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ocids are commonly found to be a persistent pest in structures of grain stores. Grain residues are potential pest reservoirs that serve as sources of grain re-infestation. Weight losses caused by psocids on broken wheat kernels were measured. Average weight loss of grain samples was 9.7% after 3 months of Liposcelis bostrychophila infestation. The weight losses were positively correlated with progeny production.

Field resistance can contribute to reductions in epidemic progress of Septoria tritici in winter wheat. Crop growth andcanopy architecture are identified as key mechanisms of field resistance. Near isogenic lines differing for dwarfing (Rht)and photoperiod sensitivity (Ppd) genes, enabled the study of target traits in a constant background of genetic resistance.Epidemics were consistently earlier in shorter crops across a range of environments. The mechanism for this effect wasidentified as an increase in spore arrival due to a reduction in the required dispersal distance between infective tissueand emerging upper culm leaves.

In 1999-2001 in field trials two different apple scab control strategies were compared: (i) the current strategy - conventional disease management (CDM) and (ii) integrated disease management (IDM), according to scab infection periods. A new scab warning equipment METOS^R-D was used for detection of infection periods and forecast of disease intensity at three levels: light, moderate and severe. According to CDM apple-trees were sprayed 9 times a season. Scab warning equipment gave a possibility to optimize the use of fungicides against scab and to reduce the total spray applications per season in average till 6.3 in very susceptible cultivars and 5 in moderately susceptible ones. This is 30 and 44% less spray applications comparing with CDM. Annual spray program ranged from 5 till 8 spray applications of very susceptible cultivars. CDM and IDM gave high scab control in apple-trees and there was not found any essential difference in scab incidence between two control strategies.

Dual inoculation of peat based horticulture substrate with a mixture of four species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and fungal biocontrol agent Trichoderma harzianum showed a significant positive effect on the growth and flowering of cyclamen plants. Inoculation substantially decreased plant mortality caused by spontaneous infection by the fungal pathogen Cryptocline cyclaminis. Plant mortality was also reduced by separate inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Both separately inoculated agents positively affected the plant growth, although to a lesser extent. Very few significant effects of inoculation were observed on the growth of poinsettia plants cultivated from cuttings. Use of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi together with the introduction of Trichoderma for inoculation of horticultural substrates is suggested to alleviate the inevitable effects of various stresses during the cultivation of horticultural crops.

A model experiment was conducted to compare hand extraction (elutriation) under running water and elutriation using the device Analysette 3, the two methods for estimation of weed seedbank in the soil. Technical parameters have been assessed for efficient operating of the device. We studied the time required for elutriation of soil samples and the time for collecting, counting and identifying the separated seeds. No significant difference in the effect of the used elutriation method on results of qualitative and quantitative estimation of weed seedbank densities has been found at any of the three locations differing in soil texture (silty loam, loam and clay loam soil). The time necessary for elutriation of soil samples was highly significantly shorter if the device was used, by 35.5 to 42.9% depending on soil texture vs. hand elutriation. The shortest time was assessed for silty loam soil. By contrast, the time needed for selecting, counting and identifying seeds was shortest for clay loam soil. This time was 46 and 92% longer for loam and silty loam soil, respectively. These differences were statistically highly significant. Comparing the seedbank in the soil, a significantly lower number of weed seeds as well as species was found on silty loam soil vs. the two locations with heavier soils. Amaranthus retroflexus was a dominating species at all locations, and on silty loam soil also Chenopodium album. Of a total number of 32 weed species detected in our experiment, 28 were annual and only four perennial (Cirsium arvense, Elytrigia repens, Rumex obtusifolius and Sonchus arvensis).

The differentiation between anthropogenic and geogenic loads of the soils by potentially risky elements was observed. The collection of soil horizon samples from 21 localities with different anthropogenic loads (imission fall-outs, floods, historical mining) and geogenic loads (lithogenic, chalcogenic) was composed. The soil characteristics (pH, C_ox), total content of 13 potentially risky elements, content of potentially risky elements in the extract of 2M HNO₃, 1M NH₄NO₃ (mobile forms) and 0.025M EDTA (potentially mobilizable forms) were detected. The solubility as the ratio of total content and the content of risky elements in the other extracts was calculated. The differences between the solubility for each risky element and for each type of the load were determined. It was concluded that the highest solubility was determined in the fluvisols contaminated by the floods and in the soils contaminated by imission fall-outs. Significantly lower solubility of potentially risky elements was determined in the soils with geogenic loads. The efficiency of the used extracts for the differentiation of the soil load was assessed (2M HNO₃, 0.025M EDTA). The types of geogenic loads were characterised in the extent of used soil collection. Geochemically anomalous parent materials and soil types developed on these parent materials were described.

Genetically modified organisms have become a part of our environment and food chain. Roundup Ready soybean is at the moment the most frequent one that man can meet. National regulations require careful monitoring and detection of GMOs. We present in this investigation comparison of several protocols and individual steps, which are included in the whole detection procedure. Currently used CTAB based protocol is suitable for DNA isolation from the green plant tissue but also from the flour. Lectin coding sequence specific primers were suitable for soybean DNA detection unlike leu-tRNA gene specific primers. Only one of the tested CaMV sequence specific primer pairs did not amplify unspecific products under condition tested. NOS terminator specific primer pair was found suitable for routine screening. EPSPS gene was detected using two different protocols; the same primers did not identify other Roundup Ready GM crops.

In the framework of Slovakia preparation for entering the European Union, there was done a Phare-ACE survey in years 1999-2000. The name of this survey was "Micro-economic analysis of farming households restructuring in pre-accession period to the EU". This survey was done in two regions of Slovakia, characterized by different natural conditions, production and economic conditions. This project was aiming not only at private farmers but also at other legal entities producing agricultural products. The first monitored group consisted of 412 private farmers, farming in average 43.2 ha of agricultural land. The second group consisted of 150 businesses, having 1,866 ha of agricultural land in average.

The tolerance to or phytotoxicity of selected herbicides and their impact on seed yield was investigated in six grasses grown for seed: Phleum pratense cv. Sobol (a), Festuca rubra cv. Táborská (b), Festuca pratensis cv. Otava (c), Poa pratensis cv. Slezanka (d), Arrhenatherum elatius cv. Medián (e) and Dactylis glomerata cv. Zora (f). All species were tolerant to Grodyl 75 WG (amidosulfuron 75%), (a) and (f) were tolerant to Grodyl plus (amidosulfuron 15 g/kg + isoproturon 600 g/kg) which was phytotoxic to the other grass species; all species were tolerant to Stomp 330 E (pendimethalin 330 g/l); Lintur 70 WG (triasulfuron 4.1% + dicamba 65.9%) was phytotoxic only to (c) while the other species were tolerant to it.

Wheat dwarf virus, a monogemini virus, infects several cereal species. Until now complete sequence data have been published only for wheat isolates. We cloned the complete DNA of 21 isolates from wheat, barley and Lolium spec. and compared the sequences with published data. Two types of the virus were found as previously described. Degree of entire nucleic acid homology between both isolates was in the range of 84%. The Large Intergenic Region showed most pronounced differences while the RepA gene was most conserved. No intermediate forms were found, though both isolates co-existed in the same hosts. Sequence data lead to the suggestion that they should be referred to as different viruses rather than strains of a virus.

In 1999-2001 the investigation of Alternaria species on vegetable crops: cabbage, cucumber, tomato and carrot was carried out and fungi species were isolated from vegetables and substrata used for plant cultivation. Isolated micromycetes: Alternaria alternata, Alternaria tenuissima, Alternaria brassicae, Alternaria brassicicola, Alternaria cucurbitae, Alternaria dauci, Alternaria radicina and Alternaria solani differed in pathogenic peculiarities, frequency of occurrence and their various reaction to fungicides (a.s. azoxystrobin, dichlofluanid, Cooper hydroxide, mancozeb, propamocarb hydrochloride), plant activator Bion (benzothadiazole) and antagonistic microorganisms (Trichoderma harzianum, Streptomyces griseoviridis).

The trials were carried out over the period 1999-2000 with a view to testing the efficacy of reduced doses of triazole fungicides on winter wheat cv. Zentos. Septoria diseases (Septoria spp.) occurred on winter wheat annually. Full and reduced dosages of fungicides were highly effective against Septoria leaf blotch at an early milk stage, especially on flag leaf. Later the efficacy of reduced dosages of the fungicides was lower, than that of full doses. Due to full dosage of fungicides we obtained a sufficient yield increase annually. The yield increase through the use of 3/4 reduced doses was lower. But yield increase through reduced dosage to 1/2 was low and insufficient.

The identification of bifidobacteria to the genus level is important for the differentiation of these bacteria from other bacteria occurring in the animal and human intestine. The detection of fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase (F6PPK-test) is used traditionally for the identification of Bifidobacterium sp. The original procedure is time consuming and therefore it was modified several times recently. The aim of the present work was to compare the following methods for the genus identification of bifidobacteria: F6PPK-test, F6PPK-test modified by the addition of triton X-100, F6PPK-test modified by the addition of cetridium bromide (F6PPK-CTAB-test), and PCR using genus specific primers. Bifidobacteria isolated from fermented milk products (3 strains), human faeces (6 strains), and animal intestinal tract (2 strains) were tested. All the methods tested proved to be reliable tests for the genus identification of bifidobacteria. The F6PPK-CTAB-test gave the best results. This procedure is quick and does not require any special laboratory equipment.

Glucosinolates with Brassica genus as secondary metabolites have a lot of functions and effects. Glucosinolates form less than 2% of the overall sulphur content at the beginning of vegetation in different parts of the plants and during growth their content is decreasing and forms less than 0.1%. This low representation doubts their storage function. With its chemical composition, they are ranked among natural pesticides with active and passive resistance against diseases and pests. They show repellent effects and properties of natural biofumigators in soil after ploughing in their biomass as green fertilizing, or after ploughing in after harvest the leftovers of rape. The principle of these effects is decomposition products of glucosinolates - bioactive isothiocyanates. Very important from this point of view are turnip rape Rex and Brassica juncea, whose content of these compounds is the highest one and they are resistant against the attack of Ceutorrhynchus pleurostigma. The same effect showed also when attacked by Phoma lingam. With other winter Brassicas either hybrid or linea and summer rape is this defensive system suppressed because of their lowered content due to breeding interferences, leading to limitation of their anti-nutritional negative effects. It is possible to state the final result after finding out the production of the above matter, roots, and after evaluation of the sorbal characteristics of the soil and evaluation of the state of health of the following crop or vegetable. After this overall analysis, it will be possible to evaluate the biofumigation properties of accessible varieties of the Brassica genus.

Microbial solubilization of hardly soluble mineral phosphates in soil is an important process in natural ecosystems and in agricultural soils. Regulation of the P-solubilizing activity by the presence of soluble phosphates in medium was determined. For this reason we decided to test a number of soil bacteria showing a high P-solubilizing activity for its sensitivity to the presence of soluble dihydrogen potassium phosphate in medium. At these studies, the direct determination of the solubilized phosphate in medium was masked by the presence of relatively high concentrations of soluble phosphate added. Therefore, we have modified the method, determining the residual tricalcium phosphate. The effect of soluble phosphate in medium on the P-solubilizing activity of rhizosphere isolates and strains of Rhizobium were tested in liquid cultures with the addition of various concentrations of soluble KH₂PO₄. The medium was filtered after incubation and the remaining tricalcium phosphate was separated by filtration. Filter papers with the remaining tricalcium phosphate were hydrolysed with 2N H2SO4. Phosphorus was determined spectrophotometrically. The P-solubilizing activity was expressed as a difference between the tricalcium phosphate added and its remainder after the incubation. These results fully confirmed that there exist the strains, whose P-solubilizing activity is inhibited and other strains, whose P-solubilizing activity is not inhibited or is inhibited very little in the presence of soluble phosphate. The use of our adapted method was much more suitable for this type of experiments.

We have examined 35 samples of fine cottage cheese, 14 samples of whole winter "bryndza", 29 samples of Ondava cheese, 18 samples of skim kephir milk, 18 samples of whole acidophilous milk, 5 samples of yoghurt milk with strawberry flavour and 50 samples of fresh butter (Rajo) for the presence of staphylococci focusing onStaphylococcus aureus. All samples intended for microbiological analysis were taken directly from market establishments. None of the examined samples of yoghurt milk complied with the Codex Alimentarius because they contained Staphylococcus aureus bacteria on the level of 100, 65, 5, 75, and 60 CFU/ml. The other analysed food products satisfied the current standards with regard to the presence of staphylococci.

The study was undertaken in Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia laying between Baltic and Adriatic seas on 610 402 km². Mycobacterium bovis infection was diagnosed in 70 animals belonging to 17 species other than cattle. The set of wild animals comprised 12 European bison (Bison bonasus), one red deer (Cervus elaphus), five wild boars (Sus scrofa), and one European wild goat (Capra aegagrus) bred in a game park. Further positive animals included two farmed red deer (Cervus elaphus) and one bactrian camel (Camelus ferus) owned by a circus. The infection was also demonstrated in 18 domestic animals belonging to 3 species living on farms where bovine tuberculosis was diagnosed in cattle. This set included 12 domestic pigs (Sus scrofa f. domestica), two domestic sheep (Ovis ammon f. aries), and four dogs (Canis lupus f. familiaris). The set of animals bred in zoological gardens consisted of 30 animals belonging to 9 species as follows: three bison (Bison bison), four tapirs (Tapirus terrestris), one cassowary (Casuarius casuarius - isolate identified by the biological assay in guinea pigs only), eight sitatungas (Tragelaphus spekei), three elands (Taurotragus oryx), one gnu (Connochaetes taurinus), eight reticulated giraffes (Giraffa cameloparadlis reticulata), one puma (Puma concolor), and one Vietnamese pot-bellied pig (Sus bucculentus). Although, considering the population sizes, absolute numbers of the infected individuals are rather low, wild animals or such animals bred in captivity should be regarded as possible reservoirs of the causative agent of bovine tuberculosis. Tests for bovine tuberculosis are therefore necessary before transportation of all wild animals. Any lesion arousing suspicion of tuberculosis found on necropsy of wild animals must be laboratory examined for the presence of mycobacteria.

The results document changes in the herb vegetation of a South-Moravian floodplain forest in the period of 1978-1997. It is shown that hydrological measures strongly changed the floodplain forest in the area of the Dyje river near Lednice na Moravě. The herb vegetation in the area of the confluence of the Morava and the Dyje rivers was conserved nearly unchanged after artificial floods.

The article deals with issues of non-market forest services. There is a persistent issue complicating the quantification of adequate subsidy to forest owners - non-existence of market with such forest services. Forest services financing can be made objective by implementation of the following steps: 1. Earmarking of non-market forest services that are becoming market subjects gradually. 2. Earmarking of non-market forest services that create a secondary product of wood production function. 3. Quantification of demand for services. 4. Quantification of costs necessary to cover the demand for those forest services. 5. Quantification of losses caused to forest owners by restricting their economic activities.

There are 80% municipalities under one thousand inhabitants in the CzechRepublic. The population trend observed in the region ofSouth Bohemia has proved a long-term and gradated depopulation of such small municipalities. While population has fallen in municipalities under one thousand inhabitants, towns and municipalities with more than one thousand inhabitants show the opposite trend. The possibility of changing this trend seems to lay in the state help for small municipalities parallel with the expected change of the situation after the EU accession because it is very probable, that many young families will be looking for the financially more convenient living in the country.

The analysis is made in the set of the selected foodstuffs wholesales in the Slovak Republic and shows their differences from the viewpoint of the size (sale place 15 m2-1 300 m2 , storage space 106 m2-6 500 m2 ), number of workers (1-81) and yearly turnover (219 thousand SKK-2 748 thousand SKK). The main part of wholesales is operated by owners (83%) and a small part (17%) is on lease. From the viewpoint of location, the wholesales are situated in the centre of town (50%) and village (27%). The rest is located in the habitations and suburbs of town. The competitive wholesales (43%) are situated in the distance from 11 to 500 m. The highest labour productivity was obtained at the wholesale with location in the suburbs of town and the distance from competitive firms is about 500-1 000 m. Suitable results were achieved in the wholesales on lease with location in the suburbs of towns. The efficiency of wholesales was affected by the main factors, including the number of workers, size of sale place and storage space which determined up to the 92% of the volume of yearly turnover.

To search for host proteins involved in systemic spreading of Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), the virus-encoded NSm movement protein has been utilized as a bait in yeast two-hybrid interaction trap assays. J-domain chaperones from different host species and a protein denominated At-4/1 from Arabidopsis thaliana showing homologies to myosins and kinesins were identified as NSm-interacting partners. In this communication we illustrate that following TSWV infection, J-domain proteins accumulated in systemically infected leaves of A. thaliana, whereas At-4/1 was constitutively detected in leaves of A. thaliana and Nicotiana rustica.

Commercial orange juices samples obtained from the Czech market were analysed in the years 1996-2001. The quality and authenticity of samples was evaluated according to the Code of Practice of AIJN (selected main analytical criteria were followed - K+, Na+, Ca2+, Mg2+, citric, isocitric and malic acid, citric acid/isocitric acid ratio, glucose, fructose, saccharose, sorbitol, formol number, flavonoid glycosides - according to Davis and HPLC procedure, refractive index and other). The approach of producers to the quality and authenticity of juices developed during the years of observation. The main cases of adulteration in 1996 were as follows: (i) lower fruit content in juice, (ii) massive addition of sugars masked with addition of citric acid, (iii) several examples of "synthetic" orange juice were found. In the subsequent years the authenticity slightly improved, the main problems in 2000/2001 were: (i) lower refractive index, (ii) pulp wash addition, (iii) lower quality of water used for juice reconstitution, (iv) undeclared addition of sugar. The deviations were found not only in the case of the juices of Czech producers, but also in several discount and low-end products of foreign producers. Possible ways of improving the quality and authenticity are discussed (e.g. the preparation of a Czech National Standard taking over the requirements for juices and nectars according to the Code of Practice of the AIJN, Participation in the European Quality Control System [EQCS], etc.).

This paper deals with the changes in soil active acidity, mobile aluminium, base saturation, iron and manganese under the influence of quicklime (QL), mixture of soft lithothamnian limestone (SLL) and dolomite (D), and special natural amendments (SNA) based on zeolite tuff. Investigations were carried out on pseudogley of mesoelevations, dystric. The four-year trial was set up according to the Latin rectangle method with 18 trial treatments in four replications. While SNA based on zeolite tuff had little effect on changes of the studied parameters, traditional lime materials (LM), owing also to the fact that they were applied at several times higher rates, had a very positive effect. Soil acidity, iron and manganese were reduced under their influence, mobile aluminium, particularly under their higher rate, was fully blocked or reduced within tolerable limits, and base saturation was raised to a satisfactory level. Effects of SNA depended on the ratio of zeolite tuff and the lime component in them. It could be presupposed that their main efficiency happened in the domain of ion exchange with a positive impact on soil fertility.

The efficiency of the application of organic and inorganic additives on the reduction of mobility and transfer of As, Cd, Pb and Zn from the soil into the plants was observed. The dung, compost, acid peat and muck presented organic additives. Synthetic zeolite - type Pc of cubic structure, loamy shale and dolomite limestone presented inorganic additives. Five soil types were used during the testing (arenic regosol, typic cambisol, dystric cambisol, typic chernozem and typic fluvisol). The changeover of the mobility of As, Cd, Pb a Zn in the soil (the ratio of mobile and total contents, sequential analysis) and the transfer of the elements from the soil into the plants (the vegetables, cereals and fodder plants) were investigated. The results showed the primary importance of the soil pH value on the behaviour of potentially toxic elements and their intake by the plants. The efficiency of the use of organic additives strongly depended on the quality of the organic matter. Inorganic additives on the base of the sorbents worked in the case of mobile hazardous elements (Cd, Zn). The efficiency of the soil additives was strongly influenced by the soil type.

The laboratory incubation with glucose treatment was carried out in order to estimate the possible effects of increased microbial activity on heavy metal availability. The soils from vicinity of a lead smelter operating for more than 200 years were used for the experiment. The DTPA-extractable heavy metal contents increased after glucose addition and mostly reached the highest values the second day of the incubation. The comparative study, where the chloroform fumigation was used prior to the incubation in order to decrease the microbial activities, showed especially from second day of incubation significantly lower DTPA-extractable metal contents compared to non-fumigated treatments. The interactions among the maximum possible availability of DTPA-extractable heavy metal fractions and native soil microbial characteristics were studied in differently contaminated arable and grassland soils. Irrespective of different heavy metal contents in soils, significant correlations were found among the maximum percentage increase of DTPA-extractable Pb and Cd and the ratio Bc/TOC and metabolic quotient (qCO₂) which may be a result of the important role of organic matter and microbial characteristics in soils on the heavy metal availability.

For 17 cultivars of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) different vernalization and photoperiod responses were detected. The effect of photoperiod sensitivity was not significantly changed by vernalization; different vernalization responses were probably due to the presence of multiple alleles at Vrn loci. The delay in heading depended on the vernalization deficit exponentially: y = Parameter (1) + (y0 - Parameter (1)) × EXP (Parameter (2) × (x - x0)). The dependence was shown to be general and significant for the given model in all the studied cultivars. Individual regressions characterised responses of cultivars to a deficit of vernalization treatment. Cluster analysis according to the characterisation obtained (full vernalization requirement, minimum vernalization requirement, insufficient vernalization and parameters of the dependence) showed the relationships between cultivars and enabled their grouping by similar profiles of vernalization, and, possibly, of photoperiod response. In individual cultivars, an attempt was made to use the model to predict performance for some agronomic traits.

Productivity and its stability were evaluated in a set of 24 apricot genotypes of the world collection and some promising new selections in 1994-1999. The productivity of most genotypes was higher than that of control variety Velkopavlovická LE-6/2. Genotypes with higher productivity in the years favorable for apricot productivity gave higher yields also in the years unfavorable for productivity. It was proved by a significantly close highly significant correlation (r = 0.64++). It is a reason for the necessary regulation of fruit set in highest-yielding varieties in the years favorable for apricot productivity when overproduction and undesirable reduction in the fruit size occur. The variability of yields in kg per tree, expressed by coefficients of variation over a six-year period, was high in the years of observation. The variability of yields was significantly lower in the years favorable for apricot productivity. To express yield variability the coefficient of variation and index of fluctuation can be used. Their similar conclusiveness was proved by the significant positive closeness of correlation between the values determined by both calculations (r = 0.51+). The varieties Vynoslivyj and Volšebnyj showed the highest and most stable productivity. From the producer's and breeder's aspects, of these two the Vynoslivyj variety is one of the most remarkable genotypes of the evaluated set due to its fruit quality and late ripening.

Present studies aimed at flow cytometric analysis of respiratory burst in neutrophilic granulocytes in carps, at various stages of their ontogeny. Cytometric evaluation of the repiratory burst in PMN cells of carps demonstrated augmented values of the mean fluorescence channel of PMA-stimulated PMN cells, as compared to the value of the fluorescence channel noted for PMN cells which were not activated or did not respond to activation in response to the applied stimulator. Intensity of the fluorescence, compared to the mean fluorescence channel of the cells which were not stimulated by PMA, was most pronounced in 11- to 21-month old carps, average in the youngest carps aging 3 to 9 months, and the lowest in the eldest, 23- to 29-month old carps. In cases of analysis of the mean fluorescence channel in the selected fraction of PMA-stimulated PMN cells, as compared to the mean fluorescence channel of granulocytes which did not respond by the stimulation reaction, the most intense fluorescence was noted to develop in the eldest, i.e. 23- to 29-month old fish. In the remaining carps, on the other hand, the difference in the mean fluorescence channel was significantly lower. In parallel, the highest fraction of PMA-stimulated granulocytes was found in 11- to 21-month old carps, a lower fraction in the youngest carps aging 3 to 9 months and the lowest fraction of such granulocytes in the eldest carps, 23 to 29 months of age.