A Technical-Economic Comparison between Conventional Tillage and Conservative Techniques in Paddy-Rice Production Practice in Northern Italy

In this study a technical-economic comparison was conducted to compare three different agronomic practices applied to paddy rice cultivation areas in Italy: one based on conventional tillage (CT), and two adopting conservative agriculture approaches, namely minimum tillage (MT) and no-tillage (NT). Data about production inputs (seed, fertilizers, agrochemicals, fuel) and working time were measured for each technique during the whole production season in three experimental fields. The total production costs were computed by adding the mechanization costs, calculated through the ASABE (American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers) EP (Engineering Practice) 496.3 methodology, and the production input costs. The results of the study highlighted a significant reduction of total costs obtained with both minimum ( 1216%) and no-tillage ( 1219%) compared to conventional tillage

Reproductive capacity of the red cusk-eel genypterus chilensis (Guichenot, 1848) in captivity

Indexación: Scopus.This work was supported by the FONDEF Project D06I 1024 “Development of technologies for the production of red cusk-eel fingerlings (Genypterus chilensis)”.Genypterus chilensis is a marine fish of high gastronomic demand, whose capture has declined in recent years due to overfishing. In the development of the farming technology, high mortalities were obtained during egg incubation. The objective of this study is to contribute to the knowledge of fecundity and eggs viability of G. chilensis in captivity. The spawns of G. chilensis were analyzed over a period of 2 years and 3 months. The total fecundity was estimated by counting the masses and eggs produced monthly throughout the period. The results confirm that G. chilensis is a partial spawner, since a female may more than two masses of eggs per day, due to a large amount of mass spawned per season (621 average). The total production of masses of the Farming Centre during the period was 2,290; of these, only 7% (166) corresponding to 15,330,517 eggs were incubated. Because of its high fecundity, G. chilensis produces numerous masses of eggs, of which only a small percentage reaches incubation, as well as it occurs in other marine fish. © 2018, Escuela de Ciencias del Mar. All rights reserved.https://scielo.conicyt.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0718-560X201800020048

Order of [6]Ti4+ in a Ti-rich calcium amphibole from Kaersut, Greenland : a combined X-ray and neutron diffraction study

In order to characterize the role of Ti in the crystal structure of calcium amphiboles with high or even dominant oxo-component, the crystal structure of a Ti-rich calcium amphibole from a gabbro at Kaersut, Greenland, has been refined with single-crystal MoK\u3b1 X-ray intensity data to an R1(F) index of ~0.025, and with single-crystal Laue neutron intensity data to an R1(F) index of ~0.053. The crystal used for X-ray structure refinement was characterized by electron- and ion-microprobe analysis. The site populations of the C-group cations Mg, Fe and Ti were calculated from the refined site-scattering values for the M(1), M(2) and M(3) sites derived by both X-ray and neutron diffraction. Ti is distributed among all the three sixfold coordinated M sites, with a strong preference for the M(1) and M(3) sites, where its main role is maintaining electroneutrality at the deprotonated O(3) site. The pattern of distortion of the M(1), M(2) and M(3) octahedra differs from that in F-free deprotonated or partly deprotonated amphiboles, where Ti4+ does not occur at the M(3) site. The neutron structure refinement provides also a clear picture of the environment of the proton, anisotropic displacement behaviour and potential hydrogen-bonding arrangements. A trifurcated hydrogen-bonding configuration has been identified, with two O(6) and one O(7) oxygen atoms as acceptors of weak hydrogen-bonds

Projection Neuron Circuits Resolved Using Correlative Array Tomography

Assessment of three-dimensional morphological structure and synaptic connectivity is essential for a comprehensive understanding of neural processes controlling behavior. Different microscopy approaches have been proposed based on light microcopy (LM), electron microscopy (EM), or a combination of both. Correlative array tomography (CAT) is a technique in which arrays of ultrathin serial sections are repeatedly stained with fluorescent antibodies against synaptic molecules and neurotransmitters and imaged with LM and EM (Micheva and Smith, 2007). The utility of this correlative approach is limited by the ability to preserve fluorescence and antigenicity on the one hand, and EM tissue ultrastructure on the other. We demonstrate tissue staining and fixation protocols and a workflow that yield an excellent compromise between these multimodal imaging constraints. We adapt CAT for the study of projection neurons between different vocal brain regions in the songbird. We inject fluorescent tracers of different colors into afferent and efferent areas of HVC in zebra finches. Fluorescence of some tracers is lost during tissue preparation but recovered using anti-dye antibodies. Synapses are identified in EM imagery based on their morphology and ultrastructure and classified into projection neuron type based on fluorescence signal. Our adaptation of array tomography, involving the use of fluorescent tracers and heavy-metal rich staining and embedding protocols for high membrane contrast in EM will be useful for research aimed at statistically describing connectivity between different projection neuron types and for elucidating how sensory signals are routed in the brain and transformed into a meaningful motor output

Correlative Microscopy of Densely Labeled Projection Neurons Using Neural Tracers

Three-dimensional morphological information about neural microcircuits is of high interest in neuroscience, but acquiring this information remains challenging. A promising new correlative technique for brain imaging is array tomography (Micheva and Smith, 2007), in which series of ultrathin brain sections are treated with fluorescent antibodies against neurotransmitters and synaptic proteins. Treated sections are repeatedly imaged in the fluorescence light microscope (FLM) and then in the electron microscope (EM). We explore a similar correlative imaging technique in which we differentially label distinct populations of projection neurons, the key routers of electrical signals in the brain. In songbirds, projection neurons can easily be labeled using neural tracers, because the vocal control areas are segregated into separate nuclei. We inject tracers into areas afferent and efferent to the main premotor area for vocal production, HVC, to retrogradely and anterogradely label different classes of projection neurons. We optimize tissue preparation protocols to achieve high fluorescence contrast in the FLM and good ultrastructure in the EM (using osmium tetroxide). Although tracer fluorescence is lost during EM preparation, we localize the tracer molecules after fixation and embedding by using fluorescent antibodies against them. We detect signals mainly in somata and dendrites, allowing us to classify synapses within a single ultrathin section as belonging to a particular type of projection neuron. The use of our method will be to provide statistical information about connectivity among different neuron classes, and to elucidate how signals in the brain are processed and routed among different areas

Functional and Structural Investigation of Songbird Brain Projection Neurons with Shuttle and Find

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, August 7-August 11, 201

Studio di fattibilit\ue0 di un sistema ottico portatile semplificato per la valutazione del grado di maturaione di mirtilli

Le fasi di maturazione dei mirtilli fino alla raccolta vengono oggi seguite senza l\u2019aiuto di strumenti in grado di fornire dati oggettivi e anche il momento della raccolta viene deciso solamente sulla base dell\u2019analisi visiva dei frutti e dell\u2019esperienza del produttore. I produttori potrebbero quindi essere supportati nelle loro decisioni da strumenti semplici e portatili, utilizzabili direttamente in campo per la valutazione del grado di maturazione dei frutti. Pertanto \ue8 stata studiata la possibilit\ue0 di realizzare uno strumento ottico portatile ed economico, basato su tecnologia a LED e sulla misura e l\u2019elaborazione del valore di riflettanza diffusa in corrispondenza di un numero limitato di lunghezze d\u2019onda opportunamente selezionate. La selezione delle lunghezze d\u2019onda pi\uf9 significative per l\u2019individuazione dei frutti a maturazione commerciale adatti alla raccolta, \ue8 stata effettuata partendo da spettri Vis/NIR raccolti nell\u2019intervallo 445-970 nm di campioni della variet\ue0 Brigitta. Le bacche raccolte sono state suddivise in quattro classi di maturazione in funzione del colore. Gli spettri acquisiti sono stati sottoposti a un\u2019Analisi delle Componenti Principali (PCA, The Unscrambler\uae 9.6) che ha permesso di evidenziare in particolare due bande (attorno a 650 nm e a 740 nm) in corrispondenza delle quali risultano massimizzate le differenze tra gli spettri dei campioni completamente maturi e quelli delle altre classi. I valori di riflettanza registrati a queste lunghezze d\u2019onda sono stati utilizzati per creare dei rapporti normalizzati rispetto alla lunghezza d\u2019onda di 850 nm e sulla base di tali rapporti \ue8 stato elaborato un algoritmo semplificato per la classificazione dei frutti. La classificazione dei campioni in base all\u2019indice di maturazione elaborato ha mostrato un\u2019elevata capacit\ue0 di discriminare i frutti completamente maturi da quelli parzialmente o non maturi (93% di campioni correttamente classificati). I risultati di questo studio indicano pertanto la fattibilit\ue0 di uno strumento semplificato ed economico, basato sull\u2019impiego di sole tre lunghezze d\u2019onda, capace di valutare rapidamente e in condizioni di campo il grado di maturazione dei mirtilli

Feasibility of a simplified handheld optical system for blue-berries ripeness field evalutation

During last years, small fruits farming and marketing have increased widely in Italy in response to consumer\u2019s interest in bioactive and health protecting compounds fruits rich. At present, the ripening stage and harvest time is normally estimated by a visual analysis based on grower\u2019s experience. Farm growers could be supported in their decisions by simple and portable devices, used to directly assess the berries ripeness in the field and accordingly to plan the best harvest time. The aim of this work was to study the feasibility of a simplified handheld and inexpensive optical device, based on measurements and processing of diffuse reflectance at a few wavelengths appropriately selected. This study is focused on selecting the most significant wavelengths able to identify in the field the blueberries ready to be harvested. To this aim Vis/NIR spectra in the range 445-970 nm were acquired for Vaccinium corymbosum (\u2018Brigitta\u2019 cultivar) during two different growing seasons (2005 and 2006), harvested in Valtellina area (Lombardy, Italy). Spectra measurements were taken in the field on individual berries along their equator region. Fruits samplings were performed weekly, and picked fruits were divided in four ripeness classes according to external colour. The PCA of 634 fruits spectra highlighted two principal spectral bands (around 680 nm and 740 nm) in which differences among fully (class IV) and not completely ripe (classes IIII)samples spectra are maximized. Reflectance values at these wavelengths were used to obtain spectral ratios normalised to 850 nm reflectance. Based on these relations, a simple fruits classification algorithm was proposed. Berries ripeness grading based on the proposed index showed a high ability in discriminating fully ripe fruits from partially ripe fruits and unripe fruits. More then the 93% of samples were correctly classified in validation phase. The results of this study demonstrate the feasibility of a simplified and low-cost handheld device, based on the use of only three wavelengths, able to quickly estimate blueberry ripeness in the field, with special reference to the last and most sensitive stages of ripening process