Heterotrophic Bacteria Associated with Healthy and Moribund Larvae of Penaeus monodon H.Milne Edwards

Heterotrophic bacterial flora of Pmonadon from an apparently healthy hatchery system as well as a pool with heavy mortality were isolated and studied. In the healthy systems comparatively higher generic diversity with Pseudomonas, Acinetobacter, Bacillus, Micrococcus, members of the family Enterobacteriaceae and coryneform group in the diminishing order of dominance was recorded. Meanwhile from the moribund larvae and rearing water Aeromonas and Pseudomonas could be isolated in almost equal proportions. Strikingly, Aeromonas could not be isolated from the apparently healthy larval rearing system and its exclusive occurrence in the sick culture system in comparatively higher percentage suggested its possible role in the mortality. They were found to be highly halophilic exhibiting growth at 10% NaCl. On testing their sensitivity to twenty antibiotics, four of them (Streptomycin, Gentamycin, Methamine mandelate and Cloramphenicol) were found to be effective on all the isolates of Aeromonas and Pseudomonas suggesting their possible application in the hatchery system in times of emergency. While doing so, Streptomycin would do comparatively better than the others as the minimum inhibitory dose required was comparatively lower (200ppm) within a period of 24 hours

Trypsin Inhibitor from Edible Mushroom Pleurotus floridanus Active against Proteases of Microbial Origin

Protease inhibitors can be versatile tools mainly in the fields of medicine, agriculture and food preservative applications. Fungi have been recognized as sources of protease inhibitors, although there are only few such reports on mushrooms. This work reports the purification and characterization of a trypsin inhibitor from the fruiting body of edible mushroom Pleurotus floridanus (PfTI) and its effect on the activity of microbial proteases. The protease inhibitor was purified up to 35-fold by DEAE-Sepharose ion exchange column, trypsin-Sepharose column and Sephadex G100 column. The isoelectric point of the inhibitor was 4.4, and its molecular mass was calculated as 37 kDa by SDS-PAGE and 38.3 kDa by MALDI-TOF. Inhibitory activity confirmation was by dot-blot analysis and zymographic activity staining. The specificity of the inhibitor toward trypsin was with Ki of 1.043×10−10 M. The inhibitor was thermostable up to 90 °C with maximal stability at 30 °C, active over a pH range of 4–10 against proteases from Aspergillus oryzae, Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus sp. and Bacillus amyloliquefaciens. Results indicate the possibility of utilization of protease inhibitor from P. floridanus against serine proteases

Distribution, extracellular virulence factors and antibiogram of motile aeromonads in fresh water ornamental fishes and immune response of Cyprinus carpio against Aeromonas hydrophila infection

The thesis deals with the prevalence and distribution of motile aeromonads in selected ornamental fishes. The presence of motile aeromonads in ornamental fishes and associated carriage water is well documented. Though aeromonads are a part of autochthonous flora of natural waters, disease outbreak occurs as a result of environmental stress on the cultured species and virulence of the pathogens. While ornamental aquaculture in many parts of the world is highly organized and practiced scientifically, it is highly unorganized in India. The culture ponds/tanks are often maintained in very poor manner and the fishes are subjected to high degree of stress during transportation from the production facility to retail vendors. The situation is no better at retail outlets, where fishes are maintained in crowded condition without proper aeration or food. All these could result in high prevalence of diseases caused by motile aeromonads. No systematic study has been carried out to understand the prevalence of motile aeromonads in ornamental fishes and carriage water . It also gives an account of the production of extracellular virulence factors and the antibiogram of the different species of motile aeromonads isolated. The growth characteristics and virulence potential of a representative strain of Aeromonas hydrophila is also studied. The nucleotide sequencing of the strain was carried out and sequences deposited in Genbank. Survival and immune response of Cyprinus carpio under different stress conditions and on probiotic treatment with Bacillus NL110, when challenged with A. hydrophila is also dealt within this thesis.

Wirkung von Ernterückständen transgener Pflanzen auf die mikrobielle C- und N-Transformation in landwirtschaftlich genutzten Böden am Beispiel von Bt-Mais

In der vorliegenden Arbeit ging es um die Erarbeitung, Anwendung und Beurteilung von quantitativen Analysenverfahren / Methoden für ein Monitoring von durch Bt-Mais verursachbaren Umwelteffekten im Boden. Die Ausgangsthese besagte, dass sich transgene Maisstreu beim mikrobiellen Abbau anders verhält als konventionelle. Bezugnehmend auf die These wurden zwei Freilandversuche (Freilandmikrokosmenmethode nach Raubuch 1997 über 2 Jahre, Quantifizierung des Maisstreuabbaus mit Hilfe kleiner Bodensäulen über 1 Jahr) und zwei Inkubationsversuche im Labor (INK bei drei verschiedenen Temperaturen über 49 Tage und INK mit verschiedenen landwirtschaftlich genutzten Böden über 49 Tage mit jeweils kontinuierlicher Respirationsratenermittlung nach Isermeyer 1952) sowie Inhaltsstoffbestimmungen der Maisstreu durchgeführt. Für alle Untersuchungen wurde Streu der vier Maissorten Novelis (transgen, Monsanto 810), Nobilis (Isolinie von Novelis), Valmont (transgen, Bt 176, Fa. Syngenta) und Prelude (Isolinie von Valmont) eingesetzt. Nach Beendigung der Laborversuche sowie des Freilandversuches nach der Freilandmikrokosmenmethode wurden mikrobielle Messgrößen wie Adenylategehalt, Ergosterolgehalt, Cmik- und Nmik-Gehalt am Boden-Streu-Gemisch bestimmt. Der Einsatz der Isotopentechnik (Bestimmung von 13C/12C an gemahlenem Boden-Streu-Gemisch bzw. gefriergetrocknetem K2SO4 als Extrakt aus dem Boden-Streu-Gemisch) ermöglichte eine genaue Quantifizierung der abgebauten Maisstreu und brachte dadurch Aufschluss über das Abbauverhalten verschiedener Maissorten. Bezüglich der Ermittlung der mikrobiellen Messgrößen ergab sich für die transgene Sorte Novelis* stets eine durchschnittlich geringere pilzliche Biomasse. Langfristig ergaben sich bei der Kohlenstoff- und Stickstoffdynamik keine Trends hinsichtlich transgener bzw. konventioneller Maisstreu. Sowohl im Freilandversuch nach der Mikrokosmenmethode als auch in den Inkubationsversuchen trat das Phänomen der kurzzeitigen Respirationsratenerhöhung der Mikroorganismen nach Zugabe der transgenen Maissorten auf, welches nicht bei Zugabe der konventionellen Maisstreu auszumachen war. ______________________________

Educar, ahir i avui. 'Educar, ayer y hoy'.

Resumen tomado de la publicación

El hacerse hombre en la guerra: La construccion de las masculinidades en el caso de Bahía Portete

Se presenta un mapa que describe las caracteristicas de las masculinidades de los indigenas Wayuu de Bahía Portete. Con la intencion de ver el despliegue de los roles e identidades de género de los hombres Wayuu, antes durante y después de la masacre de Bahía Portete. Acercándose a la manera en la cual las masculinidades cambian o se conservan con dicha masacre, el desplazamiento de sus habitantes y la readaptacion a nuevos contextos como la cuidad de Maracaibo en Venezuela, en un escenario de conflicto cultural.

Information systems for you. Teacher support pack.

Este recurso para el profesor ayuda en la preparación de clases, ofrece ideas para lecciones y actividades basadas en el libro del alumno, así como, material diseñado para maximizar la utilidad del libro del alumno y que, además, puede ser fotocopiado. Cumple con los requisitos exigidos en la materia de Tecnologías de la Información y Comunicación (TIC) para la preparación del General Certificate Secondary Education (GCSE) en el Reino Unido.

Diversitat de Bacteris Verds del Sofre en llacunes salines i osmoadaptació amb N(epsilon)-acetil-ß-lisina

L'objectiu principal del treball de recerca és aprofundir en el coneixement del grup de Bacteris Verds del Sofre (BVS) des del punt de vista de la relació amb la salinitat. L'estudi s'ha restringit als representants halotolerants o halòfils del grup amb tres línies de treball que corresponen a diferents àmbits de coneixement, com són la descripció del biòtop i la riquesa específica de les comunitats de BVS en els ambients naturals, l'avaluació de la significació taxonòmica de la capacitat de desenvolupament en ambients salins en el marc de discussió de la taxonomia-filogenètica del grup, i l'anàlisi de les estratègies fisiològiques desenvolupades per a l'osmoadaptació en medi salí.

Aislamiento, identificación y conservación de cultivos de bacterias lácticas antagonistas de microbiota contaminante de sangre de matadero

La sangre obtenida en el matadero es un producto altamente contaminado que requiere un procesamiento inmediato si se pretende utilizarla como insumo alimentario en la fabricación de productos destinados al consumo humano. Si bien es cierto que los sistemas de higienización podrían ser muy eficientes desde el punto de vista de calidad microbiológica, su instalación en la línea de sacrificio comportaría muchas dificultades desde el punto de vista técnico y en algún caso sería muy costoso. La bioconservación podría ser una alternativa para mejorar la calidad microbiológica de la sangre, alargar su vida útil y reducir las posibilidades de procesamiento inmediato. El presente estudio nos permitiría formular la posibilidad de aplicar la bioconservación en sangre de cerdo procedente de matadero industrial, utilizando bacterias ácido lácticas (BAL) como cultivo bioprotector, para lo cual se aislaron cepas de BAL autóctonas y se confeccionaron dos colecciones una de BAL mesófilas y otra de psicrótrofas. Se evaluó el potencial antagonista de la colección de BAL mesófilas y psicrótrofas a 30ºC y a 15ºC respectivamente frente a bacterias contaminantes habituales de este subproducto. Las BAL que demostraron antagonismo en placa (7,1% a 30ºC y 11% a 15ºC) fueron seleccionadas para evaluar el potencial antagonista en sangre, donde el efecto inhibitorio se vio favorecido por la adición de un 2% glucosa. S.aureus y P. fluorescens fueron los indicadores más inhibidos por las cepas mesófilas, en algunos casos con reducciones superiores a 7 unidades logarítmicas. En condiciones psicrótrofas la bacteria más sensible a la presencia de BAL fue Bacillus sp., donde 8 de las 11 BAL ensayadas permitieron reducciones superiores a 4 logs y 1cepa incluso superiores a 7 logs; se obtuvieron reducciones máximas de 3 logs de E.coli y Pseudomonas fue inhibida por todas las BAL ensayadas, en algún caso con reducciones superiores a 5 logs. Las 5 que cepas que presentaron el espectro de inhibición más amplio en condiciones mesófilas y 7 en condiciones psicrótrofas frente a los microorganismos indicadores contaminantes de sangre de matadero se identificaron mediante técnicas moleculares por comparación de la secuencias correspondientes al gen que codifica la síntesis de 16S ARNr (16S ADNr) con las secuencias publicadas en las bases de datos. De las 7 cepas antagonistas en condiciones psicrótrofas 5 se identificaron como Lactococcus garvieae y 2 como Enterococcus malodoratus/gilvius raffinosus. Todas las BAL con potencial antagonista en condiciones mesófilas pertenecían al género Lactobacillus, 3 de elllas se identificaron como Lactobacillus murinus/animalis y una se identificó como Lactobacillus reuteri. TA20 que tuvo un gran espectro de inhibición a ambas temperaturas se identificó como Lactococcus garvieae. En este estudio se evaluaron tres métodos de conservación a largo plazo de las cepas que mostraron potencial antagonista. Se comparó la liofilización, la atomización frente a la congelación a -80ºC que era método que se había utilizado hasta el momento para conservar ambas colecciones de BAL. En general, los métodos de deshidratación (atomización y liofilización) y mantenimiento en refrigeración a 5ºC de los cultivos deshidratados se han mostrado más eficaces que la congelación.

Explaining contradictory evidence regarding impacts of genetically modified crops in developing countries. Varietal performance of transgenic cotton in India

A study of the commercial growing of different varieties of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton compares the performance of growing official and unofficial hybrid varieties of Bt cotton and conventional (non-Bt) hybrids in Gujarat by 622 farmers. Results suggest that the official Bt varieties (MECH 12 and MECH 162) significantly outperform the unofficial varieties. However, unofficial, locally produced Bt hybrids can also perform significantly better than non-Bt hybrids, although second generation (F-2) Bt seed appears to have no yield advantage compared to non-Bt hybrids but can save on insecticide use. Although hybrid vigour is reduced, or even lost, with F-2 seed the Bt gene still confers some advantage. The F-2 seed is regarded as 'GM' by the farmers (and is sold as such), even though its yield performance is little better than the non-GM hybrids. The results help to explain why there is so much confusion arising from GM cotton release in India.

Farm-level economic performance of genetically modified cotton in Maharashtra, India

A study of the commercial growing of Bacillus flutringiensis (Bt) cotton in India, compares the performance of over 9,000 Bt and non-Bt cotton farm plots in Maharashtra over the 2002 and 2003 seasons. Results show that since their commercial release in 2002, Bt cotton varieties have had a significant positive impact on average yields and on the economic performance of cotton growers. Regional variation showed that, in a very few areas, not all farmers had benefited from increased performance of Bt varieties.

Bias from farmer self-selection in genetically modified crop productivity estimates: Evidence from Indian data

In the continuing debate over the impact of genetically modified (GM) crops on farmers of developing countries, it is important to accurately measure magnitudes such as farm-level yield gains from GM crop adoption. Yet most farm-level studies in the literature do not control for farmer self-selection, a potentially important source of bias in such estimates. We use farm-level panel data from Indian cotton farmers to investigate the yield effect of GM insect-resistant cotton. We explicitly take into account the fact that the choice of crop variety is an endogenous variable which might lead to bias from self-selection. A production function is estimated using a fixed-effects model to control for selection bias. Our results show that efficient farmers adopt Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton at a higher rate than their less efficient peers. This suggests that cross-sectional estimates of the yield effect of Bt cotton, which do not control for self-selection effects, are likely to be biased upwards. However, after controlling for selection bias, we still find that there is a significant positive yield effect from adoption of Bt cotton that more than offsets the additional cost of Bt seed.

Why Bt cotton pays for small-scale producers in South Africa

There is much debate about the potential benefits (and costs) of genetically modified (GM) crop technology for developing countries. Studies have been carried out in Argentina, China, Indonesia and most recently India1 to assess the impact of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton on farmers in those regions.

Comparing the performance of official and unofficial genetically modified cotton in India

Genetically modified (GM) cotton was approved for commercial cultivation in 2002. Hybrids to date have carried the Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) gene, which confers resistance to Lepidoptera and certain Coleoptera. As well as "official" Bt hybrids (i.e., those that have gone through a formal approval process), there are "unofficial" Bt hybrids produced without such approval. The owners of the official hybrids, Monsanto-Mahyco, claim that the unofficial hybrids are not as good and could even damage the perception of Bt cotton amongst farmers. Anti-GM groups claim that neither type of Bt hybrid provides either yield or economic advantages over non-Bt hybrids. This paper reports the first study of official versus unofficial versus non-Bt hybrids in India (622 farmers in Gujarat State) with the specific aim of comparing one hypothesized ranking in terms of gross margin of (a) official Bt hybrids, (b) unofficial Bt hybrids, and (c) non-Bt hybrids. Results suggest that the official Bt varieties (MECH 12 and MECH 162) significantly outperform the unofficial varieties in terms of gross margin. However, unofficial, locally produced Bt hybrids can also perform significantly better than non-Bt hybrids, although second-generation (F2) Bt seed appears to have no yield advantage compared to non-Bt hybrids but can save on insecticide use. The paper explores some of the implications of this ranking.

Isolating the 'farmer' effect as a component of the advantage of growing genetically modified varieties in developing countries: a Bt cotton case study from Jalgaon, India

The present paper explores the 'farmer' effect in economic advantages often claimed for Bt cotton varieties (those with the endotoxin gene from Bacillus thuringiensis conferring resistance to some insect pests) compared to non-Bt varieties. Critics claim that much of the yield advantage of Bt cotton could be due to the fact that farmers adopting the technology are in a better position to provide inputs and management and so much of any claimed Bt advantage is an artefact rather than reflecting a real advantage of the variety per se. The present paper provides an in-depth analysis of 63 non-adopting and 94 adopting households of Bt cotton in Jalgaon, Maharashtra State, India, spanning the seasons 2002 and 2003. Results suggest that Bt adopters are indeed different from non-adopters in a number of ways. Adopters appear to specialize more on cotton (at least in terms of the land area they devote to the crop), spend more money on irrigation and grow well-performing non-Bt varieties of cotton (Bunny). Taking gross margin as the basis for comparison, Bt plots had 2.5 times the gross margin of non-Bt plots in both seasons. If only adopters are considered then the gross margin advantage of Bt plots reduces to 1.6 times that of non-Bt plots. This is still a significant advantage and could well explain the popularity of Bt in Maharashtra. However, it is clear that great care needs to be taken with such comparative studies.