Arabidopsis bHLH-type transcription factors-BRASSINOSTEROID INSENSITIVE 1-EMS-SUPPRESSOR 1 (BES1) and BRASSINAZOLE RESISTANT 1 (BZR1)-play key roles in brassinosteroid (BR) signaling. By contrast, the functions of the other four BES1/BZR1 homologs (BEH1-4) remain unknown. Here, we describe the detailed expression profiles of the BES1/BZR1 family genes. Their expressions were distinct regarding growth-stage dependence and organ specificity but exhibited some overlaps as well. Furthermore, their mRNA levels mostly remained unchanged responding to seven non-BR phytohormones. However, BEH1 and BEH2 were downregulated by brassinolide, suggesting a close association with the BR function. Additionally, BEH4 was ubiquitously expressed throughout the life of the plant but displayed some expression preference. For instance, BEH4 expression was limited to guard cells and the adjacent pavement cells in the leaf epidermis and was induced during growth progression in very young seedlings, suggesting that BEH4 is specifically regulated in certain contexts, although it is almost constitutively controlled.

In order to quantitatively elucidate the transport characteristics of HTS conductors with large current capacities, we minutely investigated the relation between the current distributions in the sample conductor and the circuit parameters such as joint resistance and sample inductance. A high temperature superconducting current transformer (HTS-CT) was used to energize a large current in the sample conductor. No change in the joint resistance was observed with an increase of the sample current. On the other hand, the current ratio of the HTS-CT decreased with an increase in the sample current. This is considered to be equivalent to the inductance becoming large with an increase in the sample current. From the measured current distributions, we see that the current in the central area of the conductor is increased with increasing sample current. Based on these experimental results, the relation between the change of the current distributions and the increase of the sample inductance is discussed.