A comparison of vector population indices for forecasting barley yellow dwarf virus in autumn sown cereal crops

Two approaches based on the concept of a vector population index are considered as possible deterministic elements for an empirical forecast of barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) in autumn sown cereals. The first, an aerial vector index, is a further elaboration of the infectivity index proposed by Plumb, Lennon & Gutteridge (1981), which assumes that virus damage is a function of the number of infective migrant alatae of the two main aphid vectors, Rhopalosiphum padi L. and Sitobion avenae F., integrated over time from crop planting or emergence. The new formulation, however, excludes holocyclic alate morphs (i.e. males and gynoparae) of the former species, which, although generally abundant in autumn, are nevertheless perceived as relatively unimportant virus vectors since they colonise only the alternative woody host, Prunus padus (the bird-cherry tree). The second approach, a crop vector index, is a more fundamental departure which argues that field populations of viruliferous aphids, both alatae and apterae, which have already colonised cereals, may be a better criterion of potential virus spread than the density of aerial migrant vectors. This index retains a similar integral form, but evaluates crop exposure to BYDV as accumulated infectious aphid-days. A method is described whereby this function can be derived from irregular or infrequent aphid samples in the crop. Both methods, unlike Plumb's (1976) original concept, produced indices which were significantly related to subsequent virus infection and yield loss in winter barley at Long Ashton (S.W. England, UK), 1978–1986. The best models were obtained with the crop vector index, fitted to observed virus infection by generalised linear regression using a complementary log-log link function, or to observed yield loss by simple linear regression using a log transformation of yield (r = 0.84 in each case; compared with r-values > 0.65 for the aerial vector index, and > 0.35 for Plumb's (1976) index). However, the residual errors and hence confidence limits of these fitted regressions were too large for predicting damage that was significantly less than a reasonable economic damage threshold for BYDV control. Analyses of the separate components of each index showed a good general relationship between aphid infectivity and the severity of crop infection, confirming the epidemiological importance of this factor. The functional expressions of aphid density, however, were not significant. This evident weakness in the models, and alternative approaches to BYDV forecasting are discussed.     

The effects of thiamine inhibition on ruminal fermentation: a preliminary study

Inhibition of methanogenesis in ruminal cultures was attempted by hindering thiamine availability through its degradation by ‘polyphenols’ and competition for active sites on enzymes and transporters using thiamine structural analogs. Effects on fermentation were small and not consistently reversed by adding thiamine. Lack of major effects of the compounds evaluated could be due to intracellular synthesis of thiamine covering most requirements.     

Evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone) analogues, the inhibitors for polyamine biosynthetic pathway

Metabolic and antiproliferative effects of methylglyoxal bis(butylamidinohydrazone) (MGBB) and methylglyoxal bis(cyclopentylamidinohydrazone) (MGBCP), inhibitors for polyamine biosynthetic pathway, on Escherichia coli, Shigella sonnei, Aeromonas sobria, Aeromonas hydrophila and Vibrio cholerae were investigated. MGBB at the concentration of 100 mumol/l depleted intracellular putrescine and spermidine concentrations of E. coli to 25 and 20% of the controls, respectively, while MGBCP depressed their concentrations to 38 and 24%, respectively. In these polyamine-depleted E. coli cells the syntheses of RNA, DNA and protein decreased to 13, 54 and 29% of the control, respectively, with MGBB and to 23, 71 and 55%, respectively, with MGBCP. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of MGBB for the growth of A. sobria, E. coli, A. hydrophila, V. cholerae and Sh. sonnei were estimated to be 50, 160, 240, 285 and 320 mumol/l, respectively, whereas those of MGBCP were slightly higher for respective bacteria.     

METABOLIC CHANGES IN THE BRAINS OF MICE FROZEN IN LIQUID NITROGEN

Abstract— Autolytic changes in the mouse brain, occurring during immersion of the animal in liquid nitrogen, were evaluated by measuring the tissue concentrations of glucose, lactate, pyruvate, α-oxoglutarate, phosphocreatine, creatine, ATP, ADP and AMP. The values thus obtained were compared with those obtained in paralysed mice under nitrous oxide anaesthesia, the brains of which were frozen in such a way that arterial blood pressure and oxygénation were upheld during the freezing. Immersion of unanaesthetized mice in liquid nitrogen gave rise to significant alterations in phosphocreatine, creatine, lactate, lactate/pyruvate ratio, ADP and AMP. A comparison with values obtained in paralysed and anaesthetized mice that were frozen by immersion in liquid nitrogen showed that the metabolic changes observed in the unanaesthetized animals could not be caused by an anaesthetic effect on the metabolic pattern. It is concluded that autolysis in the mouse brain occurs during immersion of the animal in a coolant, mainly because arterial hypoxia develops before the tissue is frozen. A comparison with previous results on rat cerebral cortex indicates that mice offer no advantage for studies of cerebral metabolites in unanaesthetized animals. In both species, accurate analyses of labile cerebral metabolites require that the brain is frozen in a way that prevents arterial hypoxia during the fixation of the tissue.     

Protein binding and stability of norepinephrine in human blood plasma. Involvement of prealbumin, alpha 1-acid glycoprotein and albumin

The binding of norepinephrine (NE) to plasma proteins of fresh human blood obtained from healthy volunteers was studied by ultrafiltration at different NE concentrations and incubation times at 37 degrees C. At 1.7 nM L-[3H]-NE binding was approximately 25%. The binding was rapid and was not influenced by the incubation time. [3H]-NE could be dissociated from its binding sites by acid precipitation and, after HPLC, showed to be unchanged NE. No difference in NE binding was found between plasma collected in EGTA-GSH or heparin solution. There was no degradation of NE when incubated in plasma at 37 degrees C for 10 h, even without the addition of antioxidants. Therefore, in the present study, binding represented interaction of unchanged NE with plasma proteins. The whole plasma binding was saturable over the range of 0.66 nM to 0.59 mM of NE. Scatchard plot of specific binding revealed high-affinity sites with a Kd of 5.4 nM and a Bmax of 3.9 fmoles.mg-1 protein, and low-affinity sites with a Kd of 2.7 microM and a Bmax of 3.3 pmoles.mg-1 protein. Electrophoretic characterization of NE-binding proteins showed that about 60% of bound NE was associated to albumin, and 20% to prealbumin. NE binding to pure human plasma proteins was also studied using ultrafiltration. Scatchard analyses revealed a single class of very high-affinity binding sites for prealbumin (Kd 4.9 nM), a single class of binding sites for alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (Kd 54 microM) and two classes of binding sites for albumin with high (Kd 1.7 microM) and low (Kd 0.8 mM) affinities respectively. The main results obtained in this study - a) reversibility of NE binding, b) stability of free and bound NE in plasma, c) involvement of the prealbumin as a specific binding protein - point out to a specific transport for NE in human blood plasma.