Effects of Irrigation water salinity on evapotranspiration and spinach (Spinacia oleracea L. Matador) plant parameters in greenhouse indoor and outdoor conditions

ArticleResponse of spinach to irrigation water salinity under greenhouse indoor and outdoor conditions was investigated in this study to reveal different weather conditions on salinity tolerance of the plant. For this purpose, saline waters at six different salinities (0.65, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.0 and 7.0 dS m-1 ) were applied to spinach (Spinacia oleracea L. Matador) grown in pots. Soil salinity increased linearly with increasing salinity of irrigation water. Threshold salinity is 2.35 dS m-1 and yield lost slope after this threshold is 3.51% for indoor and threshold salinity is 2.83 dS m-1 and yield lost slope is 3.3% for outdoor. Salinity harmful effect on spinach yield is higher for indoor conditions than for outdoor conditions because of higher indoor temperatures. These results apparently showed that spinach salinity response could change with changing weather conditions especially for temperature. Yield response factors (ky), which is the ratio of relative evapotranspiration decrease to relative yield decrease, were close in the cases of irrigation water salinity in greenhouse outdoor and indoor (ky = 2.4 and 2.1), respectively. Considerable water consumption decreases because of salinity were determined. Every 1 dS m-1 increment in soil salinity caused about 1.35% water consumption decrease for spinach. Therefore, depressing effect of salinity on water consumption should be considered in irrigation and salinity management to prevent excess saline water application and to protect environment

Estimation of daily reference evapotranspiration by neuro computing techniques using limited data in a semi-arid environment

In this paper, the daily reference evapotranspiration (ET0) for Bulawayo Goetz was estimated from climatic data using neuro computing techniques. The region lacks reliable weather data and experiences inconsistencies in the measuring process due to inadequate and obsolete measuring equipment. This paper aims to propose neuro computing techniques as an alternative methodology to estimating evapotranspiration. Firstly, ET0 was calculated using FAO-56 Penman-Monteith (PM) equation from available climatic data. Data was divided into training, testing and validation for neuro computing purposes. The study also investigated the effect of different normalisation techniques on neuro computing ET0 estimation accuracy. In another application, neuro-computing ET0 estimates were compared against those obtained using empirical methods and their calibrated versions. The Z-score normalisation technique for all data sets gave best results with a Multi-layer perceptron (55-1) model having RMSE, MAE and R2 values in the range 0.120.25 mm day?1, 0.080.15 mm day?1 and 0.940.99 respectively. There were no significant differences in ET0 estimation accuracy by neuro computing techniques due to normalisation technique. The Neuro computing techniques were superior to empirical methods in ET0 estimation for Bulawayo Goetz. The Neuro computing techniques are recommended for use in cases of limited climatic data at Bulawayo Goetz

Relationship between Canine Distemper and Oxidative Stress in dogs

The aim of the present study was to investigate the oxidative stress occurrence during canine distemper (CD) virus infection in dog. For that, plasma concentrations of markers for oxidative stress (malondialdehyde (MDA), nitrates and nitrites, and ceruloplasmin at a lesser extend) and of antioxidant compounds (glutathione (GSH), ascorbate. retinol and P-carotene) were measured and compared in 11 naturally CD infected dogs (4 with a predominant neurological form, 3 with 1 pulmonary form, 3 with in intestinal form and 1 with only general signs) and in 6 healthy controls. All infected dogs exhibited significantly elevated plasma concentrations of oxidant markers (MDA, nitrates and nitrites) and of ceruplasmin compared to controls (p < 0.01) whereas antioxidant concentrations were significantly lowered in the diseased group (p < 0.05 for ascorbate and p < 0.01 for the others). Nevertheless, although nitrite concentrations were significantly decreased in (logs with neurological signs compared to the other infected clogs, the intensity of the variations of markers for oxidant and antioxidant status was independent of a specific clinical form of the disease. These results demonstrated the accumulation of reactive oxygen species leading to lipid peroxidation and to consumption of antioxidant system during acute CD in dogs

Protective potential of Royal Jelly against carbon tetrachloride induced-toxicity and changes in the serum sialic acid levels

Royal Jelly (RJ) is used in the Turkish folk medicine for the treatment of number of disorders. The present study describes the hepatoprotective and antioxidant activities of the RJ against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced acute liver damage. Sprague-Dawley rats were used for the experiment. CCl4 (0.8 ml/kg; s.c.) and RJ (50, 100, 200 mg/kg: orally) were given every other day, for 20 days. Malondialdehyde, reduced glutathione in whole blood and tissues: ceruloplasmin, sialic acid, ascorbic acid, retinol, beta-carotene and liver enzymes levels in serum were measured. Additionally, histopathological alterations in the liver were examined. RJ exerted the significant protective effect on liver damage as well as on oxidative stress induced by CCl4, resulting in reduced lipid peroxidation and improved endogenous antioxidant defence systems. It also reduced the elevated levels of liver enzymes. Histopathological study further confirmed the hepatoprotective effect of RJ, when compared with the CCl4 treated control groups. In conclusion, present study reveals biological evidence that supports the use of RJ in the treatment of chemical-induced hepatotoxicity. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Effects of methylene blue in acute lung injury induced by blunt schest trauma

Background: We studied whether methylene blue (MB) treatment blunts chest trauma-induced lung injury in rats. Material and Methods: Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats, 200-300g, were used. The rats were divided into five groups (n=8): control, early contusion (EC), early contusion + methylene blue (2 mg/kg, EC+MB), late contusion (LC), and late contusion + methylene blue (2 mg/kg, LC+MB). Results: Histopathological analysis showed increased hemorrhage, alveolar wall thickness, edema, and inflammatory cell infiltrates in the EC and LC rats, which decreased upon MB treatment. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that MB reduced activation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and the number of active terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells. A significant increase was observed in the malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in the EC group compared to the control group (p<0.05). In addition, a significant decrease was reported in the glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) levels (p<0.01), but no significant difference was observed in the catalase (CAT) levels among the groups. The MDA level was significantly higher in the LC group compared to the control group, whereas the GSH level was significantly lower compared to the control group. The NO level in the EC+MB group was significantly lower when compared to the NO level in the EC group (p<0.05). Conclusion: The present study provides evidence that MB might serve as a therapeutic treatment for blunt chest trauma

Effects of methylene blue in acute lung injury induced by blunt chest trauma

Background: We studied whether methylene blue (MB) treatment blunts chest trauma-induced lung injury in rats. Material and Methods: Forty male Sprague-Dawley rats, 200-300g, were used. The rats were divided into five groups (n=8): control, early contusion (EC), early contusion + methylene blue (2 mg/kg, EC+MB), late contusion (LC), and late contusion + methylene blue (2 mg/kg, LC+MB). Results: Histopathological analysis showed increased hemorrhage, alveolar wall thickness, edema, and inflammatory cell infiltrates in the EC and LC rats, which decreased upon MB treatment. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that MB reduced activation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and the number of active terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells. A significant increase was observed in the malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in the EC group compared to the control group (p<0.05). In addition, a significant decrease was reported in the glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) levels (p<0.01), but no significant difference was observed in the catalase (CAT) levels among the groups. The MDA level was significantly higher in the LC group compared to the control group, whereas the GSH level was significantly lower compared to the control group. The NO level in the EC+MB group was significantly lower when compared to the NO level in the EC group (p<0.05). Conclusion: The present study provides evidence that MB might serve as a therapeutic treatment for blunt chest trauma