Field Performance of Winter Lupins.

End of Project ReportThe yield potential of winter lupins is of the order of 3.5–4.5 t/ha. However, this potential is very dependent on sowing during the optimum sowing window of approximately fifteen days. Crops sown between the 11 and 26 September gave the highest yields. However, there can be significant variation around this date which cannot be predicted in advance. This became very evident in crops sown in autumn 2000, where the Rothamsted model identified the 4-19 September as the optimum sowing date. This fact creates a serious risk for the commercial exploitation of winter lupins. Maximum yields are achieved at a plant density of between 20 and 29 plants/m2 in spring. Higher plant densities can result in lodging and a loss in yield. Using the recommended seed rate of 40 seeds/m2, equivalent to 98 kg/ha, will ensure the correct plant density over a wide range of conditions. Pest and diseases are not a serious problem in winter lupin production. The only serious pest, Bean Seed Fly, is easily controlled by routine use of an insecticide before sowing. Yellow Rust, which attacks the crop occasionally, can be adequately controlled by two fungicides, Alto and Folicur. Winter lupins should be grown on light to medium well-drained soils only. Sowing on heavy or poorly drained soils can result in very high seedling losses over the winter period, and can also seriously delay the natural maturation process in lupins, resulting in a late September harvest. The variety Ludet proved to be the best all round variety in these trials. It combines good yield potential with a relatively early harvest. New varieties are required which are less sensitive to sowing date before winter lupins can be regarded as a safe reliable crop for commercial production

The potential of new crop introductions

End of Project ReportAs part of the ongoing Alternative Crops research programme at Oak Park five new crop species were evaluated. The three oilseeds, Turnip rape, Winter linseed and Sunflowers produced promising results with a potential for commercialisation. Commercial development depends, to a large extent, on the provisions of an oilseed crushing facility in Ireland. Phacelia performs well and is an option for set-aside management or as a means of reducing nitrate leaching. Meadowfoam development, in terms of breeding agriculturally acceptable varieties, has still some way to go before the crop could be considered as a commercially viable proposition. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the field performance of a number of crop species not previously grown in Ireland. Although the species evaluated, Turnip rape (Brassica rapa, var. annua) Winter linseed (Linum usitatissimum), Sunflowers (Helianthus annuus L.), Phacelia and Meadowfoam (Limanthes alba), are widely grown in other EU countries very little data is available on their agronomic performance in Ireland.European Union Structural Funds (EAGGF

The Performance of Cannabis Sativa (HEMP) as a Fibre Source for Medium Density Fibre Board (MDF).

End of Project ReportIndustrial hemp (Cannabis sativa) was successfully grown over a three-year period without the use of agrochemicals, and with a relatively low input of nitrogen fertilizer at 120 kg/ha (96 units/ac). The yields achieved were encouraging at an average of 12.5 t/ha of whole stems at 15% m.c. over the three years. Sowing in early- to mid-April at a seed rate of half the conventional recommended rate of 50 kg/ha proved to be sufficient to achieve the maximum yield of stems where long fibre yield and finess (quality) are not required. For this study the hemp was produced as a raw material for the fibre board industry, where the whole stem and not just the long blast fibre is required. Hemp is relatively disease-free with Botrytis and Sclerotinia the only diseases encountered. For both, spraying is not possible due to the height of the crop. Infection rarely causes economic losses. Harvesting hemp proved difficult with conventional farm harvesting equipment. The development of the hemp crop as an industrial raw material will require the development of harvesting, chopping and storage techniques that can cope with the height, bulk and fibrous nature of the crop

Effect of Variety, Sowing Date and Photo-Degradable Plastic Cover on the Yield and Quality of Maize Silage

End of Project ReportThe use of plastic in forage maize production has the potential to pollute the field and silo. Whether photo- or bio-degradable, the plastic needs to be durable enough to provide cover for the critical period of early growth, but break down quickly enough to avoid contamination of the silo or the field after harvest. The objectives of the present three-year experiment were to examine: The effect of complete plastic cover on the performance of the maize crop in Ireland. The suitability of varieties to the various cover systems. The duration of cover needed by the crop. The potential of cover to advance the harvest date. During the trial, a number of modifications to the complete cover system were introduced, including the addition of a sprayer positioned between the sowing and polythene-laying mechanism to allow the application of a pre-emergence herbicide. Because of these on-going modifications the results of the three years (2000-2) of the study are presented separately

Evaluation of Camelina Sativa as an Alternative Oilseed Crop

End of Project ReportThe increasing awareness of the value of oils with a low content of saturated fat and a high proportion of OMEGA-3 to OMEGA-6 type fatty acids has focused attention on finding commercial sources of such oils. Camelina has been identified as a useful plant source. Camelina (Camelina sativa), a member of the mustard family, is an oilseed plant with both summer annual and winter hardy biennial forms. A series of field trials were conducted over a three-year period, as part of an EUsponsored research programme across four countries. The objective was to establish the potential of winter hardy varieties of camelina, grown without the use of herbicides, fungicides or pesticides, as a commercial source of a high quality oil for human consumption. The study has shown that winter camelina cannot produce an economic yield in Ireland where the use of herbicides and fungicides are excluded. The relatively mild wet winters encountered in Ireland result in very high levels of weed competition. The resultant dense, wet canopy encourages high levels of disease infection and creates conditions where excessive lodging occurs early in the season. The result is difficult harvesting conditions and low yields. The herbicide Trifluralin (Treflan) incorporated into the seedbed before sowing was identified as an effective herbicide for camelina. However, the full potential of the winter crop, using herbicides and an effective disease control programme, remains to be established.European Union Framework Programm

Improving yield and quality of forage maize.

End of Project ReportMaize silage is recognised world-wide as a high quality winter feed for livestock. Attempts to introduce the crop to Ireland in the early 1970’s failed because of the lack of suitable varieties. The release of maize varieties adapted to the colder North European and Irish climates has for the first time offered Irish beef and dairy farmers the opportunity to exploit the valuable assets of this crop. The transfer of the technology of growing maize under photodegradable polythene developed in France could further enhance the development of forage maize production in Ireland. The results presented show that the early type hybids released over the past five years are capable of producing high yields of high quality silage in selected sites across Ireland. To achieve satisfactory yields, site selection, early sowing and the use of adapted early maturing varieties is essential. Sowing maize through a photodegradable polythene film laid on the soil surface has proved successful. This technique can increase yields on average by 3.5 t/ha, increase dry matter content by 5% and starch content by ten percentage points. The system also advances maturity by approximately three weeks, guaranteeing that on most farms the maize crop will be mature and ready for harvest before the first heavy autumn frost

Factors affecting the composition and use of camelina

End of Project ReportCamelina (Camelina sativa), a member of the mustard family, is a summer annual oilseed plant. Winter hardy types also exist. False flax and Gold of Pleasure are the popular common names for the crop. The crop was widely grown in Eastern Europe and Russia up to the early 1940’s but was replaced with the introduction and widespread use of oilseed rape. The revival of interest in camelina oil is due to its high linolenic acid (38%) content. Linolenic acid is one of the OMEGA-3 fatty acids which are generally found in substantial quantities only in linseed and fish oils. Camelina offers an opportunity to supply the growing demand for high quality edible oils rich in OMEGA-3 fatty acids. A three year study established that camelina is a very suitable crop to grow in Ireland, producing 2.5 t/ha of high quality seed (42-47%) with no agrochemical inputs required. The oil contains 35 to 40% linolenic acid compared to 8% in rape and soya oils. The oil does not deteriorate during refining or storage and can be used in a number of oil based products such as spreads and salad dressings.European Union Structural Funds (EAGGF

Factors affecting the yield of winter lupins.

End of Project ReportThe white lupin (Lupinus albus) is a temperate legume whose seed contains high levels of protein (36-44%), oil (10-16%) and high quality dietary fibre in the dry matter. Modern varieties contain extremely low levels of alkaloids (<0.01%) and no anti-nutritional factors. Thus their composition is more similar to soya bean than peas and beans, which contain much less protein (23-27%) and no oil. Nitrogen fixation by autumn-sown, determinate varieties is large (ca. 300 kg/ha) and harvest index for nitrogen is high (more than 85% of the crop N is recovered in the grain). Lupins also have the ability to release phosphorus and iron from mineral sources in the soil. These two characteristics make the winter lupin crop an ideal choice as a low input alternative crop, particularly in nitrogen-sensitive areas. Attempts to introduce spring-sown lupins have failed, mainly due to low yield potential, poor yield stability and late harvest. The release of the first winterhardy determinate varieties by French breeders in 1994 promised the first real chance of success. The successful introduction of lupins offers the possibility of reducing soya bean imports and replacing it with a high-quality, home-grown protein source, with the added advantage of traceability. Autumn-sown lupins are capable of producing satisfactory yields (3.7-4.5 t/ha). The crop does require careful management, i.e. early sowing (by mid-September), at the correct seed rate (100 kg/ha), into well-structured free-draining soil and with a pH below 7. Sown in early September, the crop will mature from late August to mid-September.Cereals Levy Farmer Fund

Frequent and specific immunity to the embryonal stem cell–associated antigen SOX2 in patients with monoclonal gammopathy

Specific targets of cellular immunity in human premalignancy are largely unknown. Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) represents a precursor lesion to myeloma (MM). We show that antigenic targets of spontaneous immunity in MGUS differ from MM. MGUS patients frequently mount a humoral and cellular immune response against SOX2, a gene critical for self-renewal in embryonal stem cells. Intranuclear expression of SOX2 marks the clonogenic CD138− compartment in MGUS. SOX2 expression is also detected in a proportion of CD138+ cells in MM patients. However, these patients lack anti-SOX2 immunity. Cellular immunity to SOX2 inhibits the clonogenic growth of MGUS cells in vitro. Detection of anti-SOX2 T cells predicts favorable clinical outcome in patients with asymptomatic plasmaproliferative disorders. Harnessing immunity to antigens expressed by tumor progenitor cells may be critical for prevention and therapy of human cancer

Endothelial cells create a stem cell niche in glioblastoma by providing NOTCH ligands that nurture self-renewal of cancer stem-like cells

One important function of endothelial cells in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is to create a niche that helps promote self-renewal of cancer stem-like cells (CSLC). However, the underlying molecular mechanism for this endothelial function is not known. Since activation of NOTCH signaling has been found to be required for propagation of GBM CSLCs, we hypothesized that the GBM endothelium may provide the source of NOTCH ligands. Here, we report a corroboration of this concept with a demonstration that NOTCH ligands are expressed in endothelial cells adjacent to NESTIN and NOTCH receptor-positive cancer cells in primary GBMs. Coculturing human brain microvascular endothelial cells (hBMEC) or NOTCH ligand with GBM neurospheres promoted GBM cell growth and increased CSLC self-renewal. Notably, RNAi-mediated knockdown of NOTCH ligands in hBMECs abrogated their ability to induce CSLC self-renewal and GBM tumor growth, both in vitro and in vivo. Thus, our findings establish that NOTCH activation in GBM CSLCs is driven by juxtacrine signaling between tumor cells and their surrounding endothelial cells in the tumor microenvironment, suggesting that targeting both CSLCs and their niche may provide a novel strategy to deplete CSLCs and improve GBM treatment