A new descriptive method for fruit firmness changes with various softening patterns of kiwifruit

We have proposed a new interpretation of fruit softening. This was accomplished by generating a hypothesis that probabilities of decay of fruit structure obey the Weibull probabilistic model that has been used in the field of reliability engineering. The elasticity of individual kiwifruit after harvest was continually and nondestructively measured until decomposition by using a laser Doppler vibrometer. The obtained decreasing pattern of elasticity of individual fruit was complex, diverse, and inhomogeneous. Nonetheless, it was satisfactorily explained by a tandem combination of 2 Weibull models involving 4 types of parameters: “shape” related to probability; “scale,” to velocity of decay; “location,” to time lag; and “mixing ratio,” to contribution of the 2 models. Averages of location, shape, and mixing ratio parameters obtained by the measurement of 33 fruit were significantly different between the 2 models, but the scale parameter was not. The results suggested that the complex softening patterns of individual kiwifruit could be described using the tandem model of Weibull distribution, and that the softening process of kiwifruit consisted of at least 2 independent decay phases that are characterized by 2 of 5 parameters: location and mixing ratio. Commencement of the first decay phase could be caused by ethylene treatment after harvest, and the second one spontaneously triggered after a certain time lag.     

Light modulation of volatile organic compounds from petunia flowers and select fruits

Light intensity, duration, direction, and wavelength are informative to plants. The biochemical circuits that connect specific light wavelengths to expression of specific genes and the metabolic networks they govern have been well defined. However, little emphasis has been placed on how discrete wavelengths of light, alone or in combination, may be applied to manipulate postharvest qualities of high-value horticultural crops. Using narrow-bandwidth LED light we test the hypothesis that discrete light wavelengths can affect the accumulation of volatile compounds known to affect aroma or taste in select flower and fruit products. Volatile benzenoid/phenylpropanoid emission from petunia flowers could be altered with light application. Levels of a key floral volatile, 2-phenylethanol, increased with a red and far-red light treatment. Similar experiments demonstrated that fruit volatile profiles of tomato, strawberry, and blueberry can be manipulated with specific light treatments. These results suggest that compounds affecting sensory qualities of flowers and fruits can be modified by adjustment of ambient light conditions. These findings open new areas of inquiry about how the fragrance and flavor of flowers and fruits may be improved with simple changes in postharvest light conditions.     

Preliminary Research on Regional Material Flow Analysis： A Case Study of Chengyang District in Qingdao

The method ＂Material Flow Analysis （MFA）＂ is one of the effective tools to study law and quantification of material flow between economic system and ecological system. On the national level, economy-wide material flow analysis has been published for a number of countries. However, published studies on the regional or local level are still very limited and a standardized method does not exist yet. On the basis of framework of Material Flow Analysis proposed by Eurostat, the paper collected related data and analyzed material input and output for the Chengyang district in Qingdao. The results showed that DMI （Direct Material Input） and TMR （Total Material Requirement） in absolute number increased about 3.6 and 3.9 times, respectively from 1995 to 2004. Fossil fuel and mineral contributed to about 50.3%-76.3% of DMI. Imports of material increased about 5.0 times and became the most important Contributor to DMI, which showed that local economic growth was highly dependent on resources from other regions and countries. DPO （Domestic Processed Output） and TDO （Total Domestic Output） represent slow increasing trend, and DPO contributed to 22.2%-58.1% of TDO, suggesting local hidden flows were of obvious effect on TDO. The biggest component of DPO is CO2, approximately accounting for 90% of DPO. The material productivity increased 57.7% in last decade, reflecting improvement of efficiency of resources utilization in some extent. However, compared to developed countries and regions, material productivity of Chengyang district was relatively low. Therefore, in order to promote the sustainability, it is essential to develop circular economy and enhance materials productivity.     

Towards an integrated understanding of green space in the European built environment

In recent years social, economic and environmental considerations have led to a reevaluation of the factors that contribute to sustainable urban environments. Increasingly, urban green space is seen as an integral part of cities providing a range of services to both the people and the wildlife living in urban areas. With this recognition and resulting from the simultaneous provision of different services, there is a real need to identify a research framework in which to develop multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research on urban green space. In order to address these needs, an iterative process based on the delphi technique was developed, which comprised email-mediated discussions and a two-day symposium involving experts from various disciplines. The two outputs of this iterative process were (i) an integrated framework for multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research and (ii) a catalogue of key research questions in urban green space research. The integrated framework presented here includes relevant research areas (i.e. ecosystem services, drivers of change, pressures on urban green space, human processes and goals of provision of urban green space) and emergent research themes in urban green space studies (i.e. physicality, experience, valuation, management and governance). Collectively these two outputs have the potential to establish an international research agenda for urban green space, which can contribute to the better understanding of people's relationship with cities.     

The effect of stand age on CO2 efflux from wood ant (Formica rufa group) mounds in boreal forests

Recent studies suggest that wood ants (Formica rufa group) mounds are point sources of carbon dioxide (CO₂), which increase the heterogeneity of soil carbon (C) emissions in forest ecosystems. However, little is known about the impact of anthropogenic activities, such as logging and subsequent forest succession, on these fluxes. In this study, we measured the CO₂ efflux and temperature of wood ant mounds and the surrounding forest floor in managed Finnish boreal forests of different ages (5, 30, 60, and 100 years old) to assess how the effluxes vary with stand age. We conducted efflux measurements from the mounds and the surrounding forest floor throughout the ants' active season (May–September) and during the onset of hibernation (October). The annual CO₂ efflux was then estimated using mound or forest floor temperatures, which were measured for one year. The average annual CO₂ efflux from the ant mounds was 10.2 (±5.8 SD) kg m⁻² year⁻¹, increasing from 3.9 (±0.3 SD) kg m⁻² year⁻¹ in the 5 year-old stands to 14.3 (±3.0 SD) kg m⁻² year⁻¹ in the 100 year-old stands. Temperatures was significantly higher in the ant mounds than in the forest floor, and the average temperature difference between mounds and forest floor increased with stand age, being the lowest in the 5 year-old (4.1 (±3.1 SD) °C) and highest in the 100 year-old stands (10.3 (±5.2 SD) °C). There were no statistical differences in the mound CO₂ efflux per volume among forest age classes, suggesting higher ant CO₂ efflux in the older stands likely come from larger ant populations in the bigger mounts. The different mound temperature regimes among stand age classes indicates that the activity of wood ants changes with forest succession, particularly after clear-cutting, which alters CO₂ efflux from the mounds. The impact of ant mounds on total CO₂ efflux from the soil, estimated from mound area and volume, respectively, increased with forest age, from 0.05 (±0.05 SD) % to 0.31 (±0.18 SD) % and from 0.05 (±0.06 SD) % to 0.90% (±1.11 SD).     

Lack of prolonged activity of lavender essential oils as acaricides against the poultry red mite (Dermanyssus gallinae) under laboratory conditions

Managing the poultry red mite, Dermanyssus gallinae (De Geer) by conventional means (i.e., synthetic acaricides) has become increasingly problematic. As a possible alternative, research has identified several plant essential oils that are toxic to D. gallinae. However, essential oils are highly volatile and any acaricidal effect they exert could be short-lived in practice.This study investigated the short-lived toxicity of six lavender essential oils to D. gallinae. In sealed Petri-dishes, mites were exposed to filter papers impregnated with essential oil at a concentration of 0.14 mg/cm³. When filter papers were used immediately after impregnation, 66–90% D. gallinae mortality was observed after 24 h, depending upon the essential oil used. If impregnated filter papers were left in a fume cupboard for 24 h prior to use, mortality rates of D. gallinae fell to 11% or less.     

Bacterial community structure of nirK-bearing denitrifiers and the development of properties of soils in created mitigation wetlands

We investigated the abundance and genetic heterogeneity of bacterial nitrite reductase genes (nir) and soil structural properties in created and natural freshwater wetlands in the Virginia piedmont. Soil attributes included soil organic matter (SOM), total organic carbon (TOC), total nitrogen (TN), pH, gravimetric soil moisture (GSM), and bulk density (D_b). A subset of soil attributes were analyzed across the sites, using euclidean cluster analysis, resulting in three soil condition (SC) groups of increasing wetland soil development (i.e., SC1 < SC2 < SC3; less to more developed or matured) as measured by accumulation of TOC, TN, the increase of GSM, and the decrease of D_b. There were no difference found in the bacterial community diversity between the groups (p = 0.4). NirK gene copies detected ranged between 3.6 × 10⁴ and 3.4 × 10⁷ copies g⁻¹ soil and were significantly higher in the most developed soil group, SC3, than in the least developed soil group, SC1. However, the gene copies were lowest in SC2 that had a significantly higher soil pH (~6.6) than the other two SC groups (~5.3). The same pattern was found in denitrifying enzyme activity (DEA) on a companion study where DEA was found negatively correlated with soil pH. Gene fragments were amplified and products were screened by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis. Among 146 different T-RFs identified, fourteen were dominant and together made up more than 65% of all detected fragments. While SC groups did not relate to whole nirK communities, most soil properties that identified SC groups did significantly correlate to dominant members of the community.     

Sub-clinical necrotic enteritis in broiler chickens: Novel etiological consideration based on ultra-structural and molecular changes in the intestinal tissue

The present study revealed several previously not recognized etiological details in the development of necrotic enteritis (NE) in broilers. We provide evidence that the pathological process leading to mucosal epithelium necrosis follows morphologically distinct phases commencing at the basal domain of the mucosal epithelium and then progressively invading the entire lamina propria. Initially mucosal epithelium appears normal, but as the pathological changes progress throughout the lamina propria, the adjacent enterocytes begin to show features of necrotic cell death and the necrotic process of the epithelium progresses from being focal to locally extensive.Ultra-structural examination showed that primary changes occur at the level of basal and lateral domains of the enterocytes, whereas the apical domain of enterocytes remains intact even in the face of advanced necrotic changes. This indicates that the mucosal necrosis does not result from direct damage to the mucosal epithelium. Rather, the necrotic death of enterocytes is a consequential effect of the destruction of lamina propria, the extra-cellular matrix, and intercellular junctions.The nature of these morphological changes indicates that initiation of the pathological process leading to NE involves proteolytic factors affecting the extra-cellular matrix and cellular junctions. Further studies revealed that, indeed, the elevated activity of collagenolytic enzymes in the mucosal milieu and in intestinal tissue represents an integral component of the pathological process leading to NE. In the first instance we discovered that Clostridium perfringens strains isolated from field cases of NE secrete several potent collagenolytic enzymes. In the second instance we observed that, in comparison to controls, broilers challenged with C. perfringens isolated from field cases of NE show high levels of several collagenolytic enzymes in the intestinal tissue. A major component of the overall collagenolytic activity detected in the intestinal tissue was identified by zymography as matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). Dominant activity was associated with MMP-2. We confirmed using immuno-histochemistry that this enzyme is expressed at high levels in mucosal tissue showing signs of NE.The high levels of collagenolytic activities, in particular associated with MMP-2, demonstrated in our studies are consistent with the nature of morphological changes observed primarily in extra-cellular matrix (ECM) at the basal domain of enterocytes, as well lateral domains of enterocytes. The lack of changes at the level of apical domain of mucosal epithelium indicates that the lipolytic aspect of alpha toxin in NE is not an essential factor in primary lesions development. Taken together, our findings indicate that the early lesions leading to NE are associated with virulence factors that induce proteolytic activity, rather than lipolytic activity.