Analysis of genetic diversity among Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid. isolates from Euro-Asian countries

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The study assessed the genetic variability among Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid. isolates originating from six different countries (Turkey,...     

Assessment of the retardation of selected herbicides onto Danube sediment based on small column tests

Journal of Soils and Sediments - This study utilizes column tests to investigate the retardation of certain herbicides with different hydrophobicities (atrazine, alachlor and trifluralin) during...     

Impact of controlled redox conditions on nickel in a serpentine soil

Purpose  

Serpentine soils exist in many regions around the world; they are naturally enriched with nickel (Ni). An adequate understanding of soil processes determining Ni solubility is a special need particularly since less research has been addressed to Ni behavior under dynamic and controlled redox conditions. Our aim was (1) to characterize the properties of a serpentine soil and (2) to determine the impact of predefined redox windows on the mobility and dynamics of Ni in a serpentine soil.     

Changes in the content of free sulphydryl groups during postharvest wheat and flour maturation and their influence on technological quality

The main aim of this study was to determine the changes in free sulphydryl content during postharvest wheat and flour maturation. The content of free sulphydryl groups was determined from wet gluten over 50 days of wheat postharvest maturation and over 14 days of flour maturation by varying incubation temperatures (30 and 37 °C) and incubation times (0, 45, 90 and 135 min). The amount of free sulphydryl groups increased during postharvest wheat and flour maturation as well as with the increase in temperature and gluten incubation time. The additional aim of this study was to find the interrelation between the content of free sulphydryl groups and selected parameters of technological quality by means of Principal Component Analysis. During wheat/flour maturation, the strengthening of protein structure was observed manifested by the increase in gluten index and Mixolab protein network weakening (C2), and changes in dough resistance as well. The incubation temperature of 37 °C affected the weakening of protein structure manifested by the decrease in gluten index and resistance, and increase in extensibility. Strong differentiation of examined varieties in terms of selected quality indicators was observed upon pre-defined maturation period, probably due to the expression of their intrinsic properties.     

Effects of root exudates and humic substances on weathering kinetics

The effect of complex natural organic ligands on the weathering kinetics of aluminum oxide was investigated in laboratory experiments. A peat-derived humic substance and root exudates obtained from ectomycorrhizal (Picea abies — Hebeloma crustuliniforme) and non-mycorrhizal Norway Spruce trees; and γ-Al₂O₃ were used as a model system. The experimental weathering rates are in accordance with a surface-controlled dissolution mechanism. The effect of the humic material on dissolution rates appears to depend on the degree of protonation of the humic (macro)molecules: we observed dissolution-enhancement or -inhibition at pH 3 and 4, respectively. Ectomycorrhizal exudates proved to be effective weathering agents at pH 4, as opposed to humic material and non-mycorrhizal exudates. Our results suggest that (i) the role of humic materials in mineral weathering and podzolization is different from what is commonly thought, and (ii) mineral weathering rates in the rhizosphere may be higher than in the bulk soil.     

Curcumin,a Compound from Natural Sources,a True Scientific Challenge – A Review

Curcumin, a plant-derived polyphenolic compound, naturally present in turmeric (Curcuma longa), has been the subject of intensive investigations on account of its various activities. The implementation of safe, beneficial and highly functional compounds from natural sources in human nutrition/prevention/therapy requires some modifications in order to achieve their multi-functionality, improve their bioavailability and delivery strategies, with the main aim to enhance their effectiveness. The low aqueous solubility of curcumin, its rapid metabolism and elimination from the body, and consequently, poor bioavailability, constitute major obstacles to its application. The main objectives of this review are related to reported strategies to overcome these limitations and, thereby, improve the solubility, stability and bioavailability of curcumin. The effectiveness of curcumin could be greatly improved by using nanoparticle-based carriers. The significance of the quality of a substance delivery system is reflected in the fact that carrying curcumin as a food additive/nutrition also means carrying the active biological product/drug. This review summarizes the state of the art, and highlights some examples and the most significant advances in the field of curcumin research.     

A new<Emphasis Type="Italic">Aphidius</Emphasis> species (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae) from high-montane areas of southeastern Europe

Aphidius montenegrinus sp.n. from Serbia and Montenegro is described and illustrated. It parasitizedAcyrthosiphon daphnidis Ilharco, onDaphne alpina L. The parasitoid was described and illustrated using scanning electron microscope photographs and line drawing. The new species is a member of theAcyrthosiphon aphid parasitoid guild and was collected from Zabojsko Jezero Lake in Montenegro. The parasitoid and the hyperparasitoid spectrum ofA. daphnidis are presented for the first time. http://www.phytoparasitica.org posting April 30, 2004.     

Study of the genetic variability of porcine circovirus type 2 detected in Serbia and Slovenia

Recent variants of porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) were obtained from tissues of domestic pigs with porcine circovirus associated disease and from randomly selected wild boar samples from Serbia and Slovenia. A 450-base-pair nucleotide sequence was obtained by PCR from the ORF2. The derived nucleotide and amino acid sequences were aligned and compared to the corresponding region of closely related PCV2 sequences determined in previous years and retrieved from the GenBank. The 30 Serbian and 17 Slovenian PCV2 sequences clustered into three previously determined genotypes (PCV2a: 7), (PCV2b: 38) and (PCV2d: 2). Three major variable regions, concerning 29 amino acid position substitutions within the ORF2, were observed, which further supports the segregation of the detected strains into three separate genotypes. This study indicates that PCV2b is the predominant genotype in Serbia and Slovenia and the detected PCV2 strains are closely related to those previously described in Europe and in other parts of the world.     

N. femoralis, N. obturatorius and N. ischiadicus: deviation in creation in the dogs

Two hundred and twelve dog cadavers belonging to different breeds were examined, to investigate the formation of the femoral, obturator and the sciatic nerve. Besides the commonly described formation patterns of the mentioned nerves, some variations were also found. These variations were not gender-related, but on the other hand we discovered a certain correlation between the variations appearing in the formation of the femoral, obturator and the sciatic nerve. In 74.05% of cases, the femoral nerve was formed from ventral branches of the 4th, 5th and 6th lumbar nerve, and 16.98% of the dogs had the nerve formed from ventral branches of the 3rd, 4th and 5th lumbar nerve. Many dogs (i.e. 2.30%) had the femoral nerve formed from the ventral branches of the 5th, 6th and 7th, the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th or the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th lumbar nerve, respectively. In 1.88% of dogs in particular, the femoral nerve was formed from ventral rami of the 4th and 5th lumbar nerve. In 66.98% of the examined dogs, the obturator nerve was formed from the ventral branches of the 4th, 5th and 6th lumbar nerve, followed by 16.59% of the dogs with the obturator nerve formed from the ventral rami of the 4th and 5th lumbar nerve and 9.43% of dogs in which the nerve was formed from the ventral branches of the 5th and 6th lumbar nerve. In 4.71% of dogs, the obturator nerve was formed from the ventral rami of the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th lumbar nerve, while only 2.30% of the examined dogs had the same nerve formed from the ventral branches of the 5th, 6th and 7th lumbar nerve. The sciatic nerve was formed from ventral branches of the 6th and 7th lumbar nerve and the 1st sacral nerve in 86.79% of the dogs. In 5.18% of cases, the same nerve was formed from a junction of the ventral branches of the 7th lumbar and the 1st and 2nd sacral nerve, and, in the same percentage of cases, it was formed from a junction of ventral branches of the 6th and 7th lumbar nerve and the 1st and 2nd sacral nerve. In 2.83% of the dogs, it was formed from a junction of the ventral branches of the 6th and 7th lumbar and the 1st sacral nerve. The correlation of variations established in the formation of the femoral, obturator and the sciatic nerve was not statistically significant.     

Bemerkungen über die Populationsbewegungen der Mittelmeerfruchtfliege (Ceratitis capitata Vied.) an der jugoslawischen Adriaküste

Zusammenfassung Untersuchungen über den Massenwechsel und die Biologie der MittelmeerfruchtfliegeCeratitis capitata Vied. während der letzen 5 Jahre führten zu folgenden Ergebnissen:1. Die Mittelmeerfruchtfliege, die bis 1947 in ganz Jugoslawien unbekannt war, kommt seit mindestens zehn Jahren auch an der Adriaküste vor.2. Erst im Jahre 1958 erwies sich die Fruchtfliege als Schädling verschiedener Obstarten.3. Wie aus Beobachtungen in Obstanlagen an der Adriaküste hervorgeht, befällt die Fliege in erster Linie Pfirsich, ferner auch Birne, Kaki, Feige, Apfel, Pflaume, Orange und grünen Paprika. Im Laboratorium gelang die Zucht außerdem noch an Banane, nicht aber an Tomate und Trauben.4. ObwohlC. capitata ein polyphages Insekt ist, befällt sie an einigen Stellen, wo sie regelmäßig große Häufigkeit aufweist, nur Pfirsich (Split, Debeli Rti) bzw. nur Kaki (Ankaran). In manchen Obstgärten lebt sie aber an verschiedenen Früchten (Podstrana, Stroanac). Es gibt bei der Fruchtfliege also auf Obstarten spezialisierte Populationen und solche, die an verschiedenen Obstarten vorkommen.5. Unter den in unserem Küstenland herrschenden Klimabedingungen kann die Fruchtfliege in einem Jahr 4–5 Generationen entwickeln. Die Herbstgeneration verpuppt sich Ende Oktober/Anfang November in der Erde, die Imagines verlassen bis Januar die Puppen und warten auf das Reifen der ersten, frühen Pfirsichsorten. Die gleiche Überwinterungsweise wurde auch an der Olivenfliege beobachtet.6. Mit Angelica-Öl versehene Fanggläser brachten nur zum Teil befriedigende Ergebnisse, da dieser Lockstoff nur die Männchen anzieht, aber auch nur in der Zeit, in der die Fliegen überhaupt selten sind. Im Spätsommer und Herbst wirkt ein aus Kleie und Biammonphosphat bereiteter Köder auf beide Geschlechter stark anlockend.