Exchangeable Ca,Mg, and K of rock fragments and fine earth from sandstone and siltstone derived soils and their availability to grass

Rock fragments (particles > 2 mm) are usually considered chemically inert for plant growth. In this paper, the potential fertility in terms of exchangeable Ca, Mg, and K of rock fragments from sandstone and siltstone derived soils from northern Apennines (Italy) is reported and contrasted with that of the fine earth (particles < 2 mm). The results show that rock fragments are a source of Ca, Mg, and K. When expressed on a volume basis, the abundance of these exchangeable nutrients sometimes may equal or surpass that of the fine earth. The plant uptake of Mg and K has been demonstrated in growth experiments with Agrostis under controlled conditions.     

Blue-green endoscopy in a dog presenting chronic vomiting-regurgitation

A 2-year-old male Maremma sheepdog presenting with chronic vomiting-regurgitation was examined at the University Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Camerino University. An oesophagogastroscopy with a single blue + green (BG) filter restricting wavelengths from 400 to 550 nm was carried out. A conventional white light endoscopy showed a dilated oesophagus with mildly diffuse erythematous mucosa (more accentuated proximal to the cardia); some portions of the gastric mucosa were covered with fluids and appeared only slightly erythematous. A blue green endoscopy highlighted the oesophageal lesions in dark blue, which made them appear more clearly defined from the remaining mucosa. In the gastric antrum, a small, slightly darker blue roundish area was visible. This area did not show up under the white light endoscopy. A histopathological assessment of biopsy specimens from the distal oesophagus, antrum (including the area highlighted only by BG endoscopy) and gastric body showed chronic-active hyperplastic esophagitis and superficial squamous epithelial dysplasia, while gastric samples showed severe diffuse hyperaemic gastritis of the antrum and superficial diffuse atrophy of the gastric body. The authors believe that the use of a BG endoscopy could be useful in veterinary medicine to increase the diagnostic potential of endoscopic assessment in animals.     

Variation in nitrogen supply changes water-use efficiency of Pseudotsuga menziesii and Populus x euroamericana; a comparison of three approaches to determine water-use efficiency

We studied the effects of three nitrogen (N) supply rates (low, intermediate and high) on Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) seedlings and poplar clone "I-214" (Populus x euroamericana (Dole) Guinier) cuttings growing in mini-stands. Our specific objectives were to: (1) evaluate the effects of N supply on water-use efficiency (WUE) and biomass production; (2) determine if N affects WUE through control of carbon assimilation rates or through stomatal control of water loss; and (3) compare three methods of estimating WUE: one short-term method (WUE(i), based on gas exchange measurements) and two long-term methods (WUE(T), based on the ratio between biomass production and transpired water, and Delta, based on leaf carbon isotope discrimination tested as a proxy of WUE). In both species, biomass production, WUE(i) and WUE(T) increased with increasing N supply, but there was no effect of N supply on either transpiration or stomatal conductance and Delta was negatively related to leaf N concentration. Plots of Delta versus both WUE(i) and WUE(T) revealed negative trends, but the regression between WUE(i) and Delta was significant only for Douglas-fir, and the regression between WUE(T) and Delta was significant only for poplar. Thus, the mechanisms underlying the response of WUE to N supply were mainly related to a positive effect of N supply on photosynthetic rates. The data confirm that carbon isotope discrimination may be a useful proxy of WUE. The finding that N availability enhances both biomass production and WUE may have practical implications in regions where these factors impose constraints on forest productivity.     

Leaf morphology and chemistry in Fagus sylvatica (beech) trees as affected by site factors and ozone: results from CONECOFOR permanent monitoring plots in Italy

During summer 2001, leaf samples were collected from seven beech stands that are part of the Italian network of permanent monitoring plots (CONECOFOR). In each plot, sun leaves from the upper crown were collected from five trees and subjected to chemical analysis (C, N, P, S, K, Ca and Mg) and morphological analysis (area, dry mass, thickness and thickness of individual tissues). Based on the measurements, nutrient ratios (N/C, N/K, N/P, N/Ca, N/Mg, K/Ca, Mg/Ca), sclerophylly indices (leaf mass per area (LMA) and leaf density (LD)) and nitrogen content per leaf area unit (NLA) were determined. Stomatal density was also measured. Among stands, leaf area was smallest and sclerophylly (indicated as LMA) was greatest in the southernmost stands and under drought conditions. Reduced leaf area and increased LMA also appeared to be strongly related to tropospheric ozone concentrations, whereas crown transparency was related mainly to site factors such as rainfall and temperature and, to a lesser extent, ozone concentration. The southernmost stands had a lower N/C ratio than the more northern stands, suggesting that the apoplastic fraction of cells within the leaf played a greater role. In the northern stands (especially at Lombardy and in Piedmont) where ozone concentrations were high, nutrient ratios were unbalanced and the high value of LMA appeared to be related primarily to the contribution of plasmatic components. Overall, leaf morphology was most sensitive to climate stress at the southern plots and to environmental pollution (nitrogen deposition and tropospheric ozone concentration) at some of the northern plots.     

Model aging and oxidation effects on varietal, fermentative, and sulfur compounds in a dry botrytized red wine

From harvest until wine arrives to the consumer, oxygen plays a crucial role in the definition of the final aroma. In the present research, the effect of the model oxidative aging on a dry red Botrytis wine, such as Italian Amarone, was considered. Amarone wine was submitted to model oxidative aging and then analyzed with two different approaches (SPE-GC-MS and HS-SPME/GC-MS). The same sampling plan was adopted to study the model aging of the same Amarone wine in anaerobic conditions. The HS-SPME/GC-MS method was applied to investigate for the first time the effect of the oxidative aging on a vast number of fermentative sulfur compounds. This research highlighted peculiar evolutions for several volatile compounds. In particular, benzaldehyde showed a sensitive increment during the oxidative aging, with a rate much higher than that reported for non-Botrytis red wines. On the other hand, several sulfides (dimethyl sulfide, 3-(methylthio)-1-propanol, etc.) disappeared after just 15 days of oxidative aging. A wine oxidation marker such as 3-(methylthio)-propanal was not found in any of the oxidized wines; conversely methionol-S-oxide was tentatively identified. This evidence has not been mentioned in the literature. A possible involvement of grape withering process and Botrytis in these mechanisms was supposed: a dry red wine, produced from the same but without any grape withering process and Botrytis infection (e.g., Bardolino wine), was submitted to oxidative aging and analysis. This red wine showed an evolution similar to those reported in the literature for dry red wines but significantly different from the Amarone wine.     

UNUSUAL HYPERPARATHYROIDISM IN A CAT

A 5 month-old, male, domestic short hair cat was presented with inappetence and vomiting. it was depressed and reluctant to move. The cat had difficulties in keeping the standing position and grossly deformed thighs. Lytic changes and disruption of normal architecture of the bone were observed, involving mainly the femoral diaphyses. An inverse Ca/P ratio and kidney failure were diagnosed. The possibility of whether the bone changes could have been related to primary or secondary renal hyperparathyroidism is discussed.     

Study of the cultivar-composition relationship in Sicilian olive oils by GC,NMR, and statistical methods

The aim of this research is to find if there is direct evidence relating the fatty acid composition of olive oils to specific cultivars grown within a well-limited geographical region. To group olive oils according to their own cultivars,(13)C high-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and gas chromatography (GC) were used to analyze 60 extra virgin olive oils from the same Italian region (southwestern Sicily) obtained from four monovarietal cultivars. The (13)C NMR spectrum provides information about glycerol triesters of olive oils, i.e., about the acyl composition of major components and about the fatty acids' positional distribution on the glycerol moiety. GC gives the complete fatty acid profile of olive oil samples. Selection of NMR and GC peaks on the basis of their sensitivity to the different cultivars was performed by using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Principal component analysis, tree clustering analysis, multidimensional scaling (MDS), and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) were then performed on the MANOVA-selected peaks. Results obtained from (13)C NMR and GC techniques combined with the multivariate statistical procedure are in good agreement and prove the usefulness of fatty acids analysis to group the monovarietal olive oils belonging to the same cultivars. Grouping of olive oils according to their cultivars occurs for particular (13)C resonances all belonging to fatty chains in the sn 1,3 position of the glycerol moiety.     

Determining the geographic origin of potatoes using mineral and trace element content

To characterize potatoes according to their geographic origin and variety, 10 mineral and trace elements (Mg, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Sr, Cd, and Ba) were determined in Italian potato samples. The data collected were successively elaborated using statistical techniques, namely, linear discriminant analysis (LDA). LDA was able to classify and discriminate the potatoes from Fucino both from those of other areas of Italy and from those of the four provinces of Abruzzo. A net separation between the Fucino potatoes and those of the other areas of Abruzzo was observed. LDA discriminated also the three potato varieties cultivated in the Fucino basin. The presence of these 10 mineral and trace elements was a good means for establishing the geographical place of origin of Fucino potatoes.     

Parietal lobe: from action organization to intention understanding

Inferior parietal lobule (IPL) neurons were studied when monkeys performed motor acts embedded in different actions and when they observed similar acts done by an experimenter. Most motor IPL neurons coding a specific act (e.g., grasping) showed markedly different activations when this act was part of different actions (e.g., for eating or for placing). Many motor IPL neurons also discharged during the observation of acts done by others. Most responded differentially when the same observed act was embedded in a specific action. These neurons fired during the observation of an act, before the beginning of the subsequent acts specifying the action. Thus, these neurons not only code the observed motor act but also allow the observer to understand the agent's intentions.