Pigeonpea improvement: An amalgam of breeding and genomic research

In the past five decades, constant research has been directed towards yield improvement in pigeonpea resulting in the deployment of several commercially acceptable cultivars in India. Though, the genesis of hybrid technology, the biggest breakthrough, enigma of stagnant productivity still remains unsolved. To sort this productivity disparity, genomic research along with conventional breeding was successfully initiated at ICRISAT. It endowed ample genomic resource providing insight in the pigeonpea genome combating production constraints in a precise and speedy manner. The availability of the draft genome sequence with a large‐scale marker resource, oriented the research towards trait mapping for flowering time, determinacy, fertility restoration, yield attributing traits and photo‐insensitivity. Defined core and mini‐core collection, still eased the pigeonpea breeding being accessible for existing genetic diversity and developing stress resistance. Modern genomic tools like next‐generation sequencing, genome‐wide selection helping in the appraisal of selection efficiency is leading towards next‐generation breeding, an awaited milestone in pigeonpea genetic enhancement. This paper emphasizes the ongoing genetic improvement in pigeonpea with an amalgam of conventional breeding as well as genomic research.     

MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING OF THE EQUINE STIFLE

The purpose of this study was to define normal gross anatomic structures in the equine stifle with magnetic resonance images. Magnetic resonance (MR) images were made in sagittal, 15° supinated, transverse, and dorsal planes of two equine stifles. The MR images were scrutinized by comparing MR images to dissection specimens and frozen cross sections of stifle joints. Sagittal and 15° supinated images were the most valuable in assessing articular cartilage, subchondral bone, and soft tissue structures within the joint. Cranial and caudal cruciate ligaments, medial and lateral menisci, meniscotibial and meniscofemoral ligaments, long digital extensor tendon, and patellar ligaments were easily evaluated. MR images provided substantially more gross anatomical information than the currently available imaging modalities.     

A 3-Year Adaptation Study of Three Distinct Grapevine Cultivars under Midwestern Field Conditions

Simultaneous responses of American (Concord), European (Pinot Noir), and American-European hybrid (Traminette) cultivars to seasonal and diurnal variation in field environmental conditions were assessed to propose suitable cultivars for potential use for selection and breeding in grapevines in dry areas. ‘Pinot Noir’ had higher gas exchange parameters, higher water potential, and chlorophyll fluorescence, while ‘Concord’ had the lowest values in all three seasons and experienced moderate stress by the end of each season. The dry conditions in 2005 caused water potential to decline sharply compared to values recorded in 2004 and 2006. ‘Pinot Noir’ and ‘Traminette’ exhibited a mild stress, while ‘Concord’ exhibited a moderate stress in 2006. Photosynthetic rate decreased slightly during the summer with a slight recovery at the beginning of September, and did not differ across the seasons among cultivars. Stomatal conductance followed the same pattern. However, in both 2004 and 2005, stomatal conductance dropped sharply late in the season because of frequently occurring high temperatures that were greater than 32 °C. Maximum morning values of Fv/Fm were within the optimal range. The study suggests the presence of marginal photoinhibition during mid-summer in Concord cultivars, because no full recovery of photochemical efficiency early in the evening was observed. The European cultivar (Pinot Noir) and the American-European hybrid (Traminette) are more adapted to field conditions in Kansas than Concord cultivars. However, high cold-mortality of Pinot Noir due to high sensitivity to cold winter temperature makes the hybrid cultivars the most suitable cultivar for Midwest regions with relatively cold winters.     

Evaluation of the analgesic effect of fentanyl–ketamine and fentanyl–lidocaine constant rate infusions in isoflurane-anesthetized dogs undergoing thoracolumbar hemilaminectomy

ObjectiveTo evaluate anesthetic conditions and postoperative analgesia with the use of intraoperative constant rate infusions (CRIs) of fentanyl–lidocaine or fentanyl–ketamine in dogs undergoing thoracolumbar hemilaminectomy.Study designProspective, randomized, blinded, clinical study.AnimalsA total of 32 client-owned dogs.MethodsDogs were premedicated with fentanyl (5 μg kg^–1) administered intravenously (IV), anesthesia was induced with IV alfaxalone and maintained with isoflurane. Fentanyl (0.083 μg kg^–1 minute^–1) was infused IV with either ketamine (0.5 mg kg^–1; then 40 μg kg^–1 minute^–1; group KF) or lidocaine (2 mg kg^–1; then 200 μg kg^–1 minute^–1; group LF) assigned randomly. Heart rate, noninvasive arterial pressures, respiratory rate, esophageal temperature, end-tidal partial pressure of carbon dioxide and isoflurane concentration were recorded throughout anesthesia. Maintenance of anesthesia, recovery and postoperative pain (Glasgow Composite Pain Scale) were scored. Cardiopulmonary data were analyzed using a two-way anova with repeated measures, demographics of the two groups with a t test, and scores with Mann–Whitney U test, with p < 0.05.ResultsAll dogs recovered from anesthesia without complications. No significant difference was found between groups for cardiopulmonary variables, total anesthesia time, sedation score and requirement for postoperative sedation or for rescue analgesia. Anesthetic maintenance score was of lower quality in KF than in LF [median (interquartile range): 0 (0–0.5) versus 0 (0–0); p = 0.032)], but still considered ideal. Recovery score was higher and indicative of less sedation in LF than in KF [1 (1–1.5) versus 0.5 (0–1); p < 0.0001]. Pain score was higher in KF than in LF [2 (1–3) versus 1 (1–2); p = 0.0009].Conclusions and clinical relevanceBoth CRIs of KF and LF provided adequate anesthetic conditions in dogs undergoing thoracolumbar hemilaminectomy. Based on requirement for rescue analgesia, postoperative analgesia was adequate in both groups.     

Efficacy of bovine herpesvirus-1 inactivated vaccine against abortion and stillbirth in pregnant heifers

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of an inactivated bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1) vaccine to protect against BHV-1 challenge-induced abortion and stillbirth. DESIGN: Prospective study. ANIMALS: 35 beef heifers. PROCEDURES: Before breeding, heifers were vaccinated with a commercially available BHV-1 inactivated vaccine SC or IM. The estrous cycle was then synchronized, and heifers were artificially inseminated 30 to 60 days after vaccination. Heifers (n = 21) were challenge inoculated IV at approximately 180 days of gestation with virulent BHV-1. Fourteen control heifers were not vaccinated. Clinical signs of BHV-1 infection were monitored for 10 days following challenge; serologic status and occurrence of abortion or stillbirth were evaluated until time of calving. RESULTS: 18 of 21 (85.7%) heifers that received vaccine were protected from abortion following challenge, whereas all 14 control heifers aborted. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that an inactivated BHV-1 vaccine can protect against abortion resulting from a substantial challenge infection, with efficacy similar to that of modified-live BHV-1 vaccines.     

Irrigation scheduling of plastic greenhouse vegetable crops based on historical weather data

Irrigation scheduling based on the daily historical crop evapotranspiration (ET_h) data was theoretically and experimentally assessed for the major soil-grown greenhouse horticultural crops on the Almería coast in order to improve irrigation efficiency. Overall, the simulated seasonal ET_h values for different crop cycles from 41 greenhouses were not significantly different from the corresponding values of real-time crop evapotranspiration (ET_c). Additionally, for the main greenhouse crops on the Almería coast, the simulated values of the maximum cumulative soil water deficit in each of the 15 consecutive growth cycles (1988–2002) were determined using simple soil-water balances comparing daily ET_h and ET_c values to schedule irrigation. In most cases, no soil-water deficits affecting greenhouse crop productivity were detected, but the few cases found led us to also assess experimentally the use of ET_h for irrigation scheduling of greenhouse horticultural crops. The response of five greenhouse crops to water applications scheduled with daily estimates of ET_h and ET_c was evaluated in a typical enarenado soil. In tomato, fruit yield did not differ statistically between irrigation treatments, but the spring green bean irrigated using the ET_h data presented lower yield than that irrigated using the ET_c data. In the remaining experiments, the irrigation-management method based on ET_h data was modified to consider the standard deviation of the inter-annual greenhouse reference ET. No differences between irrigation treatments were found for productivity of pepper, zucchini and melon crops.     

Apparent ileal digestibility of amino acids and the digestible and metabolizable energy content of dry extruded-expelled soybean meal and its effects on growth performance of pigs

We conducted three experiments to determine the apparent ileal digestibility of amino acids (Exp. 1), metabolizable and digestible energy (Exp. 2), and feeding value (Exp. 3) of dry extruded-expelled soybean meal with (DEH) or without (DENH) hulls compared with solvent-extracted soybean meal with hulls removed (SBMNH). Soybeans used to produce DEH were unadulterated prior to extrusion, but those used for DENH were dehulled prior to extrusion. In Exp. 1, six nonlittermate barrows (initially 39 kg) were fitted with ileal T-cannulas and used in a replicated 3 x 3 Latin square design digestion trial. Experimental diets (0.80% total lysine) were cornstarch-based and contained soybean meal from one of the three different sources as the sole source of lysine. Apparent ileal digestibilies of nutrients were similar (P > 0.10) for DEH and DENH. Apparent ileal digestibilies of CP, Lys, Ile, Leu, Arg, Phe, and Val were greater (P < 0.05) for DEH and DENH than for SBMNH. In Exp. 2, six barrows (initially 41 kg) were fed three corn-based diets containing 25% of one of the three soybean meal sources. A fourth diet was fed at the end of the trial containing all ingredients except soybean meal, so that energy values of the soybean meal could be determined by difference. Digestible energy and ME contents were similar (P > 0.10) for DEH and DENH and both had greater (P < 0.05) DE and ME contents than SBMNH. In Exp. 3, pigs (n = 216, initially 10.6 +/- 1.3 kg and 35 +/- 3 d of age) were blocked by weight and allotted to six dietary treatments. Corn-soybean meal-based diets (0.95% digestible lysine and 3.44 kcal/g ME) containing DEH or DENH were compared with similar diets containing SBMNH or solvent-extracted soybean meal with hulls (SBMH). In addition, a diet containing a second expelled soybean meal with hulls (ESBM) was compared with a diet containing SBMH and soy oil. Growth performance of pigs fed diets containing DEH or DENH was not different (P > 0.10) than that of pigs fed corresponding diets containing SMBH or SBMNH. Pigs fed ESBM had lower (P < 0.05) ADG and G/F compared with its corresponding SBMH and soy oil diet. In conclusion, DEH and DENH are more digestible than conventional soybean meal and can be successfully used in swine diets.     

Evaluation of PCR,IEF and ELISA techniques for the detection and identification of potato cyst nematodes from field soil samples in England and Wales

Effective management of potato cyst nematodes (PCNs) requires simple, rapid and accurate identification and quantification of field populations. Soil samples from a survey of 484 fields in potato rotations in England and Wales were used to compare the identification and quantification of PCNs using IEF, PCR, ELISA and bait plant tests. The cyst counts and bait plant test revealed that 64.3% of field samples contained PCNs. Bait plant tests increased the detection rate of PCNs in field samples by 4–6.4%. This means that some infestations are cryptic and would not normally be detected by standard counts. IEF, PCR and ELISA methods distinguished between Globodera rostochiensis and G pallida and were able to register mixed populations; however they were not in full agreement. All methods suggested that G pallida is the dominant species in the field samples tested. The PCR results indicated that 66% of field samples contained pure G pallida, 8% contained pure G rostochiensis and 26% contained mixtures of the two species. Estimates of the relative process times taken per sample in the PCR, IEF and ELISA techniques are given. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry     

Evaluating processing temperature and feeding value of extruded-expelled soybean meal on nursery and finishing pig growth performance

We conducted two experiments comparing the use of extruded-expelled soybean meal (EESoy) to solvent-extracted soybean meal (SBM) in swine diets. In Exp. 1, the objective was to determine the optimal processing temperature of EESoy for nursery pig growth performance. Pigs (n = 330, 13.2 +/- 2.3 kg of BW) were fed a control diet containing SBM with added fat or one of five diets containing EESoy extruded at 143.3, 148.9, 154.4, 160.0, or 165.6 degrees C. All diets were formulated on an equal apparent digestible lysine:ME ratio. From d 0 to 20, no differences were observed (P > 0.32) in ADG or ADFI (average of 544 and 924 g/d, respectively). However, gain:feed ratio (G/F) improved (quadratic, P < 0.01, range of 0.56 to 0.60) with increasing processing temperature, with the greatest improvement at 148.9 degrees C. In Exp. 2, the objective was to determine the feeding value of EESoy relative to SBM with or without added fat for growing-finishing pigs in a commercial production facility. A total of 1,200 gilts (initially 24.5 +/- 5.1 kg of BW) was used, with 25 pigs per pen and eight replications per treatment. Dietary treatments were arranged in a 2 x 3 factorial, with two sources of soybean meal (SBM or EESoy) and three levels of added fat. Pigs were phase-fed four diets over the experimental period and added fat (choice white grease) levels were 0, 3.4, and 7% initially, with the added fat levels decreasing in the next three dietary phases. Energy levels were based such that the higher energy in EESoy (with or without added fat) was calculated to be equal to that provided by SBM with added fat. From 24.5 to 61.2 kg, pigs fed EESoy had greater (P < 0.07) G/F than those fed SBM. Increasing added fat in either EESoy- or SBM-based diets increased G/F (linear, P < 0.0003). From 61.2 to 122.5 kg, ADG and G/F were unaffected in pigs fed EESoy and/or increasing added fat (P > 0.10). For the overall growing-finishing period, ADG was unaffected (P > 0.61) by increasing energy density of the diet; however, ADFI decreased (P < 0.05) and G/F increased (P < 0.02, range of 0.37 to 0.40) as energy density increased with either EESoy or added fat. Carcass leanness was not affected by dietary treatment. These results indicate that EESoy should be extruded at 148.9 to 154.4 degrees C, and that increasing dietary energy density by using EESoy and/or added fat improves feed efficiency in finishing pigs reared in a commercial environment.