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Lower Austria (lower + austria)
Selected AbstractsThe Choice of Standardisation Reveals a Significant Influence on the Dynamics of Bacterial Abundance in Newly Deposited River SedimentsINTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF HYDROBIOLOGY, Issue 3-4 2003Andreas H. Farnleitner Abstract After a high water event of the River Danube in April 1994, bacterial cell numbers were determined in newly formed deposits in a backwater near Hainburg (Lower Austria) within a time course of 140 days. This data set shows that expressing bacterial numbers per fresh sediment volume, per sediment dry mass, or per pore-water fluid volume, respectively, yield significantly different results and ecological conlusions. These findings refer particularly to intra-study and time-course comparisons as presented in our case. Bacterial cell numbers expressed per gram sediment dry mass revealed statistically significant differences between the beginning and the end of the study, whereas expressed per cm3 of fresh sediment or fluid volume of sediment pore water, no statistical difference could be detected. It is argued that these differences were caused by physical sediment compaction and mineralisation processes over the considered time-course. Such mechanisms may simulate biological activity if some basic sediment parameters are neglected and thus standardisation has to be done with caution for the particular situation being observed. [source] Pedigree analysis in the Austrian Noriker draught horse: genetic diversity and the impact of breeding for coat colour on population structureJOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 5 2009T. Druml Summary The pedigree of the current Austrian Noriker draught horse population comprising 2808 horses was traced back to the animals considered as founders of this breed. In total, the number of founders was 1991, the maximum pedigree length was 31 generations, with an average of 12.3 complete generations. Population structure in this autochthonous Austrian draught horse breed is defined by seven breeding regions (Carinthia, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tyrol, Upper Austria and Vorarlberg) or through six coat colour groups (Bay, Black, Chestnut, Roan, Leopard, Tobiano). Average inbreeding coefficients within the breeding regions ranged from 4.5% to 5.5%; for the colour groups, the coefficients varied from 3.5% to 5.9%. Other measures of genetic variability like the effective number of founders, ancestors and founder genomes revealed a slightly different genetic background of the subpopulations. Average coancestries between and within breeding areas showed that the Salzburg population may be considered as the nucleus or original stock whereas all other subpopulations showed high relationship to horses from Salzburg. The target of draught horse breeding in the 21st century does not meet the breeding concept of maximizing genetic gains any more. Stabilizing selection takes place. In this study, we show that demographic factors as well as structure given by different coat colours helped to maintain genetic diversity in this endangered horse breed. [source] First record of Lamproglena pulchella Nordmann 1832 in the Pielach and Melk rivers, AustriaJOURNAL OF APPLIED ICHTHYOLOGY, Issue 5 2006F. Jirsa Summary Between April and November 2003, parasitological examinations of the nase Chondrostoma nasus L. and the chub Leuciscus cephalus L. from the neighbouring Melk and Pielach rivers in Lower Austria were conducted. Amongst various gill parasites, Lamproglena pulchella Nordmann 1832 was detected on both fish species, which was the first record of this parasitic crustacean in Austria. Physico-chemical examinations of water samples of the two rivers were carried out during the same period. The results indicate that general water parameters in the Melk were subjected to more vigorous changes than in the Pielach. Critical temperature levels and ammonia concentration as well as drastic changes in the ionic composition occurred more frequently in the Melk River. The observed distribution of L. pulchella indicates its sensitivity to such stress factors: there was no evidence of the parasite in the Melk River until late November and it only then occurred on the gills of L. cephalus with a prevalence of 20% and a mean intensity of 2. In the Pielach River, infestation on chub had already occurred in June with a prevalence of 40% and a mean intensity of 3, rising to 60% and 7 in November; 45% of the nase was also infested in November at a mean intensity of 3. [source] Epidemiology of enterovirus types causing neurological disease in Austria 1999,2007: Detection of clusters of echovirus 30 and enterovirus 71 and analysis of prevalent genotypesJOURNAL OF MEDICAL VIROLOGY, Issue 2 2009Birgit Ortner Abstract Between 1999 and 2007 1,388 stool specimens from patients with acute flaccid paralysis or aseptic meningitis were submitted to the Austrian reference laboratory for poliomyelitis. Samples (201) yielded non-poliovirus enterovirus in culture. One hundred eighty-one viruses were available for typing and 78 isolates which remained serologically untyped were further analyzed by CODEHOP-PCR and sequencing of the VP1 gene and the 5,-untranslated region (5,-UTR). Typing revealed an Echovirus 30 outbreak in northwestern Austria in 2000, which was in accordance with the situation in Europe, and no dramatic seasonal changes of Coxsackie viruses were observed. In 2002/2003 a small outbreak of enterovirus 71 (EV71), affected 12 patients in the province of Styria. This virus was identified as genotype C1 and appeared to be genetically distinct from the isolates observed in 2001/2002 in Vienna. In 2004 two unrelated cases occurred in Lower Austria, which were identified as genotype C4, which has been described associated with high mortality most recently in China. In contrast to the situation in Asia the detected EV71 cases were not associated with hand,foot,mouth disease, but with serous meningitis only. This was surprising as a recent publication suggested a reduced neurovirulence of C1 genotype in children in Norway, presumably due to alterations in 5,-UTR and polymerase gene. However, comparing the 5,-UTR of the Austrian isolates and established virulent reference strains to the Norwegian isolate and an attenuated EV71 laboratory strain we did not find an indication that the genotype C1 possesses a RNA structure in its 5,-UTR leading to reduced neurovirulence. J. Med. Virol. 81:317,324, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Disturbance history of a European old-growth mixed-species forest,A spatial dendro-ecological analysisJOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 5 2005Bernhard E. Splechtna Abstract Question: We were interested if and how variation in frequency and/or size of disturbances affect the dynamics of a montane old-growth forest in Central Europe. Location: The forest, co-dominated by Fagus sylvatica, Picea abies and Abies alba, is located in Lower Austria and represents one of the few sizable virgin forests in Central Europe. Methods: We extracted cores from 100 trees using systematic grid sampling (grid cell size 10 m × 10 m) on each of four 1-ha plots distributed across the old-growth remnant of 300 ha. We inferred disturbance events from rapid early growth and release events. For defining release criteria, we applied the boundary line method. We investigated the spatial structure of current age and gap distributions and past disturbance events in grid cells, using a pair density statistic. Results: The disturbance histories indicate decades with peaks and also extended periods without disturbance. Some peaks occurred synchronously at three of the four plots (1910s, 1930s, 1960s and 1980s). Peaks and gaps in the disturbance chronologies widely agreed with peaks and gaps in the age distributions. Most disturbance events during single decades showed a random spatial distribution. Conclusions: There is considerable variation in disturbance frequency and/or severity over time. Most disturbance events will rather thin the stand than clear larger areas at once. Following scattered disturbance two pathways occur: (1) gap expansion leading to creation of larger gaps, and (2) gap closure by lateral encroachment or by subcanopy trees growing into the canopy. [source] | |||||||||||||