A comparison of various cultivars and lines,of birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus Corniculatus)

Abstract

Yields of 17 entries of Lotus corniculatus were measured over two seasons at Ermelo in the south‐eastern Transvaal. There were marked differences between entries in the date of commencement of flowering in the establishment year, the relative abundance of flowers, and the degree of dormany in the winter. Root rot caused by the fungi Fusarium and Phoma caused extensive damage. There were indications that the cultivar Norcen was resistant to the fungi and that Germplasms MO 20 and NC 83 had partial resistance.     

Local evidence for tolerance of birdsfoot trefoil (lotus corniculatus) to acid soils

Abstract

The pattern of yield response of birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) cv. San Gabriel to soil amendment with lime and superphosphate on a virgin acid soil indicated that this legume is tolerant of local acid soils and moderately tolerant of low levels of extractable phosphorus.     

A survey of feeding,management and faecal pH of Thoroughbred racehorses in the North Island of New Zealand

AIM: To identify feeding and management variables associated with variation in faecal pH within a population of intensively managed Thoroughbred racehorses in New Zealand.

METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 16 racehorse trainers in the North Island of New Zealand. Interviews were conducted at the trainers' stables to obtain information on feeding and management of horses, and faecal samples were collected and faecal pH measured.

RESULTS: Ninety-seven percent of the horses surveyed were confined in an area ≤5 × 5 m for ≥12 h/day. Trainer's age, number of years they had trained horses, age and gender of horses, weeks in race training, racing class, frequency of feeding, bedding type, and exercise workload had no effect on mean faecal pH. Acidic faecal pH (pH ≤6.32) was associated with stables with ≤12 horses, and trainers at stables with ≤12 horses offered more concentrate feed than those at stables with >12 horses. Acidic faecal pH was associated with trainers who offered 4 kg of grain as the only form of concentrate fed, or offered ≤2.25 kg hay/day. Horses that displayed stable vices had less acidic faecal pH than horses that did not display stable vices, viz pH 6.70 (standard error of the mean (SEM) 0.135) vs 6.43 (SEM 0.029) (p=0.04).

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Racehorse management in New Zealand is similar to that observed in other major racing countries. Trainers with ≤12 horses fed more concentrates and their horses had lower faecal pH than those of trainers with >12 horses. Irrespective of management system, it appears important to provide at least 2.25 kg of hay/day ad libitum, to buffer hindgut acidosis associated with diets high in soluble carbohydrate.     

Purple carrot (Daucus carota L.) polyacetylenes decrease lipopolysaccharide-induced expression of inflammatory proteins in macrophage and endothelial cells

Carrots ( Daucus carota L.) contain phytochemicals including carotenoids, phenolics, polyacetylenes, isocoumarins, and sesquiterpenes. Purple carrots also contain anthocyanins. The anti-inflammatory activity of extracts and phytochemicals from purple carrots was investigated by determining attenuation of the response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS). A bioactive chromatographic fraction (Sephadex LH-20) reduced LPS inflammatory response. There was a dose-dependent reduction in nitric oxide production and mRNA of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1beta, TNF-alpha) and iNOS in macrophage cells. Protein secretions of IL-6 and TNF-alpha were reduced 77 and 66% in porcine aortic endothelial cells treated with 6.6 and 13.3 microg/mL of the LH-20 fraction, respectively. Preparative liquid chromatography resulted in a bioactive subfraction enriched in the polyacetylene compounds falcarindiol, falcarindiol 3-acetate, and falcarinol. The polyacetylenes were isolated and reduced nitric oxide production in macrophage cells by as much as 65% without cytotoxicity. These results suggest that polyacetylenes, not anthocyanins, in purple carrots are responsible for anti-inflammatory bioactivity.     

Microbiological changes in the uneviscerated bird hung at 10 degrees C with particular reference to the pheasant

Thirty pheasants which had been reared in captivity for 19 weeks were killed by dislocating the neck and hung for up to 15 d at 10 °C. Microbiological, sensory and chemical assessments were made at 0, 3, 6, 8, 10, 13 and 13 d and this paper reports the microbiological results.

Examination of the duodenum, small intestine and caecum showed very little multiplication of coli‐aerogenes bacteria during hanging, although there was some increase in the numbers of faecal streptococci. Psychrophilic clostridia, mainly Clostridium putrefaciens, were found in the small intestine after 8 d and these organisms increased in number up to the 15th d.

The muscle remained relatively free from bacteria for most of the hanging period, but at 15 d Cl. putrefaciens was found in two out of three muscle samples at io³ and io⁴ per g.

No signs of spoilage due to greening were observed.

Twelve 16½>‐week‐old chickens were also killed by dislocating the neck and hung without plucking for 12 d at 10 °C with the pheasants. Although initially there were no major differences between the intestinal flora of the chickens and pheasants, faecal streptococci and coli‐aerogenes bacteria multiplied rapidly in the small intestine of the chickens during the first week. Greening occurred around the vent within 5 d.

Reasons for the differences between the two types of bird are discussed, particularly in relation to the diet.     

Interbreed variation of DLA-DRB1, DQA1 alleles and haplotypes in the dog.

Although 36 DLA-DRB1 and 10 DLA-DQA1 allele sequences have been published to date, no data on individual allele frequencies exists, either for specific breeds or cross breeds, and the full extent of the polymorphism at each of these loci is still not known. We have used sequence-specific oligonucleotide probing (SSOP) to characterise a series of 367 dogs for their DRB1 and DQA1 alleles. These included individual animals from over 60 different breeds, with numbers per breed ranging from 1 to 39. DLA types were generated from 218 dogs for DRB1 and from 330 dogs for DQA1, while 181 dogs were characterised for both these loci. The frequency of individual DRB1 and DQA1 alleles showed considerable interbreed variation, e.g. 83% of West Highland White Terriers were DRB1*01 as opposed to 9% of Collies. No breed had >9 of the 22 DRB1 types defined in this study; several breeds had only two DRB1 types. DLA-DQA1 showed less variation in allele numbers per breed, but also showed considerable interbreed frequency variation. Haplotype analysis revealed over 44 different DRB1/DQA1 combinations. Of these, 25 were in a number of animals, and also in an animal that was homozygous for one or both of these loci. Some DRB1 alleles could be found in combination with several different DQA1 alleles, while others were only present in one haplotypic combination. DLA allele frequency data in normal dogs will be critical for disease association studies. It may also be possible to use haplotype data to establish the genetic relationships between different dog breeds.