Key factors that influence for seasonal production of Guinea grass

<div><p>ABSTRACT: Climate, soil and management are the main drives for growth and production of tropical pastures. Thus, a better understanding of the effects of these factors and their interactions under climate conditions is required to obtain effective management options. Here, we used data from two field trials to research on climate and management interactions on the production seasonality of Panicum maximum Jacq. Treatments included four sampling times (250, 500, 750, and 1000 °C accumulated) during eight regrowth period, under irrigated and rainfed conditions and, cuts were made to simulate grazing intensity. All treatments were arranged in a completely randomized block design with four replications. At each sampling time, basal tillers were sampled to observe meristematic differentiation and were linked with the respective daylength. Soil moisture was determined, and the water availability index (WAI) was calculated. The dry matter production (DMP) was taken and relative productivity was calculated. Soil moisture was the key seasonal drive in spring-summer and the WAI could be used to adjust the maximum production for that season. The major drive for DMP in fall was the daylength, which was found at 11.81 h. For all seasons, DMP correlated better with the residues in early regrowth phase (r = 0.82 and p < 0.0001) and with degree-days at final regrowth phase (r = 0.73 p < 0.01). Applying these critical values to management guidelines should make Guinea grass DMP more efficient on tropical farms.</p></div

Effect of 2DG treatment on parameters of renal function.

<p>Measurement of (A) creatinine clearance, (B) BUN clearance, and (C) uric acid clearance, in +/+ and Cy/+ rats upon treatment with 2DG or vehicle at baseline, 2.5 weeks and 5 weeks. Black, +/+ treated with vehicle; blue, +/+ treated with 2DG; red, Cy/+ treated with vehicle; green, Cy/+ treated with 2DG. *P<0.05, **P<0.01 when comparing Cy/+ 2DG and Cy/+ vehicle at each time point. ^#P<0.05, ^{# #} P<0.01 when comparing Cy/+ and +/+ group. (D) Urine albumin excretion in Cy/+ and +/+ rats after 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle. (E) SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of urine samples from Cy/+ and +/+ rats after 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle. (F) Lactate content in the kidneys of Cy/+ and +/+ rats after treatment with 2DG or vehicle.</p

Effect of 2DG treatment on cellular signaling pathways <i>in vivo</i>.

<p>Measurements of phosphorylation levels of (A) AMPK, (B) ERK, (C) S6K, and (D) Akt using Western blot analysis in the kidneys of 10 week old +/+ and Cy/+ rats following 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle.</p

Effect of 2DG treatment on kidney weight and morphology in Han:SPRD Cy/+ rats.

<p>(A) Representative images of periodic acid-Schiff staining of kidneys from 10 week old +/+ and Cy/+ rats after 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle. (B) Ratio of total kidney weight (TKW) to body weight (BW) in 10 week old Cy/+ rats after 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle. (C). Cyst index in kidneys from Cy/+ rats after 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle. (D) Frequency distribution of the cyst size, and (E) total number of cysts, in kidneys from Cy/+ rats following 5-week treatment with 2DG or vehicle.</p

Increased glycolytic phenotype in polycystic kidney disease.

<p>(A) Intracellular ATP content in primary cell cultures of tubular epithelial cells isolated from kidneys of Cy/+ and +/+ rats. (B) Lactate concentration in the medium of primary cell cultures of tubular epithelial cells isolated from kidneys of Cy/+ and +/+ rats. (C) Cell growth of primary renal Cy/+ cells upon incubation with increasing concentrations of 2DG, as assessed by the MTS assay. (D) Intracellular ATP content in primary cell cultures of ADPKD and NHK cells. (E) Lactate concentration in the medium of primary cell cultures of ADPKD and NHK cells. (F) Effect of 2DG on cell proliferation of human ADPKD cells and control NHK cells, as quantified by BrdU assay. (G) Effect of 2DG on apoptosis of human ADPKD cells and control NHK cells, as analyzed with annexin-V/propidium iodide (PI) staining using flow cytometry.</p

Dysregulation of the glycolysis and gluconeogenesis pathways in rat polycystic kidney disease.

<p>(A) Microarray analysis showing differential expression of genes coding for glycolysis and gluconeogenesis enzymes in Han:SPRD Cy/+ and wild-type +/+ kidneys. Upregulated genes are shown in red, and downregulated genes are shown in green. (B) Schematic diagram showing the glycolysis/gluconeogenesis cascades. In red, upregulated genes; green, downregulated genes; black, genes unchanged in kidneys from Cy/+ rats compared with wild-type +/+ kidneys. (C) Real-time quantitative PCR analysis of genes coding for key enzymes involved in glycolysis/gluconeogenesis in kidneys from Cy/+ rats and +/+ rats. (D) Real-time quantitative PCR analysis of the hexokinase-1 (Hk1) and hexokinase-2 (Hk2) genes in primary cell cultures of human ADPKD and control NHK cells. The expression levels of β-actin were used as a housekeeping gene.</p

Schematic diagram showing the interplay of various signaling pathways involved in the regulation of glycolysis in polycystic kidney disease.

<p>Schematic diagram showing the interplay of various signaling pathways involved in the regulation of glycolysis in polycystic kidney disease.</p

Effect of DAPA on renal histology.

<p>Representative renal histology by periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining of kidneys in vehicle- treated (CON) PCK (A,E) and normal SD (C,G) rats and in DAPA-treated PCK (B,F) and normal SD (D,H) rats. Scale bar is 2000 μm in A and B and 500 μm in C and D.</p

Effect of DAPA on kidney volume and cystic index.

<p>Typical 2D transverse power Doppler ultrasound images of a kidney in CON- and DAPA-treated PCK rats. The red areas represent a power Doppler signal consistent with blood flow within the renal vasculature. The maximum scan distance between cranial and caudal poles of the kidney was 28 mm. The slice thickness between scanning planes was 0.072 mm with a maximum of 500 slices (A, B). Change in kidney volume (C), cyst volume (D), cystic index (E) and number of cysts (F) in PCK rats. N = 6 rats or 12 kidneys per group. Columns represent means ± SE. *<i>P</i><0.05, **<i>P</i><0.01, ns = non-significant.</p

Effect of DAPA on renal cAMP content.

<p>Analysis of cAMP concentration per mg protein in PCK rat kidneys treated with vehicle (CON) or dapagliflozin (DAPA). N = 8 per group. Columns represent means ± SE. ns = non-significant.</p