Rust is the most damaging fungal disease in soybean-producing areas. Until 1990, the disease was restricted to Asia and Australia. It later spread to Africa and South America, and finally to North America. Studies on the effectiveness of resistance genes were initiated in an area where the disease had newly occurred. In this review, the effectiveness of seven known resistance genes (Rpp1 to Rpp6 and Rpp1-b) is compared among regions. The variety carrying Rpp6 was generally resistant to most isolates worldwide. Varieties carrying Rpp1 and Rpp3 showed resistance in the United States (US), but not in other regions. The resistance of soybean varieties carrying the Rpp2 gene against soybean rust was shown to be overcome by highly variable pathogen populations. The performance of Rpp4 was of moderate resistance in several soybean-producing areas worldwide. In contrast, after 2006, varieties carrying Rpp1-b showed resistance in South America, but not in the US. The effectiveness of Rpp5 depends on the variety of soybean in which this gene occurs. In future studies, near-isogenic differential lines with each resistance gene adapted to a region will be more useful in obtaining information on pathogenic variation than the current differential varieties.

We have developed an ear corn silage production system in which only nutritious ears of corn are harvested from whole plants by a self-propelled forage harvester equipped with a corn snapping header and a kernel processing unit, followed by using a roll baler for chopped material combined with a bale wrapper to prepare silage. The harvesting capacity was 2.1 ha/h with a harvesting loss of 1.1%. The ensiling capacity was 1.2 ha/h with a product loss ranging from 0.5% to 1.7% after improvements were made to the roll baler for chopped material, combined with a bale wrapper and its program for packing control. Ear corn silage (ECS) contained 48.1% starch and 28.9% NDF. The fermentation quality of the silage after approximately one year in storage was also good: a pH of 4.0, the presence of lactic and acetic acids, and less than 10% of VBN/TN. These results demonstrated the practical use of the ECS mechanical system. ECS residue (i.e. stalks and leaves) was considered to be effective in improving the physical properties of soil, but with no observable effect on crop yield. In the demonstration field, the ECS yield was 8.9 t/ha and the production cost was ¥31.9/kg at 71% dry matter. Assuming that they harvested at 60% dry matter and the loss at ensiling was effectively controlled, the yield of ECS could have been 18.6 t/ha. This is higher than the 16.7 t/ha of yield necessary to sell at the asking price of a dairy farmer. The results above suggest that it is possible for arable farmers to profit by continuing the production of ECS.

In Japan, a recent outbreak of the plum pox virus (PPV)-D strain in Japanese apricot has caused serious plant quarantine concerns. The vertical transmission of the virus from infected Japanese apricot trees to seedlings was investigated in one major cultivar (‘Nanko’) and two minor cultivars (‘Baigo’ and ‘Komukai’), by immunochromatographic assays using young leaves from 2-month-old seedlings. No PPV-positive seedlings were found among 328 ‘Nanko’, 61 ‘Baigo’, and 8 ‘Komukai’ seedlings. The results indicated that the PPV-D strain in Japan is not vertically transmitted from infected ‘Nanko’ plants to seedlings. Further experiments are needed to test other cultivars, including ‘Baigo’ and ‘Komukai’.

Soybean rust caused by Phakopsora pachyrhizi is one of the most serious economic threats to soybean production in South America. A previous study using South American P. pachyrhizi populations collected between 2007/2008 and 2009/2010 revealed the pathogenic diversity in Argentinean, Brazilian, and Paraguayan rust populations. Because such pathogenic diversity has been a major constraint to the breeding program for soybean rust resistance, pathogen populations were continuously monitored throughout the 2010/2011 to 2014/2015 seasons using the same method of evaluating pathogenicity as used in the previous study. None of the 83 P. pachyrhizi samples collected from the three countries from 2010/2011 to 2014/2015 yielded identical pathogenicity patterns in the 16 differentials, thus demonstrating the pathogenic diversity of more recent South American rust populations. Cluster analysis using a total of 145 rust populations from 2007 to 2015 demonstrated that the Argentinean, Brazilian, and Paraguayan populations were not assigned to three distinct country-based groups. The analysis indicated that a majority of South American populations differed in pathogenicity compared with Japanese rust races. The rates of resistance to the rust populations varied among the 13 differentials carrying Rpp genes; the most effective resistance gene was Rpp1-b followed by Rpp5, and the least effective was Rpp1.

We conducted a series of field experiments to study the effects of rice straw compost (RSC) and chemical fertilizer application on soil carbon and silicon under a double rice cropping system for 25 crops successive in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. The results showed that the continuous application of RSC (6 Mg ha^－1 as fresh weight for each crop) caused a higher yield and more available silicon than treatment without RSC. Available silicon in the surface (0 - 10 cm from the ground surface) soil was 36.3 to 38.7 mg Si kg^－1 in treatment with RSC, while it was 24.2 to 30.0 mg Si kg^－1 for treatment without RSC. Regardless the amount of chemical fertilizer applied, the rice yields for treatment without RSC were lower than those for treatment with RSC and entailed less chemical fertilizer. Moreover, RSC application used in combination with moderate doses of chemical fertilizer increased total carbon in the soil at a rate of 356 to 401 kg C ha^－1 year^－1. Our results suggested that Si availability in paddy soil must be maintained or increased in order to maintain rice yield, for which the application of rice straw compost offers an option. Our results also showed that the application of RSC increased total-C in the soil, suggesting that paddy fields can be used effectively for carbon sequestration.

We prepared water extracts from four dry berries, lowbush blueberry (LBB) (Vaccinium angustifolium L.), highbush blueberry (HBB) (Vaccinium corymbosum L.), cranberry (CB) (Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait.) and grape (Vitis vinifera L.). The four berry extracts were efficient absorbers of ultraviolet (UV) light, primarily UV-B. The treatment of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) cotyledons with LBB, HBB and CB extracts attenuated the damage induced by continuous UV-B irradiation (0.58 W m^-2) for 11 days and did not cause any side effects. Anthocyanin and polyphenol contents in the four berry extracts were analyzed using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and spectrophotometry. Anthocyanins, which are major UV-absorbing compounds in higher plants, were not the primary polyphenolic compounds in the four berry extracts. A total of 51 specific polyphenols were identified. The LBB extract contained primarily chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid and protocatechuic acid; the HBB extract contained primarily chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid and syringic acid; and the CB extract contained primarily protocatechuic acid, myricetin and p-coumaric acid. These components might contribute to the protection of cucumber plants against UV-B-induced damage.

Potato scab is a serious disease affecting cultivated potato. Combinations of an inoculant application (Streptomyces sp. strain WoRs-501) and other control methods were tested for their ability to suppress potato common scab. The use of a moderately resistant variety of potato in combination with the soil application of WoRs-501 decreased an inoculant population of this strain required for suppressing scab disease as compared to a susceptible variety. When a susceptible variety of potato grown in paper pots was planted in a scab-infested field, the application of a small volume of WoRs-501 inoculum to soil in paper pots tended to increase the scab control effect. The incorporation of lopsided oat seedlings derived from seeds coated with a mycelial suspension of WoRs-501 into scab-infested soil as green manure prior to planting a susceptible variety of potato in pots tended to increase the disease-suppressive effect of lopsided oat, and would be a practical method of providing a significant disease-suppressive effect. Furthermore, when tubers of a susceptible potato variety coated with WoRs-501 suspension in 0.1% sodium carboxy methyl cellulose (CMC) were planted in pots, the disease incidence score was significantly reduced to almost the same level as that of NEBIJIN powder. The treatment of CMC alone at a concentration of 0.1% also tended to decrease the disease incidence score, suggesting that it could be a new candidate agent for practical disease control.

Grassland transfer is an important management tool for the development of animal husbandry, yet the factors affecting herdsmen’s grassland transfer activity have seldom been investigated. This study analyzes the factors affecting grassland transfer in Hulunbuir and Xilingol, Inner Mongolia, China, using a multinomial logistic regression model. The results suggest that the educational level of the head of the household, their position as a leader of the village, the form of grassland transfer contract, distance from village to town, and height of forage grass have significant effects on the practice of grassland transfer. The quantity of livestock, grassland area per capita, income from animal husbandry as a proportion of total household income, and period of contract for grassland transfer are the main factors affecting grassland inflow, while the number of laborers has a great influence on grassland outflow. As a result, households actively engaged in livestock management tend to borrow more grassland, while households facing labor shortages tend to lend out their grasslands, thereby entailing adjustments to grassland area based on the household management situation. The results also imply that while these land transfers contribute to balancing livestock and grass on grasslands, transfer contracts and human resources must be further developed.

Cabbage transplants (Brassica oleracea var. capitata) nursed in cell trays are often unable to absorb sufficient soil moisture after field transplantation. To determine the optimal soil conditions necessary to enable transplants to adjust smoothly, we transplanted cabbage seedlings to pots containing soil of varying moisture and nutrient content. Plants in the moist experimental group (less than 1.7 pF-value) with fertilizer (200 mg N·L^-1) showed an exponential increase in shoot dry weight (SDW). Observations revealed that plants in the dry group (2.8 pF-value), plants in the moist group (1.7 pF-value) without fertilizer, and plants in the relatively dry (2.4 pF-value) group with fertilizer showed significantly (P < 0.01) lower SDW at 6, 9, and 12 days, respectively, after transplanting as compared with the highest growth achieved. The nutrient levels of 80, 200, and 500 mg N·L^-1, and 300, 1000, and 3000 mg P₂O₅·L^-1 were also examined. Moisture and nitrogen levels had major impacts on total dry weight (TDW). It was also revealed that deficiency in either moisture or nitrogen restricted plant growth. For the less than 1.5 pF-value experimental group, the low nitrogen content tended to increase the root portion of TDW. To promote the growth of cabbage transplants in moist soil, it is important to keep the shoot portion of TDW high with sufficient nitrogen fertilizer.

The adaptability of nine bedding plants to low light intensity was evaluated for their indoor use. Based on the duration of flowering under indoor low light intensity [1,000 lx, 16.8 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD)], the plants’ adaptability was classified into three groups. In group 1, the effect of low light intensity was unclear due to short flowering longevity irrespective of light intensity; this group included Helianthus. Group 2 included species not adaptable to indoor low light intensity, under which the duration of flowering indoors was less than three weeks; this group included Petunia Salvia, and Verbena. Group 3 included species adaptable to indoor conditions, under which the duration of flowering was longer than three weeks; this group included Catharanthus, Impatiens, Tagetes, Torenia and Zinnia. The effect of low light intensity on shoot growth did not appear as a reduction in plant width, but did appear in plant height and length of the longest lateral stem. The leaf color of most species was darkened by low light intensity. Even Catharanthus, Torenia and Zinnia, which showed the highest adaptability to low light intensity, could not maintain sufficient ornamental quality under 8.4 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ PPFD. The duration of flowering became longer as light intensity increased, although the response differed among species. In Torenia and Zinnia, the duration of flowering was extended under 2,500 lx (42.0 µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹ PPFD), indicating that longterm use was possible under bright indoor conditions, including at such locations as windowsills and showcases.

Three of 10 piglets with watery diarrhea, aged 24, 21 and 22 days (cases 1, 2 and 3, respectively), were investigated in detail after euthanasia (as the remaining seven recovered without specific treatment). Enterococcal bacteria were isolated and multilocus sequence analysis showed 100% and 99% identity with the phenylalanyl tRNA synthase and RNA polymerase α subunit genes of strains of Enterococcus villorum, respectively. Histologically, severe epithelial desquamation, atrophy, and regeneration of ileal villi were observed in cases 1, 2 and 3, respectively. The number of bacteria was large in case 1, smaller in case 2, and sparse in case 3. These findings suggest that case 1 was at an earlier stage of enteropathy than case 2, and that case 3 was recovering. In case 1, the exfoliation of epithelial cells with many bacteria into the intestinal lumen was interpreted as a host reaction for eradicating marginally pathogenic enteroadherent bacteria. Folded smooth muscle cells and intact blood and lymphatic vessels in the atrophic lamina propria may have been linked to the rapid regeneration of villi.