It has become accepted that the horse cannot see directly in front when the nose is lowered and must therefore rely on the rider. We tested the hypothesis that this conclusion would be correct only if the horse did not adjust the eyeball horizontal axis to changes of the head position. The results of the present study suggest that it is unlikely that horses have limited vision in relation to their head position when driven by the rider, and that the horse maintains the optimal horizontal eyeball position regardless of head position relative to the ground. 相似文献
Due to increasing competition for water resources by urban, industrial, and agricultural users, the proportion of agricultural
water use is gradually decreasing. To maintain or increase agricultural production, new irrigation systems, such as surface
or subsurface drip irrigation systems, will need to provide higher water use efficiency than those traditionally used. Several
models have been developed to predict the dimensions of wetting patterns, which are important to design optimal drip irrigation
system, using variables such as the emitter discharge, the volume of applied water, and the soil hydraulic properties. In
this work, we evaluated the accuracy of several approaches used to estimate wetting zone dimensions by comparing their predictions
with field and laboratory data, including the numerical HYDRUS-2D model, the analytical WetUp software, and selected empirical
models. The soil hydraulic parameters for the HYDRUS-2D simulations were estimated using either Rosetta for the laboratory
experiments and inverse analysis for the field experiments. The mean absolute error (MAE) was used to compare the model predictions
and observations of wetting zone dimensions. MAE for different experiments and directions varied from 0.87 to 10.43 cm for
HYDRUS-2D, from 1 to 58.1 cm for WetUp, and from 1.34 to 12.24 cm for other empirical models. 相似文献
Pectinatella magnifica is an invasive freshwater bryozoan that has expanded in many localities worldwide, including fishing areas. It contains microbial communities, predominantly consisting of Aeromonas bacteria that are frequently associated with fish infections. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential pathogenicity of Aeromonas spp. associated with P. magnifica and evaluate the health risks for fish. Aeromonas strains were isolated from P. magnifica (101 strains) and from surrounding water (29 strains) in the South Bohemian region and investigated for the presence of 14 virulence-associated genes using PCR. We demonstrated high prevalence of phospholipase GCAT, polar flagellin, enolase, DNAse, aerolysin/cytotoxic enterotoxin, serine protease and heat-stable cytotonic enterotoxin-coding genes. Further, all twelve isolates that were analysed for cytotoxicity against intestinal epithelial cells were found to be cytotoxic. Six of the isolates were also tested as co-cultures composed of pairs. Enhanced cytotoxicity was observed when the pair was composed of strains from different species. In conclusion, P. magnifica is colonized by Aeromonas strains that have a relatively high prevalence of virulence-associated genes and the ability to provoke disease. Results also suggest a possibly increased risk arising from mixed infections. 相似文献
Flavescence dorée phytoplasma (FDp) is a quarantine pathogen associated with a severe and epidemic grapevine yellows disease representing a great threat for grapevine cultivation in Europe. An increase in disease spread prompted efforts to identify FDp strains in Croatia. Over 800 samples of grapevine together with presumed reservoir plants and almost 400 samples of Scaphoideus titanus and other potential vectors were collected countrywide and analysed. FDp isolates were characterized by multilocus sequence typing (MLST) of map, secY and uvrB-degV genes in order to determine genetic diversity and structure of FDp populations, and to trace transmission pathways. FD-related phytoplasmas were found in Croatia for the first time in alder, the invasive tree species Ailanthus altissima and leafhopper Phlogotettix cyclops. Phylogenetic analysis revealed the presence of three mapFD strain clusters: mapFD1, mapFD2 and mapFD3, and for the first time in Croatia a case of Palatinate grapevine yellows strain A (PGY-A). In total, 7 different map, 10 secY and 11 uvrB-degV genotypes were detected. The identification of 15 comprehensive FDp genotypes based on MLST suggests separate routes for disease introduction and propagation origins in Croatia. Moreover, high genetic variability of Croatian isolates indicates a complex ecological cycle of FDp involving various hosts. 相似文献
The aim of this study was to maximize the spawning of Oreochromis niloticus females in a specific time period. Females were divided randomly into control and treatment groups. In the treatment groups, females were kept for one week at 28±0.5 °C, after which they were exposed to a reduced water temperature of 22±0.5 °C for 7, 14 and 28 days. Thereafter, the temperature was restored to 28 °C. Females in the control groups were kept continuously at a water temperature of 28 °C. All females were checked daily for signs of spawning for the duration of the experiments and were manually stripped if ready to spawn. The following parameters were calculated for period of 3 and 7 days following a 28 °C temperature restoration: spawning rate, number of eggs per female, weight of female, relative fecundity (eggs g−1 body weight) and the percentage of hatched and swim-up fry. The highest spawning rate of 39.5% was obtained in the 14-day trial over a period of 7 days, while the corresponding value in the control was 12.5%. The percentages of hatched and swim-up fry in the 14- and 28-day trials, however, were significantly higher in the controls than in the corresponding treatment groups. 相似文献
Artificial light at night (ALAN) provides an array of important benefits but might also adversely affect humans and other living organisms. Yet, the existing reviews of accumulated knowledge about the multifaceted effects associated with exposure to ALAN focus on distinct ecosystem components. As a result, our understanding of potential system-wide impacts of ALAN exposure is insufficient.
Objectives
This paper attempts to bridge this knowledge gap by reviewing a wide range of studies, with a particular focus on identifying the impacts of ALAN exposure that are common to different species.
Methods
The survey is conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and covers peer-reviewed articles published from 2000 to 2019.
Results
Seventy-four eligible articles, out of 1223 initially identified, were selected and synthesized. 20% of them focus on humans, while the rest explore other living organisms, such as vertebrates, avian species, arthropods, aquatic organisms, and vegetation. The review demonstrates that similar adverse effects of ALAN exposure, ranging from sleep disturbance, depression, weight gain, eating and movement disorders, to elevated risk of cancer, are manifested across different components of the ecosystem, and therefore entail wider and more complex risks to its stability and integrity.
Conclusion
To reduce ecosystem risks, associated with constantly increasing ALAN levels, illumination policies should be based on directional and reduced nighttime lighting, which can help to avoid unnecessary exposures. The study highlights knowledge gaps that warrant further research attention.
The dominant feature of artificial smart materials is the “shape memory” effect. This phenomenon is based on frozen strains (FS). They were detected in wood fastened specimens during drying in the early 1960s. The integral law of wood deforming under loading and moisture content and/or temperature changes was subsequently formulated. This law takes into account the forming of FS. It was applied for the calculation of wood drying stresses. Stress memory and strain memory effects for wood were discovered. Wood has the ability to recollect the type of loading (tension or compression) which it had undergone. The difference between the free and restrained shrinkage is named “frozen shrinkage” (FSh). In calculations of drying stresses, it is more justified to use the FSh concept than “mechano-sorptive creep” (MSC). The MSC phenomenon is observed at cyclical change of moisture content in loaded wood. “Hygrofatigue” that reduces wood stiffness plays the main role in this process. 相似文献
Type III secreted "effector" proteins of bacterial pathogens play central roles in virulence, yet are notoriously difficult to identify. We used an in vivo genetic screen to identify 13 effectors secreted by the type III apparatus (called Hrp, for "hypersensitive response and pathogenicity") of the plant pathogen Pseudomonas syringae. Although sharing little overall homology, the amino-terminal regions of these effectors had strikingly similar amino acid compositions. This feature facilitated the bioinformatic prediction of 38 P. syringae effectors, including 15 previously unknown proteins. The secretion of two of these putative effectors was shown to be type III--dependent. Effectors showed high interstrain variation, supporting a role for some effectors in adaptation to different hosts. 相似文献