Mendel University in Brno is located in Brno, Czech Republic. It was founded on 24 July 1919 on the basis of the former Tábor Academy. It now consists of five faculties and one institute - the Faculty of Agronomy, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology, Faculty of Business and Economics, Faculty of Horticulture, Faculty of Regional Development and International Studies and Institute of Lifelong Education. It is named since 1994 after Gregor Mendel, the botanist and "father of genetics", who was active in this city during his lifetime.In June 2020, the university was included in the QS World University Rankings top 1,000 for the first time, placed #701-750..
The fifteenth part of the series on the distributions of vascular plants in the Czech Republic includes grid maps of 87 taxa in the genera Asperugo, Bassia, Brunnera, Bupleurum, CoeloVentenata. These maps were produced by taxonomic experts based on examined herbarium specimens, literature and field records. The paper encompasses both native and alien taxa, representing diverse ecological groups, from terrestrial herbs inhabiting dry grasslands, ruderal sites and forests to submerged aquatic species and alien woody plants. It also continues the mapping of orchids, one of the most rapidly declining plant groups, with valuable implications for nature conservation. Almost half of the species covered are listed on the national Red List, including the critically threatened Bassia prostrata, Groenlandia densa, Potamogeton coloratus and P. praelongus, each now restricted to single sites, as well as Bupleurum affine, B. tenuissimum, Goodyera repens and Ventenata dubia, surviving only in few, isolated populations. Four species, namely Bassia laniflora, Herminium monorchis, Potamogeton compressus and P. friesii, are now nationally extinct. Among the alien taxa included, only Bassia scoparia has become invasive, while the others are mostly casual introductions or escapes. Four of the previously introduced neophytes, Bupleurum croceum, Rapistrum rugosum, Sclerolaena tricuspis and Sedobassia sedoides, are no longer recorded in the country. Particular attention is given to Cotoneaster, whose diversity has only recently been fully recognized and taxonomically evaluated, resulting in 22 distinguished escaped species. Spatial distributions and often also temporal dynamics of individual taxa are displayed in grid maps and documented by records included in the Pladias database and available in the Supplementary materials. Each map is accompanied by a commentary providing an analysis of distribution patterns, habitat descriptions, taxonomic notes and biological characteristics.
Plums are an important fruit that is widely grown in temperate climates in Europe, such as the Czech Republic. Currently, stone fruits, including plums, are more susceptible to ongoing climate changes, which leads to a lower production. One possible solution is to cultivate Asian species, which show greater resistance in that regard. The fruit of Asian plum trees feature a higher variability of fruit - size, aroma and color. To support more significant distribution of such species in the European temperate zone, it is necessary to monitor their resistance as well as the potential of storing the fruits. The low storage temperature of 1 degrees C vs. 20 degrees C (shelf-life) had a more significant effect on carbon dioxide and ethylene production than the composition of the ultra low oxygen (ULO) atmosphere vs. random atmosphere (RA). Based on the physiological response observed, the "Sorriso Di Primavera" fruit can be classified as having a suppressed climacteric phase.
Background:Changes in climate and land use as well as expanding livestock production around the world, including southeastern Europe, result in growing public health risk of tick-borne pathogens. Cattle and other livestock serve as important hosts sustaining tick populations as well as tick-borne zoonotic and animal pathogens. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and co-circulation of the spotted fever group (SFG) Rickettsia spp. in ticks from cattle and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) in cattle in Kosovo. Methods:Ticks from pastured cattle in the Malishevë district, Kosovo were screened for SFG Rickettsia spp. by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing and cattle serum was screened for CCHFV antibodies by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Ticks were identified by amplification and sequencing of the partial COI gene. Results:All 110 ticks analyzed were identified as Rhipicephalus annulatus. SFG Rickettsia were detected in 9 ticks, seven Rickettsia aeschlimannii and two Rickettsia sibirica subsp. mongolitimonae, representing their first report in Kosovo as well as in Rh. annulatus. Serological assessment revealed CCHFV antibodies in 23 of 100 cattle indicating virus circulation. Conclusion:These findings demonstrate the simultaneous exposure of bacterial and viral tick-borne pathogens in a shared livestock interface. Integrated One Health surveillance is essential for early detection and risk mitigation in hyperendemic regions of the Western Balkans.
This paper assesses the contribution of information and communication technology (ICT) to sustainable development and job polarization in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Panel pooled mean group models are used to assess the role of ICT in sustainable development whereas changes in employment shares of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO08) occupations are used to investigate the changing employment distribution in the labor markets in the region. The results show that all measures of ICT had a positive and significant impact on sustainable development. The paper also finds that the West African countries are lagging in terms of ICT adoption and ICT infrastructure. The pace of adoption is slower compared to developed countries thus minimizing the pace of job polarization. The results obtained found no u-shaped employment distribution in the countries to indicate job polarization. Significantly however, there is a decline in the share of employment of the agriculture, forestry and fishery sectors. The decline in the share of employment is however offset by rising employment shares of most middle-skilled occupations in the region.
The formation of air bubbles in the xylem, known as embolism, reduces hydraulic conductivity and can ultimately lead to catastrophic failure of a tree's water transport system. When a vessel embolises, it releases water into the surrounding xylem tissue. Yet, how this release affects plant water status and further embolism spread remains poorly studied, especially in tropical trees. We examined xylem vulnerability curves from branches of 38 trees representing five dipterocarp species growing in a Bornean tropical rainforest. While branch water potential progressively declined as branches desiccated over time, temporary increases in branch water potential were repeatedly observed across all trees. These increases predominantly took place in the water potential range where embolism occurred, indicating that the observed increases most likely resulted from water released from embolised vessels. Our findings suggest that water release from embolism may temporarily buffer water potential declines and further embolism spread during desiccation in dipterocarp trees, although the extent to which this buffering capacity is present in other tropical and temperate species should be investigated further. Our study provides novel insights into xylem water dynamics and the mechanisms by which trees may sustain hydraulic function during periods of water stress, potentially enhancing their drought resilience.
