Effect of silicon and acibenzolar-s-methyl on colored cotton plants infested or not with Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera, Aphididae)

Effect of silicon and acibenzolar-s-methyl on colored cotton plants infested or not with Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera, Aphididae). The aphid Aphis gossypii is an insect pest that causes damage mainly at the beginning of the cotton plant development. The effect of resistance inductors silicon and acibenzolar-s-methyl (ASM) on the development of colored cotton plants were researched in the presence and absence of A. gossypii. Three colored cotton cultivars were sown in pots and individually infested with 25 apterous aphids, 13 days after the application of the inductors. Fifteen days after plant emergence, the silicon was applied at a dosage equivalent to 3 t/ha and acibenzolar-s-methyl in 0.2% solution of the product BION 500®. After 21 days of infestation the following parameters were evaluated: plant height, stem diameter, dry matter of aerial part and root, and total number of aphids replaced. It was verified that the plant height was reduced in the presence of aphids and all variables were negatively affected by the application of ASM. However, silicon did not affect plant development.

Host plants of Cerambycidae and Vesperidae (Coleoptera, Chrysomeloidea) from South America

Host plants of Cerambycidae and Vesperidae (Coleoptera, Chrysomeloidea) from South America. This paper offers a contribution to the knowledge on host plants of Cerambycidae and Vesperidae (Coleoptera, Chrysomeloidea) from South America. A total of 211 species of longhorn beetles belonging to 111 genera, 49 tribes, five subfamilies and two families are presented with records of host plants. Data on 259 species of host plants distributed among 188 genera and 69 families are listed with the beetle species.

Expression of the proto-oncogene c-fos in three-dimensional fetal brain cell cultures and the lack of correlation with maturation-inducing stimuli.

Previous work has shown that aggregating fetal brain cell cultures are able to attain a highly differentiated state, and that their development is greatly enhanced by growth and/or differentiation factors such as epidermal growth factor (EGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), and the protein kinase C-activating tumor promoter mezerein. The present study shows that in these 3-dimensional cultures the peptide growth factors EGF and bFGF as well as mezerein are able to induce the expression of the proto-oncogene c-fos. This induction was rapid and transient, in good agreement with observations reported from a wide variety of cell types in vitro. The maximal levels of c-fos mRNA found after stimulation were low in immature cultures and increased greatly as maturation progressed. Of the three factors tested, mezerein was the most potent inducer of c-fos. In contrast to the peptide growth factors EGF and bFGF which were found to induce c-fos only in glial cells, mezerein was stimulatory in glial cells as well as in neurons. A similar cell type specificity has been observed previously for the maturation-enhancing response in immature aggregate cultures. However, in the present study no correlation was found between the degree of c-fos induction and the extent of the maturation-enhancing stimulation. Immature cultures known to be most sensitive and responsive to these maturation-enhancing agents required relatively high doses of peptide growth factors for the induction of c-fos, and the maximal levels of c-fos mRNA elicited were much lower than those in differentiated cultures which did not show any long-term response to these stimuli.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Uranium-enrichment in soils and plants in the vicinity of a pitchblende vein at La Creusaz-Les Marecottes (W of Martigny, Valais, Switzerland)

In the NE part of the Aiguilles Rouges Massif near Martigny, at the eastern contact of the Variscan Vallorcine granite to adjacent gneisses, a series of pitchblende (UO2)-veins occur. This paper determines the level of enrichment and mobility of uranium in soils situated in the vicinity of such a UO2-vein 7 km west of Martigny. Within an area of 50 x 100 m, situated on a relatively steep slope and characterized by a strong gramma-ray anomaly, six soil profiles including their plant cover and a reference soil profile outside the influence of the UO2-vein have been examined. The soil shows pH-values between 4 and 5 and is colluvial. The applied analytical methods for the metal contents include extraction methods, common for soil studies, and bulk analysis performed with X-ray fluorescence and ICP-MS. Uranium contents found in the uppermost 20 cm of the soil profiles vary from 2,500 ppm close to the vein to 15 ppm at the lowermost point of the study area. The reference soil has around 3 ppm uranium. At greater depth (20 to 40 cm) the U-content decreases to about half of the surface values, indicating a vertical transport of uranium within the soil profile. No systematic dependance of uranium-contents to grain size (amount of clay) nor to the amount of organic matter has been found. However, the good correlation between uranium and free iron oxide concentration suggests adsorption of uranium on iron oxy-hydroxides. The ashes of grass and mosses contain up to 90 ppm U, the blueberry and redwood only up to 3 ppm. Our observations suggest that at the surface the uranium is transported by downhill creep (solifluxion) of uranium-rich rock fragments. Liberated by oxidation of the uppermost fragments in a given soil column, the uranium migrates vertically until the conditions are favourable to adsorption onto Fe-oxy-hydroxides. However, as high U-contents of local surface water show, this adsorption does not lead to a significant retention of the uranium.

The aquatic habit and host plants of Paracles klagesi (Rothschild) (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) in Brazil

The aquatic habit and host plants of Paracles klagesi (Rothschild) (Lepidoptera, Erebidae, Arctiinae) in Brazil. The aquatic caterpillar Paracles klagesi (Rothschild, 1910) was collected from the headwaters of a stream in an ecotone between Cerrado and Babaçu forest in northeastern Brazil. The single caterpillar found was observed feeding on the macrophyte Tonina fluviatilis Aubl. (Eriocaulaceae) and other aquatic plants of the family Nymphaeaceae present in the area, but also accepted as food Elodea canadensis Michx. (Hydrocharitaceae) and Cabomba sp. (Cabombaceae) under laboratory conditions.

The brown lacewings (Neuroptera, Hemerobiidae) of northwestern Turkey with new records, their spatio-temporal distribution and harbouring plants

The brown lacewings (Neuroptera, Hemerobiidae) of northwestern Turkey with new records, their spatio-temporal distribution and harbouring plants. The occurrence and spatio-temporal distribution of brown lacewing species (Neuroptera, Hemerobiidae) in Bursa province, northwestern Turkey, was investigated during 1999-2011. A total of 852 brown lacewing specimens of 20 species, including the genera of Hemerobius, Megalomus, Micromus, Sympherobius, and Wesmaelius were collected. Of these, 12 species were new records for northwestern Turkey while Sympherobius klapaleki is a new record for the Neuroptera fauna of Turkey. The most widespread species were Hemerobius handschini and Sympherobius pygmaeus with percent dominance values of 42.00 and 15.96%, respectively. Wesmaelius subnebulosus was the earliest emerging hemerobiid species and had the longest flight activity lasting from March to October. The species of southern origin characterized by the Mediterranean elements constituted 55% of the hemerobiid fauna and prevailed over the species of northern origin that belong to the Siberian centres. The total number of hemerobiid species reached a peak in July with captures of 15 species per month. There were 11, 13, 18 and 5 hemerobiid species occurring at altitudes between 1-500, 501-1000, 1001-1500 and 1500-2000 m, respectively. In addition, plant species harbouring hemerobiids are given for each species, and their association with the hemerobiid fauna is discussed.

Interaction between Tephritidae (Insecta, Diptera) and plants of the family Asteraceae: new host and distribution records for the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Twenty species of Tephritidae (Diptera) are recorded in association with capitula of plants in the family Asteraceae. The Tephritidae genus Tetreuarestais registered for Rio Grande do Sul for the first time. Five species of Tephritidae are newly recorded for Rio Grande do Sul, and new hosts are recorded for the following fly species: Dioxyna chilensis (Macquart), Plaumannimyia dolores (Hering), Plaumannimyia imitatrix (Hering), Plaumannimyia miseta(Hering), Plaumannimyia pallensHering, Tomoplagia incompleta (Williston), Tomoplagia matzenbacheriPrado, Norrbom & Lewinsohn, Tomoplagia reimoseriHendel, Xanthaciura biocellata(Thomson) and Xanthaciura chrysura(Thomson).

Manganese-induced integrin affinity maturation promotes recruitment of alpha V beta 3 integrin to focal adhesions in endothelial cells: evidence for a role of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and Src.

Integrin activity is controlled by changes in affinity (i.e. ligand binding) and avidity (i.e. receptor clustering). Little is known, however, about the effect of affinity maturation on integrin avidity and on the associated signaling pathways. To study the effect of affinity maturation on integrin avidity, we stimulated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) with MnCl(2) to increase integrin affinity and monitored clustering of beta 1 and beta 3 integrins. In unstimulated HUVEC, beta 1 integrins were present in fibrillar adhesions, while alpha V beta 3 was detected in peripheral focal adhesions. Clustered beta 1 and beta 3 integrins expressed high affinity/ligand-induced binding site (LIBS) epitopes. MnCl(2)-stimulation promoted focal adhesion and actin stress fiber formation at the basal surface of the cells, and strongly enhanced mAb LM609 staining and expression of beta 3 high affinity/LIBS epitopes at focal adhesions. MnCl(2)-induced alpha V beta 3 clustering was blocked by a soluble RGD peptide, by wortmannin and LY294002, two pharmacological inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-K), and by over-expressing a dominant negative PI 3-K mutant protein. Conversely, over-expression of active PI 3-K and pharmacological inhibiton of Src with PP2 and CGP77675, enhanced basal and manganese-induced alpha V beta 3 clustering. Transient increased phosphorylation of protein kinase B/Akt, a direct target of PI 3K, occurred upon manganese stimulation. MnCl(2) did not alter beta 1 integrin distribution or beta1 high-affinity/LIBS epitope expression. Based on these results, we conclude that MnCl(2)-induced alpha V beta 3 integrin affinity maturation stimulates focal adhesion and actin stress fiber formation, and promotes recruitment of high affinity alpha V beta 3 to focal adhesions. Affinity-modulated alpha V beta 3 clustering requires PI3-K signaling and is negatively regulate by Src.

Improved statistical evaluation of group differences in connectomes by screening-filtering strategy with application to study maturation of brain connections between childhood and adolescence.

Detecting local differences between groups of connectomes is a great challenge in neuroimaging, because the large number of tests that have to be performed and the impact on multiplicity correction. Any available information should be exploited to increase the power of detecting true between-group effects. We present an adaptive strategy that exploits the data structure and the prior information concerning positive dependence between nodes and connections, without relying on strong assumptions. As a first step, we decompose the brain network, i.e., the connectome, into subnetworks and we apply a screening at the subnetwork level. The subnetworks are defined either according to prior knowledge or by applying a data driven algorithm. Given the results of the screening step, a filtering is performed to seek real differences at the node/connection level. The proposed strategy could be used to strongly control either the family-wise error rate or the false discovery rate. We show by means of different simulations the benefit of the proposed strategy, and we present a real application of comparing connectomes of preschool children and adolescents.

Host plants of Chrysodeixis includens (Walker) (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae, Plusiinae)

ABSTRACT This work has the objective to catalogue the information of Chrysodeixis includens (Walker, [1858]) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae: Plusiinae) host plants. The list of plants comprehends new reports of host plants in Brazil and information from literature review around the world. It is listed 174 plants which are from 39 botanic families. The higher number of host plants of C. includens are in Asteraceae (29), Solanaceae (21), Fabaceae (18) and Lamiaceae (12).

Extraction of soil water by plants: development and validation of a model

A quantitative model of water movement within the immediate vicinity of an individual root is developed and results of an experiment to validate the model are presented. The model is based on the assumption that the amount of water transpired by a plant in a certain period is replaced by an equal volume entering its root system during the same time. The model is based on the Darcy-Buckingham equation to calculate the soil water matric potential at any distance from a plant root as a function of parameters related to crop, soil and atmospheric conditions. The model output is compared against measurements of soil water depletion by rice roots monitored using γ-beam attenuation in a greenhouse of the Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz"/Universidade de São Paulo(ESALQ/USP) in Piracicaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil, in 1993. The experimental results are in agreement with the output from the model. Model simulations show that a single plant root is able to withdraw water from more than 0.1 m away within a few days. We therefore can assume that root distribution is a less important factor for soil water extraction efficiency.

Propofol anesthesia impairs the maturation and survival of adult-born hippocampal neurons.

BACKGROUND: Adult neurogenesis occurs in the hippocampus of most mammals, including humans, and plays an important role in hippocampal-dependent learning. This process is highly regulated by neuronal activity and might therefore be vulnerable to anesthesia. In this article, the authors investigated this possibility by evaluating the impact of propofol anesthesia on mouse hippocampal neurons generated during adulthood, at two functionally distinct maturational stages of their development. METHODS: Adult-born hippocampal neurons were identified using the cell proliferation marker bromodeoxyuridine or a retroviral vector expressing the green fluorescent protein in dividing cells and their progenies. Eleven or 17 days after the labeling procedure, animals (n = 3-5 animals per group) underwent a 6-h-long propofol anesthesia. Twenty-one days after labeling, the authors analyzed the survival, differentiation, and morphologic maturation of adult-born neurons using confocal microscopy. RESULTS: Propofol impaired the survival and maturation of adult-born neurons in an age-dependent manner. Anesthesia induced a significant decrease in the survival of neurons that were 17 days old at the time of anesthesia, but not of neurons that were 11 days old. Similarly, propofol anesthesia significantly reduced the dendritic maturation of neurons generated 17 days before anesthesia, without interfering with the maturation of neurons generated 11 days before anesthesia. CONCLUSIONS: These results reveal that propofol impairs the survival and maturation of adult-born hippocampal neurons in a developmental stage-dependent manner in mice.

Growth and metabolic activity of the extramatrical mycelium of endomycorrhizal maize plants

The objective of this experiment was to quantify the extramatrical mycelium of the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungus Glomus etunicatum (Becker & Gerdemann) grown on maize (Zea mays L. var. Piranão) provided with various levels of phosphate fertilizer and harvested at 30, 60 and 90 days after planting (DAP). Total extramatrical mycelium (TEM) was extracted from soil using a modified membrane filtration method, followed by quantification using a grid intersection technique. Active extramatrical mycelium (AEM) proportion was determined using an enzymatic method which measured dehydrogenase activity by following iodonitrotetrazolium reduction. At low levels of added P, there was relatively less TEM than at high levels of added P, but the AEM proportion at low soil P availability was significantly greater than at high soil P.

Broad-scale adaptive genetic variation in alpine plants is driven by temperature and precipitation.

Identifying adaptive genetic variation is a challenging task, in particular in non-model species for which genomic information is still limited or absent. Here, we studied distribution patterns of amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) in response to environmental variation, in 13 alpine plant species consistently sampled across the entire European Alps. Multiple linear regressions were performed between AFLP allele frequencies per site as dependent variables and two categories of independent variables, namely Moran's eigenvector map MEM variables (to account for spatial and unaccounted environmental variation, and historical demographic processes) and environmental variables. These associations allowed the identification of 153 loci of ecological relevance. Univariate regressions between allele frequency and each environmental factor further showed that loci of ecological relevance were mainly correlated with MEM variables. We found that precipitation and temperature were the best environmental predictors, whereas topographic factors were rarely involved in environmental associations. Climatic factors, subject to rapid variation as a result of the current global warming, are known to strongly influence the fate of alpine plants. Our study shows, for the first time for a large number of species, that the same environmental variables are drivers of plant adaptation at the scale of a whole biome, here the European Alps.

Iowa Biodiesel and Ethanol Processing Plants, July 1, 2008

Iowa Grain Facilities Map