Susceptibility to imazamox in Italian weedy rice populations and Clearfield® rice varieties

The introduction of imidazolinone‐tolerant rice varieties has made selective Oryza sativa (weedy rice) control possible. We hypothesised that Italian weedy rice populations have variable degrees of susceptibility to imazamox prior to imidazolinone‐tolerant variety introduction. To this end, 149 Italian weedy rice populations collected from fields never before cultivated with imidazolinone‐tolerant varieties were tested in a glasshouse‐based, whole‐plant response screening study. Imazamox was applied to all populations post‐emergence at a rate of 70 g a.i. ha^?1, resulting in 70–90% shoot biomass reduction in the majority of cases. The results prompted a second study of the seedling dose response of four weedy rice populations from the initial study group. Three imidazolinone‐tolerant and one conventional rice variety were also included. The seedling roots were cut six days after germination and exposed to different concentrations of imazamox. The root regrowth associated with each concentration‐exposure was then measured. Imazamox concentrations to inhibit weedy rice root growth by 50% varied by about two orders of magnitude, or between 0.0018 and 0.12 mm . Even with this result, imidazolinone‐tolerant varieties were at least 31.8 times less susceptible than weedy rice populations, suggesting that Italian weedy rice populations were not tolerant to imazamox before introduction of these varieties.     

Identification of CD3+ T lymphocytes in the green turtle Chelonia mydas

To understand the role of the immune system with respect to disease in reptiles, there is the need to develop tools to assess the host's immune response. An important tool is the development of molecular markers to identify immune cells, and these are limited for reptiles. We developed a technique for the cryopreservation of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and showed that a commercially available anti-CD3 epsilon chain antibody detects a subpopulation of CD3 positive peripheral blood lymphocytes in the marine turtle Chelonia mydas. In the thymus and in skin inoculated with phytohemagglutinin, the same antibody showed the classical staining pattern observed in mammals and birds. For Western blot, the anti-CD3 antibodies identified a 17.6 kDa band in membrane proteins of peripheral blood mononuclear cell compatible in weight to previously described CD3 molecules. This is the first demostration of CD3+ cells in reptiles using specific antibodies.     

Genetic evaluation of laying performance in the Zatorska goose: contribution to the conservation programme

1. The aim of the study was to estimate the heritability of the laying performance in the cumulative and partial production of eggs and predict the breeding values of native Zatorska geese in a conservation programme using Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP) methodology. Second, the trajectory of the egg production curve was examined.

2. The data contain information about the laying performance of 1831 individuals in the first year of laying. To describe the trajectory of the laying performance, 10 mathematical models were tested. For the genetic parameter estimation of egg production, data from 1038 birds were used with a production higher than 20 eggs during the first season of laying.

3. The analysis of egg production was based on single and multi-trait models. Heritability, genetic and phenotypic correlations between phases of the laying performance as well as breeding values were estimated.

4. The best adaptation to the goose egg laying curve was the Ali and Schaeffer model. The estimates of heritability were 0.20 (0.06 SE) using the single-trait model and ranged from 0.12 to 0.24 using the multi-trait model.

5. The results suggest that the BLUP method can support the conservation programme.     

Lipid mobilization and inflammatory responses during the transition period of dairy cows

The transition period of dairy cattle is characterized by dramatic changes in metabolism and host defense mechanisms that are associated with increased disease. Intense lipid mobilization from tissue stores is an important metabolic adaptation during the transition period that results in significant release of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) into the blood stream. Whereas these fatty acids are important sources of energy during times of increased metabolic demands, elevated concentrations of NEFA are known to disrupt several immune and inflammatory functions. This review will discuss the implications of lipid mobilization on inflammatory responses with special emphasis on leukocytes and endothelial cell functions during the transition period of dairy cows.     

Antigenotoxicity and Antioxidant Activity of Acerola Fruit (Malpighia glabra L.) at Two Stages of Ripeness

Genotoxic and antigenotoxic effects of acerola fruit at two stages of ripeness were investigated using mice blood cells. The results show that no ripeness stage of acerola extracts presented any genotoxic potential to damage DNA (Comet assay) or cytotoxicity (MTT assay). When antigenotoxic activity was analyzed, unripe fruit presented higher DNA protection than ripe fruit (red color) extract. The antioxidant capacity of substances also showed that unripe samples inhibit the free radical DPPH more significantly than the ripe ones. The results about determination of compounds made using HPLC showed that unripe acerola presents higher levels of vitamin C as compared to ripe acerola. Thus, vitamin C and the complex mixture of nutrients of Malpighia glabra L., and especially its ripeness stages, influenced the interaction of the fruit extract with the DNA. Acerola is usually consumed when ripe (red fruit), although it is the green fruit (unripe) that has higher potential as beneficial to DNA, protecting it against oxidative stress.     

Temporal variations in blood glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) activity in sheep at pasture in a Mediterranean area

The present study evaluates blood GSHPx activity in 18 sheep flocks at range, to identify those seasons with the highest risk of selenium deficiency. Samples were taken from 1108 15-day-old lambs during the two usual lambing periods in this geographical area (autumn-winter and spring-summer). The overall mean values in the first period (146.69 +/- 3.41 i.u./g Hb) was higher than in the second one (107.50 +/- 3.53 i.u./g Hb). This may be explained by the special features of the climate in the Mediterranean area, which allow an optimum growth of grass from October to May. Therefore, the lambs born in spring-summer are from pregnancies in months when feeding is based only upon grazing. However, lambs born in autumn-winter comes from ewes gestating during the summer, when supplementation with cereal grains is given. As a conclusion, lambs born in spring-summer in this area are at higher risk to selenium-deficiency related disorders.     

Arbuscular mycorrhizae in a long-term field trial comparing low-input (organic, biological) and high-input (conventional) farming systems in a crop rotation

 Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) root colonization was studied in a long-term field trial in which four farming systems currently in use in Switzerland were continuously applied to a randomized set of plots at a single field site from 1978 till 1993. There were two low-input farming systems (organic and bio-dynamic) and two high-input (conventional) farming systems (according to Swiss guidelines of integrated plant production with and without farmyard manure). The systems had an identical 7-year crop rotation and tillage scheme and differed essentially only in the amount and type of fertilizer supplied and in plant protection management. The percentage of root colonization by AM fungi was determined in field samples 2–3 times over the growing season in crops in the rotation, namely in winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Sardona), vetch-rye and grass-clover. We found the percentage of root length colonized by AM fungi to be 30–60% higher (P≤0.05) in the plants grown in soils from the low-input farming systems than in those grown in conventionally farmed soils. Approximately 50% of the variation of AM root colonization was explained by chemical properties of the soils (pH, soluble P and K, exchangeable Mg), the effect of soluble soil P being most pronounced. The potential of the field soils from the differently managed plots to cause symbiosis with AM fungi was tested in a glasshouse experiment, using wheat as a host plant. Soils from the low-input farming systems had a greatly enhanced capacity to initiate AM symbiosis. The relative differences in this capacity remained similar when propagules of the AM fungus Glomus mosseae were experimentally added to the soils, although overall root colonization by AM fungi was 2.8 times higher. Received: 27 August 1999     

Neue Ergebnisse und Beobachtungen

Ohne Zusammenfassung Vgl. Gilmer, Paul M., Derris as a Parasticide. Nineteenth Report, State Entomologist of Minnesota, 1922.