Laughing gull chicks: recognition of their parents' voices

Laughing gull chicks between 6 and 13 days old responded to the calls of their own parents with orientation toward the sound, approach, increased locomotion, and vocalization. In response to the same kinds of calls from other adults they tended to orient away from the sound, withdraw, and sit or crouch. Chicks as young as 6 days can identify their parents from individual characteristics in the calls of adult gulls.     

The effect of source of nitrogen on the dry matter yield,nitrogen and nitrate‐N content of Lolium multiflorum

Three sources of N fertilizer (urea, limestone ammonium nitrate (LAN) and ammonium sulphate) showed no consistent significant trends in terms of the dry matter yield and nitrogen or nitrate‐N content of midmar ryegrass. Ammonium sulphate was found to acidify the soil markedly, relative to urea, with LAN showing the least acidifying effect.     

Recovery of infectious virus from full-length cowpox virus (CPXV) DNA cloned as a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC)

ABSTRACT: Transmission from pet rats and cats to humans as well as severe infection in felids and other animal species have recently drawn increasing attention to cowpox virus (CPXV). We report the cloning of the entire genome of cowpox virus strain Brighton Red (BR) as a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) in Escherichia coli and the recovery of infectious virus from cloned DNA. Generation of a full-length CPXV DNA clone was achieved by first introducing a mini-F vector, which allows maintenance of large circular DNA in E. coli, into the thymidine kinase locus of CPXV by homologous recombination. Circular replication intermediates were then electroporated into E. coli DH10B cells. Upon successful establishment of the infectious BR clone, we modified the full-length clone such that recombination-mediated excision of bacterial sequences can occur upon transfection in eukaryotic cells. This self-excision of the bacterial replicon is made possible by a sequence duplication within mini-F sequences and allows recovery of recombinant virus progeny without remaining marker or vector sequences. The in vitro growth properties of viruses derived from both BAC clones were determined and found to be virtually indistinguishable from those of parental, wild-type BR. Finally, the complete genomic sequence of the infectious clone was determined and the cloned viral genome was shown to be identical to that of the parental virus. In summary, the generated infectious clone will greatly facilitate studies on individual genes and pathogenesis of CPXV. Moreover, the vector potential of CPXV can now be more systematically explored using this newly generated tool.     

Disease severity declines over time after a wild boar population has been affected by classical swine fever--legend or actual epidemiological process?

Classical swine fever (CSF) is a severe multi-systemic disease that can affect both domestic pigs and wild boar. Past outbreaks in European wild boar involved high-virulent CSF virus (CSFV) strains and were mostly self-limiting. In these cases, morbidity and mortality rates were high in the affected regions. In contrast, endemic infections have been observed in several European wild boar populations in recent decades. Morbidity and mortality rates were much lower despite the fact that outbreaks were still detected via diseased or fallen animals. The virus strains involved were mostly classified as genotype 2.3 strains of moderate virulence causing age-dependent disease outcomes. The mechanisms leading to the establishment and perpetuation of endemicity are still not fully understood, but the factor "moderate virulence" seems to be of considerable importance. In this study, we aim to clarify whether the perception of declined 'CSF severity' could hypothetically reflect the adaptation of an initially high-virulent virus or whether this might be better explained as a misinterpretation of observations. A mechanistic eco-epidemiological model was employed to follow up a highly virulent strain of CSFV introduced into large connected wild boar populations. In the model, the virulence of the CSF virus is represented by case mortality and life expectancy after lethal infection. Allowing for small stochastic variation, these two characteristics of the virus are passed on with every new simulated infection that occurs. Model analysis revealed a decrease from high to moderate case mortality within a few years of simulated perpetuation of the virus. The resulting mortality corresponded to the level where the population average of the infectious period and the basic reproduction number of the disease were maximal. This shift in virulence was sufficient to prolong virus circulation considerably beyond the epidemic phase of the simulated outbreaks. Alternative mechanistic explanations for the decrease in disease severity in a CSF-affected wild boar population were evaluated in the light of the simulation experiments and the available epidemiological or virological evidence. In conclusion, the current virus isolates of subgroup 2.3 might be the ideally adapted variants of the CSF virus for long-term perpetuation in wildlife and indeed may have evolved (once) during past outbreaks in large populations. A repeated perception of a declining severity of disease pattern during the course of a CSF outbreak, however, favours the explanation based on monitoring and detection biases rather than repeated observation of selection against highly virulent virus during the time of virus perpetuation.     

Comparison of T-cell subpopulations in cats naturally infected with feline leukaemia virus or feline immunodeficiency virus

T-cell subsets were studied by flow cytometry in 58 feline leukaemia virus (FeLV)-positive cats with naturally acquired FeLV infection to determine whether the changes in CD4⁺ or CD8⁺ T cell populations differed from those observed in 55 feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)-positive cats with naturally acquired FIV infection. The sole criterion for inclusion into the study was seropositivity. Mean (SD) CD4⁺ T cell values of FeLV positive cats were decreased to 31·1 (8·0) per cent and their CD8⁺ T cell values were increased to 22·8 (6·3) per cent in comparison with uninfected control cats (37·9 [9·5] per cent CD4⁺; 15·2 [6·3] per cent CD8⁺). The CD4⁺/CD8⁺ ratio was reduced to 1·5 (0·7), compared with 3·0 (1·5) in 39 FeLv- and FIV-negative control cats. Differences from control values were significant, but there was no significant difference between CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ lymphocytes of FeLV- versus FIV-infected cats. These findings indicate that FeLv and FIV have similar effects on T lymphocyte subsets. Both retrovirus infections can induce immunodeficiency, both viruses infect a broad range of lymphohaemopoietic cells, despite having different primary target cells, and can induce the killing of lymphocytic cells in vitro. It is concluded that a decreased CD4⁺/CD8⁺ ratio is not restricted to FIV infections but may also occur in FeLv infection.     

生产菌DAB啤酒酵母选育技术研究

生产性状发生退化的DAB酵母,采用30％致死率的紫外线处理,经高糖培养基筛选及单细胞分离等手段,得到一株性能优良的啤酒生产酵母菌种。     

Arbeitsergebnisse aus der Projektgruppe ?Krankheiten im Getreide“ der Deutschen Phytomedizinischen Gesellschaft e. V.

In den Jahren 1989 bis 1992 wurde in bundesweit durchgeführten Feldversuchen eine Bekämpfungsschwelle für Blatt- und Ährenkrankheiten in unterschiedlich widerstandsfähigen Winterweizensorten überprüft. Nach vergleichbarem Muster lief die Überprüfung verschiedener Schwellenwerte in Winterroggen, Winter- und Sommergerste von 1992 bis 1995 ab.Mit von 1995 bis 1998 ebenfalls mehrfaktoriell angelegten Feldversuchen beteiligte sich die Projektgruppe an dem Vorhaben der Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung (BLE) Untersuchungen zum Einfluss unterschiedlicher Pflanzenschutzmaßnahmen auf den Mykotoxingehalt und den Fusarium-Besatz im Erntegut von Getreide (1997–2000). Ergänzt um Beiträge der Projektgruppenteilnehmer aus dem eigenen Forschungs- und Entwicklungsbereich wurden die Erkenntnisse der Projektgruppe zu diesem Themenkomplex im Rahmen eines Workshops im November 2002 vorgestellt und mit ca. 120 Fachleuten aus Ministerien, der Produktionstechnik sowie den vor- und nachgelagerten Bereichen diskutiert.