Weed seedbank biodiversity in emmer wheat (triticum dicoccum (schrank) schübler) in a mountainous agro-ecological oasis (garfagnana, tuscany)

Phytocoenoses of conventional agroecosystems are subjected, already from several decades, to the reduction of the weed species present in the various crops. Such floristic decreasing is directly proportional to intensity of the agronomic impact. The present work is born from the hypothesis that the agro-ecological oases, managed with the ancient agrotechniques, are linked by an high degree of plant biodiversity. In this perspective it was carried out not only an analysis of the field emerged weeds, but even an evaluation of the seedbank since this one synthesizes the weed flora of a wider period. In the experimental agroecosystems, selected due to the typical Emmer wheat presence, an high degree of weed species diversity was observed, above all of terophytes, in the emerged flora as well in the seedbank. In both cases relative densities of each species were found low and without any weed dominance. Probably it occurs as a function of the high degree of competitive and allelopathic interactions. Almost scarce was the presence of exhumed seeds of graminaceae virtually due to their inability to store in the soil a persistent seedbank. Of particular importance it was the discovery of two rare species such as Agrostemma githago and Centaurea cyanus disappeared from many years by the landscape of “conventional” agricultural systems. The seedbank was found uniformly distributed in both sampled soil layers (0-15 and 15-30 cm) confirming that plowing induced an uniform burial of the annually produced seeds. The total examined soil profile (0-30 cm) showed a quantitative seedbank similar to those already found in “biological” agricultural systems (from 12.000 to 47.000 seeds m-2). However it was qualitatively formed even from several weed species of negligible agronomic impact as a function of their scarce competitivity like in the case of some caryophyllaceae (Silene noctiflora and S.alba), boraginaceae (Myosotis arvensis and Echium vulgaris) and campanulaceae (Legousia speculum-veneris). Finally both agronomic and ecological involvements of this weed complexity were discussed. This complexity was retained of crucial importance not only regards to the biodiversity conservation but even for their role in the landscape ecology. In synthesis, it has been confirmed the hypothesis that the ancient phytocoenoses are still present but only in these ecological oases in which the agronomic impact was ecologically sustainable. In conclusion, it was stressed the crucial role of these agro-ecological oases not only with the aim of the in situ biodiversity conservation, but even as ex situ germoplasma source to use in the perspective of ecological restoration of degraded areas

Germination of Chloris barbata, Cynodon dactylon, and Cyperus rotundus from Angola at Constant and Alternate Temperatures

The study of weed germination can improve knowledge on their seasonal dynamics in fields and facilitate the design of ecologically sustainable management. An experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of a range of constant and alternate temperatures on the germination of Chloris barbata, Cynodon dactylon, and Cyperus rotundus collected in Angola. Interesting differences were observed between the germination responses of the three species. No germination was observed for any species at 10 or 15–5 °C. Chloris barbata quickly germinated at most constant and alternate incubation temperatures, showing low primary dormancy and high germinability. Fast and high germination was observed for Cynodon dactylon at most alternate temperatures, while lower germination percentages were achieved at constant temperatures, especially the highest ones. Cyperus rotundus achieved good germination percentage at alternate temperatures, even if with slower and more extended germination dynamics than the other species, while almost no seeds germinated at constant temperatures. This study improves our knowledge of germination ecology for these species and allows some control tools to be identified, such as soil tillage, cover crops, and living or dead mulches, which can contribute to their ecologically sustainable management

Emergence dynamics of barnyardgrass and jimsonweed from two depths when switching from conventional to reduced and no-till conditions

A cylinder experiment was conducted in northern Greece during 2005 and 2006 to assess emergence dynamics of barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) Beauv.) and jimsonweed (Datura stramonium L.) in the case of a switch from conventional to conservation tillage systems (CT). Emergence was surveyed from two burial depths (5 and 10 cm) and with simulation of reduced tillage (i.e. by soil disturbance) and no-till conditions. Barnyardgrass emergence was significantly affected by burial depth, having greater emergence from 5 cm depth (96%) although even 78% of seedlings emerged from 10 cm depth after the two years of study. Emergence of barnyardgrass was stable across years from the different depths and tillage regimes. Jimsonweed seeds showed lower germination than barnyardgrass during the study period, whereas its emergence was significantly affected by soil disturbance having 41% compared to 28% without disturbance. A burial depth x soil disturbance interaction was also determined, which showed higher emergence from 10 cm depth with soil disturbance. Jimsonweed was found to have significantly higher emergence from 10 cm depth with soil disturbance in Year 2. Seasonal emergence timing of barnyardgrass did not vary between the different burial depth and soil disturbance regimes, as it started in April and lasted until end of May in both years. Jimsonweed showed a bimodal pattern, with first emergence starting end of April until mid-May and the second ranging from mid-June to mid-August from 10 cm burial depth and from mid-July to mid-August from 5 cm depth, irrespective of soil disturbance in both cases

Obestatin: a new element for mineral metabolism and inflammation in patients on hemodialysis.

Background: Obestatin plays a key role in the process of energy balance maintenance with an anorectic effect. The main aim of the study was to evaluate obestatin in uremic patients to determine whether it is correlated with nutritional and inflammatory status. Methods: We studied plasma obestatin in uremic patients (n = 50) undergoing hemodialysis therapy and in healthy subjects. Plasma obestatin was measured using an ELISA kit. Results: Obestatin levels in uremic patients were lower than in healthy subjects (p 23 had lower obestatin levels than those with a BMI Conclusions: Based on the present observational data, obestatin might be implicated in the inflammatory state and the disturbances of calcium/phosphate metabolism of hemodialysis patients. However, further studies are warranted to determine whether this hormone plays a key role in contributing to malnutrition and to the chronic inflammatory process

Biološka produkcija korovske vrste Abutilon theophrasti Medik - različitog geografskog porekla

Biological production of 12 populations of weed species Abutilon theophrasti Medik. from diff erent geographical origin was studied in our agroecological conditions. Seeds of these populations were collected at the stage of physical maturity at the following locations: Catalonia-Spain (CAT), Croatia (CRO), Greece (GRE), Hungary (HUN), Iowa-USA(IOWA ), Legnaro-Italy (ITA), Minnesota-USA (MIN), Portugal (POR), Serbia (SER), Slovenia (SLO), Arganda-Spain (SPA) i Piza-Italy (TOS). In the autumn of 2013 seeds were planted at the Experimental farm of Faculty of Agriculture 'Radmilovac' with density 1 plant per 0.25 m2. At the stage of maturity numerous vegetative (plant height, root length, the number of branches, the number of leaves, leaf area) and generative (the number of capsules per plant, the number of locules per capsule, diameter of capsule, weight of seeds per plant) parameters were measured. Comprehensive analysis of the measured parameters was confirmed that the biological production of the studied populations differ, whereby these differences depended on the observede parameters. For vegetative parameters, differences were most pronounced for leaf area. For generative parameters differences between populations were most pronaunced for the number of capsules per plant and weight of seeds per plant.Biološka produkcija 12 populacija korovske vrste Abutilon theophrasti Medik. različitog geografskog porekla, je proučavana u našim agroekološkim uslovima. Semena ovih populacija su sakupljena u fazi fi zičke zrelosti na sledećim lokalitetima: Katalonija-Španija (CAT), Hrvatska (CRO), Grčka (GRE), Mađarska (HUN), Ajova-SAD (IOWA ), Legnaro-Italija (ITA), Minesota-SAD (MIN), Portugal (POR), Srbija (SER), Slovenija (SLO), Arganda-Španija (SPA) i Piza-Italija (TOS). U jesen 2013. godine semena su posejana na oglednom dobru Poljoprivrednog fakulteta 'Radmilovac' u gustini od 1 biljke na 0,25 m2. U fazi plodonošenja mereni su brojni vegetativni (visina stabla, dužina korena, broj grana, broj listova, površina listova) i generativni (broj čaura, prečnik čaura, broj kućica u čauri, masa semena po biljci) parametri. Analizom merenih parametara potvrđeno je da se biološka produkcija ispitivanih populacija razlikuje, u zavisnosti od ispitivanog parametra. Kod vegetativnih parametara najizraženije razlike su konstatovane kod površine listova, dok su kod generativnih parametra najizraženije razlike utvrđene za broj čaura i masu semena po biljci

Comparing the emergence of Echinochloa crus- galli populations in different locations. Part I: Variations in emergence timing and behaviour of two populations

Echinochloa crus-galli (L.) P. Beauv. is one of the most important weeds. It is distributed worldwide and has adapted to diverse habitats and climatic conditions. This study aimed to compare the emergence patterns of two populations of E. crus-galli from different environments at 11 locations across Europe and the Middle East. Seeds of the two populations were collected from maize in Italy and from spring barley in Norway and were then buried in soil in autumn 2015. In the spring of 2016, the soil was disturbed around the usual seedbed preparation date in each location and emergence was recorded. The soil was again disturbed a year later and emergence was recorded for a second season. Total emergence, the times of onset, end and to 50% emergence and the period between 25% and 75% of emergence were analysed by two-way ANOVA and principal components analysis. The Italian population showed a higher emergence than the Norwegian population in Southern locations, while the ranking was reversed in Northern locations. In almost all locations, a tendency to emerge earlier was recorded for the Norwegian population, but the periods from 25% to 75% emergence were similar for both populations. Total emergence, and the times of onset and end of emergence seemed to be mainly under genotypic (plus maternal) control, suggesting there were different temperature thresholds for seedling emergence in each population. Conversely, the duration of emergence seemed to be mainly under environmental control. This research confirms the high variability between populations and suggests the need to continue identifying key characteristics for the development of efficient models for seedling emergence in specific climates and/or latitudes.The authors thank all the technicians, students and institutions that have contributed to establishing and maintaining the field experiment. We also thank Dr. Frank Forcella and James Eklund from the USDA‐ARS in Morris (MN) for providing the dataloggers and facilitating the collection of soil temperature data in each location. Our thanks also to the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for funding to Royo‐Esnal through the AGL2017‐83325‐C4‐2‐R; Duzce Üniversitesi, Turkey, for funding to Uludag (Project No: 2015.11.02.375); and the Norwegian Research Funding for Agriculture and the Food Industry and project partners in Research Council of Norway Project no. 267700 for supporting Tørresen in the experiment. Uludag thanks his two graduate students Miss Buyukkurt and Zambak, and Murdoch thanks MSc student, Mr Guangxing Xie, who carried out the germination assays. Finally, the authors are also grateful to the European Weed Research Society for providing funds to enable the working group participants to meet and discuss the collaborative experiment

Comparing the emergence of Echinochloa crus-galli populations in different locations. Part II: similarities and threshold parameters

The variability in the emergence process of different populations was confirmed for two Echinochloa crus-galli populations, one from Italy (IT) and the second from Norway (NO). Seeds were sown in 12 localities over Europe and the Middle East, and the emergence patterns of IT and NO were compared with those of several local populations at each location. Seeds of each population were sown in pots buried to the ground level. The base temperature (Tb) for emergence was estimated by (1) analysing logistic models applied to the field emergence of IT and NO, and (2) a germination assay set in winter 2020 at constant temperatures (8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 26, 29°C) with newly collected seeds in 2019 from the same fields where IT and NO had previously been harvested in 2015. The logistic models developed for IT and NO in each location showed that the emergence pattern of IT was similar to that of the local populations in Poland, Italy, Spain, Turkey South and Iran, while NO fitted better to those in Sweden and Latvia. No germination was obtained for IT in a germination chamber, but the estimated Tb with the logistic model was 11.2°C. For NO, the estimated Tb was 8.8°C in the germination chamber and 8.1°C in the field. Results suggest that adaptation to local environmental conditions has led to inter-population differences in Tb and parameter estimates of thermal-time models to predict the emergence of E. crus-galli should only be used for populations with similar climatic and habitat conditions.The authors thank all the technicians, students and institutions that have contributed to establishing and maintaining the field experiment. We also thank Dr. Frank Forcella and James Eklund, from the USDA‐ARS in Morris (MN), for providing the dataloggers and facilitating the collection of soil temperature data in each location. Our thanks also to the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for funding to Royo‐Esnal through the AGL2017‐83325‐C4‐2‐R; Duzce Üniversitesi, Turkey, for funding to Uludag (Project No: 2015.11.02.375); and the Norwegian Research Funding for Agriculture and the Food Industry and project partners in Research Council of Norway Project no. 267700 for supporting Tørresen in the experiment. Uludag thank his two graduate students, Miss Buyukkurt and Zambak, and Murdoch thank MSc student, Mr Guangxing Xie, who carried out some of the germination assays. Royo‐Esnal thank Jordi Izquierdo for providing the seeds of L3 population for the experiment in Lleida. Finally, the authors are also grateful to the EWRS, for providing funds to enable the working group participants to meet and discuss the collaborative experiment

Measurement of {\eta} meson production in {\gamma}{\gamma} interactions and {\Gamma}({\eta}-->{\gamma}{\gamma}) with the KLOE detector

We present a measurement of {\eta} meson production in photon-photon interactions produced by electron-positron beams colliding with \sqrt{s}=1 GeV. The measurement is done with the KLOE detector at the \phi-factory DA{\Phi}NE with an integrated luminosity of 0.24 fb^{-1}. The e^+e^- --> e^+e^-{\eta} cross section is measured without detecting the outgoing electron and positron, selecting the decays {\eta}-->{\pi}^+{\pi}^-{\pi}^0 and {\eta}-->{\pi}^0{\pi}^0{\pi}^0. The most relevant background is due to e^+e^- --> {\eta}{\gamma} when the monochromatic photon escapes detection. The cross section for this process is measured as {\sigma}(e^+e^- -->{\eta}{\gamma}) = (856 \pm 8_{stat} \pm 16_{syst}) pb. The combined result for the e^+e^- -->e^+e^-{\eta} cross section is {\sigma}(e^+e^- -->e^+e^-{\eta}) = (32.72 \pm 1.27_{stat} \pm 0.70_{syst}) pb. From this we derive the partial width {\Gamma}({\eta}-->{\gamma}{\gamma}) = (520 \pm 20_{stat} \pm 13_{syst}) eV. This is in agreement with the world average and is the most precise measurement to date.Comment: Version accepted by JHE

A new limit on the CP violating decay KS -> 3pi0 with the KLOE experiment

We have carried out a new direct search for the CP violating decay KS -> 3pi0 with 1.7 fb^-1 of e+e- collisions collected by the KLOE detector at the phi-factory DAFNE. We have searched for this decay in a sample of about 5.9 x 10^8 KS KL events tagging the KS by means of the KL interaction in the calorimeter and requiring six prompt photons. With respect to our previous search, the analysis has been improved by increasing of a factor four the tagged sample and by a more effective background rejection of fake KS tags and spurious clusters. We find no candidates in data and simulated background samples, while we expect 0.12 standard model events. Normalizing to the number of KS -> 2pi0 events in the same sample, we set the upper limit on BR(KS -> 3pi0 < 2.6 x 10^-8 at 90% C.L., five times lower than the previous limit. We also set the upper limit on the eta_000 parameter, |eta_000 | < 0.0088 at 90% C.L., improving by a factor two the latest direct measurement.Comment: Accepted for publication in Physics Letters B (15 pages, 13 figures