Evaluation of molecular diversity of ex situ conserved germplasm of palmyrah (Borassus flabellifer L.) accessions using RAPD markers

The genetic relationship of 96 palmyrah palms, consisting of 24 indigenous accessions from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, was investigated using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Hundred and eighty primers were used initially to identify the polymorphic primers in six random samples and 10 polymorphic primers were selected to amplify the 96 palms. These 10 primers produced a total of 112 reproducible bands and out of them, 41 fragments (36.6 %) showed polymorphism.  The number of bands produced with each primer varied from seven to 15 with an average of 11.2 bands per primer.  The percent polymorphism ranged from 7.7 to 71.4 with an average of 37.4 per cent when all the primers were taken collectively.  UPGMA grouped all the accessions into two major clusters at 0.85 similarity value. The highest similarity value (0.96) was observed between the accessions KLKM-8 and THY-54 and the lowest similarity value (0.782) was obtained between ANBI-17 and RCML-11. The relatively low polymorphism suggests a narrow genetic diversity of palmyrah populations from which the present accessions have been derived and maintained over the years

Logging disturbance shifts net primary productivity and its allocation in Bornean tropical forests.

Tropical forests play a major role in the carbon cycle of the terrestrial biosphere. Recent field studies have provided detailed descriptions of the carbon cycle of mature tropical forests, but logged or secondary forests have received much less attention. Here, we report the first measures of total net primary productivity (NPP) and its allocation along a disturbance gradient from old-growth forests to moderately and heavily logged forests in Malaysian Borneo. We measured the main NPP components (woody, fine root and canopy NPP) in old-growth (n = 6) and logged (n = 5) 1 ha forest plots. Overall, the total NPP did not differ between old-growth and logged forest (13.5 ± 0.5 and 15.7 ± 1.5 Mg C ha-1  year-1 respectively). However, logged forests allocated significantly higher fraction into woody NPP at the expense of the canopy NPP (42% and 48% into woody and canopy NPP, respectively, in old-growth forest vs 66% and 23% in logged forest). When controlling for local stand structure, NPP in logged forest stands was 41% higher, and woody NPP was 150% higher than in old-growth stands with similar basal area, but this was offset by structure effects (higher gap frequency and absence of large trees in logged forest). This pattern was not driven by species turnover: the average woody NPP of all species groups within logged forest (pioneers, nonpioneers, species unique to logged plots and species shared with old-growth plots) was similar. Hence, below a threshold of very heavy disturbance, logged forests can exhibit higher NPP and higher allocation to wood; such shifts in carbon cycling persist for decades after the logging event. Given that the majority of tropical forest biome has experienced some degree of logging, our results demonstrate that logging can cause substantial shifts in carbon production and allocation in tropical forests

European clinical guidelines for Tourette syndrome and other tic disorders. Part II: pharmacological treatment

To develop a European guideline on pharmacologic treatment of Tourette syndrome (TS) the available literature was thoroughly screened and extensively discussed by a working group of the European Society for the Study of Tourette syndrome (ESSTS). Although there are many more studies on pharmacotherapy of TS than on behavioral treatment options, only a limited number of studies meets rigorous quality criteria. Therefore, we have devised a two-stage approach. First, we present the highest level of evidence by reporting the findings of existing Cochrane reviews in this field. Subsequently, we provide the first comprehensive overview of all reports on pharmacological treatment options for TS through a MEDLINE, PubMed, and EMBASE search for all studies that document the effect of pharmacological treatment of TS and other tic disorders between 1970 and November 2010. We present a summary of the current consensus on pharmacological treatment options for TS in Europe to guide the clinician in daily practice. This summary is, however, rather a status quo of a clinically helpful but merely low evidence guideline, mainly driven by expert experience and opinion, since rigorous experimental studies are scarce

Co-producing a Research Agenda for Sustainable Palm Oil

The rise of palm oil as the world’s most consumed vegetable oil has coincided with exponential growth in palm oil research activity. Bibliometric analysis of research outputs reveals a distinct imbalance in the type of research being undertaken, notably a disproportionate focus on biofuel and engineering topics. Recognizing the expansion of oil palm agriculture across the tropics and the increasing awareness of environmental, social, and economic impacts, we seek to reorientate the existing research agenda toward one that addresses the most fundamental and urgent questions defined by the palm oil stakeholder community. Following consultation with 659 stakeholders from 38 countries, including palm oil growers, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and researchers, the highest priority research questions were identified within 13 themes. The resulting 279 questions, including 26 ranked as top priority, reveal a diversity of environmental and social research challenges facing the industry, ranging from the ecological and ecosystem impacts of production, to the livelihoods of plantation workers and smallholder communities. Analysis of the knowledge type produced from these questions underscores a clear need for fundamental science programmes, and studies that involve the consultation of non-academic stakeholders to develop “transformative” solutions to the oil palm sector. Stakeholders were most aligned in their choice of priority questions across the themes of policy and certification related themes, and differed the most in environmental feedback, technology and smallholder related themes. Our recommendations include improved regional academic leadership and coordination, greater engagement with private and public stakeholders in Africa, and Central and South America, and enhanced collaborative efforts with researchers in the major consuming countries of India and China.The online survey and focus groups were funded by the Geran Kursi Endowmen MPOB-UKM Malaysia, and the Royal Geographical Society UK. The residential workshop was supported from by British Council and Academy Science Malaysia via the UK Newton Ungku-Omar Fund. ZD, JB, and MS are supported by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NE/K016407/1; http://lombok.nerc-hmtf.info/)

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Not AvailableThe genetic relationship of 96 palmyrah palms, consisting of 24 indigenous accessions from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, was investigated using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. Hundred and eighty primers were used initially to identify the polymorphic primers in six random samples and 10 polymorphic primers were selected to amplify the 96 palms. These 10 primers produced a total of 112 reproducible bands and out of them, 41 fragments (36.6 %) showed polymorphism. The number of bands produced with each primer varied from seven to 15 with an average of 11.2 bands per primer. The percent polymorphism ranged from 7.7 to 71.4 with an average of 37.4 per cent when all the primers were taken collectively. UPGMA grouped all the accessions into two major clusters at 0.85 similarity value. The highest similarity value (0.96) was observed between the accessions KLKM-8 and THY-54 and the lowest similarity value (0.782) was obtained between ANBI-17 and RCML-11. The relatively low polymorphism suggests a narrow genetic diversity of palmyrah populations from which the present accessions have been derived and maintained over the years.Not Availabl

Variations in Suspended Sediment Yield and Dynamics in Catchments of Differing Land-use in Sabah

Variations in suspended sediment dynamics in different land-use were observed over the period of 2011 to 2014 in the SAFE Project area (www.safeproject.net). Five catchments of different land-use namely primary forest (PF), old regrowth-virgin jungle reserve (VJR), twice logged regenerating forest (LFE), thrice-logged regenerating forest (0 m) and oil palm (OP) were instrumented with Campbell data loggers and sensors to record at five-minute intervals water level, turbidity, electrical conductivity and water temperature. Turbidity is converted to suspended sediment concentration (SSC) using algorithms derived from calibration experiments. This paper focuses mainly on duration of high discharge, peak SSC, duration of high SSC and sediment yield during selected storm events. It was found that the primary forest has longer duration of high discharge which points to good infiltration and better water-holding capacity. The oil palm has a short duration of peak flow. The highest peak SSC and duration of high SSC was almost always found in the oil palm. The peak SSC and duration of high SSC of the thrice-logged forest is lower than that of the primary forest in medium to large storms indicating the important role of understory vegetation for erosion protection. Sediment yield is the highest in the oil palm catchment and the lowest in the thrice-logged forest therefore highlighting the role of forests (even disturbed forests) in the regulation of sediment export