Biochemical Characteristics and Enterotoxigenicity of Staphylococcus aureus Strains Isolated from Poultry

About half (49%) of strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from poultry were non-typable with the international human set of phages, and 55% were biotype B according to the biochemical identification scheme of Hájek & Maršálek (1971, 1973). A furthest neighbour clustering strategy and principal coordinate analysis based on 17 biochemical tests made clear distinctions between biotype B strains and a group of biotype A and intermediate strains. Overall 62% of strains were enterotoxigenic, the majority producing enterotoxin A. Significantly fewer intermediate strains than biotype A or B strains were enterotoxigenic. Starch gel zymograms of intracellular esterases showed a general correlation with the biotyping and phage typing results.     

Pre-harvest retting of flax: a light microscope study of the effects of glyphosate treatment on the maturation of stem tissues

A range of glyphosate treatments was applied to flax at three stages of flowering. Spraying at a rate equivalent to 1.4 kg a. e./ha at the start of flowering gave satisfactorily uniform premature desiccation and was selected for investigation of the effects of the herbicide on stem tissues, using light microscopy. During normal maturation, increase in fibre cell wall thickness, lignification of the fibres and differentiation of the secondary xylem continued for 3–5 wk after the beginning of flowering. This differentiation was halted by the application of glyphosate. Three wk after treatment various types of tissue damage were observed. In some sections epidermal and cortical cells showed the most damage, this being consistent with herbicide uptake at the stem surface. In other sections phloem and associated parenchyma cells showed the most damage. Disintegration of phloem and cortical cells occurred in some treated stem segments and caused separation of the fibre bundles from their surrounding tissues. This resembled the release of fibre bundles which results from conventional post-harvest retting. The potential of glyphosate application to flax as a pre-harvest retting technique is discussed.     

Onset and spread of an African army worm upsurge

Abstract. 1. Onset and spread of the severe outbreaks of African armyworm, Spodoptera exempta (Walk.), over Ethiopa, Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi in late 1984 have been analysed in relation to trap and weather records.
2. Although first outbreaks in each country appeared progressively further south, winds on the best estimated dates of moth concentration and egg laying blew from directions precluding moth movements between them.
3. Such independently developing outbreaks are called 'primary' to distinguish them from any 'secondary' outbreaks that may develop from them.
4. Parent moths giving rise to all seven areas of primary outbreaks were derived from low-density populations that had persisted through the dry season, probably near the coast of East Africa.
5. Primary outbreaks developed on the south-eastern sides of individual rainstorms over the highlands, most likely because windborne moths were concentrated there by convergent winds.
6. Of the secondary outbreaks within Kenya, Tanzania and Burundi, most were derived from only one area of primary outbreaks in Kenya, which were therefore critical for effective control of spread; the paucity of other secondaries was presumably due to a lack of timely rainstorms or other concentrating mechanisms.     

Notes on the epidermal features of Degeneria vitiensis I. W. Bailey & A. G. Smith (Degeneriaceae)

The epidermis of leaves of Degeneria vitiensis is described by reference to cuticular morphologies. Paracytic stomata and enlarged stomata are recorded and the detailed structure of the former is described. A variety of other epidermal structures characterized by radially exerted influences upon the general epidermal pavement is also described. On the basis of comparisons with published accounts of the epidermis of other 'ranaleans' the original separation of Degeneria from the Magnoliaceae is supported. Degeneria is considered to have a closer epidermal affinity with some members of the Illiciales than with members of the Magnoliales to which the Degeneriaceae is currently assigned.     

A Survey of Argentine and Lebanese Bone for Salmonellas with Particular Reference to the Isolation of Salmonella typhimurium

The incidence of Salmonella typhimurium in imported bone meal may be underestimated by conventional isolation techniques because of the presence of other salmonella serotypes. A method was developed with a serological bias towards recovery of serotypes with 'i'as H phase 1 antigen. By this technique, 44 strains of S. typhimurium were isolated from Argentinian bone meal compared with nine strains cultured by the unbiased method. The technique was less successful with Lebanese bone. The serological technique was most effective when several salmonella serotypes not possessing the 'i'antigen were present in a sample. S. kentucky (8, 20:i:z₆), like S. typhimurium was also efficiently isolated by the serological method. In 12 specimens both S. typhimurium and S. kentucky were present. The two serotypes were easily separated by examining four 25 g sub-samples of the specimen.