Organically fertilized onions (Allium cepa L.): effects of the fertilizer placement method on quercetin content and soil nitrogen dynamics

Field-cured onions cv. Hyskin ( Allium cepa L.) supplied with organic nitrogen fertilizer were studied. The fertilizer was applied by broadcasting and harrowing, broadcasting and rotary cultivation, or placement between rows. Nitrogen dynamics were monitored throughout the growing season by soil sampling. Variation in quercetin content in the onion scales was analyzed by HPLC. The organically fertilized onions were compared with inorganically fertilized onions grown in the same field. Inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in the row at sowing or during commercial transplant production was tested but did not significantly affect mycorrhizal root colonization levels in the field. Onions that received no fertilizer at all or that had fertilizer placed between rows had better establishment, probably due to more favorable soil nitrogen concentrations for seedling emergence. Broadcast application led to higher nitrogen concentration in the root zone, resulting in fewer but larger individual onions. Quercetin levels were not significantly altered as a result of nitrogen fertilizer source (inorganic or organic), application method, or mycorrhizal inoculation. However, variation between years was significant, with quercetin levels in 2004 almost twice as high as those in 2005.     

Potential of dry fractionation of wheat bran for the development of food ingredients,part II: Electrostatic separation of particles

Wheat bran is a composite material made of several layers, such as pericarp, testa and aleurone. It could be fractionated into purified fractions, which might either be used as food ingredients, or serve as a starting material for extraction of bioactive compounds. The aim of this work was to evaluate the potential of using electrostatic separation as a way to obtain purified fractions from wheat bran. Ultrafine-ground bran obtained either by cryogenic grinding or by grinding at ambient temperature was used as starting material. The ultrafine bran was then charged by tribo-electrification and introduced in a chamber containing two high voltage electrodes, where bran particles were separated depending on their acquired charge, allowing positively and negatively charged fractions to be collected separately. The particle size distribution, microstructure and biochemical composition of the obtained fractions were studied. The charge of the particles was influenced by their biochemical composition: particles rich in highly branched and cross-linked arabinoxylans (pericarp) were separated from particles rich in β-glucan, ferulic acid and para-coumaric acid (aleurone cell walls). The testa and the intracellular compounds from aleurone were not highly charged, neither positively nor negatively. The most positively charged fraction represented 34% of the initial bran, and contained 62% of the ferulic acid present in the initial bran. The yield of the separation process was good (5.4% loss), and could be further increased.     

Right flank laparotomy and abomasotomy for removal of a phytobezoar in a standing cow

A 4.5-year-old Holstein-Friesian cow underwent surgery because of left abomasal displacement. Intra-operative palpation of the pyloric region revealed a phytobezoar. The abomasum containing the phytobezoar was exteriorized, and an incision was made directly over the mass in the region of the greater curvature of the pyloric part of the abomasum.     

Development, characterization and diagnostic application of a monoclonal antibody specific for a proteinase K resistant Lawsonia intracellularis antigen

Proliferative enteropathy (PE) is one of the most important infections in pigs caused by Lawsonia intracellularis, an obligate intracellular bacterium. The purpose of the present investigation was to develop monoclonal antibodies with specificity to L. intracellularis useful both for diagnostic purposes (by immunohistochemistry) and for bacterial characterization. Several antibody producing hybridomas were established by fusion of mouse myeloma with spleen cells from BALB/c mice immunized with mucosa scrapings of the intestinal mucosa from a L. intracellularis infected pig. A monoclonal antibody (mAb), Law1-DK, isotyped as IgG2b was selected by indirect immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT). Histological sections of the intestines from pigs affected by proliferative enteropathy and in vitro grown bacteria in cell culture were tested positive for the presence of L. intracellularis with the mAb. A molecule at 21 kDa was recognized by the mAb in a Western blotting analysis when a whole-cell preparation of L. intracellularis was run on a sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). This antigen was released from L. intracellularis by mild heat treatment and was resistant to proteinase K digestion, suggesting it to be non-protein, e.g., lipopolysaccharide (LPS). This suggestion was supported by its presence in the aqueous phase of a phenol-water extract. The inhibitory effect of periodate oxidation on the antigen-antibody binding confirmed the participation of a carbohydrate epitope. The new mAb was tested highly specific for L. intracellularis by applying in situ hybridization with a L. intracellularis specific probe targeting 16S ribosomal RNA simultaneously with the IFAT.     

Endosperm and aleurone cell structure in barley and wheat as studied by optical and Raman microscopy

Grain ultrastructure is of utmost importance when designing grain processing procedures in the food industry. In this study, wheat and barley grain components were localised using optical and Raman microscopy. The optical microscopic analyses were performed using several selective stains to localise β-glucan, protein and starch or autofluorescence to image the ferulic acid and other fluorescing substances. Alternatively, Raman microscopy was applied to localise the grain components without any need for preceding staining or other sample pretreatment. Both methods provided consistent information on the grain structures, illustrating the distribution of polysaccharides, aromatics and protein in endosperm and aleurone layers. In aleurone layers of both barley and wheat, a distinct difference between the anticlinal and periclinal cell walls was observed. The anticlinal cell walls were enriched with aromatic substances which were present in remarkably lower concentrations in the inner periclinal cell walls but for barley, an even higher concentration in the outer periclinal cell wall was observed. In addition, Raman spectroscopy illustrated the detailed distribution of substances across the aleurone cell walls: β-glucan was adjacent to proteins and it was deficient in the middle lamella whereas arabinoxylan was enriched in the outer cell wall layers and middle lamella.     

用ISSR标记技术分析中国和瑞典甘蓝型油菜的遗传多样性

 利用ISSR(inter simplesequencerepeats)技术比较了 2 4份中国半冬性、瑞典冬性和瑞典春性油菜的遗传多样性。 2 0个引物扩增出了 12 5条多态性带。UPGMA聚类分析将 2 4份材料分为 3组。第一组为 6份瑞典冬性和 8份中国半冬性材料 ,第二组为 2个中国半冬性材料湘油 15号和保 81,第三组为 8份瑞典春性材料。主成分分析结果与聚类分析结果相似 ,表明研究所用中国半冬性、瑞典冬性和瑞典春性 3类材料彼此间区分明显 ,中国半冬性油菜与瑞典冬性油菜的遗传关系比与瑞典春性油菜的关系近。结果显示 ,ISSR技术是估计油菜种质资源遗传多样性的有效手段     

A polymorphism within the G6PC2 gene is associated with fasting plasma glucose levels

Several studies have shown that healthy individuals with fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels at the high end of the normal range have an increased risk of mortality. To identify genetic determinants that contribute to interindividual variation in FPG, we tested 392,935 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 654 normoglycemic participants for association with FPG, and we replicated the most strongly associated SNP (rs560887, P = 4 x 10(-7)) in 9353 participants. SNP rs560887 maps to intron 3 of the G6PC2 gene, which encodes glucose-6-phosphatase catalytic subunit-related protein (also known as IGRP), a protein selectively expressed in pancreatic islets. This SNP was associated with FPG (linear regression coefficient beta = -0.06 millimoles per liter per A allele, combined P = 4 x 10(-23)) and with pancreatic beta cell function (Homa-B model, combined P = 3 x 10(-13)) in three populations; however, it was not associated with type 2 diabetes risk. We speculate that G6PC2 regulates FPG by modulating the set point for glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in pancreatic beta cells.     

The mineral content affects vertebral morphology in underyearling smolt of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.)

This study investigated the individual variation in vertebral morphology and mineral content (as % of bone dry weight) in rapid growing underyearling smolt (n = 33) twelve weeks after transfer to seawater. The smolt, which were reared in triplicate tanks, had a large individual variation in vertebral bone mineral content (Tank A: 36.2% min, 45.2% max, 39.6% mean. Tank B: 32.6% min, 46.6% max, 40.0% mean. Tank C: 38.5% min, 47.9% max, 42.4% mean), and were subdivided into two groups based on mean within each tank: high mineral content (HMC, above tank mean, n = 15) and low mineral content (LMC, below tank mean, n = 18). Vertebrae of smolt with a low mineral content were more compressed in the anterior–posterior direction (HMC vertebral length/dorso-ventral diameter ratio 0.83, LMC 0.80). This was related to a change in the growth direction of the vertebral cone. This change occurred around transfer to seawater and was characterised by an increased angle between the wall of the cone of the vertebrae and the cranial–caudal axis, and gave the vertebrae a compressed appearance. Smolt with a high mineral content were significantly longer (HMC 28.1 cm, LMC 26.5 cm) and heavier (HMC 270 g, LMC 210 g) twelve weeks after transfer to seawater.     

Endocrine growth regulation of adult Atlantic salmon in seawater: The effects of light regime on plasma growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor-I, and insulin levels

Plasma growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), and insulin were measured in two groups of Salmo salar L. during a one-year study. The fish were reared under either a simulated natural photoperiod (SNP) from January to December or a regime of continuous light from January to June, followed by SNP until December (LL/SNP). Plasma GH levels during spring were low, and lower in the LL/SNP fish (< 0.9 ng ml^− 1) than in the SNP fish (> 1.9 ng ml^− 1), although the LL/SNP grew better (0.8% per day) than the SNP fish (0.5% per day). Plasma IGF-I levels increased transiently from January (64.7 ng ml^− 1) to maximum in late September in the LL/SNP (85.8 ng ml^− 1) and in November in the SNP group (87.3 ng ml^− 1). The ratio GH:IGF-I was lower in the LL/SNP group during spring when this group grew better than the SNP group.