We evaluated the effects of soil washing with ferric chloride (FeCl3) on cadmium (Cd) concentrations in soil solutions and Cd absorption by two spinach cultivars in pot experiments. Soil samples were collected from washed and unwashed plots of rice paddy fields in Fukuoka and Toyama, Japan. Spinach pot cultivation was performed with the above mentioned soil under oxidative conditions. Before an...

Fluorogenic RNA aptamers provide a powerful tool for study of RNA analogous to green fluorescent protein for the study of proteins. Spinach and Broccoli are RNAs selected in vitro or in vivo respectively to bind to an exogenous chromophore. They can be genetically inserted into an RNA of interest for live-cell imaging. Spinach aptamer has been altered to increase thermal stability and stabilize...

In the current study, we investigated the influences of theobroxide on stem elongation in spinach (Spinacia oleracea). Our results showed that stem elongation and flower formation were inhibited by spraying spinach plants with theobroxide under inductive, long day conditions (16 h light/8 h dark), while application of exogenous applied GA3 prevented the effect of theobroxide. Quantitative analy...

Solid CO (dry ice) was added to pots containing soil that was infested either with eggs of the root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, or with tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum 'Rutgers') root fragments that were infected with various stages of the nematode. Two hours after dry ice was added, thermocouples in the soil recorded temperatures ranging from -15 degrees C to -59 degrees C. One day a...

BACKGROUND Head louse infestations are prevalent worldwide. Over the past 20-25 years, 15-20% of all children in Israel between 4 and 13 years of age have been infested with head lice. This is mainly due to the existence of ineffective pediculicides on the market. OBJECTIVE To examine the pediculicidal efficacy and safety of a natural remedy ("Chick-Chack") and to compare it in an open clinic...

As natural plant growth stimulators, amino acids are widely used to improve the yield and quality of crops. Change in enzymes activities of N assimilation (NR, NiR and GS), residual nitrate (NO3-), soluble protein content, and yield of spinach and lettuce plants were investigated under replacing 20% nitrate-N in the nutrient solution by L-glycine and blood meal amino acids. Seeds of the mention...

BACKGROUND Low-income apartment communities in the United States are suffering from disproportionally high bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., infestations owing to lack of effective monitoring and treatment. Studies examining the effectiveness of integrated pest management (IPM) for the control of bed bugs in affordable housing have been limited to small subsets of bed-bug-infested apartments, rath...

A field study was conducted to evaluate soybean cultivar sensitivity to Pratylenchus brachyurus and selected nonfumigant nematicides for control of this nematode. 'Essex', a tolerant cultivar, yielded more than 'Forrest' , a sensitive cultivar, in an infested field. Plots treated with aldicarb, carbofuran, and fenamiphos had fewer nematodes 40 days after planting than nontreated plots. Plots pl...

In the present study, we experimentally manipulated coccidian parasitism and dietary carotenoid availability in a fully factorial experiment in male house sparrows (Passer domesticus Linnaeus), and tested whether carotenoid supplementation reduces the cost of parasitism in terms of condition, moult and immune responses. We found that coccidians have a significant but transient negative effect o...