Estimated losses in soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merril) harvest according to the speed and rotation of the trail system

The soybean crop (Glycine max. (L.) Merril) shows strong participation in the Brazilian economy. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to quantify the losses in the cutting and feeding platform and in the trail system in mechanized soybean harvest by analyzing different speed and rotation adjustments of the trailing cylinder. The experiment was carried out in a commercial soybean plot on a farm located in the municipality of Brejo (MA), during the 2017/2018 harvest. The harvester evaluated was a Case IH 8120, with a maximum power of 34.2 kW, axial flow system, and 12.2-m platform equipped with a conveyor system (draper). The experiment was conducted in two different areas. Area 1 was planted with the Brasmax® Opus (BMX Opus) cultivar, while area 2 was cultivated with the BRS 9383 cultivar. The treatments consisted of three machine speeds (4 km h-¹, 6 km h-¹, and 7 km h-¹), associated with the rotation levels of 500 rpm and 800 rpm in the trail system. The experimental design used was randomized blocks in a 3 x 2 factorial arrangement, with four replications. For the BMX Opus cultivar, harvest losses did not influence the travel speeds and rotations evaluated in the experiment due to the marked instability within the treatments. The BRS 9383 cultivar showed satisfactory results at a speed of 4 km h-1 combined with a rotation of 800 rpm, which obtained acceptable numbers for the soybean harvest (54.09 kg ha-1).

Anfibios del bosque nuboso de El Silencio de Los Ángeles, San Ramón de Alajuela, Costa Rica

We present the list of amphibians for the El Silencio de Los Ángeles Cloud Forest (Villa Blanca Hotel and Reserve) in San Ramón de Alajuela, Costa Rica, Central America. We performed nocturnal visual and acoustic surveys in the trail system, mainly from 2013 to 2014. We also received data from the local guides up to 2019. We compared the similarity of amphibian richness of our site against other premontane reserves in Costa Rica with a cluster analysis (Jaccard index, single linkage). We recorded 26 species distributed in 16 genera, eight families and two orders. Notrotiton gamezi was the only threatened species detected. The El Silencio de los Ángeles Cloud Forest site is around 80 % similar to San Lorencito River Station and 55% to Nectandra Reserve. Containing 12% of the Costa Rica’s amphibian richness, this premontane woodland should be considered among the most important clouded forest in Central Costa Rica for amphibian conservation.

The Effects of Off-Highway Vehicle Trails and Use on Stream Water Quality in the North Fork of the Broad River

Managing forests for recreational benefits, such as off-highway vehicle (OHV) use, as well as other ecosystem services, such as clean and abundant water, can often present challenges for land managers when one ecosystem service conflicts with another. We conducted research in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest to determine if the presence and use of OHV trails were associated with greater total suspended solids (TSS) concentrations and turbidity in streams during storm events in 2015-2016. We used a paired-watershed approach, with a treatment watershed containing the Locust Stake OHV trail system on the North Fork of the Broad River, and a reference watershed (Kimbell Creek) similar in all respects except for the presence and use of OHV trails. During the study period, mean streamflow rates across all sampling times were 19% greater, but mean stormflow rates were 29% less, at Locust Stake compared to Kimbell Creek. During storm sampling, the average storm TSS concentration was greater at Locust Stake (101.1 mg L-1) than at Kimbell Creek (65.3 mg L-1). The results indicate that the greater the stormflow, the greater the TSS concentration for each storm event sampled across both watersheds. TSS concentration was linearly and positively related to stormflow, with R2 values ranging from 0.11 to 0.92 for all events in both watersheds. Across all sampling dates, the TSS concentration per unit stormflow was greater at Locust Stake than at Kimbell Creek, and was 7-fold greater at Locust Stake after the OHV trails were opened compared to when they were closed for maintenance and assessment. When the OHV trails were closed, the TSS concentration per unit stormflow was still significantly greater, by 4-fold, at Locust Stake compared to Kimbell Creek. Our results suggest that the presence and use of the Locust Stake OHV trail system are associated with poorer water quality, and with better water quality when the trails are closed. Forest managers face a well-defined set of tradeoffs between providing OHV recreation and water quality benefits that warrants careful planning and monitoring. Keywords: National Forest System, Off-highway vehicles, Recreation, Sedimentation, Streamflow, Turbidity, Water quality.

IAPs cause resistance to TRAIL-dependent apoptosis in follicular thyroid cancer

Follicular thyroid cancer’s (FTC) excellent long-term prognosis is mainly dependent on postoperative radioactive iodine (RAI) treatment. However, once the tumour becomes refractory, the 10-year disease-specific survival rate drops below 10%. The aim of our study was to evaluate the prognostic and biological role of the TRAIL system in FTC and to elucidate the influence of small-molecule-mediated antagonisation of inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) on TRAIL sensitivity in vitro. Tissue microarrays were constructed from forty-four patients with histologically confirmed FTC. Expression levels of TRAIL and its receptors were correlated with clinicopathological data and overall as well as recurrence-free survival. Non-iodine-retaining FTC cell lines TT2609-bib2 and FTC133 were treated with recombinant human TRAIL alone and in combination with Smac mimetics GDC-0152 or Birinapant. TRAIL-R2/DR5 as well as TRAIL-R3/DcR1 and TRAIL-R4/DcR2 were significantly higher expressed in advanced tumour stages. Both decoy receptors were negatively associated with recurrence-free and overall survival. TRAIL-R4/DcR2 additionally proved to be an independent negative prognostic marker in FTC (HR = 1.446, 95% CI: 1.144–1.826; P < 0.001). In vitro, the co-incubation of Birinapant or GDC-0152 with rh-TRAIL-sensitised FTC cell lines for TRAIL-induced apoptosis, through degradation of cIAP1/2. The TRAIL system plays an important role in FTC tumour biology. Its decoy receptors are associated with poor prognosis as well as earlier recurrence. The specific degradation of cIAP1/2 sensitises FTC cells to TRAIL-induced apoptosis and might highlight a new point of attack in patients with RAI refractory disease.