Whey proteins are a primary component of milk replacers (MR) and are considered the gold standard for calves. Alternative protein sources may decrease MR cost if calf performance is similar. A blend ...of bovine plasma protein and modified wheat protein might be a good partial replacement for whey protein. Usually MR is fed twice daily, but feeding 3 times daily might increase efficiency of nutrient use, especially with MR containing alternate proteins. Therefore, our objective was to determine the effects of 2 MR, containing either entirely whey protein (CON) or a combination of whey protein, bovine plasma protein, and modified wheat protein (WBP), when fed in either 2 or 3 meals daily on calf growth and health. Female and male Holstein calves (n = 103) housed in individual hutches were studied for the first 63 d of life, with additional measurements obtained at wk 12 of life in group housing. The MR contained 25% CP, 17% fat, and a Lys:Met ratio of 3.1:1. Individual treatments arose from the 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of MR formulation and frequency of feeding. After colostrum, calves were fed MR (12.5% solids) at daily rates of dry matter dependent on age. Amounts were as follows: d 3 to 10 = 0.52 kg/d (2× = 0.259 kg, 3× = 0.173 kg per feeding); d 11 to 20 = 0.68 kg/d (2× = 0.341 kg, 3× = 0.227 kg per feeding); d 21 to 42 = 0.84 kg/d (2× = 0.42 kg, 3× = 0.28 kg per feeding); d 43 to 46, 47, 49, and 51 = 0.42 kg/d, with both 2× and 3× changed to 1 feeding daily and skip days (d 48 and 50) between where calves were not given MR; and d 52 = calves weaned. Starter was fed and intake was measured from d 1 until d 63. Intakes, health scores, attitude scores, and fecal scores were measured daily. Body weight (BW) and growth measurements were obtained weekly until wk 8 and again at wk 12. Blood samples were obtained at 0, 24, and 48 h and then on d 5, 14, 28, and 42 of age. Starter intake was greater for calves fed WBP versus CON during wk 7 to 9. Final BW and hip width at wk 12 were greater for calves fed WBP than for calves fed CON. Calves fed 2× had greater mean and final BW to wk 6 and greater feed efficiency (gain:feed ratio) than calves fed 3×. Blood variables supported the generally similar growth outcomes. Health outcomes did not differ between diets or feeding frequencies. Overall, calves fed WBP had increased starter intake and greater BW gains during wk 7 to 12 than calves fed CON, and calves fed 2× had increased growth and feed efficiency compared with those fed 3×.
Six new species of
Diaporthe
,
D
.
beilharziae
on
Indigofera australis
,
D
.
fraxini
-
angustifoliae
on
Fraxinus angustifolia
subsp.
oxycarpa
,
D
.
litchicola
on
Litchi chinensis
,
D
.
nothofagi
on
...Nothofagus cunninghamii
,
D
.
pascoei
on
Persea americana
and
D
.
salicicola
on
Salix purpurea
from Australia are described and illustrated based on morphological characteristics and molecular analyses. Three of the new species no longer produced sporulating structures in culture and two of these were morphologically described from voucher specimens. Phylogenetic relationships of the new species with other
Diaporthe
species are revealed by DNA sequence analyses based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, and partial regions of the β-tubulin (BT) and translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF).
Sedimentary pyrite trace-element composition is an established proxy for determining paleo-ocean geochemistry and atmospheric oxygen concentrations through deep time. However, its applicability over ...shorter time-scales (i.e. <20 Ma) is not well known. To test this, we targeted fine-grained pyrite in the Hovea Member of the Kockatea Shale (Perth Basin, Western Australia), which encompasses the late Permian inertinitic interval and the end-Permian to Early Triassic sapropel, and spans approximately 10 million years. The end-Permian mass extinction (EPME) was the largest extinction event in Earth history, and its greatest effect is documented in the marine environment. Samples were collected from two oil exploration wells-Redback-2 and Hovea-3-spaced ∼20 km apart. In the two boreholes, a change in depositional facies (i.e. between the inertinite and sapropel) occurs below the Permian-Triassic boundary and records the transition from a marginal marine to a shelf environment. This transition is highlighted by several lithogeochemical indicators (e.g. negative shift δ
13
C values and C
org
reduction; increases in Ca, Fe and P), which are themselves tied to fundamental changes in modal mineralogy between the two zones. Importantly, the sapropel also records a major increase in iron sulfide burial over that in the inertinite. LA-ICPMS analyses of pyrite demonstrate that trace-element abundance is highest in samples below the facies transition, and in places reaches a few percent, particularly of Ni (4 wt%), Co (1.5 wt%) and As (2.8 wt%). Moreover, these and other trace elements decrease by an order of magnitude in concert with the negative shift in δ
13
C values in the sapropel zone. Various whole-rock based paleosalinity indicator ratios (e.g. B/Ga) indicate that the areas of the Perth Basin intersected by Redback-2 and Hovea-3 were not fully connected to the open ocean at the time of the EPME, which leads us to conclude that the very high trace-element values in the sedimentary sulfides are reflective of regional environmental shifts rather than a global signal. Nonetheless, a geochemical contribution from a distant igneous province, such as the Siberian Traps Large Igneous Province, cannot be ruled out. Our work underscores the strength of sedimentary pyrite as a robust paleoenvironmental proxy in the marine environment and highlights the need for further investigation of pyrite trace-element profiles across the mass extinction interval in other sedimentary sequences around the globe.
KEY POINTS
LA-ICPMS-based geochemistry of sedimentary pyrite from the Hovea Member of the Kockatea Shale is considered within a lithochemostratigraphic context.
The overall interpretation of the results involves a change in depositional setting from the marginal in the late Permian brackish waters to shelfal marine and loss of oxygen in the Early Triassic Perth Basin.
There is growing evidence for bacteria playing a role in the pathogenesis and formation of pigmented gallstones from humans. These studies mainly involved cultivation of gallstone-associated bacteria ...and 16S rRNA profiling, providing an indirect link between processes involved in gallstone formation by the bacteria in-situ. Here, we provide functional metagenomic evidence of a range of genes involved in bile stress response, biofilm formation, and anaerobic energy metabolism by Gram-negative Klebsiella in pigmented gallstones from a 76-year-old male patient. Klebsiella was also present in one cholesterol-type stone in a 30-year-old female patient who had additional cholesterol gallstones characterised by Gram-positive bacteria. Pigmented stones further revealed a predominance of genes involved in carbohydrate metabolism, whilst cholesterol stones indicated a profile dominanted by protein metabolism possibly reflecting known chemical differences between Gram-negative and Gram-positive biofilm matrices. Archaeal genes were not detected. Complementary carbon and hydrogen isotopic analyses of cholesterol within the patients' stones revealed homogeneity, suggesting a common diet or cholesterol biosynthesis pathway that has little influence on microbial composition. This pilot study provides a framework to study microbial processes that play a potential role in gallstone formation across markedly different types of stones and patient backgrounds.
Carbonate concretions are widespread within the geological record. However, the lack of recent known analogues creates a need for novel approaches to unravel the major microbial players involved in ...concretion formation and establish their suitability as palaeoenvironmental recorders. Here, we used a combination of geochemical and geological techniques to study two pyritiferous calcite concretions and compared the results with their host sediment (Toarcian “Posidonia Shale”, 183Ma, SW-Germany).
The 13C-depleted nature of the concretion bodies, with average values of δ13Ccarb (−14.8‰), δ13Corg (−32.4‰), and δ13Cn-alkanes (−34.9‰), indicates that sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB), played a major role in the concretion growth and preservation of the nucleus via the rapid decomposition of organic matter (OM). However, Rock-Eval analyses from both concretions revealed elevated hydrogen indices (HI) in the body and low HI values at the rim. These values suggest that most of the microbial activity did not occur in the concretion body but rather at the rim and at the surface of the nuclei, which generally supports the exceptional preservation of OM in carbonate concretions. Furthermore, enrichment in euhedral pyrite in the concretion rims suggests they were formed through increased activities of iron reducing (FeR) bacteria coupled to a decrease of SRB activity leading towards conditions more favourable to the direct precipitation of pyrite. Despite low δ13C values, the known lipid biomarkers such as acyclic extended isoprenoids or 3β-methyl-hopanes did not reveal evidence of an active methane cycling. The present study emphasises the crucial role of carbonate concretion in OM preservation and highlights their great potential as palaeoenvironmental recorders.
•Detailed geochemical, mineralogical and biomarker comparison of two carbonate concretions with their surrounding host shale.•Minor organic matter degradation within the concretions bodies, highlighting exceptional organic mater preservation in the carbonate concretions.•Sulphate-reducing bacteria activity localised to the nucleus of concretions.•Potential use of carbonate concretion as palaeoenvironmental recorder due to the preservation of the host-sediment signal.
Panama disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense has devastated banana production worldwide. This work aimed to determine effective disinfectants against two races of F. oxysporum f. sp. ...cubense, race 1 and tropical race 4 (TR4), for implementation with on-farm biosecurity procedures against this disease following the outbreak of TR4 in North Queensland in 2015. A total of 32 commercial disinfectants were screened and their activity was assessed after ≤30 s, 5 min, 30 min, and 24 h of contact with an F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense suspension containing 10
chlamydospores/ml without and with soil added (0.05 g/ml). Of the disinfectants tested, the quaternary ammonium compounds containing ≥10% active ingredient were found to be the most effective against both F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense races. These products, when used at a 1:100 dilution, completely inhibited the survival of all F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense propagules across all the contact times regardless of the absence or presence of soil. The bioflavonoid product EvoTech 213 and bleach (10% sodium hypochlorite) used at a 1:10 dilution also eliminated all F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense propagules across all the contact times. None of the detergent-based or miscellaneous products tested were completely effective against both F. oxysporum f. sp. cubense races even used at a 1:10 dilution. Soil decreases the efficacy of disinfectants and therefore must be removed from contaminated items before treatments are applied.
The Early Triassic Induan–Olenekian Stage boundary (Dienerian–Smithian sub-stage boundary) has been identified at a depth of 2719.25m in the petroleum exploration well Senecio-1 located in the ...northern Perth Basin, Western Australia. Conodont faunas represent three conodont zones in ascending order, the Neospathodus dieneri Zone, the Neospathodus waageni eowaageni Zone and the Neospathodus waageni waageni Zone. The Induan–Olenekian (Dienerian–Smithian) boundary is placed at the base of the Neospathodus waageni eowaageni Zone equivalent to the first appearance of Neospathodus ex. gr. waageni utilised elsewhere and adopted by the IUGS ICS Triassic Subcommission to define the base of the Olenekian. Bulk kerogen δ13C carbon isotopes define a positive peak of c. 4 per mille that essentially coincides with the Induan–Olenekian boundary as seen in proposed Global Stratotype Sections and Points (GSSPs) in South China and Spiti, India demonstrating the global utility of this level for correlation. An anoxic zone is recognised in the lower part of the Senecio-1 core and the upper limit of this zone is dated as late Induan (late Dienerian). Temporal and spatial mapping of marine anoxia and dysoxia globally demonstrates that pulses of dysoxia/anoxia affected shallow-marine zones at different times in different locations. Dysoxia/anoxia in the shallow-marine environment appeared in the latest Permian at the extinction level, later than in the deep-marine environment, and appears to be largely restricted to the Induan (Griesbachian and Dienerian) and early Olenekian (Smithian). Temporally and geographically restricted upwelling of an oxygen minimum zone into the ocean surface layer due to environmental perturbations including extreme global warming, increased terrestrial chemical weathering intensity and continental erosion, sea level rise, and changes in marine nutrient inventories and productivity rates, is interpreted as a likely cause of observed variation in shallow-marine dysoxia/anoxia in the Early Triassic.
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► Induan–Olenkian boundary identified using conodonts in the Perth Basin, Australia ► δ13Corg positive excursion peak correlates with Induan–Olenekian boundary globally ► Early Triassic dysoxia/anoxia linked to environmental perturbations and upwelling
Over 8600 species are currently recorded in the phylum Porifera (sponges). They produce a large diversity of biochemical compounds including sterols, with more than 250 different sterols identified. ...Some of these sterols are of great interest, due to their use for fingerprinting in ecological and biomarker (molecular fossil) studies. As a large number of identified extant species from biodiversity surveys are housed in museum collections, preserved in ethanol, these present a potentially rich source of identified specimens for comparative lipid analyses. Here, we show that, in at least one species, sterol distributions obtained from the ethanol used to preserve specimens of sponges were representative, and comparable to the sterol distribution obtained from wet‐frozen and from freeze‐dried tissue from the same species. We employed both GC‐MS and two‐dimensional gas chromatography—time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry (GC×GC‐TOFMS), with an improved signal‐to‐noise ratio for even minor constituents. Analysis of two additional specimens of the same species, but of different provenance, resulted in detection of marked differences in sterol composition, which could be attributed to variations in geography, environmental conditions, microbial communities, diet or cryptic speciation. The possibility of using ethanol from identified, preserved museum sponges could drastically increase the number of available samples. This could enable the study of their sterol complements, and the detailed investigation of differences due to geographical and oceanographic, phylogenetic, and other factors in unprecedented detail.
Results from the first of two artificially inoculated field experiments showed foliar applications of copper hydroxide (Blue Shield Copper) at 600 g a.i./100 L−1 (0% infected fruit), copper ...hydroxide + metalaxyl-M (Ridomil Gold Plus.) at 877.5 g a.i./100 L−1 (0.27%), metiram + pyraclostrobin (Aero) at 720 g a.i./100 L−1 (0.51%), chlorothalonil (Bravo WeatherStik) at 994 g a.i./100 L−1 (0.63%) and cuprous oxide (Nordox 750 WG) at 990 g a.i./100 L−1 (0.8%) of water significantly reduced the percentage of infected fruit compared to potassium phosphonate (Agri-Fos 600) at 1200 g a.i./100 L−1 (8.22%), dimethomorph (Acrobat) at 108 g a.i./100 L−1 (11.18%) and the untreated control (16%). Results from the second experiment showed fruit sprayed with copper hydroxide (Champ Dry Prill) at 300 (2.0% infected fruit), 375 (0.4%) and 450 g a.i./100 L−1 (0.6%) and metiram + pyraclostrobin (Aero) at 360 (2.8%), 480 (0.6%) and 600 g a.i./100 L−1 of water (1.0%) significantly reduced the percentage of infected fruit compared to the untreated control (19.4%). Foliar sprays of copper hydroxide at 375 g a.i./100 L−1 in rotation with chlorothalonil at 994 g a.i./100 L−1 every two weeks is now recommended to growers for controlling Phytophthora fruit rot of papaya.
•Successful field inoculation of papaya fruit with Phytophthora palmivora.•Fungicides effectively control Phytophthora fruit rot of papaya.•Rotating fungicides is recommended in the control of Phytophthora fruit rot of papaya.
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