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The evaluation of a series (1961-2000) of ombrographic records from 13 selected stations of Czech Hydrometeorological Institute provided long-term annual summation values and annual peaks of the rainfallrunoff erosivity factor R in the USLE. The evaluation indicated that by defining an erosive rainfall event as (a) rainfall ≥ 12.5 mm or (b) rainfall intensity > 6 mm per 15 minutes, there were on average 8 erosive rainfall events per station, varying from 1 to 25. The long-term summation values of R factor were in the range of 42 to 106 (average 66) and annual peaks ranged from 19 to 38 (average 29). If the criteria (a) and (b) were to be fulfilled simultaneously, there were on average more than 2 erosive rainfall events per year per station, the number varying from 0 to 12. The long-term summation values of R factor ranged from 25 to 67 (average 45), with annual peaks from 17 to 36 (average 27.5). The long-term investigations of soil losses by erosion on experimental runoff plots, near Třebsín (Prague-West district), caused by storms, reveal that these losses were mostly caused by rainfall events satisfying both criteria (a) and (b) at the same time. The results of this investigation suggest that the average value of the erosivity factor R = 20 recommended for the Czech Republic until now should be increased to R = 45 and/or 66, which in practical terms would necessitate more stringent conservation measures.

For characterization of the ability of crops to reflect changing soil properties after the addition of ameliorative materials into the soil both pot and rhizobox experiments were provided. In the pot experiment, the influence of the addition of lime and limestone into contaminated Cambisol containing 7.14 mg Cd/kg, 2174 mg Pb/kg, and 270 mg Zn/kg on element availability for spring wheat was tested. The ameliorative materials were added into the pots containing 5 kg of soil in amount of 3 g CaO, and 5.36 g CaCO₃ per kg of the soil. Soil pH reached up to 7.3 in lime treatments compared to 5.7 in control soil. Mobile portion of soil elements (0.01 mol/l CaCl₂ extractable) dropped by 80% for Zn, 50% for Cd, and 20% for Pb, respectively. In both straw and grains of wheat reduced content of elements was observed in limed pots compared to the control ones. For a detailed characterization of the influence of root exudates on the strength of developed complexes in comparison with the bulk soil, short-term rhizobox experiment was set up under identical soil and lime treatments. Generally, the results of rhizobox experiment confirmed the findings from the pot experiment discussed above. Content of elements in shoots and roots of wheat dropped mainly in the case of Cd and Pb. Soil mobile portion of all three tested elements introduced clear depletion curve in control treatment, both limed treatments showed high stability of element complexes almost unaffected by wheat roots.

The physiological response to application of elemental sulphur (S) and cadmium (Cd) of maize (Zea mays L.) grown for 60 days in pot soil was studied. The S was added into the soil with 2 rates (0 and 50 mmol/kg) and Cd was added in solution in 4 rates (0, 20, 50, 100 mg/kg). All the S and Cd were added before planting. Shoot biomass decreased with the application of Cd to the soil whether S was applied or not. The application of S and Cd to soil led to an increasing accumulation of Cd in the shoots of maize. The concentration of chlorophyll was reduced significantly in Cd-treated plants with or without supplementary S. The content of malondialdehyde (MDA) was increased significantly in treatments with S and Cd, compared to the control. The activity of peroxidases (POD) was increased but catalase (CAT) was decreased in plants treated with Cd, again with or without S, in comparison with control. POD and CAT activities decreased in all the Cd treated plants with S, as compared to the plants without S. The results suggest that Cd reduces the crop growth, concentration of chlorophyll and activity of CAT, but increases the content of MDA and activity of POD. S supplies decrease the content of MDA, activities of POD and CAT, as compared to zero S supplies at the same rate of Cd application.

In total 20 grown cultivars and advanced selections were included in a two-year study of apple skin thickness. The mean skin thickness of single cultivars measured on classical histological sections through the skin varied from 33.3 μm to 73.1 μm. The late ripening cultivars (Resista,Melrose, Angold and Zuzana) had a thicker skin than the earlier ripening ones. Direct measurements of the apple skin showed that its thickness was not uniform but variable to a great extent between single slices even within a very short distance. The magnitude of variability seemed to be also somewhat dependent on the cultivar. The skin thickness was significantly influenced by the year in some cultivars. The greatest difference in this respect was found in Gala Must where the skin was much thicker in 2003 than 2004. A close relationship was found between the varietal means of skin thickness obtained by direct measurement and corresponding mean scores of panellists. The values of Idared and Topaz were notably remote from the regression line. This disagreement was probably related to different skin structures of both cultivars.

Thirteen germplasm lines of vegetable Chenopodium (C. album) were evaluated in a randomized block design with three replications to estimate the foliage yield and its seven contributing quality traits for three successive cuttings. The variability present in vegetable Chenopodium and interactions operating at various levels were also studied. The mean foliage yield was maximum for CA-II (3.03 ± 0.39 kg/plot), followed by CA-VII (2.94 ± 0.27 kg/plot) and CA-VI (2.41 ± 0.20 kg/plot). Moisture content showed a constant decrease in all germplasm lines with successive cuttings except for CA-IX in 3^rd cutting. Protein content exhibited a strong trend of increase with each successive cutting and was maximum in 3^rd cutting. Protein content showed the highest heritability in 1^st cutting (96.35%) while the values were highest for ascorbic acid in 2^nd and 3^rd cutting. The carotenoid content and ascorbic acid exhibited consistently high genetic gain in all the three cuttings.

The development of individual cotton bollworm stages depending on the ambient temperature was studied in laboratory conditions. The effect of temperature on the development of all stages of Helicoverpa armigera was studied at three constant temperatures of 20, 25, and 30°C in temperature-controlled chambers. The temperature dependence of the developmental rates and the thermal thresholds were established by means of linear regression. Our data has established following optimal temperatures: the lower thermal threshold for the development of the Helicoverpa armigera eggs is 14.83°C, for the development of the larvae is 11.34°C and for the development of the pupae is 8.18°C. The termal constant for the development of the Helicoverpa armigera eggs is 64.10 day-degrees, for the development of the larvae is 344.83 day-degrees and for the development of the pupae is 222.22 day-degrees. The lower thermal threshold for the total Helicoverpa armigera development is 11.50°C and the thermal constant is 625.00 day-degrees.

An experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of glutamine on growth performance of weanling piglets. Sixty piglets weaned at 21 days of age were randomly assigned to two groups (10 piglets per pen, 3 pens per group). The control group received a maize-soybean meal-based diet. The treatment group received a maize-soybean meal-based diet supplemented with 1.0% free l-glutamine. Piglets were fed the diets for 20 days. Results showed that piglets fed the glutamine diet had lower diarrhoea ratio and shorter diarrhoea duration than those fed the control diet during 20 days after weaning. During the first ten days after weaning, pigs supplemented with glutamine had a 12.05% lower feed:gain ratio than those fed the control diet (P < 0.05). During the second ten days after weaning, they had a 27.75% higher average daily gain than those fed the control diet (P < 0.05); there were no differences in the feed:gain ratio and average daily feed intake. During the first ten days after weaning, the serum urea nitrogen of pigs supplemented with glutamine was reduced by 17.36% (P > 0.05) compared to the control. During the second ten days after weaning, serum urea nitrogen was reduced by 4.27% and serum concentrations of total protein increased by 18.70% in pigs supplemented with glutamine compared to the control (P > 0.05). There were no differences in albumin, T_3, T₄ and growth hormone.

Several characteristics related to tree growth, their fruitage and resistance against scab and powdery mildew were assessed during 2007-2008 on five new cultivars in comparison with the ancestral McIntosh Wijcik, in which 4 out of 5 had their pedigree. In several plots established between 1998 and 2006, the trees, which were on different rootstocks predominantly planted in spacing 4 × 0.5 m, were grown as vertical cordons practically without any pruning or shaping. Besides the first years after the planting these columnar trees generated very limited side branching. The cultivars mutually differ in tree vigour, spurring density, and size of fruiting spurs. Mean annual prolongation of central axes in the case of the trees on vigorous rootstocks varied within 30.8-57.5 cm, however, on M 9 rootstock it was distinctly shorter (23.4-34.1 cm). Beyond cultivar and rootstock the length of the annual prolongation was also significantly influenced by fruit set level. Trees of the Kordona cultivar were generally the most vigorous while those of Pidi were the weakest. The biennial pattern of bearing observed to an extent on nearly all the cultivars was connected with tendency to over-crop the trees. The highest annual yield equal to 10.3 kg was generated on trees of Kordona on MM 106, which corresponds to a total harvest of 25.7 t/ha. Cultivars Herald and Slendera possessed combined resistance both to scab and powdery mildew, whereas Kordona and Cumulus were resistant only to scab, but were in different degrees susceptible to mildew.

Germination responses to temperature, medium and gibberellic acid (GA3) treatments were studied in kiwifruit (Actinidia deliciosaChev. cv. Hayward) seeds. The seeds treated with four GA3concentrations (0, 2,000, 4,000 and 6,000 ppm) were sown in trays with peat moss, perlite + heater humus and soil mixture and subjected to the temperatures of 20°C, 25°C, 30°C and 35°C with bottom heating, under controlled conditions. All the treatments significantly affected the kiwifruit seeds germination. Seeds sown in peat moss and subjected to the temperature of 35°C with bottom heating reached the maximum germination percentage (99.17%). Peat moss and 6,000 ppm GA3 treatment also had a high germination rate (79%). Moreover, peat moss caused an earlier start of germination than the other mediums and shortened the germination period.

Four clones of short rotation coppice (SRCs) were investigated for phytoextraction of soil contaminated by risk elements (REs), especially Cd, Pb and Zn. As a main experimental factor, the influence of rotation length on the removal of REs was assessed. The field experiment with two Salix clones (S1 - (Salix schwerinii × Salix viminalis) ×S. viminalis; S2 - S. × smithiana) and two Populus clones (P1 - Populus maximowiczii × Populus nigra; P2 - P. nigra) was established in April 2008 on moderately contaminated soil. For the first time, all clones were harvested in February 2012 (2012_4y) after 4 years. Subsequently each plot was equally split into halves. The first half of the SRC clones was harvested in February 2014 after 2 years (2014_2y) and again it was harvested in February 2016 after further 2 years (2016_2y). The second half was harvested in February 2016 after 4 years (2016_4y). The results showed that the biomass production for the second 4-year harvest period was significantly higher for all clones but the metal concentration was lower in the mentioned period. 4-year rotation seems to be more advantageous for the phytoextraction than two 2-year rotations. The highest metal removal presented by remediation factors (RFs) per 4 years for Cd (6.39%) and for Zn (2.55%) were found for S2 in the harvest 2016_4y treatment. Removal of Pb was the highest by P1 clone with very low RF per 4 years (0.04%). Longer rotation is also economically superior.

The design of animal housing and manure management systems are key factors in livestock farming. Frequent removal methods, in fact, allow for the reduction of gasses produced from fermentations of the organic matter contained in manure, that affect animal welfare and farmer health and are emitted from animal housings into the atmosphere as a consequence of ventilation. The present study aims to evaluate the performance of a Robotic Scraper (RS) operating on the floors in a full-scale, operative free-stall dairy barn. The research is focused on the evaluation of gaseous emissions from the two types of floors (concrete and rubber mat coated), and with and without RS operation. The floors with rubber coating demonstrated higher emission rates of ammonia (NH₃), carbon dioxide (CO₂), nitrous oxide (N₂O), and methane (CH₄) compared to the uncovered concrete floors, both before and after RS operations. The operation of RS, furthermore, determined significant reduction of greenhouse gasses (GHG) but did not have relevant effect in terms of NH₃ emission, which reduced only of 1.4% from concrete floors, but increase of 12.7% from rubber coated floors.

The paper analyses the structure and level of international cooperation among African states in the area of agriculture and rural development. It focuses on the AU and its eight Regional Economic Communities. The international cooperation schemes between the World Bank, EU, FAO and African countries in agricultural policy are reviewed. The paper concludes that, despite numerous cross-border initiatives, governance of agricultural policies in the pan-African context remains fragmented. Policy-making and cooperation schemes need to be stepped up to address continent-wide challenges in the sector. There is an urgent need for the AU and the EU to intensify their cooperation in agricultural policies and development. The AU in collaboration with its regional bodies should establish a common agricultural policy for the continent. Such initiatives need to be Africa-driven and adapted to African needs. The EU should only provide technical know-how and institutional support if welcomed by African partners. Collective action towards rural areas via greater coordination of African agricultural policies and actions would help to develop the missing institutional framework needed for agricultural development in the continent. Fostering economic growth through agricultural development and reforms may also lead to a reduction of migration as witnessed by the EU in the sixties.

Microbial quality of ultra-high temperature (UHT) milk is usually ascertained by a total bacterial count (TBC) cultivation. But this is time consuming, so there is a tendency to search for faster and simpler methods. We compared three instruments, focusing on shortening the detection time and their suitability for practical use in dairy plants. Two of them, RapiScreen Dairy 1000 and Promilite III, detect microbial contamination by measuring adenosine triphosphate bioluminescence; the third, GreenLight, is based on oxygen consumption analysis. In the laboratory experiments, samples of UHT milk, were spiked with low concentration of microorganisms and then the level of microbial contamination was evaluated using the above-mentioned instruments together with cultivation method as a control. The instruments were also applied in a dairy plant to test 182 real samples. All investigated methods determined microbial quality faster than the TBC, but in some cases false positive and false negative results were obtained. Therefore, precise testing including optimizing pre-incubation time for bacteria enrichment is needed prior to industrial use.

A 9.5-year-old male Belgian malinois dog died after showing clinical symptoms that included fatigue, anorexia and dyspnoea. Necropsy revealed macroscopic findings in the brain and other organs. A solitary, brown-red-coloured mass, approximately 0.5 cm thick and 1.5 × 2 cm in diameter, was detected on the right side of the medulla oblongata, pons and cerebellum. The cut surface showed no invasion of the brain parenchyma. Histologically, the neoplasm was characterised by proliferation of endothelial cells, which showed epithelioid and spindle cell features. Some tumour cells had intracytoplasmic lumen formations containing red blood cells. The nuclei of the tumour cells were large and vesicular. In immunohistochemical experiments the tumour cells stained positive for factor VIII-related antigen, CD31 and CD34. A description is provided of the features of this epithelioid and spindle-cell haemangioendothelioma (EHE) that originated from vessels of the meninges in the subarachnoid space.

Shoulder joint disorders are a major cause of forelimb lameness in dogs, and osteochondrosis, degenerative joint disease, and bicipital tenosynovitis are common joint disorders that have been reported in dogs. Many studies have investigated pain management after arthroscopy in human medicine, but reports from veterinary medicine are rare. Ropivacaine is a new amide local anaesthetic drug and a single isomer drug that is used more widely than bupivacaine in human medicine because it has fewer side effects. The present study was conducted to evaluate the analgesic effect of intra-articular injection of ropivacaine after arthroscopic surgery in dog shoulder joints. To accomplish this, ten dogs were randomly divided into two groups of five who underwent the same anaesthesia protocol and shoulder arthroscopic examination. After shoulder arthroscopy, ropivacaine or 0.9% NaCl was injected into the shoulder joint cavity and the dogs were evaluated at one hour, two hours, four hours, six hours, 12 hours and 24 hours after surgery. The evaluated parameters were heart rate, respiratory rate, lameness score, visual analogue scale and the short form of the Glasgow composite measure pain scale. Ropivacaine showed a higher analgesic effect than 0.9% NaCl, indicating that it may be useful for pain management following arthroscopic surgery in dogs.

Traditional hop (Humulus lupulus L.) cultivars have been used in the brewing industry for a long time. Globally, about ten new breeding lines were released to the market in each decade from ~1970 to 1999. Since 2006, the rate of release of new cultivars has increased tenfold. It is, therefore, important to identify their genotype and origin. Molecular genetic methods based on DNA are the most appropriate technology for this purpose. Recently, we developed an efficient marker system for the authenticity control of hop genotypes based on expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeats (EST-SSR). In the present study, we enlarged the previously established EST-SSR set with 27 new polymorphic markers and evaluated molecular genetic variability within 135 traditional and new world hop cultivars. Two sets of 10 markers effectively differentiated all used cultivars, with the exception of cultivars derived from the same original genotype such as Saaz, Spalt, Tettnang and Nadwislawsky. Results of molecular genetic variability analyses corresponded with the genealogical and geographical origin of the key cultivars.

Monitoring of grassland dry matter yield (DMY) is important for the economy and ecosystem management, but it is a time-consuming process. Calculating the correlation between compressed height (CH) and DMY is a faster way to estimate DMY. The aim of our study was to use CH in order to predict DMY for a meadow with different fertilization management and plant species composition. Four fertilization treatments and one unfertilized control were established in a mesophilic meadow in the Czech Republic. Using a rising plate meter (RPM), CH was measured before the first and second cuts. In addition, the cover of individual vascular plant species was estimated. Significant correlations between CH and DMY were ranging from 0.41 to 0.79 for treatments without nitrogen fertilization in the first and second cuts; for treatments with nitrogen fertilization there was a significant correlation only in the second cut. According to our results, the RPM method seems to be suitable for a rough DMY estimate for meadows with coverage of about 60% grasses, 10% legumes and 30% forbs. However, considerable changes in the cover of tall forbs (e.g. Urtica dioica L.) or tall grasses (e.g. Dactylis glomerata L.) could be the main sources of DMY estimation inaccuracy.

Physicochemical properties of the tuber as a commercial product differ according to environmental conditions of the area and the growing season. The knowledge about how weather affects these characteristics, allows estimating the correct selection of the cultivars in order to obtain the highest yields or desired physicochemical qualities. In this sense, the effect of the main meteorological factors on the physicochemical characteristics (size, texture, dry matter, soluble solids, phenols, flavonoids, carotenoids and inhibitor concentration (IC₅₀)) of 8 potato cultivars growing in A Limia (North-West Spain) was analysed. The study was conducted during three consecutive years (2014-2016) and the results presented significant differences in the analyzed parameters between years (P < 0.05). Spearman's correlations and principal component analysis showed that the tubers of 2014 (with colder weather conditions) had the highest phenol content and the lowest flavonoids and carotenoids content. Therefore, the temperature positively favoured the flavonoid content and carotenoid content (samples from 2016), although the size of potato tubers was considerably smaller.

Egg quality and eggshell ultrastructural properties of four Saudi native chicken breeds were compared to detect genetic differences. A total of 480 laying hens at 28 weeks of age, representing four Saudi native breeds of chicken (black, black-barred, gray, and brown) kept under hot environmental conditions (34 ± 1°C) were randomly assigned to the current experiment. Laying hens were housed in individual cages in an open-sided house during hot summer season. A total of 360 intact eggs were randomly collected (90 from each breed) for egg quality assessment. Eggshell samples were prepared to evaluate ultrastructural measurements using a scanning electron microscope. No significant variations between the breeds concerning egg weight, egg-shape index, yolk index, albumen (%), yolk (%), shell (%), and shell thickness traits were detected. Brown breed showed significantly higher Haugh units compared to the other breeds. Moreover, brown breed scored the best for eggshell breaking strength trait (the highest crack resistance), followed by gray, black, and black-barred breeds, respectively (P < 0.005). Total ultrastructural score for mammillary layer measurements was significantly higher in black-barred breed if compared with black, brown, and gray breeds. Gray, brown, and black Saudi native breeds had an outstanding eggshell ultrastructure and, in turn, stiffer and stronger eggshell comparable with black-barred counterpart under high ambient temperatures. At the national level, for cross-breeding and selection programs aimed at producing good quality table and hatching eggs the use of gray, brown, and black breeds can be recommended due to excellent ultrastructural properties of their eggshell.

Soil structure is a key determinant of many soil environmental processes and is essential for supporting terrestrial ecosystem productivity. Management of arable soils plays a significant role in forming and maintaining their structure. Between 1994 and 2011, we studied the influence of soil tillage and fertilisation regimes on the stability of soil structure of loamy Haplic Luvisol in a replicated long-term field experiment in the Dolná Malanta locality (Slovakia). Soil samples were repeatedly collected from plots exposed to the following treatments: conventional tillage (CT) and minimum tillage (MT) combined with conventional (NPK) and crop residue-enhanced fertilisation (CR+NPK). MT resulted in an increase of critical soil organic matter content (St) by 7% in comparison with CT. Addition of crop residues and NPK fertilisers significantly increased St values (by 7%) in comparison with NPK-only treatments. Soil tillage and fertilisation did not have any significant impact on other parameters of soil structure such as dry sieving mean weight diameters (MWD), mean weight diameter of water-stable aggregates (MWD_WSA), vulnerability coefficient (Kv), stability index of water-stable aggregates (Sw), index of crusting (Ic), contents of water-stable macro- (WSA_ma) and micro-aggregates (WSA_mi). Ic was correlated with organic matter content in all combinations of treatments. Surprisingly, humus quality did not interact with soil management practices to affect soil structure parameters. Higher sums of base cations, CEC and base saturation (Bs) were linked to higher Sw values, however higher values of hydrolytic acidity (Ha) resulted in lower aggregate stability in CT treatments. Higher content of K⁺ was responsible for higher values of MWD_WSA and MWD in CT. In MT, contents of Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Na⁺ were significantly correlated with contents of WSA_mi and WSA_ma. Higher contents of Na⁺ negatively affected St values and positive correlations were detected between Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Na⁺ and Ic in NPK treatments.

The textural characteristics of onion slices (Allium cepa L.) of 3- and 7-mm thicknesses undergoing convective drying (50, 60, and 70°C) and microwave drying (68, 204, and 340 W real effective power levels) techniques with or without pre-treatment were evaluated. Pre-treatment consisted of dipping into brine solution (8% NaCl). Texture profile analysis at 25% compression was applied and hardness, chewiness, springiness and gumminess values of onions were recorded. As the temperature (convective) or real effective power level (microwave) increased, the hardness and chewiness levels of dried onion slices were enhanced. The values of these parameters were higher in response to microwave application compared to convective drying. Pre-treatment had an additive effect on hardness and chewiness in convectively dried samples. Maximum springiness was observed in response to convective drying. Dipping in brine solution generally caused no significant changes among slices of the same thickness (P < 0.05). With respect to gumminess, the results were quite similar to those for hardness and chewiness, i.e., markedly higher in microwave-dried onions.

Temporal changes in the concentrations of plant-available phosphorus (P) in soil (Olsen-P), total soil-P and P activation coefficient (the ratio of Olsen-P to residual-P (i.e. an approximation to total-P)) were measured in plots that received consistent inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium plus organic fertilizers annually. Maize and winter wheat crops were grown in rotation for 24 years. Olsen-P and P activation coefficient declined significantly in the earlier years (< 12 years) for treatments that did not include any P fertilizer, and increased over the same period for the P-fertilized treatments. The rates of change in the Olsen-P and P activation coefficient values were positively related to P balance. In the later years, the Olsen-P and P activation coefficient plateau values were positively related to the P balance.

Eight minor and neglected cultivars of Vitis vinifera L. were characterised according to their ampelographic and agronomic traits and discriminated by molecular analysis with SSR markers. These results are the first complete ampelographic description of these minor and neglected cultivars from the Mount Etna region. The results of this study reveal high morphological diversity of ancient grapevines growing in this region. SSR markers enabled us to discriminate the cultivars and revealed the genetic divergence between them and several autochthonous cultivars. Our efforts could contribute to a better knowledge of grape biodiversity based on morphological and molecular data and could be useful for the development of a reliable germplasm conservation strategy.

The development of Podzols is conditioned by many factors. One of them is vegetation cover. The aim of this study was to examine in detail special chemical properties, micromorphological features and water retention ability of Podzols under two different vegetation covers (spruce forest and grass). The study was performed in the Jizerské hory Mts., which were strongly influenced by atmospheric acidificant depositions in the past. The study was focused on the assessment of a 30-year grass amelioration impact on soils on the former forest land. It was shown that larger differences in the studied chemical properties (pH_KCl, pH_H2O, eCEC, content of Ca, Mg, Al_KCl, Al_H2O, Al(X)¹⁺, Al(Y)²⁺ and Al³⁺ species) were in the surface organic horizons and decreased with depth. Podzolization intensity was higher under the spruce forest than under the grass cover. Higher amounts of potentially dangerous Al forms were detected in the soils under the spruce forest than under the grass. Grass expansion on clear-cut areas (former forest) as a natural amelioration step results in the particular restoration of soil conditions. The micromorphological features studied on the soil thin sections using the optical microscope and soil water retention curves measured on the undisturbed 100 cm³ soil samples showed a significant influence of the organic matter presence on the soil structure and retention ability of H and Bhs horizons. Soil under the grass cover had denser structure (e.g. greater fraction of small capillary pores) and higher retention ability than soil under the spruce forest. Very similar retention curves were measured in the Ep and Bs horizons under both vegetation covers. Micromorphological features studied on the thin soil sections clearly documented a podzolization mechanism (e.g. organic material transport and its accumulation, weathering process and Fe oxidation and mobilization).

Different solvents and extraction solutions (distilled water, NaCl, Tween 80, citrate buffer, and acetate buffer) were evaluated for enzymes recovery. The independent variables evaluated were agitation (12-348 rpm), time (4.8-55.2 min), and temperature (13.2-46.8°C) and 10 extraction cycles, using an experimental design (Central composite rotatable design 2³). Pectin methyl esterase maximum recovery by solid state culture of Aspergillus niger was 11 U/g_wm (31 U/g_dm) using NaCl (0.1 mol/l) as solvent at a 5 : 1 (v/w) ratio, 30°C for 55.2 min, at 180 rpm, with one extraction cycle.

Dimethyl sulphoxide has a variety of biological effects that have made it the subject of numerous pharmacological studies. The first dimethyl sulphoxide therapeutic indication approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1978 was for intravesical instillation in cases of interstitial cystitis. Since then, due to its distinctive properties, it has been the subject of studies in several areas. This review describes indications, adverse effects and contraindications, as takes a critical approach to the main articles addressing the clinical use of dimethyl sulphoxide.

The efficacy of Bt maize MON 810-YieldGard^® and of Trichogramma wasp against European corn borer (ECB) (Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner) was evaluated in the period of 2002-2008 in field trials on three localities in the Czech Republic. The efficacy of Bt maize on the reduction of the number of tunnels caused by ECB per 100 maize plants before harvest was always 100% and that in Trichogramma treatment was on average 50%. The mean increase of the yield of 15% and 10% was obtained in Bt maize and Trichogramma treatments, respectively in comparison with the untreated control. The damage curve and economic injury level by ECB on maize was developed for the evaluation of the yield losses and management of the pest control. The higher economic efficacy of growing Bt maize as compared to other control measures is documented.

Excessive nitrogen (N) and water input, which are threatening the sustainability of conventional agriculture in the North China Plain (NCP), can lead to serious leaching of nitrate-N (NO₃^--N). This study evaluates grain yield, N and water consumption, NO₃^--N accumulation and leaching in conventional and two optimized winter wheat-summer maize double-cropping systems and an organic alfalfa-winter wheat cropping system. The results showed that compared to the conventional cropping system, the optimized systems could reduce N, water consumption and NO₃^--N leaching by 33, 35 and 67-74%, respectively, while producing nearly identical grain yields. In optimized systems, soil NO₃^--N accumulation within the root zone was about 80 kg N/ha most of the time. In the organic system, N input, water consumption and NO₃^--N leaching was reduced even more (by 71, 43 and 92%, respectively, compared to the conventional system). However, grain yield also declined by 46%. In the organic system, NO₃^--N accumulation within the root zone was generally less than 30 kg N/ha. The optimized systems showed a considerable potential to reduce N and water consumption and NO₃^--N leaching while maintaining high grain yields, and thus should be considered for sustainable agricultural development in the NCP.

Soil erosion by water has become an issue in the cultivation of maize (Zea mays L.) on sloping lands in recent years. The following three technologies of tillage have been assessed: disc cultivator, strip-till and no-till (raw land). Seeding machine Kinze 3500 was used for sowing maize cultivar Silvinio FAO 210. The experiments were conducted within the years 2013, 2014 and 2016. Erosion was evaluated under simulated rain in three stages of maize growth. The following parameters of each tested tillage treatment were measured: water infiltration (mm), soil loss (converted to t/ha), dry matter yield of the aboveground biomass and grain yield. The results confirmed that no-till technology reduced water erosion to the value of 0.40 t/ha. This technology along with the row spacing of 0.75 m tended to bring higher yields of aboveground biomass (13.40 t/ha). Tillage and phacelia as a catch crop increased water infiltration in the soil.

The objectives of this study were to estimate linkage disequilibrium (LD), describe and scan a haplotype block for the presence of genes that may affect milk production traits in Portuguese Holstein cattle. Totally 526 animals were genotyped using the Illumina BovineSNP50 BeadChip, which contained a total of 52 890 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). The final set of markers remaining after considering quality control standards consisted of 37 031 SNPs located on 29 autosomes. The LD parameters historical recombinations through allelic association (D') and squared correlation coefficient between locus alleles frequencies ( r²) were estimated and haplotype block analyses were performed using the Haploview software. The averages of D' and r² values were 0.628 and 0.122, respectively. The LD value decreased with increasing physical distance. The D' and r² values decreased respectively from 0.815 and 0.283 at the distance of 0-30 kb to 0.578 and 0.090 at the distance of 401-500 kb. The identified total number of blocks was 969 and consisted of 4259 SNPs that covered 159.06 Mb (6.24% of the total genome) on 29 autosomes. Several genes inside the haplotype blocks were detected; CSN1S2 gene in haplotype block 51 on BTA 6, IL6 and B4GALT1 genes in haplotype blocks 6 and 33 on BTA 8, IL1B and ID2 genes in haplotype blocks 19 and 29 on BTA 11, and DGAT1 gene in haplotype block 1 on BTA 14. The extension of LD using BovineSNP50 BeadChip did not exceed 500 kb and its parameters r² and D' were less than 0.2 and 0.70, respectively, after 70-100 kb. Consequently, the 50K BeadChip would have a poor power in genome wide association studies at distances between adjacent markers lower than 70 kb.