Soil greenhouse gas fluxes and global warming potential in four high-yielding maize systems

Crop intensification is often thought to increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but studies in which crop management is optimized to exploit crop yield potential are rare. We conducted a field study in eastern Nebraska, USA to quantify GHG emissions, changes in soil organic carbon (SOC) and the net global warming potential (GWP) in four irrigated systems: continuous maize with recommended best management practices (CC‐rec) or intensive management (CC‐int) and maize–soybean rotation with recommended (CS‐rec) or intensive management (CS‐int). Grain yields of maize and soybean were generally within 80–100% of the estimated site yield potential. Large soil surface carbon dioxide (CO₂) fluxes were mostly associated with rapid crop growth, high temperature and high soil water content. Within each crop rotation, soil CO₂ efflux under intensive management was not consistently higher than with recommended management. Owing to differences in residue inputs, SOC increased in the two continuous maize systems, but decreased in CS‐rec or remained unchanged in CS‐int. N₂O emission peaks were mainly associated with high temperature and high soil water content resulting from rainfall or irrigation events, but less clearly related to soil NO₃‐N levels. N₂O fluxes in intensively managed systems were only occasionally greater than those measured in the CC‐rec and CS‐rec systems. Fertilizer‐induced N₂O emissions ranged from 1.9% to 3.5% in 2003, from 0.8% to 1.5% in 2004 and from 0.4% to 0.5% in 2005, with no consistent differences among the four systems. All four cropping systems where net sources of GHG. However, due to increased soil C sequestration continuous maize systems had lower GWP than maize–soybean systems and intensive management did not cause a significant increase in GWP. Converting maize grain to ethanol in the two continuous maize systems resulted in a net reduction in life cycle GHG emissions of maize ethanol relative to petrol‐based gasoline by 33–38%. Our study provided evidence that net GHG emissions from agricultural systems can be kept low when management is optimized toward better exploitation of the yield potential. Major components for this included (i) choosing the right combination of adopted varieties, planting date and plant population to maximize crop biomass productivity, (ii) tactical water and nitrogen (N) management decisions that contributed to high N use efficiency and avoided extreme N₂O emissions, and (iii) a deep tillage and residue management approach that favored the build‐up of soil organic matter from large amounts of crop residues returned.     

高产夏玉米褐斑病产量损失模型及损失机理

采用田间自然发病、定点标记不同褐斑病病级植株的方法,形成玉米褐斑病不同发病程度的21个小组,利用DPS统计分析软件,采用逐步回归法构建了玉米单穗质量和百粒重的损失估计模型.结果表明:玉米百粒重损失模型为y=-4.012+0.377X1-0.228X2+0.694X3-0.144X4,穗粒质量损失模型为Y=-4.536+0.173X1+0.188X2+0.248X3-0.034X4(Y为损失率,1为开花期病情指数,X2为授粉期病情指数,X3为灌浆期病情指数,X4为蜡熟期病情指数).玉米不同生育期的褐斑病病情指数与单穗质量和百粒重损失之间的实测关系与模型模拟结果相符;褐斑病直接影响玉米穗位叶的净光合速率、RuBP羧化酶和PEP羧化酶活性,病级越高,净光合速率及两种酶的活性越低.     

Effects of seed dressing with imidacloprid on the seedlings growth and protective enzyme activities of high-yielding summer maize

A field plot experiment was conducted to study the effects of seed dressing with imidacloprid at the pesticide/seed mass ratios of 6:10000, 9:10000, and 12:10000 on the seedlings growth and protective enzyme activities of high-yielding summer maize. Seed dressing with an imidacloprid/seed mass ratio of 6:10000 increased the seedlings height, primary root length, secondary root number, aboveground fresh mass, and underground fresh mass by 2.81 cm, 2.31 cm, 1.71, 0.30 g, and 8.28 g, respectively, as compared to the control, and had better effect than the treatments 9:10000 and 12:10000. Comparing with the control, treatment 6:10000 increased the leaf- and root soluble protein content by 12.6% and 27.9% and catalase (CAT) activity by 2.5% and 11.5%, decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) content by 26.3% and 60.9%, improved superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity by 19.7% and 5.6%, enhanced glutathione-S-transferase (GSTs) activity by 11.5% and 13.2%, respectively, and increased the root peroxidase (POD) activity by 31.8%. Seed dressing with imidacloprid at the pesticide/seed mass ratio of 6:10000 could markedly improve maize seedlings protective enzyme activities, but had no promotion effect on leaf peroxidase (POD) activity.     

吡虫啉拌种对高产夏玉米幼苗生长及其保护酶活性的影响

通过田间小区试验,研究了吡虫啉和种子质量比分别为6∶10000、9∶10000和12∶10000拌种处理对高产夏玉米幼苗生长及其保护酶活性的影响.结果表明:药种比为6∶10000处理幼苗株高、初生根长、次生根数、地上和地下部分鲜质量分别比对照增加了2.81 cm、2.31 cm、1.71、0.30 g和8.28 g,并较其他两个处理作用效果显著.与对照相比,药种比为6:10000处理幼苗叶片和根可溶性蛋白含量分别提高了12.6％和27.9％,过氧化氢酶(CAT)活性分别提高了2.5％和11.5％,丙二醛(MDA)含量分别降低了26.3％和60.9％,超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性分别提高了19.7％和5.6％,谷胱甘肽转移酶(GSTs)活性分别提高了11.5％和13.2％,根过氧化物酶(POD)活性提高了31.8％.药种比为6:10000处理除对叶片POD活性没有促进作用外,能够显著提高其他相关酶的活性.     

施氮时期对高产夏玉米氮代谢关键酶活性及抗氧化特性的影响

选用玉米品种登海661和郑单958为材料,研究了高产条件下施氮时期对夏玉米产量、氮素利用率、氮代谢相关酶及抗氧化酶活性的影响.结果表明:拔节期一次性施氮不利于夏玉米产量提高和氮素积累,分次施氮且增施花粒肥显著提高了植株和籽粒的吸氮量,并提高了籽粒产量.拔节期、10叶期、花后10d按2∶4∶4施氮,登海661产量最高可达14123.0kg· hm-2;基肥、拔节期、10叶期、花后10 d按1∶2∶5∶2施氮,郑单958产量最高可达14517.1 kg· hm-2,这2种施氮方式较拔节期一次性施氮分别增产14.5％和17.5％.花前分次施氮可以显著提高开花期硝酸还原酶活性;登海661和郑单958在花后0～42 d中,施氮处理的谷氨酰胺合成酶、谷氨酸合成酶、谷氨酸脱氢酶活性分别平均提高了32.6％、47.1％、50.4％和14.5％、61.8％、25.6％,减缓了其下降趋势;超氧化物歧化酶、过氧化氢酶活性提高了22.0％、36.6％和13.4％、62.0％,丙二醛含量显著降低.在高产条件下,分次施氮且适当增加花粒肥施入比例可以提高氮代谢相关酶活性,延缓植株衰老,促进氮素吸收利用,进而提高籽粒产量.     

Ovarian cysts in high-yielding dairy cows

We examined the hormonal and morphologic changes associated with ovarian cyst formation in high-yielding dairy cows. Follicle fluid was aspirated from 90 cysts and 15 preovulatory and 18 subordinate follicles and used for hormonal determination. Pieces of cystic wall were subjected to morphologic and immunohistochemical evaluation. Cysts were characterized by low concentrations of insulin, insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), and glucose and high activity of IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs). Insulin and IGF-I levels were (mean ± SEM) 205 ± 22 pg/mL and 146 ± 42 ng/mL in preovulatory follicles and 3 ± 1 pg/mL and 61 ± 6 ng/mL in cysts, respectively (P < 0.001). Insulin-like growth factor-binding proteins activity was about 10 times higher in cysts than in preovulatory follicles. Cysts were classified into three types according to their estradiol-to-progesterone (E/P) ratio. Type 1 cysts (n = 23) exhibited the highest E/P ratio (10.8 ± 2.3), partial loss of granulosa cells, and severe morphologic changes in the theca interna. Expression of P₄₅₀ side-chain cleavage and P₄₅₀ 17α-hydroxylase was noted in theca cells and expression of inhibin-α in granulosa cells. Type 2 cysts (n = 35) had a low E/P ratio (0.07 ± 0.02), and patches of luteal-like tissue in the cystic wall. Type 3 cysts (n = 32) had an E/P ratio of 0.91 ± 0.17, and no recognizable granulosa or theca cells. In summary, intrafollicular steroid levels as expressed by E/P ratio, together with IGF-I and insulin levels and morphologic changes in the follicular wall, may serve as accurate cyst-classification parameters. Because IGF-I and/or insulin play an essential role in the final stage of follicle development, it can be speculated that abnormal levels of these metabolic hormones might lead to follicle dysfunction, resulting in follicular regression or cyst formation.     

乳链球菌肽高产菌株发酵条件的研究

对乳链球菌肽（Ｎｉｓｉｎ）高产菌株９７０６的发酵条件进行了研究,在Ｍ１７培养其中,效价远远低于ＣＭ１,正交实验法得出最适碳源、氨源、生长因子分别为蔗糖、鱼蛋白胨、酵母粉,并用正交实验优化了发酵培养基各组成的浓度。Ｎｉｓｉｎ的产生显示了初级代谢动力学特征,发酵的最适温度是３５℃,培养基最适初始ＰＨ为７．０－７．５,最适接种量５％－６％,振荡培养效价稍高于静止培养。     

Effects of protein on crosslinking of normal maize, waxy maize, and potato starches

Channels of maize starch granules are lined with proteins and phospholipids. Therefore, when they are treated with reagents that react at or near the surfaces of channels, three types of crosslinks could be produced: protein–protein, protein–starch, starch–starch. To determine which of these may be occurring and the effect(s) of channel proteins (and their removal) on crosslinking, normal and waxy maize starches were treated with a proteinase (thermolysin, which is known to remove protein from channels) before and after crosslinking, and the properties of the products were compared to those of a control (crosslinking without proteinase treatment). After establishing that treatment of starch with thermolysin alone had no effect on the RVA trace, three reaction sequences were used: crosslinking alone (CL), proteinase treatment before crosslinking (Enz-CL), proteinase treatment after crosslinking (CL-Enz). Two crosslinking reagents were used: phosphoryl chloride (POCl₃), which is known to react at or near channel surfaces; STMP, which is believed to react throughout the granule matrix. Three concentrations of POCl₃ (based on the weight of starch) were used. For both normal maize starch (NMS) and waxy maize starch (WMS) reacted with POCl₃, the trends were generally the same, with apparent relative degrees of crosslinking indicated to be CL-Enz = CL > Enz-CL, but the effects were greater with NMS and there were differences when different concentrations of reagent were used. The basic trends were the same when potato starch was used in the same experiments. Crosslinking with STMP was done both in the presence and the absence of sodium sulfate (SS). Both with and without SS and with both NMS and WMS, the order of indicated crosslinking was generally the same as found after reaction with POCl₃, with the indicated swelling inhibition being greater when SS was present in the reaction mixture. Examination of the maize starches with a protein stain indicated that channel protein was removed by treatment with thermolysin when the proteinase treatment occurred before crosslinking with either POCl₃ or STMP, but only incompletely or not at all if the treatment with the proteinase occurred after crosslinking. Because the crosslinking reactions were less effective when the protein was removed, the results are tentatively interpreted as indicating that they involved protein molecules, although there may not be a direct relationship.     

High-protein diet in lactation leads to a sudden infant death-like syndrome in mice

Background

It is well accepted that reduced foetal growth and development resulting from maternal malnutrition are associated with a number of chronic conditions in later life. On the other hand such generation-transcending effects of over-nutrition and of high-protein consumption in pregnancy and lactation, a proven fact in all developed societies, are widely unknown. Thus, we intended to describe the generation-transcending effects of a high-protein diet, covering most relevant topics of human life like embryonic mortality, infant death, and physical health in later life.

Methods

Female mice received control food (21% protein) or were fed a high protein diet (42% protein) during mating. After fertilisation, females stayed on their respective diet until weaning. At birth, pups were put to foster mothers who were fed with standard food or with HP diet. After weaning, control diet was fed to all mice. All offspring were monitored up to 360 days after birth. We determined glucose-tolerance and measured cardiovascular parameters using a tip-catheter. Finally, abdominal fat amount was measured.

Results and Conclusions

We identified a worried impact of high-protein diet during pregnancy on dams'' body weight gain, body weight of newborns, number of offspring, and also survival in later life. Even more important is the discovery that high-protein diet during lactation caused a more than eight-fold increase in offspring mortality. The observed higher newborn mortality during lactation is a hitherto non-described, unique link to the still incompletely understood human sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Thus, although offspring of lactating mothers on high-protein diet might have the advantage of lower abdominal fat within the second half of life, this benefit seems not to compensate the immense risk of an early sudden death during lactation. Our data may implicate that both pregnant women and lactating mothers should not follow classical high-protein diets.     

A high-yielding, generic fed-batch cell culture process for production of recombinant antibodies

A fed-batch cell culture process was developed that has general applicability to all evaluated Sp2/0 (n = 8) and NS0 (n = 1) antibody-producing cell lines. The two key elements of this generic process were a protein-free concentrated feed medium, and a robust, metabolically responsive feeding strategy based on the off-line measurement of glucose. The fed-batch process was shown to perform equivalently at the 15 L development scale and 750 L manufacturing scale. Compared to batch cultures, the fed-batch process yielded a 4. 3 fold increase in the average integral of viable cell concentration and a 1.7 fold increase in average specific antibody production rate, equivalent to a 7.6 fold increase in average final antibody concentration. The highest producing cell line reached a peak viable cell concentration of 1.0 x 10(7) cell mL(-1) and a final antibody concentration of 750 mg L(-1) in a 10 day process. For all lines evaluated, reducing bioreactor pH set point from 7.2 to 7.0 resulted in an additional 2.4 fold increase in average final antibody concentration. The optimized fed-batch process consistently yielded a volumetric productivity exceeding 50 mg L(-1) day(-1). This generic, high-yielding fed-batch process significantly decreased development time, and increased manufacturing efficiency, thereby facilitating the clinical evaluation of numerous recombinant antibodies.     

A fast, simple, and reliable high-yielding method for DNA extraction from different plant species

Genetic studies and pathogen detection in plants using molecular methods require the isolation of DNA from a large number of samples in a short time span. A rapid and versatile protocol for extracting high-quality DNA from different plant species is described. This method yields from 1 to 2 mg of DNA per gram of tissue. The absorbance ratios (A₂₆₀/A₂₈₀) obtained ranged from 1.6 to 2.0. A minimal presence of contaminating metabolites (as polymerase chain reaction [PCR] inhibitors) in samples and a considerable savings in reagents are characteristics of this protocol, as well as the low cost of the analysis per sample. The quality of the DNA was suitable for PCR amplification.     

The maize d2003, a novel allele of VP8, is required for maize internode elongation

The d2003 is a natural dwarf mutant from maize inbred line K36 and has less than one-third of K36 plant height with severely shortened internodes. In this study, we reported the cloning of d2003 gene using positional cloning. The results showed that there was a single-base insertion in the coding region of Viviparous8 (VP8) in d2003 mutant, which resulted in a premature stop codon. Further genetic allelism tests confirmed that d2003 mutation is a novel allele of VP8. VP8 is mainly expressed in the stem apex, young leaves, and developing vascular tissues, and its expression levels in nodes are significantly higher than that in internodes at 12-leaf stage. Subcellular localization demonstrated that the VP8 protein is localized to the endoplasmic reticulum and the N-terminal 26 amino acids (aa) of VP8 protein are essential to its localization in ER. Further transgenic experiments showed that lack of the 26 aa leads to loss of VP8 function in Arabidopsis amp1 phenotype rescue. These results strongly suggested that the N-terminal 26 aa is critical for VP8 protein localization, and the correct protein localization of VP8 in ER is necessary for its function.     

Keepers of maize in Chiapas,Mexico

This study concerns the knowledge and selection of biological diversity of maize (Zea mays) within its center of domestication in Mesoamerica. Maize farmers in central Chiapas of Southern México keep local varieties (landraces) belonging to six races and four race mixtures. Fifteen local varieties are recognized. In spite of widespread adoption of a modern, high yielding variety, maize farmers continue to select local varieties for specific soils and because of agronomic and use criteria. Farmers maintain maize varieties primarily through seed selection. Spatial and temporal separation do not seem sufficient to maintain varieties. The management of improved varieties can lead from a uniform population to a heterogeneous one as hybridization with local maize populations occurs.     

金霉素高产菌的选育及发酵工艺的研究

金霉素是由金色链霉菌产生的一种四环类抗生素,其产生菌经紫外线、氯化锂和金霉素抗性实验等手段获得高产菌株M14-2,并在60m^3罐生产中采用正交实验筛选出的发酵培养基,效价达23200μg／mL,比原菌株提高了15％。     

Location dependent,intragenic recombination in maize

With the use of chromosome interchanges, the waxy (wx) locus on chromosome 9 has been relocated to various positions in the maize genome. Four wx alleles, wx ^C, wx ^B, wx ⁹⁰, and wx ^H21, were crossed to six chromosome translocation stocks (four with break points proximal to wx and, two distal to wx). Of the 26 possible homozygous translocation heteroallelic combinations, the results of eight are available in this report. In most instances, the frequencies of wx intragenic recombination of the rearranged chromosomes were lower than that of the control. A significant difference in degree of reduction in recombination values is found for different heteroallelic combinations at the same location and in one instance for the same heteroallelic combination at a different chromosome position. The linear order of the 4 wx mutants within the wx cistron is wx ^C-wx ^H21-wx ⁹⁰ (wx ^B). Additional effects from both genetic background and seasonal factors of the different plantings also are observed.Journal Paper No. J-6906 of the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa. Project No. 1335.     

Hybridization of maize and teosinte,in mexico and guatemala and the improvement of maize

The recognition and subsequent detection of the importance of teosinte introgression in the racial diversity and heterotic gene architecture of maize has been one of the outstanding achievements of Paul C. Mangelsdorf’s investigations into the origin of maize. This paper documents three areas in Mexico and Guatemala where maize and teosinte hybridize and where there is a system by which native cultivators exploit the heterotic nature of maize to increase their harvest. There is little reason to doubt that the hybridization and subsequent introgression of teosinte genes into maize observed at these sites is changed from that which has occurred over the past three thousand years resulting in the tremendous diversity and pronounced hybrid vigor in maize.