Net depth response of a depth-controllable (towed) gillnet for fish sampling

SUMMARY: Flume-tank experiments were performed to examine the depth response of a new type of depth-controlled gillnet. Variations of net depth were investigated as the warp was paid out and wound up for different changes of warp length, main sinker weights, and winch speeds. In most experiments, when the warp finished paying out, the net continued to descend and then ascended slightly to an equilibrium depth (overshoot phenomenon). The overshoot distance was nearly constant when the warp was wound up and increased linearly with increasing winch speed when the warp was paid out. An increase in winch speed reduced net settling time, which converged on a constant value for both paying out and winding up.     

Anti-erythrocyte membrane antibodies detected in sera of dogs naturally infected with Babesia gibsoni.

Due to the potential for anti-erythrocyte membrane antibodies as possible enhancers of erythrocyte destruction, the presence of serum anti-erythrocyte membrane antibodies in 31 dogs with Babesia gibsoni infection admitted to a veterinary hospital was investigated by an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblotting analyses. This infection resulted in an increase of anti-erythrocyte membrane antibodies in 84% (IgG) and 74% (IgM) of 31 infected dogs, respectively. This was confirmed by the similarity in the protein profiles of the erythrocyte membrane antigens immunoblotted with rabbit antiserum to dog erythrocyte membrane antigens and infected dog serum. These results suggest the production of anti-erythrocyte membrane antibodies was induced by B. gibsoni infection.     

Detection of antibody against transmissible gastroenteritis virus of pigs by indirect immunoperoxidase antibody test

Immunoperoxidase intibody (IPA) test was developed for detecting antibody against transmissible gastroenteritis (TGE) virus of pigs. The IPA antibody titers in sera collected in the field from 82 pigs were approximately seven times higher than those obtained in a serum-neutralization test. The correlation between the TGE antibody concentrations in the IPA and serum neutralization tests was positive (r = +0.74). The IPA tests appears to have the potential for routine laboratory use for serologic diagnosis of TGE.     

Catalog of Micro-Tom tomato responses to common fungal, bacterial, and viral pathogens

Lycopersicon esculentum cultivar Micro-Tom is a miniature tomato with many advantages for studies of the molecular biology and physiology of plants. To evaluate the suitability of Micro-Tom as a host plant for the study of pathogenesis, Micro-Tom plants were inoculated with 16 well-known fungal, bacterial, and viral pathogens of tomato. Athelia rolfsii, Botryotinia fuckeliana, Oidium sp., Phytophthora infestans, and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum caused typical symptoms and sporulated abundantly on Micro-Tom. Micro-Tom was resistant to Alternaria alternata, Corynespora cassiicola, and Fusarium oxysporum. When Micro-Tom was inoculated with 17 isolates of Ralstonia solanacearum, many isolates induced wilt symptoms. Agrobacterium tumefaciens also was pathogenic, causing crown galls on stem tissue after needle prick inoculation. In Micro-Tom sprayed with Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato, P. s. pv. tabaci, or P. s. pv. glycinea, bacterial populations did not increase, and yellow lesions appeared only on leaves sprayed with P. s. pv. tomato. Tomato mosaic virus, Tomato aspermy virus, and Cucumber mosaic virus systemically infected Micro-Tom, which developed symptoms characteristic of other cultivars of tomato after infection with the respective virus. These results indicated that Micro-Tom was generally susceptible to most of the important tomato pathogens and developed typical symptoms, whereas certain pathogens were restricted by either hypersensitive resistance or nonhost resistance on Micro-Tom. Therefore, an assortment of Micro-Tom–pathogen systems should provide excellent models for studying the mechanism of susceptible and resistant interactions between plants and pathogens.     

Powdery Mildew of Prairie Gentian: Characteristics,Molecular Phylogeny and Pathogenicity

In March 1999, we found prairie gentian (Eustoma grandiflorum) infected with powdery mildew in a greenhouse in Oita Prefecture, Japan. Morphological observation revealed that the causal fungus belongs to the mitosporic genus Oidium subgenus Pseudoidium [teleomorph: Erysiphe sensu Braun and Takamatsu (2000)]. Precise taxonomic position of the fungus, however, is uncertain due to lack of the perfect stage. We determined the nucleotide sequence of the rDNA ITS region of the fungus. Comparison of the sequence with those obtained from DNA databases of this fungal group revealed that the sequence is identical to those of powdery mildews from garden four-o'clock (Mirabilis jalapa) and broad bean (Vicia faba). Inoculation of an isolate from garden four-o'clock caused mildew on prairie gentian and broad bean, suggesting that the prairie gentian mildew originates from garden four-o'clock or broad bean. Molecular phylogenetic analysis indicated a close relationship of this fungus to Erysiphe baeumleri on Vicia spp. and E. trifolii on Trifolium pratense. From these results, we propose that prairie gentian mildew diverged from a Fabaceae-parasitic ancestor. Received 14 March 2002/ Accepted in revised form 28 May 2002     

Simultaneous detection of multiple mycotoxins in broiler feeds using a liquid chromatography tandem-mass spectrometry

Mycotoxins are secondary fungal metabolites that are typically present in grain and feed ingredients used for animal feeds. An analytical method using LC-ESI-MS/MS was developed to quantify nine mycotoxins, consisting of aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁), AFB₂, AFG₁, AFG₂, T-2 toxin, deoxynivalenol (DON), nivalenol (NIV), zearalenone (ZEA) and ochratoxin A (OTA) in broiler feeds. In total, 100 samples of broiler feeds were collected from poultry farms in Central Thailand. The survey found that AFB₁ and ZEA were the most prevalent mycotoxins in the feed samples at percentages of 93% and 63%, respectively. The limit of detections (LODs) of investigated mycotoxins was 0.20–0.78 ng/g. AFB₂, DON, AFG₁, NIV and T-2 toxin were also detectable at low contamination levels with percentages of 20%, 9%, 7%, 5% and 1%, respectively, whereas OTA and AFG₂ were not detected in any of the feed samples. These results suggest that there is a very low level of risk of the exposure to mycotoxins in feeds obtained from broiler farms in Central Thailand.     

Involvement of microaerophilic iron-oxidizing bacteria in the iron-oxidizing process at the surface layer of flooded paddy field soil

Journal of Soils and Sediments - To reveal whether microaerophilic Fe(II)-oxidizing bacteria (FeOB) participate in the Fe(II) oxidation at the oxic-anoxic interface in flooded paddy field soil,...     

Polymorphism in promoter region of growth hormone receptor is associated with potential production capacity of insulin‐like growth factor‐1 in pre‐pubertal Holstein heifers

Insulin‐like growth factor‐1 (IGF‐1) is one of the important factors for growth, milk production and reproductive functions and mainly released from the liver in response to growth hormone (GH) via GH receptor (GHR) in cattle. Recently, some single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in the bovine GHR gene. Some GHR‐SNPs were shown to be related to plasma IGF‐1 concentration in cattle. Hence, the capacity to IGF‐1 production in the liver might be affected by GHR‐SNP and associated with performance in the future. This study examined whether GHR‐SNP is associated with IGF‐1 production in the liver of pre‐pubertal heifers. In 71 Holstein calves, blood samples for genomic DNA extraction were obtained immediately after birth. To genotype the GHR‐SNPs in the promoter region, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products were digested with restriction enzyme NsiI (cutting sites: AA, AG and GG). All heifers at 4 months of age were intramuscularly injected with 0.4 mg oestradiol benzoate. Blood samples were obtained from the jugular vein just before (0 h) and 24 h after injection. The number of AA, AG and GG at the NsiI site was 0, 17 and 54 respectively. In AG and GG, plasma GH concentrations were higher pre‐injection than 24 h post‐injection (p < 0.01). Moreover, plasma GH concentrations in AG post‐injection were higher than in GG (p < 0.05). In contrast, the GG genotype exhibited higher plasma IGF‐1 concentrations in pre‐injection than post‐injection (p < 0.01), although oestradiol did not change IGF‐1 concentration in the AG genotype. We conclude that the GG polymorphism in the promoter region of GHR is associated with a higher potential capacity of IGF‐1 production in the liver of cattle.