Comparison of metabolomics of Dendrobium officinale in different habitats by UPLC-Q-TOF-MS

Dendrobium officinale has been considered over past centuries to be extremely valuable for use as an herbal medicine in South Asian countries. In this work, the chemical profiles of D. officinale from different habitats were systematically characterized using ultra-performance liquid chromatography time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-TOF-MS) and multivariate analysis. The principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least squares analysis (OPLS-DA) of UPLC-Q-TOF-MS data displayed an obvious separation. Several flavonoids and terpenoids derivatives contribute to the quantitative chemotypic variation within and between the samples as observed. These findings lead to a better understanding of the phytochemical variation of D. officinale which can aid in quality control of raw material.     

The effect of semi-natural habitats on aphids and their natural enemies across spatial and temporal scales

Semi-natural habitats in agricultural landscapes are generally assumed to enhance the biological control of insect pests based on native beneficial insects, by providing alternative prey and hosts, resources and refuges for overwintering. We hypothesized that natural enemies of winter wheat aphids should arrive sooner in fields near semi-natural habitats. We compared aphid, hoverfly (larvae and eggs) and parasitized aphid (mummies) abundances in 54 winter wheat fields located in southern France from 2003 to 2007. Six surveys were recorded each spring and were split into the early period (defined as the period before the peak of aphid growth) and the late period (after the peak). The wheat fields differed by their surrounding landscape composition measured as the proportion of semi-natural habitats (woods, hedges and grasslands), at three different spatial scales: 200 m, 500 m, and 1200 m. Despite great variability in abundance data between years, the abundance of hoverflies appeared more sensitive to landscape composition than aphid abundance was. Early abundance for both aphids and hoverflies was positively related to wood cover, but not late abundance in spring. The abundance of hoverflies was positively related to hedge and grassland cover at all spatial scales and both periods considered. Aphid parasitism was higher near hedges at the small spatial scale late in the spring. Our results confirmed that higher proportions of semi-natural habitats in agricultural landscapes enhance the biological control of pests, but this effect depends on the spatial scale, the time period in the spring and the natural enemies considered.     

Genetic assessment of captive Chinese water deer populations in Zhoushan Archipelago,China

Chinese water deer is a rare and vulnerable animal in China because of the poaching for medical use and the habitat loss. In this study, the genetic diversity and population genetic structure of 40 Chinese water deer from three populations in Zhoushan Archipelago were investigated with ten highly polymorphic microsatellite loci, including 4 screened from the nuclear DNA in the study, and 6 selected from the literature. According to the results, these captive populations had a higher genetic diversity than other rare cervid species, such as forest musk deer. No signs of inbreeding were detected. Low genetic differentiation among these populations was found. The probable reasons included the isolation by distance, the exchange among islands, or the supplement of the wild Chinese water deer. We proposed the deer raisers to strengthen the exchanges from different islands or mainland, and if possible, some deer would be returned to the wild to expand the wild population.     

Energy budgeting and emergy synthesis of rainfed maize–wheat rotation system with different soil amendment applications

Soil is a non-renewable resource and its preservation is essential for food security, ecosystem services and our sustainable future. Simultaneously, it is a major challenge to substitute non-renewable fossil based resources with renewable resources to reduce environmental load. In order to check soil erosion vis-a-vis degradation of sloppy lands of rainfed maize–wheat rotation system, fertilization with organic manure supplemented with inorganic fertilizers is required. In order to address these issues, substitution of 50% NPK through four organic manures viz. farmyard manure (FYM), vermicompost (VC), poultry manure (PM) and in situ green manuring (GM) of sunnhemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) were evaluated against 100% NPK through inorganic fertilizers and through FYM for energy budgeting and emergy synthesis during 2009–2014. Integrated use of FYM along with 50% NPK fertilizers could maintain the highest energy ratio (7.3), human energy profitability (142.4), energy productivity (0.22 kg MJ⁻¹), and energy profitability (6.3 MJ ha⁻¹) over other treatments. However, GM and inorganic fertilizers on equal NPK basis maintained the highest energy intensiveness (24.61 MJ US $⁻¹) and exhibited higher emergy yield ratio (2.66) and lower emergy investment ratio (0.60) and environmental loading ratio (3.74) which resulted into higher environmental sustainability index (0.71) over other treatments. Fertilization with organic manure (FYM) alone could not compete with other fertilized options to energy budgeting and emergy synthesis except specific energy. The study demonstrated that innovative integrated nutrient management of chemical fertilizers and organic manures particularly FYM for energy budgeting and GM for emergy synthesis may be considered as feasible and environment-friendly options for soil conservation, thereby benefiting a 50% saving on costly chemical fertilizers in non-OPEC countries which import most of its phosphorus and potassium fertilizers.     

Isolation and characterization of lectins from kidney beans (Phaseolus vulgaris)

The bioactive properties of lectins obtained from raw and canned red kidney bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) were studied to determine the changes in their bioactivity during the canning process. Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA) was extracted using Affi-gel Blue gel and thyroglobulin-Sepharose and had a molecular weight of 32 kDa. Both the raw and the canned kidney beans possessed the ability to agglutinate red blood cells and inhibit α-glucosidase. The activity found in the canned beans was similar to that from the in the raw kidney beans. However, the amount of lectin that could be extracted from thyroglobulin-Sepharose was much less in the canned samples than in the raw kidney bean samples. The extracted lectin from the raw kidney beans was also subjected to a heating and cooling treatment using a differential scanning calorimeter. The lectin had a nonset denaturation temperature of 77.76 °C and it did not renature upon cooling. In this study, we demonstrated that extracts from raw red kidney bean and canned red kidney bean contain bioactive compounds capable of inhibiting HIV-1 RT in vitro.