Plot location errors of National Forest Inventory: related factors and adverse effects on continuity of plot data

Plot location errors (distance between recorded and true coordinates) of National Forest Inventory (NFI) cause a mismatch between plot data and remotely sensed data and might prevent re-measurement because plots with large location errors are hard to find. However, few studies have examined the detailed distribution of errors and related factors, and no studies have verified whether the large errors prevent re-measurement. This study analyzed data related to 101 plots in central Japan that had been established by the First NFI (1999–2003) on a 4-km grid. Plot location errors of these plots were measured by revisiting. Selective Availability (SA) of the Global Positioning System, which degraded location accuracy until May 2000, was the most important factor in increasing plot location errors. The mean errors were 58.6 and 15.0 m, with and without SA, respectively. In 12 plots with large plot location errors (the mean error was 84.6 m), re-measurement in the Second NFI (2004–2008) was not conducted because plot locations could not be found. In these situations, alternative new plots were established; however, their species compositions were significantly different from the initial NFI plots. Plot location errors of NFI adversely affect the continuity of plot data as well as the analysis with remotely sensed data.     

Effects of microtopography and erosion on seedling colonisation and survival in the volcano Usu,northern Japan,after the 1977–78 eruptions

The effects of microtopographical characteristics of the thick accumulation of ash and pumice, which were produced from 1977–78 eruptions, on seedling emergence and survival were monitored on the volcano Usu, northern Japan, 10 years after the eruptions. The characteristics included microtopography, texture of volcanic deposits on ground surface, volcanic‐deposit movements, water content on ground surface and chemical nature of volcanic deposits (ignition loss, P, K and pH). Polygonum sachalinense showed a higher seed germination percentage on finer‐particle ground surface under lab conditions, and Petasites japonicus var. giganteus germinated well on the ground surface with any particle sizes. However, in the field, the seedling densities of those two species and Anaphalis margaritacea var. angustior (three dominant species in this region) were higher on the sites with coarse particles and/or the rill inside the crater basin. The seedling germination timing and space overlapped among these species in the field. Those facts suggested that the seedling colonisation pattern was influenced more by the topographical characteristics of ground surface rather than the germination abilities. The amount of organic matter in the volcanic deposits was very low, even 11 years after the eruptions, and was not related to microtopography, suggesting that the effects of organic matter on seedling emergence did not differ along microtopographical characteristics. Inside of rills, higher water content seemed to be more advantageous for seed germination of those species. Volcanic deposits were physically stable in summer, but were heavily eroded after winter due to snowmelt. Most seedlings did not overwinter in the inside of rills with pumice where the volcanic deposits eroded intensively, indicating that the patterns of land degradation by melting snow should be mentioned carefully even with narrow scale. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isolation and characterization of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157:H7 from beef,pork and cattle fecal samples in Changchun,China

Meat samples and fecal specimens from adult cattle were collected in Changchun, China and were examined for presence of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) serogroup O157. STEC O157 strains were isolated from 2 (5%) of 40 beef, 1 (3.3%) of 30 pork, and 3 (1.7%) of 176 adult cattle fecal samples. The strains belonged to phage types (PT) 4, 8, or 47. Two beef strains and a strain previously isolated from a patient in Shandong, China, were PT-4 and showed a similar PFGE pattern, suggesting the possibility of food-borne transmission. It is suggested that cattle are a reservoir of STEC O157:H7 and meat products are contaminated by this pathogen in Changchun, China as well as in other countries.     

A new method for detecting the abomasal position and characteristics of movement at the onset of the left displacement of the abomasum in cows

A new method has been developed by us to observe the movements of the abomasum by using a magnet and digital magnetometer. Four cows with left displacement of the abomasum underwent conventional correction by rolling without tacking. A doughnut-type magnet was sutured to the pyloric region in a routine operation. The same was done in three control cows. The position of the pyloric region was observed with a digital magnetometer from outside the cow's body. The magnets in the pyloric region of the control cows were located at the right side of the abdominal cavity at 10-30 cm anterior to the udder base, and moved slightly in various directions within the span of a day. On the other hand, the magnets in the pyloric region of cows with abomasal displacement moved widely in the abdominal cavity from the normal right side to the abnormal left front side. A large movement of the magnet from the normal right side to the abnormal left side of the abdominal cavity was observed within 12 h of the onset of abomasal displacement.     

Extracellular cyclophilin A possesses chemotaxic activity in cattle

Cyclophilin A (CyPA) was originally discovered in bovine thymocytes as a cytosolic binding protein of the immunosuppressive drug cyclosporine A. Recent studies have revealed that in mice and humans, CyPA is secreted from cells in injured or infected tissues and plays a role in recruiting inflammatory cells in those tissues. Here we found that in cattle abundant level of extracellular CyPA was observed in tissues with inflammation. To aid in investigating the role of extracellular CyPA in cattle, we generated recombinant bovine CyPA (rbCyPA) and tested its biological activity as an inflammatory mediator. When bovine peripheral blood cells were treated with rbCyPA in vitro, we observed that rbCyPA reacts with the membranous surface of granulocytes, monocytes and lymphocytes. Chemotaxis analysis showed that the granulocytes migrate toward rbCyPA and the migration is inhibited by pre-treatment with an anti-bovine CyPA antibody. These results indicate that, as for mice and humans, extracellular CyPA possesses chemotactic activity to recruit inflammatory cells (e.g., granulocytes) in cattle, and could thus be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of inflammation.     

Advanced backcross QTL analysis reveals complicated genetic control of rice grain shape in a japonica × indica cross

Grain shape is an important trait for improving rice yield. A number of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for this trait have been identified by using primary F₂ mapping populations and recombinant inbred lines, in which QTLs with a small effect are harder to detect than they would be in advanced generations. In this study, we developed two advanced mapping populations (chromosome segment substitution lines [CSSLs] and BC₄F₂ lines consisting of more than 2000 individuals) in the genetic backgrounds of two improved cultivars: a japonica cultivar (Koshihikari) with short, round grains, and an indica cultivar (IR64) with long, slender grains. We compared the ability of these materials to reveal QTLs for grain shape with that of an F₂ population. Only 8 QTLs for grain length or grain width were detected in the F₂ population, versus 47 in the CSSL population and 65 in the BC₄F₂ population. These results strongly suggest that advanced mapping populations can reveal QTLs for agronomic traits under complicated genetic control, and that DNA markers linked with the QTLs are useful for choosing superior allelic combinations to enhance grain shape in the Koshihikari and IR64 genetic backgrounds.     

Tensile growth stress and lignin distribution in the cell walls of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)

Seven specimens that contained a continuous gradient of wood from normal to tension wood were collected from an inclined black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), and the released strain of growth stress was quantified. Lignin distribution in the cell wall was investigated using ultraviolet (UV) microspectrophotometry to examine its relation to the intensity of growth stress. The UV absorption at cell corner middle lamella and in the compound middle lamella remained virtually constant, irrespective of the contractive released strain (i.e., tensile growth stress). The gelatinous (G)-layer began to differentiate, and the UV absorption decreased there in accordance with increases in the contractive released strain. The absorption maximum (max) remained virtually constant at the cell corner middle lamella and in the compound middle lamella at 277–280nm, irrespective of the released strain. The max for the secondary wall of normal wood was 272nm and shifted to 268nm in the G-layer of tension wood as the contractive released strain increased. The percentage of the cross-sectional area, consisting of the G-layer, with respect to the whole cross-sectional area increased with the contractive released strain.