Plant viruses in aqueous environment - Survival, water mediated transmission and detection

The presence of plant viruses outside their plant host or insect vectors has not been studied intensively. This is due, in part, to the lack of effective detection methods that would enable their detection in difficult matrixes and in low titres, and support the search for unknown viruses. Recently, new and sensitive methods for detecting viruses have resulted in a deeper insight into plant virus movement through, and transmission between, plants. In this review, we have focused on plant viruses found in environmental waters and their detection. Infectious plant pathogenic viruses from at least 7 different genera have been found in aqueous environment. The majority of the plant pathogenic viruses so far recovered from environmental waters are very stable, they can infect plants via the roots without the aid of a vector and often have a wide host range. The release of such viruses from plants can lead to their dissemination in streams, lakes, and rivers, thereby ensuring the long-distance spread of viruses that otherwise, under natural conditions, would remain restricted to limited areas.The possible sources and survival of plant viruses in waters are therefore discussed. Due to the widespread use of hydroponic systems and intensive irrigation in horticulture, the review is focused on the possibility and importance of spreading viral infection by water, together with measures for preventing the spread of viruses. The development of new methods for detecting multiple plant viruses at the same time, like microarrays or new generation sequencing, will facilitate the monitoring of environmental waters and waters used for irrigation and in hydroponic systems. It is reasonable to expect that the list of plant viruses found in waters will thereby be expanded considerably. This will emphasize the need for further studies to determine the biological significance of water-mediated transport.     

Composition of Sugars,Organic Acids,and Total Phenolics in 25 Wild or Cultivated Berry Species

Abstract: Sugars, organic acids, and total phenolic content in fruit of 25 wild and cultivated berry species were identified and quantified with high‐performance liquid chromatograph. The composition of sugars, organic acids, and total phenolic compounds in various species of Vaccinium, Rubus, Ribes, and Fragaria genus was evaluated. Additonally, total phenolics of less known berry species of the Morus, Amelanchier, Sorbus, Sambucus, Rosa, Lycium, Actinidia, and Aronia genus were determined in wild growing as well as in cultivated fruits. Significant differences in the concentration of sugars and organic acids were detected among the berry species. Glucose and fructose were the most abundant sugars in berry fruits and the major organic acids were malic and citric acid. However, in kiwi fruit, sucrose represented as much as 71.9% of total sugars. Sorbitol has been detected and quantified in chokeberry, rowanberry, and eastern shadbush fruit. The highest content of total analyzed sugars was determined in rowanberry fruit, followed by dog rose, eastern shadbush, hardy kiwifruit, American cranberry, chokeberry, and jostaberry fruit. Rowanberry stands out as the fruit with the highest content of total analyzed organic acids, followed by jostaberry, lingonberry, red gooseberry, hardy kiwifruit, and black currant. The berries of white gooseberry, black currant, red currant, and white currant had the lowest sugar/organic acid ratio and were thus perceptively the sourest species analyzed. On the other hand, the species with highest sugar/organic acid ratio were goji berry, eastern shadbush, black mulberry, and wild grown blackberry. The highest amounts of total phenols were quantified in chokeberry fruit. Wild strawberry, raspberry, and blackberry had 2‐ to 5‐fold more total phenolics compared to cultivated plants. Practical Application: The fruit of analyzed berry species contained different levels of sugars, organic acids, and total phenolics. Moreover, it has been demonstrated that wild grown species generally contain more phenolics than cultivated ones. This information is interesting for nutritionists as well as berry growers and breeders who can promote the cultivation of species and new cultivars with higher phenolic content.     

Determination of trace elements in Croatian floral honey originating from different regions

The concentrations of As, Cd, Cu, Hg and Pb were determined in 54 multi-floral honey samples collected from five regions of Croatia during 2009 and 2010. Element contents decreased in the following order: Cu > Pb > As > Hg > Cd. Significant differences in lead and copper levels were observed between regions. Mean levels of elements (μg kg⁻¹) in all honey samples measured were: 19.7 for As, 1.51 for Cd, 1074 for Cu, 2.72 for Hg and 65.2 for Pb. Copper and lead were the most abundant elements in the Centre region, with range and mean contents of 108–41,271 and 3232 μg kg⁻¹ and 22.0–440 and 131 μg kg⁻¹, respectively. The highest element contents were: As 23.8 μg kg⁻¹ in the South region, Cd 2.11 μg kg⁻¹ in the Southwest region and Hg 2.63 μg kg⁻¹ in the Northeast region. The finding that lead contents in Croatian honey were higher than most reported lead levels in honey from other European countries is of particular concern. These indicate that attention must be focused on setting positions for honey production hives in areas distant from highways and railways.     

Einfluss der HiPIMS‐Parameter beim PVD‐Verfahren

Effect of PVD process parameters on structural properties of CrN layers Commonly, imperfections on substrate surfaces influence layer nucleation unfavorably. They cause growth defects in the coating structures prepared by physical vapor deposition. In consequence this leads to local loss of adhesion, higher friction, voids and thus favoring pitting corrosion. CrN‐coatings are known for their high hardness and good wear resistance. Further they have a better resistance to corrosion than Ti‐based nitrides. Among other parameters, the structure and the mechanical properties of those coatings can be influenced by varying bias voltage and gas flow during film growth. Due to variation of those parameters during reactive magnetron sputtering CrN‐coatings were deposited with preferred crystallized lattice orientation (111) and (200). The main objective of investigation is the potential to cover imperfections.     

Investigation of major and trace elements and their distributions between lipid and non-lipid fractions in Brazil nuts by inductively coupled plasma atomic optical spectrometry

Major (Ca, Mg, P) and trace (As, Al, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Se, Zn) elements were determined in Brazil nuts by means of inductively coupled plasma atomic optical spectrometry (ICP-OES) and five of them were measured for the first time. For measurement of As, Hg and Se levels, hydride generation was used as the sample treatment method. The element concentrations were compared with recommended dietary allowances and upper tolerable levels. The distributions of the elements between lipid and lipid-free fractions were investigated with the use of solvent extraction. Two extractants (petroleum ether and chloroform:methanol 2:1) were applied. Most of the Cr, Fe and Ni contents were found in the lipid fraction, while Ba, Ca, Cu, Mn, P and Zn were mainly bonded with defatted nut residue. Al, Mg, Se, Sr were only present in the defatted fraction.     

Phenolic content and antioxidative capacity of green and white tea extracts depending on extraction conditions and the solvent used

The efficiencies of different solvents in the extraction of phenolics from bagged and loose leaves of white and green tea, after different extraction times, as well as the antioxidative capacity of the obtained extracts, were investigated. The developed HPLC method has the potential to separate and determinate 17 phenolics widely distributed in plants, but in investigated tea extracts only four catechins and traces of three flavonols and one flavone were separated and detected based on comparison with authentic standards. The extraction efficiency of phenolics depended strongly on the time of extraction and the solvents used. The extraction of catechins from green tea was significantly affected by the form (bagged or loose) of the tea, whereas this effect was shown not to be statistically significant for white tea. Green tea was a richer source of phenolics than was white tea. The extraction of phenolics from white tea by water could be accelerated by the addition of lemon juice. Aqueous ethanol (40%) was most effective in the prolonged extraction of catechins. The antioxidative capacity of the investigated tea extracts correlated with their phenolic content.