that it could lose it in the next couple of years if the government relaxes its fiscal stance.

Forecasts in the Reuters Poll, taken from a sample of economists and bond strategists this week, ranged from a low probability of just 5 percent of a sovereign rating downgrade in the next year to a very high 80 percent.

Analysts at large British banks gave a consensus probability of 33 percent while respondents outside the UK were generally more pessimistic, giving a higher 40 percent probability.

Yet with the British economy flatlining for most of the past year and dipping even deeper into recession in the three months to June, still only 16 of 43 economists said the government should relax its austerity programme.

"It's bonkers policy," said Grant Lewis, head of research at Daiwa Capital Markets and one of the 16. "If they want some growth before the election they are going to have to look at changing tack."

The economy is expected to grow 0.6 percent in the current quarter, boosted by tourism and revenue from ticket sales as London hosts the 2012 Olympic Games, but will only see tepid growth after that for some time.

MORE BOE MONEY PRINTING

The additional 25 billion pound injection of new money into the banking system will most likely come in November, the poll found, when the Bank finishes the latest leg of its announced 375 billion worth of purchases.

That would take the size of the programme to about one-quarter of Britain's 1.6 trillion pound economy.

"The MPC is likely to expand QE markedly further in coming quarters, and if the euro area crisis worsens markedly, then the MPC may also cut the Bank Rate," said Michael Saunders at Citi.

Citi, which forecasts a 90 percent probability that Greece will have to leave the euro zone, is one of five banks institutions polled by Reuters who see a total spend of 500 billion pounds.

None of the economists polled expect any change to policy when the Monetary Policy Committee meets next on August 2.

Thirty-six of 57 economists said the Bank would top up the programme, with the median seeing an additional 25 billion pounds injection.

Only seven of the 64 economists in the poll expect the Bank to cut its main interest rate this year by 25 basis points, which would be the first move since the Bank cut it to a record low of 0.5 percent in March 2009. The vast majority do not see any rate change until April 2014 at the earliest.

(Polling by Rahul Karunakar, Ashrith Doddi and Aakanksha Bhat. Editing by Ross Finley/Jeremy Gaunt)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/one-three-chance-uk-loses-aaa-rating-162813159--finance.html

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How to eat healthy | Make You Cooking area Dashing With Good ...

refrigerator

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Need stricter regulations ?o inexperienced vitality come t? be a greater priority. Consciousness ?an be ? very successful approach of promotion modify. When people today ar? knowledgeable of wh?ch businesses d? n?t favor green vitality use, th?y w?ll keep absent fr?m them. The 1st factor toward rising th? apply ?f green practices is t? make people mindful of every single company?s insurance policies ?nd steps.

If your home i? crammed w?th unexpected guests, and y?u ought to serve them a thing chill, th?n the factory-installed icemaker ??n aid ?ou out. We often pushback h?t?szekr?ny cleaning ?? it ?s a tough ?nd wearisome activity. But with thi? GE Profile 24.6 Cu. Ft. Top-Freezer h?t?szekr?ny, it re?lly ?s made extremely straightforward! The adjustable slide-out spill evidence glass shelves make cleaning brief ?nd effortless! The stainless steel exterior adds ? contact ?f elegance to ?our kitchen d cor. So, when ?re y?u heading t? make it yours? Really don?t take too extended!

Source: http://www.topsecretrecipesrestaurant.com/make-you-cooking-area-dashing-with-good-styled-fridge/

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Retail POS Software for a Retail POS System

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Options for providing better customer service today can be found in many ways. The use of a retail POS program can help your organization offer better service while managing your investment in inventory and keeping costs down overall. Determining which of the many choices will work best for you can be difficult.

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When you begin considering the options that are available, things such as the cost, ease of use, difficulty of transition and other things will be factors in the choice you might make. Determining which options are the most cost effective is also important. While sometimes the purchase price might be higher, the benefits that you can obtain will be worth the extra expense.

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Deciding on a company to help you with the process is going to also influence the programming you use.? Many offer a number of choices but usually not all of the choices that are available. You first need to determine what you want from the software and then decide on a budget that will allow you to achieve this.

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Basically, the intention of these systems to make the process of shopping easier while providing the workers with the needed tools to make their job easier as well. It is much easier to look on a computer screen to see if you have a product in stock than it is to physically go look for the product. If you still need to go look for the product, the computer can tell you where it should be.

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By providing these tools, employees have more time to provide customer service. By increasing the amount of customer service, you will see an increase in customers visiting your store. Because you increase the flow of traffic into your store, you are likely to also see an improvement in profit as well.

?

When you are working on the various options found in retail POS software and systems, you will find that there are many choices available. You can narrow the options by determining what you are expecting from the system. If you need a system that provides a number of things, you will need to begin looking at those options first.

?

Deciding on a retail POS system is going to require the right hardware of course. Some of the available retail POS software programs can be used with older model computers but most require newer models. In order to install the system you need the right amount of memory and processing speed to make it work properly.

?

About Author:

In the ever-changing environment of the retail pos industry, customer service is rapidly becoming the largest focus of many companies. Because retail environments need a fast, efficient and accurate method for processing transactions and ordering inventory, many use a retail point of sale system that processes the sale as an inventory reduction and then sends notification when the product levels reach a certain point. Infinity RMS has the perfect solution for any retail business today. Visit them today at www.infinityrms.com to learn more about the programming solutions that they offer.

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Source: http://www.articlesbd.com/articles/217972/1/Retail-POS-Software-for-a-Retail-POS-System/Page1.html

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Baby Boomers: The Ultimate Guide to Serving Them | Funeral Blog ...

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?There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company? simply by spending his money somewhere else.?

- Sam Walton, Founder of Wal-Mart

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The 2010 Census reports that there are currently 79 million Baby Boomers in the U.S. ? making up 26% of our population.

With an increasing number of Boomers reaching 65 and older, they?re slowly beginning to dominate your customer demographic ? and with them, they bring nearly $3.2 trillion in annual spending power.

Commonly referred to as the ?me? Generation, Boomers do it their way, and the funeral industry is no exception. Boomers are embracing new technology, using social media, browsing the web and seeking personalized funeral services more than ever before.

So how can you adapt to those changes?

There isn?t just one answer, and there?s certainly no special formula, but with a little time and your reading glasses, this guide will put you well on your way to better serving Baby Boomers.

Why You Need to Adapt to Baby Boomers? Changing Needs

The Real Reason the Cremation Rate is Rising

Former funeral director Lajos Szabo explains why Boomers see the value of a funeral service differently, and why we need to adapt to that change.

?

5 Paradigm Shifts that Will Save the Funeral Service

Lajos Szabo explains 5 ways funeral professionals should adapt to better meet the needs of families today.

?

Get Online- Web 2.0

Almost 80% of Baby Boomers are online- and spend between 36.5-39.3 hours browsing the web every month. 10 years ago, if families wanted to find your funeral home, they would look in a newspaper or in the Yellow Pages. Things are different today. If you want to stay in business, your first step is creating a website for your funeral home.

?

Check out these articles to see how your funeral home website stacks up:

?

Is Your Funeral Home Website Hurting Your Business?

The difference between a mediocre and a great funeral home website (complete with pictures and examples).

?

What Families Want in a Funeral Home Website Part 1

funeralOne CEO Joe Joachim shares three goals the content on your funeral home website should achieve to rise above the online clutter. He invites you to evaluate your website by asking 4 questions that determine whether or not your site engages potential families.

?

What Families Want in a Funeral Home Website Part 2

Joe Joachim offers 3 ideas to better serve your families through your website.

What Families Want in a Funeral Home Part 3

Think you have a good grasp of how to engage and serve your families with your website? Joe Joachim shares 6 reasons why a social memorial website should serve as a gathering place for families ? and how to position it as just that.

?

Go Social with Facebook and Twitter

Baby Boomers are the fastest growing demographic of Facebook users, so it?s no secret that your funeral home should follow suit. Why? Because 67% of companies have acquired a customer through Facebook ? and with a demographic who makes up the majority of our workforce (and buying power), it?s important for your business to use social media to attract the families of today.

?

Here are some helpful articles on how to use social media for your funeral home:

What is a Tweet, and Why Do I Care?

An introduction to social media for the funeral profession.

?

6 Ways to Use Social Media to Build Relationships with Your Families

A simple tutorial on ways social media beginners can start engaging with their families on Facebook and Twitter.

?

5 (Easy) Steps to Mastering Twitter for Your Funeral Home

funeralOne social media maven Emily Black walks you through the step-by-step process of using Twitter for your funeral home. It?s easy, resourceful, and entertaining read on social media for the funeral profession.

?

4 Secrets to Successfully Marketing Your Funeral Home on Facebook

Emily Black explains the new Facebook Timeline, and 4 ways you can use its new features to attract more families and boost your social presence.

?

Offer Personalized Services

In just ten years, personalized funeral services have gone from being virtually non-existent to dominating one-third of all funeral ceremonies. Boomers feel a personalized service is a more meaningful way to memorialize a loved one ? in fact, 62% of those wanting a funeral service prefer some sort of personalization.

?

Check out these guides to offering personalized services below:

?

3 Do-It-Yourself Personalized Services Changing the Game for Funeral Home

Families are searching for more unique and personal ways to memorialize their loved one. Try these 3 do-it-yourself personalization tricks.

?

The Impact Tribute Videos Have on Your Families

Funeral Director Walker Posey shares a story of how offering a tribute video to his own family has helped him increase the support he provide his client families.

?

4 Ways Personalized Funeral Services Can Help Your Business

Why offering personalized services can bring more value to your services, increase your level of care, create lasting relationships with families and grow your business.

?

Embrace Technology

Businesses in virtually every industry have adapted new technologies to better serve Baby Boomers? and the funeral profession is next. In order for our profession to survive, we?ll have to embrace technology to meet the needs of Boomers.

?

Here are some awesome articles that talk about what technologies are up-and-coming in our profession, and how you can leverage them:

?

5 Ways to Serve Your Families After the Funeral Service

A complete guide to offering grief support to your families online.

?

Why the Standard Obituary is Dead (And What You Can do About It)

Kim Stacey explains how to embrace social media to revamp the old, tired obituary.

?

Funeral Webcasting? It really is that easy.

A video tutorial illustrating the importance of webcasting in the funeral profession, and how to set-up webcasting for your funeral home.

?

Funeral eCommerce is the Next Big Thing

Funeral Business Advisor explains why eCommerce is the next big technology for the funeral profession, and how you can leverage it to generate revenue for your funeral home.

?

Still Looking For More Resources?

If you want to start attracting the families of today, look no further. funeralOne can help you add value to your services, increase your level of care and grow your business with innovative products like:

- Life Tributes All-in-One Personalization Software
- F1Connect Website Platform
- eAftercare services
- The Sympathy Store

To learn more about our products, or to request a 30-day free trial, call (800)-798-2575?or click here.

Source: http://blog.funeralone.com/funeralone-products/life-tributes/baby-boomer-funeral-marketing/

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Evaluating best programs for sustained weight loss- Coops Health ...

Q: I have been overweight for a good part of my life, and I just went through a breakup with my fiance that has left me depressed. It?s kind of funny since he left me because he said I was depressed and that I wasn?t ?fun to be around.?

Well, that certainly didn?t fix the problem.

After reading your column in the Independent Mail, I have decided that enough is enough and that I must lose the weight, so I can be happy and be more confident.

My friends suggested that I join Weight Watchers and start their program. They said that I could lose about one to two pounds a week and that I would be happy with the people involved with the program. I heard a lot about your Ultra Fit program and I wanted to ask you if there was a difference in your program and Weight Watchers. What can I expect from Ultra Fit?

Is there a support group that comes with your program?

Any information that you can give me would be helpful.

? Mary Jo

A: First, I would like to say that Weight Watchers is one of the better programs out there and that it can be a good prerequisite to beginning Ultra Fit if you have a lot of time and patience. Weight Watchers has a good support group and a fairly healthy diet and has a lot of great benefits. It can help you to lose some weight and be healthier.

With that in mind, why would someone come to or graduate to Ultra Fit or use the Ultra Fit program to get in shape?

Simply put, it is the best program for maximum results in minimal time.

Ultra Fit is calculated and progressive and is guaranteed to firm and tone, increase strength, improve health and your quality of life, increase energy levels and have lasting success.

The healthiest, best and fastest way to get in shape and stay in shape is through a good, progressive strength training and exercise program.

Anytime we put specific demands on the body (with exercise, in this case), we must also nourish the body with the nutrients it needs to recover, replenish and restore so that we can improve our metabolic rate and burn more fat.

I have an important saying that I use everyday: Food is not the problem. Food is the solution.

We must eat more quality foods and more meals per day to get the best results.

We must slowly add calories and more quality nutrients if we wish to be healthy and lose weight without hitting a plateau. Most programs continue to restrict calories and take away. This will cause a loss of some weight, but unfortunately most of the weight lost is muscle. The loss of muscle will leave a person with saggy skin and no muscle tone.

By losing muscle, you will also slow down your metabolic rate and cause your weight loss to slow down, plateau and eventually fall short of your goals.

By implementing the Ultra Fit program with proper training techniques, we are able to increase lean muscle, restore glycogen (fuel storage in the muscle) and improve and sustain energy levels. We also improve our metabolic rate, which will allow us to ingest more quality calories, more meals and achieve even greater success.

What is better than being able to eat more, enjoy some delicious foods, easily implement the program and achieve incredible success in a short period of time?

Ultra Fit is simple and fun and produces fast and dramatic results.

In just six weeks, a female who has the weight to lose can expect to lose 20-25 pounds and a male 35-40 pounds in the same period of time.

As far as support, the trainers are so supportive you won?t even know how to get rid of them. They become part of your daily routine with regular emails, phone calls and constant support and motivation.

In focusing on your situation, Mary Jo, you deserve the best. Nobody, not even a fiance, should allow us to feel depressed. This is your life. This is your time to shine and be your best.

We are here to help you. I only ask to be there when your ex-fiance sees you looking lean, shapely, beautiful and happier than ever.

I can already picture the look on his face.

John Defendis is the director of fitness and Coop?s Health and Fitness in Anderson, Greenville and Spartanburg

Source: http://www.coopsfitness.com/?p=2191

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Coolsmartphone Recommended Android App ? Quick Search Widget

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The Google Search bar is quite useful. The system wide searching quite often comes in handy for searching for things. But now and again I want to search for something on Wikipedia or YouTube and I?m left browsing to the app or website and then trying to find the search option. This app certainly helps me out in these situations. I can create two or three widgets for specific searches and change them as I need. It?s a free app with an advert at the bottom so it?s not too obtrusive.

imageimageimageimage

Here is what the developer has to about their app.
?A fast web search Widget.
Quick Search is a fast and lightweight web search App. It works with various Internet websites to provide fast shortcuts to them, and it includes a Widget for your Home Screen.
? Google search
? Yahoo search
? Wikipedia search
? Weather Forecast search
? Search Google Play (Android Market)
? Search Google News (all languages/countries)
? YouTube search
? DailyMotion search (all 28 countries supported)
? Amazon search (all 9 countries supported)
? eBay search (14 countries supported)
? For Latin-American users: Search MercadoLibre/MercadoLivre (7 countries supported)
? For Korean users: Search Naver (???), Nate (???) and Daum (??)
? For Russian users: Search Yandex (??????)
? Add multiple Widgets to your Home Screen, and customize each one as you want.
? Many different languages and countries are supported, even for the Widget and Weather. You can easily change the language/country settings within the app, and the Search Engines will adapt.?

Play Store Link ? Quick Search

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/coolsmartphone/huIR/~3/i74IWnbBjI0/

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Taiwan protest for Falun Gong man held in China

Hundreds of demonstrators in the Taiwanese capital Taipei have gathered to demand the release of a Taiwanese businessman arrested in China. The man is accused of broadcasting programming about the banned spiritual group Falun Gong on a Chinese TV station.

China's official Xinhua News Agency says that Chung Ding-pan was detained for endangering public security, after he broadcast the pro-Falun Gong programming in Jiangxi province.

No details were given on how the 53-year-old gained access to the Jiangxi station's signal.

At Monday's protest, Falun Gong spokeswoman Chu Wan-chi said Chung was in China to visit relatives. She said she had no information on the allegations against him, but acknowledged he was a Falun Gong follower.

China banned Falun Gong in 1999 as an evil cult and persecutes its adherents.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/23/2907684/taiwan-protest-for-falun-gong.html

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joshadams: In 10 years government will mean nothing and all that will remain will the 3 world powers: Google, Amazon and the 3rd World will be Facebook

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Source:

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Anne Hathaway & Christian Bale Respond to Shooting

Lighting up the plant hormone 'command system'

ScienceDaily (July 22, 2012) ? Light is not only the source of a plant's energy, but also an environmental signal that instructs the growth behavior of plants. As a result, a plant's sensitivity to light is of great interest to scientists and their research on this issue could help improve crop yields down the road. Similarly understanding a plant's temperature sensitivity could also help improve agriculture and feed more people. Two new papers from Carnegie's Zhiyong Wang laboratory identify key aspects of the hormonal responses of plants to changes in light and heat in their environments.

Their work is published online July 22 by Nature Cell Biology.

To have optimal exposure to sun light, plants must grow differently depending on the lighting conditions. For example, when a seed germinates underground, it must elongate its stem rapidly to reach the surface of soil; when a plant is shaded by its neighbor, it also elongate its stem to outcompete for sun light; whereas expanding leaves is the priority for plants under full sun light. On the other hand, like all organisms, plant growth and development is also regulated by internally produced chemical signals, namely hormones. How plants coordinate their responses to light and hormonal signals is an outstanding question of great interest to scientists and importance to crop yield. It is believed that identification of the central regulatory mechanism that integrates multiple environmental and hormonal signals has great potential for improving crop yield. Such a central regulatory mechanism is the focus of the two papers from the Wang lab.

The light-induced transition from a developmental pathway that leads to slim seedling with yellow folded leaves, called etiolation, to a developmental pathway that leads to short stem and expanded green leaves, called de-etoilation, has been extensively studied for many years. This research led to the discovery, 15 years ago, of the steroid hormone brassinosteroid, which is found throughout the plant kingdom and regulates many aspects of growth and development.

Mutant plants that are deficient in brassinosteroid that are grown in the dark, show features of plants grown in the light. They also have defects at many phases of the plant life cycle, including reduced seed germination, dwarfism, and sterility.

The physiological effects of brassinosteroids are very similar to those of gibberellin, another hormone. But the relationship between these two hormones has been unclear at the molecular level. Recent studies of Wang and his colleagues have elucidated the molecular pathway through which brassinosteroid alters gene expression and explored the relationship of the two hormones.

In the two Nature Cell Biology papers, Wang and his team identified key junctions between the molecular pathway that transduces the brassinosteroid signal and those for the light, temperature, and gibberellin signals. The studies explain how multiple environmental and hormonal signals regulate plant growth and development. The studies also elucidate a biochemical "command system" that integrates a wide range of signals into growth regulation.

In contrast to the widely held concept that environmental signals affect endogenous hormones to alter plant growth, the study by Wang found surprisingly that light does not affect brassinosteroid. Instead, brassinosteroid has major effects on the sensitivity of plants to light by not only altering the levels of proteins mediating light responses, but also providing an essential partner for a transcription factor, named PIF4, that is directly inactivated by the photoreceptor phytochrome. The brassinosteroid-activated BZR1 protein and dark-stabilized PIF4 protein form a complex that drives expression of genes required for the etiolation process.

By contrast, light removal of PIF4, or the absence of BZR1 caused by brassinosteroid deficiency, leads to de-etiolation and inhibition of cell elongation. The study also shows that the growth response to high temperature, known to be mediated by PIF4, also requires BZR1-PIF4 complex formation. The study therefore revealed a new function of brassinosteroid in gating the responses to light and temperature, likely according to the internal physiological conditions.

Brassinosteroid and gibberellin are two major growth-promoting hormones that induce similar growth responses in higher plants. Wang and his team demonstrate that the effects of gibberellin on cell elongation depend on the presence of brassinosteroid and active BZR1 protein in the nucleus. This is because gibberellin removes a class of inhibitory proteins, named DELLAs, which inactivate BZR1, and thereby allow BZR1 to regulate gene expression more effectively. Without brassinosteroid and BZR1, gibberellin has little effect on cell growth.

The research indicates that brassinosteroid provides an essential factor required for cell elongation growth, whereas gibberellin provides another layer of quantitative control of the activity of this factor. Because gibberellin is known to be affected by environmental conditions, such as light and stresses, and brassinosteroid level varies greatly in different organs, the interactions among PIF4, DELLAs and BZR1 appear to form the "command system" that effectively integrates information of environmental condition, endogenous situation, and developmental program into the "decision" about growth.

Taken together, this research demonstrates that the interdependent relationships between brassinosteroid, elements of the gibberellin pathway, and phytochrome-interacting factors form a "command system" of sorts, which controls key growth processes and responses to environmental signals.

"This command system seems not only to accept various inputs, but also to send branches of output signals, too, because each component acts interdependently on shared targets, but also independently on unique sets of target genes," Wang said. "This complex network contains multiple layers and controls major plant growth and developmental processes. We believe this network will be a major target for engineering high-yielding crops."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Carnegie Institution, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal References:

  1. Ming-Yi Bai, Jian-Xiu Shang, Eunkyoo Oh, Min Fan, Yang Bai, Rodolfo Zentella, Tai-ping Sun, Zhi-Yong Wang. Brassinosteroid, gibberellin and phytochrome impinge on a common transcription module in Arabidopsis. Nature Cell Biology, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/ncb2546
  2. Eunkyoo Oh, Jia-Ying Zhu, Zhi-Yong Wang. Interaction between BZR1 and PIF4 integrates brassinosteroid and environmental responses. Nature Cell Biology, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/ncb2545

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/kd-TtG-2-cY/120722135206.htm

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