whether they are celled single organisms like amoeba or enormous entities like Giant Redwoods (in which millions of cells make up the body of the organism).
e g. chloroplasts in plant cells which are involved in photosynthesis mitochondria in both animal and plant cells engaged in respiration
or proanthocyanidins are thought to play diverse roles such as defense against herbivores and pathogens or ultraviolet protection.
They give feeling of pungency in the mouth the feel of a cat's tongue licking your hand.
#Influenza virus in wild birds in Norwayducks and gulls are the natural hosts of Influenza a virus.
Ragnhild Tønnessen's Phd research project has characterised Influenza a viruses in gulls and ducks in Norway.
Wild birds particularly ducks and gulls are the natural hosts for Influenza a viruses which can cause disease in animals and humans.
Influenza a viruses can be divided into subtypes of which the majority have been found in wild birds. Most subtypes of Influenza a virus cause subclinical infections in wild birds.
Infections in domestic chickens most commonly result in mild disease. In rare cases if introduced from wild birds to poultry some viruses of the H5
and H7 subtypes mutate and become highly pathogenic. One example of this is the highly pathogenic H5n1 virus in Southeast asia known to cause#oebird flu#.
#Due to the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus subtype H5n1 in Southeast asia a programme to monitor influenza viruses in wild birds in Norway was initiated in 2005.
A large number of samples gathered by hunters from ducks and gulls were analysed at the Norwegian Veterinary Institute.
Samples collected from Rogaland County in the Southwest of Norway during the hunting seasons (August-December) of 2005-2007 and 2009-2010 were studied.
The results showed that low pathogenic avian influenza viruses were present in 15.5%of the samples
and that the virus occurrence was higher in dabbling ducks than in gulls. The virus prevalence was lowest in December.
but not the highly pathogenic H5n1 virus. The complete genetic material from a total of five influenza viruses from mallard and common gull were sequenced and characterized.
The results showed that the genes of the Norwegian viruses resembled the genes found in influenza viruses from other wild birds in Europe.
Due to limited overlap between the routes used by migratory birds in Eurasia and America influenza viruses with different genetic material have developed between these two continents.
Tønnessen studied the role that gulls play in the transfer of virus genes between these two continents.
Genes from American avian influenza viruses were detected not in the European gull viruses studied. However within avian influenza viruses from Eurasia she found that virus genes were exchanged between influenza viruses typically found in gulls and ducks respectively.
During the breeding seasons of 2008 and 2009 Tønnessen studied the occurrence of influenza virus in the black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) at Hornã¸ya in Finnmark in Northern Norway.
Low amounts of influenza virus were detected in 5-15%of the samples from adult kittiwakes
and she discovered that more than 70%of the adult birds had developed antibodies against Influenza a virus. The majority of the kittiwakes had antibodies against an influenza virus subtype typically found in gulls namely H16.
Ducks can become infected with influenza virus through consumption of surface water contaminated with faeces shed by virus infected birds.
Most subtypes of influenza virus from ducks can retain their infectivity in water over long periods of time.
Experiments performed by Tønnessen showed that influenza virus subtypes primarily found in gulls (i e.
H13 and H16) can also remain infectious in water for several months under different salinity and temperature conditions.
To assess if a typical influenza virus subtype from gull can infect chickens Tønnessen inoculated chickens with an H16n3 virus obtained from herring gull.
Influenza virus was detected in the oropharynx of 2 of the 19 virus inoculated chickens and specific antibodies against H16 were found in the same two chickens.
These results suggest that H16n3 virus from gull can cause a limited infection in chickens.
and H16 subtypes primarily infect gulls Tønnessen examined whether the internal proteins of these viruses have particular signatures (amino acid composition) possibly related to host adaptation.
Ragnhild Tønnessen defended her doctoral research on 27th august 2013 at the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science with a thesis entitled Epidemiology and Host Adaptation of Influenza a viruses in Gulls#.
and aroma could give insect pests the bootthe citrus flavor and aroma of grapefruit--already used in fruit juices citrus-flavored beverages
and prestige perfumes and colognes--may be heading for a new use in battling mosquitoes ticks head lice
and bedbugs thanks to a less expensive way of making large amounts of the once rare and pricey ingredient scientists say.
A new product based on nootkatone would have multiple advantages over existing mosquito repellants based on DEET said Richard Burlingame Ph d. who presented the report.
Nootkatone is a broad-spectrum ingredient that has been shown to be effective as a control agent for mosquitoes ticks and bedbugs.
and kills insects and should not have the toxicity concerns that exist for DEET. Burlingame who is with Allylix Inc. a renewable-chemical firm in Lexington Ky. spoke at a symposium entitled Biopesticides:
or patterned closely after natural products that are effective in pest control. The goal of the symposium is to discuss the science behind these products many of which are effective at lower doses
The need for a more economical source of nootkatone intensified after scientists at the U s. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) discovered nootkatone's effectiveness in controlling ticks mosquitoes and other insects.
Allylix is now working with scientists at CDC to develop nootkatone for commercial use as an insect-control agent.
Nookatone also works in a new way so it can be used against insects that develop resistance
and yet would be very unlikely to harm people or pets. Allylix currently sells nootkatone only for use in flavor and fragrance applications.
The next step involves getting approval from the U s. Environmental protection agency to sell nootkatone for insect control.
They haven't approved it yet so no products currently on the market in the U s. include nootkatone as an active ingredient to control pests noted Burlingame.
#Panda poop microbes could make biofuels of the futureunlikely as it may sound giant pandas Ya Ya
and Le Le in the Memphis Zoo are making contributions toward shifting production of biofuels away from corn
and other food crops and toward corn cobs stalks and other non-food plant material.
And if things work out giant pandas Er Shun and Da Mao in the Toronto Zoo will be joining the quest by making their own contributions.
The giant pandas are contributing their feces explained Ashli Brown Ph d. who heads the research. We have discovered microbes in panda feces might actually be a solution to the search for sustainable new sources of energy.
It's amazing that here we have endangered an species that's almost gone from the planet yet there's still so much we have yet to learn from it.
That underscores the importance of saving endangered and threatened animals. Brown and her students based at Mississippi State university now have identified more than 40 microbes living in the guts of giant pandas at the Memphis Zoo that could make biofuel production from plant waste easier and cheaper.
That research Brown added also may provide important new information for keeping giant pandas healthy. Ethanol made from corn is the most common alternative fuel in the U s
. However it has fostered concerns that wide use of corn soybeans and other food crops for fuel production may raise food prices
or lead to shortages of food. Brown pointed out that corn stalks corn cobs and other plant material not used for food production would be better sources of ethanol.
However that currently requires special processing to break down the tough lignocellulose material in plant waste and other crops such as switchgrass grown specifically for ethanol production.
Bacteria in giant panda digestive tracts are prime candidates. Not only do pandas digest a diet of bamboo
but have a short digestive tract that requires bacteria with unusually potent enzymes for breaking down lignocellulose.
The time from eating to defecation is comparatively short in the panda so their microbes have to be very efficient to get nutritional value out of the bamboo Brown said.
when it comes to biofuel production--that's why we focused on the microbes in the giant panda.
These studies also help us learn more about this endangered animal's digestive system and the microbes that live in it
because most of the diseases pandas get affect their guts said Brown. Understanding the relationships between the microbes
and the pandas as well as how they get their energy and nutrition is extremely important from a conservation standpoint as fewer than 2500 giant pandas are left in the wild and only 200 are in captivity.
Additional plans include expanding the work to include samples from red pandas at the Memphis Zoo
which also eat bamboo. Brown and colleagues also are forging a collaboration to get samples of feces from giant pandas that arrived in the Toronto Zoo earlier in 2013.
The scientists acknowledged funding from the Memphis Zoological Society in addition to past funding from the Mississippi Corn Promotion Board the U s. Department of energy and Southeastern Research center at Mississippi State.
and not because of the risk of a nasty sting an expert on the health of those beneficial insects said in Indianapolis today at the 246th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS).
Set aside the fact that the honeybee's cousins--hornets wasps and yellow jackets--actually account for most stings said Richard Fell Ph d
. Despite years of intensive research scientists do not understand the cause nor can they provide remedies for
what is killing honeybees. Some estimates put the value of honeybees in pollinating fruit vegetable and other crops at almost $15 billion annually Fell said.
Without bees to spread pollen from the male parts of plants to the female parts fruit may not form.
Farmers use honeybees to pollinate more than 100 different fruit and vegetable crops around the country in an approach known as managed pollination It involves placing bee hives in fields
when crops are ready for pollination. The biggest impacts from decreased hive numbers will be felt by farmers producing crops with high pollination requirements such as almonds.
Consumers may see a lowered availability of certain fruits and vegetables and some higher costs explained Fell.
He discussed the ongoing decline in honeybee populations in the U s . and some other countries--a condition sometimes termed colony collapse disorder (CCD).
Although honeybees have been doing better in recent years something continues to kill about 1 in every 3 honeybees each year.
Some of the leading theories about the cause of CCD include the use of certain pesticides parasites diseases and overall hive nutrition.
Honeybees are not the only species of bee that can be used in managed pollination. If colonies continue declining Fell believes that there will be an increase in the use of other species including the bumble bee and alfalfa leafcutter bee.
In addition they are not as easily managed for pollination as the honeybee. The major advantages of using honeybees are ease of movement both in
and out of orchards or fields as well as the ability to manage colonies for higher populations.
Honeybee colonies can be moved from one crop to another in a single season something that cannot be done easily with bumble bees
If we can gain a better understanding of the factors causing honeybee decline we may be able to apply this knowledge to protecting other species. Fell cited funding from the Virginia Department of agriculture and Consumer Services the National Honey Board the Virginia Agricultural
#How bedbugs shrug off pesticides and simple measures to deal with itthe bedbug's most closely guarded secrets--stashed away in protective armor that enables these bloodsucking little nasties to shrug off insecticides
and thrive in homes and hotels--are on the agenda today at a major scientific meeting in Indianapolis.
In a talk at the 246th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) scientists are describing identification of the genes responsible for pesticide-resistance in bedbugs
and the implications for millions of people trying to cope with bedbug infestations that have been resurging for more than a decade.
The bedbug presentation is part of an international research award symposium at the ACS National Meeting
The surprise discovery we never expected is that most of the genes responsible for pesticide resistance in the bedbug are active in its outer skin-like shell or cuticle.
This is the unique adaption that has not been discovered in cockroaches termites ants or other insects.
The bodies of bedbugs she explained are extremely flat before the creatures slurp up a meal of human blood.
That profile adapts bedbugs for a life of hiding in the seams of mattresses upholstered chairs the lining of suitcases and other concealed locations.
But it also creates a vulnerability to environmental toxins giving bedbugs an unusually large surface area where pesticides can enter their bodies.
The shell is tough --and accounts for the difficulty in squashing a bedbug. But research by Zhu's team and others has established that it's also a metabolic hot spot to protect against insecticides.
Some genes in the cuticle for instance produce substances that tear apart the molecular backbone of insecticides rendering them harmless.
Other genes manufacture biological pumps that literally pump insecticides back out of the cuticle before they can enter the body.
Zhu's team sifted through the bedbug's genome--its complete set of genes--to identify the genes responsible for this pesticide resistance.
They studied 21 populations of bedbugs from cities in Ohio and Kentucky (Cincinnati Lexington and Louisville) that were plagued with bedbug infestations.
We took advantage of cutting-edge next-generation genetic sequencing technology that's now available. It enabled us to perform quickly an analysis that would have taken years in the 1990s--a genome-wide analysis of the insecticide-resistance related genes in bedbugs.
They found 14 genes that in various combinations help bedbugs survive pesticide treatments with pyrethroid-type insecticides.
Most were active in the bug's cuticle and block or slow an insecticide from reaching the nerve cells where it can kill.
In addition to this first-line of defense Zhu's team discovered that bedbugs have developed a second layer of protection.
In case insecticides slip past the armor other genes kick in to prevent the toxins from attacking the nervous system.
Zhu said the findings suggest that development of new pesticides should focus on chemicals that shut down or mute genes in the cuticle that thwart today's pesticides.
New pesticides alone however will not be enough to cope with the bedbug resurgence. Zhu cited evidence that bedbugs in laboratory colonies exposed to lethal doses of pyrethroids begin to develop resistance within a few generations
which can be less than one year. It reminds us how quickly a new insecticide can become ineffective she said.
In the future efficient bedbug management should not rely on any single insecticide. We need to combine as many chemical
and non-chemical approaches as we have to get rid of the infestation. She cited specifically integrated pest management for bedbugs approaches in which careful use of pesticides combines with other common-sense measures.
Those include removing bedroom clutter where bedbugs can hide frequent vacuuming of dust and other debris washing bed linens in hot water
and heat-drying in a dryer and sealing cracks and crevices to eliminate hiding places. Zhu's colleagues with the University of Kentucky include Subba R. Palli Ph d.;
and our studies on toxic metals in hookah smoke are taking the first steps toward the necessary animal
and colors derived from beetles. Speakers at the 246th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society recently described how natural colors used centuries ago are making a resurgence in response to consumer preferences manufacturers'needs
and red colors derived from insects explained Stephen T. Talcott Ph d. who spoke at the session.
and the carmine reds extracted from cochineal insects. Those include sustainability and ease of production. Cochineal insects feed on a certain type of cactus native to South america and Mexico.
It takes about 2500 bugs to produce one ounce of cochineal extract used in ice creams yogurts candy beverages and other foods.
However PSP anthocyanins are difficult to extract. Talcott reported on development of a new process that extracts larger amounts of pigment from PSPS.
which could be used as animal feed in various food applications or as a raw material for biofuel production.
Ecological theory suggests that these simplified landscapes should have more insect pest problems due to the lack of natural enemies and the increased size and connectivity of crop-food resources.
Since 1990 livestock numbers have doubled almost to 45 million animals caused in part by the socioeconomic changes linked to the breakup of the former Soviet union the report said.
and a huge surge in the number of grazing animals occurred during just the past decade--especially sheep and goats that cause more damage than cattle.
Related research has found that heavy grazing results in much less vegetation cover and root biomass and an increase in animal hoof impacts.
#Pest-eating birds mean money for coffee growersthis is the first time scientists have assigned a monetary value to the pest-control benefits rainforest birds can provide to agriculture.
Their study could provide the framework for pest management that helps both farmers and biodiversity.
In recent years Stanford biologists have found that coffee growers in Costa rica bolster bird biodiversity by leaving patches of their plantations as untouched rainforest.
The latest finding from these researchers suggests that the birds are returning the favor to farmers by eating an aggressive coffee bean pest the borer beetle thereby improving coffee bean yields by hundreds of dollars per hectare.
The study is the first to put a monetary value on the pest-control benefits rainforest can provide to agriculture which the researchers hope can inform both farmers and conservationists.
This looks like a sustainable win-win opportunity for pest management. The researchers hope that the work will improve conservation efforts in heavily farmed areas by illustrating to farmers the financial benefits of leaving some land in its natural state while also guiding governments toward the best conservation methods.
Coffee beans around the world however are threatened by the pervasive beetle. The insect burrows into the beans
and eats its way out ruining the beans. It originated in Africa and has made its way into nearly every major coffee-producing country.
It's the only insect that competes with us for coffee beans Karp said. It's the most damaging insect pest by far causing some $500 million in damage per year.
Stanford biologists have been studying the intersection of nature and agriculture in Costa rica since the 1990s in part because of the vast amounts of land in that country dedicated to coffee production.
The borer beetle arrived in the past few years and Karp's group began to investigate
and thus a greater biodiversity of insect-eating birds fared better under attack from the insects.
A'not-so-glamorous'experimentto quantify the benefit birds provide to plantations the researchers first calculated coffee bean yield--the amount of healthy beetle-free beans that could be harvested--of infected plants that were housed in bird-proof cages
versus yield from infected plants in the open where birds were eating the beetles. Next they needed to confirm
which species of birds were eating the beetles and whether the birds required forest to survive.
This required a more unorthodox approach. We had the not-so-glamorous task of collecting the birds'poop
and then taking it back to Stanford and looking through the DNA within it to learn which birds were the pest preventers Karp said.
Five species of birds contributed to cutting infestation rates in half and these birds were more abundant on farms featuring more forests.
Depending on the season the birds provide $75 to $310 increases in yield per hectare of farmland Karp said.
The birds'activity could become even more valuable if the beetle infestation worsens. The scientists found that the closer the forests were to the farms the greater benefit the birds provided.
Specifically smaller stands of trees--roughly the size of a few football fields--situated throughout crop fields provided better levels of beetle protection than the much larger forest preserves set on the outskirts of farms.
By differentiating the financial gains of different conservation strategies--large but distant preserves versus small local stands of trees--Karp thinks the study could provide a framework for introducing similar efforts in agricultural zones around the world.
This work suggests that it might be economically advantageous to not farm in certain areas of a plantation Karp said.
what they might gain in pest protection by protecting certain patches of the landscape. The study was published in the online edition of the peer-reviewed journal Ecology Letters.
Quality drought-tolerant varieties that are resistant to pests and disease are important. And cooperation from Mother Nature in terms of temperature and precipitation doesn't hurt either.
Kansas wheat producers are challenged by weather pests and disease said Andrew Barkley professor of agricultural economics and lead researcher of a multi-disciplinary team that included agronomists and plant pathologists.
Suppose a sustainability contract lists that the default should be integrated pest management rather than application of traditional pesticides Endres said.
Estimates of the amount of missing data were based on 7539 peer-reviewed studies about animals fungi seed plants bacteria and various microscopic organisms.
This could be the case in other animals--including humans however the practicality of testing this in mammals would be very difficult and obviously impossible in humans for ethical reasons.
The research investigated both experimentally controlled natural matings and artificial inseminations and found that the effect observed in natural matings was lost during artificial insemination.
This is something that needs to be explored further in various animals including humans. The research was funded by Natural Environmental Research Council (NERC) the Biotechnology and Biological sciences Research Council (BBSRC) Stockholm University the Schwartz'foundation Lars Hierta's foundation Knut & Alice
The role of infected wild badgers in spreading bovine TB remains controversial. This work will help to clarify the role that badgers may have in spreading the disease
and continue to build a sound scientific evidence base on which control measures can be built.
and local persistence of the pathogen in cattle has a distinct spatial signature--we believe that explaining this signature is the key to quantifying the role that badgers play in the persistence of bovine TB in Britain and Ireland.
and badgers we are optimistic that this approach will help accumulating the right scientific evidence over the coming years to tackle this important problem.
#Spread of crop pests threatens global food security as Earth warmsa new study has revealed that global warming is resulting in the spread of crop pests towards the North and South poles at a rate of nearly 3 kilometers a year.
and the University of Oxford shows a strong relationship between increased global temperatures over the past 50 years and expansion in the range of crop pests.
Currently 10-16%of global crop production is lost to pests. Crop pests include fungi bacteria viruses insects nematodes viroids and oomycetes.
The diversity of crop pests continues to expand and new strains are continually evolving. Losses of major crops to fungi and fungi-like microorganisms amount to enough to feed nearly nine percent of today's global population.
The study suggests that these figures will increase further if global temperatures continue to rise as predicted.
The spread of pests is caused by both human activities and natural processes but is thought to be primarily the result of international freight transportation.
The study suggests that the warming climate is allowing pests to become established in previously unsuitable regions.
For example warming generally stimulates insect herbivory at higher latitudes as seen in outbreaks of the Mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) that has destroyed large areas of pine forest in the US Pacific Northwest.
If crop pests continue to march polewards as Earth warms the combined effects of a growing world population
and the increased loss of crops to pests will pose a serious threat to global food security.
Renewed efforts are required to monitor the spread of crop pests and to control their movement from region to region
The study used published observations of the distribution of 612 crop pests collected over the past 50 years.
It revealed that the movement of pests north and south towards the poles and into new previously un-colonised regions corresponds to increased temperatures during that period.
In the 1970s red spruce was the forest equivalent of a canary in the coal mine signaling that acid rain was damaging forests
as a result of winter injury U s. Forest Service and University of Vermont scientists came up with a surprising result--three decades later the canary is feeling much better.
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