Animal disease problems in central Hawke's Bay

Extract

Although the diagnostic laboratory of the Central Hawke's Bay Farmers' Veterinary Club was established primarily for work of a purely diagnostic nature, it was felt that a small programme of research dealing with problems of particular local interest should be attempted in parallel with the routine work.     

Crystal structure of the eukaryotic ribosome

Crystal structures of prokaryotic ribosomes have described in detail the universally conserved core of the translation mechanism. However, many facets of the translation process in eukaryotes are not shared with prokaryotes. The crystal structure of the yeast 80S ribosome determined at 4.15 angstrom resolution reveals the higher complexity of eukaryotic ribosomes, which are 40% larger than their bacterial counterparts. Our model shows how eukaryote-specific elements considerably expand the network of interactions within the ribosome and provides insights into eukaryote-specific features of protein synthesis. Our crystals capture the ribosome in the ratcheted state, which is essential for translocation of mRNA and transfer RNA (tRNA), and in which the small ribosomal subunit has rotated with respect to the large subunit. We describe the conformational changes in both ribosomal subunits that are involved in ratcheting and their implications in coordination between the two associated subunits and in mRNA and tRNA translocation.     

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test for the diagnosis of equine infectious anemia in Brazil

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test was developed for the detection of specific antibodies against the unique infectious anemia (EIA) virus in equine sera. The ELISA test was faster and more sensitive when compared with the classic test of agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID). A total of 200 sera were tested: 100 from negative horses and 100 from positive horses by AGID. The ELISA test showed 92 horse sera negative and 100 horse sera positive by AGID with values of optical density (OD) less than 0.139 and higher than 0.139, respectively. Eight horse sera were negative by AGID and higher than 0.139 by ELISA. Six of these became AGID positive also when re-tested 30 days later, and two were of the horses that showed clinical signs of EIA and died before re-testing.     

Delivering Actionable Plant Health Knowledge to Smallholder Farmers Through the Plantwise Program

Delivering actionable, high-quality plant health knowledge to smallholder farmers and the extension workers who support them is a major challenge. Few farmers access information via the Internet and remote locations make them difficult to reach. The Plantwise program has been working with local partners to implement processes and delivery channels for reaching more farmers with the agricultural advice they need to grow more and lose less to pests. Responding to feedback, content types and formats have been improved, quality control and updating mechanisms have been implemented, and new tools have been developed to deliver information to all who need it.     

Seasonal variability of the response of desert lemons to rind injury and decay caused by quarantine cold treatments

Early-season (September-October) California-Arizona desert lemons held at 0-2.2°C (mean 1°C) for 2, 4 or 6 weeks showed greater chilling injury than did mid- (January) or late-season (February-March) fruit. More lemons were injured and the symptoms were more severe the longer the fruit was held at 1°C. There was no chilling injury to lemons stored at 5 or 10°C. Curing fruit for one week at 15°C before cold-treatment at 1°C significantly reduced the incidence and severity of chilling injury. Rind injury that developed on cured fruit held at 1°C for two or four weeks for Tephritid fruit fly quarantine purposes was within acceptable levels for mid- and late-season lemons, and may also be acceptable for the early-season lemons if the slight injury to this fruit is disregarded and quarantine treatments are for two or three weeks only.