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We explored the role of yttrium nitrate (Y(NO3)3) in extending the longevity of campanula cut flowers. The results showed that Y(NO3)3 significantly enhanced the enzymatic antioxidant system, including the superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase, dehydroascorbate reductase, monodehydroascorbate reductase, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione S-transferase. In this way, Y(NO3)3 increased the DPPH scavenging activity and decreased the malondialdehyde content and electrolyte leakage, which implied that Y(NO3)3 strengthened the antioxidant capacity. Meanwhile, Y(NO3)3 significantly improved the production of the soluble sugars, proline, and soluble protein, relative water content, average fresh weight change rate, and average water balance value, which indicated that Y(NO3)3 could maintain the water balance. Besides, Y(NO3)3 dramatically increased the flower diameter and extended the longevity. Our current research demonstrated that Y(NO3)3 improved the longevity by reinforcing the enzymatic antioxidant system and water balance, which added new information and a supportive base for the utilisation of Y(NO3)3 in the preservation of campanula cut flowers.

Forest structure is a key component of its management and assessment in every forest ecosystem. In the study, 23 plots were established to obtain data on the acacia forest community based on tree size. Results from the study indicated that the acacia community could be broadly divided into two groups based on tree-size variables. The diameter and height frequency distributions of Group 1 were right-skewed, while those of Group 2 were more complicated. In both groups, there were positive correlations between tree-size variables, nonetheless the relationship between diameter at breast height and total height was best described using the cubic equation. Further, the Weibull and Sinh-Arcsinh (SHASH) best simulated the diameter and height frequency distribution. High-quality trees were found in a large diameter (> 30 cm) and height groups (> 22 m). In contrast, low-quality plants often concentrated on the smallest sizes. Therefore, trees with a diameter of 2–10 cm and a height lower than 8 m should receive attention to tend. Carbon stock in the two groups was 61.48 Mg·ha^–1 and 64.21 Mg·ha^–1, respectively. Tending solutions and measurements should be carried out regularly to promptly propose silvicultural measures and improve forest quality in future.

This study aimed to use lactic acid bacteria isolated from piglet faeces to develop probiotics, allowing for the effective control of Escherichia coli and Salmonella. Lactic acid bacteria were isolated from the faeces of suckling piglets and identified by 16S rRNA sequencing, then examined for haemolysis; gelatinase activity; and resistance to acid, bile, and pancreatin. The antimicrobial activity of selected lactic acid bacteria isolates was examined for 8 E. coli and 7 Salmonella strains. One-hundred and sixty-four lactic acid bacteria isolates were identified from 118 piglet faecal samples, and 13 lactic acid bacteria isolates were selected from analyses of haemolysis; gelatinase activity; and resistance to acid, bile, and pancreatin. Of the selected 13 lactic acid bacteria isolates, Limosilactobacillus reuteri PF20-3 and PF30-3 strains had the highest antibacterial activity against E. coli and Salmonella.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of protease supplementation on the behaviour, slaughter performance, meat quality, and immune organ indices of broilers. A total of 240 one-day-old Arbor Acres broiler chickens were randomly allocated to four treatments, with six replicates per treatment and 10 broilers per replicate. Chickens were fed corn-soybean meal basal diets supplemented with 0, 4, 8, and 12 IU/g of protease. Compared with 0 IU/g of protease supplementation, 12 IU/g of protease increased the average and minimum time of feeding and drinking behaviour (P < 0.05); increased the average, maximum, and minimum time of preening behaviour (P < 0.05); and decreased feeding, walking, and stretching frequency (P < 0.05). pH_24h of breast and thigh muscles had improved (P < 0.05). The shear force of the breast muscle and the cooking loss of the thigh muscle had decreased (P < 0.05). Compared with 0 IU/g of protease, 4 IU/g of protease increased the average and minimum time of lying behaviour (P < 0.05) and decreased stretching, scratching, and aggressive frequency (P < 0.05). The shear force of the thigh muscle and spleen index had enhanced (P < 0.05). Protease can be used as an additive in a broiler diet for production.

The effect of drought stress on carbon metabolism in the leaves and roots of bermudagrass was investigated. Plants established in PVC tubes suffered from three water treatments for 10 days. C138 and Tifway (drought-tolerant) were found to have lower relative electrical conductivity and higher water use efficiency than C32 (drought-sensitive) under moderate drought by increasing carotenoid and soluble sugar content and rapidly decreasing leaf starch content. The sucrose synthase activity of leaves and roots, acid invertase and neutral invertase activity of C32 roots substantially decreased under severe drought, resulting in a slow sucrose decomposition rate and significantly lower fructose and glucose contents than C138 and Tifway. The activities of four carbon metabolism enzymes and sucrose content in the leaves were greater than those in the roots, while the fructose and glucose contents were on the contrary, indicating that bermudagrass transported fructose and glucose obtained from sucrose decomposition from leaves to roots under drought to reduce roots damage. The path analysis indicated that leaves neutral invertase activity, and roots soluble sugar content might be the key parameter of carbon metabolism in bermudagrass under drought.

Powdery mildew (PM) is a fungus that causes disease in both the field and the greenhouse. Utilizing resistant cultivars is the most effective approach of disease management. To develop insertion-deletion (InDel) markers associated to this trait, the whole genomes of the PM resistant line M17050 (P1) and the PM-susceptible line 28-1-1 (P2) were sequenced. A total of 1 200 InDels, with an average of 100 markers per chromosome, were arbitrarily chosen from the sequencing data for experimental validation. One hundred InDel markers were ultimately selected due to their informative genetic bands. Further, an F₂ segregating population of melons generated from these two parents was inoculated by the PM pathogen. Based on bulk segregant analysis (BSA) using these 100 InDel markers, the powdery mildew resistance was associated with the genomic region LVpm12.1 on the melon chromosome 12. This region overlapped the previously described quantitative trait locus (QTL)-hotspot area carrying multiple PM-resistance QTLs. Moreover, conventional QTL mapping analysis was done, which located LVpm12.1 in the region between 22.72 and 23.34 Mb, where three highly polymorphic InDel markers MInDel89, MInDel92, and MInDel93 were detected. Therefore, these markers could be used to track this resistance locus in melon while the lines carrying this locus could be employed in PM melon resistance breeding programs after validation tests.

This study aims to evaluate the efficiency of basalt with two botanical aqueous extracts of Citrus aurantium and Nerium oleander (50g/L) against Aphis punicae and Planococcus citri in an organic pomegranate orchard. Basalt was applied as a foliar spray with two doses (1.5% and 3%), in the ground as a fertiliser (1.5%), and as a combined application (1.5%). Phenolic compounds of both plants were identified by HPLC-PDA/ESI-MS analysis. Seven and six flavonoids were detected in C. aurantium and N. oleander extracts, respectively. Hesperidin was more abundant in C. aurantium extracts; however, N. oleander extracts contained more quercetin rutinoside. A. punicae populations were significantly higher in control trees compared to the treated ones. A. punicae mortality rates reached high values above 90% for basalt and plants extracts and efficacy rates exceeded 80%. P. citri mortality rates reached 88% and 77%, and efficacy rates exceeded 75% and 66% for basalt and plant extracts, respectively. These findings may help to plan Integrated pest management strategies in organic orchards to avoid toxic chemical pesticides.

This study evaluated the nutrients, flavour and antioxidant capacity in the embryo, colloid and fruiting body of Dictyophora rubrovalvata. The embryo had the highest protein [2.91 ± 0.39 g·(100 g)^–1] and polysaccharides (17.44 ± 1.49 mg·g^–1), the fruiting body had the highest total phenol content (0.87 ± 0.17 mg·g^–1), the colloid was rich in minerals [1.57 ± 0.16 g·(100 g)^–1]. The antioxidant capacity of the embryo was higher than that of the other parts, in terms of different solvents, the antioxidant capacity of D. rubrovalvata extracted with ethanol was higher than that of water. 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), and reducing capacity were positively correlated with polysaccharides, proteins and polyphenols. The free amino acid content ranged from 7.44 to 11.52 mg·g^–1, the distribution was fruiting body > embryo > colloid, of which glutamic acid content was the highest, and the flavour characteristics were mainly umami and sweetness. The nucleotide content of fruiting body and embryo was higher than in the colloid. In addition, the compositions of volatile flavour compounds were identified by headspace solid-phase microextraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME-GC-MS), mainly alcohols, aldehydes and ketones, their distributions varied greatly among the three samples. These results indicated that different parts of D. rubrovalvata have different nutritional characteristics, the fruiting body has a high content of volatile and non-volatile components, the embryo and the colloid have good functional activity, laying a foundation for the functional development and comprehensive utilisation of D. rubrovalvata.

Praziquantel (PZQ) is a drug effective against several parasitic diseases of fish caused by Platyhelminthes. The study assesses the efficacy of selected in-feed PZQ doses in eliminating metacercariae Diplostomum pseudospathaceum in grass carp. The fish were infected with D. pseudospathaceum in laboratory conditions and subsequently treated with PZQ at daily doses of 30 (PZQ1), 50 (PZQ2), and 100 (PZQ3) mg/kg bw for seven days. The treatment trial was followed by a 23-day observation period during which the fish were parasitologically examined on days 0, 2, 8 and 23. Smaller fish were infected with a significantly higher (P < 0.05) number of metacercariae than bigger fish among three weight groups as follows: up to 7 g > 7 to 12 g > 12 g. The in-feed PZQ at doses of 30, 50 and 100 mg/kg bw for seven days was 47%, 84% and 88% effective against metacercariae D. pseudospathaceum, respectively. A significant decrease (P < 0.01) in moving and an increase (P < 0.01) in the immotile metacercariae in the eye’s lens were recorded in all the trial groups on each sampling day. An increasing proportion of motile metacercariae in the post-treatment observation period was seen in PZQ2 and PZQ3, indicating a decreasing trend in the actual efficacy in an environment with no reinfection possibility.

The effects of large granular slow-controlled release fertiliser prepared by a double coating of sulfur and sodium alginate on peanut growth, nitrogen fertiliser utilisation, and soil microbial community were investigated through peanut pot experiments, with a view to providing a theoretical and practical basis for the development of large granular slow-controlled release fertiliser. The results showed that the homemade large granular fertiliser could promote the root development of peanuts, and the root volume increased by 45.10% compared with the uncoated fertiliser at the fruiting stage. At the same time, the soil NH₄⁺-N and NO₃^–-N content were reduced at the seedling stage and increased at the fruiting stage to achieve the fertiliser’s slow and controlled release effect. A significant contribution to the net photosynthetic rate was made for growth development and yield in the middle and late stages. Pod dry weight was significantly higher at the blooming stage than uncoated fertiliser, 4.8% higher at the fruiting stage, and 22.9% higher in nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). In terms of microbial bacterial communities, the large granular slow-release fertiliser promoted the diversity of the treated bacterial communities to some extent, with little difference in the relative abundance of soil bacterial communities. These results showed that a one-time application of homemade large granular slow-release fertiliser positively affected peanuts in terms of yield increase, promotion of nitrogen uptake and improved nitrogen utilisation under nitrogen application with urea equivalent, but the overall effect on soil microbial community was small.

Sugarcane in southern Florida suffers from sugarcane rust mite (SRM) infestations, Abacarus sacchari, from summer to early fall. The mite’s sex ratio is important in understanding the mite's demography and population dynamics. This is the first report on the sex ratio of the field population of the SRM. The objectives of the study were to determine the sex ratio of the SRM and the factors that affect any changes in the sex ratio. To determine the sex ratio, mites were sampled from a sugarcane canopy each month over a 12-month period and the sex ratio was expressed as the proportion of females to the total number of sexed mites. The population density and aerial mites were monitored weekly for 8 and 6 months, respectively. The total number of sexed mites from the sugarcane canopy was 27 941 mites, while 2 248 airborne mites were recorded. The result showed that the sex ratio of the SRM in the canopy was dynamic during the study, with a female bias more common than a male bias among the samples, which ultimately resulted in a slightly female bias. An obvious change from a female bias to a male bias occurred simultaneously with the increased mite density and dispersal. The factors affecting the oscillation of the sex ratio are discussed.

Metabolomics analysis based on UPLC-MS/MS was used to investigate the influence of rain shelter (RS) conditions on metabolites of sweet cherry leaves. It was found that there were 134 differential metabolites. These differential metabolites were enriched in 40 metabolic pathways. Studies on the biosynthetic pathways and regulatory mechanisms of metabolites in sweet cherry leaves showed that low-light and drought stresses in RS plants were related to the amino acid biosynthesis metabolic pathway and that of flavone and flavonol biosynthesis. Sweet cherry trees exhibited improved tolerance to drought stress by regulating the increase in the content of metabolites, such as proline in the amino acid metabolic pathway and the content of flavonoids in the phenylpropane metabolic pathway. To cope with low-light stress, sweet cherry leaves can increase their photosynthetic efficiency by regulating the flavonol content in the flavone and flavonol biosynthetic pathway under the catalysis of a series of enzymes.

Based on data from 10 countries from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CBOT) wheat futures market for the period from 2000 to 2021, this study examines the impact of the financialisation of agricultural products on food security and its mechanism of action. We found that the higher the degree of financialisation of agricultural products, the stronger the negative effect on food security, which is more prominent after the financial crisis in 2008, and the effect on developing countries is more obvious than that on developed countries. The test results of the mediation effect model showed that the financialisation of agricultural products affects food security by increasing the volatility of futures prices. The test results of the moderating effect model showed that the rise of the US dollar index and loose monetary policy will exacerbate the impact of the financialisation of agricultural products on food security. Still, the increase of the self-sufficiency rate of food can effectively inhibit this impact. The study’s conclusions supported the government’s optimising macro policies and promoting food security.

The paper deals with a new method of innovative assessment of the supported effects and ecosystem services of forests using the actual amount of their increased costs. Among the most important research findings and significance of the new method is that it contributes to the body of knowledge on valuation and payment for ecosystem services. The focus of the research task is to help address the current difficult economic situation of forest owners resulting from the impacts of climate change. The study aims to determine what work quantifies the amount of compensation for the provision of supported ecosystem services that is sufficient for owners by using hypothesis testing. The evaluation of the supported effects was carried out in a case study in the area of the Chrudim-Podhůra Recreational Forests in the Czech Republic. The results of the evaluation were quantified in two experimental spreadsheets of the results, a comparative analysis of the evaluation results was performed, and hypothesis testing was conducted. The innovative methodological approach to the assessment of supported effects can be easily modified and used to assess the actual amount of increased costs of other ecosystem services of the forest.

The study assessed the relationship between rib fat thickness and carcass price among different carcass weight groups in Korean native cattle (Hanwoo), taking into account changes in the beef grading system. Data from 8 926 Hanwoo steers, with an average age of 30.6 ± 1.88 months and slaughtered between 2017 and 2019, were analysed. The variables considered included rib fat thickness, carcass weight, eye muscle area, marbling score, and carcass price. Steers were categorised into eight carcass weight groups ranging from 250 kg to 650 kg in the original system, rib fat thickness consistently had a negative impact on carcass price, with partial coefficients of rib fat thickness on carcass price ranging from –1.96 to –46.5 depending on the carcass weight groups. Conversely, in the revised system, the impact of rib fat thickness varied from negative to positive, turning positive at the 450 kg carcass weight group. These findings may guide decision-making in beef cattle production and feeding strategies under the revised grading system.

The unique structural and biological diversity found in plants renders them a distinctive and sustainable source for discovering new antibacterial, antifungal and antiparasitic compounds. In the present study, antimicrobial and antibiofilm properties of essential oils of citrus varieties of Northeast India were studied against selected foodborne pathogens using both in vitro and in silico approaches. These essential oils showed significant antimicrobial and antibiofilm activities against foodborne pathogens. i.e. Bacillus cereus MTCC430 and Yersinia enterocolitica MTCC859. It was observed that the treatment with essential oil disturbed the membrane integrity of the pathogens, thereby causing the release of nucleic acids. This study also postulated that active compounds of the essential oils interact with different target proteins of the pathogens and provide an explanation for the mechanisms of antimicrobial and antibiofilm action of the essential oils of citrus varieties against foodborne pathogens.

Amylases are one of the biotechnologically important enzymes that have multiple applications in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, textile, detergent, paper and pulp, bioremediation and nano-biotechnology industries. Amylases can be isolated from animals, plants and microbial regions, but nowadays enzymes from prokaryotic species have gained more importance. Among the microbes, amylases from Bacillus cereus have gained considerable demand in various industrial sectors. Growing industrial demand for enzymes compels the availability of enzymes in large quantities that can only be achieved by employing efficient fermentation techniques. Therefore, the current study is aimed at the statistical optimisation of the production conditions for extracellular amylase production from Bacillus strain AS2. In a recent study, the optimum amylase producing AS2 strain was identified on a molecular level, and it was found that it has close relation with the already reported strains of Bacillus cereus. The further enzyme production was optimised by using a statistical optimisation tool. A full-factorial central composite design (CCD) consisting of 53 experiments was designed using six significant variables (incubation period, pH, temperature, carbon and nitrogen source and metal ion). The analysis revealed that the optimal media concentrations were 54.34 g·L^–1 starch, 0.63 g·L^–1 CaCl₂, 1 g·L^–1 glycine, pH 7.0, 76 h, and 40 °C, respectively. A 1.23-fold increase in the enzyme yield (1 050 IU·mL^–1·min^–1) was noticed as compared to the original production level. The statistical optimisation approach gives the exact variables that influence the enzyme production and, hence, offers the best way to optimise the bioprocess. The optimised enzyme can be used in industries for various purposes such as de-sizing, de-inking, hydrolysing starch residues, etc.

Resistance to PPV and ESFY phytoplasma has been evaluated for Japanese plum (‘Aphrodite’, ‘Black Amber’, ‘Crimson Glo’, ‘Santa Rosa’) and pluot (‘Dapple Supreme’, ‘Flav Queen’, ‘Flav Supreme’) cultivars. Each cultivar was grafted by chip-budding on GF 305 peach rootstocks and infected with the virulent PPV-Rec or ESFY phytoplasma strain also by chip-budding. After bud break, cultivar evaluation consisted in observing presence or absence of symptoms on leaves, noting the symptom intensity on leaves and on the whole plant. Plants were studied in controlled conditions in a sealed screen-house for three consecutive growth periods. DAS-ELISA and RFLP-PCR analyses were also employed to verify the presence or absence of PPV, respectively ESFY phytoplasma. Results obtained in the context of this very severe biological test against PPV and ESFY phytoplasma confirm the high level of susceptibility of Japanese plum and pluot cultivars.

The present experiment studied the effects of egg composition (egg yolk content; Y) of two different chicken genotypes (selected by computed tomography; CT) on hatched chick growth performance, slaughter traits, and meat quality. Three thousand five hundred eggs per genotype were scanned by CT. Then, for each genotype, eggs were selected according to their Y content: low (21.0 ± 0.88 – 350 eggs), medium (24.5 ± 0.15– 350 eggs) and high (28.3 ± 0.98 – 350 eggs). The remaining eggs were excluded from the study. At 11 weeks of age, 15 chickens per group were slaughtered, carcasses were dissected and breast and legs were excised and dedicated to meat quality evaluations. Many parameters were influenced in the meat-type (EE) chickens, including slaughter, breast and leg weights, and abdominal fat content, whereas only the breast incidence on slaughter weight was affected in Tetra-H hybrid. In neither genotype were the meat traits affected by Y content. Two exceptions were represented by leg thawing loss, higher in low Y group compared to medium and high Y group, and by tibia length, longer in high Y content group than in the medium one, both for EE chickens. Similar findings were observed for the meat fatty acid (FA) profile, as only some single FA were influenced by Y content, however, apparently without a specific physiological meaning. The present work demonstrated that the Y content, measured by CT, allowed to select high-quality meat-type animals characterised by the best productive performances in terms of growth rate, live weight, slaughter weight, breast and thigh weights, and with lower abdominal fat content. These findings would bring positive advantages to hatcheries in terms of chick quality and also to farmers in terms of economic revenues: They would rear robust animals that would guarantee a higher probability of survival in the first rearing period and would be characterised by a high slaughter weight at the end of the productive cycle.

Grey poplar (Populus × canescens) is a natural hybrid of white poplar (Populus alba L.) and Eurasian aspen (Populus tremula L.). It could play a significant role in the afforestation of marginal sites which stretch out on ever more areas due to the negative effects of local climate change. Based on stand structure analyses of grey poplar stands grown on the sandy sites of Hungary, the following relations were found: There is a strong relationship between tree height and stand volume (R² = 0.7256), as well as between basal area per ha and stand volume (R² = 0.9158). There is a moderate relationship between diameter at breast height and stand volume (R² = 0.6175). The results could contribute to a more accurate assessment of applied silvicultural technologies.

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are commonly used in many European and Asian traditional fermented foods such as yogurt, cheese, sourdough, meat, fruit, vegetables, cereal products, sour spring rolls, fish sauce, sour shrimp, chao, ruou nep, tofu. They not only improve the flavour and texture of fermented products but also they inhibit the development of spoilage bacteria as antimicrobial agents. In this study, thirty-five traditional Vietnamese fermented products were collected for isolation, identification, and characterisation of LAB and bacilli. There were fifty-three species of LAB isolated from samples such as Lactococcus lactis, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, Limosilactobacillus fermentum, Liquorilactobacillus nagelli, Companilactobacillus farciminis, Levilactobacillus brevis, Lactiplantibacillus pentosus, Lactococcus garvieae, Lactilactobacillus sakei, and twenty-one species of bacilli such as Priestia megaterium, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus pumilus, Metabacillus indicus. This study aimed to provide information about the occurrence of LAB and bacilli in traditional fermented foods in Vietnam and their brief characterisation.

The display of the depth of operation on tractors' dashboards facilitates the operator in achieving precise operation. In this study, the depth of operation of a mounted implement was measured and digitally displayed on a tractor's dashboard. The change in depth of operation was sensed by measuring the rotation of the rocker arm of the tractor's hydraulic system. The measured angle of rotation was multiplied by a calibration factor to convert it into the actual depth of operation in centimetres. For the calibration factor, a geometrical analysis of the three-point linkage was carried out, and a mathematical relationship was established based on the length of various linkages and their locations. A computer program was also developed to solve these equations to calculate the calibration factor. The program was validated with six different sizes of three-point linkages and found the maximum root mean square error was within 5%. The developed digital display was evaluated in the laboratory with three different implements and found a maximum error of ± 1 cm. A further evaluation was also carried out in an actual field with implements at three different depth levels, and a deviation of up to ± 13% was found with respect to the manual depth measurement.

The basic Helix-Loop-Helix (bHLH) superfamily is the most widespread family of transcription factors in eukaryotic organisms, which can activate the expression of genes by interacting with specific promoters in the genes. The bHLH transcription factors direct the development and metabolic process of plants, including flowering initiation and secondary metabolite production, by attaching to specific sites on their promoters. These transcription factors are essential for encouraging plant tolerance or the adjustment to harsh environmental conditions. The involvement of bHLH genes in anthocyanin formation in fleshy fruit-bearing plants, as well as the role of these genes in response to stimuli including drought, salt, and cold stress, are discussed in this article. New concepts and goals for the production of stress-tolerant fruit species are suggested. Furthermore, solid evidence for the critical role of bHLH genes in the growth and development, as well as anthocyanin biosynthesis in fleshy fruit plants, are also presented in this article. This review identifies several future research directions that can shed light on the roles of bHLH genes in fruit-bearing plants and will assist the use of these genes in efforts to breed fruit crop varieties that are more resistant to stress. Generally, there has been little research carried out on the role of bHLHs transcription factor family genes in fleshy fruit-bearing plant species and more in-depth studies are required to fully understand the diverse role of bHLH genes in these species.

Bacterial leaf blight (BLB) disease of rice caused by Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) is one of the significant constraints for rice production. A study was carried out to analyze the virulence, genetic diversity, and population structure of Xoo isolates collected from different rice ecosystems of Karnataka, India. The taxonomic identity of all 54 isolates was confirmed using a Xoo-specific PCR assay. The virulence assay on a set of twenty-eight near-isogenic differentials identified nine pathotype groups (KPthX-1 to KPthX-9). Among them, KPthX-6 was highly virulent, whereas KPthx-2 was less virulent. Differentials with four and five resistance (R) genes (Xa4+xa5+xa13+Xa21, Xa4+Xa7+xa13+Xa21, and Xa4+xa5+Xa7+xa13+Xa21) were effective against all the pathotypes. Further, genetic diversity was deduced using a universal marker set, JEL-1, and JEL-2, complementary to a conserved repetitive sequence IS1112. The amplicon size and numbers varied from 100 bp to 3 Kb and 1 to 25. Based on the amplicon counts, Jaccard’s co-efficient and phylogenetic analyses were carried out and categorized the 54 isolates into three clusters (I to III). Cluster-II contains the maximum number of isolates (27), followed by cluster-I (23 isolates) and cluster-III (one isolate). The structure analysis categorized the isolates into five subgroups, viz. SG1, SG2, SG3, SG4, and SG5 indicate the existence of five subpopulations. The present study has identified the genetic and virulence diversity of the Xoo population and reported the effective R gene/s for different rice ecosystems, which can be used in the breeding program for the eco-specific management of BLB of rice.

Optimum irrigation scheduling and new technologies are the key to the successful practice of modern agriculture and natural resources, such as water management. Α three-year research project was conducted at Velestino, Magnesia, Greece. The aim was to study whether vegetation indices can be used to estimate the crop coefficients of corn in order to apply an intelligent method of irrigation using drones in the future. The normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI), the soil-adjusted vegetation index (SAVI), the renormalised difference vegetation index (RDVI) and a new index [difference infrared – green vegetation index (DIGVI)] were calculated using multispectral photos from a camera adapted to a drone. Three different methods were applied to calculate the crop coefficients: (i) the water balance and the FAO Penman-Monteith reference evapotranspiration, (ii) the climatic data, (iii) the vegetation indices. The irrigation dose covered 100% of the crop water needs according to the soil moisture measurements and the single crop coefficient values. The statistical analysis and the simple linear regression method showed that the corn crop coefficients can be estimated when these indices are used as independent variables.

Rosa damascena is one of the oldest valuable rose flower varieties that is almost drough tolerant. However, selecting and identifying landraces that are more tolerant to drought conditions will be effective in developing the cultivation of the plant under stress. The most important step in developing drought-tolerant plants is the evaluation and identification of resistant and susceptible genotypes. In this case, an experiment was performed under in vitro conditions using five levels (0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 g/L) of polyethylene glycol (PEG) on four landraces of the Damask rose (Maragheh, Urmia, Pakdasht, and Kashan). Based on the findings, the resistance of the different landraces to a water deficit was measured by the Design-Expert software using the response level (RSM) method. The results showed that Maragheh, with the highest fresh and dry weight, total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, proline and an increase in the superoxide dismutase activity, had a high tolerance to drought stress. Moreover, Maragheh with a decreasing leaf number, height, malondialdehyde, hydrogen peroxide and having a higher membrane stability index, showed a better defence mechanism against oxidative stress than the other landraces. Also, after Maragheh, Pakdasht had the best performance compared to the other two landraces up to 75g/L of PEG, but not as well as Maragheh at the highest level of the tested PEG. Urmia and especially Kashan probably do not have much tolerance to drought stress regarding all the results and levels of desirability.

The shelf life of a food product is a finite period after manufacturing and packaging, during which it retains a required and acceptable level of quality for consumption. The objective was to characterise and describe the transparent and comprehensible processing process to collect, select, critically evaluate and summarise available evidence regarding the use of mathematical models in the estimation of the shelf life of coffee under accelerated storage conditions. Of the 183 articles identified, nine studies were included in the review: four evaluated various types of packaging containing roasted and ground coffee, three coffee-based beverages, one infusion and one in bean format; the models frequently used were Weibull-Hazard Analysis, first-order, and zero-order kinetic model, which requires the decay kinetic constant, the same as that acquired by the Arrhenius model or a proposed model. Quality descriptors and mathematical models have been identified that allow estimating the shelf life of coffee and its derivative products under accelerated storage conditions, in addition to primary sources with experimental designs.

The fungus Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst) is an important threat to wheat production because it can cause wheat stripe rust. The present study aimed to identify new stripe rust resistance genes and to provide a theoretical and practical basis for breeding wheat varieties with broad spectrum, stable, and durable resistance. Wheat leaves inoculated with wheat stripe rust fungus Chinese yellow rust 34 were collected at different time points for transcriptomic analysis based on the wheat stripe rust susceptible varieties AVOCET S (AVS) and AVSYr15NIL [near-isogenic line (NIL) derived from AVS]. The results showed that the number of upregulated genes in the two varieties was 294, 364, 398, and 604, and the number of downregulated genes was 520, 178, 570, and 345 on the 1^st, 3^rd, 5^th, and 7^th days post inoculation, respectively. Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Gene and Genomes enrichment analyses found enrichment of differentially expressed genes in the peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor signaling pathways, plant–pathogen interaction, and styrene acrylic acid biosynthesis that encoded protein kinases, signal transduction, transcription factors, and functional protein components. Differentially expressed genes were randomly selected for quantitative reverse transcription PCR analysis, and the change trend was the same as in the transcriptome data. The results of this study suggest that genes in AVSYr15NIL related to the stripe rust response could be valuable for understanding the mechanisms involved in stripe rust resistance.

To study the effects of long-term and short-term high temperature stress and recovery on the physiological functions and appearance quality of chrysanthemums, a controlled experiment with chrysanthemums was conducted. The treatments were 25 °C for 3 days (T1D3), 25 °C for 9 days (T1D9), 41 °C for 3 days (T2D3) and 41°C for 9 days (T2D9). The results indicated that there is no significant difference between the T1D3 and T1D9 groups. Conversely, the total chlorophyll content (Chl), net photosynthetic rate (PN), and maximum quantum yield of Photosystem II (PSII) (FV/FM) under T2D3 and T2D9 decreased by 27.07%, 43.30%, 5.62%, and 44.85%, 68.22%, 8.29%, respectively. The JIP-test results showed that the T2D9-stressed plants had a lower efficiency and functional antenna size, and a higher activity of the reaction centre than T2D3. The contents of malondialdehyde, soluble protein and proline increased by 3.67 nmol/g FM, 298.75 μg/g, and 192.99 μg/g, and the antioxidant enzymes activities were inhibited significantly under T2D9. After the stress was relieved, Chl, PN, and FV/FM under T2D3 recovered to the same level as T1D3, while T2D9 did not. Furthermore, the diameter of the flowers in T2D3 showed no significant difference with the chrysanthemums under T1D3. However, the plants in T2D9 recovered poorly. Both the diameter of the flowers and the anthocyanin under T2D9 reduced significantly comparing with T1D9, indicating that the damage in the chrysanthemum seedlings caused by long-term high temperature was irreversible.

This study aimed to evaluate alfalfa meal's chemical and nutritional composition and effectiveness on broiler chicken thigh meat quality. Alfalfa contains significant content of crude protein and fibre, minerals (iron and zinc), polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), and antioxidant compounds, especially total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and total polyphenols content (TPC). To test its effectiveness on chicken tight meat quality, we developed a trial on 60 Cobb 500 broilers, divided into two groups of 30 animals each and fed during growing-finishing phases (11–42 days) a control diet (C) and an experimental diet (A), in which 5% alfalfa meal was added. At the end of the trial, six animals from each group were selected for slaughter and sampling. The analyses on meat samples revealed that alfalfa significantly affected bioactive compounds with antioxidant potential, such as zinc, vitamin E and TPC, compared with the C samples. The utilisation of 5% alfalfa was also very effective on the fatty acids composition of thigh meat samples in the A group by increasing the concentration of eicosapentaenoic acid and significantly decreasing the n-6/n-3 ratio as well as cholesterol content with 10.41% in experimental samples. Therefore, alfalfa can be a potential alternative to synthetic feed additives in producing healthier chicken meat, with increased content of bioactive compounds and essential fatty acids for human health.