Polyoxin Resistance of Reddish Brown Laboratory Mutants of Cochliobolus heterostrophus

Six reddish brown polyxin-resistant mutants of Cochliobolus heterostrophus were isolated after ethyl methanesul-phonate and N-nitroquinoline oxide mutageneses followed by selection on polyoxin. All the mutants were highly resistant to polyoxin (MIC > 1600 μg/ml). When mutants were crossed with the wild-type strain, all crosses had a 1 : 1 ratio of mutant (reddish brown pigmentation and polyoxin resistance) : wild type (non-reddish brown pigmentation and polyoxin sensitivity), indicating that the phenotypes in these strains were due to alteration at a single gene locus in each strain. Allelism tests revealed the existence of two loci, Pol2 and Pol5. The results of the crossing and mutation-rate studies suggest that the each gene was pleiotropic for the reddish brown color and polyoxin resistance. Received 19 September 2001/ Accepted in revised form 25 December 2001     

Rapid Construction of a High-Density Rice Linkage Map by High Efficiency Genome Scanning （HEGS） System

High-density linkage maps are essential tools for genome analysis of various biological traits. Our developed compact multi-gel system, HEGS (high efficiency genome scanning) is a high-throughput and high-cost-performance electrophoresis apparatus. Using this system, a high-density (average interval 2.3 cM) map with 1 065 AFLP and 63 SSR markers was constructed from recombinant inbred lines of a japonica and indica hybrid in just two months of electrophoreses by a single person. More than 50% of the mapped AFLP markers were commonly polymorphic for several combinations between japonica and indica rice and 15% were applicable for genetically closer crosses between upland and lowland types of japonica rice. This system can be used for rapid analyses of all kinds of markers.     

Land and Water Use in Rice-upland Crop Rotation Areas in Lower Ili River Basin, Kazakhstan

The lower Ili River Basin is located in semi-arid area, and the annual rainfall is 177mm. Therefore, the irrigation is inevitable for agriculture. Large-scale irrigated agriculture had been developed since 1960＇s in the lower parts of the river and the total irrigated area is about 32 000 hm2. In the project area, the paddy rice-upland crop rotation has been practiced. Due to the domestic water use for hydropower and agriculture as well as water use among riparian countries, the deficit of water for agriculture in the lower part has been concerned. The authors, therefore, conducted the field survey and water balance analysis of the Akdara irrigation project in the lower Ill River Basin in order to assess the land and water uses. Moreover, the impact of the water use on water environment to the basin was analyzed. The following results were obtained as following （1） the groundwater level in the irrigated district varied from 1.5 m to 3.5 m through year. （2） 1970＇s groundwater level was drastically raised from 8 m to 3 m and the groundwater had been recharged in this period. （3） Water use efficiency of agriculture, which is the ratio of total evapotranspiration to the total water withdrawal was as low as 0.23.     

Successful measures to prevent the spread of bovine papular stomatitis in a dairy farm

Nasal papules and oral ulcers were observed in calves that were group-housed at a dairy farm. The calves were diagnosed with bovine papular stomatitis (BPS) due to parapoxvirus (PPV) infection based on virologic examinations using polymerase chain reaction to detect PPV. To prevent the spread of BPS, we isolated the affected calves, made procedural changes so that the affected herd was managed after the healthy herd, disinfected the bedding with slaked lime, disinfected the stalls and fences with invert soap, and changed the animals’ feed to soft grass which does not damage the oral cavity. As a result, we succeeded in control the infection quickly.