Phenolic composition of champagnes from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vintages

Nineteen phenolic compounds including hydroxybenzoic acids, hydroxycinnamic acids, flavonoids, phenolic alcohols, and phenolic aldehydes have been identified and quantified in two monovarietal champagnes, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, by using a reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) system coupled with diode array detection. The identification of four hydroxycinnamic tartaric esters (caftaric, coutaric, fertaric, and 2-S-glutathionylcaftaric acids), two flavanonols (astilbin and engeletin), and some other compounds was confirmed by HPLC coupled with mass spectrometry. Caftaric acid and tyrosol were the major phenols. Hydroxybenzoic acids and flavonoids were present at low concentrations. The phenolic compositions of 2000 and 2001 Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vary quantitatively according to the year and the variety, but the chemical natures of the molecules are the same. The total phenolic content determined by colorimetric measurement ranges from 176 to 195 mg/L of gallic acid equivalent and is similar to that described in white wines.     

Chemical comparison of goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.) root powder from three commercial suppliers

The characterization of herbal materials is a significant challenge to analytical chemists. Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.), which has been chosen for toxicity evaluation by NIEHS, is among the top 15 herbal supplements currently on the market and contains a complex mixture of indigenous components ranging from carbohydrates and amino acids to isoquinoline alkaloids. One key component of herbal supplement production is botanical authentication, which is also recommended prior to initiation of efficacy or toxicological studies. To evaluate material available to consumers, goldenseal root powder was obtained from three commercial suppliers and a strategy was developed for characterization and comparison that included Soxhlet extraction, HPLC, GC-MS, and LC-MS analyses. HPLC was used to determine the weight percentages of the goldenseal alkaloids berberine, hydrastine, and canadine in the various extract residues. Palmatine, an isoquinoline alkaloid native to Coptis spp. and other common goldenseal adulterants, was also quantitated using HPLC. GC-MS was used to identify non-alkaloid constituents in goldenseal root powder, whereas LC-MS was used to identify alkaloid components. After review of the characterization data, it was determined that alkaloid content was the best biomarker for goldenseal. A 20-min ambient extraction method for the determination of alkaloid content was also developed and used to analyze the commercial material. All three lots of purchased material contained goldenseal alkaloids hydrastinine, berberastine, tetrahydroberberastine, canadaline, berberine, hydrastine, and canadine. Material from a single supplier also contained palmatine, coptisine, and jatrorrhizine, thus indicating that the material was not pure goldenseal. Comparative data for three commercial sources of goldenseal root powder are presented.     

Experimental studies on cold survival of enchytraeid cocoons

The effect of different culture methods, cold acclimation and desiccation on the supercooling point (SCP), the melting point (MP) of fluids and the quantity of water freezing (osmotically active water) was investigated in individual cocoons of Enchytraeus crypticus and an undescribed Enchytraeus species using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques. Both species can be easily cultured in the laboratory in agar where the development and hatching of the worms can be observed. Culture methods (agar with nettle leaves or oats as food and wet filter paper without food supply) had a significant effect on fresh weight and SCP of E. crypticus cocoons. The water content (as a proportion of fresh weight) was slightly lower in the cocoons from the wet filter paper cultures. Acclimation at —3 °C did not affect the supercooling ability of E. crypticus cocoons, whereas the SCP of E. sp.1 cocoons was lowered from a mean of —8.7 to —12.4 °C. The supercooling ability of cocoons of E. crypticus was only slightly increased by desiccation and cold acclimation, but the quantity of frozen water was significantly reduced with acclimation and desiccation (2 and 3 min) at room temperature. The MP values of the cocoon fluids reflected these changes in both species. No cocoons of E. crypticus and E. sp.1 survived desiccation and freezing in our experiments and no worms of Enchytraeus albidus, E. crypticus and Henlea perpusilla survived freezing to —10 or —20 °C.     

Foraging behaviour and habitat use by Antechinus flavipes and Sminthopsis murina (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae) in response to predation risk in eucalypt woodland

We examined the foraging behaviour and habitat use of two species of small Australian mammal (Antechinus flavipes and Sminthopsis murina) in response to predation risk in remnant eucalypt woodland. Predation risk was manipulated by providing refuge in the form of ground level wire netting to reduce risks from avian and mammalian predators. Giving-up-densities (GUD) using artificial food trays (20 mealworms in 1.5 l vermiculite) quantified the foraging behaviour in response to predation risk, by measuring the quitting harvest rate. Both A. flavipes and S. murina had lower GUDs (number of mealworms remaining) under the netting than in the open, most likely because these areas have lower predation risk. Animals also made greater visits to tracking tunnels under the netting compared to in the open. Tracking animal movements using fluorescent pigments also revealed preference for natural microhabitats that were structurally complex with animals moving most where logs and rock crevices were present. These results suggest that small mammals may use habitat structure to reduce their risks of predation. If future studies are able to demonstrate commensurate population-level responses, manipulation of habitat may be a useful management option to complement the direct control of exotic predators such as foxes and feral cats.     

Relationships between soil and foliar nutrients in young densely planted mini-plots of Pinus radiata and Cupressus lusitanica

The long-term nature of forest crop rotations makes it difficult to determine impacts of forestry on soil nutrients that might be depleted by forest growth. We used small scale, highly stocked plots to compress the length of the rotation and rapidly induce nutrient depletion. In the study, two species (Pinus radiata D. Don and Cupressus lusitanica Miller) are compared under two disturbance regimes (soil undisturbed and compacted), and two fertiliser treatments (nil and plus fertiliser), applied in factorial combination at 33 sites, covering the range of climatic and edaphic variation found in plantation forests across New Zealand. To assess our ability to rapidly highlight important soil properties, foliar nutrient concentrations were determined 20 months after planting. It was hypothesised that the densely planted plots, even at a young age, would create sufficient pressure on nutrient resources to allow development of relationships between properties used as indicies of soil nutrient availability and foliar nutrient concentrations. For both species significant relationships between foliar nutrients and 0–10 cm layer soil properties from unfertilised plots were evident for N (total and mineralisable N) and P (total, acid extractable, organic, Bray-2 and Olsen P). With the exception of Ca in C. lusitanica, foliar K, Ca and Mg were correlated with their respective soil exchangeable cation measures. The results thus confirm the utility of the experimental approach and the relevance of the measured soil properties for forest productivity.

In unfertilised plots foliar N and P concentrations in P. radiata exceeded those in C. lusitanica, the differences being eliminated by fertiliser application. Foliar N/P ratios in P. radiata also exceeded those in C. lusitanica. In contrast to N and P, foliar K, Ca and Mg concentrations were all higher in C. lusitanica, the difference being particularly marked for Ca and Mg. P. radiata contained substantially higher concentrations of the metals Zn, Mn and Al than C. lusitanica, whereas the latter contained higher B concentrations. Possible reasons for differences between species in foliar nutrient concentrations are discussed.     

“Indirect selection” for genetic change: A quantitative analysis illustrated with Macrobrachium rosenbergii

“Indirect selection” is exerted on a trait indirectly, by means other than artificial selection for the trait itself. Expressions are derived for calculating the intensity of indirect selection in aquaculture environments. The calculations are illustrated with growth-rate data on M. rosenbergii from farm ponds in Thailand, and with computer-generated data which simulate measurements made during a multiple mark-recapture experiment. Indirect selection for growth is probably negligible in Thai prawn farms and hatcheries at present, but small changes in management practice could exert strong indirect selection on growth rate. One very effective change appears to be collecting broodstock as early in the production cycle as possible. Control of indirect selection may be useful for the genetic improvement of aquaculture stock, especially in developing countries and other situations where an intensive artificial selection program is not economically or biologically desirable. Like all selection programs, the probability of success is critically dependent on the genetics of the traits being selected.     

Use of treated mine water for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) culture: a production scale assessment

In previous proof-of-concept work, it was shown that the use of treated coal mine water for rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) culture in a cage was technically feasible, though only a 50-fish bioassay was grown and no work on production-related issues was conducted. To further advance the use of treated mine water, an under-utilized water resource throughout Mid Appalachia, work was conducted to assess the effects of using treated coal mine water for the intensive production of rainbow trout in a flow-through system. During this study, comprehensive water quality data were collected to supplement fish weight and length data taken during routine monthly sampling events. The 8000 fish grew well in the raceway system over the 9 months of production, where a feed conversion ratio of 1.4 and a condition factor of 5.1 × 10⁻⁴ were measured with stocking and harvest densities of 26.4 and 50.2 kg/m³, respectively. Further, total net production was 3275 kg (7220 lb) with 98.6% survival. Throughout the study, dissolved ion concentrations (Fe, Al, Mg, Ca, and SO₄) often exceeded recommended tolerance limits. Further, elevated ammonia nitrogen concentrations generated from a component of the mine water-treatment process were identified as a potential limiting factor for aquaculture development. However, when the non-ideal effects of high ionic strength and the speciation of dissolved metal–ligand complexes were taken into account, the concentrations of free metal ions were within recommended tolerance limits.     

Activity of two novel insecticides against permethrin-resistant Pseudoplusia includens

Two experimental insecticides, AC 303,630 and MK 244, were tested against a laboratory colony and three field strains of Pseudoplusia includens (Walker). Topical application bioassays indicated that permethrin resistance in the field strains ranged from 3.9 to 489.0-fold. In leaf dip bioassays, LC₅₀ and LC₉₀ values for AC 303,630 ranged from 6.7 to 15.1 mg litre ?1 and 8.7 to 28.2 mg litre ?1, respectively, for third-instar larvae. The Louisiana 1991 field strain was significantly more susceptible to AC 303,630 than the laboratory and other field strains. The LC₅₀ (but not LC₉₀) for the Louisiana 1992 field strain was significantly higher than that of the laboratory strain. However, there was no difference in toxicity of AC 303,630 between the field strain with the highest level of permethrin resistance and the laboratory strain. LC₅₀ and LC₉₀ values for MK 244 in leaf dip bioassays ranged from 0.014 to 0.023 mg litre ?1 and 0.079 to 0.174 mg litre ?1, respectively. There were no significant differences in LC 50 or LC 90 among any of the strains for MK 244. Field trials in soybean were also conducted in 1991 and 1992 in an area of Louisiana where permethrin efficacy against P. includens has declined. In both years, AC 303,630 at 0.11–0.22 kg ha ?1, and MK 244 at 0.0042–0.0084 kg ha ?1, provided significantly better control than permethrin at 0.11 kg ha ?1, and control equal to the recommended standard, thiodicarb. These studies indicate no cross-resistance exists between the experimental insecticides and permethrin.     

Cecal colonization of chicks by bovine-derived strains of Campylobacter

Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli strains were isolated from feces of dairy cattle at farms with no known problem due to campylobacteria. Farms were located in the northeast, desert southwest, and Pacific west. Twenty isolates were identified by ribotyping with a RiboPrinter. The ability of these bovine isolates to colonize the ceca of chicks was determined by challenge inoculation and reisolation of the challenge strain from the ceca at 1 and 2 wk after challenge. Isolates recovered from chick ceca were examined by ribotyping to assure they matched the challenge strain. One hundred percent of the bovine-derived challenge strains were capable of colonizing chicks. These results indicate that dairy cattle may be asymptomatic Campylobacter carriers and potential sources of campylobacteria contamination of poultry facilities.