Contribution of a liana species, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Mucuna macrocarpa</Emphasis> Wall., to litterfall production and nitrogen input in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest

Annual amounts of litterfall and nitrogen input by litterfall were measured in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest to examine the contribution of a liana species, Mucuna macrocarpa Wall., to the spatial heterogeneity of litterfall production and nitrogen input. The total litterfall in the study plot was 7.1 t ha⁻¹ year⁻¹. The amount of litterfall varied with topography and was greatest at the valley bottom and decreased toward the ridges. Macuna macrocarpa litterfall was absent on the ridges although it accounted for the largest percentage, 32%, of total leaf litter production in the valley. Nitrogen input by litterfall was 69 kg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ in the plot. Nitrogen input by litterfall was also largest at the valley bottom and decreased toward the ridges. Leaf litter of M. macrocarpa had approximately twice the nitrogen concentration of litterfall of other species. Macuna macrocarpa accounted for 42% of nitrogen input by leaf litter in the valley. The abundance and the high nitrogen concentration of M. macrocarpa intensified differences in the amount of litterfall and nitrogen input by litterfall between valleys and ridges. It was concluded that a liana species, M. macrocarpa, can contribute to the spatial heterogeneity of litterfall and may subsequently affect nutrient cycling in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest on Okinawa Island.     

Physiological characteristics of blue sac disease in chum salmon alevins

Fisheries Science - Blue sac disease (BSD) in salmonids results in the abnormal accumulation of ascites fluid and can often lead to mass mortality. However, the symptoms and causes of BSD remain...     

Inhibition by pulp juice and enhancement by ingestion on germination of bird-dispersedPrunus seeds

To evaluate what prevents seed germination and why ingestion by birds enhances germination, we carried out germination experiments using bird-dispersed seeds of twoPrunus species (Prunus sargentii andP. ssiori) in the laboratory. Germination of seeds with following four treatments was compared: “Ingested seeds” excreted after feeding of fruits to birds; “Extracted seeds” deliberately extracted from the fruit pulp; “Juiced seeds” which were supplemented with the juice of the pulp after seeds had been deliberately extracted from the pulp; and “Intact seeds” in untreated whole fruits. Many ingested (27%, 23% inP. sargentii, 18% inP. ssiori) and extracted seeds (24% inP. sargentii, 17% inP. ssiori) germinated, and difference in germination percentages between ingested and extracted seeds were not significant, for eitherPrunus species. The Juiced seeds rarely germinated (2% inP. sargentii, 6% inP. ssiori), and seeds within intact fruits did not germinate. These results suggest that the fruit pulp and the juice of the pulp inhibit germination and the seeds could germinate without ingestion by birds once they had been manually extracted from pulp. Therefore, it is considered that bird ingestion enahnces germination by removing pulp, especially juice of the pulp, in these twoPrunus species.     

Characteristics for Practical Use of Attenuated Isolate UA-Fukushima of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Tomato mosaic virus</Emphasis>

L₁₁A-Fukushima (L₁₁A-F) derived from attenuated isolate LuA of Tomato mosaic virus (ToMV) has the highest ability to cross protect against virulent ToMV among LuA and its derivatives and is stably inherited. Growth, yield, fruit quality and symptom attenuation of inoculated tomato plants did not differ significantly between L₁₁A-F and L₁₁A. The infectivity of progeny viruses in tomato infected with LuA-F was less than 4% of that with virulent ToMV. From these results, L₁₁A-F appears to possess the properties necessary for practical use. To manage L₁₁A-F strictly, a PCR-based assay to detect trace contamination of virulent ToMV in L₁₁A-F preparations was established. Received 10 June 2002/ Accepted in revised form 30 October 2002     

Evaluation of nutritive value and palatability by goats and sheep of selected browse foliages from semiarid area of Kenya

The feeding value of five browse foliages (Acacia brevispica, Acacia mellifera, Berchemia discolor, Zizyphus mucronata and Maerua angolensis) grown in semiarid area of Kenya were evaluated. Their chemical composition including polyphenolics and in vitro gas production characteristics were determined. The biological activity of the polyphenolics was assessed as the increases in gas production profiles and in vitro true dry matter (DM) and organic matter (OM) digestibility after in vitro incubation with or without addition of polyethylene glycol (PEG) as a tannin binding reagent. The intake and palatability ranking of the browse foliages by goats and sheep were also investigated. The browse foliages had variable crude protein content (149.5–248.6 g/kg DM) and variable content of neutral detergent fiber (205.1–424.0 g/kg DM). The content of total extractable tannins was generally low (2.4–34.8 g/kg DM). At 24 h of incubation, Z. mucronata produced the highest gas volume, while after 48 h of incubation, B. discolor produced the highest gas volume. M. angolensis had the least gas production potential within the browse foliages. Addition of PEG increased gas production except in A. mellifera and M. angolensis. However, PEG addition did not have any significant effect on in vitro true DM and OM digestibility except in B. discolor, which decreased. The rank order of preference (highest to least) for goats was A. brevispica, Z. mucronata, B. discolor, A. mellifera and M. angolensis while the rank order of preference for sheep was A. brevispica, B. discolor, A. mellifera, Z. mucronata and M. angolensis. The goats had higher intakes of all the browse foliages than sheep. The result of this study highlights the higher feeding value of the browse species as supplemental feed with low quality basal diet with both of animal species except M. angolensis.     

Treatment with a High Dose Combination of PMSG/hCG Preparation of Mares Clinically Diagnosed with Ovarian Quiescence during the Breeding Season (Investigation from 1975 to 2000)

A total of 88 thoroughbred mares were diagnosed with clinical ovarian quiescence and subjected to four treatment regimens. Using PMSG, hCG or combinations of both. A high dose combination of 5,000IU PMSG with 5,000IU hCG showed significantly higher rates of marked estrus and ovulation induction (P<0.01) as well as conception rates (P<0.05). In the present study, the administration of a high-dose combination of PMSG with hCG was shown to be an effective treatment of ovarian quiescence in light mares.     

Comparison of carcass and meat characteristics of Brahman grade cattle (Bos indicus) and crossbred water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) fed on high roughage diet

The objective of this study was to compare the carcass and meat quality in crossbred cattle and crossbred water buffalo at the same younger age and fed with high roughage in the Philippines. Ten crossbred cattle and 10 crossbred water buffalo, with an average age of 22 months (18–24 months) were used in this experiment. The animals were fed a similar diet, which consisted of 85% Napier or Para grass and 15% concentrate mixture on a dry matter basis, for 180 days before slaughter. Slaughter weight of the crossbred water buffalo was higher (P < 0.05) than that of the cattle, although the dressing percentage was significantly (P < 0.01) lower for the former than for the latter. The estimated lean yield was higher (P < 0.05) in crossbred cattle than crossbred water buffalo. The muscle fiber diameter of loin in buffalo meat was smaller (P < 0.05) than that in cattle. In regard to carcass and meat quality, the crossbred water buffalo was comparable or slightly superior to the crossbred cattle in tenderness, sensory score of color (P < 0.01) and flavor (P < 0.05). These results clearly indicate that at a younger age and even under high roughage‐based fattening rations, crossbred water buffalo are able to produce good quality meat, which will be by no means inferior to that of crossbred cattle in the Philippines.     

Characterization of Verticillium dahliae Isolates from Potato on Hokkaido by Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and REP-PCR Analyses

Verticillium dahliae isolates from potato on the island of Hokkaido (potato isolates) and those belonging to pathotypes A (eggplant pathotype), B (tomato pathotype) and C (sweet pepper pathotype) were divided into three distinct groups by RAPD and REP-PCR. The three DNA groups I, II, III consisted of pathotypes A and C, pathotype B and potato isolates, respectively. The potato isolates were assigned to pathotype A on the basis of pathogenicity. Another set of potato isolates was further collected from eight potato cropping regions on Hokkaido to further examine the relationships among them in detail. Only one of these isolates was identified as DNA group II, but all the others were classified as DNA group III. Isolates from daikon, eggplant, and melon on Hokkaido also belonged to DNA group III. These results suggest that V. dahliae isolates from Hokkaido are unique at the DNA level and different from other pathotype A isolates in Japan. Received 28 February 2000/ Accepted in revised form 6 November 2000     

Prevalence of canine coronavirus (CCoV) in dog in Japan: detection of CCoV RNA and retrospective serological analysis

We collected rectal swabs from dogs in Japan during 2011 to 2014, and canine coronavirus (CCoV) nucleocapsid gene was detected by RT-PCR. The relationship between CCoV infection and the manifestation of diarrhea symptoms was investigated, and a correlation was noted (df=1, χ²=8.90, P<0.005). The types of CCoV detected in samples from CCoV-infected dogs were CCoV-I in 88.9% and CCoV-II in 7.4%, respectively. We retrospectively investigated the seroprevalence of CCoV-I in dogs in Japan during 1998 to 2006. The sera were tested with a neutralizing antibody test. In the absence of CCoV-I laboratory strain, we used feline coronavirus (FCoV)-I that shares high sequence homology in the S protein with CCoV-I. 77.7% of the sera were positive for neutralizing anti-FCoV-I antibodies.