Preliminary transformation of Saccharum officinarum L. with Bt gene

Borer is one of the major pests of sugarcane that can cause a loss of crop yield. Spraying pesticides for the control of  borer faces obstacles because the pest lives inside sugarcane stem and sugarcanes with sharp leaves are planted at high density in fields. Transformation of two sugarcane varieties, VN 84 4137 and Suphabury 7, with synthetic Bt genes, cry1Ab and hybrid cry1B-cry1Ab, aims to provide effective resistance against pests, mainly borer. Two strains of Agrobacterium tumefaciens were transformed with plasmids containing cry1Ab gene or cry1B-cry1Ab gene for plant transformation. Sugarcanes were investigated in vitro conditions of cultivation, which indicated that the highest calli formation from the young leaf rolls was obtained on the medium with 3 mg/l 2,4-D for VN84 4137 at 93.33%  and 2 mg/l 2,4-D for Suphanbury 7 at 96.67%. The highest number of calli forming shoots was achieved on the medium with the combination of 2 mg/l BAP and 1 mg/l NAA at 100% for two varieties. Preliminary Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of sugarcane was obtained with calli expressing GUS and/or resistant to phosphinothricin at 3 mg/l, which was the lethal threshold for wild-type callus and in vitro young plants

Defining Terms Used for Animals Working in Support Roles for People with Support Needs.

The nomenclature used to describe animals working in roles supporting people can be confusing. The same term may be used to describe different roles, or two terms may mean the same thing. This confusion is evident among researchers, practitioners, and end users. Because certain animal roles are provided with legal protections and/or government-funding support in some jurisdictions, it is necessary to clearly define the existing terms to avoid confusion. The aim of this paper is to provide operationalized definitions for nine terms, which would be useful in many world regions: "assistance animal", "companion animal", "educational/school support animal", "emotional support animal", "facility animal", "service animal", "skilled companion animal", "therapy animal", and "visiting/visitation animal". At the International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) conferences in 2018 and 2020, over 100 delegates participated in workshops to define these terms, many of whom co-authored this paper. Through an iterative process, we have defined the nine terms and explained how they differ from each other. We recommend phasing out two terms (i.e., "skilled companion animal" and "service animal") due to overlap with other terms that could potentially exacerbate confusion. The implications for several regions of the world are discussed

Defining Terms Used for Animals Working in Support Roles for People with Support Needs

The nomenclature used to describe animals working in roles supporting people can be confusing. The same term may be used to describe different roles, or two terms may mean the same thing. This confusion is evident among researchers, practitioners, and end users. Because certain animal roles are provided with legal protections and/or government-funding support in some jurisdictions, it is necessary to clearly define the existing terms to avoid confusion. The aim of this paper is to provide operationalized definitions for nine terms, which would be useful in many world regions: “assistance animal”, “companion animal”, “educational/school support animal”, “emotional support animal”, “facility animal”, “service animal”, “skilled companion animal”, “therapy animal”, and “visiting/visitation animal”. At the International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) conferences in 2018 and 2020, over 100 delegates participated in workshops to define these terms, many of whom co-authored this paper. Through an iterative process, we have defined the nine terms and explained how they differ from each other. We recommend phasing out two terms (i.e., “skilled companion animal” and “service animal”) due to overlap with other terms that could potentially exacerbate confusion. The implications for several regions of the world are discussed