Distribuição espacial de Huanglongbing (Greening) em citros utilizando a geoestatística

Os objetivos do trabalho foram avaliar a distribuição espacial e a expansão da Huanglongbing (greening) em talhões de citros de uma propriedade agrícola localizada no município de Araraquara-SP, utilizando a geoestatística. Para determinar o número de plantas com greening, foram realizadas inspeções periódicas em intervalos de três meses, no período de março de 2005 a julho de 2007, contando-se, em cada talhão, o número de plantas com os sintomas característicos da doença. Realizou-se a análise descritiva dos dados e, para verificar a distribuição espacial do greening, utilizou-se a geoestatística através do ajuste de semivariogramas e da interpolação dos dados por krigagem. A dependência espacial de plantas com greening apresentou raio de agregação de 300 a 560 m, indicando distribuição agregada da doença. Por meio dos mapas de krigagem, observou-se que o foco inicial de plantas doentes ocorreu nos limites da fazenda, com expansão do greening por toda a área. O intervalo de inspeção de três meses não foi adequado para a redução do greening na fazenda.

Candidatus Liberibacter americanus, associated with citrus huanglongbing (greening disease) in São Paulo State, Brazil

Symptoms of huanglongbing (HLB) were reported in São Paulo State (SPS), Brazil, in March 2004. In Asia, HLB is caused by 'Candidatus Liberibacterasiaticus'and in Africa by 'Candidatus Liberibacter africanus'. Detection of the liberibacters is based on PCR amplification of their 16S rRNA gene with specific primers. Leaves with blotchy mottle symptoms characteristic of HLB were sampled in several farms of SIPS and tested for the presence of liberibacters. 'Ca. L. asiaticus' was detected in a small number of samples but most samples gave negative PCR results. Therefore, a new HLB pathogen was suspected. Evidence for an SPS-HLB bacterium in symptomatic leaves was obtained by PCR amplification with universal primers for prokaryotic 16S rRNA gene sequences. The amplified 16S rRNA gene was cloned and sequenced. Sequence analysis and phylogeny studies showed that the 16S rRNA gene possessed the oligonucleotide signatures and the secondary loop structure characteristic of the alpha-Proteobacteria, including the liberibacters. The 16S rRNA gene sequence phylogenetic tree showed that the SPS-HLB bacterium clustered within the a-Proteobacteria, the liberibacters being its closest relatives. For these reasons, the SPS-HLB bacterium is considered a member of the genus 'Ca. Liberibacter'. However, while the 16S rRNA gene sequences of 'Ca. L. asiaticus' and 'Ca. L. africanus' had 98-4% similarity, the 16S rRNA gene sequence of the SPS-HLB liberibacter had only 96(.)0% similarity with the 16S rRNA gene sequences of 'Ca. L. asiaticus'or'Ca. L. africanus'. This lower similarity was reflected in the phylogenetic tree, where the SPS-HLB liberibacter did not cluster within the 'Ca. L asiaticus'/'Ca. L. africanus group', but as a separate branch. Within the genus 'Candidatus Liberibacter' and for a given species, the 16S/23S intergenic region does not vary greatly. The intergenic regions of three strains of 'Ca. L. asiaticus', from India, the People's Republic of China and Japan, were found to have identical or almost identical sequences. In contrast, the intergenic regions of the SPS-HLB liberibacter, 'Ca. L. asiaticus' and 'Ca. L. africanus' had quite different sequences, with similarity between 66(.)0 and 79(.)5%. These results confirm that the SPS-HLB liberibacter is a novel species for which the name 'Candidatus Liberibacter americanus' is proposed. Like the African and the Asian liberibacters, the 'American' liberibacter is restricted to the sieve tubes of the citrus host. The liberibacter could also be detected by PCR amplification of the 16S rRNA gene in Diaphorina citri, the psyllid vector of 'Ca. L. asiaticus', suggesting that this psyllid is also a vector of 'Ca. L. americanus' in SPS. 'Ca. L. americanus' was detected in 216 of 218 symptomatic leaf samples from 47 farms in 35 municipalities, while 'Ca. L. asiaticus' was detected in only 4 of the 218 samples, indicating that 'Ca. L. americanus' is the major cause of HLB in SIPS.

Understanding the process of greening of Brazilian business schools

This study analyses business schools' incorporating environmental management issues into their core activities, defined through teaching, research, outreach and management. Taking into account the relative lack of literature on this theme, case study fieldwork is utilized. Two case studies were conducted at Brazilian business schools. The results were analyzed using the conceptual background of barriers to organizational change, transition to a more sustainable society, and path dependence. The main findings indicate that: (a) the incorporation of environmental management issues tends to begin with researching and teaching; (b) this incorporation process depends on the personal motivation of few or single faculty researchers; (c) the trajectory of the analyzed business schools is marked by advances and stagnation, when analyzing the incorporation of environmental management issues to its four core activities; (d) paradoxically, the analyzed business schools can be considered academic leaders in the field, but have had difficulties in adopting environmental management practices internally; (e) there is a path dependence effect in this process; (f) there are barriers to organizational change towards green business schools; (g) institutional entrepreneurs are important to the process of greening. This research represents the first research shedding light to understanding the process of greening of Brazilian business schools while considering the multidimensional aspects (teaching, research, outreach and university management). © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Distribuição espacial de Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) e sua relação com a expansão do greening em laranjeira Valência, utilizando geoestatística

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Greening the campus of a Brazilian university: cultural challenges

Purpose - This study examined the relationship between environmental management practices developed at a campus of a Brazilian university (University of Sao Paulo) and the greening of its organizational culture. The paper aims to discuss these issues.Design/methodology/approach - This article presents a theoretical background based on the concepts of environmental management, organizational culture and environmental management in higher education institutions. The main framework of this research is the model proposed by Harris and Crane.Findings - The studied university has an environmental management program that is sometimes constrained in the following ways: the university bureaucracy and hierarchy; the main performance indicators for lecturers and professors are based on scientific production and publication, giving them little time for complementary activities; and some units develop their own environmental management practices, but they are not disseminated as best practices for use by other units. Some academic units showcase the proactive actions of professors who incorporate environmental management into their daily activities. The general perception is that the phrase environmental management is almost synonymous with solid waste management.Originality/value - This research details the first Brazilian application of the Harris and Crane model. It contributes an original analysis of environmental management and green organizational culture of a Brazilian university, an organizational type that has seldom been studied to date.

Greening the work force in Brazilian hotels: The role of environmental training

BACKGROUND: Organizations are increasingly required to reduce their environmental impact through the adoption of environmental management, which requires the support of human resource practices.OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to determine whether human resource management practices, especially training, are supporting environmental management practices at four hotels located in Brazil.METHODS: This research is qualitative, based on the analysis of four hotels in Brazil.RESULTS: Based on the systematized empirical evidence collected from four hotels (Hotels A, B, C, and D), it can be concluded that: (1) human resource management is still not fully aligned with environmental objectives at the hotels studied; (2) only Hotel B has implemented environmental management practices and aligned with human resource management in a more developed manner, which may indicate that these two variables of analysis could have interrelations; (3) environmental training as a human resource management practice was verified in all hotels analyzed.CONCLUSIONS: The greening of human resources practices is not fully aligned with environmental objectives in the hotels studied. If these hotels really wish to "go green," environmental training will be necessary. Hotel stakeholders play a major role in implementing the greening of the hotel industry.

Citrus greening disease investigation using micro synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence in association with soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA)

This study describes the use of micro synchrotron radiation X-ray fluorescence (µSR-XRF) to investigate citrus greening disease in sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) plants. An experiment using healthy plants as control and plants of the same variety infected with Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) was performed to verify variations of the mineral composition of citrus leaves. A µSR-XRF system using the D09B X-ray fluorescence beam line at the Brazilian Synchrotron Light Source (LNLS, Campinas, São Paulo State) was employed for this purpose. The data were analyzed using a chemometric tool called soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA). The promising results from SIMCA models reinforce the evidence that plants infected by citrus greening (both asymptomatic and symptomatic) undergo alterations in their micro- and macronutrient compositions.

Greening of the essential activities of an Engineering School: a case study in the Area/Department of Production Engineering

This article analyzes the inclusion of the issue of “environmental management” in the department of Production Engineering of the “Alfa” School of Engineering. For this, a case study was conducted at the School of "Alpha" Engineering, with a focus on the area of Production Engineering. Professors were interviewed; documents were reviewed as well as information collected from direct observations by of one of the authors of this article. It was observed that the department of Production Engineering at the Alpha School of Engineering has been developing activities covering all those aspects proposed by Jabbour [8]. "Environmental management" has been included in the curriculums of: (a) Teaching: in the creation of undergraduate courses (obligatory) and graduate Master's degree (optional), (b) Research: formalization of research groups in environmental management for the creation of master’s post graduation research, formalization of environmental management as one of the subjects that should be chosen by candidates for a Professorship in the area of production engineering; (c) Extension: Course in Environmental Management, Symposium (which in recent years has been focusing on environmental issues), creation of sustainability indicators for universities, (d) University Management: initiatives to raise awareness, distribution of reusable mugs and installation of special bins for selective collection in the Campus.

Greening a Brazilian cotton seed processing company: from challenges to strategic opportunities

This paper aims to shed light on a current and important theme that has been gaining increasing importance for governments, society and companies: the greening of agricultural companies in developing countries. The research objective is to classify a Brazilian cotton seed processing company in the evolutionary stages of environmental management: reactive, preventive or proactive. Design/methodology/approach– A case study was conducted in a Brazilian cotton seed processing company.Findings– The main results are: the studied company is positioned in the preventive stage of environmental management; this company is investing in operational green practices; environmental management in this company is motivated by various factors aiming at an increased competitive advantage. Finally, it can be concluded that this company is looking for green opportunities towards the proactive environmental management stage.

Spatial distribution of Diaphorina citri Kuwayama (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) in citrus orchards

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Produtividade e esverdeamento pós-colheita de tubérculos de cultivares de batata produzidos na safra de inverno

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

Esverdeamento em cultivares de batata avaliado pela escala visual e índice spad

Foi avaliado o esverdeamento em tubérculos de cultivares de batata utilizando dois métodos de determinação (escala visual de notas e índice spad). Utilizou-se o delineamento experimental inteiramente casualizado, com quatro repetições, em esquema fatorial 18 x 5, constituído por cultivares (Agata, Apuã (IAC-5977), Aracy (IAC-2), IAC Aracy Ruiva, Asterix, Bintje, Dali, Clone IAC-6090, Itararé (IAC-5986), Laguna, Remarka, Liseta, Mondial, Novita, Oscar, Picasso, Santana e Solide) e tempo de armazenamento (5; 10; 15; 20 e 25 dias). Todas as cultivares apresentaram desempenho linear e crescente pelo índice spad, com excecão da Bintje, com spad médio de 1,23. Pela escala visual, as cultivares apresentaram desempenho quadrático e linear. A cultivar Bintje é resistente ao esverdeamento determinado pelos dois métodos. O índice spad pode ser utilizado para determinação do esverdeamento do 10º ao 25º dia de armazenamento.

Qualidade nutricional e esverdeamento pós-colheita de tubérculos de cultivares de batata

O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar as características físico-químicas, a qualidade nutricional e a suscetibilidade ao esverdeamento pós-colheita de tubérculos de cultivares de batata. Utilizou-se o delineamento experimental de blocos ao acaso, com cinco repetições. Os tratamentos consistiram de 11 cultivares (Ágata, Ambra, Annabelle, Asterix, Atlantic, Cupido, Daisy, Fontane, Innovator, Markies e Voyager). As cultivares Ágata, Ambra, Annabelle, Cupido e Voyager apresentam tubérculos com polpa de menor firmeza (6,82 a 8,25 N) e baixos teores de matéria seca (14,46 a 17,57%), carboidratos (10,97 a 12,51%) e amido (10,21 a 12,26%), adequados para o mercado fresco, a preparação de massas e o uso culinário. Já as cultivares Atlantic, Fontane e Innovator apresentam polpa firme (9,14 a 9,55 N) e elevados teores de matéria seca (19,68 a 21,63%), carboidratos (14,49 a 15,90%) e amido (14,29 a 15,74%), adequados para fritura. As cultivares Asterix e Markies apresentam teores intermediários dessas características e são indicadas para o preparo de massas e fritura. As cultivares Innovator e Markies apresentam melhor qualidade nutricional, com elevados teores de minerais (P, K, Mg, Cu e Mn) e de proteína, enquanto as cultivares Ágata e Ambra apresentam menor qualidade nutricional e proteica. A cultivar Voyager apresenta maior esverdeamento pós-colheita que as cultivares Annabelle, Fontane, Markies, Ambra e Atlantic.

Ineffectiveness of pruning to control citrus huanglongbing caused by Candidatus Liberibacter americanus

The huanglongbing (HLB) disease of citrus trees, caused by Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus and Ca. Liberibacter americanus, was first reported in Brazil in March, 2004. The presence of the disease has caused serious concerns among growers. Pruning experiments were conducted to determine if removal of symptomatic branches or the entire canopy (decapitation) would eliminate infected tissues and save HLB-affected trees. Pruning was done in five blocks on a total of 592 3- to 16 year-old 'Valencia', 'Hamlin' or 'Pera' sweet orange trees showing no symptoms or with two levels of symptom severity. Ten decapitated trees per block were caged and all trees were treated with insecticides to control the psyllid vector, Diaphorina citri. Mottled leaves reappeared on most symptomatic (69.2%) as well on some asymptomatic (7.6%) pruned trees, regardless of age, variety, and pruning procedure. Presence of the pathogen (Ca. Liberibacter americanus) in all symptomatic trees was confirmed by PCR. In general, the greater the symptom severity before pruning the lower the percentage of trees that remained asymptomatic after pruning.