Life Sciences Commons^™

Forage News [2007-12], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Heart of America Grazing Conference to Be Held in Missouri
• Forage Producers to Be Featured at KCA
• SRM/AFGC in Louisville
• Panoramic 2SL Registered for Weed Control in Pastures
• Hay – 2007
• Energy Savings with New Light Bulbs
• Corn Stalks and a Protein Block…That All You Got?
• Reflections at My 80^th Birthday - Carl S. Hoveland, October 25, 2007
• Upcoming Events

Pre-Mrna Secondary Structures Influence Exon Recognition, Michael Hiller, Zhaiyi Zhang, Rolf Backofen, Stefan Stamm

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

The secondary structure of a pre-mRNA influences a number of processing steps including alternative splicing. Since most splicing regulatory proteins bind to single-stranded RNA, the sequestration of RNA into double strands could prevent their binding. Here, we analyzed the secondary structure context of experimentally determined splicing enhancer and silencer motifs in their natural pre-mRNA context. We found that these splicing motifs are significantly more single-stranded than controls. These findings were validated by transfection experiments, where the effect of enhancer or silencer motifs on exon skipping was much more pronounced in single-stranded conformation. We also found that the structural context of …

Leptospira Interrogans Endostatin-Like Outer Membrane Proteins Bind Host Fibronectin, Laminin And Regulators Of Complement, Brian Stevenson, Henry A. Choy, Marija Pinne, Matthew L. Rotondi, M. Clarke Miller, Edward Demoll, Peter Kraiczy, Anne E. Cooley, Trevor P. Creamer, Marc A. Suchard, Catherine A. Brissette, Ashutosh Verma, David A. Haake

Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics Faculty Publications

The pathogenic spirochete Leptospira interrogans disseminates throughout its hosts via the bloodstream, then invades and colonizes a variety of host tissues. Infectious leptospires are resistant to killing by their hosts' alternative pathway of complement-mediated killing, and interact with various host extracellular matrix (ECM) components. The LenA outer surface protein (formerly called LfhA and Lsa24) was previously shown to bind the host ECM component laminin and the complement regulators factor H and factor H-related protein-1. We now demonstrate that infectious L. interrogans contain five additional paralogs of lenA, which we designated lenB, lenC, lenD, lenE and lenF …

Forage News [2007-11], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Kentucky Grazing Conference
• Forage Spokesman Featured at Grazing Conference
• KFGC Presents Forage Awards
• Sources for Hay
• If You Procrastinate, It May Be Too Late
• Buffalo Trace Hay Auction
• Volunteer Corn
• Winter Feeding Will Be a Challenge
• State Summary Of 2007
• Environmental Effects of Increased Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
• Upcoming Events

Forage Spokesman Information, Lowell J. Clifford, Barry Drury, John Mcglone, Mac Stone

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

Techniques For Reducing Mud Problems And Improving Pasture Abused Areas, Ken Johnson

Kentucky Grazing Conference

I would like to approach this topic from two directions, mud control and then problem areas. Mud control in concentrated areas almost impossible with forages alone. Using a mud control product is usually advised. I will talk about several.

My Experiences With Summer Lovegrass, Tim Phillips

Kentucky Grazing Conference

I first heard about teff (Eragrostis tef) being used as a hay crop in early 2006 at a meeting near the Shenandoah Valley area of Virginia. The meeting was about orchardgrass production, so I was speaking about new varieties that are available for producers to grow. Several farmers had experienced massive stand losses of their established orchardgrass hay fields, so they had tried this ‘new’ summer annual grass. Some of the farmers were surprised that I knew about this grass, but I didn’t know about its use as a hay or pasture grass. Teff is the Ethiopian name for a …

Experiences With "Teff" (Summer Love Grass) In Kentucky, Bob Jaynes

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Following publicity about the Klamath Experiment Station evaluation of Teff as an annual forage in 2003 and 2004, requests for more information and seed sources kept KES staff busy for weeks last spring. We received over 300 contacts from 41 states. Local seed salesman Laverne Hankins processed over 150 orders for more than 5 tons of seed. Those who received seed were sent a questionnaire this fall in hopes that we would get feedback on growers experience with this new forage species. To date we have received responses from about 15 growers.

Options For Summer Grazing, David C. Ditsch

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Summer is the time during the growing season when shortages of forage most often occur in Kentucky. The summer of 2007 will long be remembered as one the warmest and driest in recent years and cause many livestock producers to evaluate their current forage systems. Most Kentucky pastures are predominately cool-season grasses such as tall fescue, orchardgrass and bluegrass. During the historically hot, dry periods in July and August, these species produce very little growth and can quickly become overgrazed. At this point, some producers have no alternative except to buy feed or begin feeding stored forage intended for winter …

Does Grazing Method Matter?, Garry D. Lacefield

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Interest in and opportunities for grazing continues to increase not only in Kentucky, but throughout the U.S. In Wisconsin, 12% or approximately 5000 dairymen are now using grazing. In Michigan, over 40% of the dairymen are using grazing for a significant part of their feed requirements. Over 15% of these dairymen are using intensive grazing. Similar numbers exist for Pennsylvania.

Surviving The 2007 Drought, Roy Burris

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Kentucky beef producers could feel the effects of the ’07 drought for a long time. Decisions made now will impact the ’08 and ’09 calf crops. The current hay/feed shortage has stimulated a lot of “panic buying”. Feedstuffs with very low nutritive values are being purchased at an alarming rate. These “feeds” are being purchased at much higher costs than we normally pay for good quality hay. If properly supplemented, they can be used successfully. However, their use to replace the normal hay supply could have disastrous results.

Recovering From The "Freeze" And "Drought" Of 2007, S. Ray Smith

Kentucky Grazing Conference

As all of you know, 2007 has been a devastating year for forage agriculture in Kentucky. The season started with an abnormally warm 7 weeks during late winter and early spring, which promoted lush vegetative growth. Normally this would have been a “good thing”, but it actually made forage plants more vulnerable to below freezing temperatures. Then the severe freeze occurred, with April 7, 8, and 9 the coldest 3 day period in April in KY history. Pastures were stunted for weeks and first cut hay yields were reduced by 35 to 100%. At this point we were still hopeful …

Foreword And Kfgc Award Winners [2007], Garry D. Lacefield, Christi L. Forsythe

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

A Non-Circadian Role For Clock-Genes In Sleep Homeostasis: A Strain Comparison, Paul Franken, Ryan Thomason, H. Craig Heller, Bruce F. O'Hara

Biology Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: We have previously reported that the expression of circadian clock-genes increases in the cerebral cortex after sleep deprivation (SD) and that the sleep rebound following SD is attenuated in mice deficient for one or more clock-genes. We hypothesized that besides generating circadian rhythms, clock-genes also play a role in the homeostatic regulation of sleep. Here we follow the time course of the forebrain changes in the expression of the clock-genes period (per)-1, per2, and of the clock-controlled gene albumin D-binding protein (dbp) during a 6 h SD and subsequent recovery sleep in three inbred strains of mice for which …

Induction Of Insulin Secretion In Engineered Liver Cells By Nitric Oxide, Latha Muniappan, Sabire Özcan

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus results from an autoimmune destruction of the pancreatic beta cells, which produce insulin. The lack of insulin leads to chronic hyperglycemia and secondary complications, such as cardiovascular disease. The currently approved clinical treatments for diabetes mellitus often fail to achieve sustained and optimal glycemic control. Therefore, there is a great interest in the development of surrogate beta cells as a treatment for type 1 diabetes. Normally, pancreatic beta cells produce and secrete insulin only in response to increased blood glucose levels. However in many cases, insulin secretion from non-beta cells engineered to produce insulin occurs …

A Simple Array Platform For Microrna Analysis And Its Application In Mouse Tissues, Xiaoqing Tang, Jozsef Gal, Xun Zhuang, Wang-Xia Wang, Haining Zhu, Guiliang Tang

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a novel class of small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and play a critical role in many important biological processes. Most miRNAs are conserved between humans and mice, which makes it possible to analyze their expressions with a set of selected array probes. Here, we report a simple array platform that can detect 553 nonredundant miRNAs encompassing the entire set of miRNAs for humans and mice. The platform features carefully selected and designed probes with optimized hybridization parameters. Potential cross-reaction between mature miRNAs and their precursors was investigated. The array platform was …

Agricultural Situation And Outlook Fall 2007, Chuck Corby, Kenneth H. Burdine

Agricultural Situation and Outlook

No abstract provided.

Forage News [2007-10], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Kentucky Grazing Conference
• KY Grazing Conference Hosts Popular Forage Spokesperson Contest
• Grazing Corn Stalks
• Nutrient Losses from Harvested Hay or Crop Residue
• Forages - Louisville - January - Big Event
• Biotechnology in Forage Crops: Update for KY Farmers
• The Effects of Feeding Sericea Lespedeza Hay on Growth Rate of Goats Naturally Infected with Gastrointestinal Nematodes
• Southeastern Drought Drives Search for Hay
• Upcoming Events

Forage News [2007-09], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Forage Spokesman Nominations
• CRP – Forage Quality
• Wet Chemistry Results of Hay Baled from CRP Fields in Hopkins Co. - Aug. 2007
• KFGC Awards
• Stockpiling Tall Fescue
• Cost Per Day on Stockpiled Fescue/Fall Fertilization
• Cost Per Day on Soyhulls/Limit Hay
• Caution When Seeding into Drought Damaged Pastures
• NAFA Summit Promotes Alfalfa for Biofuel
• Consider Annual Ryegrass as a High Quality Forage Option
• Upcoming Events

Mutants And Assay System To Identify Usp/Rxr Ligands, Grace Jones, Davy Jones

Biology Faculty Patents

The invention relates to mutant nuclear hormone receptors that encode mutant nuclear hormone receptors, in which particular amino acid residues are substituted with respect to wild type, so as to be able to detect ligand binding to the mutant receptor by either a change in a physical property of the mutant receptor and/or an transcriptional induction of a nuclear hormone receptor construct. The invention also relates to a nuclear hormone receptor response element denoted by the formula YDRXZ comprising a direct repeat (DR) comprising two half sites separated by X nucleic acid bases; wherein Z indicates the presence of at …

Impacts Of T-Phylloplanin Gene Knockdown And Of Helianthus And Datura Phylloplanins On Peronospora Tabacina Spore Germination And Disease Potential, Antoaneta B. Kroumova, Ryan W. Shepherd, George J. Wagner

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

T-phylloplanin proteins secreted to aerial surfaces of tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) by short procumbent trichomes inhibit spore germination and blue mold disease caused by the oomycete pathogen Peronospora tabacina. Many other plants were found to contain water-washed leaf surface proteins (phylloplanins), but the functions and properties of these are not known. Here we extend earlier evidence for the antifungal activity of T-phylloplanins using a reverse genetics approach. RNA interference of the T-phylloplanin gene in tobacco ‘T.I. 1068’ resulted in loss of T-phylloplanin mRNA and protein, loss of in vitro spore germination inhibition activity, and leaf infection …

Forage News [2007-08], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• UK All Commodity Field Day
• 8^th Kentucky Grazing Conference
• Hay Hotline Helps Farmers in Search of Forage
• Beware of Hay Payment Scam
• Judge Amends Roundup Ready Alfalfa Ruling
• Corn Acres Soar, Soy Acres Plunge
• Relative Feed Value (RFV) and Relative Forage Quality (RFQ)
• KFGC Awards
• Forage Spokesman Nominations
• Upcoming Events

Chronic Administration Of R-Flurbiprofen Attenuates Learning Impairments In Transgenic Amyloid Precursor Protein Mice, Thomas Kukar, Sonya Prescott, Jason L. Eriksen, Vallie Holloway, M. Paul Murphy, Edward H. Koo, Todd E. Golde, Michelle M. Nicolle

Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Long-term use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is associated with a reduced incidence of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We and others have shown that certain NSAIDs reduce secretion of Abeta42 in cell culture and animal models, and that the effect of NSAIDs on Abeta42 is independent of the inhibition of cyclooxygenase by these compounds. Since Abeta42 is hypothesized to be the initiating pathologic molecule in AD, the ability of these compounds to lower Abeta42 selectively may be associated with their protective effect. We have previously identified R-flurbiprofen (tarenflurbil) as a selective Abeta42 lowering agent with greatly reduced cyclooxygenase activity that …

Post Hoc Pattern Matching: Assigning Significance To Statistically Defined Expression Patterns In Single Channel Microarray Data, Randall Hulshizer, Eric M. Blalock

Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Researchers using RNA expression microarrays in experimental designs with more than two treatment groups often identify statistically significant genes with ANOVA approaches. However, the ANOVA test does not discriminate which of the multiple treatment groups differ from one another. Thus, post hoc tests, such as linear contrasts, template correlations, and pairwise comparisons are used. Linear contrasts and template correlations work extremely well, especially when the researcher has a priori information pointing to a particular pattern/template among the different treatment groups. Further, all pairwise comparisons can be used to identify particular, treatment group-dependent patterns of gene expression. However, these approaches …

Forage News [2007-07], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Forages Losses Exceed $40 Million
• Forage & Beef Tours at UKREC Field Day
• Grazing Conference Date Change
• Forage Spokesman Nominations
• KFGC Awards
• AFGC Report from Pennsylvania
• Top 14 Invasive Species in Kentucky
• Switchgrass Incentives May Be in Farm Bill
• Double Whammy…
• Eastern Gamagrass Meeting & Tour
• KFGC Field Day
• Upcoming Events

Forage News [2007-06], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• KFGC Summer Grazing Tour
• UK Field Day Offers Something for Everyone
• KADB Approves $650,000 For Biomass Project
• USDA-ARS and Cooperative Extension Sponsors Eastern Gamagrass Field Day
• Roundup Ready Alfalfa Injunction is Permanent
• No Roundup Ready Harvest Restrictions Yet
• Effects of Forage on Steer Performance
• Effects of Forage on Stocker Profits
• Grazing Days – Fescue vs. Small Grains
• Forage Has Cellulosic Ethanol Potential
• Maintaining Forage Harvester for Fuel Efficiency
• Upcoming Events

Differential Neuromuscular Training Effects On Acl Injury Risk Factors In"High-Risk" Versus "Low-Risk" Athletes, Gregory D. Myer, Kevin R. Ford, Jensen L. Brent, Timothy E. Hewett

Kinesiology and Health Promotion Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Neuromuscular training may reduce risk factors that contribute to ACL injury incidence in female athletes. Multi-component, ACL injury prevention training programs can be time and labor intensive, which may ultimately limit training program utilization or compliance. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of neuromuscular training on those classified as "high-risk" compared to those classified as "low-risk." The hypothesis was that high-risk athletes would decrease knee abduction moments while low-risk and control athletes would not show measurable changes.

METHODS: Eighteen high school female athletes participated in neuromuscular training 3x/week over a 7-week period. Knee kinematics and …

Corn Stover Availability And Collection Efficiency Using Typical Hay Equipment, Robert M. Prewitt, Michael D. Montross, Scott A. Shearer, Timothy S. Stombaugh, Stephen F. Higgins, Samuel G. Mcneill, Shahab Sokhansanj

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

Corn stover has been identified as a potential feedstock for the production of fermentable sugars and thermochemical processes. The availability and efficiency of typical hay equipment for collecting corn stover has not been well quantified. Corn stover was collected for two years on a central Kentucky farm near Louisville. Six different harvesting treatments, using traditional hay equipment, were used to harvest corn stover. A rotary mower, rotary scythe (flail-type mower with windrow-forming shields), parallel bar rake, and a round baler were utilized. The average stover moisture content prior to grain harvest was above 40%, and field drying was required before …

Forage News [2007-05], Department Of Plant And Soil Sciences, University Of Kentucky

Forage News

• Freeze and Forages
• Forage Field Day in Monroe County
• Grazing and Alfalfa Conferences
• Forage Tour Set for U.K. All Commodity Field Day
• Remember AFGC Annual Meeting - June 24-26, 2007
• Final Alfalfa Weevil Thoughts - Don’t Forget Regrowth Feeding
• Milk Production
• Barren County Continued as Cattle Capital of Kentucky
• Armyworm Counts on the Increase Again!
• Losses of Alfalfa During Harvest
• Upcoming Events

Soil Microbial Community Response To Hexavalent Chromium In Planted And Unplanted Soil, Ioannis Ipsilantis, Mark S. Coyne

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

Theories suggest that rapid microbial growth rates lead to quicker development of metal resistance. We tested these theories by adding hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] to soil, sowing Indian mustard (Brassica juncea), and comparing rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial community responses. Four weeks after the initial Cr(VI) application we measured Cr concentration, microbial biomass by fumigation extraction and soil extract ATP, tolerance to Cr and growth rates with tritiated thymidine incorporation, and performed community substrate use analysis with BIOLOG GN plates. Exchangeable Cr(VI) levels were very low, and therefore we assumed the Cr(VI) impact was transient. Microbial biomass was reduced …