Effects of gossypol from cottonseed meal and dietary vitamin E on the reproductive characteristics of superovulated beef heifers

Superovulated Hereford-Angus crossbred heifers (average 397 kg BW) were used to test the effect of feeding cottonseed meal (gossypol) and vitamin E on embryo quality and ovarian characteristics. Twenty-four heifers were assigned randomly to four treatments with six heifers per treatment. Treatments were the following dietary supplements: 1) SBM (soybean meal + 30 IU vitamin E/kg of diet DM); 2) SBM+E (soybean meal + 4,000 IU vitamin E x animal(-1) x d(-1)); 3) CSM (cottonseed meal + 30 IU vitamin E/kg of diet DM); and 4) CSM+E (cottonseed meal + 4,000 IU vitamin E x animal(-1) x d(-1)). Supplements based on cottonseed meal provided 43.5 g of total gossypol/d (37% negative isomer (-) and 63% positive isomer (+)). Blood samples were collected at the start of the experiment and every 3 wk thereafter up to 12 wk. Plasma a-tocopherol (alpha-T) concentration was affected by treatments (P < 0.05). Heifers supplemented with cottonseed meal had greater (P < 0.05) alpha-T concentration in plasma than heifers supplemented with soybean meal at each concentration of vitamin E. Supplementation at 4,000 IU vitamin E x animal(-1) d(-1) increased (P < 0.05) the concentration of a-T in plasma. Weight gain, hemoglobin and hematocrit were not affected by treatment. Erythrocyte osmotic fragility (EOF) increased (P < 0.05) in cottonseed meal-fed animals; however, EOF was lowered (P < 0.05) with vitamin E supplementation. Heifers fed CSM and CSM+E supplements had greater (P < 0.01) concentrations of (-)-, (+)-, and total-gossypol in plasma, corpora lutea (CL), liver, and endometrium than heifers fed SBM and SBM+E supplements. Tissue alpha-T concentration increased with increased dietary supplemental vitamin E, particularly in great amounts in the CL. Because there was no adverse effect of gossypol on superovulation response or embryo development despite concentrations of gossypol in endometrium that are toxic to embryos, it is likely that systems exist in the reproductive tract to limit gossypol toxicity.     

Das Prinzip des integrierten Pflanzenschutzes

Zusammenfassung Nach einer neueren Definition der integrierten Sch?dlingsbek?mpfung werden die Voraussetzungen genannt, die zur praktischen Anwendung dieses Verfahrens notwendig sind. Die Feststellung und Benützung wirtschaftlicher Schadensschwellen ist dabei besonders wichtig. Ferner wird auf die Bedeutung der richtigen Wahl chemischer Pflanzenschutzmittel hingewiesen, solange selektive Pr?parate noch nicht entwickelt und biologische Bek?mpfungsverfahren noch nicht praxisreif sind. Nicht eine pl?tzliche Umstellung von der konventionellen zur integrierten Sch?dlingsbek?mpfung ist erstrebenswert, sondern ein schrittweises Vorgehen, das den jeweiligen M?glichkeiten angepa?t werden mu?. Damit k?nnen auch jetzt schon beachtliche Erfolge erzielt werden.

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Summary A new definition of the integrated control concept is given and the perequisites for practical application are mentioned. Knowledge and use of economic injury levels is of vital importance in this respect. Furthermore, the importance of the choice of pesticides to be used is stressed, as selective materials are not available yet, and purely biological control can not yet be applied in practice. A change from the conventional chemical pest control system into an integrated pest control system has to be realized step by step according to increasing knowledge and experience. With this integrated control system remarkable results have been obtained.

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Résumé Après avoir établi une définition de la lutte integrée, l'auteur indique les conditions à remplir pour l'application pratique de cette méthode. La détermination et l'emploi de seuils de tolérance économiques est particulièrement important. En outre l'importance du choix judicieux des produits antiparasitaires chimiques est soulignée, compte tenu du fait des produits sélectifs ne sont pas encore développés et des procédés de lutte biologique pas encore m?rs pour la pratique. Un changement rapide de la lutte conventionelle à la lutte integrée n'est pas désirable, mais plut?t une évolution progressive qui soit adapté au fur et à mesure aux possibilités du moment. Ainsi, des succés considérables peuvent déjà être obtenus à brève échéance.

     

Don't look back in anger! Responsiveness to missed chances in successful and nonsuccessful aging

Life-span theories explain successful aging with an adaptive management of emotional experiences like regret. As opportunities to undo regrettable situations decline with age, a reduced engagement into these situations represents a potentially protective strategy to maintain well-being in older age. Yet, little is known about the underlying neurobiological mechanisms supporting this claim. We used a multimodal psychophysiological approach in combination with a sequential risk-taking task that induces the feeling of regret and investigated young as well as emotionally successfully and unsuccessfully (i.e., late-life depressed) aged participants. Responsiveness to regret was specifically reduced in successful aging paralleled by autonomic and frontostriatal characteristics indicating adaptive shifts in emotion regulation. Our results suggest that disengagement from regret reflects a critical resilience factor for emotional health in older age.     

Aerobic microbial respiration in 86-million-year-old deep-sea red clay

Microbial communities can subsist at depth in marine sediments without fresh supply of organic matter for millions of years. At threshold sedimentation rates of 1 millimeter per 1000 years, the low rates of microbial community metabolism in the North Pacific Gyre allow sediments to remain oxygenated tens of meters below the sea floor. We found that the oxygen respiration rates dropped from 10 micromoles of O(2) liter(-1) year(-1) near the sediment-water interface to 0.001 micromoles of O(2) liter(-1) year(-1) at 30-meter depth within 86 million-year-old sediment. The cell-specific respiration rate decreased with depth but stabilized at around 10(-3) femtomoles of O(2) cell(-1) day(-1) 10 meters below the seafloor. This result indicated that the community size is controlled by the rate of carbon oxidation and thereby by the low available energy flux.     

Baiting intervals and duration of control of the small fox tapeworm: a simulation study

Field trials to control the small fox tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis failed to reduce the prevalence of the parasite persistently. With the experience from this empirical work, a simulation model for the population dynamics of the small fox tapeworm was developed. This model is used to examine the effect of different control strategies. Sufficient control duration is able to eradicate the parasite in simulation experiments. Baiting intervals of 4 or 6 weeks were found to be more efficient than shorter or longer intervals. The strategy used in field trials showed no sustainable effect in any of the simulation experiments. The applicability of simulation models for the planning of control measures for wildlife diseases is discussed.     

The Essential Role of Human Dimensions and Stakeholder Participation in States’ Fulfillment of Public Trust Responsibilities

The Public Trust Doctrine (PTD) vests states with a fiduciary responsibility to manage wildlife for the benefit of current and future generations. States have varied approaches to applying the PTD for wildlife management ranging from a traditional focus on hunters, anglers, and trappers to a progressive approach of broad inclusion of all potential stakeholders in their decision-making processes. We argue that states need to gather and incorporate more and better human dimensions (HD) information to fulfill their PTD responsibilities. We describe some of the barriers to increased use of HD and the changes in agency culture, staffing, data gathering, and decision-making processes necessary to integrate HD effectively and comport with the PTD. We conclude that in addition to increasing fulfillment of PTD responsibilities, increased use of HD information will help maintain agency relevance, increase political support, and secure broader agency funding.     

苹果叶幕大小对产量的影响

以6个苹果品种为试材,进行苹果的有效负载面积与产量相关性试验.结果表明:在一定条件下,有效负载面积(EBS)越大,产量相应越高.不同纬度对不同品种的EBS和产量的影响不同.土壤中砾石含量对EBS和产量都有影响,但品种和砧木不同,EBS的减少率不同.不同品种对砾石的耐受能力不同.