AgResearch Ltd (formerly known as New Zealand Pastoral Agriculture Research Institute Limited) is one of New Zealand's largest Crown Research Institutes with over 700 staff and revenue of NZ$160.7 million in the year to June 2014.
Objectives: To test whether Scandinavian Red (SR) sires improve udder health (somatic cell score; SCS) in New Zealand crossbred dairy cows without compromising milk solids yield. Materials and Methods: Herd-test records (one test day per cow) from six pasture-based New Zealand herds were analyzed (n = 5,294). All cows were daughters of Friesian x Jersey dams and were sired by Friesian (F), Jersey (J), Friesian × Jersey (F × J), or SR bulls. SCS was calculated as ln (SCC/1,000). Linear models estimated sire-breed effects on SCS, adjusting for herd, cow age group, days in milk (linear and quadratic), and milk solids (fat + protein, kg/day). Tukey-adjusted comparisons were used. Results: Sire breed significantly affected SCS (p = 0.004). SR-sired cows had the lowest adjusted mean SCS and were significantly lower than F- and J-sired cows; F × J-sired cows were intermediate. Milk solids (kg/day) yield did not differ by sire breed (p = 0.12). Older cows, early/late lactation, and herds were associated with higher SCS. Conclusions: Under pasture-based New Zealand conditions, using SR sires on Friesian x Jersey dams was associated with improved udder health (lower SCS) without reducing milk solids yield, supporting SR genetics as a practical option to reduce mastitis risk and antimicrobial use.
Genotyping by sequencing (GBS) is widely employed in aquaculture selective breeding programs to acquire SNP genotypes for various applications, including pedigree reconstruction, GWAS, and in the estimation of genetic parameters, genomic relationships and breeding values. Because sequencing libraries encompass all DNA present in fin-clip tissue, they also recover the non-host metagenomic fraction, including pathogens. We leveraged this property to survey for the presence of scale-drop disease virus (SDDV), responsible for 40-90 % mortality in farmed barramundi, while simultaneously genotyping the host. Raw reads from 4484 fish of four commercial cohorts (2239 moribund, 2245 asymptomatic) were aligned to the SDDV reference genome, and viral reads were normalised as reads per million (RPM) per individual. SDDV prevalence and load were tightly associated with clinical status: 88.9 % of moribund fish carried SDDV at 21.8 f 0.6 RPM, whereas only 0.2 % of healthy fish were positive with 0.002 f 0.001 RPM. Independent validation by quantitative PCR on fin and spleen from a nested subset of 172 fish (81 moribund, 91 healthy) yielded viral copy numbers strongly correlated with ddRADseq RPM (Spearman's rho = 0.84 for fin; rho = 0.76 for spleen; both P < 0.0001). Viral load was consistently higher in fin (mean 281 f 45 copies ng-1 DNA) than spleen (147 f 32 copies ng-1), corroborating the suitability of non-lethal fin tissue for surveillance. Prevalence and load distributions were homogeneous across cohorts, and no qPCRpositive individuals escaped detection by ddRADseq. These findings show that routine ddRADseq datasets in barramundi can also be repurposed into a sensitive epidemiological assay that unites SDDV monitoring with genomic improvement. Further, these findings suggest that breeding programs generating large ddRADseq GBS datasets may also serve pathogen surveillance purposes where the target pathogen infects the host genotyped tissue.
Parasitoids are central to classical biological control, yet predicting their long-term effectiveness post release remains challenging. In Aotearoa New Zealand, three Microctonus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) species have been used against pest weevils, but key aspects of their biology remain poorly understood. This is evident in postrelease decline of M. hyperodae efficacy and geographically variable nontarget impacts among M. aethiopoides strains. Such cases highlight knowledge gaps in host-searching behaviour, reproductive mode, adaptability to environmental conditions, and microbiome composition within parasitoids and hosts. We review studies, mainly on Hymenopteran parasitoids, focusing on key adaptive traits important in biocontrol: reproductive mode, olfaction, thermal tolerance, and symbiont interactions. Synthesising findings from host specificity, behavioural, and molecular analyses, we identify broader patterns and key gaps. While molecular research on Microctonus is limited, evidence from other systems shows trait-specific adaptive responses, with variation in olfactory sensitivity, reproductive strategies, and the microbiome interactions influencing host use success and potentially persistence. While field-level efficacy is often assessed, species-specific evaluation of life history traits under relevant environmental conditions is essential, followed by genomic and transcriptomic studies to reveal the molecular basis of adaptation. Integrating behavioural, molecular, microbiome, and ecological insights will be essential for optimising parasitoid releases and ensuring long-term biocontrol success in New Zealand.
This chapter explores trends in the evolution of herbicide resistance in two countries: Australia and New Zealand. After exploring the different agricultural systems in each country, the chapters shows how herbicide resistance has evolved in each case. A particular focus is the development of resistance to glyphosate. The chapter discusses possible factors underpinning differences in patterns of resistance as well as current and likely future trends in herbicide resistance.
Plant resilience relies on detecting and responding to osmotic stress and pathogens. Calcium (Ca2+) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) are key signalling molecules in plant stress, yet their interplay with protein modifications remains unclear. This study utilises a label-free quantitative proteomic approach to elucidate proteins involved in early signalling events in Arabidopsis thaliana (A. thaliana) roots exposed to osmotic stress induced by polyethylene glycol (PEG) and pathogen associated molecular pattern (PAMP)-triggered immunity by flagellin 22 (flg22). We identified over 300 phosphoproteins that changed in abundance within five minutes of stress exposure, including 153 phosphorylation and 49 methionine oxidations. Key signalling proteins included the mechanosensitive Ca2+ channel MSL9, which may interact with kinases (CPK8), actins (ACT2, ACT7), and antioxidant enzymes (APX1–3, CAT1–3) to coordinate Ca2+ influx and ROS regulation during early stress responses. Using the bi-directional dual-flowRootChip (bi-dfRC) we tested the effect of solute gradients of PEG, NaCl, flg22, Pep-13 and H2O2 on early systemic signallling response of Ca2+ and H2O2. Our results demonstrated directional Ca2+ signals that propagated through stele tissues, with varying speeds depending on the stressor. In contrast, symplastic H2O2 accumulation displayed distinct patterns from the observed Ca2+ signals. This study integrated stress-specific Ca2+ and symplastic H2O2 signalling data with protein interaction networks, linking oxidative modifications induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS) with Ca2+ influx to provide insights into early molecular signalling events in Arabidopsis roots during PAMP-triggered immunity and abiotic stress.
