Shallow Cuts Research Articles

Artificial tree microhabitats: Wound depth and position affect saproxylic beetles attracted to freshly veteranised trees

Abstract Veteran and ancient trees are key structures sustaining biodiversity in wooded landscapes. Their value depends on tree‐related microhabitats (TreMs) such as hollows, cracks and other structures related to wounds and wood decay. Decline and loss of veteran trees results in the loss of TreMs thus threatening the biodiversity associated with them. Veteranisation, that is, interventions aimed at creating or accelerating formation of rare TreMs in live trees, are thus increasingly applied to bridge gaps in habitat continuity and sustain the biodiversity associated with veteran trees. Several studies investigated the use of artificially created TreMs by various organisms. No study has, however, investigated saproxylic beetles attracted to freshly veteranised trees, and how different veteranisation techniques affect attractivity of veteranised trees to saproxylic beetles. We veteranised 48 sessile oaks using two types of deep and two types of shallow cuts and trapped saproxylic beetles on the veteranised and control trees in the first season after the intervention. The sampling yielded 280 species (6171 individuals) of saproxylic beetles, including 64 that are threatened. Veteranised trees attracted more abundant and diverse communities than control trees. Community composition differed between shallow and deep cuts and between the two types of deep cuts. Freshly veteranised trees thus attract diverse and abundant communities of saproxylic beetles consisting mainly of species potentially exploiting the wounds. The high proportion of threatened species, often associated with old oaks, suggests that veteranised trees benefit even some threatened saproxylic biodiversity already during the first year after the veteranisation.

First report of Nalanthamala vermoesenii causing pink rot of Phoenix canariensis in Mexico.

In Mexico City, the Canary Island date palm (Phoenix canariensis Chabaud) is an important plant forming part of its landscape identity. In February 2022, pink rot disease symptoms were observed on 16 P. canariensis plants in Mexico City (19°25'43.98"N, 99° 9'49.41"W). The incidence was 27%, while the severity 12%. External symptoms included necrotic lesions that advanced from the petiole towards the rachis. Internal symptoms were rotted, dark brown discoloration in bud, petiole, and rachis. Abundant conidial masses were developed on the infected tissues. Pieces of diseased tissues (5-mm cubes) were surface sterilized for 2 min in 3% sodium hypochlorite, rinsed with sterilized distilled water, plated onto potato dextrose agar (PDA), and incubated at 24°C and 12-h photoperiod, 20 pink fungal colonies were developed with sparse aerial mycelia on PDA. Conidiophores were hyaline, dimorphic, penicillate, and Acremonium-like. Conidia were dimorphic, typically with somewhat truncated ends, 4.5 to 5.7 × 1.9 to 2.3 μm (mean 4.99 × 2.15, n = 100), borne in long chains on penicillate conidiophores; on Acremonium-like conidiophores conidia were cylindrical, straight, and slightly curved, 4.55 to 10.1 × 1.2 to 2.35 μm (mean 8.2 × 1.7, n = 100). These morphological characteristics resembled those of Nalanthamala vermoesenii (Biourge) Schroers (Schroers et al. 2005). Genomic DNA was extracted from the mycelia of a representative isolate CP-SP53. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the large subunit of ribosomal ribonucleic acid (LSU) were amplified and sequenced. The sequences were deposited in GenBank with accession numbers OQ581472 (ITS) and OQ581465 (LSU). Phylogenetic trees based on ITS and LSU sequences of Nalanthamala species were reconstructed using maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference methods. Isolate CP-SP53 was placed in the clade of Nalanthamala vermoesenii. The pathogenicity test was carried out twice with isolate CP-SP53 on five 3-year-old P. canariensis plants. Four petioles per plant were surface disinfected with 75% ethanol, and wounded with a sterilized scalpel (shallow cuts 0.5 cm wide). A mycelial plug (5 mm in diam.) of a 1-week-old PDA culture was placed on each wounded site. Sterile PDA plugs were used for five non-inoculated control plants. All plants were maintained at 22 ± 2°C and a 12-h photoperiod. Twenty-five days after inoculation (dai), wounded petioles showed the same symptoms observed in the field, whereas control plants remained healthy. Forty-five dai, all inoculated plants died. Pink conidial masses developed on symptomatic tissues. To fulfill Koch's postulates, the pathogen was reisolated by placing the pink conidial masses onto PDA. The colony characteristics and morphometric measurements were identical to those of isolate CP-SP53. Nalanthamala vermoesenii has been reported on P. canariensis in Greece and United States (Feather et al. 1979; Ligoxigakis et al. 2013) and Syagrus romanzoffiana in Egypt (Mohamed et al. 2016). To our knowledge, this is the first report of Nalanthamala vermoesenii as the causal agent of pink rot on P. canariensis in Mexico. This plant is the most commonly planted ornamental palm in Mexico City. The spread of N. vermoesenii could be a threat for the estimated 15 thousand palms, therefore dramatically change the urban landscape.

Experimental proof-of-concept of the effect of inlet geometry on excavation forces and their reduction for small-scale continuous excavators

Future in situ resource utilisation (ISRU) lunar mission concepts will require mechanisms that allow the available feedstock–mainly the lunar regolith–to be extracted from the lunar surface. Such extraction techniques in the reduced gravity environment of the Moon will need to minimise excavation forces, due to mass restrictions for robotic landers/vehicles and the large financial implications of placing cargo onto Earth’s satellite. An investigation of necessary excavation forces, both horizontally as well as vertically, for small-scale continuous lunar excavation systems based on their geometric inlet shapes, cutting angles, and digging depths has been undertaken. The use of vibration to disaggregate lunar soil and to reduce the necessary forces is explored as a proof-of-concept. Tests performed in a large analogue testbed have shown that the optimisation of the cutting geometry is crucial, as it inherently influences the necessary forces or even prevents deeper cuts into the soil. Our experiments indicate that shallow cuts (low digging depth) into soil at shallow angles are beneficial, and that the piling up of large surcharge masses must be avoided. Critically, applying vibration to cutting edges seems highly beneficial, as the achievable force reductions of up to 50% in the tested conditions far outweigh the additional power requirements. To make these implications immediately applicable to a wider audience, an estimation of available traction forces for certain robotic vehicles based on their mass is added for comparison.

Mosaic of Protected Areas: a Conservation Strategy for the Seridó Potiguar Biome

Propose: The aim of this work is to show the Seridó Potiguar (Brazil) through the model of integrated management of conservation units and protected areas, known as area fragmentation mosaics. Theoretical Frame of Reference: The loss of native vegetation, caused by anthropic destruction, is felt as one of the conditioning factors in the decrease of biodiversity almost everywhere on Earth, however, only with the creation of Conservation Units (UCs) will it be possible to establish a tool as a conservation strategy. From this perspective, the National System of Conservation Units (SNUC) has initiated the structure in mosaics, providing a participatory and social management of the territory, taking into account the conservation of biodiversity and geodiversity. Method: The study of mosaics favors knowing the size of the distribution area by shallow cuts. Through this methodology, it is possible to know the depletion and/or rapid recovery of the APA protection scenario or fragmentation by deforestation. In this way, this article observes to what extent a good management of UC mosaics can cause a better contribution to the conservation of biodiversity and geodiversity, taking into account, particularly, the Caatinga biome in the Seridó of the state of Rio Grande do Norte. Results and Discussion: As results, it was observed that the project presents biophysical, socioeconomic and environmental elements of the Seridó of Rio Grande do Norte. Implications of the Research: There is no verification of studies of conservation mosaics in this region of Rio Grabnde do Norte, therefore a pioneer study. Originality/Value: This research is unusual and original and will broaden the discussion of the Conservation Units in the Brazilian Northeast

Elemental and chemical depth profiling of high-build single-component (1K) polyester-polyurethane coil coatings

The interior structure and chemistry of single-component (1K) polyester-polyurethane (PU) coil coatings, which find preferred application in the construction industry, was comprehensively investigated by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray electron spectroscopy (XPS). Fabrication of extended tapers in the millimetre-range through a double-layered coating system with a total dry film thickness of 50 μm was achieved by cryo-ultra-low-angle microtomy (cryo-ULAM). The linearity and surface topography of shallow angle ULAM cuts created at different preparation conditions were examined at mesoscopic and microscopic scale by coherence scanning interferometry, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). EDX mappings recorded on the exposed sections enabled to determine the elemental structure and the distribution of embedded fillers at plane-view. Focal plane array (FPA) FTIR spectroscopy in attenuated total reflection (ATR) mode was used to acquire high-resolution chemical data from the fabricated taper, revealing the clustering of nitrogen-containing groups. Compositional depth profiling of the investigated high-build PU coating system was achieved by performing XPS line scans on the exposed sections. Depth analysis at a chemical level was obtained by means of evaluating the high-resolution carbon C1s spectra, which showed an enhancement of nitrogen and oxygen containing functionalities near the primer/substrate interface. All methods of this correlative work of analysis consistently indicate the presence of chemical gradients related to the cross-linking agent.

ANALYSIS OF PHARMACEUTICAL WORKERS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WOUND-HEALING DRUGS IN UKRAINE

ANALYSIS OF PHARMACEUTICAL WORKERS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR WOUND-HEALING DRUGS IN UKRAINE

Self-supervised learning for tool wear monitoring with a disentangled-variational-autoencoder

The use of end-to-end deep learning in machinery health monitoring allows machine learning models to be created without the need for feature engineering. The research presented here expands on this use in the context of tool wear monitoring. A disentangled-variational-autoencoder, with a temporal convolutional neural network, is used to model and trend tool wear in a self-supervised manner, and anomaly detection is used to make predictions from both the input and latent spaces. The method achieves a precision-recall area-under-curve (PR-AUC) score of 0.45 across all cutting parameters on a milling dataset, and a top score of 0.80 for shallow depth cuts. The method achieves a top PR-AUC score of 0.41 on a real-world industrial CNC dataset, but the method does not generalise as well across the broad range of manufactured parts. The benefits of the approach, along with the drawbacks, are discussed in detail.

Tracking Quantitative Characteristics of Cutting Maneuvers with Wearable Movement Sensors during Competitive Women's Ultimate Frisbee Games.

(1) Ultimate frisbee involves frequent cutting motions, which have a high risk of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, especially for female players. This study investigated the in-game cutting maneuvers performed by female ultimate frisbee athletes to understand the movements that could put them at risk of ACL injury. (2) Lower-body kinematics and movement around the field were reconstructed from wearable lower-body inertial sensors worn by 12 female players during 16 league-sanctioned ultimate frisbee games. (3) 422 cuts were identified from speed and direction change criteria. The mean cut had approach speed of 3.4 m/s, approach acceleration of 3.1 m/s2, cut angle of 94 degrees, and ground-contact knee flexion of 34 degrees. Shallow cuts from 30 to 90 degrees were most common. Speed and acceleration did not change based on cut angle. Players on more competitive teams had higher speed and acceleration and reduced knee flexion during cutting. (4) This study demonstrates that a lower-body set of wearable inertial sensors can successfully track an athlete’s motion during real games, producing detailed biomechanical metrics of behavior and performance. These in-game measurements can be used to specify controlled cutting movements in future laboratory studies. These studies should prioritize higher-level players since they may exhibit higher-risk cutting behavior.

Flow Simulation in Abrasive Fluid Jet Machining with Water as Carrier Medium using CFD

Tremendous growth is seen in the field Machining of Materials where the engineering applications are highly demandable. Currently Abrasive Fluid Jet Machining is used to machine wide range of Engineering and Structural Materials including Aerospace, Defense and Aircraft Application which require high strength to weight and stiffness to weight ratios. In Abrasive fluid jet machining the abrasives are premixed with a suspended liquid to form slurry. The flow of the Abrasive Fluid mixture through the nozzle, results in rapid wear of the nozzle which degrades the cutting performance. This may lead to the divergence of the Abrasive Fluid Jet such that the angle of impingement varies. This jet impingement angles have more influence on the machining responses than the normal jet impingement angle as the depth of cut is improved thereby minimizing the shallow cuts within the same total cutting time. Nozzle replacement cost plays a vital role in the economics of the machining process and improvements in its wear characteristics are critical for the growth of such machining technology. It is well known that the inlet pressure of the abrasive fluid suspension has significant effect on the erosion characteristics of the inside surface in the nozzle. An analysis was carried out with constant nozzle taper angle and water as carrier medium. The objective of this work is to analyse the effect of inlet operating pressure on wall shear and exit kinetic energy with respect to Carrier medium. The two phase flow analysis was carried by using computational fluid dynamics tool CFX. The availability of optimized process parameters of abrasive fluid jet machining is limited to water and experimental test can be cost prohibitive. In this case computational fluid dynamics analysis provided better results.

Developing Safe Lathing Parameters for PBX 9501

AbstractThis paper presents the work performed on dry‐lathing PBX 9501 to gather and analyze cutting force as well as temperature data during the machining process. The data is compared to present USA federal‐regulation‐constrained machining limits of high explosives. The effects of machining parameters depth of cut, surface meters per minute, and feed per revolution on cutting force and cutting interface were evaluated. Cutting tools of tip radius 0.013 cm and 0.127 cm were tested to determine the effect of the tool shape on the machining process. Empirically, a pronounced dependence of the maximum tool temperature on the depth of cut and surface meters per minute was found, while the dependence on the feed per revolution was found much weaker. It is elucidated that rapid, shallow cuts optimize machining time for a billet of PBX 9501 while minimizing temperature increase and cutting force.

The smart approach: feasibility of lentigo maligna superficial margin assessment with hand-held reflectance confocal microscopy technology.

Lentigo maligna may be challenging to clear surgically. To evaluate feasibility of using superficial skin cuts as RCM imaging anchors for attaining negative surgical margins in lentigo maligna. Included patients presented with lentigo maligna near cosmetically sensitive facial structures. We evaluated, with hand-held-RCM, microscopic clearance of melanoma beyond its dermoscopically detected edges. Evaluated margins were annotated using shallow skin cuts. If a margin was positive at 'first-step' RCM evaluation, we sequentially advanced the margin radially outward at that segment by 2-mm intervals until an RCM-negative margin was identified. Prior to final surgical excision, we placed sutures at the outmost skin cuts to allow comparison of RCM and histopathological margin assessments. Primary outcome measure was histopathological verification that RCM-negative margins were clear of melanoma. The study included 126 first-step margin evaluations in 23 patients, median age 70 years (range: 43-91). Seventeen patients (74%) had primary in-situ melanoma and six (26%) invasive melanoma, mean thickness 0.3 mm (range 0.2-0.4 mm). Six cases (26%) showed complete negative RCM margins on 'first-step', 11 (48%) were negative at 'second-step', and four (17%) at 'third-step'. In two additional cases (9%), margins clearance could not be determined via RCM due to widespread dendritic cells proliferation. The RCM-negative margins in all 21 cases proved clear of melanoma on histopathology. Of the 15 cases that returned at 1-year follow-up, none showed any residual melanoma on dermoscopic and RCM examinations. Interobserver reproducibility showed fair agreement between bedside RCM reader and blinded remote-site reader, with Spearman's rho of 0.48 and Cohen's kappa of 0.43; using bedside reader as reference, the remote reader's sensitivity was 92% and specificity 57% in positive margin detection. Margin mapping of lentigo maligna with hand-held-RCM, using superficial skin cuts, appears feasible. This approach needs validation by larger studies.

Cultured fish epithelial cells are a source of alarm substance

In various species of fishes, the importance of visual cues in the determination of environmental threat and subsequent predator avoidance is clear. Chemical cues also play an essential role facilitating predator avoidance. Among fish in the superorder Ostariophysi, club cells in the epidermis produce an alarm substance. Damage to the skin during a predation event releases an alarm substance (AS), which diffuses through the water column and binds to olfactory receptors of conspecifics. Fish then engage in a number of anti-predator behaviors that may include darting, schooling, or hiding.Behavioral responses to AS and physiological mechanisms that underlie those responses is an active area of study. However, because the precise chemical composition of the alarm substance is unknown, AS is not commercially available. Thus, when fish are challenged alarm substance in various experiments and assays it is obtained from skin extracts or via perfusion of shallow cuts in the epidermis. Both procedures are effective but require the animal to be sacrificed.In this manuscript, we report:•A non-invasive primary cell culture protocol to obtain alarm substance and does not require the model organism to be killed.•The demonstration of anti-predatory behaviors in fish exposed to alarm substance collected by this method.

Laboratory Evaluation of Femtosecond Laser Lamellar Cuts in Gamma-Irradiated Corneas.

To evaluate the stromal interface quality after femtosecond laser full lamellar cuts in gamma-irradiated corneas (VisionGraft sterile cornea) and to determine the limits of the cut depth using the VisionGraft as donor corneas for laser-assisted lamellar anterior keratoplasty. Fourteen VisionGraft corneas underwent full lamellar cuts using the femtosecond laser. The percent cut depth was 17% to 21% (100 μm, n = 2), 31% to 35% (n = 3), 38% to 40% (n = 3), 45% to 48% (n = 3), and 50% (n = 3) of the total stromal thickness (not including the epithelium). The cap and stromal bed surfaces were imaged with a scanning electron microscope. The quality of cut surfaces was graded by 2 masked observers based on two indices: ridge and roughness. Ridge grading indicated macroscopic irregularity. Roughness grading indicated microscopic irregularity. The grading was done on a subjective integer scale of 1 to 5 (1 = best and 5 = worst), which was used in a previous study of cut quality in fresh corneas. The ridge grading ranged from 1.5 for the shallowest cut to 2.2 for the deepest cut and weakly (r = 0.279) but significantly (P = 0.037) correlated with the percent cut depth. The roughness grading ranged from 2.63 to 2.56 and showed no trend with the percent cut depth (r = 0.006, P = 0.968). Compared with previously published results of fresh corneas, in which ridge grading exceeded 3 for cuts deeper than 31%, cut quality was better for the VisionGraft. Even at depths up to 48% of the total stromal thickness, ridge grading was not worse than shallow cuts. Thus, gamma-irradiated corneas could provide a smoother interface than do fresh eye bank corneas for laser-assisted lamellar anterior keratoplasty.

Finite element modeling of rock cutting and its fragmentation process

Rock cutting is a challenging problem from a modeling perspective. The challenges come from the complexity of the physics from the tool–rock interaction to the fracture process and propagation of the quasibrittle rocks. This study was aimed at developing a finite element procedure that was capable of providing reasonable estimates of cutting forces and, at the same time, capturing the essential characteristics of the fragmentation process. Published laboratory rock scratch tests were used as modeling targets since these tests encompass all essential characteristics of rock cutting. Both shallow cuts and deep cuts from a rectangular cutter were analyzed first, followed by modeling of shallow cuts from a disc cutter. It was concluded that rock cutting could be reasonably modeled by using a plasticity-damage model, an element erosion scheme that removes an element when its energy release equals fracture energy, together with a proper selection of modeling parameters.

Use of nano-droplet-enriched cutting fluid (NDCF) in ultra-precision machining

Nano-droplet-enriched cutting fluid (NDCF) demonstrates a linear spreading rate when measured by a contact angle goniometer. The spreading continues beyond that a conventional goniometer can measure. Such thinness allows NDCF to penetrate deep into the tool-chip and tool-workpiece interfaces to affect the lubrication. In this paper, straight taper cutting was carried out using a single-point diamond tool. By examining the groove machined, the enhancement effect of NDCF on improving the surface roughness, reducing bouncing back, and suppressing form irregularities could be quantified. Without NDCF, form irregularities were found on the surface of the grooves in the nature of random localized upheavals. For shallow cuts, NDCF could stabilize the cutting with a depth of cut (DoC) below 1 μm and down to around 0.75 μm, so that the roundness of the machined groove could be maintained precisely. Whereas for deeper cuts, NDCF was found to be effective in preventing form irregularities and on reducing bounce back for a DoC larger than 1.5 μm. Regarding bounce back, the experimental work revealed that NDCF can prevent form irregularities from occurring when the DoC is beyond 1.5 μm. For those samples machined using a conventional oil lubricant, distorted rebounding with a magnitude as large as 200 nm was not uncommon.

Relating residual stresses to machining and finishing in silicon carbide

Machining and surface finishing is essential in the processing of many ceramics, however, it can be detrimental to subsequent performance as it introduces residual stresses and structural defects. Using micro-Raman spectroscopy the residual stress and crystallinity of hot-pressed SiC tiles were examined after finishing with several different methods. 514nm and 633nm lasers in both conventional and confocal settings enabled stress as a function of depth to be assessed. Single crystal, electronics grade SiC was used for comparison. Compressive residual stresses were present at the surface and in the sub-surface region in all the samples, but the surface with lowest roughness and a mirror-like finish had the highest residual stress. Crystallinity in SiC is reduced by defects and stacking faults produced during machining and finishing. The finer surface finishes had higher residual stresses, but were actually found to have better crystallinity than the rough surfaces. The dependence of residual stress and crystallinity on surface roughness is attributed to a change in the mode of ceramic removal from energetic and brittle for rough finishes to ductile for the shallow cuts of smooth finishes. The dependence of stress and crystallinity on roughness means a balance must be struck between smoothness, crystallinity and stresses in choosing the best finish for a given application.

Rebuttal: Shallow wide groove scratch tests do not give fracture toughness

Lin and Zhou (2013) recently showed that by using the depth of cut as a size measure, cutting forces from scratch tests on a quasibrittle material, such as rocks, followed Bažant’s simple size effect law (SEL). It was clear that LEFM applied only at deep cutting which might not be attainable. Akono et al. (2014) disagreed and contended that wide shallow groove cuts gave KIC based on an SEL that was scaled by width. We show herein that their conclusions were not supported by data and that the presence of sidewall friction on groove cuts further complicates efforts to obtain KIC.

Evaluation of global load sharing and shear-lag models to describe mechanical behavior in partially lacerated tendons.

The mechanical effect of a partial thickness tear or laceration of a tendon is analytically modeled under various assumptions and results are compared with previous experimental data from porcine flexor tendons. Among several fibril-level models considered, a shear-lag model that incorporates fibril-matrix interaction and a fibril-fibril interaction defined by the contact area of the interposed matrix best matched published data for tendons with shallow cuts (less than 50% of the cross-sectional area). Application of this model to the case of many disrupted fibrils is based on linear superposition and is most successful when more fibrils are incorporated into the model. An equally distributed load sharing model for the fraction of remaining intact fibrils was inadequate in that it overestimates the strength for a cut less than half of the tendon's cross-sectional area. In a broader sense, results imply that shear-lag contributes significantly to the general mechanical behavior of tendons when axial loads are nonuniformly distributed over a cross section, although the predominant hierarchical level and microstructural mediators for this behavior require further inquiry.

First Report of Petiole (Rachis) Blight of Washingtonia filifera Caused by Phoma glomerata in Greece.

In July 2007, a severe petiole (rachis) blight disease was observed on several California fan palms (Washingtonia filifera) in the vicinity of Heraklion (Crete), Greece. Typical symptoms included discolored (brown to reddish-brown), reversed V-shaped lesions on the petiole bases of the oldest (lowest) leaves, and elongated yellow to dark-brown stripes along the petiole. The lesions progressively expanded and penetrated the petioles, resulting in gradual discoloration (from tan to brown-black) of the internal petiole tissues, including the vascular tissue. The bases of infected petioles occasionally became fragile and burst open, while the corresponding leaf blades were characterized initially by yellowing and one-sided or uneven wilt and, later, desiccation and death with the entire leaves curving downwards. The disease gradually moved upward to younger leaves, severely debilitating but rarely killing the infected trees. A filamentous fungus was consistently isolated onto potato dextrose agar (PDA) plates from sections of diseased petioles, forming dense, dark green colonies with abundant light to dark brown, subglobose pycnidia (diameter ranging between 36.4 to 177.4 μm, and averaging 99.4 μm, n = 50) on the agar surface or immersed in the medium. Chlamydospores and numerous dictyochlamydospores were also observed, with the latter being initially light to dark brown and later becoming black. The numerous conidia were hyaline, ovoid to ellipsoid, and single-celled. Their dimensions were 5.3 to 7.3 × 2.4 to 4.9 μm, averaging 6.5 × 3.2 μm (n = 100). The ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region, together with parts of the flanking 18S and 28S rRNA genes (3), were amplified with PCR from total DNA extracted from two representative isolates, and sequenced (GenBank Accession Nos. KC802086 to KC802087). Using BLASTn, both sequences were 100% identical to Phoma glomerata ITS sequences (FJ427018, FJ427011, AF126816). Based on morphological and molecular analyses, the pathogen was identified as Phoma glomerata (Corda) Wollenw. & Hochapfel, also known as Peyronellaea glomerata (Corda) Goid. ex Togliani or Coniothyrium glomeratum Corda (1,2). To prove pathogenicity and fulfill Koch's postulates, petioles of the older leaves of eight W. filifera 2-year-old seedlings were wounded with a sterile scalpel (shallow cuts 0.5 to 1.0 cm wide, made parallel to the surface), inoculated with agar discs from a 2-week-old PDA culture of the fungus, and sealed with Parafilm. For controls, sterile PDA plugs were placed on the artificial wounds of five more seedlings. All plants were maintained in the greenhouse at 15 ± 5°C, with 90% humidity. Petiole blight and leaf necrosis symptoms-identical to those observed in the infected plants-were evident 5 weeks post-inoculation, and P. glomerata was consistently reisolated from all inoculated plants. No symptoms were observed on control plants. This is the first report of petiole blight of a palm species caused by P. glomerata in Greece. Due to the extensive use of palms as ornamentals in Greece, the occurrence of P. glomerata can potentially cause economic loss to the local ornamental industry.

First Report of Pink Rot of Phoenix and Washingtonia Species Caused by Nalanthamala vermoesenii in Greece.

A disease resembling pink rot was first observed on Phoenix dactylifera in Heraklion (Crete, Greece) in the summer of 2007, and was later found to be relatively common in the same district on additional species (P. canariensis, P. theophrasti, Washingtonia filifera, W. robusta). Symptoms included chlorotic and necrotic leaves (dead tips), light-brown spots (1 to 2 mm in diameter) on the leaves and rachis, rot of the rachis, sheath, and trunk, and eventual death of infected plants. A pinkish-orange layer formed both on the surface and within the infected tissues. A hyphomycete was isolated from symptomatic petioles and the pinkish-orange layer of the sheath. Sixteen isolates were examined on potato dextrose agar (PDA). All formed salmon to grayish-red colonies with sparse aerial mycelium, hyaline conidiophores with penicillate branches and terminal phialides, and ovoid, single-celled conidia in long chains. Mean conidial dimensions were 3.5 (± 0.1) × 5.5 (± 0.1) μm (n = 60 each), for 1-week-old cultures of two single-spore isolates recovered from W. filifera. A BLASTn search of GenBank with sequences of rDNA ITS (JX456472 to JX456474) revealed 100% identity of three isolates to that of Nalanthamala vermoesenii (Biourge) Schroers, comb. nov. [syn. Penicillium vermoesenii Biourge; Gliocladium vermoesenii (Biourge) Thom] originating from several palm species in Spain, the Czech Republic, Australia, and the United States (GenBank AY554212 to AY554217). Therefore, our examination of morphological and molecular characteristics suggested that the fungus recovered from symptomatic trees was N. vermoesenii (3,4). Pathogenicity tests were performed on wounds (shallow cuts 0.5 to 1.0 cm wide, made parallel to the surface with a sterile scalpel) of petioles of mature leaves of eight 2-year-old seedlings each of P. canariensis, P. theophrasti, and W. filifera. A 6-mm agar plug from a 1-week-old PDA culture was placed on the artificial wound of each inoculated plant. For non-inoculated controls, sterile PDA plugs were placed on the artificial wounds of four seedlings per host. All plants were maintained in the greenhouse at 16 ± 5°C, with 95% humidity and a 12-h photoperiod. Petiole and stem rot, leaf necrosis, and production of pinkish-orange spore masses appeared at 5 weeks post-inoculation. Average lesion length was 2.75 ± 0.15, 3.28 ± 0.21, and 6.14 ± 0.53 cm for P. canariensis, P. theophrasti, and W. filifera, respectively, suggesting that the latter is more susceptible. The fungus was consistently reisolated from all three inoculated palm species, whereas no symptoms appeared on control plants. To our knowledge, this is the first report of N. vermoesenii infecting palms in Greece. The invasion of the plants by the fungus is probably favored by wounds, such as those caused by pruning or by feeding of the red palm wheevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier, which is widespread in Greece (1).