Sole ulcers in Finnish dairy cattle

The Finnish Healthy Hooves project was set up to determine the frequency of, and risk factors for various hoof lesions in Finnish dairy herds. Data were collected in the years 2003 and 2004. A large dataset of over 74,000 cow-level observations recorded by hoof trimmers was merged with production data from the Finnish Agricultural Data Processing Centre Ltd. Ultimately, data from a single lactation from each of 16,792 cows in 703 herds were used for the analyses in this paper. Three-level hierarchical logistic models with hoof trimmer and farms (within hoof trimmer) as random effects were fit to data sets of tie stall (TS) and loose housing (LH) herds separately. The outcome of interest was the presence or absence of a sole ulcer in one or more legs of a cow during the lactation of interest.Cows examined once had a risk of sole ulcer 5.23% in tie stall herds and 7.58% in LH herds. As the number of examinations increased the odds of a diagnosis of sole ulcer increased substantially (2 and 3+ examinations had odds ratios (ORs) of 1.42 and 3.42 in TS herds and 2.77 and 6.89 in LH herds). Breed had a large effect on the risk of sole ulcer with Holsteins 2.89 times more likely to be affected than Ayrshires in TS herds and 2.94 times in LH herds. In TS herds, the presence of other hoof lesions such as haemorrhages (OR = 2.97), heel-horn erosions (OR = 2.10) and corkscrew claw (OR = 2.83) increased the risk of a sole ulcer developing. In LH herds, only haemorrhages (OR = 1.80) were a significant risk factor when parity was ≥2. In TS herds, use of mats (compared to hard flooring) significantly reduced the risk of sole ulcers (OR = 0.49). The effect of parity on the risk of sole ulcer was greatest when parity ≥4 but this effect was only significant in tie stalls (OR = 1.86).When analyses were restricted to cows with parity ≥2, similar results were obtained for the risk factors identified above. In addition, parity became highly significant in TS and LH (OR 2.31 and 2.23, respectively when parity was 4+). In TS herds, herd average milk production was significantly associated with a decrease risk of sole ulcer (OR = 1.28 per 1000 kg decrease) but there was no effect of production at the cow level (measured as deviation from the herd mean). No significant effects of production were observed in LH herds.     

Positional distribution of conjugated linoleic acid in triacylglycerol of Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Saccharomyces cerevisiae was cultivated in the presence of cis-9,trans-11 or trans-10,cis-12 isomers of free conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), and the effects of the isomers on the regioisomerisms of triacylglycerol (TAG) of the yeast were elucidated. Both isomers constituted about 34% of all fatty acids and increased drastically the number of different TAG species. Nearly all of the species contained CLA in at least one sn-position. In the most abundant species analyzed (20% of total species), the cis-9,trans-11 isomer appeared in combination with monounsaturated fatty acids (C16:1, C:18:1) whereas trans-10,cis-12 isomer was most frequently present with a medium chain fatty acid (C10:0 or C12:0) in the sn-2 position and C16:0 in one of the end positions (14% of total species). With either isomer, the amount of TAG species in which CLA encompassed all sn-positions was ca. 4%. Thus, S. cerevisiae can be used to produce edible single cell oil characterized by very heterogeneous distribution of CLA among the different TAG species.     

Microbially safe utilization of non-inactivated oats (Avena sativa L.) for production of conjugated linoleic acid

A microbially safe process for the enrichment of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) in oats was developed. The process consists of hydrolysis of oat lipids by non-inactivated oat flour, followed by propionibacterium-catalyzed isomerization of the resulting free linoleic acid to CLA. The first stage was performed at water activity (a(w)) 0.7, where hydrolysis of triacylglycerols progressed efficiently without growth of the indigenous microflora of flour. Thereafter, the flour was incubated as a 5% (w/v) aqueous, sterilized slurry with Propionibacterium freudenreichii ssp. shermanii. The amount of CLA produced in 20 h was 11.5 mg/g dry matter corresponding to 116 mg/g lipids or 0.57 mg/mL slurry. The oat flour had also the capability to hydrolyze exogenous oils at a(w) 0.7. Sunflower oil, added to increase linoleic acid content in triacylglycerols 2.7-fold, was hydrolyzed rapidly. Isomerization of this oil-supplemented flour as a 5% slurry gave final CLA content of 22.3 mg/g dry matter after 50 h of fermentation, corresponding to 118 mg/g lipids or 1.14 mg/mL slurry. Storage stability of CLA in fermented oat slurries at 4 degrees C was good.     

不同生态条件下玉米单倍体自然加倍率及除草剂加倍效果

单倍体加倍率低成为玉米单倍体育种的限制性因素。为了提高玉米单倍体的加倍率,研究两种生态条件下单倍体的自然加倍率,比较甲基胺草磷(APM)和氟乐灵两种除草剂在不同浓度和处理方法下玉米单倍体的加倍效率。结果表明,海南试验点的单倍体自然加倍率要高于贵州贵阳试点。应用除草剂可以明显提高雅玉889和京糯208单倍体的加倍率,基础材料基因型对自然加倍率和除草剂加倍率都具有显著影响。APM和氟乐灵均是在浓度为80μmol·L~(-1)处理单倍体加倍率最高,APM处理的单倍体加倍率要高于氟乐灵,采用滴心法和浸种法处理的单倍体加倍率无明显差异。综上,如采用自然加倍,应在海南试验点种植单倍体;如采用除草剂加倍,应使用浓度为80μmol·L~(-1)的APM,采用滴心法或浸种法对雅玉889和京糯208单倍体加倍。     

Symptoms and yield reduction caused by Dickeya spp. strains isolated from potato and river water in Finland

Biochemical characterisation of Dickeya strains isolated from potato plants and river water samples in Finland showed that the majority of the strains were biovar 3. They thus resembled the strains recently isolated from potato in the Netherlands, Poland and Israel and form a new clade within the Dickeya genus. About half of the Finnish isolates resembling strains within this new clade were virulent and caused wilting, necrotic lesions and rotting of leaves and stems. Similar symptoms were caused by D. dianthicola strains isolated from one potato sample and from several river water samples. Frequently, the rotting caused by the Dickeya strains was visible in the upper parts of the stem, while the stem base was necrotic from the pith but hard and green on the outside, resulting in symptoms quite different from the blackleg caused by Pectobacterium atrosepticum. The presence of Dickeya in the symptomatic plants in the field assay was verified with a conventional PCR and with a real-time PCR test developed for the purpose. The virulent Dickeya strains reduced the yield of individual plants by up to 50% and caused rotting of the daughter tubers in the field and in storage. Management of Dickeya spp. in the potato production chain requires awareness of the symptoms and extensive knowledge about the epidemiology of the disease.     

Resettling,disconnecting or displacing? Attending to local sociality,culture and history in disaster settings

In many disaster settings, top‐down responses emphasise ‘expert‐led’ solutions that often involve relocating disaster‐affected communities. While the intention might be to move people from harm's way and facilitate recovery, failure to attend to local pre‐disaster circumstances as well as the interplay between power, resilience and vulnerability within and around affected communities often sees resettlement reconfigure as displacement or disconnection. This oversight may even usher in a new phase of dispossession and disadvantage for marginalised groups (particularly in colonial settings). This paper explores experiences in Australia, Japan and Taiwan to reflect on what issues of local sociality, local culture and local resilience need to be attended to in framing ‘better’ disaster responses.     

从不同源杂交种选育玉米二环系的配合力研究

在玉米育种中以GCA,SCA为指标选择玉米二环系的源杂交种作为基础材料来选系,从而选择优良的玉米自交系和杂交组合,本研究结果表明,这种选育玉米自交系的方法是可行和有效的.     

除草剂对不同燕麦品种杂草防治效果及其产量的影响

为了筛选燕麦田高效安全的除草剂,在山西北部地区开展了田间试验,选取田普除草剂(主要成分为二甲戊灵)为试验药剂,8种不同生态型的燕麦品种为供试品种,检验该除草剂对不同品种产量和安全性的影响。研究结果表明:田普除草剂对藜科、蓼科、禾本科、苋科杂草效果较明显,尤其是对藜科杂草的防治效果最好,最高的达到了100%,而对马齿苋科、菊科、旋花科杂草效果不好;使用田普除草剂处理对燕麦品种的穗长、轮层数、小穗数等性状有一定的抑制作用,对籽实千粒重的有促进作用;本研究中喷施除草剂的处理的平均籽实产量比不喷施除草剂的处理和人工除草处理分别增产70.5%和4.3%。此外,该除草剂未对后茬作物(油菜)产生明显药害作用,可对燕麦-油菜倒茬安全使用。