Palynology on lake sediments from the Pyrenees

A multi-proxy palaeoecological investigation including pollen, plant macrofossil, radiocarbon and sedimentological analyses, was performed on a small mountain lake in the Eastern Pyrenees. This has allowed the reconstruction of: (1) the vegetation history of the area based on five pollen diagrams and eight AMS14C dates and (2) the past lake-level changes, based on plant macrofossil, lithological and pollen analysis of two stratigraphical transects correlated by pollen analysis. The palaeolake may have appeared before the Younger Dryas; the lake-level was low and the vegetation dominated by cold steppic grasslands. The lake-level rose to its highest level during the Holocene in the Middle Atlantic (at ca. 5060±45 b.p.). Postglacial forests (Quercetum mixtum and Abieto-Fagetum) developed progressively in the lower part of the valley, while dense Pinus uncinata forests rapidly invaded the surroundings of the mire and remained the dominant local vegetation until present. The observed lowering of the lake levels during the Late Atlantic and the Subboreal (from 5060 ± B.P. to 3590±40 b.p.) was related to the overgrowth of the mire. The first obvious indications of anthropogenic disturbances of the vegetation are recorded at the Atlantic/Subboreal boundary as a reduction in the forest component, which has accelerated during the last two millennia.

Effect of grape seed extract on oxidative, color and sensory stability of pre-cooked, frozen, re-heated beef sausage model system

The processing of meats at the factory level can trigger the onset of lipid oxidation, which can lead to meat quality deterioration. Warmed over flavor is an off-flavor, which is associated with oxidative deterioration in meat. To avoid or delay the auto-oxidation process in meat products, synthetic and natural antioxidants have been successfully used. Grape (Vitis Vinifera) is of special interest due to its high content of phenolic compounds. Grape seed extract sold commercially as a dietary supplement, has the potential to reduce lipid oxidation and WOF in cooked ground beef when added at 1%. The objective of study 1 was to compare the antioxidant activity of natural antioxidants including grape seed extract and some herbs belonging to the Lamiaciae family: rosemary (Rosmarinus Officinalis), sage (Salvia Officinalis) and oregano (Origanum Vulgare) with commercial synthetic antioxidants like BHT, BHA, propyl gallate and ascorbic acid using the ORAC assay. All sample solutions were prepared to contain 1.8 gm sample/10 ml solvent. The highest antioxidant activity was observed for the grape seed extract sample (359.75 µM TE), while the lowest was observed for BHA, propyl gallate and rosemary also showed higher antioxidant potential with ORAC values above 300 μmol TE/g. ORAC values obtained for ascorbic acid and Sage were between 250-300μ mol TE/g while lowest values were obtained for Butylated Hydroxytoluene (28.50 µM TE). Based on the high ORAC values obtained for grape seed extract, we can conclude that byproducts of the wine/grape industry have antioxidant potential comparable to or better than those present in synthetic counterparts. The objective of study 2 was to compare three levels of grape seed extract (GSE) to commonly used antioxidants in a pre-cooked, frozen, stored beef and pork sausage model system. Antioxidants added for comparison with control included grape seed extract (100, 300, 500 ppm), ascorbic acid (AA, 100 ppm of fat) and propyl gallate (PG, 100 ppm of fat). Product was formed into rolls, frozen, sliced into patties, cooked on a flat griddle to 70C, overwrapped in PVC, and then frozen at –18C for 4 months. GSE- and PG-containing samples retained their fresh cooked beef odor and flavor longer (p<0.05) than controls during storage. Rancid odor and flavor scores of GSE-containing samples were lower (p<0.05) than those of controls after 4 months of storage. The L* value of all samples increased (p<0.05) during storage. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) of the control and AA-containing samples increased (p<0.05); those of GSE-containing samples did not change significantly (p>0.05) over the storage period.

Assessing canopy temperature patterns in two grapevine varieties subjected to deficit irrigation: a tool to optimize water management ?

A better understanding of grapevine responses to drought and high air temperatures can help to optimize vineyard management to improve water use efficiency, yield and berry quality. Faster and robust field phenotyping tools are needed in modern precision viticulture, in particular in dry and hot regions such as the Mediterranean. Canopy temperature (Tc) is commonly used to monitor water stress in plants/crops and to characterize stomatal physiology in different woody species including Vitis vinifera. Thermography permits remote determination of leaf surface or canopy temperature in the field and also to assess the range and spatial distribution of temperature from different parts of the canopies. Our hypothesis is that grapevine genotypes may show different Tc patterns along the day due to different stomatal behaviour and heat dissipation strategies. We have monitored the diurnal and seasonal course of Tc in two grapevine genotypes, Aragonez (syn. Tempranillo) and Touriga Nacional subjected to deficit irrigation under typical Mediterranean climate conditions. Temperature measurements were complemented by determination of the diurnal course of leaf water potential (ψleaf) and leaf gas exchange. Measurements were done in two seasons (2013 and 2014) at different phenological stages: i) mid-June (green berry stage), ii) mid-July (veraison), iii) early August (early ripening) and iv) before harvest (late ripening). Correlations between Tc and minimal stomatal conductance will be presented for the two genotypes along the day. Results are discussed over the use of thermal imagery to derive information on genotype physiology in response to changing environmental conditions and to mild water stress induced by deficit irrigation. Strategies to optimize the use of thermal imaging in field conditions are also proposed

Bioprospection of Petit Verdot grape pomace as a source of anti-inflammatory compounds.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of Petit Verdot Extract and hexane, chloroform and ethyl acetate fractions obtained from grape pomace, in addition to identifying active compounds. The PVE and EAF reduced significantly paw edema and neutrophil migration when compared with control groups. The PVE reduced levels of TNF-α and IL1-β in the peritoneal fluid, whereas the EAF did not reduce cytokines significantly. Two hydroxybenzoic acids, two proanthocyanidins, three flavan-3-ol monomers and three anthocyanins were identified in the PVE and EAF by LC-MS/MS. The stilbene transresveratrol was identified only in the EAF. The phenolic compounds were quantified using HPLC-DAD analysis, except for the stilbenes, which were not sensible for the detection by the method. Since PVE and EAF showed significantly anti-inflammatory effects and high concentration of phenolic compounds, we concluded that Petit Verdot pomace could be an interesting source of anti-inflammatory bioactives.

Adaptive strategies of two Portuguese grapevines varieties (Aragonês. syn. Tempranillo and Trincadeira) face drought: physiological and structural responses.

At Mediterranean regions and particularly in southern Portugal, it is imperative to identify grape varieties more adapted to warm and dry climates in order to overcome future climatic changes. Two Vitis vinifera genotypes, Aragonez (syn. Tempranillo) and Trincadeira, were selected to assess their physiological responses to soil water stress. Vines were subjected to four irrigation regimes: irrigated during all phenological cycle, non-irrigated during all phenological cycle, non irrigated until veraison, irrigated after veraison. Predawn leaf water potential was much higher in Trincadeira than Aragonez in non- irrigated plants. This result is in accordance with its higher stomatal control efficiency in this variety (Trincadeira). Photosynthetic capacity (Amax at saturating light intensity) decreased due to stomatal and biochemical limitations under water stress. However, recovery capacity of leaf water status after irrigation was faster in Trincadeira. Yield and yield x Brix increased when irrigation occurred after veraison, particularly in Trincadeira. These results show that Trincadeira presents a drought adaptation than Aragonez. Ratio of variable to maximum fluorescence Fv/Fm and total leaf chlorophyll related with leaf water potential for both species. Reflectance Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI705), Red Edge Inflexion Point Index and Photochemical Reflectance Index were related with irrigation treatment. Relative water content and specific leaf area were similar between varieties. In conclusion, we suggested that there is variation among the genotypes and the main physiological parameters for variety selection, for drought, were leaf water potential, stomatal conductance and reflectance indexes.

Organic and nitrogen fertilization of soil under Syrah grapevine: effects on soil chemical properties and nitrate concentration.

Viticulture is an activity of great social and economic importance in the lower-middle region of the São Francisco River valley in northeastern Brazil. In this region, the fertility of soils under vineyards is generally poor. To assess the effects of organic and nitrogen fertilization on chemical properties and nitrate concentrations in an Argissolo Vermelho-Amarelo (Typic Plinthustalf), a field experiment was carried out in Petrolina, Pernambuco, on Syrah grapevines. Treatments consisted of two rates of organic fertilizer (0 and 30 m3 ha-1) and five N rates (0, 10, 20, 40, and 80 kg ha-1), in a randomized block design arranged in split plots, with five replications. The organic fertilizer levels represented the main plots and the N levels, the subplots. The source of N was urea and the source of organic fertilizer was goat manure. Irrigation was applied through a drip system and N by fertigation. At the end of the third growing season, soil chemical properties were determined and nitrate concentration in the soil solution (extracted by porous cups) was determined. Organic fertilization increased organic matter, pH, EC, P, K, Ca, Mg, Mn, sum of bases, base saturation, and CEC, but decreased exchangeable Cu concentration in the soil by complexation of Cu in the organic matter. Organic fertilization raised the nitrate concentration in the 0.20-0.40 m soil layer, making it leachable. Nitrate concentration in the soil increased as N rates increased, up to more than 300 mg kg-1 in soil and nearly 800 mg L-1 in the soil solution, becoming prone to leaching losses.

Nitrate and potassium concentration in fertigated soil cultivated with wine vines.

In the semiarid region of Brazil the use of irrigation systems for applying fertilizers in horticulture is the primary means for incorporating nutrients in the soil. However, this technique still requires its use in wine vines to be assessed. In view of this, this study aimed to assess nitrate and potassium concentrations in soil fertigated with nitrogen and potassium fertilizers in 3 wine grape growing cycles. A field experiment was conducted with ?Syrah? wine grapes, in Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil; it assessed five nitrogen doses (0, 15, 30, 60 and 120 kg ha-1) and five K2O doses (0, 15, 30, 60 and 120 kg ha-1) applied by drip irrigation system with two emitters per plant, with a flow rate of 4 L h-1. The experimental design used was the factorial split-plot, making up 13 combinations arranged in 4 randomized blocks. Soil solution samples were collected weekly with the aid of porous cup extractors for all treatments and at depths of 0.4 and 0.6 m by determining nitrate and potassium concentrations and electrical conductivity. Increased levels of both nutrients in the irrigation water increased the availability of nitrate and potassium in the soil solution. The highest nitrate and potassium concentrations were found in the second growing cycle at both depths studied.

Assessment of Injuries Caused by Anastrepha fraterculus (Wied.) (Diptera: Tephritidae) on the Incidence of Bunch Rot Diseases in Table Grape.

Resumo: Anastrepha fraterculus (. Wied) é a principal praga de uvas de mesa (Vitis vinifera) na Região Sul do Brasil. Neste estudo, o objetivo foi investigar o efeito da punção de frutas por fêmeas adultas e infestação larvária por A. fraterculus na ocorrência da doença podridões na uva (cultivar "Itália"). Abstract: Anastrepha fraterculus (Wied.) is the main insect pest of table grapes (Vitis vinifera) in the Southern Region of Brazil. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of fruit puncturing by adult females and larval infestation by A. fraterculus on the occurrence of bunch rot disease in the grape (cultivar ?Itália?) by evaluating grapes (a) punctured for oviposition by females of A. fraterculus, sterilized in laboratory with novaluron (40 mg L−1) and further spray-inoculated separately with Botrytis cinerea (1 × 106 conidia mL−1), Glomerella cingulata (1 × 106 conidia mL−1), and bacteria and yeast that cause sour rot (1 × 105 cells mL−1), (b) grapes punctured for oviposition by non-sterilized females with pathogen spraying, (c) grapes with mechanical wounds and pathogen spraying, (d) grapes with no wounds and with pathogen spraying, (e) grapes punctured for oviposition by A. fraterculus chemically sterilized in laboratory with novaluron, (f) grapes punctured for oviposition by A. fraterculus non-sterilized in laboratory with novaluron, (g) grapes with mechanical wounds, and (h) grapes with no sterilization or pathogen spraying. Our data indicated that the mechanical and oviposition wounds caused by A. fraterculus increased the percentage of grapes infected by B. cinerea, G. cingulata, and microorganisms of acid rot. The grape puncturing by A. fraterculus and the mechanical wound allows the penetration of B. cinerea and microorganisms leading to acid rot. We conclude that the fruit fly A. fraterculus may facilitate phytopathogens penetration leading to bunch rots in the table grape Itália.

Potencial de armazenamento de uvas de mesa lançadas pela Embrapa Uva e Vinho.

A refrigeração tem sido utilizada como método de armazenamento de uvas de mesa (Vitis vinifera e Vitis labrusca x Vitis vinifera). No entanto, para algumas cultivares (cvs) as informações sobre o tempo limite de armazenamento são escassas. Esse trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar o potencial de armazenamento de quatro cvs de uva de mesa: BRS Isis, BRS Morena, BRS Núbia e BRS Vitória.

Desenvolvimento de marcadores para a seleção assistida de ausência de sementes em videiras no programa de melhoramento da Embrapa Uva e Vinho.

desenvolvimento de novas cultivares de uvas sem sementes é uma das prioridades dos programas de melhoramento de uvas de mesa do mundo. Em trabalho anterior o nosso grupo detectou um QTL (quantitative trait locus) para ausência de sementes no cromossomo 18 no locus SDI (seed development inhibitor). Evidências adicionais demonstraram que o gene VvAGL11, localizado neste locus, possui papel fundamental na morfogênese de sementes em videira. O objetivo deste trabalho foi genotipar acessos apirêincos e pirênicos com nove marcadores do tipo SNP e INDEL únicos para o alelo associado a ausência de sementes em Vitis vinifera e verificar se a metodologia de genotipagem baseada em KASP? tem potencial de uso em seleção assistida.

A vitivinicultura brasileira: realidade e perspectivas.

Dados históricos revelam que a primeira introdução da videira no Brasil foi feita pelos colonizadores portugueses em 1532, através de Martin Afonso de Souza, na então Capitania de São Vicente, hoje Estado de São Paulo. A partir deste ponto e através de introduções posteriores, a viticultura expandiu-se para outras regiões do país, sempre com cultivares de Vitis vinifera procedentes de Portugal e da Espanha. Nas primeiras décadas do século XIX, com a importação das uvas americanas procedentes da América do Norte, foram introduzidas as doenças fúngicas que levaram a viticultura colonial à decadência. A cultivar Isabel passou a ser plantada nas diversas regiões do país, tornando-se a base para o desenvolvimento da vitivinicultura comercial nos Estados do Rio Grande do Sul e de São Paulo. Mais tarde, a partir do início do século XX, o panorama da viticultura paulista mudou significativamente com a substituição da Isabel por Niágara e Seibel 2. No Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, foi incentivado o cultivo de castas viníferas através de estímulos governamentais. Nesse período a atividade vitivinícola expandiu-se para outras regiões do sul e sudeste do país, sempre em zonas com período hibernal definido e com o predomínio de cultivares americanas e híbridas. Entretanto, na década de 70, com a chegada de algumas empresas multinacionais na região da Serra Gaúcha e da Fronteira Oeste (município de Sant'Ana do Livramento), verificou-se um incremento significativo da área de parreirais com cultivares V. vinifera. A viticultura tropical brasileira foi efetivamente desenvolvida a partir da década de 1960, com o plantio de vinhedos comerciais de uva de mesa na região do Vale do Rio São Francisco, no nordeste semi-árido brasileiro. Nos anos 70 surgiu o pólo vitícola do Norte do Estado do Paraná e na década de 1980 desenvolveram-se as regiões do Noroeste do Estado de São Paulo e de Pirapóra no Norte de Minas Gerais, todas voltadas à produção de uvas finas para consumo in natura. Iniciativas mais recentes, como as verificadas nas regiões Centro-Oeste (Estados do Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul e Goiás) e Nordeste (Bahia e Ceará), permitem que se projete um aumento significativo na atividade vitivinícola nos próximos anos.

Avaliação de atributos químicos em solos cultivado com uva no Vale do São Francisco.

Este trabalho foi desenvolvido com objetivo de analisar as alterações químicas de dois solos (Luvissolo Hipocrômico Órtico - L1 e um Argissolo Amarelo Eutrófico - L2) cultivados com uva visando a produção de vinho.As análises químicas constituíram-se de determinações dos teores de carbono orgânico, nitrogênio total, potássio, cálcio, magnésio e fósforo disponíveis, alumínio trocável e pH. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos casualizado, com dois tratamentos, lote (L1) e (L2) foram coletadas amostras de solo nas profundidades de 0-10 e 10-20 e 20-40 cm, com seis repetições. Os resultados da análise química das amostras de solo coletadas nos dois ambientes considerados evidenciam as alterações químicas proporcionadas pelo intenso uso de fertilizantes e corretivos empregado na condução das videiras durante os treze anos de uso do Lote 1.O desempenho produtivo das videira do lote (L1) pode ter sido afetado pela alta CE média igual a 2,30 dS.m-1 enquanto o lote (L2) apresentou uma menor CE igual a 0,45 dS.m-1 . O decréscimo de produtividade do vinhedo (L1), parece estar sendo proporcionado por desequilíbrios entre os teores dos cátions, excesso de fósforo e alta condutividade elétrica proporcionada pelo uso excessivo de fertilizantes e corretivos.Em ambos os lotes (L1 e L2) é preciso um manejo adequado do uso de fertilizantes.

Eficiência do uso da água em videira Ssyrah irrigada no Submédio do Vale São Francisco.

O estudo teve como objetivo estimar a eficiência do uso da água (EUA) na videira Syrah irrigada no Submédio do Vale São Francisco, com base no rendimento em função da evapotranspiração da cultura e da transpiração máxima. Para isso, a evapotranspiração da cultura foi determinada pelo balanço de energia com base no método da razão de Bowen (ETcBERB), enquanto a transpiração máxima (TR) foi estimada pelo modelo de Penman- Monteith modificado com base no índice de área foliar da cultura. Os dados micrometeorológicos foram monitorados durante um ciclo produtivo por meio de uma estação automática localizada no parreiral. A evapotranspiração de referência (ETo) também foi calculada ao longo do experimento, pelo método de Penman-Monteith parametrizado no boletim 56 da FAO. A ETo e a ETcBERB corresponderam ao valor total de 474,0 e 376,4 mm ciclo-1, com valor médio diário de 3,9 e 3,1 mm, respectivamente. A TR oscilou entre 3,5 e 0,9 mm d-1, com volume total durante o ciclo de 284,4 mm. A EUA, com base no total de água consumida e transpirada, foi de 1,17 kg m-3 e 1,55 kg m-3, respectivamente. O método do BERB e o modelo de Penman-Monteith modificado para plantas isoladas apresentaram resultados confiáveis para estimativa da EUA sob as condições climáticas da região do Submédio do Vale São Francisco. No entanto, torna-se necessário que novos estudos nesse sentido com a cultura da videira para produção de vinhos sejam realizados, principalmente nesta região Semiárida, onde a maioria das pesquisas voltadas para o manejo do vinhedo ainda estão em desenvolvimento.

Uva-passa: uma revisão de literatura.

O objetivo desse trabalho foi realizar um levantamento de referências já analizadas e publicadas em meios escritos e eletrônicos abordando a importancia da uva-passa para o consumo, os métodos de secagem e estudos sobre a desidratação de uvas passas.

A Viticultura brasileira: realidade e perspectivas.

2002