Bioefficacy of compounds from Dittrichia viscosa (Asteraceae) as protectant of chickpea seeds against the cowpea seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The efficacy of four bi- and tri-cyclic sesquiterpenes, namely inuloxins A, B and C and α-costic acid, extracted from aerial parts of Dittrichia...     

Phenotypic and genotypic background underlying variations in fatty acid composition and sensory parameters in European bovine breeds

Background： Consuming moderate amounts of lean red meat as part of a balanced diet valuably contributes to intakes of essential nutrients, in this study, we merged phenotypic and genotypic information to characterize the variation in lipid profile and sensory parameters and to represent the diversity among 15 cattle populations. Correlations between fat content, organoleptic characteristics and lipid profiles were also investigated. Methods： A sample of 436 largely unrelated purebred bulls belonging to 15 breeds and reared under comparable management conditions was analyzed. Phenotypic data -including fatness score, fat percentage, individual fatty acids （FA） profiles and sensory panel tests- and genotypic information from 11 polymorphisms was used. Results： The correlation coefficients between muscle total lipid measurements and absolute vs. relative amounts of polyunsaturated FA （PUFA） were in opposite directions. Increasing carcass fat leads to an increasing amount of FAs in triglycerides, but at the same time the relative amount of PUFAs is decreasing, which is in concordance with the negative correlation obtained here between the percentage of PUFA and fat measurements, as well as the weaker correlation between total phospholipids and total lipid muscle content compared with neutral lipids. Concerning organoleptic characteristics, a negative correlation between fiavour scores and the percentage of total PUFA, particularly to n-6 fraction, was found. The correlation between juiciness and texture is higher than with flavour scores. The distribution of SNPs plotted by principal components analysis （PCA） mainly reflects their known trait associations, although influenced by their specific breed allele frequencies. Conclusions： The results presented here help to understand the phenotypic and genotypic background underlying variations in FA composition and sensory parameters between breeds. The wide range of traits and breeds studied, along with the genotypic information on polymorphisms previo     

Lipoxygenase distribution in coffee (Coffea arabica L.) berries

In this paper lipoxygenase (LOX) presence was investigated in coffee berries to determine its involvement in lipid degradative metabolism of plants grown in organic and conventional cultivations. An immunochemical analysis has evidenced a ca. 80 kDa protein, cross-reacting with an anti-LOX antibody, only in the pulp fraction of berries obtained from plants of both cultivations. LOX activity in this fraction could be monitored either as conjugated diene formation or reaction products (determined by HPLC) and was mainly associated with a heavy membrane fraction (HMF, enriched in tonoplast, endoplasmic reticulum, plasma membrane, and mitochondria) and a light membrane fraction (LMF, enriched in plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticulum, with low levels of tonoplast and mitochondria). The LOX activity of LMF from berries of both cultivations showed an optimum at pH 8.0. The HMF exhibited a different activity peak in samples from conventional (pH 8.0) and organic (pH 5.5) cultures, suggesting the presence of different isoenzymes. These findings were also confirmed by variation of the ratio of 9- and 13-hydroperoxides in organic (1:1) and conventional cultivations (1:10), indicating that the organic one was subjected to an oxidative stress in the coffee pulp fraction leading to the expression of an acidic LOX. Such de novo synthesized LOX activity could be responsible for the production of secondary metabolites, which may interfere with the organoleptic profile of coffee.     

Effect of variable retention cutting on the relationship between growth of coarse roots and stem of Picea mariana

Silviculture heading for structural heterogeneity creates many single trees standing at stand margins, inner edges or in remnant tree groups. As they played just a minor role in the age class forest, the growth behaviour of strongly released trees is rather unexplored. Here we show how retention cutting, presently spreading in the boreal of Québec province, affects stem and coarse root growth of remained single black spruce [Picea mariana (Mill.) Britton]. Increment cores from roots and stems of 125 trees show that retention cutting triggers coarse root growth of the remaining trees. Compared with reference trees retention trees accelerate root in relation to stem growth. Mean and variability of the root–stem allometry significantly rise after retention cutting. The found acceleration of root in relation to stem growth means mechanical stabilisation of the retention trees and corroborates the retention cutting method. Evaluation of silvicultural treatments can be incomplete and misleading as long as they are just based on aboveground reactions and neglect root growth.     

Natural occurrence of ochratoxin A and antioxidant activities of green and roasted coffees and corresponding byproducts

Ochratoxin A is an important mycotoxin that can enter the human food chain in cereals, wine, coffee, spices, beer, cocoa, dried fruits, and pork meats. Coffee is one of the most common beverages and, consequently, it has a potential risk factor for human health related to ochratoxin A exposure. In this study, coffee and corresponding byproducts from seven different geographic regions were investigated for ochratoxin A natural occurrence by HPLC-FLD, nutritional characterization, and antioxidant activities by spectrophotometric assay. The research focused on composition changes in coffee during the processing step "from field to cup". Costa Rica and Indian green coffees were the most contaminated samples, with 13 and 11 microg/kg, respectively, while the Ethiopian coffee was the least contaminated, with 3.8 microg/kg of ochratoxin A. The reduction of ochratoxin A contamination during the roasting step was comparable for any samples that were considered under the recommended level of 4 microg/kg. Total dietary fibers ranged from 58.7% for Vietnam and 48.6% for Ivory Coast in green coffees and ranged from 58.6% for Costa Rica to 61.2% for India in roasted coffee. Coffee silverskin byproduct obtained from Ivory Coast was the highest, with 69.2 and 64.2% of insoluble dietary fibers, respectively.     

Evaluation of an indirect oscillometric blood pressure monitor in normotensive and hypotensive anesthetized dogs

Objective – To determine the accuracy and precision of an oscillometric noninvasive blood pressure device as a predictor of invasive direct blood pressure in healthy anesthetized hypotensive and normotensive dogs. Design – Prospective observational study. Setting – University teaching hospital. Animals – Eight crossbred adult dogs. Interventions – Anesthesia was induced with propofol and maintained with isoflurane. A catheter was placed in the dorsal pedal artery to record systolic, mean, and diastolic arterial blood pressures (aSAP, aMAP, and aDAP, respectively). The noninvasive blood pressure device cuff was placed around the contralateral front limb to record noninvasive systolic, mean, and diastolic blood pressure (nSAP, nMAP, and nDAP). Two states of blood pressure (BP) were studied: baseline state was established by keeping end‐tidal isoflurane concentration at 1.2±0.1%. The hypotensive state was achieved by maintaining the same isoflurane concentration while withdrawing approximately 40% of the animal's blood volume until aMAP was stable at approximately 40 mm Hg. At the end of the study, blood was returned to the animal and it was allowed to recover from anesthesia. Measurements and Main Results – Agreement between the direct and indirect BP measurements was determined by the Bland‐Altman method. The SAP and MAP but not DAP bias varied significantly between each BP state. Normotensive absolute biases (mean [SD]) for SAP, MAP, and DAP were ?14.7 mm Hg (15.5 mm Hg), ?16.4 mm Hg (12.1 mm Hg), and ?14.1 mm Hg (15.8 mm Hg), respectively. Absolute biases during the hypotensive state for SAP, MAP, and DAP were ?32 mm Hg (22.6 mm Hg), ?24.2 mm Hg (19.5 mm Hg), and ?16.8 mm Hg (17.2 mm Hg), respectively. Conclusion – The oscillometric device was not reliably predictive of intra‐arterial BP during hypotension associated with acute hemorrhage.     

Dietary roughage sources affect lactating Holstein x Zebu cows under experimental conditions in Brazil: a meta-analysis

Tropical Animal Health and Production - To reduce costs, lactating cows are often fed a higher proportion of roughage and alternative feeds; however, such protocols may not lead to optimal milk...