Development of microsatellite markers and evaluation of genetic diversity of the Amazonian ornamental fish Pterophyllum scalare

The objective of the present work was to develop species-specific microsatellite markers for P. scalare and to analyze the diversity and genetic structure of a wild population, from the Amazon River, and three commercial stocks (common, marble, and clown morphological variants), from farmers in Vieras-Minas Gerais. Through microsatellite-enriched genetic libraries, 11 microsatellite markers with adequate amplification patterns were characterized. Population genetic analysis identified eight polymorphic loci that generated 66 alleles ranging from two alleles (PSCA1B3) to nine (PSCA2H1). The polymorphic information content ranged from 0.031 to 0.827. High genetic differentiation was observed between the wild population and the stocks, and moderate differentiation between the three stocks. Deviation in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was observed in one locus in the wild population, in five loci in the common morphological variant, in two in the marble, and in two in the clown morphological variant. Bayesian analysis of genetic structure revealed the existence of two clusters, one represented by the natural population and the other by the stocks. The developed microsatellite markers serve as a tool for the analysis of diversity and genetic structure and conservation studies of P. scalare.

     

Comparative Study Highlights the Potential of Spectral Deconvolution for Fucoxanthin Screening in Live Phaeodactylum tricornutum Cultures

Microalgal biotechnology shows considerable promise as a sustainable contributor to a broad range of industrial avenues. The field is however limited by processing methods that have commonly hindered the progress of high throughput screening, and consequently development of improved microalgal strains. We tested various microplate reader and flow cytometer methods for monitoring the commercially relevant pigment fucoxanthin in the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum. Based on accuracy and flexibility, we chose one described previously to adapt to live culture samples using a microplate reader and achieved a high correlation to HPLC (R² = 0.849), effectively removing the need for solvent extraction. This was achieved by using new absorbance spectra inputs, reducing the detectable pigment library and changing pathlength values for the spectral deconvolution method in microplate reader format. Adaptation to 384-well microplates and removal of the need to equalize cultures by density further increased the screening rate. This work is of primary interest to projects requiring detection of biological pigments, and could theoretically be extended to other organisms and pigments of interest, improving the viability of microalgae biotechnology as a contributor to sustainable industry.     

The Red Queen in a potato field: integrated pest management versus chemical dependency in Colorado potato beetle control

Originally designed to reconcile insecticide applications with biological control, the concept of integrated pest management (IPM) developed into the systems‐based judicious and coordinated use of multiple control techniques aimed at reducing pest damage to economically tolerable levels. Chemical control, with scheduled treatments, was the starting point for most management systems in the 1950s. Although chemical control is philosophically compatible with IPM practices as a whole, reduction in pesticide use has been historically one of the main goals of IPM practitioners. In the absence of IPM, excessive reliance on pesticides has led to repeated control failures due to the evolution of resistance by pest populations. This creates the need for constant replacement of failed chemicals with new compounds, known as the ‘insecticide treadmill’. In evolutionary biology, a similar phenomenon is known as the Red Queen principle – continuing change is needed for a population to persevere because its competitors undergo constant evolutionary adaptation. The Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say), is an insect defoliator of potatoes that is notorious for its ability to develop insecticide resistance. In the present article, a review is given of four case studies from across the United States to demonstrate the importance of using IPM for sustainable management of a highly adaptable insect pest. Excessive reliance on often indiscriminate insecticide applications and inadequate use of alternative control methods, such as crop rotation, appear to expedite evolution of insecticide resistance in its populations. Resistance to IPM would involve synchronized adaptations to multiple unfavorable factors, requiring statistically unlikely genetic changes. Therefore, integrating different techniques is likely to reduce the need for constant replacement of failed chemicals with new ones. © 2014 Society of Chemical Industry     

不同解冻方式对猪肉食用品质的影响

以色泽、嫩度、保水性等品质特性和蛋白质含量、脂肪含量等营养特性为指标,研究3种解冻方式,低温(空气)解冻、常温(空气)解冻、流水解冻对猪肉食用品质的影响。结果表明,低温解冻工艺可显著改善猪肉的L^*值、a^*值和b^*值,有效改善解冻后猪肉的色泽。针对不同解冻方式,低温解冻条件下猪肉的保水性和嫩度明显优于其他两组(P<0.05),解冻后猪肉品质最佳;且低温解冻后的猪肉中蛋白质和脂肪含量最高,解冻后猪肉营养最好。     

Contrasting effects of wheat straw and its biochar on greenhouse gas emissions and enzyme activities in a Chernozemic soil

Biochar produced from plant biomass through pyrolysis has been shown to be much more resistant to biodegradation in the soil as compared with the raw biomass, such as cereal straw that is routinely shredded and discharged on to farm fields in large amounts. Biochar application to soil has also been reported to decrease greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, although the mechanisms are not fully understood. In this study, the emissions of three main GHGs (CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O) and enzyme activities (urease, β-glycosidase, and dehydrogenase) were measured during a 100-day laboratory incubation of a Chernozemic soil amended with either straw or its biochar at rates of 0.67 and 1.68 % (based on the amount of C added) for the low and high rates, respectively. The biochar application dramatically reduced N₂O emissions, but CO₂ or CH₄ emissions were not different, as compared with the un-amended soil. At the same C equivalent application rate, CO₂ and N₂O emission rates were greater while CH₄ emission rates were lower in straw than in biochar application treatments. The activities of both the dehydrogenase and β-glycosidase significantly declined while that of urease significantly increased with the biochar as compared with the straw treatment. We conclude that pyrolysis of cereal straw prior to land application would significantly reduce CO₂ and N₂O emissions, in association with changed enzyme activities, while increasing the soil C pool through the addition of stable C in the form of biochar.     

Induced spermiation of Pimelodus britskii (Teleostei: Pimelodidae) during the reproductive period

For the first time was characterized the semen of Pimelodus britskii, hormonally induced and non‐induced induced, during the reproductive period. The experiment 1 was conducted with 12 fish per month, divided into: (i) induced with Carp Pituitary Extract (CPE), and (ii) without hormonal induction (testes macerated). The experiment 2 was conducted, with 30 fish, divided into groups for comparison of different doses of CPE and human Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG; T1: control; T2: 3.0 mg kg^?1 CPE; T3: 0.5 mg kg + 3.0 mg kg^?1 CPE; T4: 0.5 mg kg^?1 + 7.0 mg kg^?1 CPE; T5: 200 UI kg^?1 hCG), the same fish were used every month, and the semen was collected by abdominal massage. In both, experiments were assessed the sperm motility and velocity by means of the CASA software. In experiment 1, the concentration of spermatozoids was significantly increase by application of CPE compared untreated males. The volume and motility decreased gradually until the end of the experiment, the highest values were recorded for treatment induced (0.49 ± 0.25 mL and 62.18, respectively). The same occurred to Gonadosomatic Index, showing the smallest value at the end of the reproductive period. The fish from experiment 2 released reduced volume of watery semen (0.1 mL). The values of sperm concentration, motility velocity decreased gradually throughout the months. For P. britskii, the reproductive period influenced the production and sperm quality. Despite small seminal volume released the dose of 7.5 mg kg^?1 of CPE proved effective.     

Retrospective evaluation of notched and fragmented QRS complex in dogs with naturally occurring myxomatous mitral valve disease

Myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) is the most common cardiac disease in dogs. The association of QRS notching (nQRS) or fragmentation (fQRS) with disease severity is currently unknown. The study objective was to assess the prevalence of nQRS and fQRS in dogs with MMVD and its severity according to ACVIM classification and to compare the results with a group of healthy dogs. This retrospective cross-sectional study included 34 healthy control dogs and 155 dogs with spontaneous MMVD (42% of dogs in class B1, 23% in class B2 and 35% in class C). fQRS was defined as nQRS complexes in two contiguous leads in the frontal plane (leads I and aVL) and (II, III or aVF). A one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni post-hoc test was used to assess the differences in continuous data between control and MMVD groups. Of the MMVD group, 58% showed nQRS in at least one lead and 27% presented fQRS. There was no difference between the number of leads with a nQRS and disease severity (p = 0.75) nor did the number of leads with a nQRS correlate with left atrial size (r = 0.48; p = 0.5). The number of dogs with fQRS did not differ among classes of MMVD (p = 0.21). nQRS and fQRS were more prevalent in dogs with MMVD compared to control dogs (p < 0.01). This study did not identify any relationship between the number of leads with a nQRS and disease severity. However, dogs with MMVD had a higher prevalence of nQRS and fQRS compared to control group.     

Vertical structure of evapotranspiration at a forest site (a case study)

The components of ecosystem evapotranspiration of a Norway spruce forest (Picea abies L.) as well as the vertical structure of canopy evapotranspiration were analyzed with a combination of measurements and models for a case study of 5 days in September 2007. Eddy-covariance and sap flux measurements were performed at several heights within the canopy at the FLUXNET site Waldstein-Weidenbrunnen (DE-Bay) in the Fichtelgebirge mountains in Germany. Within and above canopy fluxes were simulated with two stand-scale models, the 1D multilayer model ACASA that includes a third-order turbulence closure and the 3D model STANDFLUX. The soil and understory evapotranspiration captured with the eddy-covariance system in the trunk space constituted 10% of ecosystem evapotranspiration measured with the eddy-covariance system above the canopy. A comparison of transpiration measured with the sap flux technique and inferred from below and above canopy eddy-covariance systems revealed higher estimates from eddy-covariance measurements than for sap flux measurements. The relative influences of possible sources of this mismatch, such as the assumption of negligible contribution of evaporation from intercepted water, and differences between the eddy-covariance flux footprint and the area used for scaling sap flux measurements, were discussed. Ecosystem evapotranspiration as well as canopy transpiration simulated with the two models captured the dynamics of the measurements well, but slightly underestimated eddy-covariance values. Profile measurements and models also gave us the chance to assess in-canopy profiles of canopy evapotranspiration and the contributions of in-canopy layers. For daytime and a coupled or partly coupled canopy, mean simulated profiles of both models agreed well with eddy-covariance measurements, with a similar performance of the ACASA and the STANDFLUX model. Both models underestimated profiles for nighttime and decoupled conditions. During daytime, the upper half of the canopy contributed approximately 80% to canopy evapotranspiration, whereas during nighttime the contribution shifted to lower parts of the canopy.     

Resistance and cross-resistance to imidacloprid and thiamethoxam in the Colorado potato beetle Leptinotarsa decemlineata

One of the major challenges in managing the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa decemlineata (Say) is its remarkable ability to develop resistance to virtually every insecticide that has ever been used against it. Resistance is particularly common throughout northeastern USA as far north as Maine. The first instances of resistance to imidacloprid have already been reported from several locations in New York, Delaware and southern Maine. Rotating insecticides with different modes of action may delay insecticide resistance, but successful implementation of this technique depends on a good understanding of resistance and cross-resistance patterns in populations of target pests. LC(50) values were measured for imidacloprid and thiamethoxam in Colorado potato beetle populations from a variety of locations in the USA and Canada using diet incorporation bioassays. The field performance of imidacloprid, thiamethoxam and clothianidin against imidacloprid-resistant beetles on a commercial potato farm in southern Maine was also evaluated. Correlation between LC(50) values for imidacloprid and thiamethoxam was highly significant, even when populations previously exposed to thiamethoxam were excluded from the analysis. There was no statistically detectable difference in the LC(50) values between populations exposed to both insecticides and to imidacloprid alone. Applications of neonicotinoid insecticides at planting delayed build-up of imidacloprid-resistant beetle populations on field plots by 1-2 weeks but failed to provide adequate crop protection. Consistently with bioassay results, there was also substantial cross-resistance among the three tested neonicotinoid insecticides. Results of the present study support the recommendation to avoid rotating imidacloprid with thiamethoxam as a part of a resistance management plan.