Comparison of usefulness of three types of artificial substrata (glass, wood and plastic) when studying settlement patterns of periphyton in lakes of different trophic status

Usefulness of three types of artificial substrata (glass, wood and plastic) was tested when studying settlement patterns of periphyton in lakes of different trophic status. Strictly eu-, meso- and oligotrophic lakes in central Sweden were chosen as objects of the study. Glass slides, glass tubes, pieces of plastic (PVC) and pieces of wood of similar dimensions were placed for 9 weeks in July-August vertically 3 cm above bottom at a total depth of ca. 30 cm. Substrata were located at well-illuminated places without any other submerged objects (like macrophytes and stones), which could potentially affect colonisation patterns by algae. Periphyton communities, which colonised both the glass tubes and the pieces of wood tested, were specific enough to enable a clear classification of the lakes studied in eu-, meso- and oligotrophic. Glass tubes turned out to be the most favourable substratum when investigating settlement patterns of periphyton in this study. Although also colonised by periphytic species, wood did not support the same diversity and abundance of species as glass did. No algae were detected on the plastics studied. The plastics were covered entirely by a slime layer of bacteria. It is discussed if the nature of plastics could have some inhibitory effects on algal growth or the slime layer itself may have prevented settlement of algal spores.     

Etiology and control of durian foliar blight and dieback caused by Rhizoctonia solani

Foliar blight and dieback of durian seedlings and trees in Peninsular Malaysia was found to be caused by Rhizoctonia solani (teleomorph - Thanatephoms cucumeris) The fungus grew well and produced abundant sclerotia at temperatures higher than 24°C with an optimum at 28°C. It grew poorly at 35°C and did not grow at 10°C. The strains studied were found to belong to the anastomosis group AG-1. They were pathogenic on durian, papaya, cucumber, long bean, Mikania weed, padi, musk melon, mung bean, Zoysia grass, Bermuda grass, and St Augustine grass. They were mildly pathogenic on groundnut, and non-pathogenic on maize, guava and Brassica‘pak choy’. The disease was effectively controlled by foliar sprays of pencycuron and benomyl; triadimefon and an antagonistic bacterium suspension treatment were less effective and quintozene-etridiazole mixture gave poor disease control.     

Growth Regulator Interactions in the Growth of the Shoot System of Avena sativa Seedling: II. THE GROWTH OF THE FIRST LEAF AND THE COLEOPTILE1

1. Studies have been made of the growth in culture medium of thecomponent parts of compositesegments excised from 3 to 7-day-oldAvena sativa seedlings and comprising portions of coleoptileand first leaf bases and various lengths of first internodetissue.
2. The effects of various concentrations of gibberellicacid (GA)and indole-3- acetic acid (IAA) alone and in combinationhavebeen studied on the growth of these organs.
3. Both GA andIAA stimulate the growth of coleoptile base tissuebut in combinationtheir joint effects are less than additive.No synergism occurs.
4. The growth of the first-leaf base is greatly stimulated byGAbut is inhibited by IAA. In combination, the stimulatoryeffectof GA (up to 1 0 p.p.m.) may be virtually eliminatedby evenlow concentrations of IAA (0.01 p.p.m.).
5. The inclusionof first internode tissue in the segments considerablyincreasesthe growth of first leaf base tissue but has no consistenteffecton the growth of coleoptile base tissue. The presenceof firstinternode tissue also greatly increases the degreeof growthstimulation invoked by GA but does not influence thedegreeof IAA inhibition. It is postulated that the first internodetissue is the source of an unknown growth factor necessary forGA action in the first leaf and potentiating the action of endogenousgibberellin.
6. Kinetin, adenine sulphate, glutarnine, glutarnicacid, asparagine,glycine, arginine, histidine, lysine, aneurin,and pyridoxinewill not simulate the effects of this unknowngrowth factorin the growth of leaf tissue. Like IAA, kinetinvirtually eliminatesthe GA stimulation of leaf growth.
7. Astudy of extracts of internode tissue in various solvents,analysedby paper partition chromatography and assayed by thegrowthof the first leaf base, has indicated the presence ofgrowthinhibitors and gibberellin-like substances but has failedtoisolate the postulated endogenous GA-synergist.
8. The implicationsof these results for growth correlations andthe hormone controlof shoot growth in Avena sativa seedlingsis discussed.

     

Does Birth Weight Influence Physical Activity in Youth? A Combined Analysis of Four Studies Using Objectively Measured Physical Activity

Animal models suggest growth restriction in utero leads to lower levels of motor activity. Furthermore, individuals with very low birth weight report lower levels of physical activity as adults. The aim of this study was to examine whether birth weight acts as a biological determinant of physical activity and sedentary time. This study uses combined analysis of three European cohorts and one from South America (n = 4,170). Birth weight was measured or parentally reported. Height and weight were measured and used to calculate Body Mass Index (BMI). PA was objectively measured using accelerometry for ≥3 days, ≥10 hours day. Data was standardized to allow comparisons between different monitors. Total physical activity was assessed as counts per minute (cpm), with time spent above moderate activity (MVPA) >2,000 counts and time spent sedentary (<100 counts). There was no evidence for an association between birth weight and total physical activity (p = 0.9) or MVPA (p = 0.7). Overall there was no evidence for an association between birth weight and sedentary time (p = 0.8). However in the Pelotas study we did find an association between higher birth weight (kg) and lower overall physical activity (cpm) (β = −31, 95%CI: −58, −46, p = 0.03) and higher birth weight and greater sedentary time (mins/day) (β = 16.4, 95%CI: 5.3, 27.5, p = 0.004), although this was attenuated and no longer significant with further adjustment for gestational age. Overall this combined analysis suggests that birth weight may not be an important biological determinant of habitual physical activity or sedentary behaviour in children and adolescents.     

The Role of Anaerobic Respiration in Germinating Muskmelon Seeds: II. EFFECT OF ANOXIA TREATMENT AND ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE ACTIVITY

Exposing muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.) cultivar seedlots to N₂atmosphere created totally anaerobic conditions which stimulatedethanol production and accumulation in both high and low vigourseeds. However, accumulation of ethanol was consistently higherin the low vigour seeds than in the high vigour ones. In addition,CO₂ production under N₂ and in air suggests the presence ofan apparent ‘Pasteur effect’ in the low vigour seedsbut not in the high vigour seeds. Acetaldehyde production underN₂ was very low and did not seem to be associated with seedvigour, probably because of its nature as an intermediate inethanol production. The fast shift toward ethanol may be dueto the fact that alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme which catalyzesthe conversion of acetaldehyde to ethanol, exists in sufficientamounts in the imbibing seeds so that it is not a limiting factorin the conversion to ethanol. Alcohol dehydrogenase activitydid not appear to be related to seed vigour. Key words: Cucumis melo L., Anaerobic respiration, Germination, Seeds.     

The life cycle of the gastrin granule

Summary The ultrastructure of gastrin cells in the rat antrum was analyzed with standardized and quantitative planimetric methods. Resting and active cells were compared. The gastrin cells were activated by removal of the acidproducing part of the stomach (fundectomy). As a result the serum gastrin concentrations were greatly elevated. Compared with gastrin cells in fasted control rats the gastrin cells in fundectomized rats were increased in number, contained fewer cytoplasmic granules, increased amount of endoplasmic reticulum, and an enlarged Golgi area.Generally, the secretory granules of the gastrin cell displayed a wide range of electron density from highly electron-dense to electron-lucent. They exhibited certain characteristic features: 1) Electron-dense granules made up a greater proportion of the total granule population in active gastrin cells than in resting cells. 2) Electron-dense granules were more frequent near the Golgi stacks than in the periphery of the cell. 3) Electron-dense granules were smaller in size than the electron-lucent granules; hence, small electron-dense granules probably represent young granules (progranules), while large, electron-lucent granules represent mature (old) granules. 4) Electron-dense granules invariably displayed a more intense immunoreactivity than electron-lucent granules.The gastrins are generated from a large precursor molecule. The posttranslational processing of this precursor is reflected in the gastrin-component pattern. The gastrin-component pattern in antral extracts of fundectomized and normal fasting rats differed in that the proportion of the gastrin-4-like component was reduced, whereas the gastrin-34-like component was increased in the fundectomized rats. The results suggest a greater proportion of small gastrin components in the mature granules than in the newly formed ones, presumably due to more extensive conversion of larger forms into smaller forms with a longer granule half-life. As a result gastrin-17-and gastrin-34-like components make up a larger proportion of total gastrin in active gastrin cells than in resting gastrin cells.The findings were presented at the Meeting of the European Gastro-Club, Erlangen, October 1980 (R. Håkanson, J.F. Rehfeld, M. Ekelund, and F. Sundler 1981)     

Hepatic lipase activity increases after liver denervation in the rat

We have investigated the effects of hilar denervation of rat liver upon the activity of hepatic lipase determined in tissue extracts. Denervated animals had an enzyme activity of 7.89 +/- 0.37 mU/mg protein, compared to 6.45 +/- 0.43 in sham-operated controls (mean +/- S.E.; P less than 0.05). We conclude that hepatic innervation may contribute to the regulation of hepatic lipase activity.     

Raised Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate in Asymptomatic Hyperlipidaemia

In 101 subjectively healthy persons, who at a routine health examination were found to be markedly hyperlipidaemic, the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (E.S.R.) was significantly raised. The E.S.R. was raised above 25 mm/hr in 44, 64, and 23% respectively of subjects with type II A, II B, and IV hyperlipoproteinaemia in comparison to only 6% in sex- and age-matched normolipidaemic controls.Several explanations for this E.S.R. elevation have been studied. The levels of plasma lipoproteins do not appear themselves to influence the E.S.R., as among other things there was no difference in plasma concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides in hyperlipidaemic persons with high and low E.S.R. The concentration of lysolecithin, which may decrease the E.S.R. was the same in the hyperlipidaemic persons with high E.S.R. as in those with low. However, the incidence of ischaemic exercise E.C.G. changes was 38% in the hyperlipidaemic subjects with E.S.R. below 24 mm/hr and 72% in those with E.S.R. above 25 mm/hr. For the time being one possible reason for the raised E.S.R. thus seems to be that the hyperlipidaemia causes silent vascular disease that in its turn produces the E.S.R. elevations.