The effect of β-aminobutyric acid (BABA) on root knot nematode and soft rot pathogen disease complexes in Solanum tuberosum plants

The efficacy of three elicitors, DL-β-aminobutyric acid (BABA), Acibenzolar-S-methyl (Bion) and Messenger (Harpin) on potato plants inoculated with Meloidogyne incognita second stage juveniles (J2s) was investigated in this study. The efficacy of each elicitor was evaluated based on galling index, egg numbers, total root knot nematode (RKN) population numbers, number of juveniles and the percentage of females in respective extracted populations per treatment at 28 and 56 dpi. There was a significant decrease in galling indices of all treated compared to untreated control plants. The highest percentage reduction was observed for 20 mM BABA-treated plants (33%) followed by 5mM BABA (23%), 50mg/L Bion (18%), 100mg/L Bion (15%) and Messenger (8%). The number of eggs extracted from plants treated with 20mM BABA was significantly lower (66%) compared to untreated controls. Furthermore, treating plants with 20mM BABA decreased the total RKN population numbers by 55% whilst the decrease observed for Bion and Messenger was between 24-39%. Of the three tested elicitors, 20mM BABA was found to be the most effective elicitor at both 28 and 56 dpi. Hence, it was selected for further testing against RKN and Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. brasiliense (Pcb) disease complex. Efficacy was tested by comparing the colony forming units (cfu) of Pcb from treated and untreated control plants inoculated with M. incongita and Pcb simultaneously. The concentration of Pcb from untreated plants inoculated with both pathogens was significantly higher (3.3 × 103cfu/ml) compared to their treated counterparts (8.71 × 102cfu/ml). This suggests that BABA has the potential to decrease soft rot bacterial infections in RKN disease complexes by decreasing the rate of RKN infection. This is the first report where BABA is shown to decrease the infection rate of RKN as a primary causal agent in combination with a secondary pathogen.National Research Foundation, South Africa. AM received NRF Innovative and Potatoes South Africa Development Fund bursaries.http://link.springer.com/journal/106582016-05-21hb201

On the spatial distribution of minor species in Jupiter's troposphere as inferred from Juno JIRAM data

The spatial distribution of water, ammonia, phosphine, germane, and arsine in the Jupiter's troposphere has been inferred from the Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) Juno data. Measurements allow us to retrieve the vertically averaged concentration of gases between ~3 and 5 bars from infrared‐bright spectra. Results were used to create latitudinal profiles. The water vapor relative humidity varies with latitude from <1% to over 15%. At intermediate latitudes (30–70°) the water vapor maxima are associated with the location of cyclonic belts, as inferred from mean zonal wind profiles (Porco et al., 2003). The high‐latitude regions (beyond 60°) are drier in the north (mean relative humidity around 2–3%) than the south, where humidity reaches 15% around the pole. The ammonia volume mixing ratio varies from 1 × 10−4 to 4 × 10−4. A marked minimum exists around 10°N, while data suggest an increase over the equator. The high‐latitude regions are different in the two hemispheres, with a gradual increase in the south and more constant values with latitude in the north. The phosphine volume mixing ratio varies from 4 × 10−7 to 10 × 10−7. A marked minimum exists in the North Equatorial Belt. For latitudes poleward 30°S and 30°N, the northern hemisphere appears richer in phosphine, with a decrease toward the pole, while the opposite is observed in the south. JIRAM data indicate an increase of germane volume mixing ratio from 2 × 10−10 to 8 × 10−10 from both poles to 15°S, with a depletion centered around the equator. Arsine presents the opposite trend, with maximum values of 6 × 10−10 at the two poles and minima below 1 × 10−10 around 20°S

Routes Beyond Gandhara: Buddhist Rock Carvings in the Context of the Early Silk Roads

This chapter presents the first results and interpretations of a selected dataset of rock carvings from the Karakorum mountains. The research is focused on early Buddhist carvings and their spread and role within networks of the early Silk Roads in Central Asia from the 2nd–1st century BCE. The rock carvings and their archaeological context are studied to gain insight into routes from Gandhara through the Karakorum range. The first part presents the general aims and relevance. The second and third parts describe the analysis and interpretation of the Karakorum dataset, followed by the main points of discussion and conclusions to incite future investigations.Classical & Mediterranean Archaeolog

On the clouds and ammonia in Jupiter’s upper troposphere from Juno JIRAM reflectivity observations

We analyse spectra measured by the Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM, a payload element of the NASA Juno mission) in the 3150–4910 cm−1 (2.0–3.2 μm) range during the perijiove passage of 2016 August. Despite modelling uncertainties, the quality and the relative uniformity of the data set allow us to determine several parameters characterizing the Jupiter’s upper troposphere in the latitude range of 35°S–30°N. Ammonia relative humidity at 500 millibars varies between 5 per cent to supersaturation beyond 100 per cent for about 3 per cent of the processed spectra. Ammonia appears depleted over belts and relatively enhanced over zones. Local variations of ammonia, arguably associated with local dynamics, are found to occur in several locations on the planet (Oval BA, South Equatorial Belt). Cloud altitude, defined as the level where aerosol opacity reaches unit value at 3650 cm−1 (2.74 μm), is maximum over the Great Red Spot (>20 km above the 1 bar level) and the zones (15 km), while it decreases over the belts and towards higher latitudes. The aerosol opacity scale height suggests more compact clouds over zones and more diffuse clouds over belts. The integrated opacity of clouds above the 1.3-bar pressure level is found to be minimum in regions where thermal emission of the deeper atmosphere is maximum. The opacity of tropospheric haze above the 200-mbar level also increases over zones. Our results are consistent with a Hadley-type circulation scheme previously proposed in literature for belts and zones, with clear hemisphere asymmetries in cloud and haze