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Abstract Renewable energy has grown substantially in recent years due to its efficacy in mitigating climate change. The rapid proliferation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and subsequent alterations in land use have led to concerns about the impact on local ecosystems. Particularly in Japan, seminatural grasslands, which are valuable habitats, are being developed as solar PVs. Here, we focused on stilt-mounted agrivoltaic systems, capable of both photovoltaic power generation and plant growth beneath solar panels. By repurposing this technology, the coexistence of vegetation and solar PV systems can be possibly ensured. To assess the feasibility of this proposed approach, we initially examined the suitability of installing solar PV in seminatural grasslands. The suitability of seminatural grasslands, solar PVs, and random points for solar PV was evaluated in terms of electricity generation and construction costs. The environmental conditions of seminatural grasslands were found to be advantageous for electricity generation. On the other hand, in terms of construction costs, seminatural grasslands were comparable to randomly selected sites. These findings indicate that the suitability of existing seminatural grasslands for solar PV plant installations is not considerably lower than that of other land types. The idea of reconciling solar power generation with ecosystem conservation holds promise and warrants further investigation toward its realization.

The ambrosia beetle Platypus quercivorus (Maruyama) transmits the pathogenic fungus Raffaelea quercivora Kubono et Shin. Ito, causing Japanese oak wilt and subsequent tree dieback. In recent years, there has been a marked increase in mortality of secondary forests due to Japanese oak wilt, especially in suburban and urban parks, as P. quercivorus finds suitable host trees and environments. To prevent extensive mortality from P. quercivorus attacks, it is crucial to establish effective management strategies for secondary forests. In this study, we aimed to investigate the occurrence patterns of P. quercivorus attacks and identify effective management strategies in urban parks that have experienced recent outbreaks of Japanese oak wilt to find any hints for establishing effective management strategies. Over a two-year period, we surveyed the occurrence of P. quercivorus attacks on Quercus serrata Murray trees along walking trails and assessed surrounding conditions. Through data analysis, we identified significant factors influencing attacks. The results revealed distinct differences in host tree condition and attack severity between parks. Although the proportion of attacked trees in one park markedly increased over the two-year period, the other park remained stable, suggesting different attack phases between parks. In the former park, the occurrence of attacks was positively correlated with tree size, severity of nearby attacks, and nearby tree dieback but negatively correlated with surrounding tree density and occurrences of last year attack. Conversely, in the latter park, only occurrences of last year attack showed a significant negative correlation with attack occurrence. This discrepancy may be attributed to variations in the attack phase of P. quercivorus in each park. From a management perspective, park managers should establish flexible forest management strategies in suburban and urban parks to adapt to different attack phases.

Abstract In recent years, computer simulation has been increasingly used to predict changes in actual ecosystems. In these studies, snapshots of ecosystems at certain points in time were instantly constructed without considering their evolutionary histories. However, it may not be possible to correctly predict future events unless their evolutionary processes are considered. In this study, we developed a new ecosystem model for reproducing the evolutionary process on an oceanic island, targeting Nakoudojima Island of the Ogasawara Islands. This model successfully reproduced the primitive ecosystem (the entire island covered with forest) prior to the invasion of alien species. Also, by adding multiple alien species to this ecosystem, we were able to reproduce temporal changes in the ecosystem of Nakoudojima Island after invasion of alien species. Then, we performed simulations in which feral goats were eradicated, as had actually been done on the island; these suggested that after the eradication of feral goats, forests were unlikely to be restored. In the ecosystems in which forests were not restored, arboreous plants with a high growth rate colonized during the early stage of evolution. As arboreous plants with a high growth rate consume a large amount of nutrient in soil, creating an oligotrophic state. As a result, plants cannot grow, and animal species that rely on plants cannot maintain their biomass. Consequently, many animals and plants become extinct as they cannot endure disturbances by alien species, and the ecosystem loses its resilience. Therefore, even if feral goats are eradicated, forests are not restored. Thus, the founder effect from the distant past influences future ecosystem changes. Our findings show that it is useful to consider the evolutionary process of an ecosystem in predicting its future events.

A high temperature-humidity index during summer has deleterious effects on mitochondrial function, reducing oocyte developmental competence. 5-Aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and sodium ferrous citrate (SFC) are both known to support mitochondrial function and have strong anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic activities. This study aimed to determine the mechanism of action of 5-ALA/SFC on oocyte quality. Bovine oocytes were collected from medium-sized follicles during summer (July–September, temperature-humidity index:76.6), cultured with 0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 µM 5-ALA with SFC at a molar ratio of 1:0.125, fertilized, and cultured for 10 days. The addition of 8/1 µM 5-ALA/SFC had a deleterious effect on oocyte cleavage rate in comparison with control oocytes, but did not affect the blastocyst rate, while 1/0.125 µM 5-ALA/SFC had a significantly higher increase in blastocyst rate than 8/1 µM 5-ALA/SFC. The addition of 1/0.125 and 2/0.25 µM 5-ALA/SFC improved oocyte quality by increasing the mitochondrial distribution pattern and metaphase-II oocytes, reducing reactive oxygen species and upregulating nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2, heme oxygenase-1, and superoxide dismutase-1 in oocytes, and nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 and mitochondrial transcription factor A in cumulus cells. These results indicate that 1/0.125 and 2/0.25 µM 5-ALA/SFC may support oocyte quality and developmental competence and provide anti-oxidant actions in cumulus-oocyte complexes.

Abstract Prediction of the spaces used by animals is an important component of wildlife management, but requires detailed information such as animal visit and occupy in a short span of the target species. Computational simulation is often employed as an effective and economical approach. In this study, the visit and occupy of sika deer (Cervus nippon) during the plant growing season were predicted using a virtual ecological approach. A virtual ecological model was established to predict the visit and occupy of sika deer based on the indices of their food resources. The simulation results were validated against data collected from a camera trapping system. The study was conducted from May to November in 2018 in the northern Kanto region of Japan. The predictive performance of the model using the kernel normalized difference vegetation index (kNDVI) was relatively high in the earlier season, whereas that of the model using landscape structure was relatively low. The predictive performance of the model using combination of the kNDVI and landscape structure was relatively high in the later season. Unfortunately, visit and occupy of sika deer could not predict in November. The use of both models, depending on the month, achieved the best performance to predict the movements of sika deer.

Genetic mechanisms influencing COVID-19 susceptibility are not well understood. Here, the authors analyzed whole blood RNA-seq data of 465 Japanese individuals with COVID-19, highlighting thousands of fine-mapped variants affecting expression and splicing of genes, as well as the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs.

Abstract Climate change may disrupt species–species interactions via phenological changes in one or both species. To predict and evaluate the influence of climate change on these interactions, long-term monitoring and sampling over large spatial areas are required; however, funding and labor constraints limit data collection. In this study, we predict and evaluate the plant–insect interactions with limited data sets. We examined plant–insect interaction using observational data for development of the crop plant rice (Oryza sativa) and an effective accumulated temperature (EAT) model of two mirid bugs (Stenotus rubrovittatus and Trigonotylus caelestialium). We combined 11 years of records monitoring rice phenology and the predicted phenology of mirid bugs using spatially–explicit EAT models based on both spatially and temporally high resolutions temperature data sets, then evaluated their accuracy using actual pest damage records. Our results showed that the predicted interactions between rice and mirid bugs explained rice damage to some degree. Our approach may apply predicting changes to plant–insect interactions under climate change. As such, combining plant monitoring records and theoretical predictions of insect phenology may be effective for predicting species–species interactions when available data are limited.

High summer temperatures have deleterious effects on oocyte developmental competence. The antioxidant and autophagy-related properties of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) gives the compound a broad range of biological activities. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of: 1) a high temperature-humidity index (THI) on the developmental competence of bovine oocytes, and 2) 5-ALA administration in combination with sodium ferrous citrate (SFC) during in vitro maturation (IVM) on bovine oocyte developmental competence evaluated at high THI. Bovine ovaries were collected from a local slaughterhouse at moderate environmental temperature (MT; THI of 56.2) and high environmental temperature (HT; THI of 76.7) periods; cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were aspirated from medium-sized follicles, matured in vitro for 22 h, fertilized, and cultured for 10 days. For COCs collected during the HT period, 0 (control), 0.01, 0.1, 0.5, or 1 µM 5-ALA was added to the maturation medium in combination with SFC at a molar ratio of 1:0.125. The results showed that HT adversely affected blastocyst and hatching rates compared with MT. Adding 5-ALA/SFC (1 µM/0.125 µM) to the maturation medium of oocytes collected during the HT period improved cumulus cell expansion and blastocyst rates compared with the no-addition control. In conclusion, this study showed that high THI can disrupt bovine oocyte developmental competence. Adding 5-ALA to SFC ameliorates this negative effect of heat stress and improves subsequent embryo development.

Abstract The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a worldwide lockdown, and this restriction on human movements and activities has significantly affected society and the environment. Some effects might be quantitative, but some might be qualitative, and some effects could prolong immediately and/or persistently. This study examined the consequences of global lockdown for human movement and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) emissions using an air pollution index and dataset and satellite image analyses. We also evaluated the immediate (during lockdown) and persistent (after lockdown) effects of lockdown on achieving the SDGs. Our analysis revealed a drastic reduction in human movement and NO2 emissions and showed that many SDGs were influenced both immediately and persistently due to the global lockdown. We observed the immediate negative impacts on four goals and positive impacts on five goals, especially those concerning economic issues and ecosystem conservation, respectively. The persistent effects of lockdown were likely to be predominantly reversed from their immediate impacts due to economic recovery. The global lockdown has influenced the global community’s ability to meet the SDGs, and our analysis provides powerful insights into the status of the internationally agreed-upon SDGs both during and after the COVID-19-induced global lockdown.

Background This study assessed longitudinal national data on mortality due to nontuberculous mycobacteriosis (NTMosis) and bronchiectasis and the association between the two diseases. Methods We analysed the national death statistics of Japan from 1970 to 2015. The International Classification of Disease (ICD) codes were used to extract the relevant data. Crude mortality, age-adjusted mortality and standardised mortality rates were calculated using vital statistics and the population in 2000. We also identified domestic publications related to NTMosis and bronchiectasis with an internet-based search system. Results The total number of bronchiectasis-related deaths remained at the same level, which was approximately 1000, for 45 years, although the number of deaths has consistently decreased in males but increased in females since the mid-1990s. A substantial increasing trend in females was also observed for NTMosis in the same period. The age-adjusted mortality data showed an increase in mortality in women due to NTMosis and confirmed the trend in bronchiectasis in women. The patterns in the number of domestic reports showed a recent slight increase in bronchiectasis and a marked increase in NTMosis. Conclusions The trends in bronchiectasis-related mortality differed by sex. The epidemiological trends in the two diseases were associated, especially in elderly females since the mid-1990s. It is suggested that pulmonary NTMosis without pre-existing bronchiectasis might be a leading cause of postinfectious bronchiectasis in Japan.

Abstract The mirid bugs Stenotus rubrovittatus and Trigonotylus caelestialium, which cause pecky rice, have become a threat to rice cultivation in Asia. Damage caused by these pests has rapidly become frequent since around 2000 in Japan. Their expansion pattern is not simple, and predicting their future spread remains challenging. Some insects with wide ranges have locally adapted variations in life‐history traits. We performed laboratory rearing experiments to assess the geographical scale of intraspecific variations in life‐history traits of S. rubrovittatus and T. caelestialium. The experiments were aimed at increasing the accuracy of occurrence estimates and the number of generations per year. These results were compared with previous research, and differences in development rates were observed between populations of different latitudes, but not of the same latitude. Finally, plotting the timing of adult emergence and the potential number of generations per year on maps with a 5‐km grid revealed that they differed greatly locally at the same latitude. These maps can be used for developing more efficient methods of managing mirid bugs in integrated pest management.

The aim of this study was to clarify the influence of Lactobacillus spp. on the degree of endometrial inflammation in the postpartum period and the relationship between Lactobacillus spp. and pathogenic bacteria in the endometrium of postpartum dairy cows. Endometrial samples were collected from 41 Holstein-Friesian cows at 4 and 8 weeks postpartum using cytobrushes for polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN) count and bacterial culture to isolate Lactobacillus spp., Escherichia coli, and Trueperella pyogenes. The 4-week samples were divided into four groups (E+L+), (E+L−), (E−L+), (E−L−) according to whether endometritis was diagnosed (E+) and Lactobacillus spp. was isolated (L+). The diagnostic criterion for cytological endometritis was > 18% PMN. The average PMN% in the E+L+ group was lower than that in the E+L-group (P < 0.05) at 8 weeks postpartum. There were no significant correlations between the number of colonies of Lactobacillus spp. and E. coli or between that of Lactobacillus spp. and T. pyogenes. Lactobacillus spp. could reduce PMN% in dairy cows with endometritis during the puerperal period. In conclusion, the intrauterine presence of Lactobacillus spp. may have a positive effect on uterine involution in postpartum dairy cows.

Biodiversity informatics is a new and evolving field, requiring efforts to develop capacity and a curriculum for this field of science. The main objective was to summarise the level of activity and the efforts towards developing biodiversity informatics curricula, for work-based training and/or academic teaching at universities, taking place within the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) countries and its associated network. A survey approach was used to identify existing capacities and resources within the network. Most of GBIF Nodes survey respondents (80%) are engaged in onsite training activities, with a focus on work-based professionals, mostly researchers, policy-makers and students. Training topics include data mobilisation, digitisation, management, publishing, analysis and use, to enable the accessibility of analogue and digital biological data that currently reside as scattered datasets. An initial assessment of academic teaching activities highlighted that countries in most regions, to varying degrees, were already engaged in the conceptualisation, development and/or implementation of formal academic programmes in biodiversity informatics, including programmes in Benin, Colombia, Costa Rica, Finland, France, India, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, Taiwan and Togo. Digital e-learning platforms were an important tool to help build capacity in many countries. In terms of the potential in the Nodes network, 60% expressed willingness to be recruited or commissioned for capacity enhancement purposes. Contributions and activities of various country nodes across the network have been highlighted and a working curriculum framework has been defined.

A certain level of endometrial bacterial infection and inflammation is involved in bovine uterine involution during the puerperal period. Factors that hamper normal uterine involution expose the uterine environment to pathological conditions, causing different endometritis levels. The lack of proper diagnostic tools extends the time to conception. Efforts have been made to elucidate the postpartum uterine environment, including bacterial flora, changes in transient endometrial inflammation, and the pathophysiology of endometritis, to improve bovine reproductive performance. E. coli and Trueperella pyogenes in the uterus are likely to cause persistent infection, and Mycoplasma bovigenitalium infection is associated with dystocia and cytological endometritis in postpartum dairy cows. Due to the widespread use of cytobrush as a diagnostic tool for bovine subclinical endometritis (SE) that enables quantification of the degree of inflammation, we found that endometritis at week 5 postpartum was associated with delayed first ovulation. Approximately 30% of open cows have SE during the postpartum period, and cows with low blood glucose during prepartum have a high risk of developing SE. Additionally, cows with purulent vaginal discharge do not always have endometritis but only vaginitis and/or cervicitis. Intrauterine infusion of polyvinylpyrrolidone-iodine (PVP-I) improves fertility and promotes endometrial epithelial cell regeneration after inducing transient uterine inflammation, suggesting that PVP-I could be a good alternative to antibiotics. In conclusion, prepartum management to prevent glucose deficiency, prompt diagnosis to identify causative agents and intrauterine inflammation levels, and appropriate treatment to minimize antimicrobial resistance is beneficial for tackling endometritis and improving reproductive performance in bovine herds.

Abstract. Introduction:. Patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) sometimes show persistent severe inflammation for more than 1 month, even if TB treatment is effective. Although this inflammation can be improved through continuous antituberculous therapy, the risk factors for persistent inflammation remain unclear. Therefore, we sought to study the characteristics of patients with persistent severe inflammation. Materials and methods:. We retrospectively analyzed 147 hospitalized adult patients with C-reactive protein (CRP) levels of 5 mg/dL or more on admission to Fukujuji Hospital from April 2019 to March 2021. The patients were divided into 2 groups: 40 patients (27.2%) had CRP levels of 5 mg/dL or more at 4 weeks after admission (persistent inflammation group), and 107 patients (72.8%) had CRP levels that fell below 5 mg/dL within 4 weeks of admission (improved inflammation group). Results:. The median CRP level on admission in the persistent inflammation group was 10.8 mg/dL (interquartile range 9.1–14.5), which was higher than that in the improved inflammation group (median 8.2 mg/dL [6.5–12.1], P = .002). Patients in the persistent inflammation group had a higher prevalence of large cavities, defined as cavities ≥4 cm in diameter, on chest computed tomography (CT) (n = 20 [50.0%] vs n = 12 [11.2%], P

Conservation for both biodiversity and ecosystem services are an important issue worldwide. However, knowledge of their relationship remains limited. As habitat structure is strongly related to regional biodiversity, we studied cultural ecosystem services by using habitat structure as a proxy for biodiversity. Specifically, we used human preference, assessed by using photos with location information (i.e. geo-tagged digital pictures) as an index of a cultural ecosystem service. We conducted nature walks in semi-natural environments for cognitively-impaired students from a local special school and studied the photos they took during the walks. We analysed the habitat preferences inferred from the photo locations and the composition of the photos—whether they were close-up, scenic or landscape views. The results showed that levels of human preference and biodiversity, indicated by habitat structure, had a positive relationship. During spring to autumn, when levels of biological activity are higher, people tended to show more preference in close-up views (i.e. the subject of the photo was the species itself). In winter, they tended to be interested in scenic views that were not strongly influenced by species diversity. Additionally, photos taken in areas with threatened species almost always included close-up views, although not of the threatened species themselves. Areas with high species diversity therefore appeared to be more appealing to the participants. These results suggest that habitat diversity could not only contribute to biodiversity, but also provide cultural ecosystem services. Habitat conservation for semi-natural environments could be synergised for both biodiversity conservation and general human well-being.

Dystocia and stillbirths in cows pose a high risk of loss of both dams and fetuses, thereby resulting in high economic losses. One of the causes of these problems is birth canal abnormalities. Thus, to prevent these occurrences, it is necessary to understand the mechanisms underlying cervical ripening. Although physiological inflammatory responses and changes in collagen composition have been reported in humans and mice, related information is scarce for cows. We observed inflammatory changes and changes in the collagen composition in the cervix from late pregnancy to parturition to clarify some of the physiological changes associated with cervical ripening during normal calving in cows. Cervical mucus and tissue samples were collected from 41 Japanese Black cows at 200, 230, and 260 days of gestation and at 7-day intervals thereafter until parturition. The percentage of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN%) in the mucus was calculated, and interleukin (IL)-8 concentration was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Blood samples were collected from the jugular vein, and leukocyte counts were determined. Picrosirius red-stained cervical tissue specimens were observed under a polarizing microscope, and the percentage of type I and type III collagen areas in the cervical tissue were calculated. The PMN% in cervical mucus was lowest at 200 days gestation (12–13 weeks before delivery), significantly increased 5 weeks before (21.7 ± 0.04), and was highest 1 week before calving (50.9 ± 0.04). IL-8 levels were increased at 295 days compared with those at 200 days of pregnancy (p < 0.05). No significant changes were observed in the white blood cell counts. The percentage of type I collagen in the cervical tissue reached a maximum (91.4 ± 0.02%) on day 200, significantly decreased after 274 days (3 weeks before calving), and continued to decrease thereafter until the week of parturition. There was no significant change in type III collagen levels. The results suggest that cervical ripening progresses when PMNs begin to infiltrate the cervix at around 260 days of gestation (5–4 weeks before parturition), IL-8, which increases at the end of pregnancy, mobilizes PMNs, and enhances inflammation, and that type I collagen changes are useful as an indicator of cervical ripening.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of herd size on stillbirth and dystocia rates; the relationships between herd size, calving season, parity, and gestation length in Japanese Black cattle were also explored. Data were collected for 41,184 calvings from 15,512 animals on 905 farms between 2006 and 2010. In this study, herds were classified into three groups based on size: small (1–10 cows), medium (11–50 cows), and large (≥51 cows). Herd size had an effect on the dystocia rate (p < 0.05) but not the stillbirth rate. Additionally, interactions between herd size and gestation length were associated with the dystocia rate (p < 0.05), and the dystocia rate was the highest in small herds, followed by medium and large herds for cows with a gestation length of 281–300 days, which is considered a pregnancy of normal duration. In summary, in Japanese Black cattle, there were different effects of herd size on the stillbirth rate and dystocia rates, as herd size was associated with the dystocia rate but not with the stillbirth rate.

Abstract 1. To be effective, the next generation of conservation practitioners and managers need to be critical thinkers with a deep understanding of how to make evidence‐based decisions and of the value of evidence synthesis. 2. If, as educators, we do not make these priorities a core part of what we teach, we are failing to prepare our students to make an effective contribution to conservation practice. 3. To help overcome this problem we have created open access online teaching materials in multiple languages that are stored in Applied Ecology Resources. So far, 117 educators from 23 countries have acknowledged the importance of this and are already teaching or about to teach skills in appraising or using evidence in conservation decision‐making. This includes 145 undergraduate, postgraduate or professional development courses. 4. We call for wider teaching of the tools and skills that facilitate evidence‐based conservation and also suggest that providing online teaching materials in multiple languages could be beneficial for improving global understanding of other subject areas.

An eighty-three-year-old man suffered from cough, right chest pain, and progressive dyspnea for sixteen days. He had hypoxemia, high white blood cells and C-reactive protein, and moderate right-sided pleural effusion on radiographic imaging. A pleural fluid examination revealed exudate. He was diagnosed with pleural infection and treated with intravenous ampicillin/sulbactam. On the second day of hospitalization, the treatment was changed to levofloxacin and clindamycin due to drug eruption. He improved gradually and was prescribed only oral levofloxacin on the eighteenth day of hospitalization. However, improvements in inflammation and imaging findings were poor. Actinomyces meyeri resistant to fluoroquinolones was cultured from a pleural effusion sample on the twenty-sixth day of hospitalization. The treatment was changed to oral clindamycin, and his medical condition subsequently improved. We reviewed twenty-eight patients with Actinomyces pleural infection and thirty-eight patients with other pleural infection phenotypes from our hospital and published case reports. Actinomyces pleural infection is a long-term process and results in a large amount of pleural effusion compared to other pleural infection phenotypes. These results might be related to the fact that Actinomyces is a slow-growing organism.

Background Although integrated pest management (IPM) is essential for conservation agriculture, this method can be inadequate for severely infected fields. The ability to predict the potential occurrence of severe infestation of soil-borne disease would enable farmers to adopt suitable methods for high-risk areas, such as soil disinfestation, and apply other options for lower risk areas. Recently, researchers have used species distribution modeling (SDM) to predict the occurrence of target plant and animal species based on various environmental variables. In this study, we applied this technique to predict and map the occurrence probability of a soil-borne disease, Verticillium wilt, using cabbage as a case study. Methods A disease survey assessing the distribution of Verticillium wilt in cabbage fields in Tsumagoi village (central Honshu, Japan) was conducted two or three times annually from 1997 to 2013. Road density, elevation and topographic wetness index (TWI) were selected as explanatory variables for disease occurrence potential. A model of occurrence probability of Verticillium wilt was constructed using the MaxEnt software for SDM analysis. As the disease survey was mainly conducted in an agricultural area, the area was weighted as “Bias Grid” and area except for the agricultural area was set as background. Results Grids with disease occurrence showed a high degree of coincidence with those with a high probability occurrence. The highest contribution to the prediction of disease occurrence was the variable road density at 97.1%, followed by TWI at 2.3%, and elevation at 0.5%. The highest permutation importance was road density at 93.0%, followed by TWI at 7.0%, while the variable elevation at 0.0%. This method of predicting disease probability occurrence can help with disease monitoring in areas with high probability occurrence and inform farmers about the selection of control measures.

Abstract Agriculture faces the great challenge of developing strategies to maintain production while simultaneously reducing environmental impacts. The trade‐off between crop production and water quality services is one of the most serious issues facing agriculture, and interest in achieving win–win outcomes through management of ecosystem services is growing. Although wetlands can reduce nitrogen loads, it is unclear whether maintaining and restoring wetlands can ameliorate the trade‐off between crop production and water quality and thereby increase the likelihood of win–win outcomes. We defined the orthogonal residuals from the regression line relating the trade‐offs between two conflicting services as the degree to which the trade‐off was mitigated (mitigation effectiveness score). The more positive the residual, the higher mitigation effectiveness score, and the greater the potential to mitigate the trade‐off. We measured nitrate concentrations, as an indicator of water quality, five times during summer and winter across 49 sub‐watersheds of the watershed of Lake Kasumigaura, which is highly nitrogen‐loaded by agriculture. We quantified the mitigation effectiveness score from the trade‐off relationships between cropland area and nitrate concentrations, and we also identified landscape and environmental factors that affected these scores. Some sub‐watersheds in our study had high cropland cover but low nitrate concentrations. Overall, we found that mitigation effectiveness scores were positively associated with wetland cover at all sampling times. Other factors, including covers of paddy rice fields, abandoned rice fields, and impervious surfaces, and dissolved organic carbon concentrations, had no significant effects on mitigation effectiveness scores, although these factors were considered to increase nitrogen removal. Our findings suggest that maintaining and restoring wetlands might mitigate the trade‐off between crop production and water quality and thereby enhance the likelihood of win–win outcomes in agricultural landscapes. Because wetland area has decreased, flooding or ponding abandoned rice fields may be an important alternative management option. The nitrate concentrations we observed met the water quality standard for drinking water, but the fact that they sometimes exceeded the nitrogen environmental target adopted within Lake Kasumigaura in terms of eutrophication suggests that simultaneous reduction of croplands and fertilizer inputs should still be encouraged.

Several external factors including lunar cycle and weather conditions might be associated with calving conditions. Our objective here was to determine the effects of lunar cycle and weather conditions on calving frequency and the occurrence of preterm calving in Japanese Black cows. Calving records were obtained from 905 farms in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan. Data were collected from 41,116 calvings. We conducted two studies: Study 1 investigated the effects of lunar cycle and weather conditions on daily calving frequency (DCF) with the observational unit of each day and Study 2 investigated those effects on the occurrence of preterm calving with the observational unit for each calving. Preterm calving was defined by whether or not a cow calving before 280 days of gestation, lower 10th percentile of gestation length of the collected data, and by whether or not a cow calving before 289 days of gestation, median of the gestation length. For Study 1, lunar cycle was not associated with DCF in all cows, in only primiparous cows and in only multiparous cows. As well as lunar cycle, weather conditions such as temperature, diurnal temperature variation, the temperature-humidity index, precipitation amount, barometric pressure, relative humidity and solar radiation, were also not associated with DCF. For Study 2, lunar cycle phases were not associated with the occurrence of preterm calving. However, preterm calving was associated with all of the weather conditions (P < 0.05) except for precipitation amounts and solar radiation. Temperature, the temperature-humidity index and relative humidity were positively associated with the occurrence of preterm calving. In contrast, diurnal temperature variations and barometric pressure were negatively associated with the occurrence of preterm calving. In conclusion, the lunar cycle was not associated with DCF and preterm calving, but the weather conditions were associated with preterm calving.

Ovine sera collected in the Prefectures of Hokkaido, Aomori and Iwate in the Northern Japan were examined for the presence of antibodies against Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), bovine Herpesvirus type 1 (infectious bovine rhinotracheitis: IBR) and Parainfluenza virus type 3 (PIV3) using serum neutralisation (SN) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests. Twenty-three animals (11.73%) out of the 196 tested were sero-positive to PIV3. Sixteen animals (8.69%) out of the 184 tested reacted to RSV. No animals were positive to IBR antigen. Sero-conversions to PIV3 were detected in Hokkaido and Iwate (14.92% and 8.82%, respectively). Antibodies against RSV were detected in Hokkaido (9.23%) and Aomori (14.28%). Although no diagnostic measures were in place, the infections did not appear to be related to any reduction in sheep productivity.

Ovine sera collected from the northern Prefectures of Hokkaido, Iwate and Aomori in Japan, were examined for the presence of antibodies against Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) using the complement fixation test and, against Brucella spp., using both the rapid serum agglutination test and the complement fixation test. None of the sera tested were serologically positive to Brucella spp. A total of 21 animals (8.64%) out of 243 samples tested were seropositive to the C. burnetii antigen. Levels of infection were observed in all of the three Prefectures and in ten flocks of the fourteen sampled. Although no diagnostic measures were in place, the infection could not be linked to losses in sheep production or to the decreased fertility in ewes, a lower lambing rate and mortality in lambs. These data confirmed that Q fever is widespread in the sheep population in the area studied. Considering the zoonotic potential of the disease, further studies to investigate the epidemiology of Q fever in this region are required.

Ovine sera collected from the northern Prefectures of Hokkaido, Iwate and Aomori in Japan, were examined for the presence of antibodies against visna-maedi virus using the agar gel immunodiffusion test and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. Three animals (1.12%), out of 267 samples tested, were found to be seropositive to the visna-maedi antigens in both tests. Levels of infection were found in flocks from Hokkaido and Iwate Prefectures, but not in the Aomori Prefecture. Nucleic acid detection by polymerase chain reaction on serum samples did not give positive results. Although no diagnostic measures were in place, the infection could not be related to losses in sheep production or to reduced survival rates. The very limited visna-maedi distribution indicates a highly favourable condition for the application of eradication strategies in this area.

Water-intensive systems of rice cultivation are facing major challenges to increase rice grain yield under conditions of water scarcity while also reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The adoption of effective irrigation strategies in the paddy rice system is one of the most promising options for mitigating GHG emissions while maintaining high crop yields. To evaluate the effect of different alternate wetting and drying (AWD) irrigation strategies on GHG emissions from paddy rice in dry and wet seasons, a field experiment was conducted at the Tamil Nadu Rice Research Institute (TRRI), Aduthurai, Tamil Nadu, India. Four irrigation treatments were included: One-AWD (one early drying period), Two-AWD (two early drying periods), Full-AWD (wetting and drying cycles throughout the rice season), and CF (continuous flooding). Different rice varieties were also tested in the experiment. In this study, we emphasized one factor (irrigation effect) that affects the dependent variable. The results show that early AWD treatments reduced methane (CH4) emissions by 35.7 to 51.5% in dry season and 18.5 to 20.1% in wet season, while full-AWD practice reduced CH4 emissions by 52.8 to 61.4% compared with CF. Full-AWD in dry season not only significantly reduced CH4 emission during that season, it also resulted in the decline of the early season emission in the succeeding wet season. Global warming potential (GWP) and yield-scaled GWP were reduced by early or full season AWD in both rice seasons. The GWP value from nitrous oxide (N2O) was relatively low compared to that from CH4 in both rice seasons. Rice yield was not affected by irrigation treatments although varietal differences in grain and straw yields were observed in both rice seasons. This study demonstrated that early season water managements are also effective in reducing CH4 and total GHG emissions without affecting rice yield.

Human-driven land-use changes increasingly threaten biodiversity. In agricultural ecosystems, abandonment of former farmlands constitutes a major land-use shift. We examined the relationships between areas in which agriculture has been abandoned and the distribution records of threatened plant species across Japan. We selected 23 plant species that are currently identified as threatened but were previously common in the country as indicators of threatened plant species. The areas of abandoned farmlands within the distribution ranges of the indicator species were significantly larger than the proportion of abandoned farmland area across the whole country. Also, abandoned farmland areas were positively correlated with the occurrence of indicator species. Therefore, sections of agricultural landscape that are increasingly becoming abandoned and the distribution ranges of indicator species overlapped. These results suggest that abandoned farmland areas contain degraded or preferred habitats of threatened plant species. We propose that areas experiencing increased abandonment of farmland can be divided into at least two categories: those that threaten the existence of threatened species and those that provide habitats for these threatened species.

A high temperature-humidity index during summer has deleterious effects on mitochondrial function, reducing oocyte developmental competence. 5-Aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) and sodium ferrous citrate (SFC) are both known to support mitochondrial function and have strong anti-oxidant and anti-apoptotic activities. This study aimed to determine the mechanism of action of 5-ALA/SFC on oocyte quality. Bovine oocytes were collected from medium-sized follicles during summer (July-September, temperature-humidity index:76.6), cultured with 0, 1, 2, 4, and 8 µM 5-ALA with SFC at a molar ratio of 1:0.125, fertilized, and cultured for 10 days. The addition of 8/1 µM 5-ALA/SFC had a deleterious effect on oocyte cleavage rate in comparison with control oocytes, but did not affect the blastocyst rate, while 1/0.125 µM 5-ALA/SFC had a significantly higher increase in blastocyst rate than 8/1 µM 5-ALA/SFC. The addition of 1/0.125 and 2/0.25 µM 5-ALA/SFC improved oocyte quality by increasing the mitochondrial distribution pattern and metaphase-II oocytes, reducing reactive oxygen species and upregulating nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2, heme oxygenase-1, and superoxide dismutase-1 in oocytes, and nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 and mitochondrial transcription factor A in cumulus cells. These results indicate that 1/0.125 and 2/0.25 µM 5-ALA/SFC may support oocyte quality and developmental competence and provide anti-oxidant actions in cumulus-oocyte complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]