The article deals with investigation of micromycetes detected on oats grown for food and fodder under climatic conditions of Lithuania. Attention is focused on the oat varieties that are popular in Lithuania and whose grain is used for producing oat flakes and other products. The distribution of micromycetes spread on ...

Grain contamination with fungi at the moment of harvesting depends upon many factors such as plant genotype, soil, plant rotation, the agrotechnical and agrochemical measures applied, climate. Micromycetes often damage grains while they still ripen in ears. In fields, most frequent on various grains are micromycetes of the genera Alternaria ...

In 2003–2005, cereal grains grown in Lithuanian climatic conditions were strongly contaminated by mould fungi. Fusarium was among the most common fungal genera identified in wheat and barley grains. Fungi of the genus Fusarium contaminated 92.1% of the grain samples tested. The spread and subsequent development of fusaria in cereal ...

During the period 2003–2005, spring and winter cereal grain samples were analysed for the presence of the mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone (ZEN), T-2 toxin, ochratoxin A and aflatoxin (total) by the ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) method at the Lithuanian Institute of Agriculture. Mycotoxin DON produced by the fungi of the ...

Efficient plant regeneration was achieved via direct organogenesis from leaf petiole explants of Asarina erubescens (A. Gray) Pennel. Shoots were obtained from explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 6- benzylaminopurine (BAP; 4.40–44.0 mM) alone or in combination with BAP (4.40–44.0 mM) and auxin naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA; 0.54 ...

Yield, fruit size, field resistance of plants to fungal diseases and chemical content of the fruit of 19 blackcurrant cultivars and breeding clones are presented in this paper. Studies were carried out in the field of the Experimental Orchard of the Research Institute of Pomology and Floriculture at Dabrowice, near ...

The aim was to induce Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill. culture in vitro and investigate the impact of phytohormones BAP and IAA on the growth of microshoots in vitro. The experiment was carried out with plants of five different genotypes obtained from Lithuania and Sweden. Explants taken from donor plants growing ...

Regeneration experiment was started with aim to develop an efficient plant regeneration system for Cydonia oblonga Mill. cultivars. Variation of organogenic capacity of leaves depending on their position on the microshoot, photoperiod influence on differences in regeneration and interaction of these two factors was investigated in this experiment. Shoots were ...

Economical efficiency of different in vitro techniques depends on botanical species and the scale of production. We have shown that the profitability of micropropagation for commercial laboratories can achieve 160%. In system of healthy plant production sufficient costs are charged on regular virology testing. It is possible to avoid partly ...

Productivity and quality of carrot and onion grown in the field collections were investigated at the Lithuanian Institute of Horticulture in 2004–2005. Cultivar is one of the most important factors affecting yield. Two carrot hybrids (‘Svalia’ F1, ‘Skalsa’) from Lithuania and eight hybrids from Netherlands (‘Champion’ F1, ‘Puma’ F1, ‘Adige’ ...

Five introduced apple cultivars (‘Jonagold King’, ‘Jonagold Decosta’, ‘Sampion’, ‘Pinova’ and ‘Pilot’) on M.9 rootstock were tested at the Lithuanian Institute of Horticulture in Babtai in 2000–2006. Cv. ‘Pinova’ gave significantly higher average yield in the young orchard (15.3 t/ha) and cv. ‘Sampion’ was the most productive in full bearing ...

Myrobalan (Prunus cerasifera) seedlings are the most popular rootstocks for plums in Latvia. Only recently wider investigations were begun about the vegetatively propagated rootstock suitability to conditions of Latvia, their influence on plum cultivar productivity and fruit quality. In 1996–1999 several trials were planted, where different plum cultivars were grafted ...

Comprehensive evaluation of plum cultivars ‘Stenly’ and ‘Kabardinskaya Early’ grafted on clone rootstocks semi-dwarf AP-1 and dwarf Evrika was given. Myrabalan cherry plum seedlings served as control. The orchard was planted in 1997, according to scheme 6 x 4 m. Investigation of plum cultivar-rootstock combinations was carried out in 2000-2005 ...

Five apple rootstocks (M.9, M.26, J-TE-H, J-OH-A and J-TE-F) were studied in commercial clonal stoolbed in 2003-2005. The rootstocks were planted in the autumn of 1999 at the density of 10,000 plants per hectare. The shoots developing from mother plants were pruned in the stoolbed annually at the height of ...

The soil of the experimental site is (JIb-el) Eutric Albeluvisol (Abe-el) with a texture of loamy sand at footslopes and clay loam at top part of the slopes. The population density of earthworms (Lumbricidae) on slope soil was the lowest after winter wheat, which was the first crop in the ...

Two field experiments were conducted in winter wheat to determine the optimal intensity and timing of weed harrowing. Each experiment was designed to create a series of intensities by increasing the number of passes at varying growth stages. Visual assessments and digital image processing were used to assess crop soil ...

The effects of the crop rotations (2-4 course) differing in duration on the formation of pea productivity elements and the yield were investigated in stationary field experiments in Dotnuva during 1997-2004. Averaged experimental data showed that the highest pea yield (3.70 t ha-1) was recorded in the three-course crop rotation ...

Plant growth regulators (PGR) are used in an intensive farming system to control lodging in cereals. It is supposed that PGR have potential to modify cereal growth additional to their primary target of stem elongation. To estimate the influence of plant growth regulators on PAR absorption capacity of winter wheat ...

Desorption kinetic and isothermal characteristics of BDE-28 and BDE-47 were investigated using natural soils with different organic carbon fractions. The results indicated that a two-compartment first-order model with dominant contribution of slow desorption could adequately describe the released kinetics of studied PBDEs. Desorption isotherms of different samples could be fitted ...

We investigated the breeding performance of passerines nesting in the oases close to Gabès city, one of the most industrialised areas in Tunisia, in relation to habitat pollution. Using data on nest survival, clutch size and chick productivity of four insectivorous passerine species, we assessed whether the proximity to Gabès-Ghannouche ...

Nonlethal indices of contaminant exposure can facilitate research on the accumulation and effects of contaminants in wildlife. Here, we tested the efficacy of using amputated toes ("toe clips"), a common byproduct when marking amphibians in population and genetic studies, to determine mercury (Hg) concentrations in amphibians. We examined total mercury ...

Chemotaxis toward chemical pollutants provides a mechanism for bacteria to migrate to locations of high contamination, which may improve the effectiveness of bioremediation. A microfluidic device was designed to mimic the dissolution of an organic-phase contaminant from a single pore into a larger macropore representing a preferred pathway for microorganisms ...

The disposal of excess sludge from wastewater treatment plants is a serious problem that needs to be addressed. Temperature-phased anaerobic digestion (TPAD) which combines thermophilic and mesophilic processes in one, brings together the advantages of both systems. The aim of the present work was to develop a simple kinetic model ...

• Although dynamic, plant competition is usually estimated as biomass differences at a single, arbitrary time; resource capture is rarely measured. This restricted approach perpetuates uncertainty. To address this problem, we characterized the competitive dynamics of Dactylis glomerata and Plantago lanceolata as continuous trajectories of biomass production and nitrogen (N) ...

Genetically transformed, "Hairy roots" once developed can serve as a stable parent culture for in vitro production of plant secondary metabolites. However, the major bottleneck in the commercial exploitation of hairy roots remains its successful scale-up due to oxygen transfer limitation in three-dimensionally growing hairy root mass. Mass transfer resistances ...

High-frequency soil CO(2) flux data are valuable for providing new insights into the processes of soil CO(2) production. A record of hourly soil CO(2) fluxes from a semi-arid ponderosa pine stand was spatially and temporally deconstructed in attempts to determine if variation could be explained by logical drivers using (i) ...

The vertical distribution of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) was measured in a dated sediment core from the northwestern Arabian Gulf to reconstruct their depositional history. The downcore profile showed an increase in concentrations from depth to a subsurface maximum of approximately 1,500 pg g(-1) in approximately 1991, followed by an exponential decrease to ...

We examined mercury exposure in 133 endangered California clapper rails (Rallus longirostris obsoletus) within tidal marsh habitats of San Francisco Bay, California from 2006 to 2010. Mean total mercury concentrations were 0.56 μg/g ww in blood (range: 0.15-1.43), 9.87 μg/g fw in head feathers (3.37-22.0), 9.04 μg/g fw in breast feathers (3.68-20.2), and ...

The nitrate (NO) removal capacity of riparian zones is well documented, but information is lacking with regard to NO emission from riparian ecosystems and factors controlling temporal dynamics of this potent greenhouse gas. We monitored NO fluxes (static chambers) and measured denitrification (CH block using soil cores) at six riparian ...

In the new Dutch decision tree for the evaluation of pesticide leaching to groundwater, spatially distributed soil data are used by the GeoPEARL model to calculate the 90th percentile of the spatial cumulative distribution function of the leaching concentration in the area of potential usage (SP90). Until now it was ...

The dynamics of rapid changes in carbon (C) partitioning within forest ecosystems are not well understood, which limits improvement of mechanistic models of C cycling. Our objective was to inform model processes by describing relationships between C partitioning and accessible environmental or physiological measurements, with a special emphasis on short-term ...

The fate of contaminants entering the marine environment through wastewater outfalls depends on the contaminant's persistence and affinity for particles. However, the physical characteristics of the receiving environment, for example, current velocity, sedimentary processes, may be even more important. Because of the complexity of natural settings and the lack of ...

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations and their risks in surface sediments (n = 35) collected from coastal and estuarine areas of the northern Bohai and Yellow Seas, China, were investigated in 2008. Total concentrations of PAHs ranged from 52.3 to 1,870.6 ng/g dry weight. The greatest concentrations were observed in the Dou River ...

The sorption and biodegradation of three sulfonamide antibiotics, namely sulfamethoxazole (SMX), sulfadimethoxine (SDM), and sulfamonomethoxine (SMM), in an activated sludge system were investigated. Experiments were carried out by contacting 100 μg/L of each sulfonamide compound individually with 2.56 g/L of MLSS at 25 ± 0.5 °C, pH 7.0, and dissolved oxygen of 3.0 ± 0.1 mg/L in a ...

Background: Even though air pollutants exposure is associated with changes in the ocular surface and tear film, its relationship to the clinical course of blepharitis, a common eyelid disease, had not yet been investigated. Our objective was to investigate the correlation between air pollution and acute manifestations of blepharitis. Method: ...

Surface runoff from manure-fertilized fields is a significant source of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) in the environment. Sorption by soils may play a major role in the environmental fate of manure-borne EDCs, including 17α- and 17β-estradiol (17α-E2 and 17β-E2), estrone (E1), melengestrol acetate (MGA), 17α- and 17β-trenbolone (17α-TB and 17β-TB), ...

Soil organic carbon (SOC) models are used to predict changes in SOC stocks and carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions from soils, and have been successfully validated for non-saline soils. However, SOC models have not been developed to simulate SOC turnover in saline soils. Due to the large extent of salt-affected areas in ...

Predicting the transfer of contaminants in soils is often hampered by lacking validation of mathematical models. Here, we applied Hydrus-2D software to three agricultural soils for simulating the 1900-2005 changes of zinc and lead concentration profiles derived from industrial atmospheric deposition, to validate the tested models with plausible assumptions on ...

New geochemical data from two continental-scale soil surveys in Europe and Australia are compared. Internal project standards were exchanged to assess comparability of analytical results. The total concentration of 26 oxides/elements (Al(2)O(3), As, Ba, CaO, Ce, Co, Cr, Fe(2)O(3), Ga, K(2)O, MgO, MnO, Na(2)O, Nb, Ni, P(2)O(5), Pb, Rb, SiO(2), ...

The Po valley in northern Italy is renowned for its high air pollutant concentrations. Measurements of air pollutants from a background site in Modena, a town of 200 thousand inhabitants within the Po valley, are analysed. These comprise hourly data for CO, NO, NO(2), NO(x), and O(3), and daily gravimetric ...

Atmospheric deposition of Hg is the predominant pathway for Hg to reach sensitive ecosystems, but the importance of emissions on near-field deposition remains unclear. To better understand spatial variability in Hg deposition, mercury concentrations were analyzed in sediment cores from 12 lakes with undeveloped watersheds near to (<50 km) and remote ...

The uptake and accumulation of organic contaminants by plants can be detrimental to the plant itself as well as consumers. Tetracycline antibiotics are present at trace levels in soil and water. Under typical environmental conditions, they exist as zwitterions. Comparatively little is known of their uptake and accumulation by plants, ...

Greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions from constructed wetlands (CWs) can mitigate the environmental benefits of nutrient removal because reduced water pollution could be replaced by emission of GHG. Therefore, the GHG (CO(2) and CH(4)) fluxes of vertical subsurface flow constructed wetlands (VSSF CWs) under different influent C/N ratios of synthetic municipal ...

Biotic ligand-based models to predict site-specific toxicity of Cd and Pb contaminated soil were developed by using a Vibrio fischeri toxicity test. Firstly, competition effect by cations (i.e., Ca, Mg, K) commonly found in soil solution was incorporated into the models. For this purpose, biotic ligand-based model parameters including conditional ...

Concentrations and source apportionment of PM(2.5) monitored at an urban residential site in Karachi Metropolitan, Pakistan have been reported in this paper. PM(2.5) aerosol samples were collected on alternative days (three times per week) for 24-hrs duration on Zefluor(TM) filter papers using Thermo-Electron Corporation Reference Ambient Air Sampler (RAAS). A ...

Background and AimsFine root decomposition is an important determinant of nutrient and carbon cycling in grasslands; however, little is known about the factors controlling root decomposition among species. Our aim was to investigate whether interspecific variation in the potential decomposition rate of fine roots could be accounted for by root ...

Landfills are a major anthropogenic source of the greenhouse gas methane (CH(4)). However, much of the CH(4) produced during the anaerobic degradation of organic waste is consumed by methanotrophic microorganisms during passage through the landfill-cover soil. On a section of a closed landfill near Liestal, Switzerland, we performed experiments to ...

In vitro shoot multiplication of Telekia speciosa (Schreb.) Baumg. was tested on media containing benzyladenine, benzyladenine riboside, kinetin, zeatin, meta-topolin or 2-isopentenyladenine in different concentrations. We observed the proliferation rate, the length of shoots, rate of callus formation, and the presence of the hyperhydricity. The highest proliferation rate (13.17) was ...

Long-term (1860-2010) catchment mass balance calculations rely on models and assumptions which are sources of uncertainty in acidification assessments. In this article, we report on an application of MAGIC to model acidification at the four Swedish IM forested catchments that have been subject to differing degrees of acidification stress. Uncertainties ...

Surface water concentrations of dissolved organic carbon ([DOC]) are changing throughout the northern hemisphere due to changes in climate, land use and acid deposition. However, the relative importance of these drivers is unclear. Here, we use the Integrated Catchments model for Carbon (INCA-C) to simulate long-term (1996-2008) streamwater [DOC] at ...