Finnish cattle as reservoir of Campylobacter spp.

The reported incidence of human campylobacteriosis in Finland is higher than in most other European countries. A high annual percentage of sporadic infections is of foreign origin, although a notable proportion of summer infections is domestically acquired. While chickens appear to be a major source of campylobacters for humans in most countries, the prevalence of campylobacters is very low in chicken slaughter batches in Finland. Data on other potential animal reservoirs of human pathogenic campylobacters in Finland are scarce. Consequently, this study aimed to investigate the status of Finnish cattle as a potential source of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. and antibiotic-resistant Campylobacter jejuni for human sporadic campylobacter infections of domestic origin. A survey of the prevalence of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in Finnish cattle studied bovine rectal faecal samples (n=952) and carcass surface samples (n=948) from twelve Finnish slaughterhouses from January to December 2003. The total prevalence of Campylobacter spp. in faecal samples was 31.1%, and in carcass samples 3.5%. Campylobacter jejuni, the most common species, was present in 19.5% of faecal samples and in 3.1% of carcasses. In addition to thermophilic Campylobacter spp., C. hyointestinalis ssp. hyointestinalis was present in bovine samples. The prevalence of campylobacters was higher among beef cattle than among dairy cattle. Using the enrichment method, the number of positive faecal samples was 7.5 times higher than that obtained by direct plating. The predominant serotypes of faecal C. jejuni, determined by serotyping with a set of 25 commercial antisera for heat-stable antigens (Penner), were Pen2 and Pen4-complex, which covered 52% of the samples. Genotyping with pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) using SmaI restriction yielded a high diversity of C. jejuni subtypes in cattle. Determining the minimum inhibitory concentrations of ampicillin, enrofloxacin, erythromycin, gentamicin, nalidixic acid, and oxytetracycline among bovine C. jejuni isolates using a commercial broth microdilution method yielded 9% of isolates resistant to at least one of the antimicrobials examined. No multiresistant isolates were found among the bovine C. jejuni strains. The study of the shedding patterns of Campylobacter spp. among three Finnish dairy cattle herds included the examination of fresh faecal samples and tank milk samples taken five times, as well as samples from drinking troughs taken once during the one-year study. The semiquantitative enrichment method detected C. jejuni in 169 of the 340 faecal samples, mostly at low levels. In addition, C. jejuni was present in one drinking trough sample. The prevalence between herds and sampling occasions varied widely. PFGE, using SmaI as restriction enzyme, identified only a few subtypes in each herd. In two 2 of the herds, two subtypes persisted throughout the sampling. Individual animals presented various shedding patterns during the study. Comparison of C. jejuni isolates from humans, chickens and cattle included the design of primers for four new genetic markers selected from completely sequenced C. jejuni genomes 81-176, RM1221 and NCTC 11168, and the PCR examination of domestic human isolates from southern Finland in 1996, 2002 and 2003 (n=309), chicken isolates from 2003, 2006 and 2007 (n=205), and bovine isolates from 2003 (n=131). The results revealed that bovine isolates differed significantly from human and chicken isolates. In particular, the - glutamyl transpeptidase gene was uncommon among bovine isolates. The PFGE genotyping of C. jejuni isolates, using SmaI and KpnI restriction enzymes, included a geographically representative collection of isolates from domestic sporadic human infections, chicken slaughter batches, and cattle faeces and carcasses during the seasonal peak of campylobacteriosis in the summer of 2003. The study determined that 55.4% of human isolates were indistinguishable from those of chickens and cattle. Temporal association between isolates from humans and chickens was possible in 31.4% of human infections. Approximately 19% of the human infections may have been associated with cattle. However, isolates from bovine carcasses and human cases represented different PFGE subtypes. In conclusion, this study suggests that Finnish cattle is a notable reservoir of C. jejuni, the most important Campylobacter sp. in human enteric infections. Although the concentration of these organisms in bovine faeces appeared to be low, excretion can be persistent. The genetic diversity and presence or absence of marker genes support previous suggestions of host-adapted C. jejuni strains, and may indicate variations in virulence between strains from different hosts. In addition to chickens, Finnish cattle appeared to be an important reservoir and possible source of C. jejuni in domestic sporadic human infections. However, sources of campylobacters may differ between rural and urban areas in Finland, and in general, the transmission of C. jejuni of bovine origin probably occurs via other routes than food.

Lower Gastrointestinal Microbiota in Health and Irritable Bowel Syndrome : Characterisation and Effect of Probiotic Intervention

The human gastrointestinal (GI) microbiota is a complex ecosystem that lives in symbiosis with its host. The growing awareness of the importance of the microbiota to the host as well as the development of culture-free laboratory techniques and computational methods has enormously expanded our knowledge of this microbial community. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional bowel disorder affecting up to a fifth of the Western population. To date, IBS diagnosis has been based on GI symptoms and the exclusion of organic diseases. The GI microbiota has been found to be altered in this syndrome and probiotics can alleviate the symptoms, although clear links between the symptoms and the microbiota have not been demonstrated. The aim of the present work was to characterise IBS related alterations in the intestinal microbiota, their relation to IBS symptoms and their responsiveness to probiotic theraphy. In this thesis research, the healthy human microbiota was characterised by cloning and sequencing 16S rRNA genes from a faecal microbial community DNA pool that was first profiled and fractionated according to its guanine and cytosine content (%G+C). The most noticeable finding was that the high G+C Gram-positive bacteria (the phylum Actinobacteria) were more abundant compared to a corresponding library constructed from the unfractionated DNA pool sample. Previous molecular analyses of the gut microbiota have also shown comparatively low amounts of high G+C bacteria. Furthermore, the %G+C profiling approach was applied to a sample constructed of faecal DNA from diarrhea-predominant IBS (IBS-D) subjects. The phylogenetic microbial community comparison performed for healthy and IBS-D sequence libraries revealed that the IBS-D sample was rich in representatives of the phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria whereas Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes were abundant in the healthy subjects. The family Lachnospiraceae within the Firmicutes was especially prevalent in the IBS-D sample. Moreover, associations of the GI microbiota with intestinal symptoms and the quality of life (QOL) were investigated, as well as the effect of probiotics on these factors. The microbial targets that were analysed with the quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) in this study were phylotypes (species definition according to 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity) previously associated with either health or IBS. With a set of samples, the presence or abundance of a phylotype that had 94% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to Ruminococcus torques (R. torques 94%) was shown to be associated with the severity of IBS symptoms. The qPCR analyses for selected phylotypes were also applied to samples from a six-month probiotic intervention with a mixture of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, L. rhamnosus Lc705, Propionibacterium freudenreichii ssp. shermanii JS and Bifidobacterium breve Bb99. The intervention had been previously reported to alleviate IBS symptoms, but no associations with the analysed microbiota representatives were shown. However, with the phylotype-specific assays applied here, the abundance of the R. torques 94% -phylotype was shown to be lowered in the probiotic-receiving group during the probiotic supplementation, whereas a Clostridium thermosuccinogenes 85% phylotype, previously associated with a healthy microbiota, was found to be increased compared to the placebo group. To conclude, with the combination of methods applied, higher abundance of Actinobacteria was detected in the healthy gut than found in previous studies, and significant phylum-level microbiota alterations could be shown in IBS-D. Thus, the results of this study provide a detailed overview of the human GI microbiota in healthy subjects and in subjects with IBS. Furthermore, the IBS symptoms were linked to a particular clostridial phylotype, and probiotic supplementation was demonstrated to alter the GI microbiota towards a healthier state with regard to this and an additional bacterial phylotype. For the first time, distinct phylotype-level alterations in the microbiota were linked to IBS symptoms and shown to respond to probiotic therapy.

HLA-B*57 and Gender Influence the Occurrence of Tuberculosis in HIV Infected People of South India

Background. Substantial evidence exists for HLA and other host genetic factors being determinants of susceptibility or resistance to infectious diseases. However, very little information is available on the role of host genetic factors in HIV-TB coinfection. Hence, a longitudinal study was undertaken to investigate HLA associations in a cohort of HIV seropositive individuals with and without TB in Bangalore, South India. Methods. A cohort of 238 HIV seropositive subjects were typed for HLA-A, B, and DR by PCR-SSP and followed up for 5 years or till manifestation of Tuberculosis. HLA data of 682 HIV Negative healthy renal donors was used as control. Results. The ratio of males and females in HIV cohort was comparable (50.4% and 49.6%). But the incidence of TB was markedly lower in females (12.6%,) than males (25.6%). Further, HLA-B* 57 frequency in HIV cohort was significantly higher among females without TB (21.6%, 19/88) than males (1.7%, 1/59); P = 0.0046; OR = 38. CD4 counts also were higher among females in this cohort. Conclusion. This study suggests that HIV positive women with HLA-B* 57 have less occurrence of TB as compared to males.

Herbal medicines used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus in Arunachal Himalaya, northeast, India

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Medicinal plants have played an important role in treating and preventing a variety of diseases throughout the world. Khampti tribal people living in the far-flung Lohit district of the Eastern Arunachal Himalaya, India still depend on medicinal plants and most of them have a general knowledge of medicinal plants which are used for treating a variety of ailments. This survey was undertaken in Lohit district in order to inventory the medicinal plants used in folk medicine to treat diabetes mellitus. Materials and methods: Field investigations were conducted in seventeen remote villages of Lohit district starting from April 2002 to May 2004 through interviews among 251 key informants who were selected randomly during our household survey. To elucidate community domains and determine differences in indigenous traditional knowledge of medicinal plants with anti-diabetic efficacy, we repeated our field survey starting from April 2008 to May 2010 with one hundred traditional healers locally called as ``Chau ya'' in Khampti of Lohit district. ``Chau ya'' traditional healers who know and use medicinal plants for treating diabetes mellitus were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Results: This study reports an ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh reputed for the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Forty-six plant species were identified in the study area to treat diabetes mellitus by the Khamptis ``Chau ya'' traditional healers. Comparative published literature survey analysis of this study with other ethnobotanical surveys of plants used traditionally in treating diabetes mellitus suggests that eleven plant species make claims of new reports on antidiabetic efficacy. These plant species are Begonia roxburghii, Calamus tenuis, Callicarpa arborea, Cuscuta reflexa, Dillenia indica, Diplazium esculentum, Lectuca gracilis, Millingtonia hortensis, Oxalis griffithii, Saccharum spontaneum, and Solanum viarum. Some of the plants reported in this study have an antidiabetic effect on rodent models but none have sufficient clinical evidence of effectiveness. Conclusions: The wide variety of medicinal plants that are used to treat diabetes mellitus in this area supports the importance of plants in the primary healthcare system of the rural people of Lohit district of Arunachal Pradesh. The finding of new plant uses in the current study reveals the importance of the documentation of such ethnobotanical knowledge. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Friction Welding of Thixocast A356 Aluminium Alloy

In this paper, a numerical model for friction welding of thixo-cast materials is developed, which includes a coupling of thermal effect and plastic deformation using a finite element method (FEM). As the constitutive equations for flow behavior of materials for a thixo-cast material are expected to be different from those of conventionally cast material of the same alloy, the necessary material data are experimentally determined from isothermal hot compression tests of the A356 thixocast alloy. The Johnson-Cook model has been employed to represent the flow behavior of the thixocast A356 alloy. The purpose of this FEM analysis is to provide better understanding of the friction welding process of thixo-cast material, and to obtain optimized process parameters before an actual welding is carried out.

Rheological characterization of semi-solid A356 aluminium alloy

Rheological behavior of semi-solid slurries forms the backbone of semi-solid processing of metallic alloys. In particular, the effects of several process and metallurgical parameters such as shear rate, shear time, temperature, rest time and size, distribution and morphology of the primary phase on the viscosity of the slurry needs in-depth characterization. In the present work, rheological behaviour of the semisolid aluminium alloy (A356) slurry is investigated by using a high temperature Searle type Rheometer using concentric cylinders. Three different types of experiment are carried out: isothermal test, continuous cooling test and steady state test. Continuous decrease in viscosity is observed with increasing shear rate at a fixed temperature (isothermal test). It is also found that the viscosity increases with decreasing temperature for a particular shear rate due to increasing solid fraction (continuous cooling test). Thixotropic nature of the slurry is confirmed from the hysteresis loops obtained during experimentation. Time dependence of slurry viscosity has been evaluated from the steady state tests. After a longer shearing time under isothermal conditions the starting dendritic structure of the said alloy is transformed into globular grains due to abrasion, agglomeration, welding and ripening.

Studies on rheocasting using cooling slope

In the present work, a cooling channel is employed to produce semi-solid A356 alloy slurry. To understand the transport process involved, a 3D non-isothermal, multiphase volume averaging model has been developed for simulation of the semi-solid slurry generation process in the cooling channel. For simulation purpose, the three phases considered are the parent melt, the nearly spherical grains and air as separated but highly coupled interpenetrating continua. The conservation equations of mass, momentum, energy and species have been solved for each phase and the thermal and mechanical interactions (drag force) among the phases have been considered using appropriate model. The superheated liquid alloy is poured at the top of the cooling slope/channel, where specified velocity inlet boundary condition is used in the model, and allowed to flow along gravity through the channel. The melt loses its superheat and becomes semisolid up to the end of cooling channel due to the evolving -Al grains with decreasing temperature. The air phase forms a definable air/liquid melt interface, i.e. free surface, due its low density. The results obtained from the present model includes volume fractions of three different phases considered, grain evolution, grain growth rate, size and distribution of solid grains. The effect of key process variables such as pouring temperature, slope angle of the cooling channel and cooling channel wall temperature on temperature distribution, velocity distribution, grain formation and volume fraction of different phases are also studied. The results obtained from the simulations are validated by microstructure study using SEM and quantitative image analysis of the semi-solid slurry microstructure obtained from the experimental set-up.

The knight of sugar industry: T. S. Venkatraman (1884-1963)

Tiruvadi Sambasiva Venkatraman (TSV) was a plant breeder. In response to a call from Pundit Madan Mohan Malaviya, he made it his mission to develop high-yielding varieties of sugarcane for manufacturing sugar and making it available as a sweetening agent and an energy source for the malnourished children of India. Using Saccharum officinarum, then under cultivation in India, as the female parent, he artificially fertilized it with pollen from S. barberi, which grew wild in Coimbatore. After 4-5 recurrent backcrossings of S. officinarum Chi wild Sorghum spontaneum with S. officinarum as the female parent, TSV selected the `rare' interspecies hybrid cane varieties that resembled sugarcane and had approximately 2.5 cm thick juicy stems containing 16-18% sucrose - nearly 35 times more than what occurred in parent stocks. The hybrid canes matured quickly, were resistant to waterlogging, drought, and to the red-rot disease caused by Glomerella tucumanensis (Sordariomycetes: Glomerellaceae), and to the sereh-virus disease. Most importantly, they were amenable for propagation using stem cuttings. In recognition of the development of high-yielding sugarcane varieties, TSV was conferred the titles Rao Bahadur, Rao Sahib, and Sir by the British Government, and Padma Bhushan by the Republic of India. In the next few decades, consequent to TSV's work, India turned into the second largest sugar producer in the world, after Brazil. The hybrid sugarcane varieties developed are the foundational stocks for new sugarcane x bamboo hybrids, and for possible resistance to Puccinia megalocephala (Pucciniomycetes: Pucciniaceae) and Ustilago scitaminea (Ustilaginomycetes: Ustilaginaceae) using molecular techniques.

Influence of a Counterion on the Ion Atmosphere of an Anion: A Molecular Dynamics Study of LiX and CsX (X = F-, Cl-, I-) in Methanol

We report molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to explore the influence of a counterion on the structure and dynamics of cationic and anionic solvation shells for various ions in methanol at 298 K. We show that the variation in ionic size of either the cation or the anion in an ion pair influences the solvation structure of the other ion as well as the diffusivity in an electrolyte solution of methanol. The extent of ionic association between the cation and its counteranion of different ionic sizes has been investigated by analyzing the radial distribution functions (RDFs) and the orientation of methanol molecules in the first solvation shell (FSS) of ions. It is shown that the methanol in the FSS of the anion as well the cation exhibit quite different radial and orientational structures as compared to methanol which lie in the FSS of either the anion or the cation but not both. We find that the coordination number (CN) of F-, Cr-, and I- ions decreases with increasing size of the anion which is contrary to the trend reported for the anions in H2O. The mean residence time (MRT) of methanol molecules in the FSS of ions has been calculated using the stable states picture (SSP) approach. It is seen that the ion-counterion interaction has a considerable influence on the MRT of methanol molecules in the FSS of ions. We also discuss the stability order of the ion-counterion using the potentials of mean force (PMFs) for ion pairs with ions of different sizes. The PMF plots reveal that the Li+-F- pair (small-small) is highly stable and the Li+-I- pair is least stable (small-large) in electrolyte solutions.

Evaluación comparativa de sistemas pastoriles naturales con y sin árboles, en condiciones del trópico húmedo, Nueva Guinea (RAAS)

Con el Objeto de caracterizar los sistemas pastoriles del municipio de Nueva Guinea, se realizó el presente trabajo. El cual se llevó a cabo en el Municipio de Nueva Guinea. El propósito general del estudio fue determinar los efectos (positivos y negativos), en las diferentes variables de los principales componentes (Pasto, Animal, Suelo y Árbol) en dos sistemas de explotación ganadero 1) con y 2) sin árboles, en sistemas extensivos, evaluados comparativamente, y así determinar el impacto que causa la ganadería y el mal uso de la tierra en el Municipio. Se tomaron 4 fincas, dos con árboles consideradas como sistemas silvopastoriles (SSP) y dos sin árboles consideradas como sistemas monocultivo (SMc). El estudio se ejecutó mediante una metodología en la que no se intervino sobre la actividad rutinaria de los productores, para la realización de la toma de datos, realizándose durante el proceso productivo y con la presencia del ganado en cada una de las fincas evaluadas, lo que facilitó la aceptación de cada uno de los productores al proporcionar la información requerida. En el componente pasto se determinó la producción de biomasa fresca y seca, referida como la disponibilidad, además se determinó la altura, cobertura, regeneración, compatibilidad, composición botánica de la pastura, en ambos sistemas pastoriles. En el componente animal se cuantifico la producción de leche y carne (peso vivo del animal). En el componente suelo sus características física y química, así como los factores que inciden sobre su degradación, y en el componente arbóreo las características diamétricas, altura, área basal y volumen de las especies existentes más. La producción de biomasa fresca y seca fue mejor en los sistemas de monocultivo que en los silvopastoriles, pero esta diferencia se revierte cuando se analiza esta variable en conjunto con las otras variables, sobre todo cobertura, donde al analizar los SSP tienen un 87% de producción en un 53% del área que presentaron los SMc. Por lo que los sistemas sin árboles son los que mejor comportamiento presentaron en el presente estudio. Si se analizan de manera conjunta los sistemas con árboles resultan ser más productivos. El componente pasto fue afectado por una serie de factores, tales como manejo, número de animales presente en el pastoreo, presencia de árboles y estado de la finca o la finalidad que realmente posea dicho sistema. La composición botánica de la pastura estaba conformada principalmente por pasto Retana, el cual por mal manejo, permitió la presencia de otras especies vegetales no forrajeras, las que en determinado momento sobrepasaban el 60% de cobertura. Las condiciones climáticas influyeron sobre el rendimiento de la pastura en la producción animal se determinó que estaba influenciada por el grupo racial, no determinándose la influencia de los sistemas en estudio en la productividad de los mismos. En las fincas donde había árboles (SSP), estos abarcaban áreas de hasta 70%, pero no tenían utilidad en la producción animal. Comúnmente los árboles estaban dispersos en los potreros, con áreas de copas que limitan el desarrollo de las pasturas (pasto ratana). Existía un manejo inadecuado de los suelos con pasto con y sin árboles, donde las altas precipitaciones, el sobre pastoreo y la tala intensiva de los bosques han dejado a los suelos expuestos a la erosión hídrica, induciendo que gran cantidad de rocas de origen básico afloraran a la superficie. Los sistemas silvopastoriles son una alternativa para las necesidades climáticas del hato ganadero en época de sequía

Diagnostico de hemoparasitos en equinos en la region del Pacifico de Nicaragua utilizando frotis sanguineo

Con el objetivo de conocer la presencia de agentes Etiológicos causantes de homoparásitosis en equinos se realizó un estudio en la faja del Pacifico de Nicaragua durante los meses de Abril a Noviembre del 2006, en los Departamentos de Carazo, Chinandega, Granada, León, Managua, Masaya y Rivas. Esta zona geográfica del país presenta una temperatura media anual en el rango de 30ºC a 32ºC y una humedad relativa de 76% ± 78 5%; precipitación pluvial media anual en el rango de 1483.9 a 1970.0 mm; la altitud osciló entre 82.97 msnm a 580.13 msnm. Se realizo un muestreo de 150 equinos mayores de dos años, correspondiente al 1.30 % de la población muestradas, en los cuales se tomo 3cc de sangre de la vena yugular, mediante una punción, a las muestras de sangre se les realizo dos frotis sanguíneos, y se obtuvo el hematocrito de la misma , tiñéndose los frotis sanguíneos por el método de Giemsa, posteriormente se observaron los frotis sanguíneos por cada equino muestrado, se utilizo microscopia óptica de inmersión para identificar lo hemoparásitos haciendo uso de los parámetros morfológicos de sus clasificación taxonómica. Se encontraron 58 equinos positivos de Babesia ssp correspondiente al 38.66 % de los 150 equinos muestrados y 92 casos de equinos negativos de Babesia ssp correspondiente al 61.33 % de los 150 equinos muestrados. Además se encontró prevalencia de Babesia de 5.92% en toda la faja del pacifico, encontrando para cada uno de los Departamentos muestrados son: a Managua con un 7.14 %, Masaya 6.43%, Granada 5.71%, Rivas 7.14%, Carazo 3,57%, León 3,57%, Chinandega 7,86% de Babesia ssp.

Estabilidad aerobica del ensilaje de marango con diferentes proporciones de Taiwan, Caña de Azucar y Melaza

El experimento se realizó en las instalaciones de la facultad de Ciencia Animal ubicada en la finca "Santa Rosa" de la Universidad Nacional Agraria, en la comunidad de Sabana Grande, Managua, Nicaragua, localizada geográficamente a los 12 o 08’ 15’’latitud norte y 86 o 09’ 36’ longitud oeste. La temperatura promedio anual es de 28 oC y una precipitación promedio anual de 1,200 mm y aproximadamente una altura de 56 msnm. El objetivo del experimento fue generar conocimientos sobre los procesos de degradación aeróbica en ensilajes de marango (Moringa oleífera)con diferentes proporciones de caña de azúcar ( Saccharum officinarum), pasto Taiwán (Penisetum purpureum), y Melaza. Se utilizaron 14 tratamientos con 3 repeticiones cada uno distribuidos en Diseño Completamente al Azar; donde se evaluó Marango en proporciones de 31.66, 33.00, 33.33, 63.33, 66.00, 66.66, 95.00 y 99.00%. Taiwán en las mismas proporciones, Caña de azúcar en proporciones de 33.33, 66.33 y 100%, y Melaza en proporción de 1 y 5% cuando la caña no estaba presente. Las variables evaluadas fueron Materia Seca (MS), Proteina Cruda (PC), Dióxido de Carbono (CO2), Tiempo al Deterioro (TAD) y pH. Se realizó Análisis de Varianza y comparaciones de medias con la Prueba de Tukey al 5% cuando se encontró diferencia s significativas entre tratamientos, paras eso se uso SAS versión 9.1. Los resultados de los análisis de varianza ( P<0,05)mostraron que el tratamiento con menor perdida de M S y PB fue el T1 (T99M1) con 4.08, menor pH el T10 (M33 C66) con 4.13, mayor TAD fue el T1 (T99M1) con 14.75 días y producción de CO2 fuel T7 (M95M5) con 43.06. En conclusión los tratamientos con diferentes proporciones de marango también demostra ron diferencias significativas con respectos a la pérdida de Proteina Cruda (PC) siend o estos viables para ser utilizados por productores como suplementos proteicos, aunque demostraron no ser estables ya en condiciones aérobicas.

Rendimiento agroindustrial de la variedad L 68-40 (Sacharum SP) en respuesta a las aplicaciones de N, P y K, cultivada en un suelo rojo en caña planta

El presente estudio se realizó en el ingenio AGROINSA, de junio de 1994 a febrero de 1995. Se evaluó el rendimiento agro­ industrial en caña de azúcar <Saccharum sp.). En respuesta a aplicaciones de N, P y K, cultivada en un suelo rojo . Se plantó la variedad L 68-40. El diseño experimental utilizado fue el de Bloques Completamente Azarizado (BCA), las variables analizadas fueron brotación, ahijamiento, diámetro, población, altura, peso promedio de tallos, rendimiento agrícola, rendimiento industrial y rendimiento agro-industrial. Los datos que se obtuvieron se sometieron al análisis de varianza y de regresión, además se realizó la separación de medias según Duncan a un 5 % de margen de error. En todas las variables evaluadas se observó diferencia significativa a excepción del diámetro y el rendimiento industrial, siendo el nitrógeno el elemento que presentó mayor influencia positiva, no encontrándose ningún efecto para el fósforo y el potasio. Las mejores dosis de nitrógeno para producir el 90 por ciento del rendimiento máximo agrícola y agro-industrial, obtenida a través del modelo matemático cuadrático fueron 58 y 55 kg/ha de N, respectivamente.

Análisis de riesgos de plagas de problemas fitosanitarios en la importación a Nicaragua de cebolla (Allium cepa L.) para consumo, procedente de Estados Unidos

El presente estudio de Análisis de Riesgos de Plagas fue realizado en Managua. durante los meses de Noviembre-98 a Noviembre-99 y se basó en una recopilación bibliográfica de plagas con el objeto de proporcionar elementos técnicos a Cuarentena Vegetal. para la toma de decisiones y la aplicación de medidas fitosanitarias en la importación a Nicaragua de bulbos de cebolla para consumo procedentes de Estados Unidos. La información fue obtenida de Bases de datos Internacionales de Plagas. Centros de Documentación. Organismos Internacionales. consulta a especialistas en Fitoprotección listados de plagas presentes en los cultivos de Nicaragua y búsquedas en Internet. Se obtuvo un listado de 16 plagas asociadas al cultivo de cebolla presentes en Estados Unidos (Ver listado de plagas en Anexos 1) y fueron analizadas las plagas cuarentenarias para Nicaragua. Después de revisar la información obtenida de cada una de las plagas se descartaron del análisis aquellas plagas que no presentaban posibilidades de sobrevivir a las condiciones ambientales del país debido a su biología y comportamiento y porque no se reportaban causando daños en Estados Unidos al cultivo de cebolla (Allium cepa L.). A las plagas que si se les considero como posibles plagas cuarentenarias para Nicaragua y que pueden causar grandes daños al país si llegaran a introducirse son: Dvtilenchus dipsaci. Urocystis cepulae, Botryotinia squamosa, Puccinia allii, Onoin yellow dwarf potivirus y Saccharum .spontaneum. Para desarrollar este estudio se utilizó la Norma Centroamericana para Análisis de Riesgo de Plagas del OIRSA; A las plagas seleccionadas se les evaluó el riesgo de introducción, establecimiento y dispersión; además se determinaron las medidas de manejo del Riesgo de Plagas (Medidas Fitosanitarias). De todas las plagas analizadas el nematodo Ditylenchus dipsaci es la especie que presento el mayor riesgo fitosanitario. Por lo tanto las medidas para evitar su introducción fueron entre otras: Verificación en origen para constatar la ausencia de la plaga y reconocimiento de zonas libres. Como una medida preventiva al ingresar el producto (bulbo de cebolla) aplicar un tratamiento con Bromuro de Metilo en dosis de 32 gr/m3 durante dos horas de exposición y a temperatura de 32-35ºc (Alas, 1990). El bulbo de cebolla para consumo que se importa de Estados Unidos debe de venir amparado con un Certificado Fitosanitario Internacional que lo emite el país exportador. Si se encuentran evidencias de que el nematodo viene en el cargamento proceder a aplicar las medidas fitosanitarias indicadas como es la destrucción del cargamento o regresar el cargamento al país de origen para evitar la introducción de una nueva plaga al país.

Período crítico de protección contra plagas del follaje y frutos del cultivo de la sandia (Citrullus vulgaris sugar baby) de exportación

Se hizo un experimento para determinar el efecto de periodos de protección de plagas del follajes y frutos sobre el rendimiento y la ganancia neta en el cultivo de sandía para exportación. el experimento fue ubicado entre Nagarote y la paz centro, realizándose en los meses de febrero a abril de 1988, bajo riego. Para la protección del cultivo de las plagas se utilizó el insecticida prfenofos más riopcord (tambo 880 ecu). La dinámica poblacional mostró que las plagas que provocaron daños directo a los frutos como larvas de spodoptera spp. (lepidóptera: noctuidae) y heliothis ssp. (Lepidóptera: noctuidae), se acentuaron desde los 40 días después de la emergencia (DDE) de las plantas hasta el final de la cosecha. Las plagas que afectaron principalmente los follajes como lyriomiza spp. (Díptera: agromizidae) y aphis spp. Homóptera: aphididae) fueron más constante pero que a partir de los 38 DDE aumentaron sus poblaciones y provocaron un daño severo. El tratamiento que fue protegido desde la emergencia de la planta hasta la cosecha ocupo el primer lugar en fruto/mz, pero sin diferencias significativas entre los periodo de protección a excepción del testigo (sin protección). Así también se colocó en el primer lugar en el número de cajas con frutos exportables por su tamaño/mz, pero sin diferencia significativas con los periodos protegidos desde los 19 y 43 DDE hasta la cosecha. El periodo protegido en ninguna fase de cultivo y el periodo protegido desde la emergencia hasta los 43 DDE ocuparon el primer lugar en fruto no exportable por su tamaño demasiado pequeño. El tratamiento protegido desde los 19 DDE hasta la cosecha presento la mayor ganancia neta. Se presentó deformación de frutos entre 70 y80 %, no presentándose efecto de periodo de protección.