LED en energiezuinigheid en kwaliteit bij Red Naomi!

In order to achieve a signifi cant energy saving, WUR Greenhouse Horticulture and Delphy conducted research under a lighting system with Deep Red / Blue Top- LED. Objectives were consistent growth by uniform light level, improvement of fl ower size and stem weight and 25% saving on electricity. In the summer of 2016, the climate through LED and cooling using OPAC heat exchangers was nice for good quality roses. In the winter 2016/2017 the quality of the roses was strongly reduced by the occurrence of small leaves, many 7 leafl ets leaves and small buds. The colour of leaf, fl ower and stem became too dark and had a high thorn density. In spring these effects became less severe, with positive effect on quality. The reason for the quality deterioration has been extensively discussed. Temperature, cutting strategy and light spectrum are considered. Despite the quality problems, production in stems and kg per m2 was fi ne. The light use effi ciency in the full-LED test was similar to that of the SON-T test a year earlier. The energy saving for lighting achieved the desired 25%. However, more heat must be added to allow the crop to experience a higher temperature, especially at times when there is only artifi cial ligh

Vervolgonderzoek emissiearme Lisianthus

Lisianthus growers look for methods to minimise the emission of nutrients, crop protection chemicals and CO2. In 2014 and 2015, nine crops with Lisianthus have been tested at the Delphy Improvement Centre. This report describes the four trials that have been carried out in the extended research in 2016. With this extension, a distinction was made between different substrates and intensities of assimilation lighting. In addition to knowledge about light use efficiency, water use, heat use, substrate differences and growth development, these extra crop cycles have brought to light that growing Lisianthus on substrate gives a less resilient plant against soil fungi than was experienced during the first crop cycles

LED in rozen het moet beter!

Red Naomi! roses were grown under full LED and cooling in the summer of 2017 in a similar way as in 2016 with good results. At the end of October 2017, LEDs with an adapted spectrum were placed in 1/3 of the compartment. The quality problem again occurred under the red /blue spectrum, but in a lesser degree. Equal input of heat via the OPACs and pipe rail system had a favourable effect on the temperature distribution in the crop and thus on the development of the stems. Also crop treatments such as cutting strategy and bending have contributed to a better quality. The adjusted spectrum gave slightly larger buds, larger leaves and less thorns. That the “syndrome” was clearly less present under the adjusted spectrum has been confirmed by measures of flower properties, such as bud size, leaf size and number of thorns. In order to achieve sufficient dynamics in air humidity within a 24-hour period, the lightemission screen could not be completely closed. The energy target of 25% savings is realized when compared to a situation where the SON-T would be used as the LED for an equal number of hours. All the heat needed for cultivation, even when using LED lighting, can be collected in the summer by cooling the greenhouse and storage in an aquifer. The shelf life of roses grown under LED was comparable to that of a practical company. The research was conducted by Wageningen University & Research and Delphy in the context of Kas als Energiebron

Regulation of the host immune system by helminth parasites

Helminth parasite infections are associated with a battery of immunomodulatory mechanisms, which impact all facets of the host immune response to ensure their persistence within the host. This broad-spectrum modulation of host immunity has intended and unintended consequences, both advantageous and disadvantageous. Thus the host may benefit from suppression of collateral damage during parasite infection, and from reduced allergic, autoimmune and inflammatory reactions. However, helminth infection can also be detrimental in reducing vaccine responses, increasing susceptibility to co-infection, and potentially reducing tumor immunosurveillance. In this review we will summarize the panoply of immunomodulatory mechanisms used by helminths, their potential utility in human disease, and prospective areas of future research

LED in rozen het moet beter!

Red Naomi! roses were grown under full LED and cooling in the summer of 2017 in a similar way as in 2016 with good results. At the end of October 2017, LEDs with an adapted spectrum were placed in 1/3 of the compartment. The quality problem again occurred under the red /blue spectrum, but in a lesser degree. Equal input of heat via the OPACs and pipe rail system had a favourable effect on the temperature distribution in the crop and thus on the development of the stems. Also crop treatments such as cutting strategy and bending have contributed to a better quality. The adjusted spectrum gave slightly larger buds, larger leaves and less thorns. That the “syndrome” was clearly less present under the adjusted spectrum has been confirmed by measures of flower properties, such as bud size, leaf size and number of thorns. In order to achieve sufficient dynamics in air humidity within a 24-hour period, the lightemission screen could not be completely closed. The energy target of 25% savings is realized when compared to a situation where the SON-T would be used as the LED for an equal number of hours. All the heat needed for cultivation, even when using LED lighting, can be collected in the summer by cooling the greenhouse and storage in an aquifer. The shelf life of roses grown under LED was comparable to that of a practical company. The research was conducted by Wageningen University & Research and Delphy in the context of Kas als Energiebron

Paprika energie zuinig met goede kwaliteit

Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture and Delphy conducted an experiment with sweet pepper -cultivar Maranello- on the Improvement Centre. Objectives were: Cultivate with a double screen in order to minimize radiation loss and to prevent climate shocks. Gas use for heating below 20 m³/m². The production started at the normal time after planting. The plant load was relatively high throughout the growing cycle. This resulted in a relatively low average fruit weight in the second half of the growing period. The production measured right after harvesting was 35.8 kg.m-² with an average fruit weight of 189 grams. The gas consumption amounted 16.9 m³.m-². The average daily temperature was around 20°C + 2°C / 1000 J.cm-².day-¹. A Luxous 1147 FR screen was 4614 hours fully deployed and a Luxous 1547 D FR screen was fully deployed for 4196 hours. The measurements of a net of radiation meter showed that because of the intensive screen use there have been almost no moments with a high net of radiation loss from the crop. Below the screens nivolators were used to realize a gentle air movement in the upper part of the crop. Hardly any infestation of fruitrot has been found. The results of this experiment fi t well with the newly developed cropping strategies in “Het Nieuwe Telen” aiming on keeping a proper plant balance and the reduction of radiation losses from the crop. This project was funded by Kas als Energiebron

Duurzaamheid als leidraad voor roos : vervolg onderzoek Perfecte Roos: energiezuinig geteeld

The project Sustainable rose cultivation aimed to achieve a sustainable and energy efficient rose cultivation by a controlled use of assimilation lighting, an optimum use of the cooling and an integrated control strategy for mildew. The production came to 320 stems.m-2 average weight 54 grams. The branch length and bud size varied through the season. There was no saving on electricity. There was a significant saving on heat. The improvement of the energy efficiency was totally determined by the reduction of the heat consumption. The light utilization efficiency was 2:44 g.mol-¹ and increased compared to the previous year. Cooling and forced ventilation had a positive effect on the stem elongation in the autumn. The installation with forced ventilation from above combined with the screen had a favourable effect on the climate, especially in the humidity control under a largely (95-98%) closed screen. The payback period of the investment in airconditioning is within 3 years

Antagonistic activity towards the androgen receptor independent from natural sex hormones in human milk samples from the Norwegian HUMIS cohort

In this paper, we investigated the possible presence of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) based on measuring the total estrogenic and androgenic activity in human milk samples. We used specific bioassays for analysis of the endocrine activity of estrogens and estrogen-like EDCs and androgens and androgen-like EDCs and developed a separation method to evaluate the contribution from natural hormones in comparison to that of EDCs to total endocrine activities. We extracted ten random samples originating from the Norwegian HUMIS biobank of human milk and analyzed their agonistic or antagonistic activity using the ERα- and AR CALUX® bioassays. The study showed antagonistic activity towards the androgen receptor in 8 out of 10 of the assessed human milk samples, while 2 out of 10 samples showed agonistic activity for the ERα. Further investigations demonstrated anti-androgenic activity in the polar fraction of 9 out of 10 samples while no apolar extracts scored positive. The culprit chemicals causing the measured antagonistic activity in AR CALUX was investigated through liquid chromatography fractionation coupled to bioanalysis and non-target screening involving UHPLC-Q-TOF-MS/MS, using a pooled polar extract. The analysis revealed that the measured anti-androgenic biological activity could not be explained by the presence of endogenous hormones nor their metabolites. We have demonstrated that human milk of Norwegian mothers contained anti-androgenic activity which is most likely associated with the presence of anthropogenic polar EDCs without direct interferences from natural sex hormones. These findings warrant a larger scale investigation into endocrine biological activity in human milk, as well as exploring the chemical sources of the activity and their potential effects on health of the developing infant

Effect-directed analysis and chemical identification of agonists of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors in white button mushroom

Obesity has a serious effect on human health. It relates to metabolic syndrome, including the associated disorders such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke and hyperemia. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are important receptors to control fat metabolism in the human body. Because of the safety concerns of synthetic drugs targeting PPARs, ligands from natural sources have drawn interest. Earlier, we have found high PPAR activities in extracts from Agaricus bisporus (white button mushroom, WBM). WBM contains a wide range of candidate compounds which could be agonists of PPARs. To identify which compounds are responsible for PPAR activation by WBM extracts, we used fractionation coupled to effect-directed analysis with reporter gene assays specific for all three PPARs for purification and LC/MS-TOF and NMR for compound identification in purified active fractions. Surprisingly, we identified the relatively common dietary fatty acid, linoleic acid, as the main ligand of PPARs in WBM. Possibly, the relatively low levels of linoleic acid in WBM are sufficient and instrumental in inducing its anti-obesogenic effects, avoiding high energy intake and negative health effects associated with high levels of linoleic acid consumption. However, it could not be excluded that a minor relatively potent compound contributes towards PPAR activation, while the anti-obesity effects of WBM may be further enhanced by receptor expression modulating compounds or compounds with completely PPAR unrelated modes of action