For the love of goats: the advantages of alterity

Small-scale, artisanal livestock production is framed as “other” by conventional livestock producers, and rural communities. This alterity, although not without cost, allows women to be involved as active entrepreneurs and managers in artisanal livestock production and also allows farmers to pursue management strategies with the explicit purpose of enhancing animal welfare. The case study presented here, an artisanal goat dairy farm managed by three women, demonstrates that by embracing feminine care identities, these women carve a space for themselves within livestock production in which they can pursue their own economic and affective goals. Analysis of ethnographic data also demonstrates that farmers’ decision-making regarding animal production is based on both affective and instrumental concerns. If we are to understand and operationalize the affective component of farmer decision making based on the livestock–farmer relationship, we must begin to consider to what extent livestock themselves are social actors.     

Sorption and thermodynamic properties of buried juvenile <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinus sylvestris</Emphasis> L. wood aged 1,170 ± 40 BP

The hygroscopicity and thermodynamic properties of buried juvenile Pinus sylvestris L. wood with an age of 1,170 ± 40 BP were compared with the corresponding values of juvenile wood of the same species from recently cut trees. The 35 and 50°C isotherms were plotted following the saturated salts method and subsequently fitted in accordance with the GAB model. The isotherms were then compared by means of the hysteresis coefficients. X-ray diffractograms were used to analyse the crystal structure of the cellulose. The effect of time on the buried wood caused hemicelluloses degradation and a decrease in the crystallinity index and the crystallite length, resulting in an increase in the proportion of amorphous zones. Because of this, the equilibrium moisture contents of the buried wood are higher than of the recent wood, both in adsorption and desorption. In terms of the thermodynamic properties, the heat involved is greater in the buried wood than in the recent wood.     

A bayesian approach to crop Model calibration under unknown error covariance

Bayesian methods seem well adapted to dynamic system models in general and to crop models in particular, because there is in general prior information about parameter values. The usefulness of a Bayesian approach has often been pointed out, but actual applications are rather rare. A major difficulty is including the elements of the covariance matrix of model errors in the treatment. We treat the specific case of balanced data and an unstructured covariance matrix. In our particular case this is a 3 × 3 matrix. We illustrate two methods for deriving a sample from the joint posterior density for the crop model parameters and the error covariance matrix parameters. The first method is based on importance sampling, the second on Metropolis within Gibbs sampling. We derive an instrumental density for the former and a proposal density for the latter which are adapted to this type of model and data. Both algorithms work well and they give very similar results. The example concerns a model for sunflowers during rapid leaf growth. The ultimate goal is to use the model as a decision aid in predicting disease risk.     

High water content silk protein-based hydrogels with tunable elasticity fabricated via a Ru(II) mediated photochemical cross-linking method

Silk is very promising in the field of biomaterials as a natural biomacromolecule. Silk protein can be made into various forms of materials, including hydrogels. However, silk protein-based hydrogels have not attracted much attention due to its weak mechanical properties. Here, we report high water content silk protein-based hydrogels with tunable elasticity which were fabricated through Ru(II) mediated photochemically cross-linking tyrosine residues in regenerated silk protein. The regenerated silk protein was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The gelation kinetics of the silk protein was studied by rheology measurements. The compressive mechanical properties of the silk protein-based hydrogels was investigated using compressive tests and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Compressive modulus of the hydrogels reached 349±64 MPa at 15 % strain. The fabricated silk protein-based hydrogels were also characterized by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), revealing an interconnected porous network structure, typical of hydrogels, with an average pore size of approximately 130 μm. Finally, biocompatibility of the silk protein-based hydrogels was demonstrated through cell culture studies using a human fibroblast cell line, HFL1. The reported silk protein-based hydrogels represent a promising candidate for biomaterial applications.     

Artificial polyploidy in medicinal plants: Advancement in the last two decades and impending prospects

Medicinal plants are in huge demand since the consumption is widespread and ever-increasing globally. The conventional breeding programs are generally environmental dependent; prone to different biotic and abiotic stresses as well as the secondary metabolite content is too low to harvest. In this context, developing polyploid individuals artificially would be a remarkable approach to increase vigor and attain this objective. Polyploids often exhibit some morphological features that are different or greater in forms than their diploid progenies. Polyploidization can be induced by quite a few antimitotic agents. The most frequently used antimitotic chemicals are colchicine, trifluralin, and oryzalin. The whole method of induced chromosome doubling consists of a series of steps, including an induction phase, regrowth phase, and a confirmation technique to evaluate the rate of achievement. The induction phase depends on different factors, such as explant types, antimitotic agents, its different concentrations, and exposure durations. To evaluate the accomplishment of polyploidization, morphological or anatomical observations are recorded as a rapid method. However, chromosome count and flow cytometry are the most eminent method for absolute confirmation. Despite significant prospects of polyploidization, there has been very little research on medicinal plants. The current review gives an overview of the different parameters of in vitro chromosome doubling, the history of the technique, and progress made over the last two decades.     

Multilocus sequence analysis supports a low genetic diversity among ‘<Emphasis Type="Italic">Candidatus</Emphasis> Phytoplasma australasia’ related strains infecting vegetable crops and periwinkle in Egypt

‘Candidatus Phytoplasma australasia’ causes important damages to the Egyptian vegetable crop production. A prerequisite for controlling the different diseases it causes to eggplant, tomato and squash, is to trace its propagation pathways. To allow the differentiation of ‘Ca. P. australasia’ strains, a multilocus sequence analysis protocol was developed. Four conserved phytoplama genes namely tuf, secY, dnaK and dppA, were selected among the CDS of a ‘Ca. P. aurantifolia’ genome draft. The corresponding genes were PCR amplified from tomato, eggplant and squash collected in 2010 from the governorates Sharkia, Elmynia and Beni sueif, as well as from Catharanthus roseus periwinkles collected in 2013 from Kafrelsheikh governorate. Sequence comparisons showed no diversity among the Egyptian isolates of ‘Ca. P. australasia’ that also constitute a distinct cluster within the 16SrII-D taxonomic subgroup. This low diversity supports a common epidemiology for the different diseases affecting vegetable crops and periwinkle in Egypt and suggests that future investigations on insect vector should focus on polyphagous leafhoppers.     

Reaction of glucosinolate-myrosinase defence system in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica</Emphasis> plants to pathogenicity factor of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis>

The glucosinolate-myrosinase defence system, specific to Brassicales plants, produces toxic volatile compounds during mechanical injury or pathogen attack. The reaction of this system to oxalic acid, known as a pathogenicity factor of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is not fully understood. The hydrolysis of glucosinolates was studied at varying conditions in the presence of oxalic acid in the substrate. In a bioassay, colonies of the pathogen were exposed to volatiles from hydrated mustard powder used as a myrosinase and glucosinolate source. The glucosinolate-myrosinase (GSL-M) system was activated in the presence of oxalic acid at a concentration and pH similar to that expected in vivo. Volatile production was inhibited only when the pH fell to 3 or below. It is unlikely that oxalic acid plays a significant role in disarming the GSL-M system during infection of Brassica hosts.     

Ectomycorrhizal communities in a Mediterranean forest ecosystem dominated by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Quercus ilex</Emphasis>: seasonal dynamics and response to drought in the surface organic horizon

• Introduction   

Millions of hectares of Quercus ilex forests dominate disturbed landscapes in the western part of the Mediterranean basin. Although these forests are very widespread, little is known about the composition and structure of their associated ectomycorrhizal fungal communities.