Genetic resources collections of leafy vegetables (lettuce, spinach, chicory, artichoke, asparagus, lamb’s lettuce, rhubarb and rocket salad): composition and gaps

Lettuce, spinach and chicory are generally considered the main leafy vegetables, while a fourth group denoted by ‘minor leafy vegetables’ includes, amongst others, rocket salad, lamb’s lettuce, asparagus, artichoke and rhubarb. Except in the case of lettuce, central crop databases of leafy vegetables were lacking until recently. Here we report on the update of the international Lactuca database and the development of three new central crop databases for each of the other leafy vegetable crop groups. Requests for passport data of accessions available to the user community were addressed to all known European collection holders and to the main collection holders located outside Europe. Altogether, passport data of 17,530 accessions from a total of 129 collections were collected. The four separate databases were made available on line via a common entry page accessible at http://documents.plant.wur.nl/cgn/pgr/LVintro/. Based on a literature study, an analysis of the gene pool structure of the crops was performed and an inventory was made of the distribution areas of the species involved. The results of these surveys were related to the contents of the newly established databases in order to identify the main collection gaps. Priorities are presented for future germplasm acquisition aimed at improving the coverage of the crop gene pools in ex situ collections

Mapping an atlas of tissue-specific drosophila melanogaster metabolomes by high resolution mass spectrometry

Metabolomics can provide exciting insights into organismal function, but most work on simple models has focussed on the whole organism metabolome, so missing the contributions of individual tissues. Comprehensive metabolite profiles for ten tissues from adult Drosophila melanogaster were obtained here by two chromatographic methods, a hydrophilic interaction (HILIC) method for polar metabolites and a lipid profiling method also based on HILIC, in combination with an Orbitrap Exactive instrument. Two hundred and forty two polar metabolites were putatively identified in the various tissues, and 251 lipids were observed in positive ion mode and 61 in negative ion mode. Although many metabolites were detected in all tissues, every tissue showed characteristically abundant metabolites which could be rationalised against specific tissue functions. For example, the cuticle contained high levels of glutathione, reflecting a role in oxidative defence; the alimentary canal (like vertebrate gut) had high levels of acylcarnitines for fatty acid metabolism, and the head contained high levels of ether lipids. The male accessory gland uniquely contained decarboxylated S-adenosylmethionine. These data thus both provide valuable insights into tissue function, and a reference baseline, compatible with the FlyAtlas.org transcriptomic resource, for further metabolomic analysis of this important model organism, for example in the modelling of human inborn errors of metabolism, aging or metabolic imbalances such as diabetes

Metabolomics of aging assessed in individual parasitoid wasps

Metabolomics studies of low-biomass organisms, such as small insects, have previously relied on the pooling of biological samples to overcome detection limits, particularly using NMR. We show that the differentiation of metabolite profiles of individual 1 mg parasitoid wasps of different ages is possible when using a modified sample preparation and a combination of untargeted NMR and LC-MS based metabolomics. Changes were observed between newly emerged and older wasps in glycerolipids, amino acids and circulatory sugars. This advance in chemical profiling has important implications for the study of the behaviour and ecology of parasitoids and many other species of small organisms because predictions and observations are typically made at the level of the individual. Thus, the metabolomic state of low-biomass individuals can now be related to their behaviour and ecological performance. We discuss specifically the utility of age-related metabolomic profiling but our new approach can be applied to a wide range of biological research

Peasant settlers and the ‘civilizing mission’ in Russian Turkestan, 1865-1917

This article provides an introduction to one of the lesser-known examples of European settler colonialism, the settlement of European (mainly Russian and Ukrainian) peasants in Southern Central Asia (Turkestan) in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It establishes the legal background and demographic impact of peasant settlement, and the role played by the state in organising and encouraging it. It explores official attitudes towards the settlers (which were often very negative), and their relations with the local Kazakh and Kyrgyz population. The article adopts a comparative framework, looking at Turkestan alongside Algeria and Southern Africa, and seeking to establish whether paradigms developed in the study of other settler societies (such as the ‘poor white’) are of any relevance in understanding Slavic peasant settlement in Turkestan. It concludes that there are many close parallels with European settlement in other regions with large indigenous populations, but that racial ideology played a much less important role in the Russian case compared to religious divisions and fears of cultural backsliding. This did not prevent relations between settlers and the ‘native’ population deteriorating markedly in the years before the First World War, resulting in large-scale rebellion in 1916

Recent advances of metabolomics in plant biotechnology

Biotechnology, including genetic modification, is a very important approach to regulate the production of particular metabolites in plants to improve their adaptation to environmental stress, to improve food quality, and to increase crop yield. Unfortunately, these approaches do not necessarily lead to the expected results due to the highly complex mechanisms underlying metabolic regulation in plants. In this context, metabolomics plays a key role in plant molecular biotechnology, where plant cells are modified by the expression of engineered genes, because we can obtain information on the metabolic status of cells via a snapshot of their metabolome. Although metabolome analysis could be used to evaluate the effect of foreign genes and understand the metabolic state of cells, there is no single analytical method for metabolomics because of the wide range of chemicals synthesized in plants. Here, we describe the basic analytical advancements in plant metabolomics and bioinformatics and the application of metabolomics to the biological study of plants

Crise économique et choix des systèmes de production

[eng] The present economic situation has an influence on all sectors of activity, including farming. - In order to provide the farmer with as many services as possible it is as well to think both in terms of his farm (the best use of the land and the climate) and in terms of what he buys outside, and to consider the necessary economies that must be made, especially where animal productions are concerned. . Many products can be obtained in more advantageous conditions, especially the proteins needed for cattle. Why not give fodder to the cattle instead of transforming this fodder into more highly processed products requiring energy, that consequently cost more ? . A concrete experiment in dairy-farming shows that a rational intensification is necessary. It is possible, and enables farmers farming 20-50 hectares to obtain an adequate income from a herd of 40-50 cows. At the same time, rotation cropping ensures the future, by intensive cultivation of grain crops. These are highly productive and are also the best means of protecting the soil, which then maintains all its agronomic potential. [fre] La crise économique actuelle n'a pas épargné l'agriculture. Il est nécessaire, plus que jamais, pour l'agriculteur de réfléchir dans son exploitation à l'utilisation judicieuse des sols et du climat, pour mieux rentabiliser ses achats extérieurs et pratiquer des économies, notamment dans les productions animales. . Beaucoup de facteurs de production peuvent être obtenus dans de meilleures conditions économiques, en particulier les protéines nécessaires aux bovins. Pourquoi ne pas faire consommer les fourrages par les animaux plutôt que les transformer de manière plus ou moins sophistiquée, en utilisant beaucoup d'énergie et par conséquent en dépensant beaucoup d'argent ? . Une expérience concrète en production laitière montre qu'une intensification rationnelle, toujours indispensable, est réalisable de façon économique et permet à des agriculteurs exploitant de 20 à 50 hectares d'obtenir un revenu correct d'un troupeau laitier de 40 à 50 vaches. En même temps, la culture intensive des graminées autorise un assolement qui procure de bons rendements et conserve le potentiel de production du sol au plus haut niveau.

Genetic resources collections of leafy vegetables (lettuce, spinach, chicory, artichoke, asparagus, lamb’s lettuce, rhubarb and rocket salad): composition and gaps

Lettuce, spinach and chicory are generally considered the main leafy vegetables, while a fourth group denoted by ‘minor leafy vegetables’ includes, amongst others, rocket salad, lamb’s lettuce, asparagus, artichoke and rhubarb. Except in the case of lettuce, central crop databases of leafy vegetables were lacking until recently. Here we report on the update of the international Lactuca database and the development of three new central crop databases for each of the other leafy vegetable crop groups. Requests for passport data of accessions available to the user community were addressed to all known European collection holders and to the main collection holders located outside Europe. Altogether, passport data of 17,530 accessions from a total of 129 collections were collected. The four separate databases were made available on line via a common entry page accessible at http://documents.plant.wur.nl/cgn/pgr/LVintro/. Based on a literature study, an analysis of the gene pool structure of the crops was performed and an inventory was made of the distribution areas of the species involved. The results of these surveys were related to the contents of the newly established databases in order to identify the main collection gaps. Priorities are presented for future germplasm acquisition aimed at improving the coverage of the crop gene pools in ex situ collections

Tackling action-based video abstraction of animated movies for video browsing

International audienceWe address the issue of producing automatic video abstracts in the context of the video indexing of animated movies. For a quick browse of a movie's visual content, we propose a storyboard-like summary, which follows the movie's events by retaining one key frame for each specific scene. To capture the shot's visual activity, we use histograms of cumulative interframe distances, and the key frames are selected according to the distribution of the histogram's modes. For a preview of the movie's exciting action parts, we propose a trailer-like video highlight, whose aim is to show only the most interesting parts of the movie. Our method is based on a relatively standard approach, i.e., highlighting action through the analysis of the movie's rhythm and visual activity information. To suit every type of movie content, including predominantly static movies or movies without exciting parts, the concept of action depends on the movie's average rhythm. The efficiency of our approach is confirmed through several end-user studies