Understory influence on leafroller pupunations in Hawke's bay organic apple orchard

Leafrollers (Tortricidae) were collected from apple foliage and understorey vegetation in six commercial organic apple orchards in Hawke’s Bay over one season. Assessments were made of plant species present in the understorey at the time of collection. All leafroller larvae were reared to adults on artificial diet to identify leafroller species and parasitoids. Nearly half (47%) of all leafrollers collected in these orchards were located in the understorey, highlighting the importance of understorey and its management for the control of leafroller. Dock, clover and dandeliontype plants contributed 25% to the overall understorey, yet hosted 75% of the leafrollers collected from the understorey. Dolichogenidea sp. was the most abundant parasitoid (79%) attacking leafrollers found amongst the apple foliage, whereas Glyptapanteles demeter was dominant in the understorey (61%). Generally the number of leafrollers in an orchard was proportional to the abundance of broadleaf weeds and inversely proportional to parasitis

Fibre optic sensors for high speed hypervelocity impact studies and low velocity drop tests

The initial aim of this project was to develop a non-contact fibre optic based displacement sensor to operate in the harsh environment of a 'Light Gas Gun' (LGG), which can 'fire' small particles at velocities ranging from 1-8.4 km/s. The LGG is used extensively for research in aerospace to analyze the effects of high speed impacts on materials. Ideally the measurement should be made close to the centre of the impact to minimise corruption of the data from edge effects and survive the impact. A further requirement is that it should operate at a stand-off distance of ~ 8cm. For these reasons we chose to develop a pseudo con-focal intensity sensor, which demonstrated resolution comparable with conventional PVDF sensors combined with high survivability and low cost. A second sensor was developed based on 'Fibre Bragg Gratings' (FBG) which although requiring contact with the target the low weight and very small contact area had minimal effect on the dynamics of the target. The FBG was mounted either on the surface of the target or tangentially between a fixed location. The output signals from the FBG were interrogated in time by a new method. Measurements were made on composite and aluminium plates in the LGG and on low speed drop tests. The particle momentum for the drop tests was chosen to be similar to that of the particles used in the LGG

The relationship between fibrogenic TGFβ1 signaling in the joint and cartilage degradation in post-injury osteoarthritis

SummaryObjectiveTo review the literature on modulation of chondrocyte activities in the osteoarthritic joint, and to discuss these changes in relation to established hard and soft tissue repair paradigms, with an emphasis on transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ1)-mediated signaling which can promote either a chondrogenic or fibrogenic phenotype.MethodsPapers addressing the close relationship between repair in general, and the specific post-injury response of joint tissues are summarized. Different interpretations of the role of TGFβ1 in the emergence of an “osteoarthritic” chondrocyte are compared and the phenotypic plasticity of “reparative” progenitor cells is examined. Lastly, emerging data on a central role for A-Disintegrin-And-Metalloproteinase-with-Thrombospondin-like-Sequences-5 (ADAMTS5) activity in modulating TGFβ1 signaling through activin receptor-like kinase 1 (ALK1) and activin receptor-like kinase 5 (ALK5) pathways is discussed.ResultsThe review illustrates how a transition from ALK5-mediated fibrogenic signaling to ALK1-mediated chondrogenic signaling in joint cells represents the critical transition from a non-reparative to a reparative cell phenotype. Data from cell and in vivo studies illustrates the mechanism by which ablation of ADAMTS5 activity allows the transition to reparative chondrogenesis. Multiple large gene expression studies of normal and osteoarthritis (OA) human cartilages (CAs) also support an important role for TGFβ1-mediated pro-fibrogenic activities during disease progression.ConclusionsWe conclude that progressive articular CA damage in post-injury OA results primarily from biomechanical, cell biologic and mediator changes that promote a fibroblastic phenotype in joint cells. Since ADAMTS5 and TGFβ1 appear to control this process, agents which interfere with their activities may not only enhance endogenous CA repair in vivo, but also improve the properties of tissue-engineered CA for implantation

What fraction of stars formed in infrared galaxies at high redshift?

Star formation happens in two types of environment: ultraviolet-bright starbursts (like 30 Doradus and HII galaxies at low redshift and Lyman-break galaxies at high redshift) and infrared-bright dust-enshrouded regions (which may be moderately star-forming like Orion in the Galaxy or extreme like the core of Arp 220). In this work I will estimate how many of the stars in the local Universe formed in each type of environment, using observations of star-forming galaxies at all redshifts at different wavelengths and of the evolution of the field galaxy population.Comment: 7 pages, 0 figs, to appear in proceedings of "Starbursts - From 30 Doradus to Lyman break galaxies", edited by Richard de Grijs and Rosa M. Gonzalez Delgado, published by Kluwe

Regulation, sensory domains and roles of two Desulfovibrio desulfuricans ATCC27774 Crp family transcription factors, HcpR1 and HcpR2, in response to nitrosative stress

In silico analyses identified a Crp/Fnr family transcription factor (HcpR) in sulfate-reducing bacteria that controls expression of the hcp gene, which encodes the hybrid cluster protein and contributes to nitrosative stress responses. There is only one hcpR gene in the model sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough, but two copies in D. desulfuricans 27774, which can use nitrate as an alternative electron acceptor to sulfate. Structures of the D. desulfuricans hcpR1, hcpR2 and hcp operons are reported. We present evidence that hcp expression is regulated by HcpR2, not by HcpR1, and that these two regulators differ in both their DNA-binding site specificity and their sensory domains. HcpR1 is predicted to be a b-type cytochrome. HcpR1 binds upstream of the hcpR1 operon and its synthesis is regulated coordinately with hcp in response to NO. In contrast, hcpR2 expression was not induced by nitrate, nitrite or NO. HcpR2 is an iron-sulfur protein that reacts with NO and O2 . We propose that HcpR1 and HcpR2 use different sensory mechanisms to regulate subsets of genes required for defense against NO-induced nitrosative stress, and that diversification of signal perception and DNA recognition by these two proteins is a product of D. desulfuricans adaptation to its particular environmental niche. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Subject-specific, multiscale simulation of electrophysiology: a software pipeline for image-based models and application examples

Many simulation studies in biomedicine are based on a similar sequence of processing steps, starting from images and running through geometric model generation, assignment of tissue properties, numerical simulation and visualization of the results—a process known as image-based geometric modelling and simulation. We present an overview of software systems for implementing such a sequence both within highly integrated problem-solving environments and in the form of loosely integrated pipelines. Loose integration in this case indicates that individual programs function largely independently but communicate through files of a common format and support simple scripting, so as to automate multiple executions wherever possible. We then describe three specific applications of such pipelines to translational biomedical research in electrophysiology

Distribution function approach to redshift space distortions. Part IV: perturbation theory applied to dark matter

We develop a perturbative approach to redshift space distortions (RSD) using the phase space distribution function approach and apply it to the dark matter redshift space power spectrum and its moments. RSD can be written as a sum over density weighted velocity moments correlators, with the lowest order being density, momentum density and stress energy density. We use standard and extended perturbation theory (PT) to determine their auto and cross correlators, comparing them to N-body simulations. We show which of the terms can be modeled well with the standard PT and which need additional terms that include higher order corrections which cannot be modeled in PT. Most of these additional terms are related to the small scale velocity dispersion effects, the so called finger of god (FoG) effects, which affect some, but not all, of the terms in this expansion, and which can be approximately modeled using a simple physically motivated ansatz such as the halo model. We point out that there are several velocity dispersions that enter into the detailed RSD analysis with very different amplitudes, which can be approximately predicted by the halo model. In contrast to previous models our approach systematically includes all of the terms at a given order in PT and provides a physical interpretation for the small scale dispersion values. We investigate RSD power spectrum as a function of \mu, the cosine of the angle between the Fourier mode and line of sight, focusing on the lowest order powers of \mu and multipole moments which dominate the observable RSD power spectrum. Overall we find considerable success in modeling many, but not all, of the terms in this expansion.Comment: 37 pages, 13 figures, published in JCA

Universality classes in Burgers turbulence

We establish necessary and sufficient conditions for the shock statistics to approach self-similar form in Burgers turbulence with L\'{e}vy process initial data. The proof relies upon an elegant closure theorem of Bertoin and Carraro and Duchon that reduces the study of shock statistics to Smoluchowski's coagulation equation with additive kernel, and upon our previous characterization of the domains of attraction of self-similar solutions for this equation

Cosmological Parameters Degeneracies and Non-Gaussian Halo Bias

We study the impact of the cosmological parameters uncertainties on the measurements of primordial non-Gaussianity through the large-scale non-Gaussian halo bias effect. While this is not expected to be an issue for the standard LCDM model, it may not be the case for more general models that modify the large-scale shape of the power spectrum. We consider the so-called local non-Gaussianity model and forecasts from planned surveys, alone and combined with a Planck CMB prior. In particular, we consider EUCLID- and LSST-like surveys and forecast the correlations among $f_{\rm NL}$ and the running of the spectral index $\alpha_s$, the dark energy equation of state $w$, the effective sound speed of dark energy perturbations $c^2_s$, the total mass of massive neutrinos $M_\nu=\sum m_\nu$, and the number of extra relativistic degrees of freedom $N_\nu^{rel}$. Neglecting CMB information on $f_{\rm NL}$ and scales $k > 0.03 h$/Mpc, we find that, if $N_\nu^{\rm rel}$ is assumed to be known, the uncertainty on cosmological parameters increases the error on $f_{\rm NL}$ by 10 to 30% depending on the survey. Thus the $f_{\rm NL}$ constraint is remarkable robust to cosmological model uncertainties. On the other hand, if $N_\nu^{\rm rel}$ is simultaneously constrained from the data, the $f_{\rm NL}$ error increases by $\sim 80$. Finally, future surveys which provide a large sample of galaxies or galaxy clusters over a volume comparable to the Hubble volume can measure primordial non-Gaussianity of the local form with a marginalized 1--$\sigma$ error of the order $\Delta f_{\rm NL} \sim 2-5$, after combination with CMB priors for the remaining cosmological parameters. These results are competitive with CMB bispectrum constraints achievable with an ideal CMB experiment.Comment: 17 pages, 1 figure added, typos corrected, comments added, matches the published versio

Single Nucleotide Variants And Indels Identified From Whole-genome Re-sequencing Of Guzerat, Gyr, Girolando And Holstein Cattle Breeds

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Whole-genome re-sequencing, alignment and annotation analyses were undertaken for 12 sires representing four important cattle breeds in Brazil: Guzerat (multi-purpose), Gyr, Girolando and Holstein (dairy production). A total of approximately 4.3 billion reads from an Illumina HiSeq 2000 sequencer generated for each animal 10.7 to 16.4-fold genome coverage. A total of 27,441,279 single nucleotide variations (SNVs) and 3,828,041 insertions/deletions (InDels) were detected in the samples, of which 2,557,670 SNVs and 883,219 InDels were novel. The submission of these genetic variants to the dbSNP database significantly increased the number of known variants, particularly for the indicine genome. The concordance rate between genotypes obtained using the Bovine HD BeadChip array and the same variants identified by sequencing was about 99.05%. The annotation of variants identified numerous non-synonymous SNVs and frameshift InDels which could affect phenotypic variation. Functional enrichment analysis was performed and revealed that variants in the olfactory transduction pathway was over represented in all four cattle breeds, while the ECM-receptor interaction pathway was over represented in Girolando and Guzerat breeds, the ABC transporters pathway was over represented only in Holstein breed, and the metabolic pathways was over represented only in Gyr breed. The genetic variants discovered here provide a rich resource to help identify potential genomic markers and their associated molecular mechanisms that impact economically important traits for Gyr, Girolando, Guzerat and Holstein breeding programs. © 2017 Stafuzza et al.This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.123Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e TecnológicoCAPES, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível SuperiorFAPEMIG, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas GeraisConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES