Blending single beam RoxAnn and multi-beam swathe QTC hydro-acoustic discrimination techniques for the Stonehaven area, Scotland, UK

Surface properties of the seabed in a 180 km2 area of coastal waters (14-57 m depth) off northeast Scotland were mapped by hydro-acoustic discrimination using single and multi-beam echosounders linked to signal processing systems (RoxAnn for the single beam, and Questor Tangent Corporation (QTC) Multiview for the multibeam). Subsequently, two ground truthing surveys were carried out, using grab and TV sampling. The RoxAnn and QTC-Multiview outputs showed strong similarity in their classifications of seabed types. Classifications generated by QTC-Multiview were used to supervise those based on seabed roughness and hardness indices produced by the RoxAnn system and thereby develop a ‘blended’ map based on both systems. The resulting hydro-acoustic classes agreed well with a cluster analysis of data on sediment grain sizes from the grab sampling, and indicated that the area could be described by distinct regions of surface texture and surficial sediments ranging from muddy sand to boulders and rock

Automated Image Analysis of Offshore Infrastructure Marine Biofouling

Supplementary Materials: The following are available online at www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/6/1/2/s1 Acknowledgments: This project was funded by the Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) project No.: NE/N019865/1. The authors would like to thank Melanie Netherway and Don Orr, from our project partner (company requested to remain anonymous) for the provision of survey footage and for supporting the project. In addition, many thanks to Oscar Beijbom, University California Berkley for providing guidance and support to the project. Additional thanks to Calum Reay, Bibby Offshore; George Gair, Subsea 7; and Alan Buchan, Wood Group Kenny for help with footage collection and for allowing us to host workshops with them and their teams, their feedback and insights were very much appreciated.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The substantial first impact of bottom fishing on rare biodiversity hotspots: a dilemma for evidence-based conservation

The present study set out to describe the impact of a single first passage of two types of bottom fishing gear on rare protected shellfish beds formed by the horse mussel Modiolus modiolus. From the available evidence it was clear that one of the study sites had been trawled and the other had been scallop-dredged. Divers collected high-resolution video imagery of epifauna from quadrats at the two study sites and directed infaunal samples at one. The total number of epifaunal organisms was substantially less after a single pass of a trawl (90%) or scallop dredge (59%) as was the diversity of the community and the total number of Modiolus modiolus. A year later no recovery was evident at the site where the trawl had passed and substantially less infauna were recorded in the trawl track. The relative severity of the impact of the two types of fishing gear is unexpected and may reflect differences in community between the two sites or the undisturbed status of the habitats compared to previous studies. As a ‘priority habitat’ the nature of the impacts described on M. modiolus communities are important to the development of indicators of ‘Good Environmental Status’ under the European Union Marine Strategy Framework Directive.Conservation managers are under pressure to support decisions with good quality evidence. Elsewhere indirect studies have shown declines of M. modiolus communities in fishing grounds but, given the protected status of the habitat, premeditated demonstration of direct impact is unethical and / or illegal in Marine Protected Areas. The present study therefore provides a unique opportunity to directly investigate the scale of the impact from bottom fishing gear whilst also to reflect on the paradox of evidence – based conservation management

UVA photoactivation of harmol enhances its antifungal activity against the phytopathogens Penicillium digitatum and Botrytis cinerea

Phytopathogenic fungi responsible for post-harvest diseases on fruit and vegetables cause important economic losses. We have previously reported that harmol (1-methyl-9H-pyrido[3,4-b]indol-7-ol) is active against the causal agents of green and gray molds Penicillium digitatum and Botrytis cinerea, respectively. Here, antifungal activity of harmol was characterized in terms of pH dependency and conidial targets; also photodynamic effects of UVA irradiation on the antimicrobial action were evaluated. Harmol was able to inhibit the growth of both post-harvest fungal disease agents only in acidic conditions (pH 5), when it was found in its protonated form. Conidia treated with harmol exhibited membrane integrity loss, cell wall disruption, and cytoplasm disorganization. All these deleterious effects were more evident for B. cinerea in comparison to P. digitatum. When conidial suspensions were irradiated with UVA in the presence of harmol, antimicrobial activity against both pathogens was enhanced, compared to non-irradiated conditions. B. cinerea exhibited a high intracellular production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) when was incubated with harmol in irradiated and non-irradiated treatments. P. digitatum showed a significant increase in ROS accumulation only when treated with photoexcited harmol. The present work contributes to unravel the antifungal activity of harmol and its photoexcited counterpart against phytopathogenic conidia, focusing on ROS accumulation which could account for damage on different cellular targets.Fil: Olmedo, Gabriela María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Cerioni, Luciana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Gonzalez, Maria Elisa. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús). Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús); ArgentinaFil: Cabrerizo, Franco Martín. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús). Universidad Nacional de San Martín. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas. Instituto de Investigaciones Biotecnológicas "Dr. Raúl Alfonsín" (sede Chascomús); ArgentinaFil: Volentini, Sabrina Inès. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas; ArgentinaFil: Rapisarda, Viviana Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto Superior de Investigaciones Biológicas; Argentin

Taxonomic revision of Endoraecium digitatum (rust fungi, Uredinales) with description of four new species from Australia and Hawaii

Endoraecium digitatum was described on Acacia notabilis from South Australia but has been reported on more than 20 Acacia spp. throughout the Australian and the Pacific regions. Results are presented on the micro-morphology and taxonomy of E. digitatum from different Acacia species and geographic provenience. E. digitatum revealed a highly non-uniform morphology and is considered a species complex comprising at least six morphologically distinct rust fungi. The name E. digitatum could not be applied to any of the distinguished species by a comparison with available type specimens or the original description as types were depleted and the diagnosis not detailed enough. An epitype is therefore proposed to supplement the lectotype of E. digitatum selected here and to allow delimitation of the new species E. parvum, E. violae-faustae and E. walkerianum from Australia, and E. kauaianum from Hawaii. Endoraecium phyllodiorum is shown to be different from E. digitatum and is proposed as a new combination for Uromyces phyllodiorum. Specimens from Hawaii formerly considered to be E. digitatum represent two species, E. kauaianum and another one preliminarily assigned to E. phyllodiorum. The investigated species show differences between and plasticity within their life cycles. E. parvum, E. violae-faustae and E. kauaianum are macrocyclic. In E. walkerianum, only demicyclic specimens were found, while demi- and macrocyclic specimens occurred in E. digitatum. E. phyllodiorum revealed variable combinations of spore states as well and comprised macro-, demi- and microcyclic life cycle variants. Life cycle variants were considered to express specific variability and were not used to create new taxa. The present results indicate that members of the E. digitatum complex in Australia are not narrowly host specific. Keys are presented for the Australian and Hawaiian species. Taxonomical novelties: Endoraecium kauaianum R. Berndt, Endoraecium parvum R. Berndt, Endoraecium phyllodiorum (McAlp.) R. Berndt, Endoraecium violae-faustae R. Berndt and Endoraecium walkerianum R. Bernd

Assessment of different pre-treatment methods for the removal of limonene in citrus waste and their effect on methane potential and methane production rate

The objective of this study was to assess the limonene removal efficiency of three pre-treatment methods when applied to citrus waste and to evaluate their effects on the biochemical methane potential (BMP) and the methane production rate (MPR) using batch anaerobic testsPostprint (published version

Chemical composition and antifungal effects of three species of Satureja (S. hortensis, S. spicigera, and S. khuzistanica) essential oils on the main pathogens of strawberry fruit

Due to an increasing risk of chemical contamination upon the application of synthetic fungicides to preserve fresh fruits and vegetables, essential oils are gaining increasing attentions. In this research, besides chemical analysis of the essential oils of three Satureja species (S. hortensis, S. spicigera, and S. khuzistanica) by GC-MS, their fungicidal and/or fungistatic effects on postharvest pathogens of strawberry were investigated. Essential oils were extracted by means of hydro-distillation and afterwards GC/MS analysis was performed to identify their components. Carvacrol, γ-terpinene and p-cymene were detected as the repeating main constituents of the spices, while thymol and carvacrol methyl ether were found as major components only in S. spicigera oil. In vitro results showed that at the maximum concentration, the essential oils did not possess fungicidal effects on Aspergillus niger but they exhibited fungicidal activities against Penicillium digitatum, Botrytis cinerea and Rhizopus stolonifer. However, S. khuzistanica was the strongest oil in fungicidal activity. S. hortensis oil was more effective than S. spicigera against B. cinerea whereas S. spicigera oil showed stronger fungicidal activity against R. stolonifer. In conclusion, essential oils isolated from three savory species could be suitable for applications in the food industry to control molds and improve the safety of fruits and vegetables. © 2015 Elsevier B.V

The importance of subclasses of chitin synthase enzymes with myosin-like domains for the fitness of fungi

Acknowledgements TG and CF are funded by FEDER funds through the Operational Programme Competitiveness Factors – COMPETE and national funds by FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology under the strategic project UID/NEU/04539/2013. C.F. is a recipient of a postdoctoral fellowship from FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (SFRH/BPD/63733/2009). NG is funded by The Wellcome Trust (080088, 086827, 075470, 099215 & 097377), the FungiBrain Marie Curie Network and the Medical Research Council (UK).Peer reviewe

Identification and functional analysis of Penicillium digitatum genes putatively involved in virulence towards citrus fruit

The fungus Penicillium digitatum, the causal agent of green mould rot, is the most destructive post-harvest pathogen of citrus fruit in Mediterranean regions. In order to identify P.digitatum genes up-regulated during the infection of oranges that may constitute putative virulence factors, we followed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based suppression subtractive hybridization and cDNA macroarray hybridization approach. The origin of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) was determined by comparison against the available genome sequences of both organisms. Genes coding for fungal proteases and plant cell wall-degrading enzymes represent the largest categories in the subtracted cDNA library. Northern blot analysis of a selection of P.digitatum genes, including those coding for proteases, cell wall-related enzymes, redox homoeostasis and detoxification processes, confirmed their up-regulation at varying time points during the infection process. Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation was used to generate knockout mutants for two genes encoding a pectin lyase (Pnl1) and a naphthalene dioxygenase (Ndo1). Two independent P.digitatum Δndo1 mutants were as virulent as the wild-type. However, the two Δpnl1 mutants analysed were less virulent than the parental strain or an ectopic transformant. Together, these results provide a significant advance in our understanding of the putative determinants of the virulence mechanisms of P.digitatum. Molecular Plant PathologyLGC research is funded in part by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Innovation (AGL-2008-04828-C03-02 and AGL2011-30519-C03-01) and the Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO/2010/010, PROMETEOII/2014/027 and ACOMP/2011/250). MLP was supported by a FPI scholarship (BES-2006-12983). ARB acknowledges the support of the JAE-Doc program from CSIC cofounded by FSE.Peer Reviewe

O ácido salicílico em pré-colheita influência o controle pós-colheita de penicillium digitatum de laranja 'salustiana´?.

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