Distribution of Fig Mosaic in Jordan

Fig mosaic (FM) is one of the most important diseases of figs in Jordan. A nationwide survey was conducted to determine the incidence and severity of this disease in trees and in seedlings propagated by cuttings in orchards and nurseries in 13 provinces and cities all over the country. Cultivars surveyed included Khdari, Mwazi, Zraki, Khartamani, Dafoori, Turki, Hamari, Esaili, Ajlouni, in addition to an Italian and a French cultivar. Disease severity varied from moderately severe to extremely severe with leaf malformation and fruit drop FM was found in all provinces. Incidence of FM, averaged over trees of all cultivars and all age categories, was 95.3%. Fig trees 3 years and older had the highest disease incidence, ranging from 93.3% to 100% in the different orchards. The Esaili cultivar had the lowest incidence ranging between 50% and100%, with an average of 76.5%. The highest FM incidence was on Dafoori. Of the most common cultivars, Khdari was the most susceptible. Jerash province had the highest percentage (12.5%) of fig seedlings and trees in the most severe disease category. The highest percentage (27.8%) of healthy fig seedlings and trees was in Irbid province. This paper reports the incidence of FM in various local and imported fig cultivars of different ages, and relates the spread of the disease to the method of fig propagation practiced in Jordan. Suggested solutions for the problem, which include the introduction of disease and pest free fig seedlings derived from tissue culture and the establishment of new rules and regulations to prevent the spread of the disease are discussed

Bimodal grain size distributions in UFG materials produced by SPD: Their evolution and effect on mechanical properties

The mechanical properties of bulk ultrafine-grained materials produced by severe plastic deformation can be modified (sometimes enhanced) by a mild annealing treatment which leads, in some cases, to a bimodal grain size distribution, characterized by a good combination of strength and ductility. Bimodal grain size distributions can also evolve during cyclic deformation at rather low homologous temperature. Here, the conditions under which bimodal grain size distributions evolve and how they affect the mechanical properties, as studied by the authors and as reported so far in the literature, will be reviewed and discussed

Characterization of defect structures in nanocrystalline materials by X-ray line profile analysis

X-ray line profile analysis is a powerful alternative tool for determining dislocation densities, dislocation type, crystallite and subgrain size and size-distributions, and planar defects, especially the frequency of twin boundaries and stacking faults. The method is especially useful in the case of submicron grain size or nanocrystalline materials, where X-ray line broadening is a well pronounced effect, and the observation of defects with very large density is often not easy by transmission electron microscopy. The fundamentals of X-ray line broadening are summarized in terms of the different qualitative breadth methods, and the more sophisticated and more quantitative whole pattern fitting procedures. The efficiency and practical use of X-ray line profile analysis is shown by discussing its applications to metallic, ceramic, diamond-like and polymer nanomaterials

In situ TEM observations of reverse dislocation motion upon unloading of tensile-deformed UFG aluminium

An in situ transmission electron microscopy study has been performed on ultrafine-grained (UFG) aluminium during tensile loading and unloading in the microyield regime. The goal was to assess the reasons for the unusually large inelastic backflow that had been observed earlier during unloading on UFG material, as compared to that of conventional grain size material. It was noted that in particular edge dislocations emitted by sources within the grains during loading run back into the dislocation sources and disappear during unloading, explaining at least semi-quantitatively the rather large inelastic backflow in UFG material

Nanocrystalline materials studied by powder diffraction line profile analysis

X-ray powder diffraction is a powerful tool for characterising the microstructure of crystalline materials in terms of size and strain. It is widely applied for nanocrystalline materials, especially since other methods, in particular electron microscopy is, on the one hand tedious and time consuming, on the other hand, due to the often metastable states of nanomaterials it might change their microstructures. It is attempted to overview the applications of microstructure characterization by powder diffraction on nanocrystalline metals, alloys, ceramics and carbon base materials. Whenever opportunity is given, the data provided by the X-ray method are compared and discussed together with results of electron microscopy. Since the topic is vast we do not try to cover the entire field

Antifungal activity of olive cake extracts

Powdered, dried olive (Olea europaea) cake was extracted with hexane, methanol and butanol. Six phenolic compounds, coumaric acid, ferulic acid, oleuropein, caffeic acid, protocatechuic acid and cinnamic acid, were isolated from these extracts after fractionation. The fractions were tested for their antifungal activity against Verticillium sp., Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizopus sp., Penicillium italicum, Rhizoctonia solani, Stemphylium solani, Cladosporium sp., Mucor sp., Colletotrichum sp. and Pythium sp. Strongest activity was reported against Fusarium oxysporum and Verticillium sp. No effect was observed against Alternaria sp

Mechanics and evaluation of early damage

Proceedings of the ICMFM XIXThis chapter describes the microstructural mechanisms leading to damage and the formation of fatigue cracks as well as the methods available to monitor these processes. The evaluation of early damage is especially important for structures with long service life spans, where the crack nucleation stage can dominate the total fatigue life.Andrei Kotousov, James Vidler, James Hughes, Aditya Khanna, Ching-Tai Ng and Munawwar Mohabut

Quantitative estimation of nerve fiber engagement by vagus nerve stimulation using physiological markers

Background Cervical vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is a rapidly emerging bioelectronic treatment for brain, metabolic, cardiovascular and immune disorders. Its desired and off-target effects are mediated by different nerve fiber populations and knowledge of their engagement could guide calibration and monitoring of VNS therapies. Objective /Hypothesis: Stimulus-evoked compound action potentials (eCAPs) directly provide fiber engagement information but are currently not feasible in humans. A method to estimate fiber engagement through common, noninvasive physiological readouts could be used instead of eCAP measurements. Methods In anesthetized rats, we recorded eCAPs while registering acute physiological response markers to VNS: cervical electromyography (EMG), changes in heart rate (ΔHR) and breathing interval (ΔBI). Quantitative models were established to capture the relationship between A-, B- and C-fiber type activation and those markers, and to quantitatively estimate fiber activation from physiological markers and stimulation parameters. Results In bivariate analyses, we found that EMG correlates with A-fiber, ΔHR with B-fiber and ΔBI with C-fiber activation, in agreement with known physiological functions of the vagus. We compiled multivariate models for quantitative estimation of fiber engagement from these markers and stimulation parameters. Finally, we compiled frequency gain models that allow estimation of fiber engagement at a wide range of VNS frequencies. Our models, after calibration in humans, could provide noninvasive estimation of fiber engagement in current and future therapeutic applications of VNS