Soil quality assessments in integrated crop–livestock–forest systems: A review

Integrated crop–livestock–forest is a promising strategy to improve soil quality. It comprises four different integrated farming systems: crop–livestock, crop–forest, forest–livestock and crop–livestock–forest. This work systematically reviewed studies about integrated crop–livestock–forest systems and soil quality. A total of 92 papers were retrieved from the Web of Science—Clarivate Analytics platform, and the following information was analysed: publication year, institution, region of the studied site, type of integrated system, soil type, tillage system, maximum soil depth and the soil quality indicators assessed. Most studies were published in the second half of the 2010s. Brazil is a prominent focus of research about soil quality and integrated crop–livestock–forest systems, with significant contribution from its central and southern regions. The Embrapa was the main publishing institution, present in over one‐third of the studies. Crop–livestock was the most common integrated system, Ferralsols was the most common soil group, and most of the studied soils were clayey. No tillage was the main tillage system. Most studies focused on the topsoil, assessing physical and/or chemical soil quality indicators. More emphasis on biological indicators of soil quality is required, as well as assessments integrating biological, physical and chemical indicators of soil quality. Future works should compare different integrated systems, including assessments deeper in the soil profile, especially in systems with the forest component, and also in sandy and silty soils. Soil quality indicators that have been rarely used should be further tested. Novel indicators should be added to better understand the promotion of soil quality by integrated crop–livestock–forest systems.     

Landscape change under indirect effects of human use: the Savanna of Central Chile

The Chilean Intermediate Depression to the north of Santiago has experienced a physiognomical transformation from a Prosopis chilensis woodland to an Acacia caven savanna. Today P. chilensis trees are scarce and belong mostly to the larger size classes. By contrast A. caven seems to reproduce frequently and its populations consist of individuals of all size classes. In this paper we document these changes and report the results of tests aimed at determining the causes of these physiognomical changes. We found that livestock, leporids, introduced Mediterranean forbs and agriculture account for differences in seed dispersal and survival of A. caven and P. chilensis, which can explain the documented changes in the Chilean landscape.     

Correlation of DNA ploidy to tumor histologic grade, clinical variables, and survival in dogs with mast cell tumors.

By using flow cytometry, a retrospective analysis of the DNA content of 40 primary canine mast cell tumors and seven lymph nodes that contained metastatic mast cell tumor from 44 dogs of various breed, sex, and age was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples of the tumors and nodes. These samples were chosen according to the following criteria: samples contained sufficient well-preserved tumor tissue in the paraffin block for processing, sufficient patient history data were available, clean and homogeneous cell suspensions were obtained after processing, and interpretable DNA histograms were produced on analysis. The ploidy data obtained were compared with the histopathologic grade, the anatomical site of occurrence, the clinical stage of the tumors, and the survival of the dogs. Over 70% (29/40) of the mast cell tumors were diploid. Three metastatic mast cell tumors in lymph nodes had the same ploidy status as their corresponding primary tumors. In five dogs, mast cell tumors from multiple sites in each dog displayed similar ploidy status. Of 26 dogs evaluated for survival times, 69% (18/26) had diploid tumors and 31% (8/26) had aneuploid tumors. When numbers of diploid versus aneuploid tumors were compared, no significant difference was found between any two grades, clinical stages, or anatomic sites. A significant difference (P = 0.02) was found, however, between aneuploid and diploid tumors when comparing Stage I and non-Stage I disease. The Kaplan-Meier survival plot indicated a tendency towards an increased survival within the first year in dogs with diploid versus aneuploid tumors (P = 0.06).     

The Effect of Size and Diet on Gonad Production by the Chilean Sea Urchin Loxechinus albus

Conadal production was studied in Loxechinus albus (Molina, 1782) maintained in cages suspended from a long-line in the Estero Castro, Chiloé for 3 mo during the austral summer. The sea urchins were fed either an artificial diet or a natural diet consisting of the macroalgae Macrocystis pyrifera and Ulva sp. Both diets were tested for four size ranges: 40–45, 50–55, 60–65 and 70–75 mm diameter. For all four size ranges, highest gonad production was with the artificial diet. Gonad production was greatest in the 40–45 mm individuals with an increase of about 1,400% and 750% in the wet weight of gonads in individuals fed the artificial and natural diet, respectively. With the three other size ranges, the increase was nearly 100% with the artificial diet and nearly 0% with the natural diet The gonad index showed similar patterns, being highest in the smallest individuals. Small individuals fed the artificial diet would provide the most cost effective aquaculture as production is best. It is not necessary to grow L. albus to the minimal legal size for fisheries (70-mm diameter) for cost effective gonad production.     

Renal ultrasonographic evaluation in the oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus).

Ultrasonography is currently used in veterinary medicine to examine the anatomy and physiology of internal organs and to establish normal standards for exotic animal species. Specifically, the kidneys may be evaluated and measured in length, width, and height. The kidneys in 33 oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus), including 20 males and 13 females, were opportunistically located, characterized, and measured by ultrasound using a 7.5-MHz linear transducer at two different zoologic facilities in S?o Paulo, Brazil. Renal volume was calculated from these linear measurements. The mean linear measurements and volume of the right and left kidneys were not significantly different.     

Resistance to Botrytis cinerea in Solanum lycopersicoides is Dominant in Hybrids with Tomato, and Involves induced Hyphal Death

Botrytis cinerea causes gray mold disease and affects hundreds of plant species, including tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). The wild nightshade, Solanum lycopersicoides, is cross compatible with tomato and is more resistant to B. cinerea, thus representing a potential source for crop improvement. Tests involving droplet inoculation of detached leaves and spray inoculation of entire seedlings demonstrated that resistance to B. cinerea varies among S. lycopersicoides accessions, with S. lycopersicoides LA2951 being the most resistant accession tested. Expression of resistance in the intergeneric hybrid (L. esculentum cv. 'VF36' × S. lycopersicoides LA2951) suggested that resistance is at least partially dominant in tomato. A green fluorescent protein-tagged B. cinerea strain was used for confocal microscopic comparison of infection in leaves of S. lycopersicoides and tomato. Even though S. lycopersicoides supported spore germination, there was evidence for hyphal lysis and death 3 days after inoculation, at a time when lesions were expanding on susceptible tomato plants. The reduced frequency of B. cinerea lesion spread on S. lycopersicoides explains why this fungus produced fewer spores in this wild nightshade than in tomato.     

Caprine toxoplasmosis in Southern Brazil: a comparative seroepidemiological study between the indirect immunofluorescence assay,the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay,and the modified agglutination test

Tropical Animal Health and Production - This study investigated the prevalence of caprine toxoplasmosis in goat herds from Southern Brazil by the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA), and...     

Use of two doses of cloprostenol in different intervals for estrus synchronization in hair sheep under tropical conditions

Tropical Animal Health and Production - This study evaluated the effect of two doses of prostaglandin at different intervals on reproductive parameters of crossbred ewes. In Experiment 1, 30 ewes...