Organic production systems in Northern highbush blueberries

The production of highbush blueberries is increasing worldwide. Organic production of blueberries in Sweden is presently very limited but is expected to have a great potential to expand as the berries are popular and have a good shelf life. The fact that blueberries require acid soils raises several questions concerning suitable substrates in combination with mycorrhizal inoculation and fertilization in organic production systems. Field and pot experiments have been established during 2011 and 2012 with the aim of developing a sustainable production system for high quality organic blueberries. After the second experimental year, total fruit yields were similar for plants grown in a plastic tunnel and in the open field. Yields were not affected by the addition of 10% forest soil to the peat-based substrate. Inoculation with ericoid mycorrhizal fungi had little effect on shoot length in a greenhouse pot experiment. Blueberries may be particularly suitable for organic production as the need for fertilizers is low combined with a relatively low disease pressure on the blueberry crop in the Nordic countries. The Swedish blueberry production might be expected to expand in the near future. The development of a successful and resource-efficient growing system for organic blueberries may encourage new blueberry growers to chose organic production

The Effect of Artificial Light Pollution on Orientation of Hatchling Loggerhead Sea Turtles (Caretta caretta) in the Grand Strand Region, South Carolina

Sea turtle hatchlings primarily utilize sight to detect differences in elevation and light intensity present along the horizon to navigate from the nest to the water’s edge. The addition of artificial lights can cause visual misdirection, resulting in disorientation (aimlessly wandering in circular paths) or misorientation (moving in distinct paths away from ocean). Extensive research has been done on effects of high levels of artificial light but little on effects of comparatively lower levels of artificial light on hatchling sea turtle orientation. This study examined these lower intensity areas to identify if there is a threshold of artificial light above which hatchling orientation is negatively affected. During the 2016 nesting season, a Geovision GV-FER5303 non-illuminating infrared camera recorded hatchling trajectories at twenty-one loggerhead sea turtle nests from areas varying in light intensity along the Grand Strand region of South Carolina. Individual and group dynamics for lateral range of movement, orientation deviation, and average speed were measured from each nest to determine if parameters associated with orientation were significantly affected by total and artificial radiance values present at the time of emergence. Lateral range of hatchling movement is not significantly influenced under artificial or total radiance conditions; however, deviation from seaward direction (F(2,299)=43.623, p\u3c0.001; F(3,424)=23.528, p\u3c0.001) and average speed are (F(2,495)=42.612, p\u3c0.001; F(3,648)=14.644, p\u3c0.001). Deviation from brightest light source is significant under total radiance conditions (F(3,427)=11.358, p\u3c0.001) while only marginally significant under artificial radiance conditions (F(2,300)=2.336, p=0.098). Results may help inform current management practices to enhance hatchling survival efforts near northern limit of loggerhead nesting beaches

X-ray tomography data of compression tested unidirectional fibre composites with different off-axis angles

This data article contains lab-based micro-computed tomography (μCT) data of unidirectional (UD) non-crimp fabric (NCF) carbon fibre reinforced composite specimens that have been deformed by compression. The specimens contain UD fibres with off-axis angles of 0\ub0, 5\ub0, 10\ub0, 15\ub0 and 20\ub0 and the compression testing induces kink-band formation. This data formed the basis for the analysis of the influence of in-plane shear on kink-plane orientation as reported in Wilhelmsson et al. (Wilhelmsson et al., 2019)

The switch-like expression of heme-regulated kinase 1 mediates neuronal proteostasis following proteasome inhibition

We examined the feedback between the major protein degradation pathway, the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), and protein synthesis in rat and mouse neurons. When protein degradation was inhibited, we observed a coordinate dramatic reduction in nascent protein synthesis in neuronal cell bodies and dendrites. The mechanism for translation inhibition involved the phosphorylation of eIF2alpha, surprisingly mediated by eIF2alpha kinase 1, or heme-regulated kinase inhibitor (HRI). Under basal conditions, neuronal expression of HRI is barely detectable. Following proteasome inhibition, HRI protein levels increase owing to stabilization of HRI and enhanced translation, likely via the increased availability of tRNAs for its rare codons. Once expressed, HRI is constitutively active in neurons because endogenous heme levels are so low; HRI activity results in eIF2alpha phosphorylation and the resulting inhibition of translation. These data demonstrate a novel role for neuronal HRI that senses and responds to compromised function of the proteasome to restore proteostasis

Multifunctional design, feasibility and requirements for structural power composites in future electric air taxis

This study investigates the viability of implementing multifunctional structural power composites in a four-seater air taxi, the CityAirbus. For a given specific energy of the power source, the cruise endurance can be approximately doubled by using structural power composites as opposed to conventional batteries. Replacing all the eligible composite mass and batteries with structural power composites can reduce the CityAirbus weight by 25%. To achieve the current design performance, the minimum required elastic modulus, strength, specific energy and power for the structural power composite are 54 GPa, 203 MPa, 74 Wh/kg and 376 W/kg, respectively: current state-of-the-art structural power composites are now approaching this level of performance. Hence, structural power composites are considered feasible for adoption in the urban air mobility sector and have the potential to improve endurance and facilitate commercialization. This paper also discusses several key challenges that must be addressed to realize the adoption of structural power composites in future electric air taxis

Health claims in the labelling and marketing of food products:: the Swedish food sector's Code of Practice in a European perspective

Since 1990 certain health claims in the labelling and marketing of food products have been allowed in Sweden within the food sector's Code of Practice. The rules were developed in close dialogue with the authorities. The legal basis was a decision by the authorities not to apply the medicinal products’ legislation to “foods normally found on the dinner table” provided the rules defined in the Code were followed. The Code of Practice lists nine well-established diet–health relationships eligible for generic disease risk reduction claims in two steps and general rules regarding nutrient function claims. Since 2001, there has also been the possibility for using “product-specific physiological claims (PFP)”, subject to premarketing evaluation of the scientific dossier supporting the claim. The scientific documentation has been approved for 10 products with PFP, and another 15 products have been found to fulfil the Code's criteria for “low glycaemic index”. In the third edition of the Code, active since 2004, conditions in terms of nutritional composition were set, i.e. “nutrient profiles”, with a general reference to the Swedish National Food Administration's regulation on the use of a particular symbol, i.e. the keyhole symbol. Applying the Swedish Code of practice has provided experience useful in the implementation of the European Regulation on nutrition and health claims made on foods, effective from 2007