Carbon and trace element fluxes in the pore water of an urban soil following greenwaste compost, woody and biochar amendments, inoculated with the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris     

Luke Beesley  Nicholas Dickinson 《Soil biology & biochemistry》2011,43(1):188-196

The benefits of adding composted organic materials to soils to enhance carbon storage could be countered by the mobilisation of some harmful pollutants commonly found in frequently degraded urban soils. Therefore non-composted materials could be a safer option. In the present study, carbon and trace element fluxes in soil pore water were studied in response to the surface mulch addition and the incorporation into an urban soil of greenwaste compost versus two non-composted amendments; a woody oversize material and biochar following inoculation with the vertical burrowing earthworm Lumbricus terrestris. The aim was to establish (i) to what extent the non-composted amendments impacted on mobility of soluble trace elements in the soil, compared to the composted amendment, and (ii) if/how this was regulated by earthworm activity.Both composted and non-composted amendments enhanced dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in soil pore water to ∼100-300 mg l⁻¹ in the upper depth of the soil profile above which they were applied as a mulch and similarly within the mesocosms in which they were mixed. Dissolved organic carbon, dissolved nitrogen (DTN) and trace metals, especially Cu and Pb, where enhanced to the greatest extent by greenwaste compost, because of strong co-mobilisation of metals by DOC. Biochar enhanced As and Cu mobility in the field profile and, additionally Pb in the mesocosms, with no effect on Cd. The woody, oversize amendment neither greatly increased DOC nor As, Cu, Pb or Zn mobility although, unlike the other amendments, earthworms increased DOC and Cd mobility when soils were amended with this material.This study concludes that non-composted amendments had a lower impact on DOC and thus trace element co-mobility than the composted greenwaste in this urban soil, whilst the general influence of earthworms was to reduce DOC and hence associated trace element mobility. In wider environmental terms the addition of non-composted materials to some urban soils, versus composted greenwaste could reduce the risk of mobilising potentially harmful elements, whilst usefully improving soil quality.  相似文献   

Systemic mucormycosis in a hooded seal (Cystophora cristata)     

Barnett JE  Davison NJ  Thornton SM  Riley P  Cooper T  Wessels ME 《Journal of zoo and wildlife medicine》2011,42(2):338-341

A 4-yr-old male captive hooded seal (Cystophora cristata), previously diagnosed as hypothyroid, died after a 3-wk period of lethargy and inappetance despite treatment that included intramuscular administration of antibiotics and multivitamins. Gross pathologic findings included extensive muscle necrosis over the left flank, an underlying necrotic iliac lymph node, two necrotic pulmonary masses and a necrotic bronchial lymph node. Routine cultures yielded a number of bacterial isolates and a heavy pure fungal growth from the necrotic iliac lymph node; wet preparations of which revealed sporangiophores typical of Mucor sp. Histopathology of necrotic muscle, pulmonary lesions and bronchial and iliac lymph nodes revealed necrosis with a marked pyogranulomatous and eosinophilic inflammatory cell infiltrate and fungal hyphae consistent with a Zygomycete species. This is believed to be the first report of systemic mucormycosis in a pinniped likely to have originated from an injection site reaction.  相似文献   

Identification,potential inoculum sources and pathogenicity of botryosphaeriaceous species associated with grapevine dieback disease in New Zealand     

Nicholas T. Amponsah  E. Eirian Jones  Hayley J. Ridgway  Marlene V. Jaspers 《European journal of plant pathology / European Foundation for Plant Pathology》2011,131(3):467-482

This study investigated the prevalence and identity of botryosphaeriaceous dieback pathogens in necrotic grapevines tissues in New Zealand vineyards, and other woody hosts growing nearby. The presumptive identities of the isolates by conidial and cultural morphology were confirmed with ITS sequence data as Neofusicoccum australe, N. luteum, N. parvum and Diplodia seriata. They were isolated predominantly from necrotic stems of grapevine and other hosts, but also from leaves, flowers and wood debris of grapevines. Inoculation with conidia and mycelium of multiple isolates of each species onto excised and attached green shoots and trunks of five grapevine varieties, Cabernet sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot noir, Riesling, and Sauvignon blanc, showed that all varieties became infected to a similar extent. All species except D. seriata were pathogenic, irrespective of the host source, with N. luteum being the most and D. mutila the least pathogenic (P < 0.05). On trunks, N. parvum caused cankers and the other pathogenic species caused die-back when the inoculated vines became winter-dormant. Conidia were produced from green shoot lesions and die-back wood, which indicates potential inoculum sources for vineyard infection.  相似文献   

Aluminium speciation: Variations caused by the choice of analytical method and by sample storage     

Maria Berdén  Nicholas Clarke  Lars -Göran Danielsson  Anders Sparén 《Water, air, and soil pollution》1994,72(1-4):213-233

We have compared a new FIA method (M1) for aluminium speciation in natural waters and a manual one based on one of Driscoll's proposals (M2). In synthetic solutions, aluminium's fluoro complexes were measured as ‘labile monomeric AP (Al _i ) by M2, but not as ‘quickly reacting Al’ (Al _qr ) by M1. Aluminium's complexes with Nordic Reference Humic Acid were measured neither as Al _i nor as Al _qr , and the same result was obtained for Al's citrato complexes. After excluding aluminium's fluoro complexes from Al _i , the results of the two methods agreed well for soil leaching samples and fairly well for natural water samples. Detection limits: 10μg L^?1 (ca. 0.4 μM) for both methods. Sample throughputs: M1∶66 injections h^?1; M2∶5 samples h^?1. Repeatabilities (RSD) on natural water samples: M1∶0.6–5.8% and M2 0.7–4.6%. Sample storage studies on soil solutions (FIA method) indicated that storage effects were ‘sample type specific’. A sample with a low level of Al _qr and a high DOC level (P2A) was more sensitive to storage than one with a high [Al] _qr and a low [DOC] (P2B^*). The decrease in [Al] _qr was statistically significant after 10 h (P2A) and 24 h (P2B^*), respectively. After 3 days' storage, [Al] _qr had decreased by some 40% in P2A, while the decrease in P2B^* was less than 10% after 8 days. The results of this part of the study also emphasize the importance of careful method standardization in sample storage studies.  相似文献   

Ophthalmic disease in exotic species.     

Nicholas J Millichamp 《Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice》2002,5(2):223-41, v

This article highlights factors that must be kept in mind when dealing with species other than cats, dogs, and horses. Diseases of the eye are similar regardless of whether they occur in humans or domestic or exotic species. There are unique conditions in exotic species that reflect differences in anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, and pathophysiology compared with domestic species.  相似文献   

Structural studies in azolylmethanes     

Nicholas H. Anderson  Sarah K. Branch  R. S. Thomas Loeffler  Brian E. Mann  Ian W. Nowell  Philip E. Walker 《Pest management science》1984,15(3):310-316

The crystal structures of a number of fungicidal azolylmethanes are compared. In the benzyl compounds [1-aryl-4,4-dimethyl-2-(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)pentan-3-ones, the corresponding pentan-3-ols, and 1-(4-chlorophenyl)-3-(2-fluorophenyl)-2-(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)propan-1-one], the benzyl and tert-butyl groups (or 4-chlorophenyl group) are trans, whereas in the analogous phenoxy compounds [1-(4-chlorophenoxy)-3,3-dimethyl-1-(1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)butan-2-one and the corresponding butan-2-ol], the tert-butyl groups are trans to the triazole and gauche to the phenoxy group. Coupling constants, determined by nuclear magnetic resonance (n.m.r.) spectroscopy, suggest that for some compounds there is one dominant solution conformation. Intramolecular hydrogen bonding, observed by infrared spectroscopy in two of the compounds, supports the findings by n.m.r. For some compounds, the crystal and solution conformations appear to be very similar, whereas in others they are quite different. Published data on the relative activity of the enantiomers of the benzyl- and phenoxy-compounds are discussed, but differences in the relative activity of enantiomers in the two series cannot be readily rationalised. It is concluded that different enantiomers may have different modes of binding at the active site.  相似文献   

Re-examination of inhibitor resistance conferred by Qo-site mutations in cytochrome b using yeast as a model system     

Fisher N  Meunier B 《Pest management science》2005,61(10):973-978

Cytochrome b from yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae Meyer ex Hansen) provides a convenient model system for the study of Qo-site inhibitor (QoI) resistance mutations from a variety of organisms. QoI resistance mutations from fungal plant pathogens (G143A and F129L), malaria agent Plasmodium sp (Y279C/S), and Pneumocystis carinii (L275F), an opportunistic pathogenic fungus of man, were introduced into yeast cytochrome b and their effect on the binding of a variety of natural (myxothiazol and stigmatellin) and synthetic (atovaquone, azoxystrobin and pyraclostrobin) inhibitors to the bc1 complex monitored. L275S (from a myxothiazol-resistant yeast) was also re-examined. Stigmatellin binding was relatively unaffected by the introduction of these mutations. Significant increases in resistance were observed for the strobilurin-class inhibitors myxothiazol, azoxystrobin and pyraclostrobin, with the largest increase in resistance conferred by G143A. In contrast, atovaquone binding was most effected by Y279C/S and L275S. Notably, F129L, G143A and L275S had a minor effect on bc1 activity, and so are unlikely to confer significant fitness penalties in vivo. These data are discussed in the light of the atomic structures for myxothiazol- and azoxystrobin-inhibited bovine bc1 which have recently become available. We propose that QoI resistance due to G143A arises from steric hindrance between the inhibitor and cytochrome b, whereas the mechanism of resistance for the other mutations is due to an increase in binding energy between the protein and inhibitor molecule. Site-directed mutagenesis was also used to model selected regions of the mammalian Qo site in yeast cytochrome b in order to further understand the differential efficacy of these QoI in the mammalian and pathogen bc1 complexes.  相似文献   

Serologic survey of cats and dogs during an epidemic of West Nile virus infection in humans     

Kile JC  Panella NA  Komar N  Chow CC  MacNeil A  Robbins B  Bunning ML 《Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association》2005,226(8):1349-1353

OBJECTIVE: To estimate West Nile virus (WNV) infection rates, assess environmental variables that correlated with seropositivity in dogs and cats, and assess whether pets should be considered as possible sentinels for WNV and therefore of potential human exposure. DESIGN: Cross-sectional serosurvey. ANIMALS: 442 dogs and 138 cats. PROCEDURE: Serum samples were screened for seropositivity against WNV by use of the plaque reduction neutralization test. RESULTS: 116 (26%) dogs and 13 (9%) cats yielded positive results. The odds of seropositivity against WNV for outdoor-only family dogs were almost 19 times as great as those for indoor-only family dogs and almost twice as great for stray dogs as for family dogs. Family dogs not receiving heartworm medication were 2.5 times as likely to yield positive results for antibodies against WNV as family dogs receiving heartworm medication. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Seropositivity was greater for outdoor family dogs than for indoor family dogs. Further investigation of the potential use of stray dogs as sentinel indicators for WNV infection and the potential risk of human exposure is warranted.  相似文献   

Effects of oral administration of levothyroxine sodium on concentrations of plasma lipids, concentration and composition of very-low-density lipoproteins, and glucose dynamics in healthy adult mares     

Frank N  Sommardahl CS  Eiler H  Webb LL  Denhart JW  Boston RC 《American journal of veterinary research》2005,66(6):1032-1038

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate glucose and lipid metabolism in healthy adult horses administered levothyroxine sodium (L-T4). ANIMALS: 12 healthy adult mares. PROCEDURE: 8 horses received an incrementally increasing dosage of L-T4 (24, 48, 72, or 96 mg of L-T4/d) for weeks 1 to 8. Each dose was provide between 7 AM and 8 AM in the morning grain meal for 2 weeks. Four additional horses remained untreated. Serum concentrations of nonesterified fatty acids, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) were measured and composition of VLDL examined in samples obtained between 8 AM and 9 AM at weeks 0, 2, 4, 6, and 8. Glucose dynamics were assessed by use of a combined IV glucose-insulin tolerance test (IVGITT) conducted before and at the end of the 8-week treatment period. Data for each combined IVGITT were interpreted by use of the minimal model. RESULTS: Plasma TG, TC, and VLDL concentrations significantly decreased over time in treated horses. At the completion of the 8-week treatment period, mean plasma VLDL concentration was 46% of the mean value for week 0 in treated horses. Insulin sensitivity significantly increased (> 2-fold) in treated horses, but glucose effectiveness and net insulin response were not affected. Levothyroxine sodium significantly increased the rate of insulin disposal. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Administration of L-T4 decreases blood lipid concentrations, improves insulin sensitivity, and increases insulin disposal in horses. Levothyroxine sodium may have potential as a treatment for horses with reduced insulin sensitivity.  相似文献   

Physiologic assessment of blood glucose homeostasis via combined intravenous glucose and insulin testing in horses     

Eiler H  Frank N  Andrews FM  Oliver JW  Fecteau KA 《American journal of veterinary research》2005,66(9):1598-1604

OBJECTIVE: To characterize the physiologic response to i.v. bolus injection of glucose and insulin for development of a combined glucose-insulin test (CGIT) in horses. ANIMALS: 6 healthy mares and 1 mare each with pituitary adenoma and urolithiasis. PROCEDURE: Horses were given a CGIT (glucose, 150 mg/kg; insulin, 0.1 U/kg); results were compared with a singular i.v. glucose tolerance test (GTT; 150 mg/kg) and a singular i.v. insulin sensitivity test (IST; 0.1 U/kg). Healthy horses were also given a CGIT after receiving xylazine and undergoing stress. RESULTS: Physiologically, the CGIT resulted in a 2-phase curve with positive (hyperglycemic) and negative (hypoglycemic) portions; the positive phase came first (250% of baseline at 1 minute). The descending segment declined linearly to baseline by approximately 30 minutes and to a nadir at 58% of baseline by 75 minutes. After a 35-minute valley, a linear ascent to baseline began. Addition of insulin in the CGIT increased glucose utilization by approximately 4.5 times during the positive phase but not during the negative phase. The diseases' effects and experimental inhibition of insulin secretion with xylazine and stress were detectable by use of the 2 phases of the CGIT. Only a single positive phase resulted from the GTT and a single negative phase from the IST CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The CGIT resulted in a consistent, well-defined glycemia profile, which can be disrupted experimentally or by a disease process. The CGIT has clinical potential because it provides integrated information and more information than either the singular GTT or IST.  相似文献