Determination of chlorate and chlorite and mutagenicity of seafood treated with aqueous chlorine dioxide.

The use of chlorine dioxide (ClO(2)) as a potential substitute for aqueous chlorine to improve the quality of seafood products has not been approved by regulatory agencies due to health concerns related to the production of chlorite (ClO(2)(-)) and chlorate (ClO(3)(-)) as well as possible mutagenic/carcinogenic reaction products. Cubes of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and red grouper (Epinephelus morio) were treated with 20 or 200 ppm aqueous chlorine or ClO(2) solutions for 5 min, and extracts of the treated fish cubes and test solutions were checked for mutagenicity using the Ames Salmonella/microsome assay. No mutagenic activity was detected in the treated fish samples or test solutions with ClO(2). Only the sample treated with 200 ppm chlorine showed weak mutagenic activity toward S. typhimurium TA 100. No chlorite residue was detected in sea scallops, mahi-mahi, or shrimp treated with ClO(2) at 3.9-34.9 ppm. However, low levels of chlorate residues were detected in some of the treated samples. In most cases, the increase in chlorate in treated seafood was time- and dose-related.     

Identification of eggs from different production systems based on hyperspectra and CS-SVM

1. To identify the origin of table eggs more accurately, a method based on hyperspectral imaging technology was studied.

2. The hyperspectral data of 200 samples of intensive and extensive eggs were collected. Standard normalised variables combined with a Savitzky–Golay were used to eliminate noise, then stepwise regression (SWR) was used for feature selection. Grid search algorithm (GS), genetic search algorithm (GA), particle swarm optimisation algorithm (PSO) and cuckoo search algorithm (CS) were applied by support vector machine (SVM) methods to establish an SVM identification model with the optimal parameters. The full spectrum data and the data after feature selection were the input of the model, while egg category was the output.

3. The SWR–CS–SVM model performed better than the other models, including SWR–GS–SVM, SWR–GA–SVM, SWR–PSO–SVM and others based on full spectral data. The training and test classification accuracy of the SWR–CS–SVM model were respectively 99.3% and 96%.

4. SWR–CS–SVM proved effective for identifying egg varieties and could also be useful for the non-destructive identification of other types of egg.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">N</Emphasis>-acyl-homoserine lactone-mediated quorum sensing blockage,a novel strategy for attenuating pathogenicity of Gram-negative bacterial plant pathogens

Quorum sensing is a bacterial communication mechanism by which bacteria sense their own population size and couple specific gene expression to cell density. In Gram-negative bacteria, the most commonly used quorum sensing signals are N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHLs). It is now apparent that many pathogenic bacteria employ quorum sensing to control premature expression of virulence factors. This control is thought to decrease the likelihood that the plant host would detect the pathogens presence and activate its defense system. Novel strategies that target bacterial quorum sensing systems in order to control plant bacterial diseases are discussed.     

Seasonal patterns of dispersal of ascospores of Cryphonectria parasitica (chestnut blight)

Infected barks of chestnut blight cankers, caused by Cryphonectria parasitica , were collected from a naturally infected orchard and incubated at different temperatures. Cankers started to discharge ascospores about a week after incubation at 15–25°C; most ascospores were collected at 20 and 25°C. When incubated at 5, 10 or 30°C, only a few cankers released a small number of ascospores and only during the later stages of incubation. However, the rate of formation of perithecia was not affected by the incubation temperature. The number of airborne ascospores was monitored using a volumetric spore trap in a chestnut orchard during 1996 and 1997. In both years, the number of ascospores trapped daily varied greatly, but in general it increased sharply from March onwards, reached a peak in May, and then declined steeply. There was a significant correlation between daily counts of ascospores and air temperature. Time-series transfer function (TF) analysis showed a positive association of the daily number of ascospores with increasing temperature, rain events and wet/humid conditions. In general, values predicted by the TF model agreed well with the observed pattern. However, a multiple regression equation based on TF analysis failed to provide a satisfactory prediction of the daily number of ascospores.     

Evapotranspiration and crop coefficient of Populus euphratica Oliv forest during the growing season in the extreme arid region northwest China

Based on successive observation, fifteen-day evapotranspiration (ET_c) of Populus euphratica Oliv forest, in the extreme arid region northwest China, was estimated by application of Bowen ratio-energy balance method (BREB) during the growing season in 2005. During the growing season in 2005, total ET_c was 446.96 mm. From the beginning of growing season, the ET_c increased gradually, and reached its maximum value of 6.724 mm d⁻¹ in the last fifteen days of June. Hereafter the ET_c dropped rapidly, and reached its minimum value of 1.215 mm d⁻¹ at the end of growing season. The variation pattern of crop coefficient (K_c) was similar to that of ET_c. From the beginning of growing season, the K_c value increased rapidly, and reached its maximum value of 0.623 in the last fifteen days of June. Afterward, with slowing growth of P. euphratica, the value dropped rapidly to the end of growing season. According to this study, the ET_c of P. euphratica forest is affected not only by meteorological factors, but by water content in soil.     

Screening of cotton germplasm for resistance to Verticillium dahlia Kleb. under greenhouse and field conditions

Currently, the most effective and economically feasible means of controlling Verticillium wilt is to grow wilt-resistant cultivars. Nevertheless, resistant germplasm lines that are able to overcome this detrimental disease remain rare. Hence, we aimed to identify high-quality germplasm lines that exhibit high resistance, to address the dearth in optimum production. Our field and greenhouse studies showed significant variation among all tested germplasm lines with respect to wilt-assessment parameters. Highly resistant or resistant germplasm included 1421Bt-4133, O Siv2, Arcot-1, and GP93; Zhong 21371 and Yumian 2067 were moderately responsive; and Arcot402bne, Arcot438, Xinluzao-3, and Jimian11 were highly susceptible to wilt. Overall, germplasm line 1421Bt-4133 appeared to be an ideal material with strong resistance potential against V. dahliae. The germplasm lines O Siv2, Arcot-1, GP93, Zhong 21371, and Yumian 2067 showed variability in resistance potential in artificially or naturally-infested soil. This variability may be due to the genetic potential of the plants and to the adaptability of V. dahliae. We determined that the 1421Bt-4133 germplasm line was ideal, as it demonstrated resistance diversity against V. dahliae in all observed wilt-assessment parameters. The results of this study contribute to the understanding of viable germplasm lines for improving cotton production. The resistant germplasm lines uncovered in this study may provide new disease resistance sources in the breeding program.     

Identification and expression pattern of a glutathione S‐transferase in Echinochloa crus‐galli

Plant glutathione S‐transferase (GST) forms a major part of the herbicide detoxification enzyme network in plants. A GST cDNA was isolated from Echinochloa crus‐galli and characterised. The gene, designated EcGST1 (E. crus‐galli GeneBank no: JX518596 ), has a 684 bp open reading frame predicted to encode a 25 kD protein. Sequence alignment showed that EcGST1 is a GST homologue. Its expression in response to quinclorac treatment was monitored in seedlings (leaves and roots) and adult plants (leaves, roots, stems and seeds) of quinclorac‐resistant (R) and susceptible (S) biotypes of E. crus‐galli. EcGST1 expression was 1.5–3 times greater in the R plants than in the S plants. However, after exposure to quinclorac, the difference in the expression levels of EcGST1 in R plants, compared with S plants, increased to a ratio of 6–10. Enhanced EcGST1 levels should enable greater quinclorac detoxification following quinclorac stimulation in R plants. GST‐based metabolism may be partially responsible for resistance to quinclorac in E. crus‐galli. The results suggest a new resistance mechanism for this R biotype in Chinese rice fields.     

Interactions between the striped stem borer Chilo suppressalis (Walk.) (Lep., Pyralidae) larvae and rice plants in response to nitrogen fertilization

A screenhouse experiment was conducted to examine the damage and compensation in rice plants when injured by the striped stem borer, Chilo suppressalis (Walker), larvae at tillering stage, as well as larval survival and development of the insect at different nitrogen (N) fertilization levels. Potted plants were fertilized at late seedling stage at the rates 0, 200, 400, 600 and 800mgN/pot, respectively. More deadheads were caused as fertilization increased. Plants compensated well for injury at the fertilization concentrations of 200 and 400mgN/pot by producing new tillers, but such compensation did not take place at 600 and 800mgN/pot. Two weeks after infestation, the highest number of remaining healthy tillers was found in plants fertilized at 400mgN/pot. Larval survival varied little among the treatments 200 to 800mgN/pot. Larval weight attainment and/or developmental rate increased with increasing fertilization level from 200 to 600mgN/pot, but both declined rapidly as fertilization reached 800mgN/pot, indicating the great dependence of plant suitability on N fertilization levels. Conclusively, both the compensation response of rice plants and their suitability for C. suppressalis larvae could be significantly affected by N fertilization levels.