Identification of feline monocytes and neutrophils as effector cells in antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity: sequential analysis, using light microscopy, histochemistry, and scanning electron microscopy

Feline monocytes and neutrophils functioned as effector cells in antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) against antibody-coated chicken erythrocytes. Using light microscopy, effector cell populations were identified in effector-target cell interactions, with further characterization of these identical individual effector cells by histochemical evaluations and scanning electron microscopy. Monocytes and neutrophils, but not lymphocytes, were observed attacking target cells. Carbonyl iron depletion of monocytes and neutrophils from peripheral blood leukocytes caused a marked reduction from a mean of 62% to 3.6% lysis in ADCC as measured by a 4-hour 51Cr release assay. Effector cells functioning in the ADCC reaction were visualized, using sequential analysis and light microscopy, histochemistry, and scanning electron microscopy.     

Population dynamics and interactions between endemic entomopathogenic nematodes and annual bluegrass weevil populations in golf course turfgrass

Entomopathogenic nematodes (Rhabditida: Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae) (EPNs) are generalist obligate pathogens present in the soil of most ecosystems. They have the potential to infect a broad host range, yet the potential for endemic EPNs to regulate soil-dwelling insect populations has received limited attention. We investigated the population dynamics of endemic EPNs to determine their ability to regulate annual bluegrass weevil (Listronotus maculicollis) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) populations, a major pest of turfgrass in the northeastern United States. Weekly sampling of nematode and L. maculicollis populations was conducted in untreated fairway transects on three golf courses in New Jersey between April and October of 2006 and 2007. Steinernema carpocapsae and Heterorhabditis bacteriophora were found infecting all weevil stages from third instar to teneral adults. Both EPN species exhibited a distinct seasonality, appearing in high densities in the weeks immediately following high densities of first generation weevils in the soil. A positive temporal relationship was observed between densities of EPN-infected weevils and weevil stages between third instar and pupa, but L. maculicollis generational mortality due to EPN infection was highly variable between years and sites, ranging between 0 and 50%. Although infection densities and larval densities were positively correlated, per capita mortality did not increase with increased weevil densities. EPN distribution dynamically cycled between aggregated and uniform throughout the season across fairways. Few significant relationships were found to support the hypothesis that weevil spatial dispersion influences EPN spatial dispersion. The variability in EPN seasonal occurrence and generational impact on L. maculicollis together with the lack of spatial association with L. maculicollis suggest an inability of endemic EPN populations to reliably regulate weevil populations on golf course fairways.     

Schäden an Walnüssen durch Eichhorn und Specht

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Performance of the Biocontrol Fungus Piriformospora indica on Wheat Under Greenhouse and Field Conditions

ABSTRACT The endophyte Piriformospora indica colonizes roots of a range of host plants and increases biomass production and resistance to fungal pathogens and, thus has been considered a biocontrol fungus. However, the field performance of this fungus has not yet been tested in temperate climates. Therefore, we evaluated the performance of this fungus in different substrata under greenhouse and practical field conditions. Roots of winter wheat were colonized efficiently, and biomass was particularly increased on poor substrata. In greenhouse experiments, symptom severity of a typical leaf (Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici), stem base (Pseudocercosporella herpotrichoides), and root (Fusarium culmorum) pathogen was reduced significantly. However, in field experiments, symptoms caused by the leaf pathogen did not differ in Piriformospora indica-colonized compared with control plants. In the field, Pseudocercosporella herpotrichoides disease severity was significantly reduced in plants colonized by the endophyte. Increased numbers of sheath layers and hydrogen peroxide concentrations after B. graminis attack were detected in Piriformospora indica-colonized plants, suggesting that root colonization causes induction of systemic resistance or priming of the host plant. Although the endophyte is not well suited for growth at Central European temperature conditions, it remains to be shown whether P. indica is more suitable for tropical or subtropical farming.     

Correction to: Agroforestry can enhance foraging and nesting resources for pollinators with focus on solitary bees at the landscape scale

Agroforestry Systems - A correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10457-021-00641-7