Evaluation of American (Sambucus canadensis) and European (S. nigra) elderberry genotypes grown in diverse environments and implications for cultivar development

American (Sambucus canadensis L.) elderberry genotypes were evaluated at multiple locations, whereas European (S. nigra L.) elderberry genotypes were evaluated at a single location to assess genotypic differences and, for genotypes evaluated at multiple locations, to determine genotype x environment interactions (G x E). Seventeen S. canadensis genotypes were planted in replicated trials at Missouri State University (Mountain Grove, MO) and at the University of Missouri (Mt. Vernon, MO) or at the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service in Oregon (Corvallis). \u27Johns\u27, \u27Netzer\u27, \u27Adams II\u27, and \u27Gordon B\u27 were in common at all locations. In addition, three genotypes of S. nigra, which are not winter-hardy in Missouri, were planted in Oregon. All plants were established in 2003 and evaluated in 2004, 2005, and, for some traits, in 2006. Plants were evaluated for phenology (e.g., dates of budbreak, first flowering, full flowering, and first ripening), vegetative growth (e.g., number of shoots and plant height), yield components (e.g., total yield, number of cymes, cyme weight, and berry weight), and for pest incidence (e.g., eriophyid mites). For the genotypes in common to all locations, there were significant differences resulting from genotype, location, year, and the interactions for various traits. Although the trend was for Corvallis to have the highest and Mt. Vernon the lowest yield, there was no significant location effect. The significant genotype x environment interaction appeared to be primarily the result of the differential performance of \u27Johns\u27, which was generally high-yielding in Corvallis and low-yielding at both Missouri locations. The significant G x E suggests that as the Missouri institutions develop new cultivars, it will be important to test them individually at other locations and not rely on their relative performance compared with standards in Missouri. For the genotypes in common to the two Missouri sites, there was significant variation for many traits. Although there were no differences among genotypes for yield across the locations, there was a significant G x E. Although there were some small changes in performance among the sites for yield, the most dramatic changes were for \u27Wyldewood 1\u27 that was the second highest yielding genotype at Mountain Grove and the second worst at Mt. Vernon. Plant growth in Oregon was 40% and 60% greater than at Mountain Grove and Mt. Vernon, respectively, when the plants were first measured. In Oregon, the two Sambucus species behaved differently. Phenologically, although the S. nigra genotypes flowered ≈3 weeks earlier than the S. canadensis genotypes, they ripened at the same time, thereby shortening their exposure to potential biotic and abiotic stress. \u27Johns\u27, \u27York\u27, \u27Golden\u27, and \u27Gordon B\u27 were the highest yielding S. canadensis genotypes and \u27Korsør\u27 the highest of the S. nigra genotypes. Although \u27Korser\u27 is considered high-yielding in Denmark, it did not yield as well as the highest yielding S. canadensis cultivars

Management of Primocane-fruiting Blackberry: Impacts on Yield, Fruiting Season, and Cane Architecture

Primocane management systems were compared for ‘Prime-Jan’® and ‘Prime-Jim’®, primocane-fruiting blackberry (Rubus L. subgenus Rubus, Watson), grown in a field planting in Aurora, OR. Treatments studied were: 1) no manipulation of primocanes (untipped; no floricanes); 2) untipped primocanes growing in the presence of floricanes; 3) untipped primocanes grown with rowcover in late winter to early spring; and 4) primocanes “soft-tipped” at 1 m to encourage branching. Date of primocane first bloom and cane height at bloom were unaffected by cultivar and were only affected by primocane management in 2005. The number of growing degree-days to first bloom ranged from 1272 to 1390 depending on year. Primocane management did not affect ovule or drupelet number per berry or percent drupelet set. ‘Prime-Jim’ had more drupelets and greater weight per berry in 2005 than ‘Prime-Jan’. Fruit harvested earlier in the season had more ovules and drupelets than later harvested fruit in 2004. Primocanes that grew in the presence of floricanes were longer and bloomed later but did not differ in yield from untipped canes grown only for a primocane crop. Use of rowcover in 2005 advanced bloom and harvest, improving yield 73% compared with untipped control canes. Soft-tipping primocanes increased yield 114% to 150% compared with untipped canes (5.6 vs. 2.4 t·ha⁻¹) through increasing branch and node number per cane and percentage of fruiting nodes; soft-tipping did not delay harvest. Yield/cane was negatively correlated with the number of fruiting canes/plot but positively correlated with branches/cane, total branch and cane length, number of nodes and percent fruiting nodes, fruit/cane, and berry weight. The proportion of fruiting nodes was greater on branches than on the main cane illustrating the importance of managing this type of blackberry to increase branch number for high yield.Keywords: Summer pruning, Fruit size, ‘Prime-Jim’®, Rubus, Tipping, Yield components, ‘Prime-Jan’

A comparison of fruit characteristics among diverse elderberry genotypes grown in Missouri and Oregon

Abstract. BACKGROUND: Elderberry (Sambucus spp.) fruit are used for food and dietary supplements in Europe and North America, and contain large amounts of cyanidin-based anthocyanins and other phenolics that may benefit human health. OBJECTIVES: Information on the effect of both genotype and production environment on elderberry juice characteristics is needed in order to optimize production of quality food and dietary supplements. METHODS: The characteristics of elderberry fruits relative to genetic and production environment were evaluated from 12 American elderberry genotypes at three U.S. sites (two in Missouri and one in Oregon) over three growing seasons. Additional genotypes of American and European elderberry were studied at the Oregon site. RESULTS: Location, genotype, and growing season influenced pH, soluble solids, titratable acidity, total phenolics, and total anthocyanins. Elderberries grown in Oregon were consistently higher in acidity than those grown in Missouri. Differences in acidity and anthocyanin with environment were dependent on genotype. Non-acylated anthocyanins and flavonol-glycosides were more influenced by location than by genotype. CONCLUSION: 'Bob Gordon' and 'Adams 2' genotypes, which are good producers in diverse environments, were significantly higher in total phenolic and total anthocyanin contents in all locations, and may be good selections for producing juices, wines, or health products

Search for gravitational wave bursts in LIGO's third science run

We report on a search for gravitational wave bursts in data from the three LIGO interferometric detectors during their third science run. The search targets subsecond bursts in the frequency range 100-1100 Hz for which no waveform model is assumed, and has a sensitivity in terms of the root-sum-square (rss) strain amplitude of hrss ~ 10^{-20} / sqrt(Hz). No gravitational wave signals were detected in the 8 days of analyzed data.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Amaldi-6 conference proceedings to be published in Classical and Quantum Gravit

Searching for a Stochastic Background of Gravitational Waves with LIGO

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) has performed the fourth science run, S4, with significantly improved interferometer sensitivities with respect to previous runs. Using data acquired during this science run, we place a limit on the amplitude of a stochastic background of gravitational waves. For a frequency independent spectrum, the new limit is $\Omega_{\rm GW} < 6.5 \times 10^{-5}$. This is currently the most sensitive result in the frequency range 51-150 Hz, with a factor of 13 improvement over the previous LIGO result. We discuss complementarity of the new result with other constraints on a stochastic background of gravitational waves, and we investigate implications of the new result for different models of this background.Comment: 37 pages, 16 figure

Quantum state preparation and macroscopic entanglement in gravitational-wave detectors

Long-baseline laser-interferometer gravitational-wave detectors are operating at a factor of 10 (in amplitude) above the standard quantum limit (SQL) within a broad frequency band. Such a low classical noise budget has already allowed the creation of a controlled 2.7 kg macroscopic oscillator with an effective eigenfrequency of 150 Hz and an occupation number of 200. This result, along with the prospect for further improvements, heralds the new possibility of experimentally probing macroscopic quantum mechanics (MQM) - quantum mechanical behavior of objects in the realm of everyday experience - using gravitational-wave detectors. In this paper, we provide the mathematical foundation for the first step of a MQM experiment: the preparation of a macroscopic test mass into a nearly minimum-Heisenberg-limited Gaussian quantum state, which is possible if the interferometer's classical noise beats the SQL in a broad frequency band. Our formalism, based on Wiener filtering, allows a straightforward conversion from the classical noise budget of a laser interferometer, in terms of noise spectra, into the strategy for quantum state preparation, and the quality of the prepared state. Using this formalism, we consider how Gaussian entanglement can be built among two macroscopic test masses, and the performance of the planned Advanced LIGO interferometers in quantum-state preparation

A Multilaboratory Comparison of Calibration Accuracy and the Performance of External References in Analytical Ultracentrifugation

Analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC) is a first principles based method to determine absolute sedimentation coefficients and buoyant molar masses of macromolecules and their complexes, reporting on their size and shape in free solution. The purpose of this multi-laboratory study was to establish the precision and accuracy of basic data dimensions in AUC and validate previously proposed calibration techniques. Three kits of AUC cell assemblies containing radial and temperature calibration tools and a bovine serum albumin (BSA) reference sample were shared among 67 laboratories, generating 129 comprehensive data sets. These allowed for an assessment of many parameters of instrument performance, including accuracy of the reported scan time after the start of centrifugation, the accuracy of the temperature calibration, and the accuracy of the radial magnification. The range of sedimentation coefficients obtained for BSA monomer in different instruments and using different optical systems was from 3.655 S to 4.949 S, with a mean and standard deviation of (4.304 ± 0.188) S (4.4%). After the combined application of correction factors derived from the external calibration references for elapsed time, scan velocity, temperature, and radial magnification, the range of s-values was reduced 7-fold with a mean of 4.325 S and a 6-fold reduced standard deviation of ± 0.030 S (0.7%). In addition, the large data set provided an opportunity to determine the instrument-to-instrument variation of the absolute radial positions reported in the scan files, the precision of photometric or refractometric signal magnitudes, and the precision of the calculated apparent molar mass of BSA monomer and the fraction of BSA dimers. These results highlight the necessity and effectiveness of independent calibration of basic AUC data dimensions for reliable quantitative studies

A multilaboratory comparison of calibration accuracy and the performance of external references in analytical ultracentrifugation.

Analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC) is a first principles based method to determine absolute sedimentation coefficients and buoyant molar masses of macromolecules and their complexes, reporting on their size and shape in free solution. The purpose of this multi-laboratory study was to establish the precision and accuracy of basic data dimensions in AUC and validate previously proposed calibration techniques. Three kits of AUC cell assemblies containing radial and temperature calibration tools and a bovine serum albumin (BSA) reference sample were shared among 67 laboratories, generating 129 comprehensive data sets. These allowed for an assessment of many parameters of instrument performance, including accuracy of the reported scan time after the start of centrifugation, the accuracy of the temperature calibration, and the accuracy of the radial magnification. The range of sedimentation coefficients obtained for BSA monomer in different instruments and using different optical systems was from 3.655 S to 4.949 S, with a mean and standard deviation of (4.304 ± 0.188) S (4.4%). After the combined application of correction factors derived from the external calibration references for elapsed time, scan velocity, temperature, and radial magnification, the range of s-values was reduced 7-fold with a mean of 4.325 S and a 6-fold reduced standard deviation of ± 0.030 S (0.7%). In addition, the large data set provided an opportunity to determine the instrument-to-instrument variation of the absolute radial positions reported in the scan files, the precision of photometric or refractometric signal magnitudes, and the precision of the calculated apparent molar mass of BSA monomer and the fraction of BSA dimers. These results highlight the necessity and effectiveness of independent calibration of basic AUC data dimensions for reliable quantitative studies

Intronic Cis-Regulatory Modules Mediate Tissue-Specific and Microbial Control of angptl4/fiaf Transcription

The intestinal microbiota enhances dietary energy harvest leading to increased fat storage in adipose tissues. This effect is caused in part by the microbial suppression of intestinal epithelial expression of a circulating inhibitor of lipoprotein lipase called Angiopoietin-like 4 (Angptl4/Fiaf). To define the cis-regulatory mechanisms underlying intestine-specific and microbial control of Angptl4 transcription, we utilized the zebrafish system in which host regulatory DNA can be rapidly analyzed in a live, transparent, and gnotobiotic vertebrate. We found that zebrafish angptl4 is transcribed in multiple tissues including the liver, pancreatic islet, and intestinal epithelium, which is similar to its mammalian homologs. Zebrafish angptl4 is also specifically suppressed in the intestinal epithelium upon colonization with a microbiota. In vivo transgenic reporter assays identified discrete tissue-specific regulatory modules within angptl4 intron 3 sufficient to drive expression in the liver, pancreatic islet β-cells, or intestinal enterocytes. Comparative sequence analyses and heterologous functional assays of angptl4 intron 3 sequences from 12 teleost fish species revealed differential evolution of the islet and intestinal regulatory modules. High-resolution functional mapping and site-directed mutagenesis defined the minimal set of regulatory sequences required for intestinal activity. Strikingly, the microbiota suppressed the transcriptional activity of the intestine-specific regulatory module similar to the endogenous angptl4 gene. These results suggest that the microbiota might regulate host intestinal Angptl4 protein expression and peripheral fat storage by suppressing the activity of an intestine-specific transcriptional enhancer. This study provides a useful paradigm for understanding how microbial signals interact with tissue-specific regulatory networks to control the activity and evolution of host gene transcription