The evolution of agriculture in ants

Cultivation of fungi for food by fungus-growing ants (Attini: Formicidae) originated about 50 million years ago. The subsequent evolutionary history of this agricultural symbiosis was inferred from phylogenetic and population-genetic patterns of 553 cultivars isolated from gardens of "primitive" fungus-growing ants. These patterns indicate that fungus-growing ants succeeded at domesticating multiple cultivars, that the ants are capable of switching to novel cultivars, that single ant species farm a diversity of cultivars, and that cultivars are shared occasionally between distantly related ant species, probably by lateral transfer between ant colonies.     

Efficacy of intra-muscular analgesics for acute pain in sheep

The analgesic action of intramuscularly injected buprenorphine, methadone, flunixin meglumine and xylazine was examined in sheep, using algesimetry based on a leg withdrawal response to an electrical stimulus. No analgesic response was detected for buprenorphine, methadone or flunixin meglumine. Only the αaL2-adrenoceptor agonist, xylazine, produced an analgesic response. The current required to elicit a response increased by 170% (4.5±0.43 mA to 12.23±1.14 mA; mean±SE) after a dose of 0.05 mg/kg xylazine; by 180% (4.73±0.3 mA to 13.28±2.35 mA) after 0.1 mg/kg; and by 510% (4.52±0.29 mA to 27.63±3.89 mA) after 0.2 mg/kg. Intramuscular xylazine appears to be an effective analgesic agent for acute pain in the sheep and further investigation into ideal administration regimens and dosage may provide more detailed information on relationships between dose, analgesic and sedative effects. The findings also suggest that some common analgesic agents, and opioids in particular, may be ineffective for the management of acute pain in sheep and that any analgesic should be administered only on the basis of its proven efficacy in that species.     

The effect of some cryoprotectants on dromedary camel frozen‐thawed semen

The cryopreserved camel semen is often associated with poor quality and fertility. This study aimed to improve the dromedary frozen semen quality by comparing the efficiency of four cryoprotectant agents (CPAs) on sperm freezability. Semen samples were collected from seven male Maghrabi camels, diluted with Shotor diluent supplemented with glycerol (Sh‐G), dimethyl formamide (DMF, Sh‐DF), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO, Sh‐DS) or ethylene glycol (EG, Sh‐EG), all at 6% final concentration, and the samples were subjected to cryopreservation. The results revealed the superiority of Sh‐DF over Sh‐G and Sh‐DS in terms of post‐thaw motility (55.83 ± 2.20 vs. 47.50 ± 4.33 and 45.00 ± 2.89%, respectively), sperm membrane (49.00 ± 0.58, 39.33 ± 3.33 and 42.67 ± 1.45%, respectively) and acrosomal integrities (53.00 ± 0.58, 57.33 ± 0.88 and 52.33 ± 1.45%, respectively). Sh‐EG group showed the lowest post‐thaw motility, plasma membrane and acrosome integrities (12.50 ± 1.44, 22.67 ± 1.45 and 30.67 ± 1.45, respectively). In conclusion, the protocols of dromedary camel semen cryopreservation could be enhanced using 6% DMF as a cryoprotectant agent.     

Distribution of prion protein genotypes in breeds of sheep in New Zealand

AIM: To use an established high through-put genotyping procedure to gain an estimate of the frequency of alleles of the prion protein (PrP) gene in some common sheep breeds in New Zealand.

METHODS: Using a genotyping procedure based on matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation-time of flight (MALDI-TOF), DNA samples from 3,024 sheep from New Zealand, including breeds such as Romney, Texel, Coopworth, Merino and mixedbreed, were isolated, genotyped and the results analysed.

RESULTS: The 15 scrapie genotypes commonly reported, and derived from the five commonly reported allelic variants (ARR, ARQ, AHQ, ARH and VRQ), were all observed in the samples analysed. The estimates were indicative of the frequencies in the population of alleles present in breeds of sheep in New Zealand. There was a significant difference between the frequencies of alleles between breeds, but the ARQ, followed by the ARR allele, were, except in Carwell sheep, the most common alleles present.

CONCLUSION: This study gave an indication of the percentages of PrP gene alleles in sheep in New Zealand, including data previously unreported from breeds in this country. It is of interest because of the relatively large size of the sheep population in New Zealand compared with many countries, and it provides some useful information on the genetic susceptibility or resistance of the sheep population in New Zealand to scrapie. The frequencies of the alleles can be different for an individual breed compared between countries.     

Traditional herbal remedies for gynecological disorders in women of Bidar district, Karnataka, India

A survey of medicinal plants used by rural population in Bidar district, Karnataka, India is reported. Eighteen plant species belonging to 13 families and 18 genera were included. Their botanical and vernacular names, plant part used, popular medicinal use, forms of preparation and application of the herbal remedies are given.     

Resistance to <Emphasis Type="Italic">Meloidogyne chitwoodi</Emphasis> Identified in Wild Potato Species

Meloidogyne chitwoodi (Columbia root-knot nematode, CRKN) can cause serious damage in potato production systems, decreasing tuber value in the fresh market and processing industries. Genetic resistance to CRKN was first identified from the wild diploid potato species Solanum bulbocastanum accession SB22 and was successfully introgressed into tetraploid potato breeding material. To expand the base of genetic resistance, 40 plant accessions representing nine wild potato species were screened for their resistance to M. chitwoodi. Greenhouse screening identified fifteen clones from S. hougasii, one clone from S. bulbocastanum, and one clone from S. stenophyllidium with moderate to high levels of resistance against three isolates of M. chitwoodi. Geographical mapping showed that the resistance sources identified in this and previous studies primarily originated in the states of Jalisco and Michoacán in west-central Mexico. These new sources of resistance will be introgressed into elite potato populations to facilitate the development of potato cultivars with durable resistance to M. chitwoodi.     

Pedigree Reconstruction with Genome-Wide Markers in Potato

Reliable pedigree information facilitates a scientific approach to breeding, but errors can be introduced in many stages of a breeding program. Our objective was to use single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to check the pedigree records of elite North American potato germplasm. A population of 719 tetraploids was genotyped with an Infinium SNP array, yielding 5063 high-quality markers. Based on pedigree records, the dataset contained 198 parent-offspring trios, of which 182 were consistent with the marker data. For 13 of the 16 trios with a pedigree error, the true parent was identified in the population. By comparing the additive relationship matrix calculated from pedigree with the genetic distance calculated from markers, an additional 24 pedigree modifications were proposed, including the paternity of several varieties developed with bulk pollen. To ensure accurate pedigree records are published in the future, we recommend that new varieties be SNP genotyped and checked against this dataset.     

Femtosecond Dynamics of Excited-State Evolution in

Time-resolved absorption spectroscopy on the femtosecond time scale has been used to monitor the earliest events associated with excited-state relaxation in tris-(2,2'-bipyridine)ruthenium(II). The data reveal dynamics associated with the temporal evolution of the Franck-Condon state to the lowest energy excited state of this molecule. The process is essentially complete in approximately 300 femtoseconds after the initial excitation. This result is discussed with regard to reformulating long-held notions about excited-state relaxation, as well as its implication for the importance of non-equilibrium excited-state processes in understanding and designing molecular-based electron transfer, artificial photosynthetic, and photovoltaic assemblies in which compounds of this class are currently playing a key role.     

Simulated increase of hurricane intensities in a CO2-warmed climate

Hurricanes can inflict catastrophic property damage and loss of human life. Thus, it is important to determine how the character of these powerful storms could change in response to greenhouse gas-induced global warming. The impact of climate warming on hurricane intensities was investigated with a regional, high-resolution, hurricane prediction model. In a case study, 51 western Pacific storm cases under present-day climate conditions were compared with 51 storm cases under high-CO2 conditions. More idealized experiments were also performed. The large-scale initial conditions were derived from a global climate model. For a sea surface temperature warming of about 2.2 degrees C, the simulations yielded hurricanes that were more intense by 3 to 7 meters per second (5 to 12 percent) for wind speed and 7 to 20 millibars for central surface pressure.