Changes in starch,reducing sugars,and total nitrogen in cotyledons of two cultivars of Phaseolus vulgaris L. during seedling development

Significant changes in starch, total nitrogen and dry weight occurred 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 11 days after planting in the cotyledons of developing bean seedlings, cv. Greenpod 478. These changes were significantly correlated with increases in plant dry weight and an increase in top : root ratio from 2.8 : 1 at emergence (4 days) to 5.6 : 1 at cotyledon senescence (11 days). Although 57% of the cotyledons of cv. Slimgreen were cracked, the pattern of changes in the constituents and associated plant growth was similar to that for Greenpod 478, but the magnitude was generally smaller. Subsequent tests to determine the effect of cracking on changes in cotyledon constituents showed marked influences of this type injury on the starch and total nitrogen contents in cotyledons and on top growth.     

Water use by an irrigated almond orchard

The evapotranspiration rate of a high-yielding (4.3 t/ha) almond orchard was measured by the eddy covariance technique. The site was subject to advection (LE/Rn > 1) for one-third of the mid-season. The slope of energy balance equation calculated from half-hourly flux data was 0.87. Flux data were transformed by forcing closure of the energy balance to give a seasonal ET of 1,450 mm (ETo 1,257 mm). This value could be reconciled with ancillary measures of soil salinity and water content, and plant water status. The mid-phase crop coefficient was 1.1 which was 0.1 higher than a recently published value. Use of the transformed value of ET in calculations of field application efficiency and annual drainage gives values of 98% and 24 mm, respectively.     

Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome in a Quarter Horse Gelding: A Case Report of PPIB-Independent Hereditary Equine Regional Dermal Asthenia

A Quarter Horse gelding presented with pathology consistent with hereditary equine regional dermal asthenia (HERDA) but without the familial association typically present with this disease. Grossly, lesions exhibited either a firm, scar-like appearance or a potential space between the superficial and deep dermis. Both lesioned and non-lesioned skin showed evidence of edema and collagen fragmentation, whereas lesions were also characterized by hemorrhage and inflammation. Genetic testing was performed by three independent laboratories, each using different methods to detect the mutation described in the PPIB gene, previously shown to be associated with HERDA. No mutations in the PPIB gene were revealed by genetic testing, either at the known location of the point mutation or at any other location in the coding sequence. These findings are suggestive of a diagnosis of HERDA or hyperelastosis cutis in the absence of the well-described, putatively causative mutation in the PPIB gene. We propose that, whereas HERDA refers specifically to a familial disease caused by a mutation in the PPIB gene, similar symptoms may in fact be caused by a syndrome resulting from either inherited or spontaneous mutations in any of a number of collagen-processing genes. We conclude that Ehlers-Danlos syndrome be diagnosed in horses of any breed with HERDA-like pathology without the causative mutation.