Effects of reduced atmospheric deposition on soil solution chemistry and elemental contents of spruce needles in NE—Bavaria,Germany

The decrease in anthropogenic deposition, namely SO₄^2— and SO₂, in European forest ecosystems during the last 20 years has raised questions concerning the recovery of forest ecosystems. The aim of this study was to evaluate if the long term data of element concentrations at the Fichtelgebirge (NE‐Bavaria, Germany) monitoring site indicates a relationship between the nutrient content of needles and the state of soil solution acidity. The soil at the site is very acidic and has relatively small pools of exchangeable Ca and Mg. The trees show medium to severe nutrient deficiency symptoms such as needle loss and needle yellowing. The Ca and Mg concentrations in throughfall decreased significantly during the last 12 years parallel to the significant decline in the throughfall of H⁺ and SO₄^2— concentrations. Soil solution concentrations of SO₄^2—, Ca and Mg generally decreased while the pH value remained stable. Aluminum concentrations decreased slightly, but only at a depth of 90 cm. Simultaneously a decrease in the molar Ca/Al and Mg/Al ratios in the soil solution was observed. Ca and Mg contents in the spruce needles decreased, emphasizing the relevance of soil solution changes for tree nutrition. The reasons for the delay in ecosystem recovery are due to a combination of the following two factors: (1) the continued high concentrations of NO₃^— and SO₄^2— in the soil solution leading to high Al concentrations and low pH values and, (2) the decreased rates of Ca and Mg deposition cause a correlated decrease in the concentration of Ca and Mg in the soil solution, since little Ca and Mg is present in the soil's exchangeable cation pools. It is our conclusion that detrimental soil conditions with respect to Mg and Ca nutrition as well as to Al stress are not easily reversed by the decreasing deposition of H⁺ and SO₄^2—. Thus, forest management is still confronted with the necessity of frequent liming to counteract the nutrient depletion in soils and subsequent nutrient deficiencies in trees.     

The Japanese keiretsu system——A special kind of business relations and corporate governance is changing in a globalizing world

1.Structure of the keiretsu The name keiretsu(in Japanese.系列) means literally "system"," series" or "line".Keiretsu are groups of companies with very close business relations(Munich Business School,2008).The core of these conglomerates is a bank which provides them with liquidity or loans and     

Modelling approaches to compare sorption and degradation of metsulfuron-methyl in laboratory micro-lysimeter and batch experiments

Results of laboratory batch studies often differ from those of outdoor lysimeter or field plot experiments--with respect to degradation as well as sorption. Laboratory micro-lysimeters are a useful device for closing the gap between laboratory and field by both including relevant transport processes in undisturbed soil columns and allowing controlled boundary conditions. In this study, sorption and degradation of the herbicide metsulfuron-methyl in a loamy silt soil were investigated by applying inverse modelling techniques to data sets from different experimental approaches under laboratory conditions at a temperature of 10 degrees C: first, batch-degradation studies and, second, column experiments with undisturbed soil cores (28 cm length x 21 cm diameter). The column experiments included leachate and soil profile analysis at two different run times. A sequential extraction method was applied in both study parts in order to determine different binding states of the test item within the soil. Data were modelled using ModelMaker and Hydrus-1D/2D. Metsulfuron-methyl half-life in the batch-experiments (t1/2 = 66 days) was shown to be about four times higher than in the micro-lysimeter studies (t1/2 about 17 days). Kinetic sorption was found to be a significant process both in batch and column experiments. Applying the one-rate-two-site kinetic sorption model to the sequential extraction data, it was possible to associate the stronger bonded fraction of metsulfuron-methyl with its kinetically sorbed fraction in the model. Although the columns exhibited strong significance of multi-domain flow (soil heterogeneity), the comparison between bromide and metsulfuron-methyl leaching and profile data showed clear evidence for kinetic sorption effects. The use of soil profile data had significant impact on parameter estimates concerning sorption and degradation. The simulated leaching of metsulfuron-methyl as it resulted from parameter estimation was shown to decrease when soil profile data were considered in the parameter estimation procedure. Moreover, it was shown that the significance of kinetic sorption can only be demonstrated by the additional use of soil profile data in parameter estimation. Thus, the exclusive use of efflux data from leaching experiments at any scale can lead to fundamental misunderstandings of the underlying processes.     

Genotype × environment interactions in symptom development and yield of cassava genotypes with artificial and natural cassava bacterial blight infections

Thirty-seven cassava genotypes from Benin, including advanced breeding lines, were tested for their reaction to bacterial blight in the forest–savanna transition, wet savanna and dry savanna zones of Benin. Sixteen genotypes were repeated in 12 environments. In year 1998, genotypes RB92164, RB92022, TMS30572, BEN86004, RB92033 and Dangbo2, and in year 2000, genotypes RB92202, RB92151, RB92132 and TMS30572 were resistant in one ecozone. Among the more resistant genotypes, CAP94030, BEN86040, RB89509, RB92132 and TMS30572 showed low interaction across environments and were most stable in disease reaction. Ten genotypes were classified as high yielding across environments. Among the more resistant group of genotypes, only TMS30572 and RB89509 were high yielding, with RB89509 being unstable in yield across environments. Selection of genotypes proved reliable only after artificial inoculation. Comparing environments, artificially inoculated treatments in the wet savanna zone and in the forest–savanna transition zone with stable high symptom severity proved most suitable for screening of genotypes, while the wet savanna zone with low natural infection in year 1998 was suitable for production of propagation material, and the site in the dry savanna zone with natural infection in year 1998 was the best environment for cassava production. The correlation between disease severity and root yield was significant only for the non-inoculated treatment in the dry savanna zone in year 2000 (R = –0.58), but not in any other environment. Among the 37 genotypes tested, several genotypes can be recommended to farmers in specific ecozones, and genotype TMS30572 revealed as relatively stable in disease resistance and in high yield across ecozones.     

Ant-mediated effects on spruce litter decomposition, solution chemistry, and microbial activity

Forest management practices often generate clear-cut patches, which may be colonized by ants not present in the same densities in mature forests. In addition to the associated changes in abiotic conditions ants can initiate processes, which do not occur in old-growth stands. Here, we analyse the effects of ants and aphid honeydew on litter solution of Norway spruce, microbial enzyme activities, and needle decomposition in a field and greenhouse experiment during summer 2003. In the field, low ant densities had relatively little effects on litter solution 30 cm away from a tree trunk, but significantly increased organic carbon concentrations and decreased inorganic nitrogen concentrations next to a trunk where ants tend to build their nests. In a greenhouse experiment, the addition of ants to lysimeters containing spruce litter significantly increased dissolved organic carbon (DOC), dissolved organic nitrogen (DON), NH₄-N, NO₃-N and K concentrations in litter solutions compared to the control treatment, while the simulation of aphid infestation (addition of honeydew) significantly increased DOC as a direct result of honeydew leaching, and decreased inorganic N concentrations in leachates. The presence of ants resulted in a changed composition of dissolved organic matter (DOM) with more aromatic and complex compounds, and microbial enzyme activity was significantly higher in litter extracts from the ant treatment compared to the honeydew and control treatment. However, mass loss, litter %C and %N were not affected by ants or honeydew. Our results suggest that ants have a distinct and immediate effect on solution composition and microbial activity in the litter layer indicating accelerated litter decay whereas the effect of honeydew was insignificant.     

Cloudy apple juice is more effective than apple polyphenols and an apple juice derived cloud fraction in a rat model of colon carcinogenesis

As recently shown, a cloudy apple juice (CloA) was effective to modulate colon cancer associated parameters in rats treated with 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH). To identify the bioactive substance classes in CloA, we fractionated CloA to yield a total polyphenol (PF) and a cloud (CF) fraction consisting of proteins, fatty acids, polyphenols, and cell wall polysaccharides. Rats received water (control (Cont)) or CloA, PF, and CF separate or combined (PF-CF) ad libitum for 7 weeks starting one week before the first DMH-injection. As determined by comet assay, the DMH-induced genotoxicity in colonocytes of controls (Cont/DMH: 7.7 +/- 0.5%) was significantly reduced by CloA (3.3 +/- 0.3%) but not by any of the fractions. The crypt cell proliferation induced by DMH (Cont/NaCl: 7.5 +/- 0.6%; Cont/DMH: 14.9 +/- 0.8%) was significantly decreased by CloA (9.4 +/- 0.4%), PF (12.4 +/- 0.7%), CF (11.6 +/- 0.4%), and PF-CF (12.4 +/- 0.6%). Although not statistically significant, CloA tended to reduce the number of large aberrant crypt foci (ACF) (Cont/DMH: 19.0 +/- 3.7; CloA/DMH: 12.3 +/- 1.9), while none of the fractions affected ACFs. Neither CloA nor the fractions changed mRNAs of colonic cyclooxygenases (COX-1, COX-2), glutathione-associated enzymes (GST-M2, gamma-GCS, GST-P), the splenocyte CD4/CD8 ratio, natural killer cell activity, and plasma antioxidant status. These results demonstrate that CloA had a higher cancer-preventive potential than the fractions and further, besides PF, identified CF as an additional bioactive fraction of CloA.     

Sporenverteilung des Echten Mehltaus im Hopfen ausgehend von Infektionsherden und Abhängigkeit vom Vegetationsstadium

In order to assess the potential of infection of hop powdery mildew it is important to know the spore dissemination coming from different sources. Overwintering via cleitothecia is not provable in experiments. So wild hops, not correctly cleared cultural hops and non-cultivation hops are potential carriers of powdery mildew which is overwintering via mycel. In 2007 we found a source which has infected an area of about 30?ha cultural hops. By the observation of infections in these hop gardens we found that half of the amount of conidia is in a distance of 9,55?m away from the source. In a smaller dimension we counted the amount of conidia around one single plant in a commercial hop garden by a special spore trap. In the single plant the amount of spores is lower than outside, while it is decreasing in a higher distance from the single plant. Analysing the micro spore dissemination in a single plant there was a big diversity of the amount of spores because of the complex architecture of the hop plants. Further studies showed that the susceptibility of hop is much higher in May than later in the year. Thus, statistically a lower amount of conidia is needed for one complete infection. However, a lower amount of conidia can easily be transported for long distances by wind. As a result a source of powdery mildew in a long distance from the cultural hops is a serious danger for the commercial hop gardens early in the year. Later each source of conidia looses its influence nearly completely.