Tomato Mi-gene Resistance-Breaking Populations of Meloidogyne Show Variable Reproduction on Susceptible and Resistant Crop Cultivars.

Sixteen Meloidogyne isolates from tomato fields in California grown with resistant cultivars were multiplied on resistant tomato in a greenhouse. Of these resistance-breaking isolates, one was identified as M. javanica, and all others as M. incognita. The reproduction of the M. javanica isolate and four M. incognita isolates on six resistant tomato cultivars and on susceptible and resistant cultivars of pepper, sweetpotato, green bean, cotton, and cowpea was evaluated and compared to an avirulent M. incognita population in greenhouse pot trials. On resistant tomato cultivars, there were minor but significant differences between the resistance-breaking Meloidogyne isolates and between the different tomato cultivars. Of the other resistant crop cultivars, pepper was resistant to all isolates and green bean to all M. incognita isolates, while cotton and cowpea allowed reproduction of one of the resistance-breaking M. incognita isolates. The resistant sweetpotato cv. Bonita behaved like resistant tomato, allowing reproduction of all five resistance-breaking isolates but not of the avirulent M. incognita. Our results showed that variability exists among resistance-breaking Meloidogyne isolates, and that isolates overcoming resistance in tomato may also be virulent on resistant sweetpotato.

Prediction of oral appliance treatment outcome in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: Predictors of treatment outcome of oral appliances (OAs) in patients with obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS) are not known. There is a pressing need for simple, clinically useful tools to predict treatment outcome. This study aimed to identify predictors of successful OA therapy for OSAS, including evaluation of pharyngeal morphology, which can be measured during routine examination by an otorhinolaryngologist. METHODOLOGY: This was a prospective study of 26 OSAS patients treated with OAs. A favourable outcome was obtained in 14 patients (responders) but not in 12 patients (nonresponders). The baseline patient characteristics and polysomnography and rhinopharyngeal findings were analysed. RESULTS: Body mass index (BMI) was significantly lower in responders versus nonresponders (23.6 ± 2.8 vs. 27.9 ± 4.7 kg/m2; p < 0.05). Pharyngeal morphology, age, sex and nasal resistance did not differ between the groups. Multiple regression analysis showed that BMI was a significant predictor of improvement in the apnoea/hypopnoea index after OA treatment (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Here we demonstrated that BMI is a favourable predictor of OA treatment outcome in OSAS patients. Among the OSAS patients, responders had wider retroglossal spaces than nonresponders.

Origin of Race 3 of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici at a Single Site in California.

ABSTRACT Thirty-nine isolates of Fusarium oxysporum were collected from tomato plants displaying wilt symptoms in a field in California 2 years after F. oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici race 3 was first observed at that location. These and other isolates of F. oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici were characterized by pathogenicity, race, and vegetative compatibility group (VCG). Of the 39 California isolates, 22 were in VCG 0030, 11 in VCG 0031, and six in the newly described VCG 0035. Among the isolates in VCG 0030, 13 were race 3, and nine were race 2. Of the isolates in VCG 0031, seven were race 2, one was race 1, and three were nonpathogenic to tomato. All six isolates in VCG 0035 were race 2. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) and sequencing of the intergenic spacer (IGS) region of rDNA identified five IGS RFLP haplotypes, which coincided with VCGs, among 60 isolates of F. oxysporum from tomato. Five race 3 isolates from California were of the same genomic DNA RFLP haplotype as a race 2 isolate from the same location, and all 13 race 3 isolates clustered together into a subgroup in the neighbor joining tree. Collective evidence suggests that race 3 in California originated from the local race 2 population.

Differential diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome patients and snorers using cephalograms.

Severe snoring is thought by many to be an early stage of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), but the anatomical relation between snoring and OSAS, if any, has remained unclear. To compare the morphology of the airway between snorers and OSAS patients for possible similarities, we conducted a cephalometric analysis of Japanese OSAS patients (n=10), habitual snorers (n=10), and non-snoring controls (n=50). There was no significant difference in SNB (the angle formed by the sella, nasion and point B) between OSAS patients and the control subjects. Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome patients tended to have an anteriorly positioned maxilla, and an anteroposterior misalignment between the maxilla and mandible. There was also a tendency toward skeletal openbite. Both OSAS patients and snorers had large tongues and large soft palates, thus causing constriction of the airway with resultant smaller airway diameter and smaller airway surface area. Significant differences between OSAS patients and snorers were found in thickness and length of soft palate surface area, and thickness, length, and position of the hyoid bone. These results suggest that cephalographic measurements may be of considerable use in determining the seriousness of a patient's condition.

Benefits of Applications of Chlorothalonil for the Control of Black Mold of Tomato.

Chlorothalonil was applied 2, 4, 6, 2 and 4, or 4 and 6 weeks prior to tomato harvest in fields in four counties in California over a 3-year period to assess the economic benefits of chlorothalonil applications, if any, on the reduction of black mold caused by Alternaria alternata. The percentage of visually infected fruit was significantly reduced across all four sites in 2 of the 3 years. At one location, the incidence of black mold was reduced over 50% in all 3 years of the study by a single application of the fungicide. Overall, the mean yield of marketable fruit was 79.8 metric tons per hectare. An average of 5.1% of the fruit harvested in all locations and years had visible symptoms of black mold. Generally, the most effective treatment was a single application of the fungicide 6 weeks before harvest, with no further benefit from a second application of the fungicide. Based on the cost of the fungicide and its application, a single dose of chlorothalonil applied to plots in Solano County, where the highest incidence of disease occurred, would net the grower $160.47 return per hectare. The application of fungicide resulted in significant economic benefits in tests in two of the counties, where the disease is historically a problem.