Effect of mowing a legume fertility-building crop on shoot numbers of creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.)

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference. Perennial weeds with spreading root systems, e.g. Cirsium arvense, are difficult to control in organic arable rotations, particularly in those without grazed leys. Competitive crops and repeated mowing are proven methods of control that can be applied to the legume fertility-building crops in stockless rotations. An experiment at ADAS Terrington in 2000 compared a standard treatment of mowing at 45 cm legume height (x4) with mowing every two weeks (x8), and mowing when thistle flower buds were visible (x3). Thistle shoot numbers counted in July 2001 were around 75% less than at start of mowing in April 2000 (mean of 9.5 shoots per m2). The results suggest that achieving and maintaining a dense competitive crop has more influence than mowing frequency on creeping thistle survival under a clover fertility-building crop

The long-term agronomic performance of organic stockless rotations

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference. Two long-term experiments were established with the aim of evaluating the agronomic and economic performance of organic stockless rotations. In total, four different rotations were evaluated at two sites in the south (Elm Farm Research Centre) and east (ADAS Terrington) of England. All of the rotations included either a one or two-year red clover green manure crop to provide nitrogen for subsequent crops and it was found that this was sufficient to support three or four years of arable cropping. Over a period of eleven years at EFRC and five years at ADAS Terrington, there was no evidence of a decline in crop yield, although there were significant year-to-year variations. Crop yields were generally equivalent to or greater than average organic yields. Levels of soil available P and K was maintained at both sites at non-limiting levels. Pest and diseases were not problematic, but perennial weeds posed the most significant problem

Energy use in organic farming systems (OF0182)

This is the final report of Defra project OF0182. The attached main report starts with a more detailed Executive Summary, from which most of this text is extracted. One of the possible benefits from organic farming is a reduced, or more efficient, use of energy in agriculture. The main objective and deliverable of study OF0182 was to develop a model of energy inputs in organic farming systems. To illustrate the potential of the model, it was used to contrast organic with similar conventional systems and to highlight important differences. This was presented as a detailed written report (49 pages) to MAFF and is summarised in this document. The report and model were delivered to MAFF in March 2000. A previous study, completed by Phil Metcalfe of ADAS in 1996 for MAFF ARP Division, entitled “A Comparison of Energy use in Organic and Conventional Agricultural Production Systems”, compared direct and indirect energy use in simple individual crop and livestock enterprise models. These were combined to give whole-system models covering dairy, beef and arable farming. These systems were presented as organic conversion scenarios in the MAFF booklet “Organic Conversion Information Service” (1996). Project OF0182 updates the models developed in 1996 and expands the study to include upland beef and sheep, and vegetables. The dairy, vegetables, arable and upland beef/sheep models are based on the MAFF funded studies OF0146, OF0126, OF0145 and OF0147 respectively. The study also included a consideration of food distribution costs and the possible substitution of labour for energy. The data was organised into a system of linked spreadsheets to form the model The dominant energy inputs in conventional agriculture are indirect energy for the manufacture and transport of fertilisers, particularly nitrogen, and indirect energy for the manufacture and transport of pesticides. These together account for around 50% of the total energy input to a potato or winter wheat crop, and as much as 80% of the energy input into some vegetable crops. Organically grown crops require around 50% of the energy input per unit area than do conventional crops, largely because of lower, or zero, fertiliser and pesticide energy inputs. However, the generally lower yields of organic crop and vegetable systems reduce the advantage to organic when energy input is calculated on a unit output basis. In stockless arable crop rotations, the inclusion of fertility building crops and winter cover crops, that have energy inputs but no direct outputs, can result in a lower whole-rotation energy efficiency from organic methods. In livestock systems, where the fall in output may be less than in arable, and there are no dedicated fertility building crops, overall energy efficiency is greater in organic than in comparable conventional systems. These conclusions were made using average yield data in the model and need to be interpreted with caution. On more fertile soil, where the yield difference with conventional arable production is smaller, organic systems would perform relatively better. The converse would occur on poorer soils. Also, in practice, energy inputs for cultivations and weed control will vary with soil type, weather, weed spectrum and population. The average data presented in the report are illustrative and are not definitive. The strength of the model is that it can be used to simulate many different management systems and yield expectations. The models also allowed a range of transport scenarios to be considered. There was little opportunity found for replacing energy with labour resources

Reviews and bibliographical notices

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The role of APOBEC3B in lung tumor evolution and targeted cancer therapy resistance

In this study, the impact of the apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing catalytic subunit-like (APOBEC) enzyme APOBEC3B (A3B) on epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-driven lung cancer was assessed. A3B expression in EGFR mutant (EGFRmut) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) mouse models constrained tumorigenesis, while A3B expression in tumors treated with EGFR-targeted cancer therapy was associated with treatment resistance. Analyses of human NSCLC models treated with EGFR-targeted therapy showed upregulation of A3B and revealed therapy-induced activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) as an inducer of A3B expression. Significantly reduced viability was observed with A3B deficiency, and A3B was required for the enrichment of APOBEC mutation signatures, in targeted therapy-treated human NSCLC preclinical models. Upregulation of A3B was confirmed in patients with NSCLC treated with EGFR-targeted therapy. This study uncovers the multifaceted roles of A3B in NSCLC and identifies A3B as a potential target for more durable responses to targeted cancer therapy.</p

The status of the world's land and marine mammals: diversity, threat, and knowledge

Knowledge of mammalian diversity is still surprisingly disparate, both regionally and taxonomically. Here, we present a comprehensive assessment of the conservation status and distribution of the world's mammals. Data, compiled by 1700+ experts, cover all 5487 species, including marine mammals. Global macroecological patterns are very different for land and marine species but suggest common mechanisms driving diversity and endemism across systems. Compared with land species, threat levels are higher among marine mammals, driven by different processes (accidental mortality and pollution, rather than habitat loss), and are spatially distinct (peaking in northern oceans, rather than in Southeast Asia). Marine mammals are also disproportionately poorly known. These data are made freely available to support further scientific developments and conservation action

Sub-Telomere Directed Gene Expression during Initiation of Invasive Aspergillosis

Aspergillus fumigatus is a common mould whose spores are a component of the normal airborne flora. Immune dysfunction permits developmental growth of inhaled spores in the human lung causing aspergillosis, a significant threat to human health in the form of allergic, and life-threatening invasive infections. The success of A. fumigatus as a pathogen is unique among close phylogenetic relatives and is poorly characterised at the molecular level. Recent genome sequencing of several Aspergillus species provides an exceptional opportunity to analyse fungal virulence attributes within a genomic and evolutionary context. To identify genes preferentially expressed during adaptation to the mammalian host niche, we generated multiple gene expression profiles from minute samplings of A. fumigatus germlings during initiation of murine infection. They reveal a highly co-ordinated A. fumigatus gene expression programme, governing metabolic and physiological adaptation, which allows the organism to prosper within the mammalian niche. As functions of phylogenetic conservation and genetic locus, 28% and 30%, respectively, of the A. fumigatus subtelomeric and lineage-specific gene repertoires are induced relative to laboratory culture, and physically clustered genes including loci directing pseurotin, gliotoxin and siderophore biosyntheses are a prominent feature. Locationally biased A. fumigatus gene expression is not prompted by in vitro iron limitation, acid, alkaline, anaerobic or oxidative stress. However, subtelomeric gene expression is favoured following ex vivo neutrophil exposure and in comparative analyses of richly and poorly nourished laboratory cultured germlings. We found remarkable concordance between the A. fumigatus host-adaptation transcriptome and those resulting from in vitro iron depletion, alkaline shift, nitrogen starvation and loss of the methyltransferase LaeA. This first transcriptional snapshot of a fungal genome during initiation of mammalian infection provides the global perspective required to direct much-needed diagnostic and therapeutic strategies and reveals genome organisation and subtelomeric diversity as potential driving forces in the evolution of pathogenicity in the genus Aspergillus

Mismatch distributions among the four southern collections (in red) and the three northern collections in blue.

<p>Mismatch distributions among the four southern collections (in red) and the three northern collections in blue.</p

Maximum clade credibility coalescent tree derived all combined genes in the 338 ticks for which we obtained complete sequences in all genes.

<p>Numbers above some branches are posterior probabilities (PP) for values ≥ 0.90. Sequences collected exclusively in the south are colored red while those only collected in the north appear in blue. Those found in both the north and south appear in black. Any high order branches that join both north and south sequences appear in black. Some branches are labelled with a capital letter in a circle to assist discussion.</p

Measurement of genetic diversity among the 8 nuclear markers and at the 16S gene.

<p>A), average θ values and B) π values, C) The average numbers of SNPs and D) SNP density/ nucleotides.</p