Relating visual crown conditions to nutritional status and site quality in monoclonal poplar plantations (Populus × euramericana)

The area covered by plantations of hybrid poplar in Europe is increasing greatly because of the high profitability of these trees. However, the productivity varies widely depending on nutritional status, and it is therefore essential to identify the limiting nutrients. The aims of this study were (a) to identify the main nutrients limiting the growth and vitality of monoclonal poplar (Populus × euramericana) plantations and (b) to develop a means of early detection of nutrition-related problems in growth, based on visual crown conditions (crown transparency, VCT, and visual crown discoloration, VCD). The study was carried out in one of the most suitable areas for this species in Southern Europe. Thirty-two Populus × euramericana (clone I-214) stands displaying different levels of decline were selected for study, and tree growth, nutritional status (soil properties and foliar nutrient concentrations) and crown conditions were assessed. The stands, which were growing in soils with high contents of coarse fragments, displayed low growth rates, poor crown conditions and deficiencies in Fe, B, N, P, K, and to a lesser extent, Zn and Cu. The deficiencies increased with the age of the stand, presumably because of the higher nutrient demand in older trees. Visual crown conditions were related to growth rates and nutritional status. Predictive models were developed to relate crown conditions to the nutritional status identified by analysis of soil properties and foliar concentrations of nutrients.     

Influence of crown thinning on radial growth pattern of Pinus taeda in southern Brazil

New Forests - Loblolly pine is widely planted in southern Brazil. Despite its major relevance for the forestry sector, knowledge about its radial growth at different height levels is...     

Synergistic effects of past historical logging and drought on the decline of Pyrenean silver fir forests

The causal factors and effects of forest declines are not well understood in temperate conifer forests. Most studies have focused on climatic and environmental stressors and have obviated the potential role of historical forest management as a predisposing factor of decline. Here, we assess if the recent silver fir (Abies alba) decline observed in the Spanish Pyrenees was predisposed by historical logging and incited by warming-induced drought stress. We analysed a dataset of environmental, structural, and historical variables at the tree and stand level including 32 sites with contrasting degrees of defoliation distributed over 5600 km². We followed a dendroecological approach to reconstruct historical logging and to infer the effects of warming-induced drought stress on growth. The silver fir decline was more severe and widespread in western low-elevation mixed forests dominated by trees of small size and slow growth. These sites were subject to higher water deficits than eastern sites, where late-summer rainfall as the key climatic variable controlling silver fir growth was higher. Declining sites showed more frequent growth releases induced by historical logging than non-declining sites. Historical logging and warming-induced drought acted as long-term predisposing and short-term inciting factors of silver fir decline in the Pyrenees, respectively. We suggest that biomass increases caused by past intense logging affected the vulnerability of silver fir against late-summer water deficit. Future research in declining temperate conifer forests should consider the interacting role of predisposing historical management and inducing climatic stressors such as droughts.     

Geographically structured and temporally unstable growth responses of Juniperus thurifera to recent climate variability in the Iberian Peninsula

Geographically structured tree-ring networks are needed to fully understand the spatiotemporal variability in climatic sensitiveness of trees and to study their future responses to global warming. We aim to identify the spatially constrained structure of radial-growth patterns of the Spanish juniper (Juniperus thurifera L.) and to assess whether their climate–growth responses were unstable during the late twentieth century. Tree–ring width chronologies were built for 13?J. thurifera stands in Spain using dendrochronological methods and related to monthly climatic data. Sites were grouped according to their growth patterns using hierarchical cluster analysis. The relationships among geographical, climatic and stand features and their influence on radial growth were evaluated using redundancy analysis. The climate–growth relationships and their temporal stability were assessed using Pearson’s and moving bootstrapped correlations, respectively. Stands formed three geographical groups according to their high-frequency growth variation: North West and Centre, North East and South East. We found that J. thurifera radial-growth patterns depended on geographical and climatic factors, but not on the stand structure, and responded to a northwest–southeast gradient of decreasing rainfall and influence of Atlantic Westerlies and Mediterranean cyclonic activity. The positive response to June precipitation was unstable during the late twentieth century and started earlier in populations from western mesic sites than in eastern xeric sites. This pattern may be related to either decreasing water availability in western than in eastern sites or the resilience of J. thurifera growth from xeric sites in response to the increasing summer aridity.     

Preference and infestation level of Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann, 1830) on fruits of some Psidium guajava L. cultivars and relation to their physicochemical parameters

This study aimed to verify the preference and infestation level of Anastrepha fraterculus (Diptera: Tephritidae) [South American fruit fly] in fruits of guava cultivars and to correlate them to variables such as peel coloration, soluble solids and pH of fruit cultivars. The following cultivars were used: Pedro Sato, Paluma, Cascão and Século XXI. The infestation was evaluated in cages, considering two scenarios: no-choice and multiple choice. In both tests, evaluations of the fruit attraction to insects were conducted for a period of 1′, 3′, 5′, 10′, 20′, 30′, 1 h, 2 h, 6 h, 12 h and 24 h. The visit of A. fraterculus on the assayed cultivars in relation to the time was studied by logistic regression. After 10 days, the number of larvae in each fruit was recorded. In the multiple choice test, the visit proportions were significantly higher in the fruits of cvs. Século XXI and Pedro Sato than in those of cvs. Paluma and Cascão. In the no-choice test, the visit proportions were significantly lower in the Paluma fruits. In both tests, the rate of fruit infestation by A. fraterculus did not differ among cvs. Pedro Sato, Paluma and Cascão, whereas the fruits of cv. Século XXI were more infested. The indexes of pH did not interfere with the infestation of A. fraterculus, whereas a high rate of soluble solids and low color angle appear to be crucial for discriminating the fruits of the most susceptible cultivars. Infestation rate of Século XXI fruits displayed significant correlations with: °Brix (r= 0.7078) and color angle (h) (r= –0.9499) of guava fruits under the multiple choice conditions.     

Molecular Fingerprinting Suggests Two Primary Outbreaks of Witches' Broom Disease (Crinipellis perniciosa) of Theobroma cacao in Bahia, Brazil

Crinipellis perniciosa (Stahel) Singer is the causal agent of witches' broom disease in the Sterculiaceae, Solanaceae, and Bixaceae families. The disease is endemic to the Brazilian Amazon, and was first reported infecting Theobroma cacao (cocoa) in the State of Bahia, Brazil, in 1989. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analyses were performed on 46 isolates of C. perniciosa from cocoa that were collected from 15 counties in Bahia and the Brazilian Amazon. A total of 258 RAPD loci from 20 primers and three mixed primers were analyzed. Of these loci, 108 (42%) were polymorphic, with an average of 4.7 polymorphic loci per primer produced. Genetic similarities were estimated using Nei and Li's index and UPGMA clustering. Bootstrap analysis divided the phenogram into four significantly different clusters: two groups contained isolates from Ariquemes and from Ouro Preto, Rondônia, and the other two separated the isolates from Bahia into two major groups of C. perniciosa, classified as Group 1 (G1) and Group 2 (G2). The two groups of isolates from Bahia differed for their genetic similarity with the isolates from the Brazilian Amazon. The geographic distribution of the groups in Bahia suggests two independent focal points of introduction. Ongoing programs to screen for resistant cocoa genotypes should consider both groups of isolates.     

In vitro activity of olive oil polyphenols against Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori is linked to a majority of peptic ulcers and to some types of gastric cancer, and resistance of the microorganism to antibiotic treatment is now found worldwide. Virgin olive oil is an unrefined vegetable oil that contains a significant amount of phenolic compounds. Under simulated conditions, we have demonstrated that these substances can diffuse from the oil into the gastric juice and be stable for hours in this acidic environment. In vitro, they exerted a strong bactericidal activity against eight strains of H. pylori, three of them resistant to some antibiotics. Among the phenolic compounds, the dialdehydic form of decarboxymethyl ligstroside aglycon showed the strongest bactericidal effect at a concentration as low as 1.3 microg/mL. Although the experimental conditions are different from other reported works, this bactericidal concentration is much lower than those found for phenolic compounds from tea, wine, and plant extracts. These results open the possibility of considering virgin olive oil a chemopreventive agent for peptic ulcer or gastric cancer, but this bioactivity should be confirmed in vivo in the future.     

Alkylating potential of potassium sorbate

A kinetic study of the alkylating potential of potassium sorbate (S)-a food preservative used worldwide-in 7:3 water/dioxane medium was performed. The following conclusions were drawn: (i) Potassium sorbate shows alkylating activity on the nucleophile 4-(p-nitrobenzyl)pyridine (NBP), a trap for alkylating agents with nucleophilic characteristics similar to those of DNA bases, (ii) The NBP alkylation reaction complies with the rate equation r = k(alk)[H+][S][NBP]/(K(a) + [H+]), K(a) being the sorbic acid dissociation constant and k(alk) the rate constant of NBP alkylation by the undissociated acid. In the range of pH 5-6, the alkylation time ranges between 18 days (pH 5.2) and >1 month (pH > or = 6). (iii) NBP alkylation occurs through a reaction with deltaH# = 78 kJ mol(-1), which is much higher than those of NBP alkylation by stronger alkylating agents. (iv) The absorption coefficient of the sorbate-NBP adduct was determined to be epsilon = 204 M(-1) cm(-1) (lambda = 580 nm), this value being rationalized in terms of the adduct structure. (v) The results can help to establish suitable expiration times for products preserved with potassium sorbate.     

Immobilization of angiotensin-converting enzyme on glyoxyl-agarose

The assay of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition by food-derived peptides is usually carried out by using soluble ACE in a batch process. The purification of this enzyme from tissues is not an easy task, and the resulting preparation loses activity very fast. In addition, ACE commercial preparations are very expensive. In this work the immobilization of ACE, through lysine amino groups, to 4% beads cross-linked (4 BCL) glyoxyl-agarose is described. The amount of immobilized enzyme increased with increasing concentrations of enzyme and with incubation time until a saturation point was reached at 50 mg protein/mL gel and 3.5 hours, respectively. The IC50 values for a noncompetitive sunflower peptide inhibitor were similar for the soluble (30.56 microM) and immobilized (32.7 microM) enzymes. An immobilized derivative was obtained that was 60 times more stable than the soluble enzyme at 60 degrees C. This procedure yields a derivative that can be reused and has increased thermal stability compared to that of the soluble enzyme. Thus, ACE immobilization is a good alternative to using soluble freshly prepared or commercial preparations because of economical and practical reasons.     

Bound malondialdehyde in foods: bioavailability of N,N'-di-(4-methyl-1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehyde)lysine

Reactions between lipid peroxidation products and proteins in foods have detrimental nutritional effects, most importantly, losses of essential amino acids. One of the major products of the reaction of malondialdehyde and alkanals with amino groups are 4-substituted 1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehyde derivatives. The product of the reaction of lysine with malondialdehyde and acetaldehyde, N,N'-di-(4-methyl-1,4-dihydropyridine-3,5-dicarbaldehyde)lysine (MDDL), has been synthesized and used for in vitro and in vivo bioavailability studies. Release of free lysine did not occur in incubations of MDDL with tissue homogenates. After oral administration of radioactively labeled MDDL, radioactivity was only recovered in feces. Radioactivity was not incorporated into hepatic microsomes after intraperitoneal administration, which would have indicated release of available lysine. These results show that MDDL is a form of unavailable lysine, because it is not metabolized to free lysine and cannot be absorbed from the gut. Thus, formation of this derivative in foods would result in loss of available lysine.