Elimination of [14C]heptachlor from body stores of lactating ewes treated with ovine growth hormone

Elimination of [14C]heptachlor from body burdens of sheep was measured using mature ewes nursing single offspring, and the influence of exogenous ovine growth hormone (oGH) on elimination was studied. Six ewes (62 +/- 2.5 kg BW) were dosed (i.p.) once with [14C]heptachlor (2.04 mg/kg Bw; .88 microCi/mg heptachlor) and three were treated additionally with oGH (oGH; 5 mg/d) for 21 d. Three additional ewes served as controls. Excreta were collected each day for 21 d. Milk and blood were collected every 3rd d until ewes were euthanized at d 21. 14C activity was measured in excreta, milk, blood and tissues. Total cumulative activity of [14C]heptachlor and(or) metabolites in excreta (21 d) did not differ (P greater than .20) in ewes given oGH (25 +/- 2%) vs none (23 +/- 2%). Milk yield and protein content were unaffected (P greater than .10) by oGH. Ewes given oGH eliminated 2.2 +/- 2% of total 14C dosage into milk during 21 d, whereas ewes untreated with oGH eliminated 1.3 +/- .2% (P less than .10); total 14C activity eliminated into milk plus excreta was similar for ewes given oGH or none (P greater than .10). For all six ewes, half-times (T1/2) for distribution and elimination of 14C activity (heptachlor and metabolites) were 1.5 d and 11.7 d, respectively. Blood concentrations of 14C activity during 21 d yielded elimination half-time as 23 d. Unlike bovines, which eliminate heptachlor slowly (T1/2 approximately 70 to 80 d) and mainly into milk fat, lactating ovines eliminated heptachlor and(or) metabolites mainly into excreta and about sixfold faster than bovines.     

Defective lipolysis and altered energy metabolism in mice lacking adipose triglyceride lipase

Fat tissue is the most important energy depot in vertebrates. The release of free fatty acids (FFAs) from stored fat requires the enzymatic activity of lipases. We showed that genetic inactivation of adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL) in mice increases adipose mass and leads to triacylglycerol deposition in multiple tissues. ATGL-deficient mice accumulated large amounts of lipid in the heart, causing cardiac dysfunction and premature death. Defective cold adaptation indicated that the enzyme provides FFAs to fuel thermogenesis. The reduced availability of ATGL-derived FFAs leads to increased glucose use, increased glucose tolerance, and increased insulin sensitivity. These results indicate that ATGL is rate limiting in the catabolism of cellular fat depots and plays an important role in energy homeostasis.     

Klimaeinfluß auf Lignin und Polysaccharide in Partikelgrößen-Fraktionen zonaler Steppenböden Rußlands

Climatic effect on lignin and polysaccharides in particle-size fractions of zonal steppe soils, Russia Zonal soils derived from similar parent materials are suitable for investigating the question, whether and how climate affects soil organic matter properties. For this reason we sampled 10 native surface (0—10 cm) and subsurface (ca. 50—60 cm) soil horizons in the native steppe and forest steppe of Russia. Polysaccharides and the vanillyl, syringyl and cinnamyl structural units of lignin (VSC) were determined in the fine earth (< 2 mm) as well as in clay (< 2 μm) and silt (2—20 μm) fractions. As the ratio of mean annual precipitation to potential evaporation (N/V) decreased, the concentrations of polysaccharides tended to decrease in the subsoil horizons. This was indicated most clearly for the silt fractions (r = 0.98**). In contrast, the VSC contents (in g kg^—1 organic C) of the subsoils increased as N/V decreased (r = —0.92*), resulting in increasing VSC/polysaccharide ratios of the subsoil horizons with decreasing N/V ratio (r = —0.94*). It is suggested that production of polysaccharides or their transport into the mineral subsoil or both is favored at sites with wide rather than narrow N/V ratio, whereas lignin might be selectively enriched during intense soil organic matter decay at the Southern sites.     

Do changes in spatial distribution, structure and abundance of silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) indicate its decline?

Silver fir decline was investigated based on changes in spatial distribution of fir, fir abundance in forest stands, dbh (age) structure of fir, and abundance of fir regeneration. The authors used a large-scale approach to study the dynamics of silver fir over nearly 40 years. Based on Silva-SI, a spatial information system, the majority of total forest area in Slovenia was analysed for changes in the distribution of silver fir in the period 1970-2008 using artificial neural networks (ANNs), with respect to site, stand, and forest management variables. Additionally, changes in abundance of silver fir (hereafter fir) in the same period were analysed with a general linear model, while changes in the dbh structure of fir and fir regeneration were analysed with non-parametric tests. Most selected indicators confirmed the hypothesis of fir decline in the period 1970-2008, as evidenced by a reduction in the area of forests with a share of fir in the total growing stock >25% (from 18.9% to 9.5% of total area), a reduction in the share of fir in the growing stock of forest stands (from 17.5% to 7.5%), ageing of the fir population, and a disproportionate share of fir saplings in the total saplings relative to fir's share in the growing stock of forest stands. A 1.5% increase in fir distribution area in the observed period contradicts the decline hypothesis. ANNs showed that the spatiotemporal dynamics of fir was most affected by four variables: forest type, share of fir in the potential natural vegetation, mean annual precipitation, and mean annual temperature. The latter two, together with the growing stock at the start of study period, the degree of connectivity between fir stands, and bedrock type, were significant predictors of decline of fir abundance in forest stands. Significant differences in spatiotemporal dynamics and changes in fir abundance were found between forest types representing a complex of site conditions and past forest management. A further decline of abundance of fir on a large spatial scale in the next decades is expected. Conservation of fir in forest stands will depend mainly on the successful regeneration of fir and sufficient recruitment.     

Black carbon in the zonal steppe soils of Russia

Black Mollisols are typically rich in charred organic matter, however, little is known about the zonal distribution of black C (BC) in steppe soils. In this study, we used benzene polycarboxylic acids (BPCA) as specific markers for BC in particle‐size fractions of depth profiles in several zonal soils (Greyzem, Phaeozem, Chernozem, Kastanozem) of the Russian steppe. In addition, liquid‐state ¹³C‐NMR spectra were obtained on the alkaline‐soluble soil organic matter (SOM). The results showed that both the content and depth distribution of BC varies in the different soil types; the concentration of BC in the bulk top soils being closely related to the aromaticity of the SOM (r² = 0.98 for the native topsoils, 0.83 for top‐ and subsurface soils). Especially the Chernozems were rich in aromatic SOM, which partly contained more than 17% BC of total C, most of which being allocated in the mineral fractions. Long‐term arable cropping did not reduce the BC contents of the surface soil, though it did promote the enrichment of BC in the silt fractions. The same shift was detected as soil depth increased. We conclude that BC is not fully inert in these soils, but apparently can be preserved in the silt as decomposition of SOM increased, i.e., it accumulates exactly in that fraction, which has been formerly assigned to contain old, aromatic C.     

Forecasting Apple Fruit Color Intensity with Machine Learning Methods

In this study, we focused on the possibility of forecasting the development of skin color in apples on the basis of weather forecast by using a machine learning methods. We used supervised learning and generated models via the use of six decision trees. The purpose of the research was to build models that would allow for in-practice-acceptable accuracy in the prediction of the development of fruit skin color (especial a colour parameter a*), for three apple varieties. For cv. ‘Gala, Brookfield’, the most accurate models were generated by using decision tree J48 (89.13% accuracy). For late ripening cv. ‘Fuji, Kiku 8’ and cv. ‘Braeburn, Maririred’, the most accurate model was obtained by using decision tree LMT (91.73 and 96.65% accuracy). The data confirm that the applicability of predictive models strongly depends on the accuracy of weather forecasts. In regard to the seven-day weather forecast, which was used for expert models, the accuracy of the models was, on average, reduced by 10.73%.     

The Use of Multi Criteria Models for Decision Support System in Fruit Production

The success or failure of an investment project in fruit production also depends on the selection of the fruit species and variety. When selecting the variety for the creation of a new orchard it is necessary to perform the synthesis of different data and to look at all aspects of the investment. This paper presents the application of DEX multi-criteria decision making. The model was applied on 7 varieties of plum from the western Balkans region that were assessed by experts from “The association of agricultural economists of Western Balkans” using the Delphi method.By applying this model it has been shown that the ’Stanley’ is the most suitable for starting a new orchard while the varieties ’?a?anska ljepotica’ and ’?a?anska rodna’ are also very suitable for starting new fruit orchards and they have also received the value attribute “very acceptable”.Using this model all strong and weak sides of the observed plum variety were shown. For the final selection it is necessary to conduct research at a specific micro location where all characteristics of that area would also be taken into consideration.     

Yield Stability in Long-term Released Maize Hybrids FAO 100 and 200

The purpose of this study was to assess changes in yield stability of tnaize hybrids during a 20-year period and to relate them to yield changes. The data on FAO 100 and FAO 200 hybrids, released by the former Yugoslav Committee for Releasing Varieties, were utilized. Most ofthe released hybrids fell into the first and the second stability group (Francis and Kannenberg 1978). The b_i values (Finlay and Wilkinson 1963) of the released hybrids, except two from FAO 100 and four from FAO 200 group, did not differ significantly from 1.0. Also, all but one from FAO 100 and one from FAO 200 released hybrids did not differ in aj value (Shukla 1972) significantly from 0. Values of A, and aj stability parameters changed only slightly during the 20-year period. During the same time the yield ofthe FAO 100 hybrids did not change. In the FAO 200 group the yield increased, but the genetic gain was not significant. The stability parameters were not in a significant correlation with the yield.     

Multi Criteria Assessment of Zero Residue Apple Production

During the 2008–2010 growing seasons, an alternative ‘zero residue apple production system’ was compared with integrated apple production with cvs ‘Idared’, ‘Golden Delicious’, ‘Jonagold’ and ‘Gala’ in commercial orchards at several locations throughout Slovenia, using data envelopment analysis (DEA), and multi criteria assessment by an analytical hierarchical process (AHP). The principle of the ‘zero residue apple production’ is a combination of integrated (IP) and organic apple production. During the first 3 months of the growing season (1 April–30 June), pesticides used in IP with rapid degradation (8–10 applications) were used to control pests and diseases. During the second part of the season from 1 July to harvest, organic products (6–12 applications) were employed compared with 19–25 applications overall in IP. The goal of the alternative system was to reduce the amount of applied conventional pesticides by 40 % and to minimize pesticide residues in fruits to below the limit of 0.5 % of the legal maximum residue level (MRL) or below the residue concentrations of 0.005–0.01 mg/kg and to retain the high long-term level of yield, fruit quality, and net income per hectare. The number of pesticide residues was reduced from 4.2–5.5 in IP to 1.8–3.4 in zero residue cultivation, while 3 year average yields (class 1 fruit) were 4–9 % lower than in IP. The break even prices ranged from € 0.31 for Idared in IP, € 0.34 for ‘Elstar’ of both production systems to € 0.35/kg for zero residue cultivated ‘Golden Delicious’. Overall, a price increase of just € 0.02/kg for residue free apples would make this new ‘zero residue apple production’ profitable then representing a realistic alternative to the standard integrated apple production system.