A study of the interaction between bromocresol green dye and bovine,ovine and equine serum globulins

In human medicine it has been shown that the bromocresol green (BCG) dye-binding method for the determination of serum albumin is not entirely specific, the dye reacting also with certain human serum globulins. This causes over-estimation of albumin when reaction times are prolonged beyond 30 seconds.In the present study, serum albumin values obtained from three animal species by the immediate, i.e. less than 30 seconds, BCG reaction were compared with those by the 10-minute BCG reaction. Albumin-depleted sera were prepared using an affinity chromatography technique and their reactions and those of purified gamma globulin preparations with the dye were studied.In cattle, sheep and horses, serum albumin values obtained by the 10-minute reaction were higher than those obtained by the immediate BCG reaction, the differences being statistically significant. Purified gamma globulin did not react with the BCG dye after 10 minutes, but other globulins did. There were differences between the species in the magnitude of the reaction of their globulins with BCG dye.     

Developments in land information systems: examples demonstrating land resource management capabilities and options

Land Information Systems (LIS) provide a foundation for supporting decision‐making across a broad spectrum of natural resource applications: agronomic, environmental, engineering and public good. Typically, LIS constitute a computerized database repository holding geospatial components, ‘mapping unit’ geometry and related georeferenced materials such as satellite imagery, meteorological observations and predictions and scanned legacy mapping. Coupled with the geospatial data are associated property, semantic and metadata, representing a range of thematic properties and characteristics of the land and environment. This paper provides examples of recent developments of national and regional LIS, presenting applications for land resource capabilities and management. These focus on the ‘Land Information System’ (LandIS) for England and Wales, and the ‘World Soil Survey Archive and Catalogue’ (WOSSAC) and consider Agricultural Land Classification in Wales, an Irish land and soil information system, and a scheme to optimize land suitability for application of palm oil biofertilizers in Malaysia. Land Information Systems support purposeful environmental interpretations, drawing on soil and related thematic data, offering insight into land properties, capabilities and characteristics. The examples highlight the practical transferability and extensibility of technical and methodological approaches across geographical contexts. This assessment identifies the value of legacy‐based natural resource inventories that can be interoperated with other contemporary sources of information, such as satellite imagery.     

Species characteristics of serum proteins demonstrated after agarose gel electrophoresis

Serum samples from five species of domestic animals were subjected to protein electrophoresis on commercially prepared agarose gel films. After processing, the stained electrophoretic patterns and densitometric traces exhibited certain characteristics for each species. The features which were considered distinctive of each species are illustrated.     

An assessment of subsoil organic carbon stocks in England and Wales

It is estimated that half the soil carbon globally is in the subsoil, but data are scarce. We updated estimates of subsoil organic carbon (OC) in England and Wales made by Bradley et al. (2005) using soil and land‐use databases and compared the results with other published data. We estimated that the soils of England and Wales contained 1633, 1143 and 506 Tg of OC at 0–30, 30–100 and 100–150 cm depths, respectively. Thus, half of the soil OC was found below 30 cm depth. Peat soils accounted for the largest proportion, containing 44% of all the OC below 30 cm despite their small areal extent, followed by brown soils, surface‐water gley soils, ground‐water gley soils and podzolic soils. Peat soils had more than 25% of their profile OC per unit area in the 100–150 cm depth, whereas most other soils had <8% at this depth. The differences between soil types were consistent with differences in soil formation processes. Differences in depth distributions between land uses were small, but subsoil OC stocks in cultivated soils were generally smaller than in soils under grassland or other land uses. Data on subsoil OC stocks in the literature were scarce, but what there was broadly agreed with the findings of the above database exercise. There was little evidence by which to assess how subsoil OC stocks were changing over time.     

Serum albumin values from healthy cattle, sheep and horses determined by the immediate bromocresol green reaction and by agarose gel electrophoresis

Serum albumin concentrations were measured by the immediate reacting bromocresol green (BCG) method and by agarose gel electrophoresis in healthy cattle, sheep and horses. No statistically significant differences were found between the values obtained by the two methods. The immediate reacting BCG method is quicker and cheaper when used under the conditions described.     

Evaluation of serum iso-amylase in the normal dog using an improved electrophoretic technique

Six iso-amylase fractions are known to exist in human serum, three originating from the salivary glands and three from the pancreas. Although it is known that a different number and source of iso-amylase fractions occur in the dog, the routine detection of all the canine iso-amylase fractions has not been previously established. Earlier methods detected either two iso-amylase fractions or, in a proportion of cases, four fractions. A method is described which detects four iso-amylase fractions in 95% of normal canine serum samples. Trials have shown the method is reproducible and that freezing at -40°C has no effect on iso-amylase activity. The normal values for iso-amylase are recorded in 18 normal dogs.