Thick Trunks Research Articles

Dependence of flower-bearing on trunk size and trunk origin in four tree species of the subgenus Quercus

ABSTRACT We investigated the flower-bearing properties of four sympatric oak species in the subgenus Quercus commonly grown in semi-natural forests in western Honshu Island, Japan. Quercus variabilis and Quercus acutissima belong to the section Cerris and Quercus serrata and Quercus aliena belong to the section Quercus. The timing and pattern of flower-bearing varied among the four oaks, but were synchronized between the male and female inflorescences within each species. Trunk size was the primary factor affecting the flower-bearing properties; more flowers were borne on thicker trunks. Threshold trunk sizes for flower-bearing, below which no flowers were borne, were identified in the two Cerris section oak species; in contrast, the two Quercus section oak species bore flowers even on the smallest trunks. The smallest flower-bearing trunk sizes of the Quercus section oaks were extremely small compared with the other tall tree species distributed in the temperate zone of Honshu Island. The flowering probability was not clearly influenced by whether the stem originated from a seedling or a sprout, except for the male inflorescences of Q. aliena, which rather showed a positive relationship between sprout-origin and flower-bearing. Thus, no trade-off relationship between sprouting and flowering was observed.

Water-stable, strong, biodegradable lignocellulose straws replacement for plastic straws

The mechanical properties and uncontrollable deformation of paper straws in water limit their potential to replace plastic straws. In this study, a simple and effective approach was developed for processing biomass and making water-stable, strong, biodegradable lignose cellulose straws (LCSs). Chemical pretreatment in an aqueous solution of nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide was used to activate residual lignin and increase the levels of phenolic hydroxyl (0.79 mmol/g) and carboxyl groups (0.54 mmol/g) in the biomass to enhance adhesion between fibers. A mechanical treatment was used to refine and branch the fibers, so that the fibers resembled thick trunks with thin branches. LCSs were made by rolling wet paper made from the fibers that contained thick trunk fibers, thin branched fibers and activated residual lignin. The residual lignin and thin branched fibers filled the voids between adjacent thick trunk fibers to form a dense structure. In the subsequent heat treatment process, residual lignin softened and penetrated the gaps between adjacent fibers, and acted as a polyphenol binder to enhance the mechanical strength and water resistance of the LCSs. The LCSs exhibited outstanding tensile strength (127 MPa), flexural strength (62 MPa) and durable water stability for more than 150 d. The LCSs were safe and fully biodegradable, and they are a sustainable alternative to plastic straws.

Three new species of non-marine ostracods (Crustacea, Ostracoda) from small water bodies of northern China.

Three new species, Pseudocandonacheni sp. nov., Cyclocyprispangi sp. nov., and Tonnacyprisrectangularis sp. nov., collected from northern China, are described in this study. Pseudocandonacheni, of the compressa group, is difficult to be distinguished from other members of the same group by carapace morphology alone, but can be readily recognised by the structure of the hemipenis comprised of a long lobe a, distally inflated lobe h, and exteriorly pointed lobe b, as well as thick trunks of the male fifth limb endopodites. Cyclocyprispangi, despite its similarity in carapace morphology to its congeners, can be identified based on the morphology of the hemipenis, which bears a slender, slightly curved lobe h, and an S-shaped process accompanying lobe b, in addition to the rectangular trunk of the male fifth limb endopodite. On the other hand, Tonnacyprisrectangularis, described on the basis of females only, can be distinguished from other Tonnacypris Diebel & Pietrzeniuk, 1975 representatives by its distinct sub-rectangular carapace alone. Other differences include the length of the swimming setae, the length of the distal claws on the second antennae, and the morphology of the pincer organ on the seventh limb. This study contributes to the poorly known extant non-marine ostracod fauna of Inner Mongolia and Beijing, and generally to the central-eastern Palaearctic region. In addition, the known distribution range of Tonnacypris is extended eastwardly by T.rectangularis. The valve-morphology data are useful for identifying fossil/sub-fossil representatives.

Comparison between DXA and MRI for the Visceral Fat Assessment in Athletes.

The use of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) may be invalid for assessing athletes with larger bodies, larger lean body mass, and thicker trunks. This study compared the athletes' visceral adipose tissue (VAT) assessed using DXA and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Eighty-two Japanese male collegiate athletes from 18 sports participated in this study. VAT was assessed using the dual-energy scan that coincided with the 4th lumbar vertebra. The sum of eight magnetic resonance slices corresponding to the region of the dual-energy scan was used for comparison. The VAT volume was higher with the dual-energy scan than with MRI (difference: 35 cm 3 , p<0.01). A significant correlation was noted between the volumes measured using both modalities (r=0.88, p<0.01). Magnetic resonance-derived volumes less than 600 cm 3 showed a stronger significant correlation with dual-energy-derived volumes. However, magnetic resonance-derived VAT volumes exceeding 600 cm 3 were not significantly correlated with dual-energy-derived volumes. In conclusion, VAT volumes derived from DXA were larger and significantly correlated with those derived from MRI across a wide range of values. Methods using DXA for assessing the visceral fat volume may require adjustment to estimate abdominal visceral fat volume in athletes, with care taken when using such methods for heavyweight athletes.

The Effect of The Different Training Systems on Yield and Vegetative Growth of “Santa Maria” and “Deveci” Pear Cultivars

The study was conducted between 2012-2014 in order to determine the effects of the training systems on "Deveci" and "Santa Maria" cultivars grafted on Quince A rootstock. The effect of the training system on the TCSA and canopy volume values of the trees was significant, but there were differences in the effect depending on the cultivar. The trees, which had a thicker trunk, were obtained with Y Palmette in Santa Maria cultivar and Vertical Axis in Deveci cultivar. The yield values changed depending on the training system and cultivar. It has been determined that the trees treated in Vertical Axis and Y Palmette training systems have a higher yield. It can be said that the Deveci cultivar had a relatively higher yield. Deveci cultivar had larger fruit, and the effect of the training system varied depending on the cultivar. In Santa Maria cultivar, the fruit of the trees on which the One Arm Cordon training system was bigger. In Deveci cultivar, the larger fruit was harvested from the trees on which One Arm Cordon and Vertical Axis training systems. As a result, the training systems have been influential in the vegetative growth and yield of the trees.

Epigenomics in trees: decoding the plastic lives of mangroves.

This article is a Commentary on Miryeganeh et al. (2022), 233: 2094–2110.

Focus on Phytochemical Screening, Chemical Constituents, Pharmacological Effects and Medical Uses of Gummi myrrha

Gummi myrrha is the air-dried gum resin taken from the branches and stems of Commiphora molmol Engler (Burseraceae). The other names include myrrh, myrrhe, myrrha. Commiphora species are shrubs with 3 m high. It has rounded tops, thick trunks, dark brown bark, and large, sharply pointed thorns on the stem. It has many asymmetrical stunted and spiny. The leaves are unequal and alternate. The flowers are small, yellow-red fascicled, and arranged in terminal panicles. Gummi myrrha contains resins (25-40%), essential oil (3-8%), and a water-soluble gum (30-60%). The Gummi myrrha contains 20% proteins and 65% carbohydrates (galactose, 4-O-methylglucuronic acid, and arabinose). The major constituents of the Gummi myrrha essential oil are furanosesquiterpenes, and the monoterpenes α-, β- and γ-bisabolene. Gummi myrrha is used for mild inflammations treatment. It is used to treat aphthous ulcers, pharyngitis, tonsillitis, common cold, and gingivitis. Gummi myrrha is used as an emmenagogue, expectorant, and antidote for toxins and to stop blood coagulation. It treats menopausal symptoms, arthritic pain, diarrhea, fatigue, headache, jaundice, and indigestion. The pharmacology activity of Gummi myrrha includes experimental pharmacology and clinical pharmacology. Experimental pharmacology includes cardio-protective, analgesic, antipyretic, anticoagulant, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, cytoprotective, antimicrobial, and antileishmanial activities. Clinical pharmacology includes anti-obesity, antidiarrheal, and wound healing activities. The ointment of Gummi myrrha essential oil was non-irritating, non-sensitizing, and non-photo toxic to the human skin. The dose of myrrh tincture =1:5 g/ml, Gummi myrrha tincture applied to the affected area 2 or 3 times/ day; Gummi myrrha mouth solution= 5-10 drops of the tincture in a glass of water.

Von Economo Neurons – Primate-Specific or Commonplace in the Mammalian Brain?

The pioneering work by von Economo in 1925 on the cytoarchitectonics of the cerebral cortex revealed a specialized and unique cell type in the adult human fronto-insular (FI) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). In modern studies, these neurons are termed von Economo neurons (VENs). In his work, von Economo described them as stick, rod or corkscrew cells because of their extremely elongated and relatively thin cell body clearly distinguishable from common oval or spindle-shaped infragranular principal neurons. Before von Economo, in 1899 Cajal depicted the unique somato-dendritic morphology of such cells with extremely elongated soma in the FI. However, although VENs are increasingly investigated, Cajal’s observation is still mainly being neglected. On Golgi staining in humans, VENs have a thick and long basal trunk with horizontally oriented terminal branching (basilar skirt) from where the axon arises. They are clearly distinguishable from a spectrum of modified pyramidal neurons found in infragranular layers, including oval or spindle-shaped principal neurons. Spindle-shaped cells with highly elongated cell body were also observed in the ACC of great apes, but despite similarities in soma shape, their dendritic and axonal morphology has still not been described in sufficient detail. Studies identifying VENs in non-human species are predominantly done on Nissl or anti-NeuN staining. In most of these studies, the dendritic and axonal morphology of the analyzed cells was not demonstrated and many of the cells found on Nissl or anti-NeuN staining had a cell body shape characteristic for common oval or spindle-shaped cells. Here we present an extensive literature overview on VENs, which demonstrates that human VENs are specialized elongated principal cells with unique somato-dendritic morphology found abundantly in the FI and ACC of the human brain. More research is needed to properly evaluate the presence of such specialized cells in other primates and non-primate species.

Numerical Simulation of Run-Up and Land Inundation on the Vegetated Sloping Beach

Vegetated areas on the beach can reduce tsunami heights and reduce the loss of life and property damage in coasts. Thick trunks and tangled branches attenuate tsunami waves. In this study, a numerical model is developed based on the finite volume method for simulating tsunami flooding. This model is used to simulate the solitary wave run-up propagation on sloping beaches with and without vegetation. The shallow water equations are used, also the effect of drag force due to vegetation is applied in the momentum equation. The HLLC approximate Riemann solver is selected, and the model is developed to second-order accuracy using the Weighted Average Flux method. After verification of the present model, the model is applied for simulation of solitary wave on a sloping beach. The present model results are compared to the available experimental data and another numerical model. The present numerical results reveal that as forest belt’s width increases, the height, velocity, and force of the tsunami waves decrease. Therefore, to further reduce the tsunami energy, a wider belt is recommended. Also, the effect of different tsunami wave heights on the rate of wave reduction has been investigated. In some areas, the presence of high tsunami waves causes to submerge the vegetation. Consequently, the drag force and the damping rate of the wave decrease. Therefore, the height of the forest zone and the height of the tsunami waves are important parameters.

Characterization of Firebrands Released From Different Burning Tree Species

The number, dimensions, and initial velocity of the firebrands released from burning Quercus suber, Eucalyptus globulus, Quercus robur, and Pinus pinaster trees were analyzed in laboratory experiments using a particle image velocimetry system. Additionally, the flame height, tree mass decay, vertical flow velocity, and temperature at the top of the trees were measured during the experiments. The relationship between the various parameters was analyzed and a good connection was found. The specimens burnt were mostly young trees, so large particles (e.g., pine cones, thick trunk barks, branches) were not included in this study as they were not present. Actually, the firebrands produced in the laboratory tests, mainly burning leaves, had a cross-sectional area of &amp;lt;1,600 mm2, having the potential to cause short distance spotting (up to tens of meters). Quercus trees are often considered to have a lower fire risk than eucalyptus or pine trees. However, in this study, Quercus suber and Quercus robur were the species that produced more firebrands, both in terms of number and total volume. The tests with Quercus suber were the only ones using specimens from an adult tree, confirming the great importance of the age of trees in the propensity to release firebrands. The results obtained with Quercus robur confirmed the high tendency of this species to originate spot fires at a short distance. Thus, these results are of great relevance to afforestation plans and to evaluating the risk of the presence of these species in wildland–urban interface areas.

Joining process of dissimilar materials using three-dimensional electrodeposited Ni-Cu film

ABSTRACT We have developed a process of joining metals and plastics using three-dimensional electrodeposited films of a Ni–Cu alloy. In the present study, the effect of the shape of electrodeposited films, which was changed by using different concentrations of Ni amidosulfate in the Ni–Cu alloy plating solution and by plating at current densities, on the joint strength between stainless steel and polyamide 6 was investigated. The results show that when the concentration ratio of Ni amidosulfate to that of Cu sulfate was 150:15 (g/L) and the plating current density was 10 mA/cm2, a dendritic structure of the electrodeposited film was formed. When the concentration of Ni amidosulfate was 300–450 g/L, dendritic electrodeposited films with thick trunks were formed. When a stainless steel plate with an electrodeposited film and a polyamide 6 plate were joined by heating and compression, voids were formed directly above the dendritic electrodeposited film inside the polyamide 6 plate. A lap joint specimen with the stainless steel plate and polyamide 6 plate joined using the electrodeposited film made of 450 g/L Ni amidosulfate showed an average joint strength of 17 MPa.

Management Recommendations Based on Physical Forces Driving Land-Covers and Habitat Preferences of Polychaete and Bird Assemblages for a Mangrove-Vegetated Estuary

Mangrove overexpansion monopolizes estuarine landscapes by diminishing land-cover type diversity and hence biodiversity. Preferences of land-cover types by polychaete and bird assemblages as they relate to associated physical driving forces warrant investigation. In a mangrove-vegetated nature reserve, six land-cover types were found and aligned along elevation, inundation and sedimentary gradients. However, only three land-cover types were preferred by polychaetes, mainly tidal flats with intermediate and high inundation, and mangroves. Each land-cover type was differentiated by a distinctive species. The density of the nereid, the prey of shorebirds, was well explained by increasing flow velocity of the tidal flats. Five land-cover types were preferred by birds. Shorebirds recognized tidal flats for foraging where large, open surface areas shaped the places. Wintering egret also preferred feeding on open tidal flats and the residential egret favors nesting on tall and thick trunk mangroves. These egret-differentiated land-covers were regulated by lengthening inundation. Foliage and ground gleaners preferred dense, tall and thick trunk mangroves. The shorebird abundance could be enhanced 2.25 times if the open tidal surface area increased 1.5 times more than the current level. Our results identify useful, applicable physical driving parameters and suggest effective management strategies for conserving mangrove-vegetated wetlands.

Invasive pines in Argentinian grasslands: lessons from control operations

Biological invasions are one of the most important challenges for protected areas around the world, both because of the seriousness of their effects and because of the costs and difficulties associated with their control. Some features of the biology of invasive species, such as growth rate and reproduction, can be particularly important when organizing control actions. Moreover, the control actions themselves can be used to gather information to adjust their effectiveness. In mountain habitats, understanding how topography influences recruitment, growth and reproduction can provide key information for optimizing prevention and control efforts. In this article, we used data from 9093 cutted invasive Aleppo pines (Pinus halepensis) obtained from management operations in a natural reserve in the Southern Argentinian Pampas. Our results reveal variations in the growth rate, cone production and seed release in response to topography. The specimens that grow at higher altitudes exhibit larger diameters than those of equal age growing at lower altitudes. A greater frequency of individuals with thick trunks in the mountains tops has operative implications when selecting cutting tools and calculating effort and frequency of tools maintenance. We also found that trees located in higher environments start releasing seeds at a younger age. This could mean potential higher population growth rates in this habitat and as a consequence in greater risk of long-distance dispersal, highlighting the need to prioritize control operations in higher areas and to increase the frequency between successive controls to avoid the release of seeds that can be dispersed over long distances.

Topology optimization of the volume-to-point heat conduction problem at micro- and nano-scale

The volume-to-point (VP) heat conduction problem is one of the fundamental problems of cooling for electronic devices. The existed reports about the VP problem are mainly based on the Fourier’s law which works well at the macroscopic scale. However, the length scale of modern electronic devices has reduced to micro- and nano-scale, at which optimization methods that are capable of dealing with the non-Fourier heat conduction are desired now. In this paper, phonon Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) and solid isotropic material with penalization (SIMP) method are coupled to develop a topology optimization method for ballistic-diffusive heat conduction. Phonon BTE is transformed into equation of phonon radiative transport, which is solved by the discrete ordinate method. To realize the topology optimization, SIMP method is adopted to penalize the phonon extinction coefficient, which equals to the reciprocal of phonon mean-free-path, and an explicit constraint on the global gradient of the nominal material density is used to ensure the solutions being well-posed and mesh-independent. By using the developed topology optimization method, it is found that the optimal material distributions for the VP problem in ballistic-diffusive heat conduction significantly deviate from the traditional tree-like structure obtained in diffusive heat conduction, and the results vary with the Knudsen number (&lt;i&gt;Kn&lt;/i&gt;). This is related to the different coefficient interpolation ways in the SIMP method and phonon ballistic transport. When &lt;i&gt;Kn&lt;/i&gt; → 0, instead of converging to the conventional tree-like structure which fully stretches into the interior zone, the new method gradually produces the result obtained by the topology optimization which interpolates the reciprocal of the thermal conductivity in diffusive heat conduction. As &lt;i&gt;Kn&lt;/i&gt; increases, the high thermal-conductive filling materials show a trend to gather around the low-temperature boundary, and there are more thick and strong trunk structures, less tiny and thin branch structures in the optimized material distributions. In addition, the ratio of the optimized average temperature to the value of the uniform material distribution &lt;inline-formula&gt;&lt;tex-math id="M1"&gt;\begin{document}$\left( {T_{{\rm{ave}},{\rm{opt}}}^{\rm{*}}/T_{{\rm{ave}},{\rm{uni}}}^{\rm{*}}} \right)$\end{document}&lt;/tex-math&gt;&lt;alternatives&gt;&lt;graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="20-20190923_M1.jpg"/&gt;&lt;graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="20-20190923_M1.png"/&gt;&lt;/alternatives&gt;&lt;/inline-formula&gt; also increases. The dependence of the topology optimization results on &lt;i&gt;Kn&lt;/i&gt; can be attributed to the size effect of the thermal conductivity caused by phonon ballistic transport. In the diffusive heat conduction, filling materials with different length scales have the same efficiency to build high thermal-conductive channels. However, with ballistic effect enhancing, size effect makes the effective thermal conductivities of the branch structure lower than those of the trunk structure, as the former is smaller than the latter. As a result, the branch structures are less efficient compared with the trunk structures in terms of building high thermal-conductive channels, and the optimal material distributions have more trunk structures and fewer branch structures. When the ballistic effect becomes significant enough, say at &lt;i&gt;Kn&lt;/i&gt; = 0.1, the topology optimization gets a dough-like material distribution in which branches merge into trunks. The proposed topology optimization method have the potential to provide guidance in designing nanoscale electronic devices for improving the heat dissipation capability.

The tracheal system in post-embryonic development of holometabolous insects: a case study using the mealworm beetle.

The tracheal (respiratory) system is regarded as one of the key elements which enabled insects to conquer terrestrial habitats and, as a result, achieve extreme species diversity. Despite this fact, anatomical data concerning this biological system is relatively scarce, especially in an ontogenetic context. The purpose of this study is to provide novel and reliable information on the post-embryonic development of the tracheal system of holometabolous insects using micro-computed tomography methods. Data concerning the structure of the respiratory system acquired from different developmental stages (larvae, pupae and adults) of a single insect species (Tenebrio molitor) are co-analysed in detail. Anatomy of the tracheal system is presented. Sample sizes used (29 individuals) enabled statistical analysis of the results obtained. The following aspects have been investigated (among others): the spiracle arrangement, the number of tracheal ramifications originating from particular spiracles, the diameter of longitudinal trunks, tracheal system volumes, tracheae diameter distribution and fractal dimension analysis. Based on the data acquired, the modularity of the tracheal system is postulated. Using anatomical and functional factors, the following respiratory module types have been distinguished: cephalo-prothoracic, metathoracic and abdominal. These modules can be unambiguously identified in all of the studied developmental stages. A cephalo-prothoracic module aerates organs located in the head capsule, prothorax and additionally prolegs. It is characterised by relatively thick longitudinal trunks and originates in the first thoracic spiracle pair. Thoracic modules support the flight muscles, wings, elytra, meso- and metalegs. The unique feature of this module is the presence of additional longitudinal connections between the neighbouring spiracles. These modules are concentrated around the second prothoracic and the first abdominal spiracle pairs. An abdominal module is characterised by relatively thin ventral longitudinal trunks. Its main role is to support systems located in the abdomen; however, its long visceral tracheae aerate organs situated medially from the flight muscles. Analysis of changes of the tracheal system volume enabled the calculation of growth scaling among body tissues and the volume of the tracheal system. The data presented show that the development of the body volume and tracheal system is not linear in holometabola due to the occurrence of the pupal stage causing a decrease in body volume in the imago and at the same time influencing high growth rates of the tracheal system during metamorphosis, exceeding that ones observed for hemimetabola.

Crown structure of 25-year-old Siberian stone pine grafts from mother trees of different ages

Inheritance of the age-specific traits of the Siberian stone pine crown structure by vegetative progeny was analyzed. Studies were carried out on 25-year-old grafts onto the same species seedlings as rootstocks. Scions for grafting were sampled from two groups of trees: young-mature (YM) and old growth (OG) trees in the southeast of the West Siberian Plain. The analysis of graft development showed that the YM trees had a significantly higher and thicker trunk, and their crowns were broader and denser due to a larger number of shoots. They multiplied by means of the branching feature due to the predominance of axes 2-3 branching orders. The OG trees formed small and transparent crowns that visually resembled separate branches from the upper parts of the crown of ontogenetically old trees. It was suggested that in the vegetative progeny of trees of a different ontogenetic state, the growth potential was epigenetically inherited.

Any Tree

Any Tree Jamie Elliott Keith (bio) It can be any treethat changes everything, the boisterous sapling sprungfrom a ridgetop, youthful boughs yearning toward the sunlong before town stretched its domestic tendrils into the woods,before streets were laid and power lines strung, before the neighborsand the homes. It can be the towering tulip tree, lower limbs trimmed from yearto year to create a high canopy that filters dappling sun acrossa lush green lawn. It can be the winged elm whose thick trunk lifts its archingarms to the sky, one from which a father ties long nylon cords tetheringa swing that skims along the ground. It can be the red maple whose high branchescatch the fancy of an onrushing storm— [End Page 102] those dark winds that whip and danceand roar and tangle among the lofty green— whose knotted roots grip the earth in earneststruggle to hold its stand. It can be any tree who’s clung to life allits measured days and then succumbs to Nature’s ferocity, feet slipping in the mud,taproot snapped with an ominous crack and in one fell thump crashes uponthe woman next door, mother of three.And in the morning, the sound of chainsaws gnashingtheir teeth against that lowered mast echoes in concentric and ever-expanding circleslike a drop of rain falling on the surface of a pond. [End Page 103] Jamie Elliott Keith Jamie Elliott Keith lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, where she writes and volunteers in the community. She has recent work in Pine Mountain Sand & Gravel, The Tule Review, Rust + Moth, and forthcoming in The James Dickey Review. She is co-editor of the anthology Familiar Landscapes, published by Iris Press in 2015. Copyright © 2018 Berea College

The Effect of a Copper Smelter Emissions on the Stock and Decomposition of Coarse Woody Debris in Spruce and Fir Woodlands

We have studied the share of coarse woody debris (CWD) reserves at different decay classes in the spruce and fir woodland within the impact area of aerial pollution from the Middle Ural Copper Smelter (Revda, Sverdlovsk oblast). Control and impact areas slightly differ in total reserves and number of trunks of CWD (sum of standing and fallen dead wood). However, the number of CWD tends to grow in proximity to the plant. The mechanisms involved in CWD-reserve formation differ between impact and control sites. A larger number of relatively thin trunks prevail in CWD reserves of impact sites when compared to the lower number of thick trunks at control sites. The CWD share of 30% in the total number of dead and living trees did not differ across pollution loads. However, the share of CWD reserves in total stock is 1.9 times higher near the plant than at the control site. The share of logs at the initial stages of decomposition (first and second decay classes) is 3.2 times higher in terms of CWD number and 4.2 times higher in terms of CWD reserves than at the control sites. This points to the strong inhibition of CWD decomposition. The pattern of decay classes of all sizes of fallen trees significantly differs in volume across pollution zones.

Vegetative parameters of apple cultivars in integrated and organic production systems

Success of apple production is highly influenced by the applied production system and the planted cultivar. In this paper growing characteristics of 39 apple cultivars were studied in integrated and organic production systems. These kind of parameters are less studied in the cultivar and training system examinations, although they have huge effect on the training and maintaining of canopy, on the pruning necessity, ultimately on the production costs. According to our results the thickness of the central axis of apple trees showed significant differences between the integrated and the organic systems. Axis of the trees with lower trunk thickness tapers more slightly in the integrated production system, than in the case of the trees with thicker trunk in the organic system. Thicker axis is not accompanied by thicker trunk, namely the thickness of the central leader starts to decrease stronger in the organic production system, compared to the integrated one.

Genetic basis for the evolution of organ morphogenesis: the case of spalt and cut in the development of insect trachea.

It is not clear how simple genetic changes can account for the coordinated variations that give rise to modified functional organs. Here, we addressed this issue by analysing the expression and function of regulatory genes in the developing tracheal systems of two insect species. The larval tracheal system of Drosophila can be distinguished from the less derived tracheal system of the beetle Tribolium by two main features. First, Tribolium has lateral spiracles connecting the trachea to the exterior in each segment, while Drosophila has only one pair of posterior spiracles. Second, Drosophila, but not Tribolium, has two prominent longitudinal branches that distribute air from the posterior spiracles. Both innovations, while considered different structures, are functionally dependent on each other and linked to habitat occupancy. We show that changes in the domains of spalt and cut expression in the embryo are associated with the acquisition of each structure. Moreover, we show that these two genetic modifications are connected both functionally and genetically, thus providing an evolutionary scenario by which a genetic event contributes to the joint evolution of functionally inter-related structures.