Intake, digestibility, and nitrogen balance of rations containing different levels of murumuru meal in sheep diets.

A pesquisa objetivou estudar o potencial de utilização da torta de murumuru (Astrocaryum murumuru var. murumuru, M art.) (TM) em dietas de ovinos, em substituição à gramínea Mombaça (Panicum maximum Jacq) com teores crescentes. Realizou-se ensaio metabólico, com 20 ovinos machos, castrados, na Embrapa Amazônia Oriental, Belém, Pará, durante 26 dias. O delineamento foi inteiramente casualizado, em cinco dietas e quatros repetições. TM0: 100% de gramínea; TM10: 10% de TM e 90% de gramínea; TM20: 20% de TM e 80% de gramínea; TM40: 40% de TM e 60% de gramínea e TM60: 60% de TM e 40% de gramínea. Foram avaliados o consumo e o coeciente de digestibilidade aparente da matéria seca (CMS e CDMS), matéria orgânica (CMO e CDMO), proteína bruta (CPB e CDPB), bra em detergente neutro (CFDN e CDFDN), bra em detergente ácido (CFDA e CDFDA), extrato etéreo (CEE e CDEE), celulose (CCEL e CDCEL), hemicelulose (CHEM e CDHEM) e balanço de nitrogênio (BN) das dietas experimentais. O CMS, CMO, CMM, CPB, CFDN e CFDA apresentaram efeito linear decrescente em função dos teores de substituição da gramínea Mombaça por TM na dieta. O CEE e o CLIG apresentaram efeitos quadráticos em função dos teores de substituição da TM na dieta. O CDMS, CDMO e CDHEM tiveram efeitos lineares crescentes, entre TM0 e TM60. O CDEE, CDFDN, CDFDA e CDCEL apresentaram efeito quadrático, com teores de substituição ótimos de 56,65%, 41%, 31,33% e 27,46%, respectivamente. O balanço de nitrogênio apresentou efeito linear negativo no intervalo de inclusão de 0% a 60% de torta. Conclui-se que a torta de murumuru constitui alternativa para a suplementação alimentar de ruminantes, em substituição à gramínea Mombaça, pois proporciona aumento na digestibilidade dos nutrientes por ovinos. Entretanto, deve-se respeitar um limite de inclusão, considerando-se que a partir de 27,46%, 31,33%, 41% e 56,65% de substituição ocorrem decréscimos, respectivamente da CDCEL, CDFDA, CDFDN e CDEE, embora não ocorra valor negativo para o balanço de nitrogênio.

Different levels of water deficit induces changes in growth pattern but not in chlorophyll fluorescence and water relations of Hancornia speciosa Gomes seedlings.

Hancornia speciosa Gomes é uma espécie conhecida popularmente no Brasil como mangabeira, cujo fruto apresenta alto valor nutricional. O conhecimento sobre a sua fisiologia é ainda escasso, principalmente no que se refere ao desenvolvimento inicial. Dessa forma, o objetivo do presente trabalho foi avaliar os efeitos de diferentes níveis de déficit hídrico sobre o padrão de crescimento, fluorescência de clorofila e relações hídricas em mudas de mangabeira. Foi utilizado um esquema fatorial (tratamentos x época de avaliação) com quatro tratamentos hídricos com base na capacidade de campo (CC) (80%, 60%, 40% e 20%), com cinco repetições. Foram avaliados a altura das plantas, número de folhas, diâmetro do caule, produção e partição de biomassa, eficiência quântica do fotossistema II (PSII), potencial hídrico (?w), teor relativo de água (TRA) e teor de carboidratos, proteínas e prolina. O déficit hídrico severo (20% CC) levou a uma redução no crescimento e alterou o padrão de partição de biomassa nas mudas. No entanto, as relações hídricas não foram significativamente afetadas, pois as mudas mantiveram altos valores de ?w e TRA, sem acúmulos significativos nos teores de solutos orgânicos quando cultivadas com 20%CC. Além do mais, a eficiência quântica do PSII não foi afetada pelos diferentes regimes hídricos, sugerindo que não houve fotoinibição devido ao estresse hídrico. A mudança no padrão de crescimento, com um incremento no aprofundamento das raízes e redução no crescimento da parte aérea parece ser a principal estratégia das mudas de H. speciosa para a manutenção da hidratação dos tecidos durante períodos de déficit hídrico.

Initial growth of sunflower in soils with high concentrations of boron and heavy metals.

Phytoremediation studies have been conducted in an area contaminated by heavy metals, located in Piracicaba - SP, Brazil. This area was contaminated accidentally by the addition of auto scrap shredding to the soil and was limed later to reduce heavy metal mobility in the environment. Previous characterization showed that it also presents high concentration of boron, which has limited the initial plant development of some species. As sunflower plants require a high boron supply and the literature describes its use in the phytoremediation of soils contaminated with heavy metals under some conditions, the aim of this work was to evaluate its potential for the remediation of this area. In the present study, the results of preliminary tests are presented, aiming at the evaluation of sunflower plant germination and its initial development when cultivated in the contaminated soil described. Two sunflower hybrids were sown in soils treated with different rates of boron and in the soil from the contaminated area in study. The results showed that sunflower plants had a normal initial development, even in the soil from the contaminated area. Therefore, sunflower is a promising crop and further studies will be developed to evaluate the sunflower efficiency in phytoextraction or phytostabilization of heavy metals in areas where boron contamination also occurs, as is the case in the study area.

Sugarcane trash levels in soil affects the fungi but not bacteria in a short-term field experiment.

The sugarcane in Brazil is passing through a management transition that is leading to the abolition of pre-harvest burning. Without burning, large amounts of sugarcane trash is generated, and there is a discussion regarding the utilization of this biomass in the industry versus keeping it in the field to improve soil quality. To study the effects of the trash removal on soil quality, we established an experimental sugarcane plantation with different levels of trash over the soil (0%, 50% and 100% of the original trash deposition) and analyzed the structure of the bacterial and fungal community as the bioindicators of impacts. The soil DNA was extracted, and the microbial community was screened by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis in two different seasons. Our results suggest that there are no effects from the different levels of trash on the soil chemistry and soil bacterial community. However, the fungal community was significantly impacted, and after twelve months, the community presented different structures among the treatments.

Mating system variation among populations, individuals and within and among fruits in Bertholletia excelsa.

The aim of this study was to investigate variation in mating system among three Brazilian Amazon populations of the tree Bertholletia excelsa with different levels of anthropogenic interventions. We collected open-pollinated seeds from one natural population, remnant trees dispersed in a pasture, and trees from a plantation. Outcrossing rate not varied among the populations and indicates that all seeds were originated from outcrossing (tm=1.0). Mating among relatives was significant higher in the plantation than forest and pasture populations, probably due the fact that many trees are related in the plantation. Correlated mating was significantly higher in pasture (rp=0.47) and plantation (rp=0.51) than in the natural population (rp=0.22), suggesting that trees in natural population are pollinated by a higher number of pollen donors. The paternity correlation was significantly higher within (rp(w)=0.41) than among fruits (rp(a)=0.18), showing a higher probability to find full-sibs within than among fruits. The fixation index was generally lower in seed trees than in their seedlings, suggesting selection for heterozygous individuals from seedling to adult stages. Progeny arrays collected from the natural population had a lower proportion of pairwise full-sibs than in pasture and plantation and higher variance effective size (2.75) than trees in pasture (2.15) and plantations (2.22). Results highlight that seed collections for conservation, breeding and reforestation programs preferentially should be carried out in natural populations due low proportion highest variance effective size within progeny.