Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2005
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
B. Kronvang Marianne Bechmann Helge Lundekvam H. Behrendt G.H. Rubæk O.F. Schoumans Nina Syversen H. E. Andersen C.C. HoffmannAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Leif Jarle Asheim Lars Olav EikAbstract
Welfare conditions for free ranging animals are in several respects superior to many indoor systems. However, attempts to improve protection of endangered predator species, in particular brown bear (Ursus arctos), wolves (Canis lupus), lynx, wolverine (Gulo gulo), and the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaëtos) during the late 1980s and the 1990s have lead to increasing sheep losses on Norwegian ranges. Predators are causing considerably more pain than slaughtering, a longer time of suffering and sometimes leave surviving animals wounded with scratches or thorn up udders etc. Lambs may be chased away from the mothers. Mitigating measures such as replacing outfield pastures with fenced farmland, sending animals to secure areas or sheep milk production are gradually being introduced. The paper discusses the animal welfare implications induced by the changes currently taking place in the Norwegian sheep industry.
Authors
Pål Tore Mørkved Anne Kristine Søvik Bjørn Kløve Lars R. BakkenAbstract
Laboratory incubations with varying O-2 and NO3 concentrations were performed with a range of filter materials used in constructed wetlands (CWs). The study included material sampled from functioning CWs as well as raw materials subjected to laboratory pre-incubation. N-15-tracer techniques were used to assess the rates of denitrification versus dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), and the relative role of nitrification versus denitrification in producing N2O. The N2O/(N-2 + N2O) product ratio was assessed for the different materials. Sand, shell sand, and peat sustained high rates of denitrification. Raw light-weight aggregates (LWA) had a very low rate, while in LWA sampled from a functioning CW, the rate was similar to the one found in the other materials. The N2O/(N-2 + N2O) ratio was very low for sand, shell sand and LWA from functioning CWs, but very high for raw LWA. The ratio was intermediate but variable for peat The N2O produced by nitrification accounted for a significant percentage of the N2O accumulated during the incubation, but was dependent on the initial oxygen concentration. DNRA was significant only for shell sand taken from a functioning CW, suggesting that the establishment of active DNRA is a slower process than the establishment of a denitrifying flora. Laboratory incubations with varying O-2 and NO3 concentrations were performed with a range of filter materials used in constructed wetlands (CWs). The study included material sampled from functioning CWs as well as raw materials subjected to laboratory pre-incubation. N-15-tracer techniques were used to assess the rates of denitrification versus dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonium (DNRA), and the relative role of nitrification versus denitrification in producing N2O. The N2O/(N-2 + N2O) product ratio was assessed for the different materials. Sand, shell sand, and peat sustained high rates of denitrification. Raw light-weight aggregates (LWA) had a very low rate, while in LWA sampled from a functioning CW, the rate was similar to the one found in the other materials. The N2O/(N-2 + N2O) ratio was very low for sand, shell sand and LWA from functioning CWs, but very high for raw LWA. The ratio was intermediate but variable for peat The N2O produced by nitrification accounted for a significant percentage of the N2O accumulated during the incubation, but was dependent on the initial oxygen concentration. DNRA was significant only for shell sand taken from a functioning CW, suggesting that the establishment of active DNRA is a slower process than the establishment of a denitrifying flora.
Authors
Morten Eikenes Monica Fongen Line Roed Yngve StenstrømAbstract
In recent years chitosans have been investigated as a natural chemical for wood preservation against fungal decay, and chitosan in aqueous solutions has been used in impregnation studies. To evaluate the retention of chitosan after an impregnation process and to evaluate the fixation of chitosan in wood a method for determination of chitosan in wood and water samples has been developed based on acidic hydrolysis of chitosan to glucosamine followed by online derivatization by o-phthalaldehyde, chromatographic separation and fluorescent detection. For wood samples the method was linear up to 45 mg gK1 chitosan in wood and had a recovery of 86%. The yield of chitosan in water was 87% at 1% (w/v) concentration.
Authors
Carl-Magnus Mörth Peter Torssander O. Janne Kjønaas Arne O. Stuanes Filip Moldan Reiner GieslerAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Vegard Gundersen Lars Helge Frivold Irja Löfström Bruno Bilde Jørgensen Jan Falck Bernt-Håvard ØyenAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Considerable knowledge exists about the effect of aluminium (Al) on root vitality, but whether elevated levels of Al affect soil microorganisms is largely unknown. We thus compared soils from Al-treated and control plots of a field experiment with respect to microbial and chemical parameters, as well as root growth and vitality. Soil from a field experiment established in a 50 year old Norway spruce (Picea abies L.) stand where low concentrations of aluminum (0.5 mM AlCl3) had been added weekly or bi-weekly during the growth season for seven years was compared to a control treatment with respect to microbial and chemical parameters, as well as root growth and vitality. Analysis of soil solutions collected using zero tension lysimeters and porous suction cups showed that Al treatment lead to increased concentrations of Al, Ca and Mg and lower pH and [Ca+Mg]/[Al] molar ratio. Corresponding soil analyses showed that soil pH remained unaffected (pH 3.8), that Al increased, while extractable Ca and Mg decreased due to the Al treatment. Root ingrowth into cores placed in the upper 20 cm of the soil during 28 months was not affected by Al additions, neither was the mortality of these roots. The biomass of some taxonomical groups of soil microorganisms in the humus layer, analyzed using specific membrane components (phospholipid fatty acids; PLFAs), was clearly affected by the imposed Al treatment, but less so in the underlying mineral soil. Microbial community structure in the humus layer was also clearly modified by the Al treatment, whereas differences in the mineral horizon were less clear. Shifts in PLFA trans/cis ratios indicative of short term physiological stress were not observed. Yet, aluminium stress was indicated both by changes in community structure and in ratios of single PLFAs for treated/untreated plots. Thus, soil microorganisms were more sensitive indicators of subtle chemical changes in soil than chemical composition and vitality of roots.
Abstract
Rhizoctonia solani was frequently isolated in the Italian Alps from ursery-grown European beech (Fagus sylvatica) seedlings displaying symptoms of cotyledon rot. Koch?s postulates were verified and mode of infection of the associated isolates was investigated with light and scanning electron microscopy. Population structure of the pathogen was investigated by scoring the anastomosis reaction type in pairings between different isolates from the same seedbed. One pathogen genotype showed a large distribution area within the seedbed, this implying that the inoculum had been building up in the seedbed over a longer time period. Hyphal anastomosis tests and sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA indicated that the pathogen belongs to AG 2-1 of R. solani. ITS sequence analysis indicates that the isolates from beech are closely related to R. solani isolates causing a disease on tulip. The striking similarities between the two diseases are discussed.
Abstract
*Strawberry Fragaria × ananassa (cv. Korona) was inoculated with Botrytis cinerea by dipping berries in a conidial suspension. *Colonization by the pathogen was monitored using real-time PCR, ELISA and ergosterol assays, the first showing the highest sensitivity. The expression of pathogen B-tubulin and six polygalacturonases (Bcpg1-6) and three host defence genes (polygalacturonase-inhibiting protein (FaPGIP) and two class II chitinases) were monitored using real-time RT-PCR. *The maximum transcript levels of the host defence genes occurred at 16 h postinoculation (hpi) at the presumed initial penetration stage. The unique transcript profile of Bcpg2 over the 96-h incubation time and its high transcript levels relative to those of the other Bcpgs at 8-24 hpi suggest that the gene has a specific role in the penetration stage. *Bcpg1 was expressed constitutively at a relatively high level in actively growing mycelia throughout the experimental period. Comparison of the transcript profiles indicated that Bcpg1 and Bcpg3-6 were coordinately regulated.