Assessment of the diversity of comfrey (Symphytum officinale L. and S. × uplandicum Nyman)

Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution - Comfrey Symphytum officinale L. (true comfrey) and S.?×?uplandicum Nyman (a hybrid between S. asperum Lepech?×?S. officinale...     

Nutrient-specific foraging in invertebrate predators

Many herbivores and omnivores adjust their food selection behavior to regulate the intake of multiple nutrients. Carnivores, however, are generally assumed to optimize the rate of prey capture rather than select prey according to nutrient composition. We showed experimentally that invertebrate predators can forage selectively for protein and lipids to redress specific nutritional imbalances. This selection can take place at different stages of prey handling: The predator may select among foods of different nutritional composition, eat more of a prey if it is rich in nutrients that the predator is deficient in, or extract specific nutrients from a single prey item.     

Heat flux anomalies in Antarctica revealed by satellite magnetic data

The geothermal heat flux is an important factor in the dynamics of ice sheets; it affects the occurrence of subglacial lakes, the onset of ice streams, and mass losses from the ice sheet base. Because direct heat flux measurements in ice-covered regions are difficult to obtain, we developed a method that uses satellite magnetic data to estimate the heat flux underneath the Antarctic ice sheet. We found that the heat flux underneath the ice sheet varies from 40 to 185 megawatts per square meter and that areas of high heat flux coincide with known current volcanism and some areas known to have ice streams.     

Measuring specialization in species interaction networks

Background  

Network analyses of plant-animal interactions hold valuable biological information. They are often used to quantify the degree of specialization between partners, but usually based on qualitative indices such as 'connectance' or number of links. These measures ignore interaction frequencies or sampling intensity, and strongly depend on network size.     

A critique of models for freshwater and soil acidification

Four types of models quantifying effects of acid deposition on freshwaters are reviewed. These include Henriksen's empirical model, an adsorption isotherm model, soil-oriented charge balance models (Reuss-Johnson, Birkenes, MAGIC, ILWAS), and the Trickle Down model. Emphasis is on an assessment of critical assumptions; no attempt has been made to run the various models and compare results. The models range from simple to very complex and from empirical to highly process oriented. The various types have all proven useful and there has been a significant convergence concerning key processes. The importance of anion mobility, sulfate adsorption, ion exchange, dissolution of Al bearing minerals and weathering seems to be accepted by most workers. Future model improvement, however, relies to a large extent on further checking against observations.     

Potential nitrogen and phosphorus leaching from soils fertilized with meat and bone meal

Abstract

The nitrogen and phosphorus contents of meat and bone meal (MBM) make it a potentially valuable nutrient source in agriculture. Its narrow N:P ratio, however, makes it a potential environmental risk if it is not utilized with caution. A column-leaching experiment was conducted to assess potential nitrogen and phosphorus leaching from bare soils fertilized with MBM. This should give an idea of the efficacy of autumn or early spring MBM application on land devoid of vegetation cover. Earlier greenhouse and field experiments have indicated that nitrogen mineralization after MBM application takes place relatively rapidly. The column experiment conducted here has indicated that spring application of MBM prior to planting can result in the loss of mineral nitrogen, reducing the total amount of N available to the crop. A higher initial loss (up to 47 mg l^?1) of ammonium was found for the MBM treated soils, but this declined to less than 0.1 mg l^?1 by the end of the experiment, 11 weeks later. Nitrate loss was highest at the onset of the experiment for the soils that received mineral N fertilizer. With time, however, the largest nitrate losses were associated with the MBM-treated soils. Nitrate leaching continued to well beyond the end of the experiment. The effect will most certainly be exacerbated when the crop N (rather than crop P) requirement forms the basis for MBM application. The amount of P leached as ortho-P is probably small but may also represent an environmental risk if N remains to be the basis of MBM application. Based on the results presented here and considering the dangers of elevated nutrient losses, autumn and early spring MBM application may not be recommended.     

Effects of replacing fish meal with soy cake in a diet based on urea-treated rice straw on performance of growing Laisind beef cattle

The present study was to test if different ratios of fish meal to soy cake as protein supplements in the diet are not significantly different in effects on feed intakes and performance of growing beef cattle fed urea-treated rice straw (URTRS) as basal diet under local conditions in North Vietnam. Thirty-six male cattle of Laisind (50 % local Yellow cattle and 50 % Sindhi, both Bos indicus) at around 12 months of age with an average live weight of 124?±?12 kg at start were used in six groups of the experiment. Six diets named A, B, C, D, E, and F used in the experiment were similar in crude protein (CP) level, except for diet A with no supplementation, but different in fish meal/soy cake ratio based on CP content as follows: diet A 0/0, diet B 100/0, diet C 75/25, diet D 50/50, diet E 25/75, and diet F 0/100. Following a 4-week adaptation period, a comparison period lasted 24 weeks. The total intakes of dry matter (DM), DM from roughage, metabolizable energy (ME), and CP were 6, 7, 6, and 20 % higher in diets B–F than diet A with P values ≤0.05, 0.05, 0.05, and 0.001, respectively. The average daily gain (ADG) was 50 % higher (P?<?0.001) in diets B–F than that in diet A. Compared to diet A, diets B–F had lower feed conversion ratio (FCR)_DM, FCR_ME, and FCR_CP by 30, 20, and 30 %, respectively (all at P?<?0.001). There were no significant differences between diets B–F in the intakes, FCRs, and ADG. The apparent digestibility of CP was 12 to 24 % higher (P?<?0.001) in diets B–F than that in diet A. There was a tendency that the apparent digestibilities of DM, CP, and CF were increasing with increasing level of soy cake in this study. The ratio of fish meal to soy cake did not significantly affect feed intakes, ADG, FCR, and apparent nutrient digestibilities of the cattle. Soy cake can therefore be used to partially or fully replace fish meal as a protein supplement in the diet of growing beef cattle fed URTRS without any negative effects on animal performance.     

An Aeroplysinin-1 Specific Nitrile Hydratase Isolated from the Marine Sponge Aplysina cavernicola

A nitrile hydratase (NHase) that specifically accepts the nitrile aeroplysinin-1 (1) as a substrate and converts it into the dienone amide verongiaquinol (7) was isolated, partially purified and characterized from the Mediterranean sponge Aplysina cavernicola; although it is currently not known whether the enzyme is of sponge origin or produced by its symbiotic microorganisms. The formation of aeroplysinin-1 and of the corresponding dienone amide is part of the chemical defence system of A. cavernicola. The latter two compounds that show strong antibiotic activity originate from brominated isoxazoline alkaloids that are thought to protect the sponges from invasion of bacterial pathogens. The sponge was shown to contain at least two NHases as two excised protein bands from a non denaturating Blue Native gel showed nitrile hydratase activity, which was not observed for control samples. The enzymes were shown to be manganese dependent, although cobalt and nickel ions were also able to recover the activity of the nitrile hydratases. The temperature and pH optimum of the studied enzymes were found at 41 °C and pH 7.8. The enzymes showed high substrate specificity towards the physiological substrate aeroplysinin-1 (1) since none of the substrate analogues that were prepared either by partial or by total synthesis were converted in an in vitro assay. Moreover de-novo sequencing by mass spectrometry was employed to obtain information about the primary structure of the studied NHases, which did not reveal any homology to known NHases.