Naturally occurring bacteriophages lyse a large proportion of canine and feline uropathogenic Escherichia coli isolates in vitro

We investigated the feasibility of bacteriophage therapy to combat canine and feline Escherichia coli urinary tract infections (UTIs) by testing the in vitro lytic ability of 40 naturally occurring bacteriophages on 53 uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC). The mean number of UPEC strains lysed by an individual bacteriophage was 21/53 (40%, range 17-72%). In total, 50/53 (94%) of the UPEC strains were killed by one or more of the bacteriophages. Ten bacteriophages lysed 51% of UPEC strains individually and 92% of UPEC strains as a group. Electron microscopy and DNA sequencing of 5 'promising' bacteriophages revealed that 4 bacteriophages belonged to the lytic T4-like genus, while one displayed morphologic similarity to temperate P2-like bacteriophages. Overall, these results indicate that the majority of UPEC are susceptible to lysis by naturally occurring bacteriophages. Thus, bacteriophages show promise as therapeutic agents for treatment of canine and feline E. coli UTIs.     

Erythrocyte antibodies in porcine eperythrozoonosis

Autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) was detected in pigs affected by spontaneous eperythrozoonosis. Autoantibodies against red cells were found by hemagglutination and hemolysin tests and direct and indirect antiglobulin tests using immunofluorescence. According to these findings and morphological results, the process in porcine eperythrozoonosis is to be classified as acquired autoimmune hemolytic anemia due to “cold” antibodies.     

Relation between population density and body size in stream communities

The existence of a general relation between population density and body size in animal assemblages has been debated because of known biases and ambiguities in the published data and data handling. Using new comprehensive data sets from two geographically separated stream communities that encompass 448 and 260 invertebrate taxa with a wide range of body sizes, we show that an inverse proportionality between density and body size is a consistent feature in these communities. The scaling across taxa is not statistically different between the two systems, indicating a convergent pattern of communities. Variation in the regression slope among different taxonomic groups indicates that these communities are not governed universally by a single ecological or energetic rule.     

Seasonal development of above‐ and below‐ground organs of Trifolium pratense in grass–legume mixture on different soils

Grass–legume mixtures are suitable for crop rotations in organic farming. However, seasonal development of below‐ground organs of Trifolium pratense in mixtures and on different soils was neglected. We asked (1) how the diameter of the root neck, the maximum order of branching as well as (2) the nodule traits are affected by locality and time, and (3) how above‐ground plant traits of red clover vary in space and time. Red clover was investigated in grass–legume mixtures in the first year of vegetation. Five sites in S Germany were sampled at the day of cut at the end of May, the beginning of July, and at the end of August, respectively. Under similar climatic conditions root traits (diameter of the root neck, order of root branching, size of nodules, and proportion of senescent nodules) differed with soil conditions and time within the season. Root diameter increased during the season. Higher sand content fostered root branching and branched roots developed more nodules. Thinner roots had more active nodules (pink). Root diameter and non‐active senescent (green) or moribund (brown) nodules increased at the end of season. Nodule activity differed more according to season than to soil conditions. The number of nodules per plant (12.5–19.5) decreased from May to August. Cylindrical nodules were found on 85–100% of the plants and branched nodules only on 0–25%. The height of plants was lowest in May and increased in July. The mean number of stems per plant (3.3–6.3) was highest in August. Understanding red clover traits and N₂ fixation is interesting scientifically as well as agronomical. Organic and conventional farmers can both benefit of our findings.     

Integration of bio-physical and economic models to analyze management intensity and landscape structure effects at farm and landscape level

We present an integrated spatially explicit land use modeling framework, which integrates two key components of agricultural systems, the bio-physical production system and the management system, by coupling the bio-economic farm optimization model FAMOS[space], the crop rotation model CropRota, and the bio-physical process model EPIC (Environmental Policy Integrated Climate). The integrated modeling framework has been developed to analyze the cost-effectiveness of selected agri-environmental program (AEP) measures. We also focus on the landscape development and therefore include a detailed representation of landscape elements such as fields or orchard meadows in our analysis. An indicator set represents all main environmental AEP objectives, i.e. preservation of water and soil resources, mitigation of climate change, protection of biodiversity, maintenance of cultural landscapes as well as farm income support. The integrated modeling framework is applied to 20 farms in the Austrian ‘Mostviertel’ region, which are selected from the Integrated Administration and Control System (IACS) of the European Union. The cost-effectiveness of AEP measures is assessed under different premium levels. The implementation of the AEP clearly affects environmental quality in a positive way. Nitrogen rates are reduced, landscape elements can be sustained, and the landscape becomes more diverse. The program also increases farm gross margins on average. However, the cost-effectiveness ratios (CER) are declining with increasing premium levels. The results indicate that the cost-effectiveness of AEP measures can be improved by spatial targeting.     

Decoupling structural and environmental determinants of sap velocity: Part II. Observational application

In this work we present experimental evidence in support of a new approach for investigating the dependence of sap velocity on atmospheric water demand and soil moisture supply. In this method, sap velocity is defined as the product of two components: the first describes the ‘shape’ of the radial profile of sap velocity, which is consistent through time and is likely linked to the species-specific anatomical and structural properties of the conducting xylem; the second, which we define as stem conductance, captures the time-dependent component of sap velocity that is mostly governed by shifts in atmospheric water demand and individual tree water supply. The heat pulse technique was used to estimate radial profiles of sap velocity and transpiration from a sample of 16 mature sugar maples (Acer saccharum) located along a topographic transect in a mixed deciduous forest. Our results demonstrate that: (1) stem conductance is strongly correlated with bulk air conditions (with confidence intervals for all the sampled trees greater than 99% and average R² of 0.43, 0.57, 0.54 for vapor pressure deficit (VPD), PPFD and net radiation, respectively) and atmospheric water demand (average R² equal to 0.73) on an hourly basis and that it is independent of tree size; (2) sensitivity of stem conductance to atmospheric water demand in sugar maples is also correlated to variation in local soil water availability (P-value = 0.014, R² = 0.43) which arises due to a mild topographic gradient (i.e. 20 m of relative relief along 140 m) and relatively shallow soil. Although the sampled trees were subjected to a wide range of atmospheric water demands and soil moistures, the response to changes in environmental conditions is entirely explainable by dynamics of stem conductance rather than the relative fraction of sap flow along the radial profile, as some of the previous studies reported. Overall, our results confirm our theoretical approach and the possibility of partitioning sap velocity variability between either xylem properties or changes in environmental conditions.     

Australopithecus sediba hand demonstrates mosaic evolution of locomotor and manipulative abilities

Hand bones from a single individual with a clear taxonomic affiliation are scarce in the hominin fossil record, which has hampered understanding the evolution of manipulative abilities in hominins. Here we describe and analyze a nearly complete wrist and hand of an adult female [Malapa Hominin 2 (MH2)] Australopithecus sediba from Malapa, South Africa (1.977 million years ago). The hand presents a suite of Australopithecus-like features, such as a strong flexor apparatus associated with arboreal locomotion, and Homo-like features, such as a long thumb and short fingers associated with precision gripping and possibly stone tool production. Comparisons to other fossil hominins suggest that there were at least two distinct hand morphotypes around the Plio-Pleistocene transition. The MH2 fossils suggest that Au. sediba may represent a basal condition associated with early stone tool use and production.