13 research outputs found
Does nitrate deposition following astrophysical ionizing radiation events pose an additional threat to amphibians?
It is known that amphibians are especially susceptible to the combination of
heightened UVB radiation and increased nitrate concentrations. Various
astrophysical events have been suggested as sources of ionizing radiation that
could pose a threat to life on Earth, through destruction of the ozone layer
and subsequent increase in UVB, followed by deposition of nitrate. In this
study, we investigate whether the nitrate deposition following an ionizing
event is sufficiently large to cause an additional stress beyond that of the
heightened UVB previously considered. We have converted predicted nitrate
depositions to concentration values, utilizing data from the New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation Acid Rain Monitoring Network web site.
Our results show that the increase in nitrate concentration in bodies of water
following the most intense ionization event likely in the last billion years
would not be sufficient to cause a serious additional stress on amphibian
populations and may actually provide some benefit by acting as fertilizer.Comment: This version is a longer, more detailed draft of an article submitted
to the journal Astrobiolog
Gaeumannomyces graminis, the take-all fungus and its relatives
Take-all, caused by the fungus Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici, is the most important root disease of wheat worldwide. Many years of intensive research, reflected by the large volume of literature on take-all, has led to a considerable degree of understanding of many aspects of the disease. However, effective and economic control of the disease remains difficult. The application of molecular techniques to study G. graminis and related fungi has resulted in some significant advances, particularly in the development of improved methods for identification and in elucidating the role of the enzyme avenacinase as a pathogenicity determinant in the closely related oat take-all fungus (G. graminis var. avenae). Some progress in identifying other factors that may be involved in determining host range and pathogenicity has been made, despite the difficulties of performing genetic analyses and the lack of a reliable transformation system.Peer reviewe
Environmental pollution control in pigs by using nutrition tools
An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of different fluorine:phosphorus ratios in the diet on performance of broiler chickens. One thousand broiler chickens with one day old were allotted to a completely randomized experimental design with four treatments with five replications of fifty broilers per experimental unit. The treatments was composed by four phosphorus sources with fluorine: phosphorus ratios of 1:40, 1:60,1:80, 1:100 and fed during three experimental phases: 1-21, 22-42 and 43-49 days. In each phase, feed intake, weight gain and feed conversion were evaluated. At the end of experiment, two birds per replication were slaughtered and their tibias and samples of muscle tissue from breast were collec