Short-term responses of spider mites inform mechanisms of maize resistance to a generalist herbivore.

Plants are attacked by diverse herbivorous pests with different host specializations. While host plant resistance influences pest pressure, how resistance impacts the behaviors of generalist and specialist herbivores, and the relationship to resistance, is less well known. Here, we investigated the short-term (< 1 h) behavioral changes of a generalist herbivore, the two-spotted spider mite (TSM), and a specialist herbivore, the Banks grass mite (BGM), after introduction to no-choice Tanglefoot leaf-arenas (2 × 2 cm) of three maize inbred lines (B73, B75, and B96).

Potable-quality water recovery from primary effluent through a coupled algal-osmosis membrane system.

A coupled algal-osmosis membrane treatment system was studied for recovering potable-quality water from municipal primary effluent. The core components of the system included a mixotrophic algal process for removal of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and nutrients, followed by a hybrid forward osmosis (FO)-reverse osmosis (RO) system for separation of biomass from the algal effluent and production of potable-quality water. Field experiments demonstrated consistent performance of the algal system to meet surface discharge standards for BOD and nutrients within a fed-batch processing time of 2-3 days.

Identification of metolachlor mineralizing bacteria in aerobic and anaerobic soils using DNA-stable isotope probing.

The influence of soil environmental factors such as aeration on the ecology of microorganisms involved in the mineralization and degradation of the popular soil-applied pre-emergent herbicide, metolachlor is unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we utilized DNA-based stable isotope probing (SIP) where soil microcosms were incubated aerobically or anaerobically and received herbicide treatments with unlabeled metolachlor or C-metolachlor. Mineralization of metolachlor was confirmed as noted from the evolution of CO from C-metolachlor-treated microcosms and clearly demonstrated the efficient utilization of the herbicide as a carbon source.

Quantitative and qualitative evaluation of kernel anthocyanins from southwestern United States blue corn.

Background: Anthocyanin-rich blue corn is an emerging specialty crop in the USA. The antioxidant properties of blue corn offer health benefits in the human diet. The objectives of this study were to identify, characterize and quantify the anthocyanins from blue corn.