Which fruit characteristics affect susceptibility of grapes to Drosophila suzukii?

Einfluss von Inhaltsstoffen und Penetrationswiderstand verscheidener rebsorten auf den Befall mit Drosophila suzuki

05142 Abstracts Collection -- Disruption Tolerant Networking

From 03.04.05 to 06.04.05, the Dagstuhl Seminar 05142 ``Disruption Tolerant Networking\u27\u27 was held in the International Conference and Research Center (IBFI), Schloss Dagstuhl. During the seminar, several participants presented their current research, and ongoing work and open problems were discussed. Abstracts of the presentations given during the seminar as well as abstracts of seminar results and ideas are put together in this paper. The first section describes the seminar topics and goals in general. Links to extended abstracts or full papers are provided, if available

Rendimiento de ocho cultivares de habichuela tierna cultivados bajo un sistema de manejo orgánico en el trópico

Eight snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) cultivars and lines were grown under an organic management system in 2011 and 2012 in Lajas, Puerto Rico. Bean genotypes used in the trial were the commercial cultivars 'Contender', 'Festina', 'Fresh Pick', 'Jade', 'Nash' and 'Provider', and two experimental breeding lines PR1018-1 and PR1018-5. In 2011, 'Provider' and PR1018-5had the highest yields, with 11.2 and 11.1 t/ha, respectively, but these were not significantly different from the yields of 'Contender', 'Festina', PR1018-1 or 'Nash'. 'Jade' had the lowest yield, with 6.5 t/ha. In 2012, the highest yielding cultivar was 'Festina', with 14.6 t/ha, which was not significantly different from 'Nash' (13.8 t/ha), PR1018-5 (12.6 t/ha) or 'Jade' (12.5 t/ha). 'Contender' (9 t/ha), 'Provider' (8.4 t/ha) and 'Fresh Pick' (8.4 t/ha) had the lowest yields. This study has shown that snap beans can be successfully grown in Puerto Rico under an organic management system, with yields similar or superior to conventionally produced snap beans.Se llevo a cabo un ensayo con ocho cultivares y líneas de habichuela tierna (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) bajo un sistema de manejo orgánico en 2011 y 2012 en Lajas, Puerto Rico. Los genotipos que se usaron en el ensayo  fueron los cultivares comerciales 'Contender', 'Festina', 'Fresh Pick', 'Jade', 'Nash' y 'Provider', y dos líneas experimentales PR1018-1 y PR1018-5. En el 2011, 'Provider' y PR1018-5 tuvieron los rendimientos más altos, con 11.2 y 11.1 t/ha, respectivamente, pero no fueron significativamente diferentes a los rendimientos de 'Contender', 'Festina', PR1018-1 o 'Nash'. 'Jade' tuvo el rendimiento más bajo, con 6.5 t/ha. En el 2012, el cultivar de mayor rendimiento fue 'Festina', con 14.6 t/ha, lo que no fue significativamente diferente a los rendimientos de 'Nash' (13.8 t/ha), PR1018-5 (12.6 t/ha) o 'Jade' (12.5 t/ha). 'Contender' (9 t/ha), 'Provider' (8.4 t/ha) y 'Fresh Pick' (8.4 t/ha) tuvieron los rendimientos mas bajos. Este estudio ha demostrado que las habichuelas tiernas se pueden cultivar exitosamente bajo un sistema de manejo orgánico en Puerto Rico, obteniendo rendimientos similares o superiores a los de habichuela tierna producida de manera convencional

Rendimiento y calidad de fruta de cultivares de tomate de polinización abierta e híbridos cultivados bajo manejo orgánico en Puerto Rico.

Variety trials were conducted in 2010 and 2011 to evaluate the yield and quality performance of 11 open pollinated and three hybrid tomato (Solarium lycopersicum L.) cultivars grown organically in Lajas, Puerto Rico. In both years, significant differences in marketable fruit yield were observed. Yields in 2010 ranged from 72.1 Mg/ha for 'Roma' to 8.6 Mg/ha for 'Marion'. 'Roma' and 'Neptune' (65.6 Mg/ha) were among the highest yielding cultivars. In 2011, significant yield differences were also observed. Marketable fruit yield ranged from 54.7 Mg/ha for 'Early Girl' to 23.5 Mg/ha for 'Super Sioux'. 'Early Girl', 'Flora Dade' (53.8 Mg/ha), 'BHN 444' (50.8 Mg/ha), 'Roma' (48.6 Mg/ha), 'Eva Purple Ball' (48.4 Mg/ha), 'Traveler 76' (46.4 Mg/ha) and 'Celebrity' (45.9 Mg/ha) were among the highest yielders. 'Early Girl' was consistently among the top cultivars in both seasons for taste, yield, and fruit appearance. Open pollinated cultivars performed with more variability between the two seasons than the hybrids. The open pollinated cultivars which ranked highest during the two-year study for taste, yield, and overall appearance were 'Roma', 'Homestead 24', 'Ozark Pink', and 'Traveler 76'. This study indicates that tomato can be grown successfully under an organic management system in Puerto Rico using either open pollinated cultivars or hybrids.Se llevaron a cabo pruebas de variedades con manejo orgánico en Lajas, Puerto Rico, en el 2010 y 2011 para evaluar el rendimiento y la calidad de 11 cultivares de polinización abierta y tres híbridos de tomate (Solanum lycopersicum L.). En ambos años se observaron diferencias significativas para el rendimiento de frutas mercadeables. El rango de rendimiento en el 2010 fue de 72.1 Mg/ha para 'Roma' a 8.6 Mg/ha para 'Marlon'. 'Roma' y 'Neptune' (65.6 Mg/ha) estuvieron entre los cultivares con mayores rendimientos. En el 2011, el rango en rendimiento fue de 54.7 Mg/ha para 'Early Girl' a 23.5 Mg/ha para 'Super Sioux'. 'Early Girl', 'Flora Dade' (53.8 Mg/ha), 'BHN 444' (50.8 Mg/ha), 'Roma' (48.6 Mg/ha), 'Eva Purple Ball' (48.4 Mg/ha), 'Traveler 76' (46.4 Mg/ha) y 'Celebrity' (45.9 Mg/ha) estuvieron entre los cultivares con los rendimientos más altos. 'Early Girl' estuvo consistentemente entre los mejores cultivares en los dos años para sabor, rendimiento y apariencia. Los cultivares de polinización abierta presentaron mayor variabilidad entre años que los híbridos. Los mejores cultivares de polinización abierta para sabor, rendimiento y apariencia en los dos años fueron 'Roma', 'Homestead 24', 'Ozark Pink' y 'Traveler 76'. Este estudio Indica que se puede cultivar el tomate exitosamente bajo un sistema de manejo orgánico en Puerto Rico usando cultivares de polinización abierta o híbridos

The PPAR-γ agonist pioglitazone modulates inflammation and induces neuroprotection in parkinsonian monkeys

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Activation of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-γ) has been proposed as a possible neuroprotective strategy to slow down the progression of early Parkinson's disease (PD). Here we report preclinical data on the use of the PPAR-γ agonist pioglitazone (Actos^®; Takeda Pharmaceuticals Ltd.) in a paradigm resembling early PD in nonhuman primates.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Rhesus monkeys that were trained to perform a battery of behavioral tests received a single intracarotid arterial injection of 20 ml of saline containing 3 mg of the dopaminergic neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP). Twenty-four hours later the monkeys were assessed using a clinical rating scale, matched accordingly to disability, randomly assigned to one of three groups [placebo (n = 5), 2.5 (n = 6) or 5 (n = 5) mg/kg of pioglitazone] and their treatments started. Three months after daily oral dosing, the animals were necropsied.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We observed significant improvements in clinical rating score (<it>P </it>= 0.02) in the animals treated with 5 mg/kg compared to placebo. Behavioral recovery was associated with preservation of nigrostriatal dopaminergic markers, observed as higher tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) putaminal optical density (<it>P </it>= 0.011), higher stereological cell counts of TH-ir (<it>P </it>= 0.02) and vesicular monoamine transporter-2 (VMAT-2)-ir nigral neurons (<it>P </it>= 0.006). Stereological cell counts of Nissl stained nigral neurons confirmed neuroprotection (<it>P </it>= 0.017). Pioglitazone-treated monkeys also showed a dose-dependent modulation of CD68-ir inflammatory cells, that was significantly decreased for 5 mg/kg treated animals compared to placebo (<it>P </it>= 0.018). A separate experiment to assess CSF penetration of pioglitazone revealed that 5 mg/kg p.o. induced consistently higher levels than 2.5 mg/kg and 7.5 mg/kg. p.o.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our results indicate that oral administration of pioglitazone is neuroprotective when administered early after inducing a parkinsonian syndrome in rhesus monkeys and supports the concept that PPAR-γ is a viable target against neurodegeneration.</p

Abundance, Major Element Composition and Size of Components and Matrix in CV, CO and Acfer 094 Chondrites

The relative abundances and chemical compositions of the macroscopic components or "inclusions" (chondrules and refractory inclusions) and fine-grained mineral matrix in chondritic meteorites provide constraints on astrophysical theories of inclusion formation and chondrite accretion. We present new techniques for analysis of low count per pixel Si, Mg, Ca, Al, Ti and Fe x-ray intensity maps of rock sections, and apply them to large areas of CO and CV chondrites, and the ungrouped Acfer 094 chondrite. For many thousands of manually segmented and type-identified inclusions, we are able to assess, pixel-by-pixel, the major element content of each inclusion. We quantify the total fraction of those elements accounted for by various types of inclusion and matrix. Among CO chondrites, both matrix and inclusion Mg to Si ratios approach the solar (and bulk CO) ratio with increasing petrologic grade, but Si remains enriched in inclusions relative to matrix. The oxidized CV chondrites with higher matrix-inclusion ratios exhibit more severe aqueous alteration (oxidation), and their excess matrix accounts for their higher porosity relative to reduced CV chondrites. Porosity could accommodate an original ice component of matrix as the direct cause of local alteration of oxidized CV chondrites. We confirm that major element abundances among inclusions differ greatly, across a wide range of CO and CV chondrites. These abundances in all cases add up to near-chondritic (solar) bulk abundance ratios in these chondrites, despite wide variations in matrix-inclusion ratios and inclusion sizes: chondrite components are complementary. This "complementarity" provides a robust meteoritic constraint for astrophysical disk models

Evolutionary relationships between Rhynchosporium lolii sp. nov. and other Rhynchosporium species on grass.

Copyright: 2013 King 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 creditedThe fungal genus Rhynchosporium (causative agent of leaf blotch) contains several host-specialised species, including R. commune (colonising barley and brome-grass), R. agropyri (couch-grass), R. secalis (rye and triticale) and the more distantly related R. orthosporum (cocksfoot). This study used molecular fingerprinting, multilocus DNA sequence data, conidial morphology, host range tests and scanning electron microscopy to investigate the relationship between Rhynchosporium species on ryegrasses, both economically important forage grasses and common wild grasses in many cereal growing areas, and other plant species. Two different types of Rhynchosporium were found on ryegrasses in the UK. Firstly, there were isolates of R. commune that were pathogenic to both barley and Italian ryegrass. Secondly, there were isolates of a new species, here named R. lolii, that were pathogenic only to ryegrass species. R. lolii was most closely related to R. orthosporum, but exhibited clear molecular, morphological and host range differences. The species was estimated to have diverged from R. orthosporum ca. 5735 years before the present. The colonisation strategy of all of the different Rhynchosporium species involved extensive hyphal growth in the sub-cuticular regions of the leaves. Finally, new species-specific PCR diagnostic tests were developed that could distinguish between these five closely related Rhynchosporium species.Peer reviewedFinal Published versio

Differential effects of the translocator protein 18 kDa (TSPO) ligand etifoxine and the benzodiazepine alprazolam on startle response to predictable threat in a NPU-threat task after acute and short-term treatment

Rationale Benzodiazepines have been extensively investigated in experimental settings especially after single administration, which mostly revealed effects on unpredictable threat (U-threat) rather than predictable threat (P-threat). Given the need for pharmacological alternatives with a preferable side-effect profile and to better represent clinical conditions, research should cover also other anxiolytics and longer application times. Objectives The present study compared the acute and short-term effects of the translocator protein 18 kDa (TSPO) ligand etifoxine and the benzodiazepine alprazolam on P-threat and U-threat while controlling for sedation. Methods Sixty healthy male volunteers, aged between 18 and 55 years, were randomly assigned to receive a daily dose of either 150 mg etifoxine, 1.5 mg alprazolam, or placebo for 5 days. On days 1 and 5 of intake, they performed a NPU-threat task including neutral (N), predictable (P), and unpredictable (U) conditions, while startle responsivity and self-reports were studied. Sedative effects were assessed using a continuous performance test. Results Neither alprazolam nor etifoxine affected startle responsivity to U-threat on any of the testing days. While etifoxine reduced the startle response to P-threat on day 1 of treatment for transformed data, a contrary effect of alprazolam was found for raw values. No effects on self-reports and no evidence of sedation could be observed for either drug. Conclusions None of the anxiolytic substances had an impact on startle potentiation to U-threat even after several days of intake. The effects of the anxiolytics on startle responsivity to P-threat as well as implications for future studies are discussed

Glycerol monolaurate prevents mucosal SIV transmission

Although there has been great progress in treating human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) infection1, preventing transmission has thus far proven an elusive goal. Indeed, recent trials of a candidate vaccine and microbicide have been disappointing, both for want of efficacy and concerns about increased rates of transmission2–4. Nonetheless, studies of vaginal transmission in the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)–rhesus macaque (Macacca mulatta) model point to opportunities at the earliest stages of infection in which a vaccine or microbicide might be protective, by limiting the expansion of infected founder populations at the portal of entry5,6. Here we show in this SIV–macaque model, that an outside-in endocervical mucosal signalling system, involving MIP-3α (also known as CCL20), plasmacytoid dendritic cells and CCR5+ cell-attracting chemokines produced by these cells, in combination with the innate immune and inflammatory responses to infection in both cervix and vagina, recruits CD4+ T cells to fuel this obligate expansion. We then show that glycerol monolaurate—a widely used antimicrobial compound7with inhibitory activity against the production of MIP-3α and other proinflammatory cytokines8—can inhibit mucosal signalling and the innate and inflammatory response to HIV-1 and SIV in vitro, and in vivo it can protect rhesus macaques from acute infection despite repeated intra-vaginal exposure to high doses of SIV. This new approach, plausibly linked to interfering with innate host responses that recruit the target cells necessary to establish systemic infection, opens a promising new avenue for the development of effective interventions to blockHIV-1 mucosal transmission