Removal of mineral nutrients by red clover varieties

K, P, Ca and Mg contents and uptakes are reported from total herbage of plots sown with six varieties of red clover harvested three times a year for 3 years. K, P and Mg contents were above those reported as critical for growth; values for Ca were lower than quoted ranges which suggested that growth might have been affected by either deficiency of Ca or low pH. Hungaropoly was characterized by relatively low K and P and high Ca contents. Maximum uptakes in red clover total herbages over 3 years were 1198 kg ha^?1 K (Hera), 112 kg ha^?1 P (Hera), 494 kg ha^?1 Ca (Hungaropoly) and 104 kg ha^?1 Mg (Mars). Results were compared with those found for S101 perennial ryegrass, harvested on a similar system and receiving similar fertilization with uptakes of 759 kg ha^?1 K, 100 kg ha^?1 P, 200 kg ha^?1 Ca and 46 kg ha^?1 Mg, by expressing accumulating uptakes and inputs as linear regression equations. The better varieties of red clover, Hera, Hungaropoly, Mars and S123 show rates of DM accumulation similar to S101 perennial ryegrass and similar uptake rates of K and P but higher rates of uptake of Ca and Mg. The levels of application of K and P used in the experiment seem to be more than adequate but attention to the Ca status may be required to sustain high-yielding red clover swards.     

Efficacy of moxidectin 6-month injectable and milbemycin oxime/lufenuron tablets against naturally acquired trichuris vulpis infections in dogs

Efficacy of moxidectin injection (ProHeart 6 Sustained Release Injectable for Dogs, Fort Dodge Animal Health) against naturally acquired infections of Trichuris vulpis was compared with that of milbemycin oxime/lufenuron tablets (Sentinel Flavor Tabs, Novartis Animal Health). Eighteen dogs infected with T. vulpis were ranked by egg counts and randomly allocated to treatment with moxidectin (170 micro g/kg), milbemycin (500 micro g/kg)/lufenuron (10 mg/kg), or to an untreated control group (six dogs per treatment). Dogs were euthanized for worm counting 7 days after treatment. Efficacy of milbemycin/lufenuron against T. vulpis was 99.6 %, compared with 67.5 % for moxidectin. The commercial formulation of milbemycin oxime/lufenuron provided excellent control of whipworm infection, whereas moxidectin demonstrated variable efficacy against this parasite.     

Molecular cloning and expression of kidney‐type glutaminase from common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and its up‐regulation by glutamine in primary culture enterocyte

Glutaminase (GLS) is the key enzyme of glutamine (Gln) metabolism and utilization. In this study, a cDNA encoding GLS protein was identified from common carp Cyprinus carpio intestine. The open reading frame of GLS cDNA encodes a polypeptide of 595 amino acids, which shows a high similarity with its zebrafish Danio rerio counterpart. Bioinformatic analysis showed the protein belongs to kidney‐type GLS. The putative protein has glutaminase domain and ankyrin repeats domain, which are highly conserved among vertebrate orthologues. Real‐time quantitative PCR analysis revealed that the abundance of GLS mRNA was the highest in the white muscle, followed by the brain, eyeball and pituitary. Glutaminase was ubiquitously expressed in all intestinal segments of common carp. The activity of GLS did not distribute uniformly along the entire length of the intestine. In primary culture enterocyte, and the expression of GLS mRNA is up‐regulated quickly and effectively by Gln.     

Assessment of the Nutritional Value of Traditional Vegetables from Southern Chile as Potential Sources of Natural Ingredients

Plant Foods for Human Nutrition - There is an increasing interest in consuming healthy foods motivated by the need of boosting the immune system naturally. In this sense, vegetables rich in...     

Using operating area size and adjacency constraints to mitigate the effects of harvesting activities on boreal caribou habitat

Context

Sustained timber harvesting conflicts with the long-term viability of boreal caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou) populations. The spatial arrangement of harvest blocks in the landscape could mitigate the impact of logging on caribou populations. For the forest industry, however, these measures represent constraints that reduce the annual allowable cut (AAC).

Objective

Estimate the long-term impacts of spatial constraints to harvesting, applied alone or in combination, on AAC and boreal caribou populations.

Methods

We divided a 30,000 km² region into 20 harvest block sizes varying from 50 to 1000 km², and modeled the implementation of spatially explicit harvest schedule plans in combination with wildfire and caribou population dynamics. We then evaluated the probability of persistence of boreal caribou populations.

Results

The probability of maintaining an AAC target declined with increasing target AAC, increasing size of operating area, and increasing adjacency constraints. In contrast, the probability of maintaining caribou populations declined with increasing AAC, decreasing size of operating areas, and decreasing adjacency constraints. An increase in operating area size from 50 to 300 km² produced a considerable gain in AAC for all adjacency constraints.

Conclusions

Because adjacency constraints led only to a small increase in the probability of maintaining caribou populations, we recommend adopting less constraining landscape management actions, such as a 70-year period between two consecutive harvests in the same ~300-km² operating area.

     

Cryopreservation of shoot apices of hawthorn in vitro cultures originating from East Asia

The objective of this study was to establish a cryopreservation protocol for hawthorn shoot apices (Crataegus pinnatifida Bge.). Cryopreservation was carried out via encapsulation–dehydration, vitrification, and encapsulation–vitrification on shoot apices excised from in vitro cultures. We began by showing that cold-acclimation enhanced the regrowth of cryopreserved apices from 10.0 to 65.5% in encapsulation–dehydration. We then decided that the encapsulation–dehydration method was an optimal cryopreservation method for hawthorn shoot apices in terms of its high recovery after cryopreservation as well as its ease of use compared with vitrification and encapsulation–vitrification. In encapsulation–dehydration, the protocol leading to optimal regrowth was as follows: after cold-acclimation at 5 °C in the dark for 2 weeks, excised shoot tips were pretreated for 24 h at 25 °C on hormone-free Murashige and Skoog [Murashige, T., Skoog, F., 1962. A revised medium for rapid growth and bioassays with tobacco tissue culture. Physiol. Plant. 15, 473–497] (MS) basal medium with 0.4 mol/L sucrose, then encapsulated and precultured in liquid MS medium with 0.8 mol/L sucrose for 16 h at 25 °C. Precultured beads were dehydrated for 6 h at 25 °C in the dessicator containing 50 g silica gel to a moisture content of 15.3% (fresh-weight basis) before cryostorage for 1 h. In addition, we examined the effect of adding glycerol to both the alginate beads and loading solution to enhance regrowth after cryopreservation in encapsulation–dehydration. In the present study, it was shown that adding 0.5 mol/L glycerol resulted in high regrowth percentages (82.5–90.0%) in four Crataegus species.     

Use of pyrethroid analogues to identify key structural features for enhanced esterase resistance in Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

It has been reported previously that the major resistance mechanism to pyrethroid insecticides by the cotton bollworm Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) in Australia is a consequence of overproduction of esterase isoenzymes. This paper reports structure-activity relationships that support such a view, based on in vivo bioassays conducted with a range of pyrethroid structures containing a variety of acid and alcohol moieties and the correlation with in vitro esterase inhibition assays against the same structures, and identifies the critical regions of the molecule with regard to esterase inhibition, and hence resistance. The implications of this work in terms of possible resistance management are evaluated and discussed.