Effects of three methionine sources in diets on temporal B0AT1 and ASCT2 mRNA expression in different intestinal segments of cobia,Rachycentron canadum

A 4‐week feeding trial was conducted using five groups of hybrid grouper (61.15 ± 0.15 g) to explore the potential effects of three methionine (Met) sources. Five isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets were formulated that included a fishmeal (FM) diet; nonsupplemented (NS) diet; or NS diets with the addition of the L‐methionine (L‐Met), DL‐methionine (DL‐Met), or coated Met (Co‐Met) to obtain the same Met level as the FM diet. Fish were randomly distributed into sea cages (30 fish per cage). Weight gain and specific growth rate in the DL‐Met group and FM group were significantly higher than those in all other groups (p < .05). In the proximal and distal intestines, of the 20 gene and time combinations (10 per gene), there were 14 combinations (70%) in which there were no significant differences in gene expression levels between the FM and DL‐Met groups (p > .05). The main reason for the same growth effect between the DL‐Met and FM groups may be attributed to the synchronized absorption at most time points after feeding, which had similar expression patterns of B⁰AT1 and ASCT2 of the proximal and distal intestines between two groups.     

覆盖作物翻压对华北平原春玉米产量和土壤养分的影响

冬季覆盖作物-春玉米种植模式是减缓华北平原冬小麦减少导致的耕地裸露及其环境影响的新型农业生产方式,但其翻压后对华北平原下一季春玉米生长季作物产量和土壤养分及微生物学性质的影响研究鲜见。本研究以华北平原冬闲田-玉米(WFM)为对照,设置毛叶苕子-玉米(VrM)、二月兰-玉米(OvM)以及冬油菜-玉米(BcM)3个覆盖作物处理,通过盆栽试验研究了冬季种植覆盖作物翻压对玉米生长季土壤理化性质、微生物量和玉米生长特性的影响。结果表明:(1)翻压覆盖作物显著提高了玉米产量以及作物养分吸收量。与WFM处理相比,OvM处理秸秆产量和籽粒产量提高幅度最大,分别为33.3%和35.5%(P0.05);BcM处理地上部氮、磷、钾和地下部磷素吸收量显著提高(P0.05),分别为30.7%、74.7%、57.6%和171.4%。(2)翻压覆盖作物能显著提高0～10和10～20 cm土层有机质、碱解氮、有效磷、速效钾、全氮和全钾含量(P0.05)。此外,翻压覆盖作物能显著降低玉米幼苗期土壤NH_4~+-N和NO_3~--N含量(P0.05),范围为0.50～3.52和21.40～33.13mg·kg~(-1)。(3)在玉米的不同生育期,覆盖作物翻压处理的SMBC、SMBN和SMBP均显著高于冬闲处理(P0.05)。综合翻压覆盖作物对华北平原玉米产量及土壤理化性质和微生物量含量的影响,华北平原冬油菜-玉米和二月兰-玉米轮作模式效果较好。     

Compatibility of root growth and tuber production of potato cultivars with dynamic and static water‐saving irrigation managements

The important root characteristics of root length density (RLD) and root mass density (RMD) generally differ among irrigation managements and potato cultivars. The objective of this study was to investigate the RLD and RMD variations and their functional relationships with gross potato tuber yield for two commercial potato cultivars, Agria and Sante, under different irrigation strategies. Full irrigation and water‐saving irrigation strategies, deficit and partial root drying irrigations, were applied statically (S) and dynamically (D) based on daily crop evapotranspiration. Results showed that SPRD had significantly greater RLD (3.64 cm/cm³) and RMD (132.7 μg/cm³) than other irrigation treatments. Between the potato cultivars, Agria had significantly larger values of RLD (3.50 cm/cm³) and RMD (138.7 μg/cm³) than Sante. The functional relationship between the root growth characteristics and tuber yield showed that under water‐saving irrigations, Agria increased root mass at the expense of gross tuber yield but Sante increased root mass to maintain larger gross tuber yields. However, Agria produced more roots and gross tuber yield than Sante, and it is concluded that Agria is a more drought‐tolerant potato cultivar, which is recommended for tuber production in regions where water might be scarce. It was shown that larger root production in potatoes was associated with improved tolerance to water stress.     

Impact of weather variables and season on sporulation of Phytophthora pluvialis and Phytophthora kernoviae

Phytophthora pluvialis and Phytophthora kernoviae are the causal agents of important needle diseases on Pinus radiata in New Zealand. Little is known about the epidemiology of the diseases, making the development of control strategies challenging. To investigate the seasonality and climatic drivers of sporulation, inoculum traps, consisting of pine fascicles floating on water in plastic containers, were exchanged fortnightly at five sites in P. radiata plantations between February 2012 and December 2014. Sections of needle baits were plated onto selective media and growth of Phytophthora pluvialis and P. kernoviae recorded. To explore the generalizability of these data, they were compared to detection data for both pathogens from the New Zealand Forest Health Database (NZFHDB). Further, equivalent analyses on infection of Rhododendron ponticum by P. kernoviae in Cornwall, UK allowed the comparison of the epidemiology of P. kernoviae across different host systems and environments. In New Zealand, inoculum of P. pluvialis and P. kernoviae was detected between January–December and March–November, respectively. Inoculum of both species peaked in abundance in late winter. The probability of detecting P. pluvialis and P. kernoviae was greater at lower temperatures, while the probability of detecting P. pluvialis also increased during periods of wet weather. Similar patterns were observed in NZFHDB data. However, the seasonal pattern of infection by P. kernoviae in the UK was the opposite of that seen for sporulation in New Zealand. Phytophthora kernoviae was likely limited by warmer and drier summers in New Zealand, but by colder winter weather in the UK. These results emphasize the importance of considering both environmental drivers and thresholds in improving our understanding of pathogen epidemiology.     

Innovating in less developed regions: What drives patenting in the lagging regions of Europe and North America

Not all economically disadvantaged—“less developed” or “lagging”—regions are the same. They are, however, often bundled together for the purposes of innovation policy design and implementation. This paper attempts to determine whether such bundling is warranted by conducting a regional level investigation for Canada, the United States, on the one hand, and Europe, on the other, to (a) identify the structural and socioeconomic factors that drive patenting in the less developed regions of North America and Europe, respectively; and (b) explore how these factors differ between the two contexts. The empirical analysis, estimated using a mixed‐model approach, reveals that, while there are similarities between the drivers of innovation in North America's and Europe's lagging regions, a number of important differences between the two continents prevail. The analysis also indicates that the territorial processes of innovation in North America's and Europe's less developed regions are more similar to those of their more developed counterparts than to one another.     

Backshoring and nearshoring: An overview

Increasingly, economies that have traditionally benefited from offshoring are losing some of their strategical advantages, with a consequent increase in backshoring by developed economies. This paper describes the phenomenon and tries to shed light on the current challenges, trends, and debates in the area, and on the main determinants of backshoring. A new phenomenon known as nearshoring is also analysed—this consists of relocating some previously offshored manufacturing activities so that they are now close to previous core locations, but not so close as to suffer from disagglomeration effects. This combines the advantages of offshoring and backshoring.     

Spatial–temporal evolution of the port–hinterland relationship: A case study of the Midstream Yangtze River,China

Most scientific attention on port studies centers on deep sea ports, especially container ports. In this paper, in contrast, attention is focused on the spatial–temporal development of inland waterway ports on the Midstream Yangtze River from 2001 to 2013. The aim of this study is to assess two relevant and complementary questions of the hinterland evolution: its geographical extent and the coordination relationship with the inland port. To conduct the study, it was necessary to first identify the boundaries of the ports' hinterlands within the given timeframe. Then, the coupling coordination degree model was introduced to explore the underlying relationship between the port service and hinterland economy. Furthermore, to better depict the intricate economic characteristics of the hinterland, the development stage theory was applied in the models. The results highlight the emergence of a discontinuous hinterland at Wuhan Port and its reinforcement of primacy with respect to fierce hinterland rivalry. It also demonstrates that an interplay between major ports and their corresponding hinterlands evolves from the transitional stage, characterized by lagging port service, to the multi‐stage, wherein the supply of ports partly outstrips hinterland demand.