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The use of yeast extracts as a natural and valuable additive ingredient intended for the production of functional food and dietary supplements were demonstrated. The chemical composition, amino acid analysis, determination of protein molecular weights, antioxidant properties, and sensory evaluation were carried out for two yeast extracts. It was found that the tested extracts are characterised by high essential amino acid content, exceeding the levels of reference protein developed by the FAO/WHO, and high antioxidant activity. Sensory characteristics of tested extracts may favourably influence the quality of the proposed functional foods and dietary supplements. The obtained results indicate that the tested extracts can be utilised as a source of free amino acids and peptides in the design of functional foods and dietary supplements.

The effect of grazing on the productive performance and meat quality was evaluated for chickens (Ross 308, n = 192). Chickens were kept in two pens on wooden shavings (2 × 96) from one day of age. On day 23 of age, one group was moved to a pasture and kept in a portable floorless pen with an area of 0.11 m² per chicken. The field portion of the experiment was conducted from the 1^st till the 18^th of June 2013. A control group was kept in the original pen until the end of the experiment at 6 weeks of age. Both groups were fed the same pelleted feed ad libitum. For the pasture-reared group, the moveable shelter was moved twice daily around the pasture with a predominance of grass species. The herbage intake of chickens was indirectly assessed by compressed sward height measurement after each cage movement, which employed a rising plate-meter. In the pasture, chickens preferred grass over clover. There was no significant effect of grazing observed on chicken body weight. The mortality of chickens in the grazing group was lower than that in the control group. Pasture treatment improved meat flavour by 9% (P = 0.014), produced breast meat with significantly higher (P = 0.009) redness, and almost doubled the concentration of α-tocopherol (P < 0.001). There were no significant effects of grazing on the dry matter, fat, cholesterol or pH of the meat. The production of TBARS in the breast meat of the pasture group after storage at 4°C for 5 days was lower (P = 0.013) than that in the breast meat of the control chickens. Although the differences between K, Ca, P, Mg, and N concentrations in pasture and soil before and after grazing reached 20%, these differences were not significant.

Polymorphic SNPs were identified using BovineSNP50 BeadChip in three groups of cervids: farmed Red deer (n = 3), and free range Red deer (n = 5) and Fallow deer (n = 2). From the total of 54 609 SNPs, 53.85% could be genotyped. Out of 28 502 successfully genotyped autosomal SNPs only 5.3% were polymorphic. The average minor allele frequency within cervids was 0.23 (number of polymorphic SNPs ranged from 467 to 686). Results of the molecular variance analysis showed that 67.38% of variation occurred within individuals and the rest was explained by a species difference (F_ST = 0.32). The value of F_IT (0.33) indicated a higher proportion of homozygote genotypes in the analyzed dataset. Pairwise F_ST values showed very clearly the genetic differentiation between Red and Fallow deer which ranged from 0.06 (farmed and free range deer) to 0.74 (farmed Red and Fallow deer). A similar result was found for Nei's genetic distances that ranged from 0.01 (among Fallow deer) to 0.79 (among farmed Red and Fallow deer). The genetic differentiation of the analyzed cervid species was evaluated also by the principal component analysis with the involvement of 6 other species from the family Cervidae, which showed a division of the Cervidae cluster into 7 subpopulations. The panels of SNPs primarily produced for a model species are becoming the marker of choice for the application in other species, but the best methods of their discovery, validation, and genotyping in non-model species need further investigations.

The considerable increase in oxygen requirements due to the high metabolic rate of the bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMEC) during lactation results in an augmented production of reactive nitrogen species (RNS), such as nitric oxide (NO), which may expose cows to increased oxidative stress. Vitamin A (VA) has been shown in several studies to enhance the antioxidant defence system against oxidative stress, but whether the reason is related to a reduced NO production remains unclear. Diethylene triamine-nitric oxide polymer (NOp) is a type of NO-generating compound, which is safe, efficacious, and releases NO over a long period. The current study was conducted to investigate the effect of VA on the antioxidant function in BMEC and the underlying mechanism by discussing the protection of VA on NO-induced oxidative stress of BMEC. The experiment was conducted using a single-factor completely randomized arrangement. Primary BMEC were isolated from the mammary glands of Holstein dairy cows. The third generation cells were randomly divided into four equal groups with six replicates each. Each group received different combinations of VA and NOp treatment as follows: controls (without VA and NOp), NOp treatment alone, VA treatment alone, and VA and NOp treatment together. The lysates were collected to evaluate the activities of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and thioredoxin reductase (TrxR) and the contents of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA), and the cell-free supernatants were collected to analyze selenoprotein P (SelP) content, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) activities and nitric oxide (NO), interleukin-1 (IL-1), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) contents. The results suggested that compared to the control, the cell proliferation, the activity of the antioxidants GPx and TrxR, the content of SelP and the antioxidant gene expressions of GPx1, GPx4, and TrxR1 were significantly decreased (P < 0.05), and the contents of ROS and MDA, the activity of iNOS, the contents of NO and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α, and their mRNA expressions were increased dramatically in the NOp treatment alone group (P < 0.05), but the opposite changes were observed in the VA treatment alone group. Compared to the NOp treatment alone, the VA and NOp treatment together significantly improved cell proliferation, the activities of the antioxidants GPx and TrxR, and the gene expressions of GPx1 and TrxR1, and dramatically decreased the contents of ROS and MDA, the activity of iNOS, the contents of NO and IL-1, IL-6, TNF-α and their mRNA expression levels (P < 0.05). The present research suggests that VA can improve the antioxidant function of BMEC and protect the cells from experiencing the NOp-induced oxidative stress by regulating antioxidant gene expression. The probable mechanism is that VA can reduce the activity of iNOS and its mRNA expression by down-regulating of the expression of IL-1, IL-6, and TNF-α to reduce NO production. However, the exact mechanism warrants future exploration.

The objectives were to determine the effects of insemination with sexed semen at spontaneous and induced estrus, fixed-time insemination at synchronized estrus, the deposition site, estrous intensity, housing, age, body weight, and bull on the pregnancy rate in Holstein heifers, and to compare the quality traits of sexed sperm with those of unsexed semen. The study was conducted on 3206 heifers, housed in three free-stall barns and in four tie-stall facilities. After synchronization by two prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α) treatments 14 days apart, 281 heifers were inseminated conventionally and 118 intracornually with sexed semen, and 532 and 148 heifers, respectively, with unsexed semen 80-82 h after the second treatment. At spontaneous estrus, 1129 heifers were inseminated with sexed and 529 with unsexed semen, and at estrus induced by a single PGF2α treatment 185 heifers were inseminated with sexed and 284 with unsexed semen. Heifers were inseminated conventionally with sexed semen 12 h after detection of estrus, and with unsexed semen according to the a.m.-p.m rule. Sexed and unsexed semen doses from five bulls were evaluated for motility, morphology, membrane integrity, and chromatin stability. Overall pregnancy rate with sexed semen (41.7%) was 80.8% of that with unsexed semen (51.6%) and was lower than with unsexed semen irrespective of the type and intensity of estrus, and deposition site. Insemination at spontaneous estrus resulted in a higher pregnancy rate (53.4%) than at induced (41.9%) or synchronized (44.7%) estrus. Pregnancy rates did not differ after intracornual (44.9%) or conventional insemination (48.4%). Strong estrus resulted in higher pregnancy rate (by 14.4% points) compared to weak estrus. The type of housing, age, and weight of heifers had no effect irrespective of the type of semen. The total, progressive and linear motility, and membrane integrity were lower and proportions of immotile sperm greater, for sexed than for unsexed semen.

The aim of this study was to compare the degree of root rot damage in two large complexes of Norway spruce stands established on former agricultural land at fertile sites. The root rot infection was observed on the stump cutting area on both intended and salvage clear fellings. Stands in Kružberk area in the Nízký Jeseník Mts. established on arable land showed very poor stability and large root rot damage at the age of 40-50 years. In contrast, stands in Lužná area in the Javorníky Mts., founded on former sheep pastures, were markedly much less damaged at the age of 90-110 years and proved to be able to provide quality timber, although they were damaged by the root rot as well.

Forests important from a water-management perspective cover 723,000 ha of the Czech Republic (CR), i.e. 27.6% of the forest area. These forests play an important role especially in a mountain landscape. Forests decrease peak flood flows, compensate water discharge and represent a source of high-quality fresh water. The optimum hydrological function is provided by forests that are healthy, ecologically stable, diversified, proper to site, growing on a good forest soil, managed by small-area felling and emulating natural processes. For mountain sites of the CR, the optimum proportion of Norway spruce (+ Silver fir) ranges from 70 to 80% and of European beech from 20 to 30%. Clear-cuts due to air pollution disasters led to replacement of the forest stand by perennial grassland increasing stormflows and decreasing the soil water supply to groundwater resources and the quality of water discharged from the forest. Skidding and hauling operations and an improperly constructed and maintained road network increased the surface runoff from a forest. Intraskeletal erosion occurs on pollution-disaster stone fields and in dying forest stands on stony sites. Reforestation of stone fields is necessary for the preservation of forests on stony and bouldery localities and their services for the cultural landscape situated below. In mountain headwaters, torrent control and forest amelioration are of great importance. These decrease peak flood flows, compensate water discharge and reduce bed-load and sediment transport. Forest amelioration enables the reforestation of waterlogged pollution-disaster areas.

We compared the effects of forest fertilization with wood ash and potassium (K) sulphate on growth and mycorrhizal colonization of fine roots and on other soil microorganisms in Norway spruce (Picea abies) stands with symptoms of foliage damage. Fertilization trials with the application of 0.25 kg.m-2 of wood ash and similar amount of K as K sulphate were established. One year later, a total of 270 soil samples with roots were collected to determine morphological parameters of fine roots and extent of mycorrhization. Soil samples were collected to characterize soil chemical composition and number of colony forming units (CFU) of soil bacteria and fungi. The results showed that fine root biomass, length and volume, and relative abundance of living root tips were significantly higher in control sample plots than in treated plots. Abundance of bacterial CFU was higher in both wood ash and K sulphate treatments than in control plots; the Actinobacteria were more common in plots fertilized with wood ash than in other treatments. Relative abundance of several fungal species in sites fertilized with wood ash differed significantly from control sites and from sites fertilized with K sulphate.

Structural parameters of Scots pine stands (129-191 years) on their natural sites (270-600 m a.s.l.) are described on 6 permanent research plots (PRP; 3 in managed stands using near-natural silvicultural practices and 3 in stands without active forest management for 3 decades at least) in areas of western, central and eastern Bohemia and in the Polish part of the Krkonoše Mts. In the framework of the study structural and growth parameters, horizontal and vertical structure and biodiversity were evaluated on the plots. A comparison of the plots, and of managed and unmanaged plots showed a relatively high variability in different parameters. Nevertheless, the results document that managed stands, compared to forest stands without management, mostly have significantly higher standing volumes (1.5 times in total and 1.7 times in pine), which is caused by more extreme sites. An opposite trend was found out in dead wood volume, which is distinctly higher in unmanaged stands. Differences in the other parameters are not so pronounced, probably because small-scale management is used and because a relatively short time since the stands were left to spontaneous development has elapsed (30-52 years).

Velvet maple (Acer velutinum) is one of the woody species in the Hyrcanian forests. In this study, the relationship between height and diameter of velvet maple was surveyed. A complete list of the selected height-diameter models was used and nineteen candidate models were considered. Various criteria were chosen and applied to evaluate the predictive performance of the models. These criteria include Akaike information criterion (AIC), Bayesian information criterion (BIC), root mean square error (RMSE), mean error (ME), and adjusted coefficient of determination (R²_adj). Fitting of nineteen height-diameter models using nonlinear least square regression showed that all of the parameters in models were significant (P < 0.01). The results of goodness of fit for the calibration and k-fold validation and the performance criteria (RMSE, ME, AIC, R²_adj and BIC) showed that R²_adj ranged from 0.743 (model 8) to 0.8592 (model 11) and RMSE from 2.6983 (model 11) to 10.1897 (model 9). The range of ME among the models is from -7.0787 (model 9) up to 0.063m (model 7). By considering the AICfor each model it is evident that model (11) and model (9) have the lowest and highest values, respectively. Plotting the residuals showed that for all these models the residuals were randomly distributed and the models had heterogeneous residuals. According to the results, models (11), (14), (13), (15) and (12) had a better fitness compared to other models. Among these models, model (11) was the best model for predicting total height of Acer velutinum trees in this region.

The study analyses the chemical properties of the soil in open-canopy beech stands in relation to the predominant species of ground vegetation. A hypothesis is examined whether the predominant ground vegetation species can represent in chemical terms different site conditions. Four localities were used for testing reed grass, myrtle blueberry, wavy hair grass and vegetation-free patches. Samples were taken from three organic horizons (litter (OL), fragmented (OF) and humus (OH)) and from the humic first mineral horizon. Significant differences between the variants were found only in the OL horizon, in which the vegetation species explained 65% of the variability in data. The OL horizon in the vegetation-free variant showed the significantly lowest pH/KCl and the lowest potassium content. The most distinct particular differences were observed between the blueberry variant and the grass variants. Although the studied variants of vegetation growing under the beech stand represented significant differences in the litter horizon chemistry, the effects on the other humus horizons and on the upper mineral horizon were marginal.

Horizontal structure of forest stands largely affects the competitive relationships between tree individuals and plays a significant role in the stand dynamics. The present study describes horizontal structure on nine permanent research plots (0.24-0.25 ha) in the regeneration and tree layer of autochthonous European beech (Fagus sylvatica Linnaeus) stands in the wide altitudinal gradient in protected areas in the Czech Republic and Poland. The spatial structure was classified in productive herb-rich beech sites, through acidophilic beech sites, exposed sites, to beech fragments near the timberline. The spatial pattern of tree layer was regular in the lowest parts of the altitudinal gradient of beech, random in the middle parts and aggregated in the beech forests under the hilltop phenomenon and extreme edaphic site. Nevertheless, trees in lower tree layers showed a tendency to the aggregated pattern, similarly like the strong aggregation of natural regeneration. In most cases, the parent stand had a significant negative effect on natural regeneration at a smaller distance (to 0.8-4.2 m). The spatial pattern of dead wood was mostly random. Because of the great plasticity of beech crowns, crown centroids were more regularly distributed than tree stems. The average displacement of crown centroids from the stem base was 1.5 m with the prevailing direction of 52.7% down the slope. Projected canopy cover was on average 10.7% higher compared to the canopy simulated by circular crowns.

The objective of the article is to evaluate the results of a questionnaire survey carried out in forest districts of the Training Forest Enterprise Masaryk Forest Křtiny (TFE Křtiny) within research focused on economic evaluation of the recreational potential of the TFE Křtiny. The article is aimed at surveying the willingness of visitors to the area to pay for the use of the recreational function of forests and evaluation of the used method. The evaluated part of the questionnaire survey was based on the contingent valuation method examining the willingness of respondents to pay for recreational function. It was found by the results of the questionnaire survey that visitors are not very willing to pay for recreational function and it is so especially because forests in the area of the TFE Křtiny are perceived as public assets and thus access to them should be free. Furthermore, there were some problems with the method used. Thus it is necessary to find a new way of evaluating the recreational potential of the area.

Considering the importance of recreation and excursions in household's basket of expenditures on the one hand, and not paying attention to the economic value of recreational function for natural resources and environment as non-market goods on the other hand, this paper was written with the aim of estimating the recreational value of Shahid Zare Sari Forest Park when using the individual travel cost method. Requested data sets were obtained by completing questionnaires from 302 individuals who visited the above-mentioned park in 2012-2013. In the individual travel cost method, for the investigation of distributional effects of variables on the number of travels, a linear regression model was applied. For this purpose the travel generation function using linear, double log, linear-log and log-linear forms was estimated. Among these forms, according to the econometrical parameter, a linear function was selected and parameters were estimated based on the method of ordinary least squares. The consumer surplus was 12.53 USD per each visit and the annual recreational value of 72,500 people who visited the park annually was 52,558 USD.ha^-1. The findings also showed that the involved variables, travel costs, income and visitor's distance were statistically significant at 1% level and family and education were significant at 5% level. Results revealed that forest parks have a considerable recreational value that, from this point of view, can help programmers and executives, social and economic managers in the preservation planning and sustainable utilization of natural resources.

In the period 2009-2011 monitoring of the incidence of phoma stem canker was carried out at selected sites of the Czech Republic (Šumperk and Opava regions in North Moravia). The risk of infection was evaluated by assessing the autumn release of Leptosphaeria spp. ascospores and with the proPlant prediction model. In recent years, the incidence of phoma stem canker has been relatively low and this corresponded with the total count of ascospores released in the autumn period but not with an increased level of infection risk announced by the proPlant model. During the monitored period the ascospore concentration reached maximally 2 ascospores/1 m³ per day. Maximum ascospore release was recorded in 2010 as a result of favourable weather conditions. The first incidence of phoma leaf spot has been observed in mid-October. The higher values of ascospores concentration were recorded in the Opava region, but the total number of the trapped ascospores was more often higher in the Šumperk region.

In order to find an effective elimination method of Blueberry red ringspot virus (BRRV), shoot tips of 2-3 mm size originating from buds of highbush blueberry cv. Darrow naturally infected by BRRV and collected in winter months were regenerated and multiplied on woody-plant medium (WPM) with 1.5 mg/l zeatin and 20 g/l sucrose. Developed shoots tested negative by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for BRRV were transferred onto a rooting medium consisting of WPM supplemented with 1 mg/l indole-3-butyric acid. Rooting plants were transferred into soil and tested twice by PCR 6 months apart. Ninety per cent eradication of BRRV was achieved while isolating shoot tips, multiplying them in one vegetative generation, and regenerating whole 50-60 cm high plants within 30 months. All plants developed rich fruits after their overwintering in a cold greenhouse and were tested BRRV negative in summer 2013.

In field experiments over three vegetation periods (2010-2012) we studied impact of the CULTAN (controlled uptake long term ammonium nutrition) method on yield and yield parameters of kernel maize. The field experiments were conducted at three sites with different soil-climatic conditions. CULTAN treatments were fertilized once with the total amount of nitrogen using an injection machine (at the canopy height of 20 cm) and compared to conventional fertilization with calcium ammonium nitrate application at pre-sowing preparations. In all treatments the amount of nitrogen was the same, 140 kg N/ha. In 2010 at Humpolec site, CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate + inhibitor of nitrification treatment gave by 20.5% higher number of ears compared to CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate treatment. In 2011 at Ivanovice all CULTAN treatments reached statistically significantly higher number of kernels per ear. The higher 1000 kernel weight at CULTAN treatments was observed in 2012 at the Ivanovice site; a statistically significant difference between conventional and CULTAN urea ammonium nitrate + inhibitor of nitrification treatment was observed. Fertilization of maize with nitrogen using the CULTAN method under the conditions of the Czech Republic provides the same yield certainty as the conventional surface application and the CULTAN method of fertilization increases the yield certainty at delayed sowing. Harvest index was statistically significantly influenced by year, fertilization treatment and site.

The present study was undertaken to sequentially fractionate nickel (Ni) in soils of divergent physicochemical characteristics and evaluate the contribution of different fractions towards plant uptake. For this, fifteen bulk surface (0-15 cm) soil samples were collected from the cultivated fields of northwestern Indo-Gangetic alluvial plains. A pot experiment was conducted with these soils to assess the contribution of soil Ni fractions to plant uptake using soybean as test crop. Results showed that residual Ni was the most dominant fraction in soil constituting 3.19-63.6% of total Ni. The water soluble plus exchangeable Ni accounted for only 0.70-4.04% of total soil Ni. Organically bound Ni varied from 1.60-6.85% of total Ni; these values are relatively lower as compared to those reported for temperate soils. Correlation studies showed that the free iron oxide (Fe₂O₃) and soil organic carbon correlated with various fractions of Ni in soil. Water soluble plus exchangeable and organically bound are the dominant fractions which contributed positively and manganese oxide (MnO₂) bound and residual fractions contributed negatively towards the phytoavailability of Ni in soil.

This study was aimed to determine the impact of risk element content on the prevalence of the selected microbial groups in industrial soils of one of the steelworks in Poland. The concentration of heavy metals: Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn along with soil pH and the number of mesophilic bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes and Azotobacter was assessed in 20 soil samples. The limit concentrations of Cd, Pb and Zn were exceeded in five sites. However, even in these strongly contaminates sites, the studied microorganisms were abundant. The correlation between the concentration of heavy metals and microbial numbers was very weak and statistically insignificant. High numbers of fungi were observed in the contaminated sites, which was particularly interesting in one of the sites, strongly contaminated with Cd, Pb and Zn.

Surface mulch is an important factor of soil protection technology in the cultivation of potatoes. Presented herein are the results of three years (2009-2011) of field trials at two sites (Leškovice and Uhříněves), where two cultivars (Finka and Katka) were grown. Three mulching treatments (grass mulch after planting, grass mulch before germination and black polypropylene mulch textile) were used in the study. The weight of marketable tubers (tuber over 40 mm) and tuber size distribution were influenced significantly by mulching. The application of grass mulch on surface of the row ensured a 20.5-24.8% increase of weight of marketable tubers and higher occurrence of tubers over 56 mm (resp. tubers 56-60 mm and over 60 mm). There was no consistent effect of grass mulch on the aboveground biomass of weeds. Higher occurrences of larvae of Colorado potato beetle was found on the plots with black polypropylene textile in warmer site Uhříněves.

Intensification of agricultural systems through the use of intensive agriculture and the advance of deforestation have led to a decrease of soil biological quality. Soil functional and structural microbiota are sensitive parameters to monitor changes caused by agricultural use. Different sites under soybean monoculture (continuous soybean) and soybean/maize rotation practices were selected. Samples were collected from agricultural soils under different periods of implantation: 4-year rotation; 15-year rotation; 5-year monoculture; and 24-year monoculture (M24). A site of native vegetation recently under agricultural production (RUA) was also sampled. Native vegetation soils (NV) adjacent to agricultural sites were sampled as a control. In general, the results showed that RUA and M24 had lower enzyme activities, less microbial abundance and low physical and chemical soil quality than those subjected to crop rotation. In contrast, both the bacterial and total microbial biomasses were significantly higher in NV and crop rotation than in soils under monoculture systems. Although it was expected that differences in microbial activities would be due to changes in microbial community abundance, the results indicated that changes in soil management produced faster alterations to soil enzyme activities than any modifications induced in the microbial community structure. Consequently, both aspects of microbial diversity, namely function and structure, were affected independently by agricultural intensification.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the changes of different soil sulfur forms during long-term field experiments supplied with sewage sludge (SS), farmyard manure (FYM) or mineral fertilizers. The experiment was established at three different sites with the crop rotation of potatoes, wheat and barley. Fertilizing system was based on the same nitrogen dose per the whole crop rotation. Soil samples from the beginning of the experiment (1996) and at the end of each crop rotation were analysed after all three crops harvest. Similar tendencies of changes in water extractable (S_w), adsorbed (S_ads), 1 mol/L HCl estimated (S_HCL) sulfur and their sum of (∑S) related to the fertilizing systems were observed among all studied sites. A decreasing tendency of ∑S in soil was observed during the experiment (except for the year 2005). The biggest decrease was always visible compared to control treatment. Mineral fertilizers (S added with superphosphate) appeared to be the best source of S_HCL. Application of SS increased the S_w content in soil samples after potatoes harvest, whereas a decreasing tendency among the following crops was visible. Contents of other S forms (S_w at control, FYM and mineral fertilizers included) were usually balanced during the crop rotation.

In the years 2003-2012 the effects of nitrogen fertilization and term of harvest on the dry matter yield and biomass quality of Miscanthus × giganteus were examined. The harvest was carried out each year in the autumn and in the spring following year. No significant differences in yields between the sites were observed but the effect of weather conditions in individual years dominated. The nitrogen fertilization increased average biomass yields at the site Prague-Ruzyně by about 14% at the dose of 100 kg/ha and at the site Lukavec by about 11% at the dose of 150 kg/ha in comparison without N fertilization. Average yields of dry matter at Prague-Ruzyně 19.60 t/ha and at Lukavec 18.24 t/ha were achieved at the autumn term of harvest. The loss of biomass over the winter period was 24.3% at Prague-Ruzyně and 24.0% at Lukavec. In the spring term of harvest lower contents of all monitored elements were detected in the biomass of Miscanthus compared to the autumn term of harvest.

Forests occupy one third of the world's land area and govern carbon (C) transfers and influence nitrogen (N) content in the biosphere. Afforestation leads to soil changes of specific dynamics, often accompanied by acidification. Especially at higher altitudes this effect is accelerated and increased with the stand age since forestation. The change in soil C and N content following afforestation is controlled by a number of factors, including: previous land use (grasslands, cropland, etc.), tree species, soil cultivation method, soil properties (clay content, pH), stand age, site management, topography, and climate. In the Czech Republic, large area changes in land use took place in the last centuries - forests covering roughly 20% in the 18^th century currently occupy almost 34%, with still increasing tendencies. This paper compares basic soil properties (soil reaction, total soil organic carbon as well as total nitrogen contents) of the agricultural land and land afforested 40-60 years ago. The results confirmed the key role of afforestation in the change of soil organic matter dynamics after establishing new forests on the former agricultural lands in the uppermost mineral soil part of the Orlické hory Mts. region in the Czech Republic. During that time, comparatively substantial changes in soil organic matter and nitrogen were registered. Afforestation considerably increased organic matter content in the studied A-horizons of different land use types. Soil development resulted in a high production of C and N pools under the forest stands, contrary to agricultural land. In general, afforestation caused significant soil acidification. The common tendency of higher acidity of forest soils compared to agricultural ones was documented in the studied case as well. The general tendencies of soil reaction and soil organic matter dynamics at the studied sites are comparable to those in other regions of the Czech Republic.

Anthropogenic activity along the Velhas River (São Francisco River basin) has destabilized the banks of the river channel across an urban fragment. To improve the physical stabilization, the base of the slope was stabilized with urban construction waste. After this, the slope was revegetated with native species and arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF) inoculation was applied with a successfully restoration of the vegetative cover and ecological functions. This study aims to evaluate the role of the AMF population in the soil aggregation and stabilization of the revegetated slope. The soil aggregation was higher at the experimental site than at the disturbed site, especially under the AMF inoculation. The aggregates improvement was accompanied by an increase of soil humic acid and glomalin contents 24 months after the transplantation despite a flood impact 12 months after the transplantation. A scatter plot based on Principal Component Analysis of aggregates Showed that the preserved site samples clustered with most of those from experimental site. However, some samples from experimetal site were found between those from preserved and disturbed sites. This result shows that the recovering site is evolving toward the conditions of the preserved site and that the rehabilitation process is in an intermediate phase related to the aggregate formation. The AMF inoculation of woody species was indicated in the rehabilitation procedures.

In this paper we determined the phosphorus (P) concentration in precipitation, and calculated the annual P deposition rate at three study sites located in northern Poland. We observed that the mean annual volume-weighted concentration of mineral phosphorus (P_min) in wet deposition varies from site to site. The estimated annual wet deposition rate of P_min in the study region amounted from 0.1 to 0.39 kg/ha. The concentration and deposition rate of P_min in the southern part of the study region was significantly lower than that in the northern and central part. We detected that the P_min deposition was strongly positively correlated with the fraction of arable land in the study site vicinity, and also positively correlated with the mineral P fertilizer consumption in the area. The mean annual volume-weighted concentration of P_min in wet deposition varied from 0.015 mg/l in the area of the lowest arable land percentage and the lowest mineral fertilizer consumption, to 0.046 mg/l in the area where the arable lands comprise 84% of agricultural land, and mineral P fertilizer consumption exceeded 33 kg/ha. In the P soil surface balance the atmospheric wet deposition represents 2.1-5.6% of annual total inputs of total P. The level of atmospheric P input varies widely by catchment and is related to land use (fertilizing, intensity and type of crop production).

The soil organic matter (SOM) pools with different stability play different roles in the agricultural and environmental processes, e.g. in the global carbon cycle. In this work Rock-Eval (RE) pyrolysis measurements and mathematical deconvolution of RE pyrograms were used for determining the abundance, quality, and main biological sources of SOM, as well as for evaluating the relative proportion of the labile (fresh plant and litter) and resistant (lignin and cellulose) bio-macromolecules, immature (humic substances) and mature refractory (naturally stable biological compounds, organic matter stabilized by physico-chemical processes and black carbon) geo-macromolecules. The samples were taken from the A-horizons of Leptosol, Luvisol, and Acrisol formed under different soil conditions (mineral composition, pH, and leaching). In agreement with the present vegetation, bulk RE data together with the results from the mathematical deconvolution of pyrograms display terrigeneous plant remnants as precursors of SOM for all the three samples. The presence of the more stable components, indicated by our results in the A-horizon only of Luvisol and Acrisol, could be a consequence of the intense leaching. In contrast, due to the limited leaching, the soluble components also remained in the A-horizon of Leptosol, for this reason SOM seems to be relatively well preserved. The comparison of the results measured and calculated on whole soil samples and their mineral-free hydrolysis-resistant macromolecular fractions (ROM) reveals that the stabilization of SOM is mainly controlled by organo-mineral association in Leptosol and Luvisol. These results suggest the importance of iron-oxides and -hydroxides and clay minerals in the stabilization of SOM for Leptosol and Luvisol, respectively, whereas in Acrisol the stability of SOM is due to the high relative contribution of naturally stable organic compounds.

In this study we assessed the normal physiological and dynamic thoracoabdominal distribution of ¹⁸F fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG) uptake and the standardized uptake values (SUVs) of the major parenchymal organs in five normal young adult domestic short haired cats. Dynamic PET data were acquired with a transaxial field-of-view (FOV) PET/CT scanner, Regions of interests (ROIs) were manually drawn over the left ventricular free wall, left ventricular blood pool, liver, spleen, and left and right renal cortices. The SUVs of these organs were calculated for 5-min frames over the 90 min acquisition. The uptake of ¹⁸F-FDG within the major organs, showed a tendency to gradually decline, except for the left ventricle and blood pool. The decrease in SUV was rapid after injection with a plateau occurring after 30 minutes. The uptake of ¹⁸F -FDG within the hepatic parenchyma was low compared to that in the kidney at the beginning of study. A steady decline in the hepatic parenchyma SUV was quite similar to that observed for the kidneys .The SUV of ¹⁸F-FDG within the spleen was low. Uptake of ¹⁸F-FDG within the myocardium was minimal. These SUV data from the parenchymal organs of normal cats compares favourably with those of normal humans and dogs and can be used in feline studies using PET/CT for the evaluation of various diseases. Furthermore, PET/CT can provide higher quality images over shorter examination times than conventional PET.

The aim of this investigation was the analysis of the variability within the internal and external ophthalmic artery in the chinchilla (Chinchilla laniger, Molina). The head vasculature of 65 individuals was analysed, with particular emphasis on the internal ophthalmic artery originating from the central and rostral part of the cerebral arterial circle. Head blood vessels were filled with acrylic latex for vascular corrosion casting. The results showed ten variants of blood supply for the orbit, with a predominance of the first variant (66.1%) = bilateral presence of the external ophthalmic artery originating from the maxillary artery. Other variants differed in symmetry and asymmetry, sites of origination and the coexistence of both internal and external arteries. Vascularisation of the brain in chinchillas originates mainly from the vertebra-basilar system. The observed variability seems to confirm the role of the basilar artery in the arterial blood supply of the brain in this species.

The aim of this study was to examine drinking water on three farms in eastern Slovakia and to determine experimentally the optimum dose for adequate disinfection in terms of devitalisation of potential pathogens while observing the limit for residual active chlorine (0.3 mg/l) in drinking water. Our investigations included bacteriological examination focused on general contamination and indicator bacteria (bacteria cultivated at 22 and 37 °C, total coliforms, E. coli, enterococci), physico-chemical examination (pH, ammonium ions, nitrites, nitrates, chlorides, free chlorine, chemical oxygen demand COD_Mn and Ca + Mg), and EEM (excitation emission matrix) fluorescence spectroscopy which focused on the presence of natural organic matter (NOM). After determining the optimum single dose of Chloramine T for disinfection of water used for watering of animals, the bacteriological quality of water was checked on the 5^th day after the disinfection. The results showed that water quality was better on Farm No. 3 than on Farms No. 1 and No. 2. The weather (precipitation) evidently affected the quality of water on all three farms and was associated with some risk to animals consuming this water. The experimentally determined doses of Chloramine T appeared relatively efficient on Farm No. 1 and Farm No. 3, while the Chloramine T dose estimated for adequate disinfection on Farm No. 2 had to be increased considerably but was still much lower than the dose recommended by the manufacturer of this preparation. It appeared effective to adjust the intervals between individual chlorine treatments according to weather conditions (heavy rain) instead of increasing the active chlorine dose.