The effect of pelleting on in situ rumen degradability of compound feed containing brown rice for dairy cows

This study was conducted to determine the effect of pelleting on in situ dry matter degradability of pelleted compound feed containing brown rice for dairy cows. Mash feed of the same composition was used as a control and the in situ study was conducted using three non‐lactating Holstein steers fitted with a rumen cannula. The feeds contained 32.3% brown rice, 19.4% rapeseed meal, 11.4% wheat bran and 10.6% soybean meal (fresh weight basis). Except for moisture content, the chemical composition of the feed was not affected by pelleting. In situ dry matter disappearance of the feed increased from 0 to 2 h and after 72 h of incubation with pellet processing. Integration of the dry matter disappearance values over time revealed that degradability parameter a (soluble fraction) increased with pellet processing, whereas parameter b (potentially degradable fraction) decreased. Parameter c (fractional rate of degradation) and effective degradability (5% passage rate) were not affected by pellet processing. We concluded that pellet processing promotes rumen degradability at early incubation hours when the pelleted feed contains brown rice.     

Treatments and outcomes of severe hemorrhagic enteritis in three eastern bongos (Tragelpahus eurycerus isaacii) at the Singapore Zoo

Three eastern bongos (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci) presented acutely with hemorrhagic diarrhea at the Singapore Zoo, thought to be caused by a mouldy batch of hay. Repeated fecal tests were negative of parasites and common gastrointestinal bacteria including salmonella and campylobacter. The diarrhea resolved for all individuals after a week of leaf-only diet. However, 2 individuals developed signs of colic. Both animals were anesthetized for examination including blood tests and imaging studies. The findings were consistent of gastrointestinal ileus and a possible impaction. With intensive treatment involving repeated sedations for fluid therapy administration and treatments for gastrointestinal impaction, one individual eventually made a full recovery, but the other individual died due to septic peritonitis secondary to a rupture in the spiral colon. Persistent supportive therapy may be vital in treating severe gastrointestinal disease in this species.     

辣椒倍半萜植保素代谢的分子生态学研究I紫外线对辣椒叶片倍半萜环化酶及鲨烯合成酶的作用

为建立克隆辣椒倍半萜环化酶基因的cDNA文库,我们尝试了用紫外线(UV)处理离体辣椒叶片,考察UV对辣椒倍半萜环化酶活性的影响,结果表明:UV能诱导辣椒叶片表达倍半萜环化酶活性;不同抗性水平的辣椒品种倍半萜环化酶活性对紫外线的反应有差异,紫外线处理后,抗病品种cm334在24 h 出现酶活性高峰,而感病品种subiche在36～42 h出现酶活性高峰;在紫外线处理后0～24 h cm334的酶活性高于subiche.UV对辣椒倍半萜环化酶活性的诱导作用与UV的作用方式、剂量及辣椒植株的生育期有关, 紫外线交联处理45 s诱导10叶期的倍半萜环化酶活性最高;5支15 W紫外灯相距20 cm照射15 min低于1支相同的紫外灯处理;在相同的UV作用下,开花前辣椒叶片倍半萜环化酶活性显著高于开花以后的辣椒叶片.另一方面,紫外线处理是辣椒叶片中的鲨烯合成酶活性受到一定程度的拟制.     

Evaluation of various potato cultivars for resistance to wireworms (Coleoptera: Elateridae)

Fifty potato cultivars, 11 early-maturing, 11 mid-maturing and 28 late-maturing cultivars, were evaluated in the field for resistance to wireworms, using the equation injury rate (%) = (No. of damaged tubers/No. of total tubers) × 100. In preliminary field tests, four wireworm species were found in the experimental site:Selatosomus puncticollis (Motschulsky),Melanotus legatus Gandéze, Agrypnus argillaceus (Solsky), andA. binodulus coreanus Kishii. Larvae ofS. puncticollis were dominant (over 95% occurrence). Significant differences for resistance were observed among the 50 cultivars. Of 11 early-maturing cultivars, high levels of resistance to wireworms were obtained from cvs Anco and Irish Cobbler. Among the 11 mid-maturing cultivars, the American cultivar Alamo and the Japanese cultivar Shinyuseo exhibited high resistance to wireworms. Of 28 late-maturing cultivars, cvs Whitu, Sieglinde, Spunta, and Some Miore were very resistant to wireworms, whereas high levels of resistance were observed in the cvs Cardinal, Norin No. 2, Ojiro and Rosa. These resistant cultivars should be useful in future breeding programs.     

Identification of quantitative trait loci associated with drought tolerance traits in rice (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Oryza sativa</Emphasis> L.) under PEG and field drought stress

Two recombinant inbred line F₁₀ rice populations (IAPAR-9/Akihikari and IAPAR-9/Liaoyan241) were used to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for ten drought tolerance traits at the budding and early seedling stage under polyethylene glycol-induced drought stress, and two traits of leaf rolling index (LRI) and leaf withering degree (LWD) under field drought stress. The results showed that the drought-tolerance capacity of IAPAR-9 was stronger than that of Akihikari and Liaoyan241. Thirty-four QTLs for 12 drought tolerance traits were detected, and among them, in the IAPAR-9/Akihikari population, qLRI9-1 and qLRI10-1 for LRI were repeatedly detected in RM3600-RM553 on chromosome 9 and in RM6100-RM3773 on chromosome 10, respectively, at two times points of July 31 and August 13 in 2014. The two QTLs are stable against the environmental impact, and qLRI9-1 and qLRI10-1 explained 6.77–13.66% and 5.01–8.32% of the phenotypic variance, respectively, at the two times points. qLWD9-2 for LWD in the IAPAR-9/Liaoyan241 population contributed 8.73% of variation was detected in the same marker interval with the qLRI9-1, and qLRI1-1 for LRI and qLWD1-1 for LWD were located in the same marker interval RM11054-RM5646 on chromosome 1, which contributed 18.82 and 5.78% of phenotype variation respectively. qGV3 for germination vigor and qRGV3 for relative germination vigor at the budding stage were detected in the same marker interval RM426-RM570 on chromosome 3, which explained 14.98 and 16.30% of the observed phenotypic variation respectively, representing major QTLs. The above-mentioned stable or major QTLs regions could be useful for molecular marker assisted selection breeding, fine mapping, and cloning.     

Benthic nutrient fluxes at longline sea squirt and oyster aquaculture farms and their role in coastal ecosystems

To assess the impact of aquaculture activities, we measured the primary production, total sediment oxygen consumption, and benthic nutrient flux at two aquaculture farms (sea squirt and oyster) and one reference site. The estimated primary production in the water column ranged from 19–169 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. Total sediment oxygen consumption rates ranged from 58 to 328 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹, 1.1 to 40 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ for nitrogen, 0.17 to 3.0 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ for phosphate, and 7.3 to 74 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ for silicate. The average total sediment oxygen consumption at the longline farms was >2.5 times higher than the reference site. Nitrate was significantly removed by denitrification at the longline farms in July and September and ranged from −5.4 to −0.09 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹, which is higher than for other coastal sediments. The benthic fluxes of nitrogen and phosphate at longline farms were up to 16 and six times higher than at the reference site, respectively. The average nitrogen requirements of the primary producers were 9.3 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ at the sea squirt farm, 7.0 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ at the oyster farm, and 13.5 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ at the reference site, corresponding to 88, 316, and 27.2% of the nitrogen supplied by benthic fluxes, respectively. Our results suggest that benthic nutrient fluxes at longline farms are a major nutrient source for primary production in coastal waters.     

Strong fisheries management and governance positively impact ecosystem status

Fisheries have had major negative impacts on marine ecosystems, and effective fisheries management and governance are needed to achieve sustainable fisheries, biodiversity conservation goals and thus good ecosystem status. To date, the IndiSeas programme (Indicators for the Seas) has focussed on assessing the ecological impacts of fishing at the ecosystem scale using ecological indicators. Here, we explore fisheries ‘Management Effectiveness’ and ‘Governance Quality’ and relate this to ecosystem health and status. We developed a dedicated expert survey, focused at the ecosystem level, with a series of questions addressing aspects of management and governance, from an ecosystem‐based perspective, using objective and evidence‐based criteria. The survey was completed by ecosystem experts (managers and scientists) and results analysed using ranking and multivariate methods. Results were further examined for selected ecosystems, using expert knowledge, to explore the overall findings in greater depth. Higher scores for ‘Management Effectiveness’ and ‘Governance Quality’ were significantly and positively related to ecosystems with better ecological status. Key factors that point to success in delivering fisheries and conservation objectives were as follows: the use of reference points for management, frequent review of stock assessments, whether Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) catches were being accounted for and addressed, and the inclusion of stakeholders. Additionally, we found that the implementation of a long‐term management plan, including economic and social dimensions of fisheries in exploited ecosystems, was a key factor in successful, sustainable fisheries management. Our results support the thesis that good ecosystem‐based management and governance, sustainable fisheries and healthy ecosystems go together.     

Slowly Digestible Starch from Debranched Waxy Sorghum Starch: Preparation and Properties

Effects of debranching time, storage time, and storage temperature on production and structural properties of slowly digestible starch (SDS) were investigated. Waxy sorghum starch was hydrolyzed by isoamylase for various times (0–24 hr), and the variously debranched products were stored at ‐30, 1, and 30°C for 1–6 days. Optimal conditions for SDS production were isoamylase treatment for 8 hr and storage at 1°C for three days, resulting in SDS content of 27.0% in the optimum product. Microscopic observation revealed that rapidly digestible starch (RDS) and SDS were removed from the edges and surfaces of the optimum product by α‐amylase digestion. Digestion conditions that removed RDS and SDS resulted in a residue with a higher transition temperature and enthalpy than raw starch on a differential scanning calorimetric thermogram. Removal of RDS alone did not cause distinct decrements of peak temperature (T_p) and enthalpy (ΔH) compared with stored starch. The optimum SDS product showed an amorphous type of X‐ray diffractogram. Digestive removal of RDS from the optimum product gave a residue with X‐ray peaks similar to B type, which supports that it is partly crystalline. Removal of RDS and SDS gave broader peaks in the X‐ray pattern.     

Selection of spawning habitat by several gobiid fishes in the subtidal zone of a small temperate estuary

We examined the spawning sites of several gobiid fishes in the subtidal zone of a small temperate estuary and determined the relationship of the nest abundance of each species with several environmental conditions, including water temperature, salinity, median particle size, proportion of silt and clay, current width, maximum water depth, distance from each site to the river mouth, and density of objects (boulders, cobbles, empty oyster shells, and empty clam shells) in the water. During this study, we found 115 nests belonging to the following six species: Favonigobius gymnauchen, Tridentiger obscurus, Leucopsarion petersii, Acanthogobius lactipes, Rhinogobius giurinus, and Tridentiger trigonocephalus. Stepwise multiple regression analysis, which was used to determine the best model for the nest abundance of all species, revealed that the nest abundance of each species clearly increased with an increase in the density of spawning substrates, such as cobbles and bivalve shells. These results show that the density of spawning substrates is a crucial factor affecting the selection of spawning habitats by each species.