<Emphasis Type="Italic">Eryngium caucasicum</Emphasis> Trautv. cultivated as a vegetable in the Elburz Mountains (Northern Iran)

Eryngium caucasicum was found as a new cultivated vegetable plant in home gardens in northern Iran. Young leaves are used as a cooked vegetable and for flavouring in the preparation of several local foods.     

Identification of fruity/fermented odorants in high-temperature-cured roasted peanuts

Gas chromatography/olfactometry on a concentrate of volatiles obtained by solvent-assisted flavor evaporation (SAFE) from roasted peanuts containing a fruity/fermented off-note was used to identify the odorants responsible for the flavor defect. Freshly dug peanuts were divided into two classes, mature and immature, using pod mesocarp color, and subjected to normal (27 degrees C) and high (40 degrees C) temperature curing. Sensory evaluation of the roasted peanuts found that immature peanuts cured at high temperature contained the fruity/fermented off-note. Mature peanuts cured at high temperature and both immature and mature peanuts cured at low temperature were free of the off-note. Peanuts with the off-flavor were found to contain fruit-like esters (ethyl 2-methylpropanoate, ethyl 2-methylbutanoate, and ethyl 3-methylbutanoate) along with increased levels of short chain organic acids (butanoic, 3-methylbutanoic, and hexanoic). These findings were confirmed by sensory evaluation of models, where the addition of these compounds produced the fruity/fermented flavor defect in a control peanut paste. This is the first time that the odorants responsible for this off-note in roasted peanuts have been identified.     

Organische Substanz und Benetzbarkeit von Bodenproben ‐ eine Interpretation

Organic matter and wetting properties of soil samples — an interpretation Samples were taken from A horizons of Udands and Humults at four 4 sites under forest and pasture vegetation in Southern Chile. Aggregates of 4—6 and 10—12 mm diameter were obtained by sieving and separated into aggregate surface and core fraction by peeling. The fraction 38—63 μm was separated by sieving. Organic matter was determined in all samples. Wetting angles were determined by direct reading at drops of saturated KCl solution on a layer of particles fixed on microscope glass slides by double‐sided adhesive tape. Values were correlated with contents of organic matter. The results showed an increase of wetting angles with increasing percentage of organic matter in the overall samples as well as in all separate groups (depth, vegetation, size, and parts of aggregates). The correlations, however, were not close (r ～ 0.5), irrespective of the significance level. Wetting angles in soils are caused by combined effect of different relative amounts and properties of free organic matter particles and organic films on mineral particles.     

Notes on a mission to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea 1985 for the collection of land-races of cultivated plants

Summary A collecting mission was carried out in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea jointly by staff members of the Institute for Experimental Biology, Pyongyang, and the Zentralinstitut für Genetik und Kulturpflanzenforschung, Gatersleben, in November 1985 for studying and collecting indigenous forms of cultivated plants. 127 samples, mainly of grain legumes, vegetables and medicinal plants were collected. The material represents highly variable old land-races; this is especially true for french beans, soya beans, other grain legumes and some vegetables. Genetic erosion is rather advanced for maize, rice, wheat, radish and the brassicas. Genetic resources of these crops can be expected in more marginal areas. The results of the mission stress the necessity for continuing the explorations.

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Anmerkungen zu einer Exploration von Kulturpflanzen-Landsorten in der Koreanischen Demokratischen Volksrepublik im Jahre 1985

Zusammenfassung Eine Reise wurde im November 1985 in der Koreanischen Demokratischen Volksrepublik gemeinsam von Mitarbeitern des Instituts für Experimentelle Biologie, Pyongyang, und des Zentralinstituts für Genetik und Kulturpflanzenforschung, Gatersleben, unternommen, die dem Studium und der Sammlung indigener Formen von Kulturpflanzen diente. 127 Proben, besonders von Körnerleguminosen, Gemüsen und Arzneipflanzen, wurden gesammelt. Das Material besteht aus hochvariablen alten Landsorten, besonders von Gartenbohnen, Sojabohnen, anderen Körnerleguminosen und einigen Gemüsen. Die Generosion ist bei Mais, Reis, Weizen, Rettich und denBrassica-Arten schon weit fortgeschritten. Genetische Ressourcen dieser Arten können in den abgelegeneren Landesteilen erwartet werden. Die Ergebnisse der Sammelreise unterstreichen die Notwendigkeit weiterer Explorationen.

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- 1985

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Effects of intensifying organic manuring and tillage practices on penetration resistance and infiltration rate

Soil erosion, along with the contributing factors of soil crusting and sealing, have received minimal scientific attention to date in Latin America. This study was conducted in an Andean hillside environment to determine how the local organic manuring and tillage practices influence the development of soil crusting and sealing, and the extent to which these practices influence soil water infiltration. The aim of this study was to identify treatments that prevented superficial soil structural constraints, i.e. treatments which maintain infiltration and therefore reduce potential soil erosion and run-off.

Treatment results were measured with a pocket penetrometer and a mini-rain simulator on nine different cropping systems, mainly based on cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), from February to November 2000 and 2001. The cropping systems were laid out on a Ferrallic Cambisol, an acid, vulcanically influenced soil of the Andean region.

In both cropping cycles, treatments with chicken manure application developed superficial soil crusts during the dry season. For a treatment manured with 8 t ha⁻¹ chicken manure, this crust meant an increase in penetration resistance from 2.3 kg cm⁻² in April 2000 to 16.2 kg cm⁻² in July 2000. The change in superficial soil structure created a notable reduction in final infiltration from 92 to 42.2 mm h⁻¹. A minimum tillage treatment which displayed the highest penetration resistance during the dry periods of up to 46.4 kg cm⁻² presented no restricting effects on soil water intake (76.2 mm h⁻¹ final infiltration in 2000) due to an optimal aggregate development during 10 years of consecutive conservation practice.

Measurements of penetration resistance and infiltration showed that soil conserving treatments, such as minimum tillage and crop rotations, improved the physical soil status and prevented soil crusting developing along with its negative effects on infiltration. These methods can therefore be strongly recommended to farmers.     

Macrophages in bovine term placenta: An ultrastructural and molecular study

Retention of foetal membranes (RFM) is a major reproductive disorder in dairy cows. An appropriate immune response is important for a physiological expulsion of the foetal membranes at parturition. Our study aims to provide a deeper insight into characteristics of foetal and maternal macrophages in bovine term placenta. We used transmission electron microscopy (TEM), immunohistochemistry and semi-quantitative RT-PCR to provide a deeper insight into characteristics of foetal and maternal macrophages in bovine term placenta. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR was used to define macrophage polarization in foetal and maternal compartments of normal term placenta. Gene expression of factors involved in M1 polarization [interferon regulatory factor-5 (IRF5), interleukin (IL)-12A, IL12B] and in M2 polarization (IL10) were studied. Ultrastructurally, foetal macrophages showed an irregular shape and large vacuoles, whereas the maternal macrophages were spindle shaped. By immunohistochemistry, macrophages were identified by a strong staining with the lysosomal marker Lysosome-associated membrane glycoprotein 1 (LAMP-1), while myofibroblast in the maternal stroma was positive for alpha-smooth muscle actin. We used the LAMP-1 marker to compare the density of foetal stromal macrophages in placentas of cows with RFM and in controls, but no statistically significant difference was observed. RT-PCR showed a higher expression of all studied genes in the maternal compartment of the placenta and generally a higher expression of M1-, compared to M2-associated genes. Our results indicated that at parturition placental macrophages predominantly show the pro-inflammatory M1 polarization. The higher expression of all the target genes in the maternal compartment may denote that maternal macrophages in bovine term placenta are more frequent than foetal macrophages.     

Standortbedingte Unterschiede bei bestäubungsökologischen Merkmalen von Wintergersten (Hordeum vulgare L. s. 1.)

Zusammenfassung In Karnobat (VR Bulgarien) und Gatersleben (DDR) wurden mit 20 Wintergerstensippen parallel dreijährige Versuche durchgeführt, um standortbedingte Unterschiede bei bestäubungsökologischen Merkmalen zu erfassen. Folgende Merkmale wurden geprüft: Antherenejektion, Antherenlänge, Antherenbreite, Stigmataspreizung, Stigmatahöhe und Stigmatafläche.Unter den klimatischen Bedingungen Karnobats neigt die Gerste mehr zur Allogamie, und die Voraussetzungen für eine Hybridsaatgutproduktion sind günstig. In Gatersleben zeigen die Gersten eine Tendenz zur Autogamie, so daß hier mit der Sortimentserhaltung weniger Probleme verbunden sind. Die Unterschiede zwischen beiden Anbauorten werden besonders auf die Lufttemperatur und die photoperiodischen Verhältnisse zurückgeführt.

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Environmental influences on characters of pollination ecology in winter barley (Hordeum vulgare L. s. l.)

Summary In Karnobat (Bulgaria) and Gatersleben (GDR) an experiment was conducted during three years (1974–1976) to demonstrate environmental influences on characters of pollination ecology in barley. The following characters were studied: anther extrusion, anther length, anther width, stigma width, stigma height and stigmatic surface area. Under the climatic conditions of Karnobat barley tends to open flowering and that's why there are good possibilities for hybrid seed production. In Gatersleben barley shows a stronger tendency to autogamy. Less problems are connected here with the maintaining of large collections. Differences between the two localities are attributed to air temperature and photoperiodic conditions mainly.

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A checklist of the cultivated plants of Cuba

Summary Checklists of cultivated plant species of a geographical area have proven to be a very useful tool for the further exploration and collection in this area and for the compilation of local floras of cultivated plants. They contain valuable information for ethnobotanists, plant breeders as well as for other researchers engaged in cultivated plants. A checklist of the cultivated plant species of Cuba compiled from Cuban literature sources and own field studies is presented. It contains 755 taxa belonging to 740 different species, 414 genera and 103 families. These findings are in striking contrast to the opinions of previous foreign investigators about the poverty of plant genetic resources in Cuba. The alphabetically ordered articles for the taxa contain nomenclatural information (accepted name, synonymy and their literature references), the plant family, Cuban folk names, details of plant uses, additional remarks and references to relevant Cuban literature sources, including reports from own explorations. Three appendices provide indexes by families and genera, by synonyms, and by folk names respectively, which allow to locate the information by different ways. The information given in the checklist is maintained in the Database of the Cultivated Plants of Cuba (DBCPC), a microcomputer-based system. Its main purpose is to produce the list and the indexes mentioned from the same set of data, but it allows also to retrieve the information and to check the data for consistency.

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Eine Liste der kubanischen Kulturpflanzen

Zusammenfassung Listen kultivierter Pflanzenarten eines geografischen Gebietes, sog. Checklists, haben sich als nützliches Werkzeug für die weitere Erkundung und Sammlung pflanzlicher genetischer Ressourcen und für die Erarbeitung lokaler Kulturpflanzenfloren erwiesen. Sie enthalten wertvolle Informationen für Ethnobotaniker, Pflanzenzüchter und andere Wissenschaftler, die sich mit Kulturpflanzen befassen. Es wird eine Liste der kultivierten Pflanzenarten Kubas vorgelegt, die auf der Grundlage kubanischer Literaturquellen und eigener Feldforschungen zusammengestellt wurde. Sie enthält 755 Taxa, die 740 verschiedenen Arten, 414 Gattungen und 103 Familien angehören. Diese Ergebnisse stehen in auffälligem Gegensatz zu den Ansichten früherer ausländischer Forscher über die angebliche Armut Kubas an pflanzlichen genetischen Ressourcen. Die alphabetisch angeordneten Artikel über die einzelnen Taxa enthalten nomenklatorische Angaben (akzeptierter Name, Synonymie und zugehörige Literaturzitate), die Pflanzenfamilie, kubanische Volksnamen, Angaben über die Nutzung der Pflanzen, weitere Bemerkungen und Verweise auf kubanische Literaturquellen, einschließlich Berichte über eigene Sammelreisen. Drei Register gestatten das Aufsuchen relevanter Informationen in der Liste nach Pflanzenfamilien und Gattungen, nach Synonymen bzw. nach Volksnamen. Die in der Liste enthaltene Information wird mit Hilfe der Datenbank der Kulturpflanzen Kubas (DBCPC) verwaltet. Dies ist ein mikrocomputer-gestütztes System für die Erzeugung der Liste und der Register auf der Grundlage ein und desselben Datenbestandes; darüberhinaus gestattet es eine Informationsrecherche und unterstützt die Vereinheitlichung der Daten.

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