Maize defence mechanisms against the European corn borer,Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

Maize is arguably the most widely grown crop in the world, but it is often associated with one of its major insect pests, the European corn borer (ECB). The damage caused by this species to maize production is generally variable, but in many cases it is economically significant. This review paper provides an overview of the research findings on the natural plant defence mechanisms against ECB larvae published till now. What is resistance and how it is achieved, what is the chemical response of maize plants to insect feeding and how tolerance can be increased. A short introduction in breeding for resistance and a discussion if the mentioned traits can be used in conventional breeding in order to create maize hybrids less affected by ECB are given.     

Structural and Rheological Characteristics of Alginate from Sargassum cristaefolium Extracted by Twin Screw Extruder

This study aimed to investigate the effects of process extrusion on the characteristics of Sargassum cristaefolium sodium alginate (SCSA) extracted using twin-screw extruder. Box-Behnken Design (BBD) from response surface methodology (RSM) was established to understand the effects of temperature, screw speed, and pH on the multiple-responses of alginate characteristics including intrinsic viscosity, yield, and molecular weight. The results revealed that temperature, screw speed, and pH significantly affected (P < .05) all responses. The optimum extraction condition was found at temperature of 58.18°C, screw speed of 77.99 rpm, and pH 10.11. At this condition, the response of residence time distribution was 7.07 ± 0.029 min, yield of 34.01 ± 0.12%, intrinsic viscosity of 460.13 ± 14.75 mL/g, and molecular weight of 217.94 ± 7.14 × 10³ g/mol. This alginate had mannuronic acid to guluronic acid (M/G) ratio of 0.28, and the L-guluronic acid block was 0.78, which was higher than the D-mannuronic acid block. Rheological characterization of SCSA in aqueous solution was shear-thinning pseudoplastic, and alginate gel in 1 M CaCl₂ was more elastic than liquid.     

Effects of no‐take area size and age of marine protected areas on fisheries yields: a meta‐analytical approach

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are often promoted as tools for biodiversity conservation as well as for fisheries management. Despite increasing evidence of their usefulness, questions remain regarding the optimal design of MPAs, in particular concerning their function as fisheries management tools, for which empirical studies are still lacking. Using 28 data sets from seven MPAs in Southern Europe, we developed a meta‐analytical approach to investigate the effects of protection on adjacent fisheries and asking how these effects are influenced by MPA size and age. Southern European MPAs showed clear effects on the surrounding fisheries, on the ‘catch per unit effort’ (CPUE) of target species, but especially on the CPUE of the marketable catch. These effects depended on the time of protection and on the size of the no‐take area. CPUE of both target species and the marketable catch increased gradually by 2–4% per year over a long time period (at least 30 years). The influence of the size of the no‐take area appeared to be more complex. The catch rates of the entire fishery in and around the MPA were higher when the no‐take areas were smaller. Conversely, catch rates of selected fisheries that were expected to benefit most from protection increased when the no‐take area was larger. Our results emphasize the importance of MPA size on its export functions and suggest that an adequate, often extended, time frame be used for the management and the evaluation of effectiveness of MPAs.     

Methods of assessing extinction risk in marine fishes

The decline and disappearance of species from large parts of their former geographical range has become an important issue in fisheries ecology. There is a need to identify which species are at risk of extinction. The available approaches have been subject to considerable debate – particularly when applied to commercially exploited species. Here we have compiled methods that have been used or may be used for assessing threat status of marine organisms. We organize the methods according to the availability of data on the natural history, ecology and population biology of species. There are three general approaches to inferring or assessing extinction risk: (i) correlative approaches based on knowledge of life histories and ecology; (ii) time‐series approaches that examine changes in abundance; and (iii) demographic approaches based on age‐ or stage‐based schedules of vital rates and fisheries reference points. Many methods are well suited to species that are highly catchable and/or have relatively low productivity, but theory is less well developed for assessing extinction risk in species exhibiting narrow geographical distributions or ecological specialization. There is considerable variation in both definitions of extinction risk and the precision and defensibility of the available risk assessment methods, so we suggest a two‐tiered approach for defining and assessing extinction risk. First, simple methods requiring a few easily estimated parameters are used to triage or rapidly assess large numbers of populations and species to identify potentially vulnerable populations or species. Second, the populations and species identified as vulnerable by this process can then be subject to more detailed and rigorous population analysis explicitly considering sources of error and uncertainty.     

The Characterization of Heavy Metals in the Grapevine (Vitis vinifera) Cultivar Rkatsiteli and Wild Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus) from East Serbia by ICP-OES and BAFs

Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy, in combination with calculation of various biological factors, was used in this study not only for a simple illustration of the present status of some essential and non-essential metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), arsenic (As), and cadmium (Cd) in the grapevine cultivar Rkatsiteli and wild blackberry from East Serbia but also for the estimation of plant bioaccumulation potentials. Great majority of detected metal concentrations were in normal ranges except in few cases: Zn concentrations were at the level of deficiency in almost all plant parts, and some Cu and As concentrations were at the levels that could be considered phytotoxic. Biological accumulation factors provided very informative data on metal accumulation and translocation in both plants and pointed to low accumulation rates of metals except in the case of Cu, Zn, and As in some wild blackberry tissues.     

Environmental effects on soil NO concentrations and root N uptake in beech and spruce forests

This study aimed to investigate the shifts in net nitrogen (N) uptake and N compounds of fine roots over the vegetation period (i.e., spring, summer, autumn) and correlate this with NO concentration in the soil. Soil NO concentration was measured using gas lysimeters for collection and a chemiluminescence analyzer for quantification. Net N uptake by the roots was determined using the ¹⁵N enrichment technique. N pools were quantified using spectrophotometric techniques. Soil NO concentrations at beech and spruce forest sites were highest in spring (June), and lowest in winter (December). Total N of the roots was similar during the seasons and between the two years under study despite considerable variation of different N compounds. Net N uptake generally increased with higher N supply. Correlation analysis revealed a positive relationship between soil NO concentration and net N uptake only for spruce trees. This relationship seemed to be modulated by environmental factors and tree species.     

Plasma and urine responses are lower for acylated vs nonacylated anthocyanins from raw and cooked purple carrots

The bioavailability of acylated vs nonacylated anthocyanins and the effect of cooking and dose on the comparative bioavailability were investigated in a clinical feeding study using purple carrots as the anthocyanin source. Treatments were purple carrots as follows: 250 g raw (463 micromol of anthocyanins: 400 micromol acylated, 63 micromol nonacylated), 250 g cooked (357 micromol of anthocyanins: 308.5 micromol acylated, 48.5 micromol nonacylated), and 500 g cooked (714 micromol of anthocyanins: 617 micromol acylated, 97 micromol nonacylated). Four of the five carrot anthocyanins were found intact in plasma by 30 min after carrot consumption and peaked between 1.5 and 2.5 h. Acylation of anthocyanins resulted in an 11-14-fold decrease in anthocyanin recovery in urine and an 8-10-fold decrease in anthocyanin recovery in plasma. Cooking increased the recovery of nonacylated anthocyanins but not acylated anthocyanins. Large dose size significantly reduced recovery of both acylated and nonacylated anthocyanins, suggesting saturation of absorption mechanisms.     

Comparative study of health properties and nutritional value of durian, mangosteen, and snake fruit: experiments in vitro and in vivo

In vitro and in vivo studies of the health and nutritional properties of durian (Durio zibethinus Murr.) were compared with snake fruit (Salacca edulis Reinw.) and mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana). Dietary fibers, minerals, and trace metals were comparable. Total polyphenols (mg of GAE/100 g of FW) and flavonoids (85.1+/-6.1) were significantly higher (p<0.05) than in snake fruit (217.1+/-13.2 (mg of CE/100 g of FW)), durian (309.7+/-19.3 and 61.2+/-4.9), and mangosteen (190.3+/-12.1 and 54.1+/-3.8). Antioxidant activity (microM TE/100 g of FW) of durian measured by DPPH and ABTS assays (228.2+/-13.4 and 2016.3+/-81.1) was significantly higher (p<0.05) than in snake fruit (110.4+/-7.9 and 1507.5+/-70.1) and mangosteen (79.1+/-5.9 and 1268.6+/-62.3). HPLC/DAD analysis of durian (microg/100 g of FW) showed that quercetin (1214.23+/-116.7) was present at levels three times that of caffeic acid, and twice as high as p-coumaric and cinnamic acids. The correlation coefficients between the bioactive compounds of fruits and their antioxidant activities were high (R2=0.99). Male Wistar rats (25) were divided into five dietary groups: the control group was fed the basal diet (BD); in addition to BD, the cholesterol (Chol) group was supplemented with 1% of Chol; the diets of the Chol/Durian, Chol/Snake, and Chol/Mangosteen groups were supplemanted with 5% of these fruits, respectively. It was found that diets supplemented with durian, and to a lesser degree with snake fruit and mangosteen, significantly hindered the rise in plasma lipids and the decrease in antioxidant activity. The nutritional values were comparably high. In conclusion, it could be suggested that inclusion of studied tropical fruits, especially durian, in known disease-preventing diets could be beneficial.