Effect of 12-hour road transportation on physiological, immunological and haematological parameters in bulls housed at different space allowances

The effects of transporting Holstein Friesian bulls (n=72; bodyweight 403+/-3.5 kg) for 12h by road were examined. Adrenal, haematological and immune responses, body temperature and performance were recorded. The animals had been previously housed for 96 days at three space allowances (1.2, 2.7 or 4.2m(2) per bull). The bulls were allocated to one of two treatments: T (transport for 12h; n=16 per space allowance) and C (control; n=8 per space allowance). Basal cortisol plasma concentrations and interferon (IFN)-gamma production from cultured lymphocytes did not show any statistically significant difference (P>0.05) following the housing period. Removing bulls from their home pens and walking them to the pre-loading crush facility, loading onto the transporter, and unloading following the 12h road journey, significantly (P<0.001) increased plasma cortisol concentration. The bulls housed at 4.2m(2) had greater (P<0.05) plasma cortisol concentrations than bulls housed at 1.2m(2) at loading, unloading, or on return to the crush holding facility; those housed at 1.2m(2) had greater (P<0.05) plasma cortisol concentrations than bulls housed at 2.7 and 4.2m(2) in their home pens after transport. There was an increased (P<0.05) plasma cortisol response in the T than in the C bulls following adrenocorticotrophic hormone administration. Transport significantly reduced (P<0.05) IFN-gamma production, lymphocyte % and body weight and significantly increased (P<0.05) neutrophils, eosinophils, packed cell volume, red blood cell numbers and haemoglobin. In conclusion, housing bulls for 96 days in a range of space allowances did not affect basal cortisol response or immune function parameters. Whereas transport increased plasma cortisol and reduced the immune response in the short-term, the changes were transient and within normal physiological ranges, suggesting that 12h road transport had no adverse effect on welfare status over the longer term. Furthermore, transport of bulls housed at increased space allowance (4.2m(2)/bull) resulted in a greater plasma cortisol response, albeit still within normal physiological range.     

Adventitious rooting in shoot cuttings of Azadirachta indica and Pongamia pinnata

Adventitious rooting in shoot cuttings of neem (Azadirachta indica) and karanj (Pongamia pinnata) was investigated in different seasons. The influence of auxins and B-vitamins (neem only) was evaluated. Maximum rhizogenesis coincided with the emergence of new sprouts i.e. February (neem) and March (karanj). Considering both rooting percentage and root biomass, IBA was the most effective auxin tested. Compared to auxin free controls, IBA (1000 ppm in neem and 800 ppm in karanj) significantly increased adventitious rooting percentage (80 to 100 % respectively), the numbers of roots and root biomass for both species. In neem, B-vitamin treatment yielded 40–50% rooting for cuttings. This was significantly greater than rooting for controls but equivalent to IAA treatments. In neem, some of the cuttings treated with 2000–3000 ppm IBA had well developed root systems without any sprouts. In karanj, all auxin treatments promoted sprouting. The level of total soluble sugars in the rooting zone of neem and karanj was higher in non-rooted than rooted cuttings.     

Low level of polymorphism detected by SSR probes in bread wheat

In-gel hybridization patterns were studied in a set of nine diverse bread wheat ( Triticum aestivum L. em. Thell) genotypes using 23 simple sequence repeat (SSR) probes in combination with 14 different restriction enzymes. Multilocus fingerprints due to SSR probes, shown earlier to be characteristic of a majority of plant genomes, were not obtained and only a very low level of polymorphism was detected when using as many as 142 probe-enzyme combinations. The hybridization of a prominent solitary high molecular weight fragment (> 23 kb) with a number of SSR probes suggested the presence of these SSRs (microsatellites) within the long stretches of repeated DNA sequences. This indicates that the genome of bread wheat differs from that of other plants in the organization and distribution of SSRs and that SSR probes detect very little polymorphism.     

Organ culture of chicken bursa as a model to study the pathogenicity of infectious bursal disease virus isolates.

In vitro study with chicken bursal organ culture was attempted to assess the pathogenicity of locally isolated infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) initially isolated from the bursa of naturally infected birds. In bursal organ culture, lymphoblastic transformation was noticed as early as 24 hr postinoculation and reached maximum at 72 hr postinoculation. The other microscopic changes were increased number of macrophages and formation of plasma cells. The IBDV antigen was detected 24 hr onward by coagglutination test with antibody coated Staphylococcus aureus strain Cowan I. On the basis of lesion score, the three isolates of IBDV (A, B, and C) were graded as virulent (B isolate) and moderately virulent (A and C isolates). A similar pattern of pathogenicity was also observed in the in vivo pathogenicity studies in chicken based on bursa: body weight ratio and histopathologic lesion score. The bursal organ culture thus provides a useful experimental model to differentiate the IBDV isolates on the basis of their virulence.     

Surface drainage requirement of crops: Application of a piecewise linear model for evaluating submergence tolerance

Crop tolerance to land submergence is an important criterion for designing a surface drainage system for agricultural lands. This paper collates the available data from various places in India related to the studies on the submergence tolerance of crops. The paper hypothesizes that a piecewise linear model could be used to describe crop response to land submergence. According to this hypothesis, there would be no yield decline for a few initial days of submergence. If submergence continues beyond this period then there would be linear decline in yield. The unknown parameters in the model are: optimum yield, threshold time and the slope which represents the per cent yield reduction per day of additional submergence beyond the threshold.Data in respect of wheat, pigeon peas, cowpeas, pearlmillet, maize and groundnuts indicate that the model describes the data well, although in many cases the threshold is 0.0. The yield reduction varies from 5.3 to 23.2% for each day of submergence beyond the threshold. It appears that to allow for more than 1–2 days of submergence will result in more than 10% reducation in yield of dryfoot crops. For the maize crop, the seedling stage is the most sensitive stage followed by the silking stage. The grain formation stage is the least sensitive, although even at this stage the threshold is 0.0 and yield reduction is 9.3% for each day of submergence beyond the threshold. The data for 9 test crops from Texas and Venezuela were well described by the model. It is concluded that the piecewise linear model is a useful tool for describing submergence tolerance of crops and for working out surface drainage requirements for a given level of yield reduction. Frequency analysis of the daily rainfall data from some selected locations indicates that there is every likelihood of submergence at most of the stations. It is suggested that there is an urgent need for developing wet farming techniques analogous to dry farming techniques.     

Combined application of nitrogen and phosphorus to enhance nitrogen use efficiency and close the wheat yield gap on varying soils in semi‐arid conditions

A primary driver of the wheat yield gap in Australia and globally is the supply of nitrogen (N) and options to increase N use efficiency (NUE) are fundamental to closure of the yield gap. Co‐application of N with phosphorus (P) is suggested as an avenue to increase fertiliser NUE, and inputs of N and P fertiliser are key variable costs in low rainfall cereal crops. Within field variability in the response to nutrients due to soil and season offers a further opportunity to refine inputs for increased efficiency. The response of wheat to N fertiliser input (0, 10, 20, 40 and 80 kg N ha^‐1) under four levels of P fertiliser (0, 5, 10 and 20 kg P ha^?1) was measured on three key low rainfall cropping soils (dune, mid‐slope and swale) across a dune‐swale system in a low rainfall semi‐arid environment in South Australia, for three successive cropping seasons. Wheat on sandy soils produced significant and linear yield and protein responses across all three seasons, while wheat on a clay loam only produced a yield response in a high rainfall season. Responses to P fertiliser were measured on the sandy soils but more variable in nature and a consistent effect of increased P nutrition leading to increased NUE was not measured.     

Effect of FMD vaccination on semen quality parameters in Karan Fries and Murrah buffalo bulls

Effect of Foot and Mouth disease (FMD) vaccination was studied on semen quality parameters of 19 Karan Fries (KF) and eight Murrah (MU) breeding bulls during the period 2002 to 2004 at Artificial Breeding Complex, NDRI, Karnal. A total of non-vaccinated 155 KF and 72 MU bulls' ejaculates were taken as control, while 169 KF and 51 MU bulls' ejaculates, collected after vaccination, were used to study the effect of vaccination stress. The results showed that FMD vaccination had no significant (P > 0.05) effect on ejaculate volume and total volume per day of semen in both KF and MU bulls. Volume of semen increased slightly during post-vaccination period in both the breeds. After FMD vaccination, there was significant (P < 0.01) decrease in mass activity (2.27 ± 0.06 vs. 1.67 ± 0.07 and 2.49 ± 0.09. vs. 1.75 ± 0.10, for KF and MU, respectively), initial motility (56.89 ± 0.03% vs. 44.62 ± 0.02% and 62.26 ± 0.04% vs. 47.08 ± 0.05%, for KF and MU, respectively), sperm concentration (754.19 ± 23.96 vs. 554.14 ± 22.95 × 10⁶/ml and 848.61 ± 33.65 vs. 571.57 ± 39.99 × 10⁶/ml, for KF and MU, respectively), and total sperm output per ejaculate (3,685.94 ± 158.40 vs. 2,781.54 ± 151.70 × 10⁶ and 2,218.75 ± 133.14 vs. 1,582.84 ± 158.20 × 10⁶, for KF and MU, respectively). Application of FMD vaccine had significantly (P < 0.05) adverse effect on most of the seminal attributes during post-vaccination in KF and MU buffalo bulls. So, the spermiograms affected following vaccination suggest that in bovines, the semen collection and preservation should be suspended till normal fertility of sperm is restored to avoid the failure of conception from artificial insemination using such semen.     

Single-atom spin-flip spectroscopy

We demonstrate the ability to measure the energy required to flip the spin of single adsorbed atoms. A low-temperature, high-magnetic field scanning tunneling microscope was used to measure the spin excitation spectra of individual manganese atoms adsorbed on Al2O3 islands on a NiAl surface. We find pronounced variations of the spin-flip spectra for manganese atoms in different local environments.     

Direct determination of p-nitrophenyl substituent organophosphorus nerve agents using a recombinant Pseudomonas putida JS444-modified Clark oxygen electrode

A microbial biosensor for rapid, sensitive, selective, and cost-effective determination of the total content of organophosphorus nerve agents with p-nitrophenyl substituent is reported. The biosensor consisted of genetically engineered PNP-degrader Pseudomonas putida JS444 expressing organophosphorus hydrolase (OPH) on its cell surface immobilized on a dissolved oxygen electrode. Surface-expressed OPH catalyzed the hydrolysis of organophosphorus pesticides with p-nitrophenyl substituent such as paraoxon, methyl parathion, and parathion to release p-nitrophenol that was oxidized by the enzymatic machinery of Pseudomonas putida JS444 to carbon dioxide while consuming oxygen. The oxygen consumption was measured and correlated to the concentration of organophosphates. The sensor signal and response time were optimized with 0.086 mg dry weight of cell and operating in 50 mM pH 7.5 citrate-phosphate buffer with 50 microM CoCl(2) at room temperature. When operated at optimized conditions, the biosensor measured as low as 55 ppb of paraoxon, 53 ppb of methyl parathion, and 58 ppb of parathion without interference from most phenolic compounds and other commonly used pesticides, such as atrazine, coumaphos, sutan, sevin, and diazinon. The operational life of the microbial biosensor was approximately 5 days when stored in the operating buffer at 4 degrees C.     

Viability and Growth of Buffalo Preantral Follicles and their Corresponding Oocytes In Vitro: Effect of Growth Factors and β Mercaptoethanol

The present study was undertaken to isolate buffalo preantral follicles (PFs), to test the viability and sizes of buffalo PFs and to examine the effect of various growth factors (insulin-like growth factor, fibroblast growth factor) and an antioxidant (β mercaptoethanol) on the in vitro growth, survival and antrum formation rates of buffalo PFs and growth rates of oocytes in cultured PFs. Preantral follicles from slaughtered buffalo ovaries were recovered by a combined mechanical and enzymatic method. The recovery rates of >40–100, 101–200, 201–300, 301–400 and 401–500 μm PFs were 5.1, 3.2, 3.1, 6.3 and 5.1 per ovary, respectively. The corresponding viability rates were 76.1%, 78.1%, 85.2%, 92.5% and 92.6%, respectively. There was a positive correlation ( r  = 0.73) between oocyte size and the follicular size. However, there was no significant correlation between the size of oocyte and its viability at the time of its retrieval from ovary. Insulin-like growth factor and fibroblast growth factor improved the survival of buffalo PFs and regulated their growth in culture. The growth factors and β mercaptoethanol in association synergically improved the growth and survival of buffalo PFs.