Agris category codes: / COBISS
1.01 Language: English
Who lives in our dishwasher? Preliminar results of fungal metagenomic analysis of household dishwashers
1,
Minka KOVAČ, Nataša TOPLAK
1
Omega d.o.o., Dolinškova 8, Ljubljana, SI-1000, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
In the last few years the advances in
molecular biological methods, especially the development
of next generation sequencing, have drastically changed
and improved our view of microbial world. Progress in
new molecular techniques enables us to overcome
potential disadvantages of traditional microbiological
techniques in fungal community identifications. It also
enables us to evaluate the richness of fungal
populations more efficiently and reliably. In the
present study, we used the Ion Torrent PGM next
generation sequencing platform to analyse fungi present
in ordinary household dishwashers. The identification
was based on massive parallel sequencing of the D2 LSU
rRNA amplicon. The analysis revealed rich and diverse
fungal communities present in our dishwashers.
Interpretation of the results was based on previously
published research by Zalar et. al (2011). The results
of our study confirmed that the new technology in many
ways surpasses classical methods used in fungal analysis
by offering quicker, reliable, more sensitive and
inexpensive high-throughput identification of
microorganisms in entire communities.
Micro RNA research in cattle, pig, sheep, and chicken
1,
Minja ZORC, Tanja KUNEJ
1 Univ. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 Domžale, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small
non-coding RNAs that play key roles in regulating gene
expression. Polymorphisms in miRNA precursors, target
genes or within components of silencing machinery
contribute significantly to the phenotypic diversity in
animals. Due to this role miRNAs became the subject of
increased research interest in association with
production traits in livestock. In this article we
presented examples of associations between miRNA genes
and phenotypes of four livestock species: cattle, pig,
sheep, and chicken. Most miRNA research studies are
focused on their functioning in muscle, adipose tissues,
gonads, fetal development and immune system. MicroRNA
functions also impact animal productivity and
consequently economic success of farming. With
understanding miRNA functions in various biological
pathways it is possible to develop new strategies for
improving the productivity of livestock.
Key words:
animal production / genetics / microRNA
The contribution of Slovenian biogas plants to the reduction of agricultural sector green house emissions
1,
Neža NOVAK, Maša VODOVNIK
1
Univ. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 Domžale, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
Agriculture is a source of emissions
of the greenhouse gas methane into the environment.
These emissions can be reduced by appropriate storage of
animal slurry and manure, with proper fertilization and
processing of organic agricultural waste into biogas,
where methane is captured and used as an energy source.
Biogas is a renewable source of energy that is produced
by microbial anaerobic digestion in biogas plants. As a
substrate in biogas plants using different types of
organic biomass such as animal manure and slurry, crop
residues, spoilt silage, waste from food processing
industry and biodegradable industrial and municipal
waste. Biogas can be used to produce heat and
electricity or purified to biomethane as a fuel for
vehicles. Digestate can be used as a high-quality
fertilizer. Biogas as a renewable energy source
represents a replacement for fossil fuels, thus reducing
greenhouse gas emissions from fossil sources. The system
of financial supports for electricity produced from
biogas is applied in Slovenia. There were 24 operating
biogas plants in Slovenia in year 2014. Slovenian biogas
plants currently produce the majority of biogas from
energy crops. As only the minority of biogas is produced
from animal excrements we will primarily support the
development of agricultural microbiogas plants that will
use animal excrements and organic waste biomass from
agri-food sector as substrates.
Key words: agriculture / biogas /
green house effect / Slovenia
1
Slovenian Beekeepers' Association, Brdo pri Lukovici 8, SI-1225 Lukovica, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
For the natural development of bee
colonies, there is the need for appropriate nutrition.
Lack of natural honey flow must be supplemented by
feeding bee colonies with sugar syrups or candy paste.
This supplementary feeding encourages brood breeding and
forage activity, whereby stronger colonies collect more
honey. Sugar syrups can cause honey adulteration, which
is more frequent with the reversing of the brood combs
with the bee food, with the combs moved from the brood
chamber to the upper chamber. Authentication of honey
from the standpoint of the presence of sugar syrup is
very complex, because there is no single method by which
honey adulteration can be reliably confirmed. Feeding
the colonies in spring should result in stronger
colonies and hence the collection of more honey in the
brood chambers. The objective of the present study was
to determine whether this has effects also on honey
authenticity, and to discover a simple method for
detection of honey adulteration. The colonies were fed
with candy paste that had added yeast and blue dye, to
provide markers for detection of honey adulteration. The
strength of the colonies and quantity of honey in the
brood chambers were monitored. The results of the
analysis of stable isotope and activity of foreign
enzymes were compared with the results of yeast quantity
and colour of the honey (absorbance, L*, a*, b*
parameters). Detection of yeast in the honey samples and
presence of colour as a consequence of added dye appear
to be appropriate methods to follow honey adulteration,
and further studies are ongoing.
Agris category codes:
L73, E16 COBISS
1.01
Language: English
The analysis of costs related to bovine spongiform encephalopathy disease occurrence in the czech republic in 2001–2014
1
1
Palacký Univ. of Olomouc, Fac. of Arts, Dept. of Applied Economics, Křížkovského 12, CZ-771 80 Olomouc, Czech Republic
ABSTRACT
This paper pays attention to analysis
of the economic impacts of the bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE) occurrence in the Czech Republic,
namely the financial compensations to the farmers whose
herds had been affected and the costs of animal killing
and carcass disposal in the rendering plant. Between
February 2001 and the end of 2014, a total of 1 879 749
cows were examined and 30 cases of the BSE were
detected. Consequently, 4 243 cows in cohorts were
killed and their carcasses were safely disposed of. The
farmers whose herds had been affected were provided
compensations for the losses suffered. The total of the
compensations in this period reached EUR 7 752 000. Of
these, 83.3 % (EUR 6 458 000) were compensations for the
value of the killed animals, 9.7 % (EUR 752 000) for the
related costs, i.e., killing, safe disposal of carcasses
and the examination for the BSE, and 6.9 % (EUR 535 000)
for the losses due to non-materialised production. The
average costs per 1 BSE-positive animal were EUR 258 400
and the average costs per 1 cohort animal were EUR
1 827. In the rendering plant responsible for killing
the infected and cohort animals and safely disposing of
their carcasses, the total of 2 342 tons of raw material
was processed between March 2003 and 2009, and this cost
EUR 363 777. The fact that there were only two last
cases of the BSE in 2009 suggests a trend towards the
disease eradication, which is in agreement with the
situation in the other EU countries.
Before going to Vienna could Anton Janša be in Carinthia?
1,
Janez GREGORI, Anton KOŽELJ, Peter DOVČ
1
Univ. of Ljubljana, Biotechnical Fac., Dept. of Animal Science, Groblje 3, SI-1230 Domžale, Slovenia
ABSTRACT
The opinions and arguments, claiming
that Anton Janša stayed in Carinthia from 1765 until his
departure for Vienna in the year 1766, that he was a
member of the Carinthian agricultural society and
similar, are a novelty in the knowledge of the life and
work of the first c. k. beekeeping teacher in Vienna.
This statement was for the first time published in the
book of Ehrenfels in 1829 and for the second time in the
book of Heinrich in 1832. This notice was later
reproduced in other works. The message of these
publications is: Anton Janša was a Carinthian, he
brought the Carinthian way of beekeeping to Vienna, he
originates from the Carinthian agricultural society,
which also recommended him in Vienna, so he was invited
by the Empress Maria Theresia to Vienna and so on. Among
Slovenian authors Perc (1925a,b) and Stabej (1955) drew
attention to these records. Janša describes in his books
and stresses his Carniolan origin, Carniolan way of
beekeeping and Carniolan wooden hive and does not refer
to his life and work in Carinthia. To confirm these
records and publications on Anton Janša in Carinthia, it
is necessary to find archival documents in provincial
archive in Klagenfurt to confirm or to reject this
hypothesis.
Key words: apiculture / bees / Janša,
Anton / biographies
