Simulating water content, crop yield and nitrate-N loss under free and controlled tile drainage with subsurface irrigation using the DSSAT model

In southwestern Ontario, rain-fed crop production frequently fails to achieve its yield potential because of growing-season droughts and/or uneven rainfall distribution. The objective of this study was to determine if the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) v4.5 model could adequately simulate corn and soybean yields, near-surface soil water contents, and cumulative nitrate-N losses associated with regular free tile drainage (TD) and controlled tile drainage with optional subsurface irrigation (CDS). The simulations were compared to observations collected between 2000 and 2004 from both TD and CDS field experiments on a Perth clay loam soil at the Essex Region Conservation Authority demonstration farm, Holiday Beach, Ontario, Canada. There was good model-data agreement for crop yields, near-surface (0-30 cm) soil water content and cumulative annual tile nitrate-N loss in both the calibration and validation years. For both TD and CDS, the CENTURY soil C/N model in DSSAT simulated water content and cumulative tile nitrate-N loss with normalized root mean square error (n-RMSE) values ranging from 9.9 to 14.8% and 17.8 to 25.2%, respectively. The CERES-Maize and CROPGRO-Soybean crop system models in the DSSAT simulated corn and soybean yields with n-RMSE values ranging from 4.3 to 14.0%. It was concluded that the DSSAT v4.5 model can be a useful tool for simulating near-surface soil water content, cumulative tile nitrate-N losses, and corn and soybean yields associated with CDS and TD water management systems.     

Molecular Cloning and Characterization of CD9 cDNA from Sheep and Cashmere Goat

CD9 is a glycoprotein of the transmembrane 4 superfamily (TM4SF) and is involved in various cellular processes. Some CD9 cDNA have been cloned in mammals and certain fish genera in recent years, but goat and sheep counterparts of cattle, human and mouse have not been identified. To facilitate the studies, we cloned the cDNA encoding for CD9 of cashmere goat (Capra hircus) and sheep (Ovis aries), and expressed sheep CD9 in Escherichia coli cells. Structural analysis indicated for both goat and sheep that a 1123 bp cDNA spanned an open reading frame of 681 bp which predicted a protein of 226 amino acids with a typical TM4SF structure, including four highly conserved transmembrane domains, two extracellular domains and a CCG motif, which is a hallmark of the TM4SF. The predicted amino acid sequences were highly homologous to those of cattle, mouse and human CD9. Molecular phylogenetic analysis based on CD9 cDNA sequences indicated that goat and sheep CD9 were closely related to CD9 of cattle, which is in agreement with their morphological taxonomy.     

治疗奶牛乳腺炎的新药盐酸吡利霉素研究进展

综述了治疗奶牛乳腺炎的新药——盐酸吡利霉素最新研究进展.对其基本药学性质、药动、药效、毒性和残留等多方面进行了详细阐述.     

Fire history and fire management implications in the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge, interior Alaska

We conducted this investigation in response to criticisms that the current Alaska Interagency Fire Management Plans are allowing too much of the landscape in interior Alaska to burn annually. To address this issue, we analyzed fire history patterns within the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge, interior Alaska. We dated 40 fires on 27 landscape points within the refuge boundaries using standard dendrochorological methods. Fire return intervals based on tree ring data ranged from 37 to 166 years (mean = 90 ± 32 years; N = 38) over the 250 year time frame covered by this study. We found no significant differences in the frequency of fire occurence over time. There was no evidence to suggest that changes in fire management policy have significantly altered the fire regime in the Yukon Flats area. However, the lack of significant differences over time may be due in part to the relatively short time period that fires were actively suppressed in Alaska. The full suppression era (1939–1984) may have been too short to significantly alter the fire regime in all areas of interior Alaska.     

Electrical conductivity in the precambrian lithosphere of western canada

The subcrustal lithosphere underlying the southern Archean Churchill Province (ACP) in western Canada is at least one order of magnitude more electrically conductive than the lithosphere beneath adjacent Paleoproterozoic crust. The measured electrical properties of the lithosphere underlying most of the Paleoproterozoic crust can be explained by the conductivity of olivine. Mantle xenolith and geological mapping evidence indicate that the lithosphere beneath the southern ACP was substantially modified as a result of being trapped between two nearly synchronous Paleoproterozoic subduction zones. Tectonically induced metasomatism thus may have enhanced the subcrustal lithosphere conductivity of the southern ACP.     

Identification of d- or dl-alpha-tocopherol in pharmaceuticals, food supplements, or feed supplements: a collaborative study.

A collaborative study was conducted to evaluate a method for identifying d- or dl-alpha-tocopherol in pharmaceuticals, food supplements, or feed supplements. The sample is extracted and saponified, the extraneous color is removed by chromatography, and the sample is assayed for vitamin E. Optical rotations are determined before and after formation of the ferricyanide oxidation product. The specific optical rotation of the oxidation product is negligible for the dl-form and +25.5 degrees for the d-form. Statistical analysis of the data reported by 8 collaborators for the standard d-alpha-tocopheryl acetate and for 6 unknown samples indicates a significant interaction between laboratories and samples. The mean coefficients of variation among laboratories for the determinations of the corrected specific optical rotation of the standard and the rotation ratio for the unknown samples containing d-alpha-tocopherol were 11.7 and 21.6%, respectively, for all laboratories and 5.8 and 11.8%, respectively, for experienced laboratories. This identification test for vitamin E is acceptable for determining the form of vitamin E as either d or dl, but is not acceptable for accurately determining mixtures of the 2 forms. The method has been adopted as official first action for the identification of d- or dl-alpha-tocopherol.