Spatial variability in ocean‐mediated growth potential is linked to Chinook salmon survival

Early ocean survival of Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, varies greatly inter‐annually and may be the period during which later spawning abundance and fishery recruitment are set. Therefore, identifying environmental drivers related to early survival may inform better models for management and sustainability of salmon in a variable environment. With this in mind, our main objectives were to (a) identify regions of high temporal variability in growth potential over a 23‐year time series, (b) determine whether the spatial distribution of growth potential was correlated with observed oceanographic conditions, and (c) determine whether these spatial patterns in growth potential could be used to estimate juvenile salmon survival. We applied this method to the fall run of the Central Valley Chinook salmon population, focusing on the spring and summer period after emigration into central California coastal waters. For the period from 1988 to 2010, juvenile salmon growth potential on the central California continental shelf was described by three spatial patterns. These three patterns were most correlated with upwelling, detrended sea level anomalies, and the strength of onshore/offshore currents, respectively. Using the annual strength of these three patterns, as well as the overall growth potential throughout central California coastal waters, in a generalized linear model we explained 82% of the variation in juvenile salmon survival estimates. We attributed the relationship between growth potential and survival to variability in environmental conditions experienced by juvenile salmon during their first year at sea, as well as potential shifts in predation pressure following out‐migration into coastal waters.     

Swine tuberculosis in South Dakota.

Mycobacteria were isolated from 195 of 200 lesions in lymph nodes identified as granulomatous by meat inspectors at 4 abattoirs in South Dakota. Mycobacterium avium serotypes 1 and 2 accounted for 89% of the isolants. Mycobacteria were isolated more frequently from lesions than acid-fast bacilli were observed on microscopic examination (P less than 0.001). The frequency with which mycobacteria was isolated was similar to the occurrence of granulomatous lesions. The numbers of the various kinds of mycobacteria isolated at each of the 4 abattoirs and for the 3 meat inspection disposition classes were not significantly different.     

A Survey of Forestland Conservation Easements in the United States: Implications for Forestland Owners and Managers

Internationally, conservation easements are increasingly popular land management tools for private landowners, government agencies and non-governmental organizations seeking to preserve forests and other natural settings. This paper reports a study of the design and use of conservation easements by organizations and public agencies in the USA. More than 355 conservation organizations and 16 state agencies holding at least 3,598 forestland easements were identified. Demonstrated shortfalls in baseline forest inventories, record keeping, and professionally-developed management plans were evident on working forest easements. Failure to address these shortcomings runs the risk of jeopardizing the legitimacy of the easement approach even where favorable legal and tax conditions exist. Management restrictions varied broadly, with a minority of respondents prohibiting such techniques as clearcutting and salvage logging. Concerns for the use of chemicals, best management practices, and streamside management zones were commonly reflected in easement language, whereas logging road design and the cultivation of old-growth conditions remain largely undeveloped. Implications from the US experience, where easements are relatively well-developed, highlights the need for professional forestry advice—particularly for non-industrial or small-scale forest owners—in both easement development and implementation, the need for careful planning, and the need to carefully consider the respective goals of the forest landowners in crafting the easement documents. In the cases of developing nations, consideration of the differing needs of landowners may require increased flexibility in management documents.     

Pyrolysis mass spectrometry of complex organic materials

Pyrolysis mass spectrometry in combination with computerized multivariate statistical analysis enables qualitative and quantitative analysis of nonvolatile organic materials containing molecular assemblies of a complexity and size far beyond the capabilities of direct mass spectrometry. The state of the art in pyrolysis mass spectrometry techniques is illustrated through specific applications, including structural determination and quality control of synthetic polymers, quantitative analysis of polymer mixtures, classification and structural characterization of fossil organic matter, and nonsupervised numerical extraction of component patterns from complex biological samples.     

Mycotoxin interactions in poultry and swine

Mycotoxins are toxic compounds produced by fungi. When one mycotoxin is detected, one should suspect that others also are present in a contaminated feed ingredient or finished feeds. The toxicity and clinical signs of observed in animals when more than one mycotoxin is present in feed are complex and diverse. Some mycotoxins, such as the combination of aflatoxin with either ochratoxin A or T-2 toxin, interact to produce synergistic toxicity in broiler chicks. The effects observed during multiple mycotoxin exposure can differ greatly from the effects observed in animals exposed to a single mycotoxin. For example, fatty livers in poultry are used for presumptive diagnostic identification of aflatoxicosis. However, simultaneous presence of ochratoxin A prevents fatty livers. Of the mycotoxin combinations that have been investigated in poultry and swine, the aflatoxin + ochratoxin A and aflatoxin + T-2 toxin interactions appear to be the most toxic.     

Ultrastructure of hepatic and renal lesions in chickens fed aflatoxin

Male broiler chicks were given feed and water ad libitum from hatching through 3 weeks of age. The feed contained 0, 1.25, 2.5, and 5.0 micrograms of aflatoxin/g of feed. The chicks were killed by cervical dislocation and specimens of liver and kidney were obtained for electron microscopy on days 3, 6, 9, 17, and 21. In chicks fed 5.0 micrograms of aflatoxin, the primary lesions in liver were hepatocellular lipidosis, enlargement of bile canaliculi, reduction in mitochondrial size, mild lymphocytic infiltration, and hepatocellular degeneration and necrosis. Similar lesions were noticed in some chicks fed 2.5 micrograms of aflatoxin, but none was observed in chicks fed at 1.25 micrograms of aflatoxin. At 5 micrograms of aflatoxin, the most consistent lesion in the kidney was thickening of the glomerular basement membrane. Similar glomerular lesions were observed at 2.5 micrograms of aflatoxin, but not at 1.25 micrograms of aflatoxin. Some foot processes of the glomerular epithelial cells were poorly developed. Fusion of foot processes was not observed and fibrous material was not evident in the basement membrane. The pseudopodia of endothelial cells lining the thickened basement membrane were depleted in number or were absent. Degenerative changes also were observed in the cells of the proximal convoluted tubules, but these were less consistent than those of the glomerulus.     

Inflammation-induced changes in serum modulate chicken macrophage function

Inflammation-induced changes in serum protein profiles and the effects of such serum on a chicken macrophage cell line HD11 were studied to find whether the changes in serum affect cellular immunity. Four-week-old male broiler chickens were injected subcutaneously with either olive oil or 50% croton oil mixed in olive oil to induce inflammation. The birds were bled at 48 h after injection, and serum protein profiles were compared using sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and densitometric evaluation. At 48 h post-injection the serum from croton oil-injected birds showed distinct changes in protein profiles characterized by a selective increase or decrease in levels of several serum proteins. The protein bands which showed increases had relative molecular weights (Mr) corresponding to 65 kilo Daltons (kD), 42 kD, and two or more proteins with Mr≥200 kD. The levels of serum albumin (49 kD), and a 56 kD protein were reduced in croton oil-injected birds. The modulating effects of such serum on HD11 cells were studied using bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) induced functional activation of these cells. The LPS-induced interleukin-6 (IL-6) production by HD11 cells was not affected by the presence of either olive oil-treated control or croton oil-treated inflammatory serum but nitrite production was enhanced by the inflammatory serum. Similarly, inflammatory serum also enhanced PMA-induced respiratory burst measured using dichlorofluorescein diacetate (DCF-DA) oxidation mediated by reactive oxygen intermediates. These results suggest that inflammatory serum can modulate macrophage function by influencing the production of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species which could affect their phagocytic and bactericidal activities.