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Construction And Characterization Of A Chimeric Virus (Biv/Hiv-1) Carrying The Bovine Immunodeficiency Virus Gag-Pol Gene: Research Letters, Guomin Chen, Shuhui Wang, Kun Xiong, Jinzhong Wang, Tao Ye, Wenping Dong, Qi Wang, Qimin Chen, Yunqi Geng, Charles Wood, Yi Zeng

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

HIV-1HXB2 5′LTR region, most of BIVR29 gag-pol segment and HIV-1HXB2 pol IN-3′LTR region were respectively amplified. A chimeric clone, designated as pHBIV₃₇₅₃, was constructed by cloning three fragments sequentially into pUC18. MT4 cells were transfected with pHBIV₃₇₅₃. The replication and expressions of the chimeric virus (HBIV₃₇₅₃) were monitored by RT activity and IFA. The results firstly demonstrated that it is possible to generate a new type of the BIV/HIV-1 chimeric virus containing BIV gag-pol gene.

Characterization Of Porcine Uterine Estrogen Sulfotransferase, J. G. Kim, J. L. Vallet, G. A. Rohrer, R. K. Christenson

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

A quantitative trait locus (QTL) for uterine capacity is located on chromosome 8. Comparison of porcine and human genetic maps suggested that the estrogen sulfotransferase (STE) gene may be located near this region. The objectives of this study were to clone the full coding region for STE, compare endometrial STE gene expression between Meishan and White composite pigs during early pregnancy, and map the STE gene. We obtained a clone (1886 bp) containing the full coding region of STE by iterative screening of an expressed sequence tag library. Endometrial STE mRNA expression in White composite gilts was determined by Northern …

Genetic Parameters Of Reproductive Traits In Sheep, A. Rosati, E. Mousa, L. D. Van Vleck, L. D. Young

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

Reproductive traits from 7642 ewes were recorded from 1975 to 1983. The ewes were of five breeds (Dorset (D), Finnsheep (F), Rambouillet (R), Suffolk (S) and Targhee (T)) and two composite lines [C1 (1/2F + 1/4R + 1/4D) and C2 (1/2F + 1/4S + 1/4T)]. Genetic parameters were estimated for six basic and seven composite traits. The basic traits were conception rate (CR), total number of lamb born (NLB), number of lambs born alive (NLBA), number of lambs alive at weaning (NLAW), litter mean weight per lamb born (LMWLB) and litter mean weight per lamb weaned (LMWLW). The composite traits …

Mapping Of The P1 Proteinase Cleavage Site In The Polyprotein Of Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus (Genus Tritimovirus), Il-Ryong Choi, Kempton M. Horken, Drake C. Stenger, Roy C. French

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Monopartite members of the family Potyviridae utilize three virus-encoded proteinases to cleave the viral polyprotein into mature proteins. The amino-terminal region of the viral polyprotein is autolytically cleaved by the P1 proteinase. A domain required for P1 proteinase activity of Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV) was mapped using a series of templates with nested 3’-truncations or 5’-deletions to program in vitro transcription–translation reactions. The WSMV P1 proteinase cleavage site was mapped to a position downstream of amino acid residue 348 and upstream of amino acid residue 353, with the peptide bond between amino acid residues Y ₃₅₂ and G _{353 …}

Detecting Stress In Animals, Sharon Durham, Ted H. Elsasser

Agricultural Research Magazine

When people get stressed, they seek relief in many ways. Some exercise, some practice specific breathing techniques, and some eat chocolate. Farm animals become stressed, too. In domesticated food animals, stress can affect meat quality, milk production, and general health. But animal stress must often be intuited from clues such as lower-than-anticipated weights and increased illness.

Certain stressful events can be anticipated, for example, birth and weaning. But how do you know if an animal is stressed for some other reason? Ted H. Elsasser of ARS’ Growth Biology Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, is investigating nitrated protein as a biomarker of …

Getting Atop Climbing Fern, Marcia Wood, Jesús García

Agricultural Research Magazine

A team of two tiny moths might help stop the spread of Old World climbing fern, an aggressive vine that’s on the march in central and south Florida. With further research, a third moth, a hungry mite, a small beetle, and perhaps other hardworking organisms as well may qualify to join the coterie of pint-sized weedeaters.

Known to botanists as Lygodium microphyllum, Old World climbing fern makes its way up stems and trunks of other plants, forming blankets of lightgreen vegetation.

On the ground, climbing fern creates tough, spongy mats that can easily smother grasses, low-growing shrubs, and small …

Protecting Peanuts From Aflatoxin, Jan Suszkiw, Joe W. Dorner, Marshall C. Lamb

Agricultural Research Magazine

Peanut farmers could soon have a biological pesticide for protecting their crop’s prized seed from fungi that produce aflatoxin—the chief culprits being Aspergillus flavus and A. parasiticus.

Circle One Global, Inc. (COGI), of Cuthbert, Georgia, has applied for an exclusive license on an ARS technique for making the biopesticide from spores of a nontoxigenic, or benign, strain of A. flavus.

In Florida, Georgia, and Alabama—top peanut-producing states— aflatoxin outbreaks from 1993 to 1996 caused losses averaging $26 million annually, ARS economist Marshall C. Lamb estimates. The Peanut Administrative Committee strictly regulates the sale or use of shelled peanuts …

Ars Researchers Winning Battle With Noxious Weed, Daniel Gandolfo, Jesús García

Agricultural Research Magazine

Small victories are being reported by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in the war against tropical soda apple (Solanum viarum), a nonnative, invasive weed of pastures, row crops, forests, and urban areas throughout the southeastern United States.

Tropical soda apple (TSA) was first observed in Florida in 1988, causing little concern with fewer than 2,000 acres affected. Just 6 years later, however, researchers estimated that more than 1 million acres were infested. Charles T. Bryson, an ARS research botanist with the Southern Weed Science Research Unit in Stoneville, Mississippi, says researchers believe the resilient weed has now been …

Fighting Insect Pests Of Stored Foods, Michael A. Mullen, Franklin H. Arthur, Linda Mcgraw

Agricultural Research Magazine

Anyone who has ever been to a picnic knows insects are drawn to food. That’s why developing new methods to keep insects out of food in packages, warehouses, and processing plants is critical for food manufacturers. New and innovative methods are needed because the industry is challenged to reduce pesticide use while ensuring that food products are insect-free. To meet these challenges, a team of ARS scientists at the Grain Marketing and Production Research Center in Manhattan, Kansas, is working closely with industry.

Keep Out, Bug!

Keeping food in containers is one of the oldest ways to protect food from …

Energy Balance Closure At Fluxnet Sites, Kell Wilson, Allen Goldstein, Eva Falge, Marc Aubinet, Dennis D. Baldocchi, Paul Berbigier, Christian Bernhofer, Reinhart Ceulemans, Han Dolman, Chris Field, Achim Grelle, Andreas Ibrom, B. E. Law, Andy Kowalski, Tilden Meyers, John Moncrieff, Russ Monson, Walter Oechel, John Tenhunen, Shashi Verma, Riccardo Valentini

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

A comprehensive evaluation of energy balance closure is performed across 22 sites and 50 site-years in FLUXNET, a network of eddy covariance sites measuring long-term carbon and energy fluxes in contrasting ecosystems and climates. Energy balance closure was evaluated by statistical regression of turbulent energy fluxes (sensible and latent heat (LE)) against available energy (net radiation, less the energy stored) and by solving for the energy balance ratio, the ratio of turbulent energy fluxes to available energy. These methods indicate a general lack of closure at most sites, with amean imbalance in the order of 20%. The imbalance was prevalent …

Vadose Zone Processes And Chemical Transport, H. M. Gaber, Steven Comfort, Patrick J. Shea, Thomas A. Machacek

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Permeable zerovalent iron (Fe⁰) barriers have become an estab- lished technology for remediating contaminated ground water. This same technology may be applicable for treating pesticides amenable to dehalogenation as they move downward in the vadose zone. By conducting miscible displacement experiments in the laboratory with metolachlor [2-chloro-N-(2-ethyl-6-methylphenyl)-N-(2-methoxy-1-methylethyl) acetamide; a chloroacetanilide herbicide] under unsaturated flow, we provide proof-of-concept for such an approach. Transport experiments were conducted in repacked, unsaturated soil columns attached to vacuum chambers and run under constant matrix potential (-30 kPa) and Darcy flux (approximately 2 cm d^-1 ). Treatments included soil …

Distribution And Prevalence Of Echinococcus Multilocularis In Wild Predators In Nebraska, Kansas, And Wyoming, S. T. Stroandt, D. R. Virchow, M. W. Dryden, Scott E. Hygnstrom, K. R. Kazacos

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

To further determine the distribution and prevalence of Echinococcus multilocularis in the central United States, 245 wild canids (125 red foxes, 120 coyotes) and 33 bobcats were collected from Nebraska, Kansas, and Wyoming and examined for this parasite. Animals examined included 11 red foxes from the western panhandle of Nebraska; 5 red foxes and 30 coyotes from southern Nebraska; 56 red foxes and 1 coyote from northeastern Nebraska; 20 red foxes, 63 coyotes, and 13 bobcats from northern Kansas; 2 red foxes, 26 coyotes, and 20 bobcats from southern Kansas; and 31 red foxes from eastcentral Wyoming. Of these, 27 …

Post-Fledging Survival And Dispersal Of Peregrine Falcons During A Restoration Project Sobre Vivencia De Volantones Y Dispersion De Halcones Peregrinos Durante Un Proyecto De Restauracion, Larkin A. Powell, Dan J. Calvert, Irene M. Barry, Lowell Washburn

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

We monitored 38 juvenile Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) up to 3 mo immediately after their release from a hack box during 1999-2000. The restoration site was a cliff near Eagle Point Park in Dubuque, Iowa. Falcons were released in a staggered manner from mid-:June until late July each summer. Older falcons remained at the site longer than at previous urban releases and interacted with the younger falcons. The four mortalities (11 %) confirmed during the observation periods were discovered and reported by citizens near the release site. We used radiotelemetry, observations of colormarked birds at the hack site, …

Diel And Seasonal Habitat Use By Red Shiner (Cyprinella Lutrensis), Shyi-Liang Yu, Edward J. Peters

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Fish distribution and microhabitat use were quantified over a 24-h period 15 times from July 1988 to October 1990 at a site in the lower Platte River, Nebraska. The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of availability on habitat use by the red shiner (Cyprinella lutrensis) and to describe variations in red shiner use of depth, velocity, cover, and substrate by seasonal and diel periods. Day-night collections showed a difference in selection or avoidance of depths and substrates in summer. Red shiners selected depths of less than 30 cm during the night and fine substrate during the …

Novel Algorithms For Remote Estimation Of Vegetation Fraction, Anatoly A. Gitelson, Yoram J. Kaufman, Robert Stark, Don Rundquist

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Spectral properties of a wheat canopy with vegetation fraction (VF) from 0% to 100% in visible and near-infrared (NIR) ranges of the spectrum were studied in order to devise a technique for remote estimation of VF. When VF was < 60%, from emergence till middle of the elongation stage, four distinct, and quite independent, spectral bands of reflectance existed in the visible range of the spectrum: 400 to 500 nm, 530 to 600 nm, near 670 nm, and around 700 nm. When VF was between 60% and 100%, reflectance in the NIR leveled off or even decreases with an increase of VF. The decreased reflectance in the NIR, occurring at or near the midseason, can be a limiting factor in the use of that spectral region for VF estimation. It was found that for VF > 60%, the information content of reflectance spectra in visible range can be expressed by only two independent pairs of spectral bands: (1) the blue from 400 to 500 nm and the red near 670 nm; (2) the green around 550 nm and the red edge region near 700 nm. We propose using only the visible range of the spectrum to quantitatively …

Biodiversity In And Around Mcelligot's Pool, Sandi Zellmer, Scott A. Johnson

Nebraska College of Law: Faculty Publications

Through characters like farmer McElligot and the Lorax, who spoke out against the greedy Once-ler and his destructive clear-cutting practices, Theodor Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Suess, vividly depicted the plight of many private lands and waterways in the twentieth century. Although the message still resonates with children (and adults) today, the ecological health of private land has not improved a whole lot since Geisel wrote McElligot's Pool in 1947. Don't get me wrong, there have been immense gains in industrial pollution control and in habitat preservation on public lands. Yet there is still a long way to go, particularly on private …

Foreign Exploration For Scirtothrips Perseae Nakahara (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) And Associated Natural Enemies On Avocado (Persea Americana Miller), Mark S. Hoddle, Sueo Nakahara, Phil A. Phillips

USDA Systematic Entomology Laboratory

Scirtothrips perseae Nakahara was discovered attacking avocados in California,USA, in 1996. Host plant surveys in California indicated that S. perseae has a highly restricted host range with larvae being found only on avocados, while adults were collected from 11 different plant species. As part of a management program for this pest, a ‘‘classical’’ biological control program was initiated and foreign exploration was conducted to delineate the home range of S. perseae, to survey for associated natural enemies and inventory other species of phytophagous thrips on avocados grown in Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Trinidad, and Brazil. Foreign …

A New Species Of Enaphalodes Haldeman From Florida (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) With Review Of Genus, Synonymy, And Key To Species, Steven W. Lingafelter, John A. Chemsak

USDA Systematic Entomology Laboratory

A new species of Enaphalodes, E. archboldi Lingafelter and Chemsak, is described from Archbold Research Station, Highlands County, Florida. This localized species has been confused with A. rufulus (Haldeman), a widespread species, which it resembles. Romaleum decipiens Bates is designated as a new synonym of E. atomarius (Drury). Romaleum cylindricum Knull is designated as a new synonym of E. cortiphagus (Craighead). Diagnoses, habitus photographs and drawings, and a key to the nine recognized species of Enaphalodes are provided.

Wildland Fire In Ecosystems Effects Of Fire On Air, David V. Sandberg, Roger D. Ottmar, Janice L. Peterson, John Core

Joint Fire Science Program Synthesis Reports

This state-of-knowledge review about the effects of fire on air quality can assist land, fire, and air resource managers with fire and smoke planning, and their efforts to explain to others the science behind fire-related program policies and practices to improve air quality. Chapter topics include air quality regulations and fire; characterization of emissions from fire; the transport, dispersion, and modeling of fire emissions; atmospheric and plume chemistry; air quality impacts of fire; social consequences of air quality impacts; and recommendations for future research.

Ec02-1252 Introduction To Water Gardening, Troy Pabst, Anne Streich, Steven Rodie

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension: Historical Materials

Extension Circular 02-1252: Introduction to Water Gardening; locating and constructing the water garden, plant selection, plant installation, pond maintenance, pest control, fish in the garden, and summary.

Ec02-175 Ecological Control Of Purple Loosestrife : Monitoring Galerucella Establishment And Impact, Thomas E. Hunt, Stevan Z. Knezevic

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension: Historical Materials

Extension Circular 02-175: Biological Control of Purple Loosetrife: Monitoring Galerucella Establishment and impact. Purple Loosetrife is a noxious weed invading Nebraska’s wetlands. A biocontrol program based on the release of leaf-finding beetles has been initiated to manage the weed. This publication describes biocontrol monitoring procedures designed to evaluate and optimize the biocontrol program.

Bean Pod Mottle Virus: A Threat To U.S. Soybean Production, Loren J. Giesler, Said A. Ghabrial, Thomas E. Hunt, John H. Hill

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Bean pod mottle virus (BPMV) is widespread in the major soybean-growing areas in the southern and southeastern United States. A severe outbreak of BPMV in the north central and northern Great Plains states is currently causing serious concern to soybean growers and to the soybean industry in this region (30). BPMV is efficiently transmitted in nature, within and between soybean fields, by several species of leaf-feeding beetles. The deleterious effects of BPMV infection not only reduce yield but also reduce seed quality, as seeds from infected plants may be discolored. Furthermore, BPMV predisposes soybeans to Phomopsis spp. seed infection (85), …

[Beatrice Whiting:] Introduction To Special Issue Of Ethos, Thomas S. Weisner, Carolyn P. Edwards

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The Society for Psychological Anthropology cosponsored a symposium at the American Anthropological Association meetings in November 1999, honoring Beatrice Whiting and her work. At this symposium, 14 former students, colleagues and collaborators presented papers and discussion comments. The organizers (Thomas Weisner and Susan Abbott) sought to reflect Whiting's varied interests and projects, and worked to include different generations, students, collaborators (graduate and undergraduate), and projects. This special issue presents a set of seven papers from the symposium. Each contribution focuses on one or more of Whiting's career-long interests, including gender, women's work and education, social structure and child socialization, adolescence, …

Using Aquatic Invertebrates To Delineate Seasonal And Temporary Wetlands In The Prairie Pothole Region Of North America, Ned H. Euliss Jr., David M. Mushet, Douglas H. Johnson

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Tillage can destroy or greatly disturb indicators of hydric soils and hydrophytic vegetation, making delineation of tilled wetlands difficult. The remains of aquatic invertebrates (e.g., shells, drought-resistant eggs, and trichopteran cases) are easily identifiable and persist in wetland substrates even when wetlands are dry. Additionally, these remains are not easily destroyed by mechanical tillage. To test the feasibility of using invertebrate remains to delineate wetlands, we used two methods to identify the wetland edge of ten seasonal and ten temporary wetlands, evenly divided between grassland and cropland landscapes. First, we identified the wetland edge using hydric soil and vegetation indicators …

Floristic Quality Assessment Of One Natural And Three Restored Wetland Complexities In North Dakota, Usa, David M. Mushet, Ned H. Euliss Jr., Terry L. Shaffer

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Floristic quality assessment is potentially an important tool for conservation efforts in the northern Great Plains of North America, but it has received little rigorous evaluation. Floristic quality assessments rely on coefficients assigned to each plant species of a region’s flora based on the conservatism of each species relative to others in the region. These ‘‘coefficients of conservatism’’ (C values) are assigned by a panel of experts familiar with a region’s flora. The floristic quality assessment method has faced some criticism due to the subjective nature of these assignments. To evaluate the effect of this subjectivity on floristic quality assessments, …

Modeling The Inhibition Of The Bacterial Reduction Of U(Vi) By Β-Mno2(S), Chongxuan Liu, John M. Zachara, James K. Fredrickson, David W. Kennedy, Alice Dohnalkova

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Pyrolusite (β-MnO_2(s)) was used to assess the influence of a competitive electron acceptor on the kinetics of reduction of aqueous uranyl carbonate by a dissimilatory metal-reducing bacterium (DMRB), Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32. The enzymatic reduction of U(VI) and β-MnO_2(s) and the abiotic redox reaction between β-MnO_2(s) and biogenic uraninite (UO_2(s)) were independently investigated to allow for interpretation of studies of U(VI) bioreduction in the presence of β-MnO_2(s). Uranyl bioreduction to UO_2(s) by CN32 with H2 as the electron donor followed Monod kinetics, with a maximum specific reduction rate of 110 µM/h/10 …

Ec02-459 Heating And Cooling Systems: Saving Energy And Keeping Safe (Home*A*Syst Worksheet 1), Shirley Niemeyer, Sharon Skipton

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension: Historical Materials

Your house should be a safe, comfortable place that is affordable and durable. A house is affordable only when costs for heating and cooling are reasonable. Energy bills are lowest if a home is tightly air-sealed and pr0perly insulated and if all mechanical systems are operating efficiently.

This worksheet will help you assess the environment of your home. It will take you step-by-step through current home energy management practices and conditions. Evaluate activities and conditions according to how they might affect energy use and human health. Provide easy to understand "risk level scores" that will help the you analyze the …

Ec02-177 Purple Loosestrife, Stevan Z. Knezevic

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension: Historical Materials

Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria) is an introduced invasive weed that isover running thousands of acres of wetlands and waterways in the Midwest. Once purple loosestrife invades a wetland, natural habitat is lost and the productivity of native plant and animal communities is severely reduced. These losses in turn interfere with various levels of the ecosystem and area recreational activities such as fishing, boating and hunting, diminishing revenue from tourism and impairing the social and economic well being of local communities. A single control measure cannot provide long-term, sustainable control of this weed. An integrated approach, using a variety …

Carvacrol And Thymol Reduce Swine Waste Odor And Pathogens: Stability Of Oils, Vincent H. Varel

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

An incomplete anoxic fermentation of livestock waste results in offensive odor emissions. Antimicrobial additives may be useful in controlling odor emissions and pathogens. Natural antimicrobial compounds, carvacrol or thymol at 16.75 mM (2.5 g/l) completely inhibited the production of the offensive odor compounds, isobutyrate, valerate, isovalerate, and cresol, and significantly reduced other short-chain volatile fatty acids and gas emissions from swine waste. Fecal coliforms were reduced from 6.3 X 106 to 1.0 X 10³ cells per ml 2 days after treatment with carvacrol (13.3 mM) and were not detectable within 14 days. Total culturable anaerobic bacteria were reduced from …

Regulation Of Endometrial Granulocyte Macrophage-Colony Stimulating Factor (Gm-Csf) In The Ewe, W. J. Mcguire, K. Imakawa, K. Tamura, C. S. R. Meka, R. K. Christenson

Roman L. Hruska U.S. Meat Animal Research Center: Reports

Granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) increases ovine interferon-tau (oIFNτ) secretion by ovine conceptuses, but endometrial production of GM-CSF has not been characterized. Endometrial GM-CSF expression was evaluated in ovariectomized ewes implanted with estradiol-17β (E₂) and/or progesterone (P₄) for 14 days, in day 14 cyclic and day 14 pregnant ewes. Relative levels of endometrial GM-CSF mRNA were 3-fold higher in E₂- and E₂/P₄-treated ewes than that of control or P₄-treated ovariectomized ewes. Levels of endometrial GM-CSF mRNA for cyclic ewes were similar to E₂- and E_{2 …}