Effect of body condition score at mating on the reproductive performance of Kivircik sheep under an extensive production system

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of the body condition score (BCS) of ewes before and during the mating season on their reproductive performance under an extensive production system. In this study, 240 Kivircik sheep from the flocks of two breeders were used for over a 2-year period. The flocks were fed under extensive conditions on natural pastures throughout the year. The ewes were synchronized in two different periods, one of which was 45 days before the other. Before the introduction of rams to the ewes, the ewes were weighed after measuring their BCS. Detailed records were kept for every flock in each year. We found significant effects of BCS on pregnancy rate, lambing rate (P < 0.05) and fecundity (P < 0.05). The BCS for the highest pregnancy, lambing rate, and fecundity was determined between 2.01 and 3.00, while the lowest rates for these traits were ≤1.50. The highest rates of the pregnancy rate, lambing rate, and fecundity and gestation productivity were 75.9%, 70.9%, 1.11 and 3.34 kg, respectively.     

Effects of land-use and management practices on soil ergosterol content in andosols

Ergosterol is a fungus-specific chemical component which has been extensively used to assess the fungal biomass and activity in soils. In the present study, we investigated the soil ergosterol content in a group of Japanese soils differing in management. In addition, the relationships among the soil ergosterol content (SEC), microbial biomass C (MBC), and microbial biomass N (MBN) were also tested in different seasons. Our results showed that the SEC was lower in intensively cropped soils than in pasture and forest soils. In general, no consistent trend was observed for SEC of pasture soils within the same sampling period. However, SEC tended to decrease in most of the soils in autumn, which may be ascribed to the effect of seasonal changes on fungal biomass. No strong evidence could be obtained for the effect of different fertilizers on SEC, which can be due to different management variables and interspecific variations between fungal communities at different soil sites. Our results did not suggest the presence of a noticeable correlation between SEC and MBC or MBN. The ratio of SEC in total biomass C was lower (0.20 and 0.11% in spring and autumn, respectively) compared with the values reported.     

The Effects of Lithology on Water Pollution: Natural Radioactivity and Trace Elements in Water Resources of Eskisehir Region (Turkey)

The high radioactivity and trace elements in drinking water are common concerns for human health. The aim of this study was to investigate the eligibility of groundwater for drinking purpose in terms of both radioactivity and trace element contents in Eskisehir Region (Turkey). The study area is located in a highly populated residential area where water supply is mostly met from groundwater. The area is about 20,000 km², where igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks are exposed. The 209 water samples collected from 84 water resources (including thermal waters) were analyzed with respect to major ions, trace elements, and radioactivity (gross alpha and gross beta) during both in wet and dry seasons. Based on the analysis results, trace elements in 49 samples of 84 water resources were over the limits of Code TS 266 1997 (Turkish Drinking Water Standards) and WHO 1993 standards. Particularly, Fe, Mn, Al, As, Ba, Zn, Cr, Cu, and B ion concentrations exceeded the limits. The gross alpha values in 18 locations and gross beta values in three locations also exceeded the limits of aforementioned standards in terms of radioactivity (gross alpha?=?0.1 Bq L^?1; gross beta?=?1 Bq L^?1). Furthermore, water radioactivity levels were close to the allowable limits in 33 water resources. The obtained results explicitly indicate that there is a strong relationship between the higher radioactivity–trace element contents and geochemical composition of rocks, which controls the radioactivity and trace element concentrations present in the aquifer.     

Effects of a humic deposit (gyttja) on soil chemical and microbiological properties and heavy metal availability

The influence of a humic deposit (Gyttja, G) alone (applied at 25 kg ha⁻¹) and in combination with mineral fertilizer (G + NP) on soil organic matter content, pH, electrical conductivity, total N content, calcium carbonate content, enzyme activities (urease, β-glucosidase, arylsulphatase, and alkaline phosphatase), microbial biomass C, soil respiration, and availability of Cd, Pb, Ni, and Zn was examined through a 180-day incubation period and compared with the behavior of no treatment (control) and NP treatment. A significant increase in organic matter content was observed in soils treated with G + NP. Compared with G and NP alone, the G + NP-amended soils showed higher values of the selected microbiological properties.Diethylenetriaminepentaacetic-acid-extractable Cd, Pb, Ni, Cu, and Zn increased significantly with increasing rates of NP, but the addition of G + NP resulted in a considerable decrease in the amount of extractable metals during the incubation period (P<0.05). Based on these results, it can be concluded that the organic matter applied in the gyttja led to an increase in the metal adsorption capacity of the amended soils. This material can be used to reduce the availability and mobility of heavy metals in the soils intensively amended with mineral fertilizers. A combination of G with NP can, therefore, be considered as an alternative approach in the applications of organomineral fertilization.     

Enzymological,histological, and serum biomarker responses of snubnose pompano on complete replacement of fishmeal using cottonseed meal supplemented with lysine and methionine in the diet

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry - In a feeding experiment, cottonseed meal (CSM) was used to replace fishmeal (FM) in the diet of snubnose pompano, Trachinotus blochii, supplemented with lysine...     

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal community of wheat under long-term mineral and organic amendments in semi-arid Mediterranean Turkey

A minimal amount of information is currently available concerning arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal associations with crops in semi-arid zones on Leptosols in Turkey. Therefore, using molecular ecological techniques, we studied the effects of different management practices (without fertilization, chemical fertilization, farmyard manure, and plant compost amendments) on AM fungal communities associated with wheat roots. Experiments were conducted in a field established in 1996 in southern Mediterranean Turkey where soil productivity is low owing to unfavorable climatic effects and soil characteristics. We determined 201 partial sequences of AM fungal nuclear ribosomal large subunit genes. The higher AM fungal richness was found in the control treatment without fertilization and plant compost treatments compared with the chemical fertilization and farmyard manure treatments. Clones related to Rhizophagus were found in all treatments and accounted for 37% of the total AM fungal clones, whereas those of Funneliformis were dominant under chemical fertilization. Redundancy analysis based on the frequency of operational taxonomic units revealed that AM fungal communities were divided into three groups, namely, the control treatment, the chemical fertilization treatment, and the organic treatments (farmyard manure and plant compost treatments). Although different organic amendments supported relatively similar AM fungal communities, plant compost induced higher AM fungal richness than farmyard manure fertilization.     

Fattening performance and carcass traits of Chios male lambs fed under traditional and intensive feeding conditions

This study was carried out to compare the fattening performance and carcass traits of Chios male lambs fed under traditional and intensive feeding conditions. In the study, a total of 34 lambs were randomly separated into traditional (T) and intensive (I) groups in equal numbers. Lambs in group T were fed on ration prepared in local style and grazed in olive grove for 8 h/day. On the other hand, lambs in group I were fed on 255 g alfalfa hay animal⁻¹ day⁻¹ and ad libitum mixed feed. After a period of 8 weeks, lambs were transported to the slaughterhouse. The results showed that Chios lambs fed under intensive conditions has better performance and produced heavier carcass compared to those fed under traditional conditions. However, consumption of concentrate feed mixture was about twice as much in group I as in group T. Total feed consumption and feed conversion ratio was similar in each group. The values of carcass traits of lambs in group I were found to be significantly higher than those of group T. On the other hand, carcass fat thickness was slightly lower in group T. Traditional condition is considered to respond to better to consumer demands for lean lamb carcass.     

Potential Utilization of Mixolab for Quality Evaluation of Bread Wheat Genotypes

The aim of this study was to determine the possibility of using Mixolab to assess the quality of different wheat genotypes. Mixolab data were compared with various flour quality characteristics and bread volume. The samples were chosen to represent a wide range in terms of grain and rheological properties and baking quality. There are eight paramaters used to evaluate a Mixolab curve. C1 and C2 are related to protein quality, whereas C3, C4 and C5 are related to the starch characteristics. Slopes α, β, γ are the indicators of protein weakening, starching speed, and enzymatic degradation. There were significant correlations between two Mixolab parameters (Stability and C2) and Zeleny sedimentation and Alveograph W values (P < 0.01). Some of the Mixolab parameters (C3, C4, C5) were correlated with Alveograph G and P/L value (P < 0.01). Mixolab values are generally in agreement with Farinograph values. There were significant negative correlations between most of the Mixolab parameters (Stability, C2, C3, C4) and Farinograph softening degree. Stability and C2 parameters of Mixolab were also significantly correlated with Farinograph stability values (P < 0.01). The correlation between Mixolab stability and Farinograph stability was considerably high (r = 0.907, P < 0.001). The Mixolab parameters C3, C4, and C5 were significantly correlated with bread volume. Significant correlations were observed between slope α and Zeleny sedimentation (P < 0.05), Alveograph W (P < 0.01), Farinograph softening degree (P < 0.001), and stability (P < 0.001) values.     

The composition characteristics of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities associated with barley in saline-alkaline soils in Central Anatolia

ABSTRACT

Central Anatolia, which suffers from salinity, alkalinity, and drought stresses, is one of the most important cultivation regions of barley (Hordeum vulgare) in Turkey. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) could promote barley production under several stresses; however, only a little information is available for AMF community composition in Turkish arable soils. In this study, barley root samples were collected from eight sites in the Central Anatolian region during the growing season (GS: April) and the harvest season (HS: July) in 2012, and the composition of AMF communities were elucidated based on the partial sequence of the AMF 18S rRNA gene using high-throughput sequencing technology. As a result, barley-AMF symbioses in this region were highly dominated by Glomeraceae (71.8% in GS and 59.2% in HS), followed by Claroideoglomeraceae (10.3% in GS and 15.9% in HS), Gigasporaceae (9.1% in GS and 13.1% in HS), and Acaulosporaceae (5.8% in GS and 7.7% in HS). Compared to Glomeraceae and Claroideoglomeraceae families, communities of Acaulosporaceae, Diversisporaceae, Paraglomeraceae, and Gigasporaceae consisted of fewer AMF species. The AMF evenness significantly increased from GS to HS. The most dominant AMF sequence, VTX00248 in the MaarjAM database, was closely related to Rhizophagus, which occupied 25.8% and 14.7% of the total AMF sequences in GS and HS, respectively. The relative abundance of AMF related to Rhizophagus tended to be reduced in HS, suggesting that the species could form mycorrhiza in the early stages of barley growth in this region. On the other hand, the relative abundance of Claroideoglomeraceae and Scutellosporaceae tended to increase in HS. Soil CaCO₃ content significantly influenced AMF community compositions in GS, while soil pH and EC showed no significant impact on AMF community compositions. Based on discriminant analysis, 11 VTXs (related Acaulospora, Claroideoglomus, Funneliformis, Gigaspora, and Glomus) showed higher abundance in the barley roots grown in the soil with relatively high CaCO₃ content, suggesting that these sequences might be adapted to such an environment.