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Low vigour canes selected for the establishment of permanent cordon arms may lack the sufficient vigour required for uniform bud burst and growth of new shoots following cordon training. This may lead to stunted or missing spur positions, particularly in the middle of new cordon arms where the effect is most pronounced due to the prioritisation tendencies of the vine, including apical dominance and acrotony. A trial was performed to investigate the benefits of adjusting the length of newly trained canes intended as permanent cordon arms during their establishment to limit their bud number and guide new growth. This length adjustment was based on an assessment of the apparent vigour of selected canes and was performed at the start of the first season of cordon growth, with cordons then extended to their final length. The trial did not yield results indicating a long-term beneficial response to this practice, with physiological measurements including pruning weight showing no difference between length adjusted and control vines in the later seasons of the trial. There was also a lower plant area index (PAI), and higher canopy porosity (Φ) observed in length adjusted vines compared to control vines at several points. There was no difference observed in circumference measures of the distal portion of arms which had undergone a length adjustment, suggesting that the exercise did not have an adverse impact on their capacity for transport and reserve storage. Harvest yield components did not vary with treatment; however, a significantly lower pH was observed in length adjusted vines compared to control vines in the trial's final season. Further research could help to provide more insight into the benefits of this practice, as some results from the trial, including a significantly higher pruning weight, cane number, and cane weight observed in the intermediate sections of cordon arms during the first season of growth suggest that it may have been of some aid to the cordons on which it was implemented., VITIS - Journal of Grapevine Research, Vol. 62 No. 3 (2023): Vitis

The entorhinal cortex (EC) is important for learning and memory. Our laboratory recently identified a sex difference in the excitability of neurons within the sixth EC layer (ECVI) during early postnatal life, in that neurons from female mice are more excitable than neurons from male mice. While this sex difference correlates with a smaller afterhyperpolarization of medium duration (mAHP) in female ECVI neurons, its precise mechanisms have not been determined. Using whole-cell electrophysiology, this study aims to determine the contribution of small-conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK) channels toward ECVI neuron excitability in young postnatal (P5-10) and adult (P80-120) mice. Our findings demonstrate that SK channels do not regulate ECVI neuronal excitability in early postnatal life but do regulate excitability in adulthood. In adulthood, SK channels play a greater role in regulating ECVI neuron excitability in male mice than in female mice. This knowledge advances our understanding of neuron function within the hippocampal formation. Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada; Canada Foundation for Innovation; Ontario Graduate Scholarship; Ontario Veterinary College Scholarship

Additional file 1. Copy of Survey

Additional file 2. Full polychoric correlation matrix of variables; job role, footwear worn and lower limb problem.