This study aimed to identify the relationship between morphological variables and production variables in bell pepper plants derived from seeds of different physiological levels. The experiments were car-ried out in a randomized block design with eight replications in a protected setting at Universidade Federal de Santa Maria. Treatments included three lots of hybrid Tiberius seeds and one lot of Rubi Giant seeds during Spring-Winter and Autumn-Winter season with different levels of physiological quality as shown by vigor and germination tests. The following characters (variables) were measured: plant height, first fork height, stem di-ameter, and stem diameter below the first fork after 50 days, 70 days and 90 days of transplanting, average weight of fruits, average production per harvest, total production, average fruit length, and average width of fruits. Next, for each level of vigor was estimated the correlation matrixes, multicollinearity diagnosis, and then path analysis, considering the total production as the main variable.Plants derived from high-, low- and medium vigor seeds whose first fork diameters were greater after 50 days and 70 days of transplanting are more produc-tive during Spring-Winter seeding. Coefficients of correlation and effect of low magnitude were identified in vigor levels (being high, low, medium, and extremely low) during Autumn-Winter season, indicating a weak relationship between cause and effect of explanatory variables measured on total fruit production of bell pepper.

The objective was to evaluate the performance of growth and productivity of three cactus for-age clones, resistant to Cochineal Carmine, grown under irrigated conditions in the Brazilian semi-arid region. The clones evaluated were: IPA Sertânia (IPA), Miúda (MIU) and the Orelha Elefante Mexicana (OEM), be-tween February 2010 and February 2012, in Serra Talhada, State of Pernambuco. To the end of the crop cycle morphological data were obtained from plants (canopy height and width, cladode total number, cladode number by order of emergence and cladode area index) and cladode (length, width, thickness, perimeter and area), and crop productive parameters (crop fresh and dry matter yield, and final density of plants per hectare). Path anal-ysis was applied to evaluate the influence of meteorological variables (global solar radiation, air temperature and relative humidity, wind speed and rain) on the growth of cactus forage. It was found that the OEM and IPA were those who stood out most of the morphological characteristics. But, in terms of cladode number, the MIU is the clone of greater emission (> 35 units), however it has been demonstrated as the clone less productive in terms of fresh mass (117.5 t ha-1), along with the IPA. The OEM stood out as the most productive clone (163.0 t ha-1). However, there was no difference in productivity in dry basis between the clones (12.6 ± 2.0 t ha-1). The IPA has the highest mortality of plants (10.4%). Meteorological variables showed effect lower on the evolution of crop growth (< 33.1%).

The use of cashew apple bagasse for bioethanol production aimed at taking advantage of a re-gional culture that has about 85% of waste. Due to the complex structure of the material, it is necessary to sub-mit it to physical pretreatments and/or chemicals such as acid prehydrolysis, alkali, steam explosion, CO2 ex-plosion, hot water treatment, pretreatment with microwave, among others, before hydrolysis process for ethanol production. The aim of this paper was to study the prehydrolysis and acid hydrolysis in the cashew bagasse peduncle (Anarcadium occidentale L.), and the removal of toxic compounds from the hydrolyzate liquor using the residual lignin as adsorbent and alcoholic fermentation of liquors for the production of the second genera-tion bioethanol. The cashew bagasse, based on its chemical characterization and physical chemistry, presented itself as a promising source in order to produce bioethanol. The prehydrolysis, is effective in the removal of hemicelluloses mainly in the extraction of arabinose, the temperature being the major variable influencing the process. For the acid hydrolysis done with the following hydrolysis conditions: temperature at 200 °C, acid concentration equal to 6% and ratio of 1:6 has presented the combination of the highest concentration of sugars with a minimum concentration of toxic compounds. During the study of the alcoholic fermentation of liquors with hydrolyzed yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, presented yield and efficiency of production of ethanol from cellulosic pulp of processing stalk cashew maximum dry were respectively 0.445 g ethanol/g of pulp and 87.1% hydrolyzed liquor with the addition of cashew apple juice.

The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of Babesia bovis and Babesia bigemina in dairy cattle from São Luis Island in the state of Maranhão, Brazil. A total of 281 blood samples were collected. In total, 275 (97.9%) animals were B. bovis-reactive and B. bigemina reactive in the Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). The microscopy examination detected 22 (7.8%) animals that were positive for Babesia sp. and the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) analysis showed that 91 animals (32.38%) and 23 animals (8.18%) were positive for B. bovis and B. bigemina, respectively, while 17 animals (6.04%) were co-infected. There is a high level of transmission of these protozoa in Maranhão, and the animals were naturally exposed. Therefore, it is possible to characterize the island as enzootic stability for babesiosis, indicat-ing a risk of financial losses when susceptible animals are introduced from areas of enzootic instability or free regions of B. bovis and B. bigemina.

The current work had the objective to characterize the visual symptoms of nutrient deficiencies, single and multiple, in castor bean cultivar Guarani, as well as their effects on dry matter and biometrical index. The experiment was carried out in culture solution with randomized blocks with six treatments and four repli-cations. The treatments were represented by control, then the Hoagland and Arnon (1950) control, omission of iron (-Fe); multiple omission of iron and zinc (-FeZn), omission of manganese (-Mn), multiple omission of manganese and zinc (-MnZn) and omission of zinc (-Zn). Castor bean plants under single Zn omissions did not show visual symptoms, however multiple omission of this nutrient increased the symptoms intensity and re-duced the plant height. In such results, the symptoms of Zn deficiency were observed. The nutrients content, in leaves, were more affected by the treatment -FeZn, while the stem contents were affected under Zn omissions. The nutrient omission, single or multiple, in culture solution caused morphological changes and turn into a vis-ual symptoms, altered the dry matter, biometrical index and nutrient contents in castor bean plants.

The aim of this study was to provide information on the ecology and floristic composition of vascular epiphytes on specimens of licurizeiro (Syagrus coronata), palm tree native to the Brazilian Backlands, whose individuals were isolated in pasture areas in the municipality of Várzea da Roça - BA. The epiphytic species were classified according to their ecological category and dispersion forms. The vascular epiphytes were represented by 26 species, 21 genera and seven families, and Bromeliaceae (8 spp.), Cactaceae (7 spp.), Polypodiaceae (4 spp.) and Orchidaceae (3 spp.) the most representative. The true holoepiphytes and accidental epiphytes were the most frequent categories, gathering, respectively, 42.31% and 30.76% of the species inven-toried. Regarding the dispersion forms, it is observed the predominant of zoochoric species (14 spp.) while anemochoric were represented by 12 species. The results show the importance of licurizeiro in the maintenance of the epiphytic community in areas of Caatinga and show its role as maintainer of biological diversity in an-thropogenic environments.

This study aimed at determining the best irrigation frequency and main cultivar associated with the production of strawberry according to the irrigation management used. The experiment was carried out at the FEMO, linked to the URENM of the EPAMIG. The experiment was installed in split plots, with cultivars Camarosa, Dover, Oso Grande and Tudla on subplot and frequencies FR1, FR2 and FR3 in the plots in ran-domized block with four replications, totaling 48 experimental units. The fruits were harvested, quantified and classified as fruits commercial and non-commercial. Higher commercial fruit yield was observed in cultivar Oso Grande, mainly associated with characteristic fruit that fruit weight is equal or superior to 10g. The culti-var Dover was sole with a higher yield of commercial fruit when subjected to FR2. Regarding the number of commercial fruits, the cultivar Oso Grande showed yield higher than the 'Tudla'. The FR2 showed a better per-formance for all variables compared to FR3. Therefore, the cultivar Oso Grande showed better productive per-formance. Taking into consideration the irrigation’s frequency, and for higher strawberry yields, the frequen-cies FR1 and FR2 can be used.

The phenotypic manifestations of genetic knowledge of important agronomic traits in plants is an activity of great importance, whose results are widely used in plant breeding . The objective was to study the type of genetic segregation that occurs when crossing a dwarf genotype versus indeterminate growth habit gen- o t y p e . Their plant was found growing spontaneously in Piracicaba (SP), on - site disposal of fruits per tomatoes producers along with normal plants. Seeds of both plants were harvested separately for baseline and coded as follows: a plant with a normal phenotype (FN) and plant with atypical phenotype with characteristics of dwarf- ism (FA). The methodology consisted of biparental and reciprocal backcrosses of the F 1 to the parent FA and obtained the F 2 generation. The data derived from the plant count populations obtained (F 1 , F 2 and backcrosses) were tested using the χ 2 according to the expected frequency and observed the normal phenotype (FN) and plant with atypical phenotype with characteristics of dwarfism (FA), under the hypothesis Mendelian segrega- tion 3:1, obtained by monogenic inheritance. From the results, it can be concluded that the phenotype observed in the plant in this study is recessive genetic origin can be inserted into other plants by crossing.

Aiming to study the genetic control of Papaya ringspot virus, type watermelon (PRSV-W) in watermelon, the cultivar Crimson Sweet (P1 – susceptible) and L26 derived from PI 244019 (P2 – resistant), as well as the resulting populations F1, F2, RC11 and RC21 of the cross of both lines were evaluated. The trials were carried out in a greenhouse, and the evaluations were done using artificial inoculations with PRSV-W isolates. The seedling symptoms were recorded using a graded scale, and the serological evaluation was done with specific antiserum using indirect ELISA. The estimated variances of the populations were used to obtain the genetic (σ 2 G), the environmental (σ 2 E), phenotypic (σ 2 F2), additive (σ 2 A) and dominance (σ 2 D) variances as well as the broad (h2 a) and narrow sense (h2 r) heritabilities. The hypothesis of monogenic inheritance was tested under different presumed average degrees of dominance as well as using the maximum likelihood. The distribution of resistant plants in the segregating populations was different from a distribution based on monogenic inheritance for all presumed average degrees of dominance, therefore, the hypothesis of monogenic inheritance was rejected indicating that this character in the line L26 is controlled by more than one major gene with the presence of modifiers. The additive-dominant model was adequate to explain the type of gene action involved, and the epistatic effects were not important in the expression of the resistance. The estimated average degree of dominance indicated complete dominance. The broad sense heritabilities for the two variables analyzed were intermediate.

The process of protein enrichment of cactus pear (Nopalea cochenillifera (L.) Salm Dyck) by solid state fermentation with the use of Aspergillus niger and Rhyzopus sp. was studied for improving the nutritional value of this cactus species for use as animal feed. The experiments were conducted in the Agroindustrial Waste Laboratory of State University of Southwest Bahia (Brazil). To this end, we have evaluated the effects of biotransformation on the levels of protein, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, as well as the potential degradability. Bioconversion was carried out using cactus pear as the only substrate, without supplementation with nitrogen, mineral and vitamin sources. The fermentation with Aspergillus niger promoted a 78% increase in/of protein content and reductions of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin of 40%, 36%, and 28%, respectively. Degradability, in turn, was observed to have increased by 66 % after 240 h. On the other hand, the fermentation with Rhyzopus sp. was less efficient, with a 69% increase in protein content, and reductions in cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin contents of 30%, 28%, and 18%. In turn, degradability was seen to have increased by 51%. The fermentation of cactus pear by Aspergillus niger and Rhyzopus sp. exhibited the protein enrichment and increased protein degradability of this Cactaceae. Moreover, this is the most ever efficient micro-organism used in bioconversion. Based on the results, bioconversion of cactus is an excellent alternative to ruminant feeding in arid or semi-arid land.