Destratification in deep fish culture reservoirs in Israel: Practice and modelling

Thermal stratification negatively affects water quality, and thus is a threatto fish culture in deep water ponds and reservoirs. To prevent and controlit, a device based on an underwater propeller that vertically transportsoxygen rich warm water from the epilimnion down to the anoxic and colderhypolimnion was assembled. The empirical results so far obtained in Israelidual purpose reservoirs for field crop irrigation and fish culture aresummarized herein, and a mathematical model of the device's effect onreservoir thermal structure is presented.     

Chestnut Blight Control by Agrochemicals in Castanea sativa under Managed Conditions

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - This research was conducted with the aim of evaluating the in vivo effectiveness of three agrochemical products to control chestnut blight disease in...     

Sperm subpopulations influence the pregnancy rates in cattle

This study aimed to study the characteristics and subpopulations of spermatozoa from bulls with low and high reproductive performance based on pregnancy rates. Based on historical records of pregnancy rate from four farms, 24 bulls were selected. Two groups were established, with low pregnancy rates (n = 12; LOW), including bulls that presented pregnancy rates <52.27% (33.33% to 51.81%); and a group with high pregnancy rates (n = 12; HIGH), with pregnancy rates >52.27% (52.27% to 69.64%), after fixed-time artificial insemination (FTAI). The thawed sperm straws were analysed to sperm kinetics, morphology, plasma membrane integrity and sperm subpopulations. The LOW group exhibited a higher proportion of static cells (p < .05). In contrast, the HIGH group showed greater percentages for membrane integrity and total and progressive motility, and cells with fast and medium velocity (p < .05). In the cluster procedures, four sperm subpopulations were established. The low-fertility bulls presented the highest percentage of subpopulation 2 (41.46%), characterized by slow and progressive spermatozoa. The high-fertility bulls exhibited the highest percentage of subpopulation 3 (37.17%), characterized by fast and nonlinear spermatozoa. Results from this study indicated that bulls with greater percentages of fast and nonlinear spermatozoa seem to have greater fertilization capacity and the subpopulations analysis can be considered a tool to identify ejaculates with high fertility.     

The global circulation of seasonal influenza A (H3N2) viruses

Antigenic and genetic analysis of the hemagglutinin of approximately 13,000 human influenza A (H3N2) viruses from six continents during 2002-2007 revealed that there was continuous circulation in east and Southeast Asia (E-SE Asia) via a region-wide network of temporally overlapping epidemics and that epidemics in the temperate regions were seeded from this network each year. Seed strains generally first reached Oceania, North America, and Europe, and later South America. This evidence suggests that once A (H3N2) viruses leave E-SE Asia, they are unlikely to contribute to long-term viral evolution. If the trends observed during this period are an accurate representation of overall patterns of spread, then the antigenic characteristics of A (H3N2) viruses outside E-SE Asia may be forecast each year based on surveillance within E-SE Asia, with consequent improvements to vaccine strain selection.     

Molecular Mapping of the Stb4 Gene for Resistance to Septoria tritici Blotch in Wheat

ABSTRACT Breeding wheat for resistance is the most effective means to control Septoria tritici blotch (STB), caused by the ascomycete Mycosphaerella graminicola (anamorph Septoria tritici). At least eight genes that confer resistance to STB in wheat have been identified. Among them, the Stb4 locus from the wheat cv. Tadinia showed resistance to M. graminicola at both seedling and adult-plant stages. However, no attempt has been made to map the Stb4 locus in the wheat genome. A mapping population of 77 F10 recombinant-inbred lines (RILs) derived from a three-way cross between the resistant cv. Tadinia and the susceptible parent (Yecora Rojo x UC554) was evaluated for disease resistance and molecular mapping. The RILs were tested with Argentina isolate I 89 of M. graminicola for one greenhouse season in Brazil during 1999, with an isolate from Brazil (IPBr1) for one field season in Piracicaba (Brazil) during 2000, and with Indiana tester isolate IN95-Lafayette-1196-WW-1-4 in the greenhouse during 2000 and 2001. The ratio of resistant:susceptible RILs was 1:1 in all three tests, confirming the single-gene model for control of resistance to STB in Tadinia. However, the patterns of resistance and susceptibility were different between the Indiana isolate and those from South America. For example, the ratio of RILs resistant to both the Indiana and Argentina isolates, resistant to one but susceptible to the other, and susceptible to both isolates was approximately 1:1:1:1, indicating that Tadinia may contain at least two genes for resistance to STB. A similar pattern was observed between the Indiana and Brazil isolates. The gene identified with the Indiana tester isolate was assumed to be the same as Stb4, whereas that revealed by the South American isolates may be new. Bulked-segregant analysis was used to identify amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and microsatellite markers linked to the presumed Stb4 gene. The AFLP marker EcoRI-ACTG/MseI-CAAA5 and microsatellite Xgwm111 were closely linked to the Stb4 locus in coupling at distances of 2.1 and 0.7 centimorgans (cM), respectively. A flanking marker, AFLP EAGG/ M-CAT10, was 4 cM from Stb4. The Stb4 gene was in a potential supercluster of resistance genes near the centromere on the short arm of wheat chromosome 7D that also contained Stb5 plus five previously identified genes for resistance to Russian wheat aphid. The microsatellite marker Xgwm111 identified in this study may be useful for facilitating the transfer of Stb4 into improved cultivars of wheat.     

Extracellular matrix alterations in experimental Leishmania amazonensis infection in susceptible and resistant mice

ABSTRACT: Leishmania is inoculated, by the bite of an infected sandfly, into the skin of the host, where the promastigotes are phagocyted by dermal macrophages. The dermal region comprises cells and abundant extracellular matrix. Studies show that matrix metalloproteinases play an important role in host defense responses against pathogens in mammals and that their activities lead to the production of antimicrobial peptides. The aim of this study is to evaluate the changes in the distribution of fibronectin and laminin as well as in the elastic system fibres during the course of infection caused by Leishmania amazonensis in mice with distinct genetic backgrounds of susceptibility to this parasite. The results showed that BALB/c presented an enhancement of fibronectin during the course of infection when compared to their control group while the infected or non-infected C3H.He showed a decrease of this protein at end of the experiment. Laminin, on the other hand, remained unaltered in both strains. Also in both BALB/c and C3H.He mice the elastic and elaunin fibres remained unchanged while the oxytalan fibres decreased along the experiment. Ninety days after the infection C3H.He mice had recovered their capacity to produce oxytalan fibres.     

Growth,Feed Utilization,and Glycemic Response in European Sea Bass,Dicentrarchus labrax,Juveniles Fed Carbohydrate of Different Complexities

The effect of dietary carbohydrate complexity on growth, feed utilization, and glycemia was studied in European sea bass juveniles. Four isonitrogenous (50% crude protein) and isolipidic (15% crude lipids) diets were formulated to contain 20% pregelatinized maize starch (PGS diet), dextrin (DEX diet), maltose (MAL diet), or glucose (GLU diet). No effect of dietary carbohydrate complexity on growth was noticed. Feed efficiency and protein efficiency ratio were lower in fish fed the GLU diet than in the other groups, whereas the opposite was observed for feed intake. Plasma glucose peaked 3–4 h after feeding in fish fed the MAL and GLU diets, whereas in fish fed the PGS and DEX diets the peak was reached 5–6 h after feeding. Peak plasma glucose concentration (13 mmol/L) was higher in fish fed the GLU diet than the other diets (9 mmol/L). Shorter hyperglycemia duration was observed in fish fed the MALT and GLU diets (6 h) than the PGS and DEX diets (10 h). Complex carbohydrates delayed plasma glucose concentration peak compared with simple sugars, whereas the opposite was observed for hyperglycemia duration. Overall, dietary maltose, dextrin, and starch were apparently better utilized as energy source than glucose by European sea bass juveniles.     

Genomic characterization of H1N2 swine influenza viruses in Italy

Three subtypes (H1N1, H1N2, and H3N2) are currently diffused worldwide in pigs. The H1N2 subtype was detected for the first time in Italian pigs in 1998. To investigate the genetic characteristics and the molecular evolution of this subtype in Italy, we conducted a phylogenetic analysis of whole genome sequences of 26 strains isolated from 1998 to 2010. Phylogenetic analysis of HA and NA genes showed differences between the older (1998-2003) and the more recent strains (2003-2010). The older isolates were closely related to the established European H1N2 lineage, whereas the more recent isolates possessed a different NA deriving from recent human H3N2 viruses. Two other reassortant H1N2 strains have been detected: A/sw/It/22530/02 has the HA gene that is closely related to H1N1 viruses; A/sw/It/58769/10 is an uncommon strain with an HA that is closely related to H1N1 and an NA similar to H3N2 SIVs. Amino acid analysis revealed interesting features: a deletion of two amino acids (146-147) in the HA gene of the recent isolates and two strains isolated in 1998; the presence of the uncommon aa change (N66S), in the PB1-F2 protein in strains isolated from 2009 to 2010, which is said to have contributed to the increased virulence. These results demonstrate the importance of pigs as mixing vessels for animal and human influenza and show the presence and establishment of reassortant strains involving human viruses in pigs in Italy. These findings also highlighted different genomic characteristics of the NA gene the recent Italian strains compared to circulating European viruses.     

Blood metabolites and their relationship with production variables in dual-purpose cows in Venezuela

A survey was carried out on 79 lactating Bos taurus/indicus cross-bred cows on three dual-purpose cattle farms to measure the blood concentration of metabolites and to evaluate possible relationships with nutritional status and productive variables. A rotational grazing system on Star grass and other tropical pastures (10-12% CP in leaves) was used and 2-3 kg/cow/day of concentrate were fed on two farms. Restricted calf suckling was used in two herds. Average milk yield sold per farm was 6 kg/day/cow and body condition scores (BCS) were between 3.0 and 3.8 on a scale of one-to-five. On two farms, the average interval from calving to conception (ICC) was more than 145 days. Mean blood concentrations of albumin, globulin, urea, beta-hydroxybutyrate and phosphorus were generally within reference values, but a significant group of cows had low levels of albumin and urea and high levels of globulin. Packed cell volume (PCV) was below normal values, with anemia in 63% of cows during the second trimester of lactation, which was negatively correlated to milk yield. The high incidence of anemia could be related to factors such as hematophagic parasites, not evaluated in this study. ICC values were negatively related to albumin level and could be associated with protein deficiency in the diet or with disease, as globulin values were high in many cows. Based on these diagnoses, an experiment was carried out on one of the farms to evaluate the influence of supplementation with 0.5 kg/cow/day of fish meal. Total milk yield was not influenced by the fish meal and reproductive efficiency was high in the two supplemental treatments. It was shown that supplementation with undergraded protein is not required in these cows.