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Wireworms (Coleoptera: Elateridae) are economically significant pests of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum), damaging the marketable portion of the crop by feeding and tunneling into tubers. While conventional potato growers use the few registered synthetic insecticides to control wireworms, certified organic growers are left with less options due to the limited effectiveness of the available insecticides. Biologically derived pesticides provide an additional alternative for both systems. Certain gram-negative proteobacteria, such as Burkholderia spp. possess insecticidal compounds. However, very little is known about their efficacy on wireworms. From 2018 to 2021, we conducted experiments in Virginia to assess the efficacy of a Burkholderia spp.-based commercial pesticide, Majestene, as a wireworm control in potatoes. In a lab experiment, soil drench application of this insecticide at a rate of 66 g a.i. per 1 liter resulted in 30% wireworm mortality and significantly reduced wireworm feeding damage on potato tubers. In the field, in-furrow applications of Burkholderia spp. at a rate of 17.66 kg a.i. per ha significantly reduced wireworm damage to tubers in 2 of 7 field experiments conducted. By comparison, the commercial standard insecticide, bifenthrin, significantly reduced tuber damage in 3 of the 7 field experiments. Our study demonstrates the prospect for proteobacteria-derived insecticides for control of wireworms and potentially other soil-dwelling insects. In conclusion, findings present growers with another option to combat wireworm pressure, especially in organic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shigellosis is an endemic diarrheal disease caused by Gram negative bacteria named Shigella. The most exposed polysaccharides of Shigella sonnei display a zwitterionic disaccharide repeating unit (AB) made of two rare amino sugars: [4)-a-L-AltpNAcA-(1→3)-ß-D-Fucp-NAc4N-(1→]. An original synthesis of a ready-for-oligomerization AB disaccharide is reported. The targeted orthogonally protected disaccharide was synthesized from L-glucose and tetra-O-acetyl-ß-Dglucosamine. The challenging introduction of the 4B-azido group masking the amino moiety of the AAT residue was performed at the disaccharide stage by a two-step procedure (triflation followed by nucleophilic displacement with NaN3). A post-glycosylation oxidation strategy was employed to access the altruronate moiety. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore a grassroot festival in rural France organized around the concept of soup. The annual fête de la soupe held in a village in Auvergne provides a small-scale example of the ways in which space, time and festivalization interact in placemaking.Design/methodology/approach Ethnographic research highlights the motivations and experiences of the organizers and volunteer-participants, as well as some of the organizational challenges.Findings Revealing that the profit motive and economic outcomes are not dominant, this paper shows instead that the fête constitutes a space of relation-building between place and people, between people themselves and an introspective moment over the past and future of place as “rural”. While preserving rurality symbolized and mediated by the exchange of soup as the ultimate peasant dish, the festival is also an opportunity for villagers to revitalize the rural and showcase it as a place of creativity.Originality/value The study addresses the experience of volunteers and organizers in festivals, uses qualitative methods to do so and focuses on festivals in the rural setting, filling three gaps identified by others in the literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sequence α‐Colp‐(1→2)‐4,6‐P‐β‐ d‐Galp‐(1→3)‐[α‐Colp‐(1→4)]‐β‐ d‐GlcpNAc‐(1→4)‐α‐ d‐GalpA‐(1→3)‐β‐ d‐QuipNAc constitutes the complete O‐specific polysaccharide (O‐antigen, O‐SP) of Vibrio cholerae O139. It was chemically synthesized in a linker‐equipped, conjugation‐ready form (7) and conjugated to a model protein carrier, bovine serum albumin. The preparation involved the synthesis of a tetrasaccharide intermediate sequence β‐ d‐Galp‐(1→3)‐β‐ d‐GlcpNAc‐(1→4)‐α‐ d‐GalpA‐(1→3)‐β‐ d‐QuipNAc→linker by coupling of two disaccharide intermediates followed by a stepwise, two single‐site colitosylations. The present synthesis is an alternative to the academic, small‐scale synthesis developed earlier where the final hexasaccharide assembly was achieved by simultaneous, two‐sites colitosylation. The approach reported herein comprises a few more synthetic steps but is experimentally less demanding, minimizes separation difficulties and is more convenient when tens of mgs of the final product is required. Syntheses of non‐phosphorylated and methyl ester analogues of 7 are also described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transgenic crops containing the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) genes reduce pests and insecticide usage, promote biocontrol services, and economically benefit growers. Area-wide Bt adoption suppresses pests regionally, with declines expanding beyond the planted Bt crops into other non-Bt crop fields. However, the offsite benefits to growers of other crops from such regional suppression remain uncertain. With data spanning 1976-2016, we demonstrate that vegetable growers benefit via decreased crop damage and insecticide applications in relation to pest suppression in the Mid-Atlantic United States. We provide evidence for the regional suppression of Ostrinia nubilalis (Hübner), European corn borer, and Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), corn earworm, populations in association with widespread Bt maize adoption (1996-2016) and decreased economic levels for injury in vegetable crops [peppers (Capsicum annuum L.), green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), and sweet corn (Zea mays L., convar. saccharata)] compared with the pre-Bt period (1976-1995). Moth populations of both species significantly declined in association with widespread Bt maize (field corn) adoption, even as increased temperatures buffered the population reduction. We show marked decreases in the number of recommended insecticidal applications, insecticides applied, and O. nubilalis damage in vegetable crops in association with widespread Bt maize adoption. These offsite benefits to vegetable growers in the agricultural landscape have not been previously documented, and the positive impacts identified here expand on the reported ecological effects of Bt adoption. Our results also underscore the need to account for offsite economic benefits of pest suppression, in addition to the direct economic benefits of Bt crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many rural areas have reinvented their territorial development through tourism, turning to vernacular heritage to ensure their future. Various models of heritage preservation and valorization are adopted where small-scale agriculture is no longer viable. Among them, ecomuseums and place-based labelization schemes transform rural heritage into an economic resource while remaining grounded in cultural and architectural preservation and identity transmission to future generations. Both face criticisms, including being decried as fostering the museumification and mythification of the rural, effectively holding back rural areas in an imagined and romanticized past rather than providing a vision for a sustainable future. The Association of the Most Beautiful Villages of France and the Ecomusée d'Alsace illustrate the debate. This investigation analyzes how these two initiatives challenge critics. It unveils their respective understandings of the future of rurality and their approach to promoting sustainable communities through tourism. By highlighting responses to tensions between valorizing the past and forward development in the countryside, findings reveal paradigm shifts from traditional habitat preservation to future-oriented architectural pedagogy in one case, while operational exigencies and normative quality principles mitigate opportunities in the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Brasileira de Linguística Antropológica is the property of Revista Brasileira de Linguística Antropológica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Brasileira de Linguística Antropológica is the property of Revista Brasileira de Linguística Antropológica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Harlequin bug, Murgantia histrionica (Hahn) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), is a piercing-sucking pest of cole crops, causing cosmetic damage in low populations, while heavy pest pressure can kill plants or entire fields. Field studies were conducted to evaluate a trap crop for control of harlequin bug in collard. Field-cage choice tests found that potential trap crop plant species, mustard (Brassica juncea 'Southern Giant Curled'), rapeseed (B. napus 'Athena'), rapini (B. rapa), and arugula (Eruca sativa) attracted more harlequin bugs than collard (B. oleracea 'Champion') and a nonbrassica control, bean (Phaseolus culgaris 'Bronco'). Mustard was the most consistently selected by harlequin bug over collard in choice tests, and was found to be an effective trap crop for reducing feeding injury on collard at two experimental sites. Augmentation of the mustard trap crop with a systemic, neonicotinoid insecticide provided no added control of harlequin bug for the 10 wk duration in the spring season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives To validate the use of Real Time PCR, a widely used technique that can detect very low levels of Y chromosomal sequence, and to assess the use of a highly sensitive PCR technique, pyrophosphorolysis-activated polymerisation (PAP), for fetal sex determination using free fetal DNA (ffDNA). Methods The fetal sex was determined by Real Time PCR in 58 pregnancies using ffDNA isolated from maternal plasma. In parallel with the Real Time PCR experiments, the presence of Y chromosome sequence was also determined using PAP on 54 isolated ffDNA samples. Results Both techniques detected Y chromosome sequence at very low levels with 98% specificity and 100% sensitivity (Real Time n = 44, PAP n = 54). Furthermore, the PAP technique was shown to be more robust than the Real Time PCR as none of the samples tested failed to meet the acceptance criteria. Combining the two techniques for male fetal sex detection from maternal blood plasma increases the sensitivity and specificity to 100% in this series. Conclusions This study shows that both Real Time PCR and PAP can be used for Y chromosome detection on ffDNA. Furthermore, by using PAP in combination with Real Time PCR more reliable early prenatal sexing can be performed using ffDNA. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To test the efficacy of 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) on functional status, walking speed and vibration perception in patients with chronic, incomplete spinal cord injury. Methods Twenty SCI patients were randomized in a trial with a double-blind, crossover design to receive four weeks of orally administered 4-AP, followed by a two-week wash-out period and four weeks of placebo, or vice versa. The total daily dose of 4-AP during the four weeks of treatment was systematically increased to a maximum of 0.5 mg/kg body weight. Evaluation of (side-)effects took place at the beginning, after one week, and at the end of each four-week study period. Results No significant benefit was found on functional status (COOP-WONCA). A statistically significant treatment effect was found on the vibration perception threshold (VPT) in the left fingers, during the first study period. On average, patients receiving 4-AP treatment responded less favourably (mean increase in VPT of 0.29 (0.31) μm) than patients receiving placebo (mean decrease in VPT of 0.05 (0.35) μm) (p=0.04). Neither comfortable nor maximum walking speed altered significantly following 4-AP treatment. Conclusions No statistically significant, functional benefit from 4-AP was found for patients in the present study. Furthermore, no support was found for the possibility that an a priory selection of responsive patients would have yielded more favourable results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]