peer reviewed | Un dosage sérologique des glycoprotéines associées à la gestation chez les caprins (caPAG), par la technique ELISA "sandwich" a été mis au point pour le diagnostic précoce de la gestation chez la chèvre naine de Guinée. Des anticorps anti-caPAG produits chez les lapins ont été biotinylés et titrés pour permettre ce dosage dans le sérum de chèvres. Des échantillons de sang ont été collectés tous les 7 jours chez 6 chèvres après induction et synchronisation des chaleurs puis saillie pour doser la caPAG sérique. Les densités optiques ont été lues à 492 nm sur un lecteur automatique ELISA pour établie le profil de la caPAG. Le taux de caPAG augmente rapidement pendant le premier tiers de gestation pour atteindre un pic (117 ng/ml) vers le 91e jour puis baisse pour atteindre environ 50 ng/ml le 121ème jour et reste plus ou moins stable jusqu’à la parturition où il chute progressivement pour atteindre environ 12,5 ng/ml trois semaines après. Cependant ce taux reste encore élevé dans la circulation maternelle 3 semaines après la parturition. La PAG caprine est détectable dans le sérum par cette technique à partir du 28ème jour de gestation avec une sensibilité de 100 %. Le 21ème jour, la sensibilité est faible (66,7 %). Ce test offre donc une alternative pratique au laboratoire, précoce et fiable pour le diagnostic de la gestation à partir du jour 28 après insémination chez la chèvre naine de Guinée.

peer reviewed | Hays of graminaceous species (I. cylindrica and S. palidefusca) of low quality (30g/kg dry matter (DM) Crude Protein (CP) was offered to 16 goats (8 males, 8 females), alone or with one of three tropical leguminous plants (153g/kg, 104g/kg and 305,6g/kg DM respectively). The supplementation increased total DM, energy and CP intakes and consequently allowed the weight of the goats to increase. The fodder of L. leucocephala gave the best results, while that of S. guianensis gave the lowest. Fodder of A. rhomboideus is a potential nitrogen-source supplement for poor fodder in the dry season for ruminants.

International audience | The primary objective of this investigation was to examine the impact of postponed grazing on the floristic diversity and pastoral capacity of Stipa tenacissima L. rangelands, spanning from a reserved zone to an openly grazed rangeland along a transect. During the spring of 2021, field sampling was conducted along four transects intersecting in pairs, each approximately 8,000 meters in length, employing the quadrat point technique. The findings demonstrate notable impacts on all scrutinized characteristics, favoring the fully protected pathway distinguished by a vegetation cover of ≥ 80%, with annual species contributing up to 40% of the cover. Within the enclosed region, surface soil attributes exhibit a litter rate nearing 8% and minimal bare soil presence (<5%). Pastoral output surpasses 330 UF.ha-1.an-1, with an estimated potential stocking rate of 0.84 eq.ov.ha-1. | Le présent travail vise à étudier l'effet du report du pâturage sur la diversité floristique et les potentialités pastorales des parcours de Stipa tenacissima L., le long d’un transect allant d'une mise en défens vers un parcours à pâturage libre. Au printemps 2021, un échantillonnage a été effectué sur quatre transects croisés deux par deux d'une longueur moyenne de 8000 m selon la méthode des points quadrats. Les résultats obtenus révèlent des effets significatifs pour l’ensemble des attributs analysés en faveur du parcours de protection intégrale qui se caractérise par un recouvrement de la végétation ≥ 80 % et, où les espèces annuelles contribuent jusqu’à 40 % du couvert. Dans la zone en défens, les éléments de la surface du sol sont caractérisés par un taux de litière qui avoisine les 8 % et une faible présence de sol nu (&lt;5%). La productivité pastorale est supérieure à 330 UF.ha-1.an-1et la capacité de charge potentielle est estimée à 0.84 eq.ov.ha-1.

International audience | Au Sénégal, l'apparition des petites unités laitières semble être un facteur important dans le développement d'un système local amélioré de production laitière. Pour aborder cette réflexion, un aperçu a été conduit en 2002 à Kolda, au sud du Sénégal. L'approche "filière" a été choisie pour évaluer les transferts physiques, les niveaux des prix, la gestion de la qualité et l'organisation économique du secteur. Les résultats prouvent que les quantités de lait récoltées par les petites unités de traitement se sont accrues de 21 250 litres en 1996 à 113 600 litres en 2001. Avec la concurrence du lait en poudre importé, le futur développement du système dépendra certainement de l'amélioration des niveaux de productivité mais également de la satisfaction des besoins du consommateur en termes de qualité et de prix. Plus d'attention devrait être prêtée à la qualité spécifique des produits locaux.

Under rapid development of science and industry the industrial robots and robotic systems are more widely used in the field of industry. The robots and robotic systems help to manage and master new technological processes efficiently and effectively. In this article there was carried out the analysis of the two degree of freedom (DOF) robot arm, which is widely used in practice in order to reveal its functions and to identify its key dynamic parameters using fuzzy logic system. The mathematical model of robot arm dynamics is composed, which includes the mathematical models of the robot arm links twirling motors and the direct positions task model generating the end point of the robot. After the analysis of the robot model the expanded research was performed – after calculating the missing parameters of experimental 2DOF robot arm motors there was created the robot arm model with „V-REP“ and “MATLAB Simulink” software packages that allowed to set the control voltages and to observe the changing in time processes of link velocity trajectories. There is calculated designed planar robot end point trajectory deviation from the dynamic trajectory.

This paper presents formation of the first pop-up rural socially-innovative hubs in Croatia through the cooperation of higher education institutions, civil society organizations, students, alumni and local people in the specific rural communities of Međimurje and Split-Dalmatia County. The main purpose of the hubs is to develop, test and validate an inclusive and participative program of service learning in the field of sustainable rural development. Pop-up rural hubs are mobile model of service learning that functions as an occasional event in the local community, to which all interested initiators are invited to join. From the sociological perspective, the most important aim of this project is to strenghten rural local communities through the launch of socio-innovative sustainable micro-entrepreneurial activities by using local resources. Through pop-up rural hubs, business ideas and plans are tested, and through additional mentoring and business plan, initiators were able to send the product or service on the market. Although the project is not over yet, the preliminary results show that pop-up rural socially-innovative hubs, within a period of one year project duration, stress the differencies and similarities between local communities in different parts of rural Croatia, enhance human capital and have a social impact on higher education institutions, civil society organizations, students, alumni and local people.

The scientific and methodological basis for increasing the efficiency of geothermal ventilation, making it possible to use thermal energy of the Earth’s surface layers for cooling (heating) an incoming air stream are created. Mathematical modeling is performed based on the equations of hydrodynamics, heat transfer and thermal conductivity, along with a computational experiment carried out using the finite volume method.&nbsp; A mathematical model of the process of heat exchange between the flow of air in a heat exchanger and a soil mass is developed. This model describes a relationship between efficiency indicators of the horizontal ground heat exchanger and its performance parameters, and also natural climatic conditions. The determination of thermal fields in incoming cooled air and a soil mass at various depth locations of the horizontal ground heat exchanger is performed. The relationship between thermal efficiency and operation time of the horizontal heat exchanger, located at different depths, is proved. The energy comparison of a horizontal ground heat exchanger, located at different depths, with a vertical one, is made. he depth of the horizontal heat exchanger has been established, for which the loss of thermal energy in comparison with the vertical is insignificant (less than 7.5%). The operating time was determined, starting from which there are practically no differences in the level of thermal energy for all the studied models (&gt; 107 s). The developed mathematical model allows to predict the energy efficiency indicators of a horizontal ground heat exchanger on the basis of its performance parameters and natural climatic conditions, that makes possible determining the economically optimal depth of the heat exchanger location under specific conditions.

In order to increase the cost-effectiveness of blueberry (Vaccinium) cultivation in blueberry plantations, all of its technological operations should be automatized. It is reasonable to start the automation of blueberry cultivation from the technological operation of fertilising the blueberries as the main purpose of this operation is to dose a prescribed amount of fertiliser under the plant’s crown. When a new blueberry plantation is established on depleted peat milling fields, then the plants are set at pre-determined steps into parallel rows. Fertilisation of the plants in the first years of growth must be performed individually, i.e. each plant is fertilised separately. This is called precision fertilisation. In order to design the technological devices for blueberry cultivation, including the fertiliser robot, we must know the location of plants on the field or, more precisely, their position in the row. The goal of this study is to determine the position of blueberry plants in the plantation. In order to meet the goal, measurements were performed in the blueberry plantation and the position of plants in randomly chosen row was measured. It became clear from the study that plants are not positioned regularly at equal intervals in a straight line; therefore, the fertiliser robot to be designed must include the functions of plant identification and control of fertiliser jet to ensure individual or precision fertilisation of plants.

The aim of the present study was to determine the concentration of microscopic fungi and selected mycotoxins in fresh bee pollen, stored for different periods. In the study, 12 pollen samples collected from the same apiary families were investigated. The total count of microorganisms in the pollen during the study period varied from 2.9×103 to 4.4×103 cfu g-1. The moisture content of fresh pollen varied between 14.2 and 22.7%. During studies, the most prevalent fungal genera of Fusarium, Penicillium, Alternaria, Mucor and yeast were found in fresh bee pollen. The amounts of microscopic fungi increased from 2.9×103 to 4.4×103 cfu g-1 as the pollen storage time increased. The significantly higest amounts of fungal colonies was determined after 3 days storage of undried pollen. The most significant Fusarium spp. increase (14.9%) was determined after 2 days of storage. The highest levels of mycotoxins ZEN and DON were determined after 3 days of pollen storage. Fresh bee pollen chould be dried as quickly as possible, to reduce the levels of microbial contamination.

Botrytis cinerea, the causal agent of strawberry grey mold, has become a severe problem of horticultural farms due to its genetic variability and growing resistance to frequently used fungicides. Plant disease could induce significant losses of yields and plants thus it is necessary to discover and apply novel approaches to control strawberry pathogens. In addition, chemical plant protection products can leave undesirable residues in fruits and the environment. Plant protection should be more friendly to the environment and human than already used chemical measures. One of the alternatives could be plant-based extracts, produced from aromatic and medicinal herbs, spices, fruits. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the in vitro effect of cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum cassia L.) and clove bud (Syzygium aromaticum L.) extracts on B. cinerea colony growth. Experiments were carried out at LAMMC Institute of Horticulture, Lithuania. Both extracts were obtained from dried material by extraction with CO2. For in vitro assay, extracts were separately mixed with potato dextrose agar in concentrations from 200 to 1000 μl/l, poured into Petri dishes, then each dish was inoculated with 6 mm diameter B. cinerea disc and incubated at 22±2 oC in the dark for 7 days. The diameter of the pathogen colony was measured 2, 4 and 7 days after inoculation. Concentrations of the extracts, which demonstrated reduced growth of the pathogen, were considered to have an antifungal effect. The results showed that extracts of cinnamon bark and clove bud had a similar antifungal effect on B. cinerea and suppressed the growth of 100% from 600 μl/l concentrations 4 days after inoculation. At 600-1000 μl/l, no growth of the pathogen was detected for both extracts 7 days after inoculation. However, clove bud extract considered to be more effective, as the diameter of B. cinerea colonies was smaller compared to cinnamon bark extract at 200-400 μl/l concentrations. To conclude, spice extracts of cinnamon bark and clove bud demonstrated antifungal effect on B. cinerea in vitro and could possibly be applied for control of strawberry grey mold.