Interactive Effect of Ethephon and Shading on the Anthocyanin Composition of Vitis vinifera L. cv. Crimson Seedless

The Vitis vinifera cultivar Crimson Seedless primarily accumulates the anthocyanin peonidin-3-glucoside. Theresearch undertook the study of two factors which could influence the accumulation of anthocyanin in grape berryskins: ethephon application and shade. Ethephon treatment at 200ppm applied one week post-véraison significantlyincreased the concentration of all anthocyanins in berry skins. Peonidin-3-glucoside was found to increase mostsignificantly in response to ethephon application, and was increased 150% compared with an untreated control. Theproportion of 3‑monoglucoside anthocyanins increased in response to ethephon application. A shading treatment didnot affect total anthocyanin concentration in berry skins, but the anthocyanin cyanidin-3-glucoside was decreasedsignificantly by shade. Its content was 50% of a sun-exposed control. The observed effects were found to occur attwo sites at which the experiment was performed in the Hex River and Paarl regions. Colour development in theVitis vinifera cultivar Crimson Seedless does not appear to be influenced significantly by bunch shading. The use ofcommercial growth regulators like ethephon exert a strong influence on anthocyanin production in grape skins ofthis cultivar, and are therefore a more likely solution to overcome poor colour development in its production

A 2500 year old pseudo shell midden on Longreach Bay, Rottnest Island, Western Australia.

On several occasions during the past decade, Perth-based and occasional visiting Quaternary researchers have examined possible prehistoric human occupation sites on Rottnest Island, 20 km west of Fremantle, WA. The following describes findings from recent investigations of possible prehistoric midden material from a site on Longreach Bay, Rottnest Island

The Interactive Effect of Pruning Level and Irrigation Strategy on Grape Berry Ripening and Composition in Vitis vinifera L. cv. Shiraz

A partial rootzone drying (PRD) irrigation technique (0.5 ML/ha) was compared with a standard irrigation treatment(1 ML/ha) at three different pruning levels of 30, 60 and 120 nodes per grapevine in Vitis vinifera L. cv Shiraz. Berrysize was found to decrease as node number per grapevine increased, but was not significantly altered by the PRDtreatment. The influence of these treatments on the accumulation of total soluble solids per berry was investigatedduring berry ripening and was shown to be reduced at higher node number (120 nodes). There was no effect ofPRD on the accumulation of total soluble solids. Juice titratable acidity and the concentration (per g) and content(per berry) of grape anthocyanins and phenolics were compared between treatments at harvest. In one season ofthe study, juice titratable acidity, anthocyanin and phenolic concentration was unaltered by the PRD treatment. Ina further season, juice titratable acidity was decreased in response to the PRD treatment and was associated withincreases in grape anthocyanin and phenolic concentration in response to PRD. Where there was a small increasein anthocyanin concentration in response to PRD, this was found to be independent of berry size. In addition, linearregression analysis showed a poor relationship between berry size and anthocyanin concentration, but a significantrelationship was found between berry size and anthocyanins per berry

The Interactive Effect of Pruning Level and Irrigation Strategy on Water Use Efficiency of Vitis vinifera L. cv. Shiraz

A partial rootzone drying (PRD) irrigation technique (0.5 ML/ha) was compared with a standard irrigation treatment(1 ML/ha) at three different pruning levels of 30, 60 and 120 nodes per grapevine in Vitis vinifera L. cv Shiraz. The PRDirrigation technique was applied to a single side of the grapevine rootzone at a time, 45 cm from the trunk, and the sideswere switched in 10-day cycles. For the standard irrigation treatment, both sides of the grapevine were irrigated. At theend of an irrigation cycle, the PRD treatment resulted in reduced midday readings of stomatal conductance and stem (ψS)and leaf (ψL) water potential relative to the control treatment. During the switch between irrigation cycles, when the soilwater profile of both the ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ sides of the PRD-treated grapevines was refilled, stomatal conductance, ψS andψL were restored to the same levels as for the control experiment. As node number per grapevine increased, berry size andwinter pruning weight were reduced and yield increased. In the first season of the experiment, the PRD treatment did nothave a significant effect on berry size, yield and pruning weight, although shoot length was reduced in response to PRD forall the pruning treatments. In a subsequent season, PRD was found to reduce yield, primarily through a reduction in berryset. Water use efficiency measured as t/ML irrigation water applied was increased significantly as crop load increased, andwas enhanced in response to the PRD irrigation technique

Biocultural Linkages – Cultural Consensus, Cultural Consonance, and Human Biological Research

Cultural consensus analysis tests for shared models of behavior in various cultural dimensions. Cultural consonance is used to assess the degree to which individuals behave in a way that is consistent with these cultural models. Results are presented from two studies using cultural consensus and consonance analysis (CCCA) on health risk in an African American population and on diet in a mixed sample from West Alabama. In the African American case study, cultural consonance in lifestyle and social support are demonstrated to have a significant effect on blood pressure. In the diet study, significant differences in cultural consonance on the health dimension of diet between groups espousing different dietary preferences were demonstrated in spite of all groups sharing the same model of healthy foods. These studies are used to argue that more sophisticated measures of culture in human biological research are readily available and accessible for most studies

Los recursos no convencionales en Argentina : lineamientos para su desarrollo sustentable tomando en consideración el caso norteamericano

El objetivo general de la presente tesis consiste en determinar las acciones que deben ser implementadas en Argentina para viabilizar un desarrollo pleno de los recursos no convencionales, teniendo en consideración las condiciones que se dieron en Estados Unidos para hacer posible el desarrollo de sus recursos

Influence of partial rootzone drying on aspects of grape and wine quality.

The effect of partial rootzone drying (PRD) on the composition of grape and wine secondary metabolites was investigated. At harvest, total anthocyanin and phenolic concentration in fruit of Vitis vinifera L. cvs Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon was either unaltered or increased in response to PRD over two seasons. Where an increase in anthocyanin concentration was found with PRD, this was found to be independent of berry size. Rather, increases in anthocyanin concentration were most likely due to an increase in anthocyanin production in the berry skins. In Cabemet Sauvignon wine made from one vintage, total colour was enhanced by 10% in response to the PRD treatment, although in that season total anthocyanin concentration was unaltered in the fruit or wine. This colour enhancement was due to an increase in coloured pigments in copigmented or polymeric form, that is in association with other anthocyanins or phenolic compounds. This is a significant finding, as it shows that the colour of wine is not dependent upon anthocyanin concentration alone, but rather on reactions taking place during winemaking and wine-ageing. The colour enhancement was found to be maintained after a year's ageing in the bottle. A key question which arises from this work is which component(s) of total phenolics in PRD-treated wines is responsible for this effect. Preliminary investigation of seed proanthocyanidins and flavan-3-ols showed that their content per berry was unaltered by the PRD treatment. However, where berry weight was decreased due to PRD, the concentration of these seed tannins was increased on a per gram basis. This could potentially lead to an increased contribution of seed tannins to total wine phenolics in PRD wines. The effect of this is two-fold. Firstly, seed tannins are known to be weak copigments and could in part account for the increased copigmentation and polymerisation of anthocyanins observed with PRD. Secondly, an increased concentration of seed tannins in PRD wines could alter wine astringency and mouth feel properties. In both fruit and wine samples, PRD was found to cause a decrease in the contribution malvidin-glucosides to total anthocyanins. Thus, levels of non-malvidin glucosides, namely delphinidin and cyanidin, were increased by PRD. This effect was investigated as fruit matured post-veraison, and was evident from early in berry development. Preliminary results indicate that this response requires the presence of high incident light levels to the fruit during development, but is not mediated by increased bunch exposure alone. Shading of fruit led to a significant decrease in all anthocyanin types, and caused a shift in the ratio of acetyl- and 3p-coumary1-glucosides to mono-glucosides. The PRD treatment, however, did not cause changes in the proportions of acetyl-, 3p-coumary1-and mono-glucoside anthocyanins. These results show that the response of the anthocyanin pathway to the PRD treatment is most likely mediated by physiological signals within the fruit and vine, rather than due to a change in bunch zone microclimate. An important class of potential flavour and aroma compounds in grapes are the C₁₃-norisoprcnoids. As the precursors to these compounds are fruit-derived, rather than by-products of fermentation, the potential exists for their manipulation using viticultural practices. Previously, bunch exposure has been thought to be the primary factor mediating the final levels of C₁₃-norisoprenoids in fruit. The current study has shown that total shading of developing bunches using artificial means led to a significant decrease in the levels of these compounds in both fruit and wine samples of Shiraz. However, when fruit of this variety was subjected to natural changes in bunch exposure, resulting from alterations in canopy structure, the response of the C₁₃-norisoprenoids to these conditions was either small or insignificant. Of the three C₁₃-norisoprenoids studied, namely ß -damascenone, ß -ionone and TDN, only TDN showed a significant response to bunch exposure under these conditions. Preliminary results of this study on Shiraz indicated that the concentration of the C₁₃-norisoprenoids ß -damascenone and TDN can potentially be influenced by changes in vine shoot vigour and canopy architecture, induced by a water-deficit. This finding was validated by a study on Cabernet Sauvignon, where the effect of PRD on fruit C₁₃-norisoprenoids was investigated. The concentrations of the C₁₃-norisoprenoids ß -damascenone, ß -ionone and TDN were shown to be increased by up to 30% in response to PRD in Cabernet Sauvignon fruit over two vintages. The changes in these compounds in the fruit were associated with increased levels of the carotenoids lutein and ß -carotene, which are potential precursors to the C₁₃-norisoprenoids. The results of the current study have shown that the regulation of C₁₃- norisoprenoid concentration in grapes and wine may not be primarily due to the level of incident light on developing bunches, although the presence of light is necessary for their production. Rather, the effect of deficit irrigation practices on whole-vine physiology and vine shoot vigour holds stronger potential as a tool for the viticultural manipulation of these compounds in fruit and wine.Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Wine and Agriculture, 200

Response of Grape and Wine Phenolic Composition in Vitis vinifera L. cv. Merlot to Variation in Grapevine Water Status

Grape and wine phenolic composition was monitored over two consecutive seasons in Vitis vinifera cv. Merlotfollowing application of irrigation treatments that produced seasonal average stem water potentials rangingbetween -0.7 MPa and -1.4 MPa. Fresh weight of berries was significantly reduced in response to water deficit,primarily due to decreases in pericarp weight. Increases in the concentration of grape anthocyanins andflavonols in response to water deficit were found when expressed per unit grape berry fresh weight. Skin-derivedtannin concentration in grape berries was not affected by the irrigation treatments. The concentration of grapederivedphenolics was monitored during five days of fermentation in a small-lot winemaking experiment. Duringfermentation, the concentration of anthocyanins and flavonols in wine were highest in the non-irrigated and lowfrequency-irrigated treatments, which was reflected in changes in the wine colour of ferments. Finished winesfrom non-irrigated and low frequency irrigated grapevines showed increases in bisulphite-resistant pigmentswhen compared with those irrigated at a high frequency, but differences in phenolic composition were minor.Increases in bisulphite-resistant pigments were associated with increases in vitisin A and polymeric pigmentin the first and second seasons of the study respectively. Ageing of wines for an 18-month period increasedbisulphite-resistant pigments, and treatment differences in wine colour density were enhanced, such thatincreases in both parameters were associated with the non-irrigated and low-frequency-irrigated treatments

Selection for twins in beef herds

International audienc

\u27It\u27s good to have wheels!\u27: Perceptions of cycling among homeless young people in Sydney, Australia

Participation in sporting or recreational programs can be unattainable for many disadvantaged young people. Encouraging regular cycling is an important public health strategy to increase participation in physical activity and expand personal transport options for marginalised youth. Perceptions and attitudes toward cycling were explored in eight focus groups, involving 47 young people who were experiencing or at risk of homelessness in central and south-western Sydney, Australia. The benefits of cycling for physical activity, personal transport, independence and social inclusion were recognised. Barriers to regular cycling included compliance with mandatory helmet legislation; a lack of cycling skills and experience; a paucity of cycling infrastructure and reliance on cars for personal transport; and access to affordable bicycles and equipment. A comprehensive multi-strategic approach that engages marginalised young people is required to improve access and enable increased participation in cycling activities