Gamma irradiation can control the number of psychotrophic bacteria in Agaricus bisporus during storage

We evaluated the effect of gamma irradiation doses (0, 125, 250, and 500 Gy) in control of psychrotrophic bacteria in different strains of Agaricus bisporus (ABI-07/06, ABI-05/03, and PB-1) during storage, cultivated in composts based on oat straw (Avena sativa) and Brachiaria spp. The experimental design was completely randomized in a factorial scheme 4  2  3 (irradiation doses  composts  strains), with 24 treatments, each consisting of 2 replicates, totaling 48 experimental units (samples of mushrooms). The mushrooms collected from all culture conditions were packaged in plastic polypropylene with 200 g each and subjected to Cobalt-60 irradiator, type Gammacell 220, and dose rate 0.740 kGy h–1 , according to the treatments. Subsequently, the control (nonirradiated) and other treatments were maintained at 4 ± 1°C and 90% relative humidity (RH) in a climatic chamber to perform the microbiological analysis of mushrooms on the 1st and 14th day of storage. According to the results, it was found that the highest mean colony psychotrophic count, after 14 days of storage, was observed in strain ABI-07/06 1.30 × 108 g -1 most probable number (MPN) in nonirradiated mushrooms, coming from Brachiaria grass-based compost, and this same strain under the same storage conditions, coming from the same type of compost that underwent a dose of 500 Gy, obtained a significant reduction in mean colonies of psychrotrophic bacteria (2.25 × 104 g –1 MPN). Thus, the irradiation doses tested favored reducing the number of colonies of psychrotrophic bacteria, regardless of the type of compound and strain of A. bisporus.

Effects of photoperiod on reproduction of Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens

This study investigated the effect of different photoperiods (24 h of light (L):0 h of darkness (D); 20L:4D; 16L:8D; 12L:12D; and 8L:16D) on the reproduction and growth of Betta splendens. The results showed that spawning frequency was significantly higher in couples reared under 16L:8D and 12L:12D, in comparison with other treatments. The highest number of eggs per spawn was obtained under 16L:8D (544.76±375.23) and 12L:12D (471.13±261.52), and the lowest values were detected for 24L:0D (128.55±58.14) and 20L:4D (187.87±103.84). Fertility and fecundity also showed significantly higher average values in 16L:8D and 12L:12D when compared with 24L:0D and 20L:4D treatments. Egg volume and perivitelline space were significantly higher in 24L:0D treatments that showed the lowest numbers of eggs per spawn, while the vitelline volume did not show significant differences. Other variables such as breeders weight gain and condition factor (K) were not statistically different. Moreover, the final length varies according to photoperiod and gender. These results demonstrated a key role for the photoperiod upon B. splendens reproduction. The best reproductive performance is achieved under the photoperiods that best approached those that occur in spring and summer (16L:8D and 12L:12D), coinciding with their best seasons for reproduction.

Parasitology of juvenile mullet (Mugil liza) and effect of formaldehyde on parasites and host

Few studies have been performed with parasites of marine and estuarine fish in southern Brazil. In the present study, unpublished results show the ways of parasitism of juvenile mullet by parasites. The toxicity of formaldehyde and the effectiveness of this chemotherapy in controlling parasites in reared juvenile mullet Mugil liza were also studied. Juvenile mullets (1 +/- 0.26 g; 4.1 +/- 0.4 cm) were exposed to different concentrations of 37% formaldehyde: control group and five formaldehyde concentrations which were tested: T1 (13.5), T2 (21.6), T3 (40.5), T4 (81) and T5 (135) mg L-1 with 8 fish per repetition in triplicate. To verify the drug effectiveness in parasitic control, juvenile mullets were exposed to 1 h prophylactic bath of 37% formaldehyde with a control group and five formaldehyde concentrations: T1 (67.5), T2 (135), T3 (270), T4 (405) and T5 (540) mg L-1, 8 fish per repetition in triplicate. Ligophorus cf. uruguayensis (Monogenoidea: Ancyrocephalidae) and Solostamenides cf. platyorchis (Monogenoidea: Microcotylidae) were identified in the gills. Digenea and Nematoda were observed in the intestines. This is the first occurrence of S. cf. platyorchis in Brazil. During the toxicity test, the LC50-96 h was estimated at 20.77 mg L-1 of formaldehyde. During the 1 h formaldehyde prophylactic bath, all parasites were eliminated in formaldehyde concentrations between 135 and 540 mg L-1. High survival rate was observed in all treatments. Values of prevalence and intensity of infestation observed in this study showed the potential damage caused by Monogenoidea to mullet. Formaldehyde baths with 135 mg L-1 are recommended to control Monogenoidea in mullet and the safe limits for formaldehyde use were presented. Besides, the endoparasites were tolerant to formaldehyde exposure. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effects of intravenous administration of caffeine on physiologic variables in exercising horses

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Influence of irrigation on wheat crop

O uso da irrigação na triticultura tem aumentado significativamente nos últimos anos no Brasil. Neste trabalho, objetivou-se avaliar a influência da irrigação na produtividade, na qualidade tecnológica da farinha e no sistema radicular do trigo. em experimento de campo no IAPAR, em Londrina, Paraná, a cultivar IPR 118 foi cultivada sob irrigação por aspersão convencional (Tratamento Irrigado) e sem irrigação (Tratamento Sequeiro). A produtividade foi determinada, colhendo-se três amostras de 25 m² por tratamento. Nestas mesmas amostras, procedeu-se à análise da qualidade tecnológica da farinha, sendo avaliada, entre outros parâmetros, a força de glúten (W). A avaliação do sistema radicular foi realizada após a colheita, no perfil de 0 a 45 cm de profundidade do solo, amostrando-se oito plantas em cada tratamento. O método da parede do perfil foi utilizado para determinar o número de raízes (NR) e o método do monólito para determinar a massa seca de raízes (MSR). A irrigação aumentou em três vezes a produtividade do trigo, porém diminuiu o W na farinha. Ainda assim, o valor de W encontrado no Tratamento Irrigado (249 10-4 J) foi suficiente para manter a classificação do trigo como tipo-pão, a mesma para o qual a cultivar IPR 118 é classificada. Os valores medidos de NR e a MSR foram iguais ou maiores no Tratamento Sequeiro.

Effect of acute administration of Clenbuterol on athletic performance in horses

The aim of the study was to determine the effect of clenbuterol on the anaerobic-threshold of horses on a tread-mill with increasing physical stress, measuring heart rate (HR) and blood levels of lactate, glucose, and insulin. Twelve Arabian horses. were submitted to two physical tests separated by a 10-day interval. Clenbuterol (CL) at 0.8 mu g/kg or saline (control-C) was administered intravenously 30 minutes, before the test. The treadmill exercise test consisted of an initial warmup followed by a gradually increasing effort. There was no statistical difference in either V-2 or V-4 (velocity at which plasma lactate concentration reached 4 and 2 mmol/L, respectively) between the two-experimental groups. For the CL group, V-200, V-180, V-160, and V-140 (velocity at which the rate heart is 140, 160, 180, and 200 beats/minute, respectively) decreased significantly. At rest as well as times 4, 6, and 10 minutes, insulin levels were higher in the group that recieved clenbuterol (P < .05). Contrary to what was expected, apparently, there was no improvement in aerobic metabolism in animals when given a therapeutic dose of the bronchodilator. The elevated heart rate observed could have been attributable to the stimulation of cardiac beta(1) adrenoceptors and the increased insulin levels to the stimulation of pancreatic beta(2) receptors.

Avaliação das cultivares de bananeira Prata-Anã, Thap Maeo e Caipira em diferentes sistemas de plantio no norte de Minas Gerais

A banana é uma das frutas tropicais mais consumidas no mundo, respondendo por, aproximadamente, 10% do comércio mundial de frutas. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar o crescimento e a produção de três cultivares de bananeira sob três sistemas de plantio, em dois ciclos de produção, no período compreendido entre março de 2004 e outubro de 2006, em Janaúba, Minas Gerais. O delineamento experimental foi o de blocos casualizados e duas análises estatísticas: Primeira: 'Prata-Anã' em seis diferentes sistemas de plantio; Segunda: fatorial 2 x 2 + 1, com as variedades Caipira e Thap Maeo, em três diferentes sistemas de plantio, com quatro repetições e seis plantas úteis por parcela. Foram avaliadas as seguintes características: altura de planta, circunferência do pseudocaule, número total de folhas, número de folhas vivas na colheita, número de dias do plantio à colheita, massa do cacho, produtividade, número de pencas e número de frutos por cacho. As características avaliadas foram submetidas à análise de variância com desdobramentos das interações significativas, tendo os efeitos dos tratamentos comparados pelo teste de Tukey, a 5 % de probabilidade. A mistura de cultivares e o uso de bordaduras não influenciaram na maioria das características de crescimento, nas três cultivares estudadas. A cultivar Thap Maeo foi superior à 'Caipira' na maioria das características avaliadas, no primeiro e segundo ciclos. Para os sistemas de plantio, foi superior o plantio com uma bordadura. A análise da variedade Prata-Anã dentro dos seis sistemas de plantio apresentou diferença significativa para as características de número de folhas vivas na colheita, no segundo ciclo, número de pencas/cacho e número de frutos/cacho.

Plantas antagonistas no manejo de Meloidogyne incognita, em solo arenoso de área de cultivo de olerícolas

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of antagonistic plants on nematode control in vegetables growing areas. The experiment was conducted in two periods in randomized complete block design in plots 1.5 x 1.4 m, corresponding to experimental units and randomly cultivated with the different plants. From each plot 100 cm(3) of soil and 10 g of tomato root were collected for estimating the initial population of the first and second experiment, respectively. Sixteen antagonistic plant seedlings of velvet bean (Stizolobium aterrimum), sunn plant (Crotalaria spectabilis) and pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) were transferred to the plots and tomato (Solanun lycopersicum) cultivar Santa Clara was used as a control. After 116 days, two root systems and 100 cm(3) of soil were collected from each plot for a final nematode population analysis. Lettuce seedlings (Lactuca sativa) were transferred to the plots and evaluated after 28 and 42 days, respectively, for galls and eggs on the root system and fresh and dry weight of shoots,. Each treatment consisted of 6 replicates and the means were compared by LSD test (p<0.05). Meloidogyne incognita was found in the first survey. After the crop of the antagonistic plants, the M. incognita population in the root systems and the final population (soil + root) were statistically lower than in the control, which demonstrates the antagonistic effect of these plants on the nematode population. There were also a reduced number of galls on the lettuce cultivated after the antagonistic plants when compared to the control. The velvet bean and sunn plant showed an increase in dry shoot weight of the lettuce cultivated after the antagonists, respectively, in the first and second experiments.

Effects of the season of the year, truck type and location on truck on skin bruises and meat quality in pigs

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of the season of the year (summer vs winter), type of truck (A: single decker vs B : double-decker) and pig location on the truck (front, middle, rear) on the incidence of skin bruising and pork quality variation. For this purpose, 2660 gilts of an average weight of 126.7 (+/- 6.6) kg originating from 19 different farms were used. No interaction between season of the year, type of truck and location on truck was observed. A higher number of bruises on the body at unloading and slaughter (P < 0.0001) and a higher number of bruises on the carcass (P < 0.01) were observed in winter. At unloading a higher number of bruises on the body and on the carcass after slaughter was observed in pigs transported on Truck A (P=0.004 and P=0.05). A higher, although not significant, number of bruises was found on the body of pigs transported in the rear compartment of both trucks. Higher paleness value was found in the longissimus and semimembranosus muscles in summer (P=0.0001) than in winter. Cold and heat stress have a negative influence on skin bruises and meat quality, respectively. Poor vehicle design increases the incidence of bruised carcasses without detracting from pork quality regardless of the climate conditions tested and location of the animal it] the truck. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Population structure and effects of inbreeding on milk yield and quality of Murrah buffaloes

To provide data for conservation, selection, and expansion programs of buffalo herds, this study evaluated the history of a population of Murrah buffaloes based on population structure and the effect of inbreeding on accumulated 305-d milk yield (MY), fat yield (FY), protein yield (PY), mozzarella production (MProd), and somatic cell score (SCS). The usefulness of including the individual inbreeding coefficient (F) or individual increase in inbreeding coefficient (Delta F) in the model to describe inbreeding depression was evaluated. Pedigree information from 8,054 animals born between 1976 and 2008 and 4,497 lactation records obtained from 12 herds were used. The realized effective population size was 40.10 +/- 1.27, and the mean F of the entire population was 2.14%. The ratio between the number of founders and ancestors demonstrated the existence of a bottleneck in the pedigree of this population, which may contribute to a reduction of genetic diversity. The effect of F on MY, FY, PY, MProd, and SCS was -1.005 kg, -0.299 kg, -0.246 kg, -1.201 kg, and -0.002 units, and the effect of Delta F transformed to equivalent F (%) for a mean of 2.57 equivalent generations was -4.287 kg, -0.581 kg, -0.383 kg, -2.001 kg, and -0.007 units, respectively. The inbreeding depression observed may have important economic repercussions for production systems. The Delta F can be considered the better of the two indicators of inbreeding depression due to its properties that prevent underestimation of this effect. A designed mating system to avoid inbreeding may be applied to this population to maintain genetic diversity.

Effects of Different Periods of Clomazone plus Hexazinona Permanence in Soil and Sugarcane Mulch before the Occurrence of Rain on Weed Control Efficacy

The objective of this work was to evaluate the efficacy of the formulated mixture clomazone and hexazinone applied in soil or combined with sugarcane mulch, after different periods of permanence without the occurrence of rain. The experiment was carried out in vases under greenhouse conditions in Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil. The weeds Brachiaria decumbens, Ipomoea grandifolia, Ipomoea hederifolia and Euphorbia heterophylla were sown and covered or not with sugarcane mulch. The experiment was arranged in a complete randomized design with four repetitions. The treatments were displaced in a 3x6 factorial scheme, with the factors being six periods without rain (0, 3, 7, 15, 30, and 60 days) and three modes of herbicide application(on the soil without sugarcane mulch, on and under sugarcane mulch). Control evaluations were carried out at 10, 21, 35 and 42 days after the occurrence of rain. The clomazone + hexazinone mixture promoted an excellent weed control for all the species studied when applied on, under, or without sugarcane mulch. However, the control levels tended to reduce for periods over 60 days without rain.

Effects of aluminum on plant growth and nutrient uptake in young physic nut plants

Aluminum (Al3+) toxicity is a major limiting factor to crop productivity in acid soils. The effects of aluminum on root and shoot growth of physic nut (Jatropha curcas L.) young plants and, the uptake and distribution of phosphorus, calcium, magnesium and aluminum in the roots and shoots were investigated in the present study. Plants were grown in 2.5L pots in a greenhouse. After fourteen days of adaptation to nutrient solution, plants were exposed to Al concentrations of 0, 370, 740, 1,100 and 1,480 mu mol L-1, corresponding to an active Al3+ solution of 13.3, 35.3, 90.0, 153.3 and 220.7 mu mol L-1, respectively. The dry matter partitioning between roots, stems and leaves, and the concentrations of P, Ca, Mg and Al in plant tissue, were measured after 75 days exposure to Al. The increasing level of Al3+ activity in solution progressively decreased the growth of the shoot and root of physic nut plants, and at the two highest active Al3+ levels, plants showed morphological abnormalities typical of the toxicity caused by this metal. Higher Al3+ activity reduced P concentrations in leaves and Ca and Mg in leaves and roots of physic nut, demonstrating the effect of Al on the uptake, transport and use of these nutrients by plants. The Al accumulated preferentially in the roots of physic nut, whereas only a small amount was transported to shoots.

Productivity, biological efficiency, and number of Agaricus blazei mushrooms grown in compost in the presence of Trichoderma sp. and Chaetomium olivacearum contaminants

Foi avaliado o efeito dos fungos contaminantes Trichoderma sp. e C. olivacearum na produtividade, eficiência biológica e número de cogumelos da produção do A. blazei em composto (mistura de cana-de-açúcar, palha de capim coast-cross, farelo de soja, gesso e calcário calcítico). O delineanamento foi inteiramente casualizado com três tratamentos (Trichoderma sp., C. olivacearum e testemunha) e oito repetições (caixa com 12 kg de composto colonizado com A. blazei). Após a colonização do composto pelo A. blazei, adicionou-se 150g de inóculo à base de triticale de cada um dos fungos contaminantes na superfície do composto seguido da camada de cobertura. O experimento foi conduzido em estufa com cobertura plástica, umidade relativa entre 60-90% e temperatura de 20-34ºC. A produtividade foi determinada pela relação entre a massa fresca de basidiomas e a massa úmida do composto. A eficiência biológica foi determinada pela relação entre a massa fresca de basidiomas e a massa seca do composto ao final do período de colheita. de acordo com os resultados obtidos, os fungos contaminantes C. olivacearum e Trichoderma sp. não afetaram a produtividade, eficiência biológica e número de cogumelos da produção do A. blazei em compostos previamente colonizados.

Differences in the number of hemocytes in the snail host Biomphalaria tenagophila, resistant and susceptible to Schistosoma mansoni infection

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Thermal inkjet printing of polyaniline on paper

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)