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DNA‐based approaches have greatly improved the applicability of dietary studies aimed at investigating ecological processes. These studies have provided direct insights into, otherwise difficult to measure, interactions between species and trophic levels, food web structure and ecosystem functioning. However, despite these advances, DNA‐based methods have struggled to accurately quantify the whole breadth of diet constituents because of methodological biases, such as amplification bias and digestive processes. The present study is, to our knowledge, the first diet study to use droplet digital PCR to quantify diet constituents. We manipulated the diet of wild‐caught wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) by feeding them with a known amount of small vegetable seeds (onion and carrot) and quantified the DNA traces of these diet constituents in faecal samples. The sensitivity of the technique combined with the control on the experimental design allowed mitigation of methodological bias. We were able to accurately determine DNA concentrations of small vegetable seeds in the diet of wood mice. Quantification of target DNA demonstrated significant differences in DNA content when one vs. five seeds were consumed. These differences remained significant when the age, sex and other diet constituents of the mice were altered. Different DNA markers, targeting different parts of the chloroplast, influenced onion DNA detectability. However, all onion and carrot markers showed higher DNA content for higher seed numbers. Overall, the sensitive DNA‐based approach developed in this study allows for minimally invasive quantification of small diet constituents in faeces, which would otherwise be undetectable with traditional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Syringomycin E ( SRE) is a cyclic lipodepsinonapeptide with potent antifungal activity and is produced by certain strains of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae. In this study, its potential as an organic-compatible agrofungicide and vegetable seed treatment against the soilborne pathogen Pythium ultimum var. ultimum was examined. A variant of P. syringae pv. syringae strain B301D with enhanced SRE-producing capabilities was isolated and grown in a bioreactor with SRE yields averaging 50 mg/l in 40 h. SRE was extracted and purified through a large-scale chromatography system using organic-compatible processes and reagents. The minimum concentrations of the purified product required to inhibit 50 and 90% of P. ultimum oospore germination were determined as 31.3 and 250 μg/ml, respectively. Drench treatment of cucumber seeds in P. ultimum-infested potting medium (500 oospores/g) with 50 μg/ml SRE or water with no SRE resulted in 90.2 ± 4.5% and 65.7 ± 4.6% germination rates, respectively. Seed coating with 0.03% (w/w) SRE allowed 65.7 ± 4.6% seedlings to germinate on naturally infested soil while 100.0 ± 0.0% of non-coated seeds were unable to germinate due to Pythium infection. Organic-compatible and scalably produced SRE is potentially a novel organic fungicide seed protectant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulse granuloma is not a common condition in cutaneous pathology. In diagnosing this condition, it is essential to determine if the foreign fragmented bodies are really vegetable parts. Certain vegetable structures, such as hyaline rings, have been clearly emphasized in the literature. However, other vegetable parts can show certain morphologic similarities with animal structures, especially if observed in a fragmented biopsy, as is the case with the pericarp (which can mimic the cuticle of a maggot) or the endosperm (which can mimic the fat cells of the larva). Herein, we present a case of pulse granuloma involving the lip, an uncommon location for this condition. We also describe the histopathologic appearance of experimentally obtained maggots and pupae, as well as that of several vegetable seeds. We compare some of the vegetable and animal structures and emphasize the differential diagnosis between them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]