A coat protein transgene from a Scottish isolate of potato mop-top virus mediates strong resistance against Scandinavian isolates which have similar coat protein genes

Resistance tests were made on seedlings of transformed lines of Nicotiana benthamiana which contain a transgene encoding the coat protein (CP) gene of a Scottish isolate of potato mop-top virus (PMTV). This transgene has been reported to confer strong resistance to the PMTV isolate from which the transgene sequence was derived and also to a second Scottish isolate. Plants of lines of the transgenic N. benthamiana were as resistant to two Swedish and two Danish PMTV isolates as to a Scottish isolate, and of five lines tested, greater than 93.5% of transgenic plants were immune. The coat protein gene sequences of these four Scandinavian isolates were very similar to those of the two Scottish isolates. The greatest divergence between the isolates was three amino acid changes and there was less than 2% change in CP gene nucleotide sequence. It is concluded that the PMTV CP transgene used in these experiments could confer resistance against isolates from different geographical areas because it is becoming apparent that the CP genes of PMTV isolates are highly conserved.     

Use of adsorbent and supercritical carbon dioxide to concentrate flavor compounds from orange oil.

Orange oil is composed largely of terpene hydrocarbons but is a source of flavor and fragrance compounds (oxygenated) that are present in low concentrations. To increase the ratio of oxygenated compounds to terpene hydrocarbons, orange oil was partially fractionated by adsorption of the oxygenated compounds onto porous silica gel, with full utilization of its adsorbent capacity, and then further purified by desorption into supercritical carbon dioxide. The desorption of 24 compounds was monitored by GC and GC-MS. Adsorption alone removed three-fourths of the terpene hydrocarbons, and fractional extraction by supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO(2)) improved the separation further. Response surface methodology was used in the experimental design, and regression analysis was used to determine the effects of process variables. Extraction at low temperatures and flow rates improved separation by SC-CO(2). Decanal was concentrated to 20 times that of the feed oil by using SC-CO(2) at 13.1 MPa, 35 degrees C, and 2 kg/h. The systems were operating at close to equilibrium conditions because of the fine dispersal of the oils and the excellent mass transfer properties of supercritical carbon dioxide.     

Influence of lipid extraction process on the rheological characteristics, swelling power, and granule size of rice starches in excess water

The influence of the lipid extraction process on both macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of nonwaxy rice starch gelatinization in excess water was examined. Surface lipids extraction did not change the thermodynamics of starch gelatinization but lead to a significant reduction (33%) in the enthalpy of starch-lipid complex melting at high temperature, resulting in less viscous dispersions. Internal lipid extraction using hot aqueous alcoholic solutions resulted in an irreversible increase in starch granule diameter (50% increase in D[4,3]) and a dramatic change in cooking characteristics of the starch. Instead of the bimodal swelling observed for native nonwaxy rice starch, only one broad transition in swelling, solubility, granule size, and viscosity was observed in the case of the totally defatted starch. While the total removal of lipids resulted in a slight increase in starch swelling at intermediate temperatures, the harshness of the process caused irreparable changes leading to notably lower swelling at high temperatures.     

Clinical evaluation and long-term follow-up of dogs having coronoidectomy for elbow incongruity

A retrospective study was performed describing the clinical presentations, radiographic findings, and surgical outcomes of 17 dogs (18 elbows) following medial coronoidectomy for the treatment of elbow joint incongruity as a sole disease entity. Complete resolution of lameness was achieved in 100% of the cases. The mean radiographic arthrosis grade progressed in 70% of the cases. Results of this study indicate that resolution of clinical lameness may be achieved with medial coronoidectomy in dogs with elbow incongruity; however, progression of degenerative joint disease with unknown, long-term clinical significance can be expected after surgery.     

High-resolution NMR and diffusion-ordered spectroscopy of port wine

The use of high-resolution NMR and high-resolution diffusion-ordered spectroscopy (DOSY) for the characterization of selected Port wine samples of different ages with the aim of identifying changes in composition is described. Conventional 1D and 2D NMR methods enabled the identification of about 35 compounds, including minor components such as some medium-chain alcohols, amino acids, and organic acids. High-resolution (HR) DOSY extended sample characterization, increasing the number of compounds identified and NMR assignments made, by providing information on the relative molecular sizes of the metabolites present. Port wines of different ages were found to differ mainly in their content of (a) organic acids and some amino acids, (b) an unidentified possible disaccharide, and (c) large aromatic species. The relative amount of these last high Mw aromatics is seen to decrease significantly in the oldest wine, as expected from the known formation and precipitation of anthocyanin-based polymers during red wine aging.     

Soil Phosphorus and Potassium Mapping Using a Spatial Correlation Model Incorporating Terrain Slope Gradient

Variable-rate fertilizer application requires knowledge of the spatial distribution of soil nutrients within fields. Grid soil sampling might be used for acquiring this information, but is often too expensive for resolving spatial patterns in soil nutrients at the scale of precision fertilizer application. The objective of this study was to determine whether grid sampling efficiency can be improved using cokriging estimates with slope gradient as a secondary variable, which is easily obtained from high-resolution digital elevation models. Soils in two northern Montana wheat fields were sampled at the nodes of a 100-m diagonal grid. Soil test phosphorus and potassium maps were constructed with kriging and cokriging. Co-kriging uses the spatial correlation between two variables to predict for the less intensively sampled variable of interest, often with less estimation error than a univariate method such as kriging. The average estimation variance for cokriging compared to kriging was reduced for all values of the correlation considered. The additional complexity of cokriging might be justified provided a secondary variable exists that is spatially cross correlated with the primary variable of interest.