Studies on exploiting semiochemicals for pest management in organic farming systems OF0188

This study addresses the extent to which pest management systems can exploit semiochemicals (defined below) in ways acceptable to organic farming, and determines where the science base needs to be expanded to accommodate specific problems arising in an increasing organic farming sector. It considers whether current knowledge of semiochemical release from particular crop plants, herbs and wild plant species could be investigated further in relation to organic farming practice and identifies how strategies of multiple cropping, that exploit known semiochemical interactions, could be applied to key pest problems in organic production. Where such exploitation is not feasible, other strategies using semiochemicals including traps, extracts of natural products and nature-identical synthetic products are considered. Finally, general and specific directions in which research and development could facilitate greater penetration of the use of semiochemicals in crop protection for organic farming are identified. Semiochemicals are natural products that, by acting as signals, regulate interactions between organisms e.g. plants and insects. Once the semiochemical interactions between a pest and its host plant have been elucidated they can be exploited to regulate the pest population, providing an alternative control strategy to conventional toxicants. The choice of approach by which the semiochemicals are deployed relates to three options, i.e. from a natural plant source, from an extract or as a nature identical synthetic product. However, even where the most natural situations of mixed cropping are used, the scientific basis of the interaction must be established for robustness and sustainability of the approach. A complete understanding of the process allows a risk assessment to be made of any problems that might ensue when exploiting natural systems in different configurations from those encountered naturally. A major approach to using semiochemical based pest control is to exploit ways of repelling pests from crop plants and attracting them towards trap plantations. Deploying semiochemicals generated naturally by plants is consistent with organic farming practice, where a range of mixed cropping techniques are employed already, which ‘unconsciously’ utilise semiochemical effects. Thus, the acceptance and use of systems exploiting aspects of semiochemical deployment demonstrate an emerging role in organic farming practices. However, as emphasised before, a comprehensive knowledge of the semiochemical interactions that underpin these techniques is vital if they are to be exploited fully. Other pest control approaches compatible with organic farming, such as encouragement of beneficial species and the use of reflective surfaces in mulches, may not involve semiochemical effects, but could be exploited more beneficially by integration with semiochemical practices. Semiochemicals generated naturally by plants can be used to influence beneficial organisms as well as invertebrate pests. For example, plant defence chemicals, induced by pest or pathogen infestation, can affect the behaviour of pests and their natural enemies. Semiochemicals can be employed to maximise the impact of parasitic organisms that attack pest populations, for example in the management of refugia for maintaining and increasing populations of these beneficial organisms. In addition, the approach can be applied against other organisms antagonistic to agriculture besides invertebrate pests, for example in weed control, where signals interfering with weed germination can be exploited. Extracts of natural products provide semiochemicals in a form that is familiar and acceptable to organic farming practice, where plant extracts are already used as toxicants or as semiochemical antifeedants and repellents. However, often the scientific basis for use of these materials is limited, and therefore, exploitation is also limited and can be unreliable. By understanding the composition and the mechanism of activity of semiochemicals, natural product extracts can be improved by selection of the best sources of natural materials and appropriate processes of extraction and formulation. Many natural products, particularly pheromones (semiochemicals acting between members of the same species), can be synthesised as nature-identical and the synthetic forms are often indistinguishable from the natural form. Synthesis can be expensive, but where possible, starting materials should be obtained from natural renewable resources. Nature-identical synthetic pheromones are used widely in parts of the world, either deployed in traps for monitoring, mass trapping and lure and kill strategies or for direct pest control approaches such as mating disruption. In addition, manipulation of beneficial species with pheromones is being investigated and synthetic food-related attractants and oviposition attractants have also been developed for pests where pheromones are not available. Already some nature-identical synthetic semiochemicals have been accepted as compatible with organic farming practice. The registration of many sex and aggregation pheromones has been possible because they are nature-identical and are deployed away from the crop or on crop areas that are not consumed. In most cases, semiochemicals, deployed alone, are not sufficiently robust to control pest populations directly. They are most effective when incorporated into strategies, such as the ‘push-pull’ strategy, that are integrated with other forms of pest control, e.g. pathogens, parasitoids and predators, mechanical barriers and resistant plant varieties. The integration of semiochemical approaches with other methods of pest population reduction will help prevent the development of pest resistance to the overall strategy. Since the integrated strategy comprises a number of components that affect different aspects of pest behaviour and development each component can be relatively ineffective when compared to conventional pesticides. However, this has the advantage of not selecting efficiently for resistance to any component of the strategy and thus contributes to the sustainability of the approach. Recommendations 1) Develop a priority list of specific and general problems in organic production to be targeted by semiochemical methodologies in addition to known problems such as in carrot and lettuce production, aphids on a range of vegetable crops and for fruit pests. 2) Develop semiochemical based control methods suitable for 1) and for the targets already known. 3) Provide scientific input, where lacking, for 1 and 2. 4) Encourage greater diversification in organic cropping systems, including agroforestry, so as to exploit current knowledge of semiochemical based control and to pave the way for new interventions as the science develops. 5) Consider semiochemical attributes of non-crop plant inputs including mulches, weeds and multifunctional beneficial plants and the roles that they might play in organic systems. 6) Initiate organic plant breeding programmes, specifically to exploit natural semiochemical release where understood, for crop and companion plants

Caractérisation des techniques de séchage du cacao dans les principales zones de production en Côte d’Ivoire et détermination de leur influence sur la qualité des fèves commercialisées

Objectifs: Le séchage constitue une étape très importante dans la préparation du cacao marchand. Cette étude vise à caractériser les techniques utilisées par les producteurs en Côte d’Ivoire et déterminer leur influence sur la qualité des fèves. Méthodologie et résultats: Une enquête a été menée dans les principales zones de production (Est, Centre-Ouest et Sud-Ouest) en Côte d’Ivoire, afin de caractériser les techniques de séchage du cacao. Le questionnaire d’enquête a porté sur l’aire de séchage utilisée et la durée de l’opération. Par ailleurs, l’analyse au laboratoire des fèves prélevées après séchage a permis d’apprécier l’influence des techniques utilisées sur leur qualité. Les résultats obtenus ont révélé l’utilisation des claies préférentiellement par 90 % des producteurs pour le séchage dans l’Est du pays. Ceux du Centre-Ouest et du Sud-Ouest font simultanément usage des bâches noires et des aires cimentées. Respectivement 40 %, 38 % et 46 % des producteurs dans l’Est, le Centre-Ouest et Sud-Ouest ne déterminent pas la durée de séchage des fèves. Les durées déterminées sont relativement brèves et comprises entre 3 et 9 jours. Les analyses de qualité effectuées sur les échantillons collectés ont montré une corrélation linaire et négative (y = - 0,3706x + 9,9341 ; R = 0,8185) entre la durée de séchage et la teneur en eau des fèves. De même, le niveau d’impuretés à été plus élevé dans les échantillons prélevés au Centre-Ouest et au Sud-Ouest que dans ceux collectés à l’Est. La zone Est de la Côte d’Ivoire est caractérisée par l’usage des claies, un temps de séchage plus long et un cacao plus propre et plus sec. A l’opposé, le Centre-Ouest et le Sud-Ouest sont définis par l’utilisation des bâches noires et des aires cimentées, une durée de séchage relativement plus courte, surtout à Oumé, et un cacao moins propre et moins sec. Conclusion et application de résultats: Il ressort de cette étude que l’utilisation de la claie comme aire de séchage contribue à obtenir un cacao plus propre. Il est recommandé d’étendre son utilisation à l’ensemble des zones de production d’une part et d’autre part, prolonger la durée de séchage pour une bonne déshydratation des fèves, afin d’assurer une bonne qualité au cacao marchand. Mots clés: poste- récolte, aire de séchage, durée de séchage, cacao marchand, qualit

Salt marsh ecosystem biogeochemical responses to nutrient enrichment: a paired N-15 tracer study

We compared processing and fate of dissolved NO3- in two New England salt marsh ecosystems, one receiving natural flood tide concentrations of similar to 1-4 mu mol NO3-/L and the other receiving experimentally fertilized flood tides containing similar to 70-100 mu mol NO3-/L. We conducted simultaneous (NO3-)-N-15 (isotope) tracer additions from 23 to 28 July 2005 in the reference (8.4 ha) and fertilized (12.4 ha) systems to compare N dynamics and fate. Two full tidal cycles were intensively studied during the paired tracer additions. Resulting mass balances showed that essentially 100% (0.48-0.61 mol NO3-N.ha(-1).h(-1)) of incoming NO3- was assimilated, dissimilated, sorbed, or sedimented (processed) within a few hours in the reference system when NO3- concentrations were 1.3-1.8 mu mol/L. In contrast, only 50-60% of incoming NO3- was processed in the fertilized system when NO3- concentrations were 84-96 mu mol/ L; the remainder was exported in ebb tidewater. Gross NO3- processing was similar to 40 times higher in the fertilized system at 19.34- 24.67 mol NO3-N.ha(-1).h(-1). Dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium was evident in both systems during the first 48 h of the tracer additions but \u3c1% of incoming (NO3-)-N-15 was exported as (NH4+)-N-15. Nitrification rates calculated by (NO3-)-N-15 dilution were 6.05 and 4.46 mol.ha(-1).h(-1) in the fertilized system but could not be accurately calculated in the reference system due to rapid (\u3c4 h) NO3- turnover. Over the five-day paired tracer addition, sediments sequestered a small fraction of incoming NO3-, although the efficiency of sequestration was 3.8% in the reference system and 0.7% in the fertilized system. Gross sediment N sequestration rates were similar at 13.5 and 12.6 mol.ha(-1).d(-1), respectively. Macrophyte NO3- uptake efficiency, based on tracer incorporation in aboveground tissues, was considerably higher in the reference system (16.8%) than the fertilized system (2.6%), although bulk uptake of NO3- by plants was lower in the reference system (1.75 mol NO3-.ha(-1).d(-1)) than the fertilized system (similar to 10 mol NO3-.ha(-1).d(-1)). Nitrogen processing efficiency decreased with NO3- load in all pools, suggesting that the nutrient processing capacity of the marsh ecosystem was exceeded in the fertilized marsh

A timely computer-aided detection system for acute ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke on CT in an emergency environment

Standalone Presentations: no. LL-IN1105BACKGROUND: When a patient is accepted in the emergency room suspected of stroke, time is of the most importance. The infarct brain area suffers irreparable damage as soon as three hours after the onset of stroke symptoms. Non-contrast CT scan is the standard first line of investigation used to identify hemorrhagic stroke cases. However, CT brain images do not show hyperacute ischemia and small hemorrhage clearly and thus may be missed by emergency physicians. We reported a timely computer-aided detection (CAD) system for small hemorrhages on CT that has been successfully developed as an aid to ER physicians to help improve detection for Acute Intracranial Hemorrhage (AIH). This CAD system has been enhanced for diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke in addition to hemorrhagic stroke, which becomes a more complete and clinically useful tool for assisting emergency physicians and radiologists. In the detection algorithm, brain matter is first segmented, realigned, and left-right brain symmetry is evaluated. As in the AIH system, the system confirms hemorrhagic stroke by detecting blood presence with anatomical and medical knowledge-based criteria. For detecting ischemia, signs such as regional hypodensity, blurring of grey and white matter differentiation, effacement of cerebral sulci, and hyperdensity in middle cerebral artery, are evaluated …published_or_final_versio

Meta-analysis of the influence of chronic kidney disease on the risk of thromboembolism among patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and atrial fibrillation (AF) frequently coexist. However, the extent to which CKD increases the risk of thromboembolism in patients with nonvalvular AF and the benefits of anticoagulation in this group remain unclear. We addressed the role of CKD in the prediction of thromboembolic events and the impact of anticoagulation using a meta-analysis method. Data sources included MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane (from inception to January 2014). Three independent reviewers selected studies. Descriptive and quantitative information was extracted from each selected study and a random-effects meta-analysis was performed. After screening 962 search results, 19 studies were considered eligible. Among patients with AF, the presence of CKD resulted in an increased risk of thromboembolism (hazard ratio [HR] 1.46, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.20 to 1.76, p = 0.0001), particularly in case of end-stage CKD (HR 1.83, 95% CI 1.56 to 2.14, p <0.00001). Warfarin decreased the incidence of thromboembolic events in patients with non-end-stage CKD (HR 0.39, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.86, p <0.00001). Recent data on novel oral anticoagulants suggested a higher efficacy of these agents compared with warfarin (HR 0.80, 95% CI 0.66 to 0.96, p = 0.02) and aspirin (HR 0.32, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.55, p <0.0001) in treating non-end-stage CKD. In conclusion, the presence of CKD in patients with AF is associated with an almost 50% increased thromboembolic risk, which can be effectively decreased with appropriate antithrombotic therapy. Further prospective studies are needed to better evaluate the interest of anticoagulation in patients with severe CKD

Selective Photocatalytic Reduction of CO2-to-CO in Water using a Polymeric Carbon Nitride Quantum Dot/Fe-Porphyrin Hybrid Assembly

Visible light-driven conversion of CO2 into more value-added products is a promising technology not only for diminution of CO2 emission but also for solar energy storage in the form of chemical energy. However, photocatalytic materials that can efficiently and selectively reduce CO2-to-CO in a fully aqueous solution typically involve precious metals that limit their suitability for large scale applications. Herein, a novel photocatalytic assembly is reported, consisting of polymeric carbon nitride quantum dots (CNQDs) as the visible light absorber and a Fe-porphyrin complex (Fe-p-TMA) as the catalyst for CO2-to-CO conversion. Both components were carefully selected to allow for excellent solubility in water as well as improved electronic communication through complementary electrostatic and π-π interactions. This CNQD ⋅ [Fe-p-TMA] hybrid assembly, at the optimized molar ratio, can produce CO with a turnover number (TON) exceeding 105 and selectivity ∼96 % after 10 hours of visible light irradiation (400–700 nm). It is postulated that the enhanced CO2-to-CO transformation performance is due to the convenience of a more direct charge transfer (CT) pathway between the CNQDs and [Fe-p-TMA] motif

The Influence of Physiological Status on age Prediction of Anopheles Arabiensis Using Near Infra-red spectroscopy

Determining the age of malaria vectors is essential for evaluating the impact of interventions that reduce the survival of wild mosquito populations and for estimating changes in vectorial capacity. Near infra-red spectroscopy (NIRS) is a simple and non-destructive method that has been used to determine the age and species of Anopheles gambiae s.l. by analyzing differences in absorption spectra. The spectra are affected by biochemical changes that occur during the life of a mosquito and could be influenced by senescence and also the life history of the mosquito, i.e., mating, blood feeding and egg-laying events. To better understand these changes, we evaluated the influence of mosquito physiological status on NIR energy absorption spectra. Mosquitoes were kept in individual cups to permit record keeping of each individual insect’s life history. Mosquitoes of the same chronological age, but at different physiological stages, were scanned and compared using cross-validations. We observed a slight trend within some physiological stages that suggest older insects tend to be predicted as being physiologically more mature. It was advantageous to include mosquitoes of different chronological ages and physiological stages in calibrations, as it increases the robustness of the model resulting in better age predictions. Progression through different physiological statuses of An. arabiensis influences the chronological age prediction by the NIRS. Entomologists that wish to use NIR technology to predict the age of field-caught An. gambiae s.l from their study area should use a calibration developed from their field strain using mosquitoes of diverse chronological ages and physiological stages to increase the robustness and accuracy of the predictions.\u

Heat shock protein 10 inhibits lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory mediator production

Heat shock protein 10 (Hsp10) and heat shock protein 160 (Hsp60) were originally described as essential mitochondrial proteins involved in protein folding. How,ever, both proteins have also been shown to have a number of extracellular immunomodulatory activities. Here we show that purified recombinant human Hsp10 incubated with cells in vitro reduced lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nuclear factor-kappaB activation and secretion of several inflammatory mediators from RAW264.7 cells, murine macrophages, and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Induction of tolerance by contaminating LPS was formally excluded as being responsible for Hsp10 activity. Treatment of mice with Hsp10 before,endotoxin challenge resulted in the reduction of serum tumor necrosis factor-a and RANTES (regulated upon activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted) levels and an elevation of serum interleukin-10 levels. Hsp10 treatment also delayed mortality in a murine graft-ver-sus-host disease model, where gut-derived LPS contributes to pathology. We were unable to confirm previous reports that Hsp10 has tumor growth factor properties and suggest that Hsp10 exerts anti-inflammatory activity by inhibiting Toll-like receptor signaling possibly by interacting with extracellular Hsp60

"Too Big To Ignore": A feasibility analysis of detecting fishing events in Gabonese small-scale fisheries.

This is the final version. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record. All shapefiles are available from the Dryad database (datadryad.org/stash/share/BN9V6JHrdep3pMWH7zGuUiOfK9IEaeeodQ9LzVOY1Cw).In many developing countries, small-scale fisheries provide employment and important food security for local populations. To support resource management, the description of the spatiotemporal extent of fisheries is necessary, but often poorly understood due to the diffuse nature of effort, operated from numerous small wooden vessels. Here, in Gabon, Central Africa, we applied Hidden Markov Models to detect fishing patterns in seven different fisheries (with different gears) from GPS data. Models were compared to information collected by on-board observers (7 trips) and, at a larger scale, to a visual interpretation method (99 trips). Models utilizing different sampling resolutions of GPS acquisition were also tested. Model prediction accuracy was high with GPS data sampling rates up to three minutes apart. The minor loss of accuracy linked to model classification is largely compensated by the savings in time required for analysis, especially in a context of nations or organizations with limited resources. This method could be applied to larger datasets at a national or international scale to identify and more adequately manage fishing effort.US Fish and Wildlife ServiceDepartment for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs UKLMI TAPIOCAEuropean UnionArc Emeraude Projec