Characterisation of camel breeding practices in the Ansongo Region,Mali

Despite its importance in Mali’s economy, camel breeding in the country remains poorly documented, impeding effective policy-making in this regard. This study consisted in a 3-month survey and aimed at characterising camel breeding systems in Ansongo, in the region of Gao, Mali. It highlights the diversity of strategies adopted by breeders and their evolutions. Supplementary feeding and veterinary care were seldom practised. In zones close to the Niger River, cattle were substituted to camels. Transhumance routes also are modified but mobility keeps its vital role in the breeding system. Important differences within the study region in the classification of camel breeds have been reported that will influence the implementation of a collective action for animal genetic improvement. The improvement goals should take the actual management, including mobility and the mixed nature of the herds into account.     

Human Ovarian Tissue Vitrification/Warming Has Minor Effect on the Expression of Apoptosis-Related Genes

Background: In this study, we evaluated the incidence of apoptosis at the ultrastructural levels and expression of some apoptosis-related genes in vitrified human ovarian tissue just after warming. Methods: Human ovarian tissue biopsies from 23 women after caesarean section were transported to the laboratory within 2 hours, and then they were cut into small pieces. Some pieces were vitrified and warmed and the other samples were considered as control. Apoptosis was assessed by a transmission electron microscope and also by molecular analysis of pro-apoptotic (Fas, FasL, Bax, p53, caspase8, and caspase3) and antiapoptotic (Bcl-2 and BIRC5) genem RNA levels using real-time RT-PCR before and after vitrification. Results: No sign of apoptosis was shown ultrastructurally in vitrified samples. The level of FasL, Bcl-2, Bax, p53, and caspase3 mRNA and Bax:Bcl-2 ratio were similar in non-vitrified and vitrified groups; however, the expression of Fas and caspase8 genes was higher and BIRC5 was lower in vitrified samples compared to non-vitrified group (P<0.05). Conclusion: The fine structure of human vitrified ovarian tissue was well preserved; moreover, vitrification was shown to affect the expression of some apoptosis-related genes. However, additional study is needed to confirm this observation.Key Words: Vitrification, Apoptosis, Gene expression, Ovary, Humans     

Growth performance,carcass quality characteristics and colonic microbiota profiles in finishing pigs fed diets with different inclusion levels of rice distillers’ by‐product

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of diets containing rice distillers’ by‐product (RDP) on growth performance, carcass characteristics, meat quality, and gut microbiota of fattening pigs. Twenty‐four crossbred finishing pigs (Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire), 56.9 ± 3.1 kg initial body weight, were randomly allocated to three groups. For 56 days, pigs were fed one of three diets including RDP0 (control), RDP15 (15% RDP in DM), and RDP30 (30% RDP in DM). With RDP level in diet, average daily gain and backfat thickness linearly increased (p < 0.05), and drip loss tended to increase (p ≤ 0.08). In addition, 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon profiling showed that RDP was associated with modulation of colonic microbiota composition, especially at family and genus levels. Relative abundance of Porphyromonadaceae and Erysipelotrichaceae families in colonic digesta increased with inclusion of RDP, while that of Enterobacteriaceae decreased. The proportion of genera unclassified Erysipelotrichaceae, and Butyrivibrio increased as inclusion of RDP. These results indicate that up to 30% inclusion in diet of finishing pigs, RDP can modulate colonic microbiota composition, and induces an improvement of animal growth and fat deposition.     

Polyacrylamide polymer (PAM) effect on the propagation of the wetting front on a Jordanian soil under trickle irrigation system

Numerous studies have been conducted to examine the efficiency of PAM in controlling soil erosion under surface irrigation; however, there are fewer studies that have examined the effect of PAM on soil-water relations. This trickle irrigation laboratory study on a Jordanian clay loam soil addressed the effect of PAM on the spreading of the wetting front. PAM was added to the irrigation water under a trickle irrigation experiment where we irrigated the soil for 30 min. Four PAM concentrations (0.0, 5.0, 10.0, and 20.0 mg l^?1) were used to examine its effect on the wetting front propagation in the soil. We also examined the effect of PAM on the soil water content, where we irrigated for 45 min, using two concentrations of PAM, 0.0 and 20.0 mg l^?1. The soil water content was measured at depths of 0.0, 5.0, 10.0, 15.0, and 20.0 cm, 4 h, 24 h, and one week after completion of irrigation. PAM's effect on the soil water characteristic curve was studied using PAM concentrations of 0.0, 25, 50, and 100 mg l^?1. In this study the spread of the wetting front on the soil surface and in the vertical and horizontal directions inside the soil profile increased when PAM was added to the irrigation water. As the PAM concentration increased the spreading of the wetting front increased. The average wetting front spreading increased in the vertical direction from 7.8 cm when PAM was not used to 8.3, 9.6, and 12.1 cm, for PAM concentrations of 5.0, 10.0, and 20.0 mg l^?1, respectively. At the same time the average increase in the horizontal direction was from 18.4 to 18.5, 18.6, and 21.7 cm for PAM concentrations of 0.0, 5.0, 10.0, and 20.0 mg l^?1, respectively. The second experiment showed that at a soil depth of 20 cm, volumetric soil water content (θv) was 15.2% when the irrigation water contained 20.0 mg l^?1 of PAM compared to 13.9% when no PAM was added to the irrigation water. PAM did not have a significant effect on soil moisture characteristic curve.     

利用GIS与TM数据资料集成技术估算中国南方早稻面积--以龙游县为例

提出利用 GIS与 TM数据集成技术估算中国南方丘陵山地早稻种植面积的方法 .该方法首先利用 ARC/INFO对土地利用现状图进行数字化 ,建立拓朴关系后将其转化为栅格 ,然后进行投影变换 ,使土地利用现状图、行政图、TM数据具有相同的坐标 ,最后利用土地现状图 ,提取水田分布图 ,对水田分布图进行分类估算早稻种植面积 .不同方法比较结果表明 :非监督分类法不能用于提取丘陵山区的水稻种植面积 ;只用 TM资料估算龙游县早稻面积 ,与统计数据相比 ,平行六面体分类法、最大似然分类法分别达到 82 .83 %和 59.95% ;而用 GIS与 TM数据资料集成技术对水田分布图进行分类估算早稻面积 ,平行六面体分类法、最大似然分类法的估算精度分别达到 93 .98%和 60 .65% ,所以利用平行六面体分类法对南方丘陵山地早稻种植面积估算是可行的 .     

Microbial removal of lead from solid media and soil

We have isolated a Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain designated CHL004 which is able to remove lead from solidified media and soil. The process for testing removal was generally the same for all experiments. A piece of sterile filter paper was placed on the surface of a plate containing solidified media and lead carbonate or lead contaminated soil and incubated at 29 °C for 30 days. Lead was removed from yeast malt plates but generally not from R2A plates. Dextrose was shown to be a critical component in the YM; without it almost no lead was removed. Sucrose, maltose and lactose could not be substituted for the dextrose although these carbon sources allowed for survival and growth of the isolate. In order to study the initial kinetics of lead uptake, lead nitrate was used in an aqueous environment. The rate of uptake of lead nitrate by CHL004 was very rapid initially then decreased greatly. Sodium azide treated cells did not remove lead. The removal of lead from an urban soil was affected by the pH of the soil. The pH of the soil in YM was 6.9 and 3.3% of the total lead in the soil was removed. When the pH was adjusted to a pH of 5, 8% of the total lead was removed but at a pH of 6, 6.4% was removed.     

Determination of actual evapotranspiration and crop coefficients of broad bean (Vicia Faba L.) grown under field conditions in the jordan valley,jordan: Bestimmung der aktuellen evapotranspiration und pflanzenbestandskoeffizienten von bohnen (Vicia Faba L.) unter feldbedingungen im jordantal,jordanien

This study was conducted to determine actual evapotranspiration and crop coefficients at different growth stages of broad bean (Vicia faba L.) grown in an open field in the Jordan Valley, Jordan using a precise and accurate approach. The study involved 30-min fluxes measurements of energy budget components over broad bean crop using a complete setup of an Eddy Correlation (EC) system. The measurements were conducted during the three main crop growth stages namely initial, development, and midseason growth stages following the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) crop coefficient model for green harvested broad bean crop. The average crop coefficients during the initial (K_{C ini}), development (K_{C dev}) and midseason (K_{C mid}) growth stages were 0.37, 0.8 and 1.05, respectively. The measured weighted average crop coefficient over the entire growing season K_{C GS} was 9.5% lower than the FAO corresponding value.

Results showed that there was a clear decrease of (bulk) surface resistance (r_s) as crop canopy developed. Daily average r_s values were 855, 337, and 166?s/m for initial, development, and midseason growth stages, respectively. Moreover, r_s was found to be highly correlated to crop height (h_c). A simple linear relation between r_s and h_c with R² of 0.91 was found. This relation will enable future direct determination of crop evapotranspiration (ET_C) using Penman-Monteith equation without the need to calculate both grass reference evapotranspiration (ET_O) and crop coefficient (K_C) values.     

Effect of Human Ovarian Tissue Vitrification/Warming on the Expression of Genes Related to Folliculogenesis

Background:

Ovarian tissue cryopreservation is an alternative strategy to preserve the fertility of women predicted to undergo premature ovarian failure. This study was designed to evaluate the expression of folliculogenesis-related genes, including factor in the germline alpha (FIGLA), growth differentiation factor-9 (GDF-9), follicle-stimulating hormone receptor (FSHR), and KIT LIGAND after vitrification/warming of human ovarian tissue.

Methods:

Human ovarian tissue samples were collected from five transsexual women. In the laboratory, the ovarian medullary part was removed by a surgical blade, and the cortical tissue was cut into small pieces. Some pieces were vitrified and warmed and the others were considered as non-vitrified group (control). Follicular normality was assessed with morphological observation by a light microscope, and the expression of FIGLA, KIT LIGAND, GDF-9,, and FSHR genes was examined using real-time RT-PCR in both the vitrified and non-vitrified groups.

Results:

Overall, 85% of the follicles preserved their normal morphologic feature after warming. The percentage of normal follicles and the expression of FIGLA, KIT LIGAND, GDF-9, and FSHR genes were similar in both vitrified and non-vitrified groups (P > 0.05).

Conclusion:

Vitrification/warming of human ovarian tissue had no remarkable effect on the expression of folliculogenesis-related genes. Key Words: Vitrification, Gene expression, Humans     

遥感与地理信息系统技术在叙利亚沿海地区土壤侵蚀评价中的应用研究

在过去的几十年里,遥感与地理信息系统融合技术应用于土壤侵蚀评价的研究得到了显著的发展。本研究采用遥感资料、土壤和土地调查数据、数字地面模型和气象观测数据,利用地理信息系统技术来分别产生通用土壤流失方程（USLE）的各个参数,从而来评价水土流失量和空间分布状况。     

Polyacrylamide (PAM) effect on irrigation induced soil erosion and infiltration

Surface irrigation is the oldest and the most widely used method of irrigation. One disadvantage of surface irrigation is soil erosion. New technology employing water-soluble polymers may provide a technique that is effective and affordable to control soil erosion. Water-soluble anionic organic compound known as polyacrylamide polymer (PAM) is the most successful polymer in controlling soil erosion. This study investigated the effect of spraying PAM on the soil surface to control soil erosion and to increase soil infiltration on a Jordanian clay loam soil. Different PAM concentrations, namely 5, 10, and 20 mg/l in addition to the control (0 mg/l) were used in this study. The highest effect of PAM on the measured properties was attained at 20 mg/l. We noticed that PAM's efficiency was decreased with subsequent irrigations. The reduction in soil erosion was 72 and 47.6%, the reduction in runoff water turbidity was 83 and 35%, the increase in water advance time was 6 and 0.9% and the increase in soil infiltration was 36 and 20.8% for the first and fourth irrigation, respectively. PAM's efficiency in flocculating soil particles was studied in the lab where we noticed that its efficiency in sedimentation was increased as its concentration increased.