Foot rot disease of sweet potato in Japan caused by Diaporthe destruens: first report,pathogenicity and taxonomy

Journal of General Plant Pathology - Foot rot, also known as stem rot or tuber-root rot syndrome, on sweet potato occurs in sweet potato fields in Okinawa, Japan. Isolates of one fungal species...     

水冬瓜油的碱炼工艺研究

比较了NaOH和Na2CO3对水冬瓜油(酸值22 mg/g)的碱炼效果,并应用正交和单因子试验,分析了Na2CO3溶液浓度、反应温度、反应搅拌强度和水洗温度4种因子对水冬瓜油碱炼降酸效果的影响,确定了碱炼降酸的最佳Na2CO3用量和Na2CO3碱炼水冬瓜油的最优工艺条件。结果表明,Na2CO3碱炼效果优于NaOH;以碱炼油的得率和酸值为指标,Na2CO3碱炼水冬瓜油的最佳反应条件为:Na2CO3水溶液浓度为170 g/L,反应温度为75℃,搅拌速度为100 r/min,水洗温度为80℃,固体Na2CO3用量为105 g/kg;在此条件下,水冬瓜毛油的酸值可降至1mg/g以下,可作为碱催化酯交换法制备生物柴油的原料。     

Progression of the dose-related effects of estrogenic endocrine disruptors, an important factor in declining fertility, differs between the hypothalamo-pituitary axis and reproductive organs of male mice

For the purpose of investigation of working mechanisms in endocrine disruptors, we evaluated the dose-related effects of fetal and/or neonatal exposure to an estrogenic compound on the male reproductive organs in adult mice, particularly with respect to gene expression of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR). The pregnant ICR mice were given subcutaneous injections of 10 micro g/day/animal of diethylstilbestrol (DES) to subject the fetal mice to in utero exposure (IUE). Subsequently, the newborn male mice were subjected to neonatal exposure (NE) by treatment with vehicle or 0.1-10 micro g/day/animal of DES. Fertility rates of each group were as follows: control, 100%; IUE only, 60%; IUE+NE 0.1 micro g, 25%; IUE+NE 1 micro g, 0%; IUE+NE 10 micro g, 0%. In general histology, germ cell layers in the seminiferous tubules were thinned in the group of IUE+NE 10 micro g. Hypoplasia of the Leydig cells, in which the staining intensity of eosin was diminished, was also observed in the groups of IUE+NE 0.1-10 micro g. The androgen receptor (AR) and estrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) immunoexpression in the Leydig cells of IUE+NE 1-10 micro g was slightly lower than that in the controls. Long-term dysfunction of the hypothalamo-pituitary-testicular axis, including sustained hypoproduction of gonadotropin and testosterone, and altered expressions of steroid hormone receptors and StAR genes were observed. The hypothalamo-pituitary control of gonadotropin secretion may be affected by the smaller doses of estrogenic agents than the reproductive organs. Furthermore, the fertility rate in the male mice exposed to this estrogenic agent was closely correlated with the testosterone levels, and even more so with the rate-limiting factor of steroidogenesis, StAR. This finding suggests that endocrine disruptors have an important pronounced effect on StAR gene expression.     

Genomic evaluation using SNP‐ and haplotype‐based genomic relationship matrices in a closed line of Duroc pigs

A simulation analysis and real phenotype analysis were performed to evaluate the impact of three different relationship matrices on heritability estimation and prediction accuracy in a closed‐line breeding of Duroc pigs. The numerator relationship matrix (NRM), single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)‐based genomic relationship matrix (GRM) (G_S), and haplotype‐based GRM (G_H) were applied in this study. We used PorcineSNP60 genotype array data (38 114 SNPs) of 831 Duroc pigs with four selection traits. In both heritability estimation and prediction accuracy, the accuracy depended on the number of animals with records. For heritability estimation, a large difference in the results among three relationship matrices was not shown, but the trend of the estimated heritabilities between GRMs, that is G_S < G_H, was shown in this population. For the accuracy of prediction values in test animals, the accuracies of prediction values obtained by two GRMs were higher than that by the NRM in this population. The accuracies obtained by GRMs using animals with no records were lower than that by the NRM using animals with their performance records, but were close to that by the NRM using animals with full‐sib testing records.     

Evaluation of a d-Octaarginine-linked polymer as a transfection tool for transient and stable transgene expression in human and murine cell lines

Poly(N-vinylacetamide-co-acrylic acid) coupled with d-octaarginine (VP-R8) promotes the cellular uptake of peptides/proteins in vitro; however, details of the transfection efficacy of VP-R8, such as the cell types possessing high gene transfer, are not known. Herein, we compared the ability of VP-R8 to induce the cellular uptake of plasmid DNA in mouse and human cell lines from different tissues and organs. A green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expression plasmid was used as model genetic material, and fluorescence as an indicator of uptake and plasmid-derived protein expression. Three mouse and three human cell lines were incubated with a mixture of plasmid and VP-R8, and fluorescence analysis were performed two days after transfection. To confirm stable transgene expression, we performed drug selection three days after transfection. A commercially available polymer-based DNA transfection reagent (PTR) was used as the transfection control and standard for comparing transgene expression efficiency. In the case of transient transgene expression, slight-to-moderate GFP expression was observed in all cell lines transfected with plasmid via VP-R8; however, transfection efficiency was lower than using the PTR for gene delivery. In the case of stable transgene expression, VP-R8 promoted drug-resistance acquisition more efficiently than the PTR did. Cells that developed drug resistance after VP-R8-mediated gene transfection expressed GFP more efficiently than cells that developed drug resistance after transfection with the PTR. Thus, VP-R8 shows potential as an in vitro or ex vivo nonviral transfection tool for generating cell lines with stable transgene expression.     

水稻有机栽培苗期恶苗病和立枯病防治技术的研究

水稻苗期恶苗病和立枯病是目前水稻有机栽培急需解决的苗期两大病害,目前国内还没有有效可行的解决办法,有关研究文献也很少。本研究在不使用农药、化肥及育苗调理剂条件下,利用物理方法(温汤处理)和有效微生物制剂(EM)进行防治苗期立枯病和恶苗病的试验。研究结果表明:①从种子发芽率、防治立枯病和恶苗病等因素综合考虑,采用温汤56℃处理10～15 min,58℃处理10 min较安全,即不影响发芽率又能达到防病效果;②EM活性液50～150倍液和EM稀释液500倍液具有促进秧苗的生长发育和防治立枯病的作用。