Effects of high and low inspired fractions of oxygen on horse erythrocyte membrane properties, blood viscosity and muscle oxygenation during anaesthesia

ObjectivesTo evaluate whether a period of hyperoxia or after a period of hypoxia produced changes attributable to reactive oxygen species in anaesthetized horses.Study designProspective randomized experimental study.AnimalsSix healthy (ASA I) geldings, aged 4.5–9.5 years and weighing 510–640 kg^?1.MethodsAfter 30 minutes breathing air as carrier gas for isoflurane, horses were assigned randomly to breathe air as carrier gas (CG0.21) or oxygen as carrier gas (CG1.00) for a further 90 minutes. After an interval of 1 month each horse was re-anaesthetized with the other carrier gas for the 90 minute test period. Ventilation was controlled throughout anaesthesia. Arterial blood was sampled to measure gas tensions, lactate, cholesterol, vitamin E, 4-hydroxy-alkenals, 8-epi-PGF_2α, half haemolysis time, half erythrolysis time, and erythrocyte membrane fluidity. Muscle blood flow and oxygenation were evaluated by near infrared spectroscopy and coloured Doppler.ResultsAfter the first 30 minutes horses were hypoxemic. Subsequently the CG1.00 group became hyperoxaemic (PaO₂～240 mmHg) whereas the CG0.21 group remained hypoxaemic (PaO₂～60 mmHg) and had increased lactate concentration. No significant changes in vitamin E, 4-hydroxy-alkenals, or 8-epi-PGF_2α concentrations were detected. During the 90 minute test period the CG0.21 group had increased resistance to free-radical-mediated lysis in erythrocytes, whereas the CG1.00 group had slightly decreased resistance of whole blood to haemolysis. CG0.21 induced a progressive muscle deoxygenation whereas CG1.00 induced an increase in muscle oxygen saturation followed by progressive deoxygenation towards baseline.Conclusions and clinical relevanceDuring isoflurane anaesthesia in horses, the hyperoxia induced by changing from air to oxygen induced minimal damage from reactive oxygen species. Using air as the carrier gas decreased skeletal muscle oxygenation compared with using oxygen.     

The relative importance of dispersal limitation and habitat preference in shaping spatial distribution of saplings in a tropical moist forest: a case study along a combination of hydromorphic and canopy disturbance gradients

• Introduction   

Various processes contribute to shaping the local assemblage of species in hyperdiverse tropical forest. The relative contribution of environmental factors and dispersal limitation in determining the spatial distribution of saplings at local scale is unclear.     

Competitive interactions between juvenile trembling aspen and lodgepole pine: A comparison of two interior British Columbia ecosystems

To facilitate ecosystem-specific management of juvenile mixtures of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. Ex Loud. Var. latifolia Engelm.) and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) in south-central British Columbia, we compared the characteristics of pine–aspen competition between a moist sub-boreal spruce and a dry interior Douglas-fir ecosystem. A total of 252 lodgepole pine and their neighbourhoods were examined across four untreated stands, each of which was sampled three times between ages 12 and 24 years. Pine diameter and height decreased with increasing density of trembling aspen at least as tall as the target pine (tall aspen) in both ecosystems. Regression analysis was used to examine the ability of tall aspen density and four competition indices (CIs) to predict pine size. Tall aspen density, which is easily assessed in the field, accounted for 63% and 69% of the variation in pine diameter and height in 20–24 year-old stands, respectively. The most successful competition index, based on the basal diameter ratio (BDR) of trembling aspen to pine accounted for, respectively, 78% and 73% of the variation. In the same stands, R² values were 1–5% lower when tall aspen density and BDR at age 15–19 years were used to predict size of 20–24-year-old pine.     

Role of waterlogging-responsive genes in shaping interspecific differentiation between two sympatric oak species

Pedunculate (Quercus robur L.) and sessile oak (Quercus petreae Matt. Liebl.) are closely related species with a widely sympatric distribution in Europe. These two oak species are also known to display different ecological features, particularly related to their adaptation to soil waterlogging. Pedunculate oak grows in humid areas and can withstand high moisture content of the soil, whereas sessile oak requires drier soil with better drainage. The main goal of this study was to explore the role of gene expression contributing to differences in terms of waterlogging tolerance between these two species. We implemented a series of experiments aimed at evaluating whether differentially expressed genes between species are associated with their ecological preferences and underlie adaptive genetic divergence. Rooted cuttings of both species were grown in hydroponic conditions and subjected to gradual root hypoxia. White roots were sampled after 6, 12, 24 and 48 h. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was first used to monitor the expression of 10 known waterlogging-responsive genes, to identify discriminating sampling time points along the kinetics of hypoxia. Secondly, four subtractive suppressive hybridization libraries (sessile vs. pedunculate, pedunculate vs. sessile for early and late responses) were generated to isolate differentially expressed genes between species. A total of 2160 high-quality expressed sequence tags were obtained and annotated, and a subset of 45 genes were selected for qPCR analysis in a second independent factorial experimental design applying two stress durations per two species. Significant differences of gene expression between pedunculate and sessile oaks were detected, suggesting species-specific molecular strategies to respond to hypoxia. This study revealed that the ability of pedunculate oak to maintain glycolysis and fermentation under hypoxic conditions may help explain its tolerance to waterlogging.     

Twenty year site preparation effects on sub-boreal lodgepole pine performance

We examined the effects of various mechanical site preparation methods and windrow burning on container-grown planted lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia) survival and growth for 20?years after treatment at a sub-boreal site in north-central British Columbia, Canada. Survival was uniformly high (??80%) regardless of treatment, indicating that site preparation was not necessary to establish pine on this site. Significant treatment effects on height, diameter, and stem volume were present at all assessment dates, but only the windrow burning treatment was associated with growth gains over the untreated control after two decades. Pine planted at the disk trench hinge were significantly larger than control pine only until year five. Of the mechanical treatments, only coarse mixing (by bedding plow) continued to have a significant effect on pine growth for as many as 9?years after treatment. Despite the disappearance of significant differences between mechanical treatments and the untreated control by year 20, the magnitude of stand volume increases suggests the potential for mechanical site preparation to have a beneficial effect on future timber supply. Repeated measures analysis confirmed that trends in early diameter growth differed between the untreated control and the windrow burning or coarse mixing treatments. These data are also potentially valuable for verifying growth and yield or carbon budgeting modelling tools.     

A variance-covariance structure to take into account repeated measurements and heteroscedasticity in growth modeling

This study proposes a within-subject variance-covariance (VC) structure to take into account repeated measurements and heteroscedasticity in a context of growth modeling. The VC structure integrates a variance function and a continuous autoregressive covariance structure. It was tested on a nonlinear growth model parameterized with data from permanent sample plots. Using a stand-level approach, basal area growth was independently modeled for red spruce (Picea rubens Sarg.) and balsam fir [Abies balsamea (L.) Mill.] in mixed stands. For both species, the implementation of the VC structure significantly improved the maximum likelihood of the model. In both cases, it efficiently accounted for heteroscedasticity and autocorrelation, since the normalized residuals no longer exhibited departures from the assumptions of independent error terms with homogeneous variances. Moreover, compared with traditional nonlinear least squares (NLS) models, models parameterized with this VC structure may generate more accurate predictions when prior information is available. This case study demonstrates that the implementation of a VC structure may provide parameter estimates that are consistent with asymptotically unbiased variances in a context of nonlinear growth modeling using a stand-level approach. Since the variances are no longer biased, the hypothesis tests performed on the estimates are valid when the number of observations is large.     

Virtual trees and light capture: a method for optimizing agroforestry stand design

In agroforestry systems, the distribution of light transmitted under tree canopies can be a limiting factor for the development of intercrops. The light available for intercrops depends on the quantity of light intercepted by tree canopies and, consequently, on the architecture of the tree species present. The influence of tree architecture on light transmission was analysed using dynamic 3D architectural models. The architectural analysis of Acacia mangium and Tectona grandis was performed in Indonesian agroforestry systems with trees aged from 1 to 3 years. 3D virtual trees were then generated with the AmapSim simulation software and 3D virtual experiments in which tree age, planting density, planting pattern and pruning intensity varied were reconstructed in order to simulate light available for the crop. Canopy closure of trees was more rapid in A. mangium than in T. grandis agroforestry systems; after 3 years the quantity of light available for A. mangium intercrops was three times lower than under T. grandis. Simulations with A. mangium showed that practices such as pruning and widening tree spacing enable to increase the total transmitted light within the stand. On T. grandis, modification of the tree row azimuth resulted in changes in the spatial and seasonal distribution of light available for the intercrops. These results are discussed in terms of agroforestry system management.

Farm woodlots in rural Rwanda: purposes and determinants

The development of farm woodlots as an alternative source of livelihood for smallholder farmers in diverse biophysical and socio-economic conditions is a challenging issue in developing countries, such as Rwanda, where the majority of the population relies on subsistence farming. There is a need to understand why and when farmers decide to grow trees and woodlots on their farms. The objective of this study was to analyse the determinants and the purposes that enhance the propensity to grow woodlots in low, medium and high altitude regions of Rwanda. Necessary information for this study came from a survey of 480 households across these regions. The results showed regional variations in the determinants of woodlot farming, demonstrating the importance of not extrapolating the results between regions. Pooled data across regions indicated that age of the householder, number of salaried household members, farm size, travel distance to fuelwood sources and household location in medium forest cover region had positive significant effects on the propensity to grow farm woodlots. In contrast, household location in low forest cover region, ownership of livestock and monthly frequency of purchasing fuelwood were inversely related to the presence of farm woodlots. Many households planted eucalyptus woodlots for economic reasons, not for environmental purposes. Livestock and crop production were more attractive to rural households than woodlot farming. The findings of the study can be used by policymakers and extension services in order to promote sustainable land use practices by focusing on the challenges of competing land uses, farm size, unemployment, dependence on forests for fuelwood supply and subsistence farming.