Ferulic acid supplementation for 40 days in hair ewe lambs experiencing seasonal heat stress: short-term effects on physiological responses,growth, metabolism,and hematological profile

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Free ferulic acid (FA) is a natural compound with antioxidant properties which mitigates the negative effects of cold stress in sheep; however, its...     

Carnauba (Copernicia prunifera) palm tree biomass as adsorbent for Pb(II) and Cd(II) from water medium

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Plant-based biomass (CFB (carnauba fruit biomass)) obtained from the fruit exocarp of the species Copernicia prunifera (Mill.) H.E. Moore (carnauba)...     

Solar radiation synthetic series for power purchase agreements

The present paper proposes a methodology based on the implementation and assessment of autoregressive (AR) solar radiation models for generating synthetic series and providing guidance on bidding strategies for power purchase agreements. The work considered conventional and periodic AR models with different lag orders, assessing the models against real solar radiation measurements. The synthetic series generation process developed 1000 1-year monthly solar radiation scenarios that were later employed for simulating electric energy production and power purchase agreement models. This application allowed one to evaluate the risk associated with the energy supply security, supporting bidding strategies in energy auctions. A real study case is also illustrated in detail, referring to a spot in the Brazilian best irradiance area.

     

Male behaviors reveal multiple pherotypes within vine mealybug Planococcus ficus (Signoret) (Hemiptera; Pseudococcidae) populations

The vine mealybug (VM) females collected in Israel produce two sex pheromone compounds: lavandulyl senecioate (LS) and (S)-lavandulyl isovalerate (LI). The males display ambiguous behavior to LI: repulsion in the vineyard and attraction of laboratory-reared males. We addressed the question of individual male behavior, i.e., do males respond to both LS and LI, or might they display a distinct response to each of the two pheromone compounds. We compared male pherotype frequencies between wild-caught and laboratory-reared populations. Then, we examined the relationship between pherotype composition and male capture rates in pheromone traps. Finally, we addressed the heredity of the pherotypes. The Israeli VM populations contain nine different male pherotypes, as defined according to the male behavior to pheromone compounds. The studied Portuguese populations included five of the nine pherotypes; none of the Portuguese males were attracted to LI. It seems that the high frequency of males that were attracted to LI is related to dense VM populations. It is hypothesized that selection for the male pherotypes, I males, those that respond to LI, occur under high-density rearing conditions. This may result from shorter development times of males and females that produce more I male pherotypes. The lower relative frequency of trapping of males in LI-baited traps than expected from the percentage determined in a Petri dish arena suggests that males that respond solely to LS (S males) are better fliers. The results also suggest that the pherotype trait is inherited by both sexes of the VM.     

Oxidative stress in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and armored catfish (Pterygoplichthys anisitsi) exposed to diesel oil

Considering that diesel oil is one of the most common aquatic contaminants, we compare the oxidative stress between two species of fish with different habitats (Pterygoplichthys anisitsi, benthic and Oreochromis niloticus, nektonic) exposed to diesel oil. Malondialdehyde concentrations (MDA) and the activities of ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD), glutathione S-transferase (GST), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase were all analyzed in the fishes' livers and gills after 2 and 7 days of exposure to different concentrations of diesel (0.1 and 0.5 mL/L). In the tilapia, MDA levels and the activities of EROD and GST activity in the liver, as well as MDA levels and the activities of GST and SOD in the gill had statistically significant differences between the treatments and between the times of exposure. For the catfish, the same occurred in the case of MDA, EROD, and SOD in the liver and in CAT and SOD in the gills. There were significant differences in the enzyme activity and lipid peroxidation between the species. Although the activity of most enzymes seemed to be more expressive and responsive to diesel in O. niloticus, diesel oil also caused significant effects on oxidative stress parameters in P. anisitsi, even though this species is benthic and thus has less access to insoluble fractions of diesel oil. Therefore, both species can be used as sentinel organisms in environmental biomonitoring of diesel contamination.     

Invasion by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Artocarpus heterophyllus</Emphasis> (Moraceae) in an island in the Atlantic Forest Biome,Brazil: distribution at the landscape level,density and need for control

Invasion by alien species is one of the most critical factors affecting global biodiversity, leading to homogenization and species loss worldwide. Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus Lam., Moraceae) is one of the most conspicuous invasive plants in Brazil. We studied jackfruit invasion in the Atlantic Forest in Ilha Grande State Park, located on an island (Ilha Grande), by assessing jackfruit distribution and density along 23 trails (90 km). Presence or absence was verified in a total of 857 plots. Data showed that jackfruit is spread all over Ilha Grande, and that plant density varied significantly along and between trails. Jackfruit was registered as the dominant tree species on some of the trails. Control by park managers is an urgent need in order to ensure the conservation of local biodiversity. A decision key for jackfruit management according to jackfruit density, age class and slope is provided.     

Intermediate distributions and primary yields of phenolic products in nitrobenzene degradation by Fenton's reagent

Nitrobenzene thermal degradation was investigated using the Fenton reagent in different experimental conditions. Reaction products were analyzed by HPLC, GC-MS, LC-MS and IC. The products obtained at different nitrobenzene conversion degrees show that degradation mainly involves successive hydroxylation steps of the aromatic ring and its subsequent opening followed by oxidation of corresponding aliphatic compounds. Our results show as primary reaction products: 4-nitrophenol, 3-nitrophenol, 2-nitrophenol, phenol and 1,3-dinitrobenzene, indicating that both hydroxylation and nitration reactions are involved. The formation of phenolic products can be explained by postulating an initial step of HO() addition to nitrobenzene ring. The mechanisms of primary reaction pathways are discussed and a detailed kinetic analysis to obtain the true primary yields of phenolic products is proposed. The relative yields observed for nitrophenol isomers do not follow the expected orientation according to deactivating characteristics of the nitro group but significantly depend on Fe(+2), Fe(+3), H(2)O(2) and O(2) concentrations. The understanding of the effect of reaction conditions on the relative product distribution benefits the application of Fenton and Fenton-like systems to waste water treatment.     

Ontogeny of provisioning in two populations of wild golden lion tamarins (Leontopithecus rosalia)

Provisioning weaned young is an important part of the cooperative rearing system of marmosets and tamarins (family: Callitrichidae). Juvenile callitrichids receive a substantial proportion of their diet from all adult group members, whereas juveniles of most other primate species only receive food from the mother infrequently via scrounging. We conducted a longitudinal study of provisioning to 21 young wild golden lion tamarins through their first year of life in two Brazilian reserves. Juveniles were predicted to experience higher provisioning rates at the site with mature forest (the presumed ancestral habitat) and in territories that contained a higher proportion of preferred habitat within the mature forest reserve. Key measures of provisioning did not differ substantially between habitat types. The rates at which juveniles begged for food were very similar across habitats, while the influence of habitat on the rates at which juveniles received food was small and varied across age groups. The most pronounced differences between the reserves were: adult resistance to food-transfer attempts was less frequent, food-offering calls before food transfer were more frequent, and the proportion of prey provisioned was higher in the reserve in which earlier successional-stage forest predominated. Within the mature forest reserve, begging success of young juveniles covaried positively with preferred habitat. Rather than overt caretaker–offspring conflict, an information–feedback loop between juveniles and adults appears to drive provisioning changes as juveniles mature. Direct measures of resource abundance are needed to help clarify the mechanisms by which forest successional stage influences provisioning.     

Patterns of seagrass (Posidonia oceanica) flowering in the Western Mediterranean

The intensive reconstructive sampling (1957–2004, 39 localities), a systematic direct observation (1992–2004, 1 locality) and particular direct observations (66 localities) of Posidonia oceanica meadows were analysed together with temporal series of flowering available in the literature (19 localities). This allowed the examination of temporal and spatial variability in annual flowering prevalence (FP, the fraction of meadows flowering in a given year) and of annual meadow flowering intensity (FI, number of inflorescences per shoot) for the period 1979–2004 across the Western Mediterranean, as well as spatial variability of flowering frequency (FF, the fraction of years that a given meadow has flowered) and shoot flowering probability (Pf, fraction of flowering stalks appeared per annual segment). Each year, on an average 17% of the investigated meadows flowered, ranging from 3 to 86% of meadows among the years. The highest annual FP and FI values were obtained in 2003 (FP=0.86 and mean FI=0.23±0.03 inflorescences shoot⁻¹). A secondary peak of FP and mean FI occurred 9 years earlier, in 1994 (FP=0.44 and mean FI=0.08±0.02). Both peaks of flowering occurred after hot summers. Flowering synchrony in particular years across the Western Mediterranean and clines of increased meadow flowering frequency towards the North and East, suggests the existence of large-scale environmental mechanisms controlling the floral induction. On the other hand, meadow FF and Pf were highly heterogeneous among and within the meadows, indicating that local factors also may play a significant role in flowering induction. When flowering, the Western Mediterranean meadows showed an average 0.11±0.02 inflorescences shoot⁻¹, but FI greatly varied among and along the series (from 0.002 to 0.54 inflorescences shoot⁻¹) and decreased significantly with depth but was independent of meadow shoot density and meadow latitude or longitude. The shoot flowering probability was quite low (0.007±0.002 inflorescences shoot⁻¹ year⁻¹) and exponentially increased with shoot age.