MACROSCOPIC LESIONS ON THE GREY TRIGGERFISH, BALISTES CAPRISCUS (PISCES) ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRESENCE OF THE PEDUNCULATE BARNACLE, CONCHODERMA VIRGATUM (CIRRIPEDIA, THORACICA)

Fifteen live specimens of Conchoderma virgatum were attached to a grey triggerfish (Balistes capriscus) caught in S.W. Portugal. The barnacles were distributed in three groups (right abdominal external face, anterior side of the insertion of the pelvic spine, and close to (5 mm) the left eye (on the lacrymal bone)). The specimens were very different in size, ranging from 2 mm to 18.9 mm (maximum capitular length, CL). The four largest barnacles (CL 16.4 mm) had egg lamellae. Signs of potential predation on the barnacles (rests of barnacles and half-cut cirri in a barnacle) were detected. The left-eye blindness of the grey trigger fish could have been caused by traumatic action performed by the barnacles that settled close to the eye. The skin surrounding the barnacle cluster attached to the right abdominal external face was inflamed. Skin lesions were of sub-acute or chronic nature and the gall-bladder dilatation was consistent with a prolonged status of injury. Both traumatic and inflammatory lesions could have contributed to the loss of body condition of the grey triggerfish. This study is the first report of C. virgatum in S.W. Portugal and the first record of attachment to a grey triggerfish

Programa de melhoramento de bananeira no Brasil - resultados recentes.

Principais cultivares. Etapas do Programa de Melhoramento. Resultados obtidos nos últimos três anos. Avaliação para resistência ao desprendimento de fruto. Avaliação para resistência a doenças. Diplóides. Tetraplóides / triplóides. Avaliação de variedades / Híbridos. Pós-colheita. Cultivares recomendadas. Seleção de clones cavendish. Mutação. Propostas futuras. Distribuição de mudas.bitstream/item/112872/1/doc-123.pd

Wear and surface residual stress evolution on twin-disc tests of rail/wheel steels

Twin disc tribological tests were performed in wheel and rail materials, with specimens taken from a Spanish AVE train wheel and a UIC60 rail, in a program intended to characterize their contact fatigue behavior. The X-ray diffraction technique was used to characterize the residual stress distribution at the initial and damaged stages, as well as in intermediate stages, since existing residual stresses in the surface layers of the railways steels and its evolution during contact loading can have a major influence on crack initiation and propagation

Molecular variability of citrus leprosis virus c, the main etiological agent of Citrus Leprosis Disease.

Cytoplasmic type of citrus leprosis disease caused by the cilevirus citrus leprosis virus C [CiLV-C; family Kitaviridae; ss(+)RNA genome] is the most important viral disease affecting the Brazilian citriculture. [...]

Poorly conserved p15 proteins of cileviruses retain elements of common ancestry and putative functionality: a theoretical assessment on the evolution of cilevirus genomes.

The genus Cilevirus groups enveloped single-stranded (+) RNA virus members of the family Kitaviridae, order Martellivirales. Proteins P15, scarcely conserved polypeptides encoded by cileviruses, have no apparent homologs in public databases. Accordingly, the open reading frames (ORFs) p15, located at the 5?-end of the viral RNA2 molecules, are considered orphan genes (ORFans). In this study, we have delved into ORFs p15 and the relatively poorly understood biochemical properties of the proteins P15 to posit their importance for viruses across the genus and theorize on their origin. We detected that the ORFs p15 are under purifying selection and that, in some viral strains, the use of synonymous codons is biased, which might be a sign of adaptation to their plant hosts. Despite the high amino acid sequence divergence, proteins P15 show the conserved motif [FY]-L-x(3)-[FL]-H-x-x-[LIV]-S-C-x-C-x(2)-C-x-G-x-C, which occurs exclusively in members of this protein family. Proteins P15 also show a common predicted 3D structure that resembles the helical scaffold of the protein ORF49 encoded by radinoviruses and the phosphoprotein C-terminal domain of mononegavirids. Based on the 3D structural similarities of P15, we suggest elements of common ancestry, conserved functionality, and relevant amino acid residues. We conclude by postulating a plausible evolutionary trajectory of ORFans p15 and the 5?-end of the RNA2 of cileviruses considering both protein fold superpositions and comparative genomic analyses with the closest kitaviruses, negeviruses, nege/kita-like viruses, and unrelated viruses that share the ecological niches of cileviruses

Evolutionary reconstruction of citrus leprosis virus c population suggests its diversification into three lineages before the introduction of citrus spp. in America.

Citrus leprosis virus C [CiLV-C; genus Cilevirus, family Kitaviridae; ss(+)RNA genome] is the prevalent virus causing citrus leprosis disease (CL) in Brazilian citrus orchards. Restricted to Latin America, the population of CiLV-C comprises the lineage CRD, widespread from Mexico to Argentina, and the lineage SJP, first detected in areas of the citrus belt São Paulo ? Minas Gerais. [...]

Detecção de vírus transmitidos por Ácaros Brevipalpus em espécies fruteiras e ornamentais.

RESUMO ? A agricultura representa mais de 20% do PIB brasileiro e o mercado de plantas fruteiras e ornamentais tem crescido nos últimos anos. No entanto, muitas destas plantas são suscetíveis a patógenos, como os vírus transmitidos por ácaros Brevipalpus (VTB). Os VTBs possuem duas moléculas de RNA de fita simples como genoma e são taxonomicamente classificados nos gêneros Cilevirus e Dichorhavirus. O objetivo deste estudo foi realizar um levantamento dos VTBs presentes em diversas hospedeiras vegetais que apresentavam sintomas de manchas cloróticas e necróticas em folhas ou frutos, frequentemente associadas à presença de ácaros Brevipalpus. Amostras foram coletadas e maceradas com nitrogênio líquido em almofariz e pistilo. O RNA total foi extraído com TRIzol e, após a síntese de cDNA, foi realizada a PCR com primers específicos para os principais VTBs encontrados no Brasil. A deteção de amplicons de tamanhos esperados nos géis de agarose 1% revelou a presença de três cilevirus em diferentes hospedeiras vegetais. Em amostras de laranjeira oriundas do cinturão citrícola de São Paulo e Minas Gerais, a estirpe SJP do citrus leprosis virus C foi prevalente, enquanto a estirpe CRD foi detectada em amostras coletadas fora desta região. O solanum violifolium ringspot virus foi identificado em amostra de Solanum violifolium de São Paulo e passion fruit green spot virus (PfGSV) em amostras de Schefflera sp. de Piracicaba e de orquídeas, hibisco e Barleria sp. de São Paulo. A detecção de PfGSV em Barleira sp. representa o primeiro relato de um cilevirus nesta hospedeira.N. 21822

The Rover Environmental Monitoring Station Ground Temperature Sensor: A Pyrometer for Measuring Ground Temperature on Mars

We describe the parameters that drive the design and modeling of the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) Ground Temperature Sensor (GTS), an instrument aboard NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory, and report preliminary test results. REMS GTS is a lightweight, low-power, and low cost pyrometer for measuring the Martian surface kinematic temperature. The sensor’s main feature is its innovative design, based on a simple mechanical structure with no moving parts. It includes an in-flight calibration system that permits sensor recalibration when sensor sensitivity has been degraded by deposition of dust over the optics. This paper provides the first results of a GTS engineering model working in a Martian-like, extreme environment