Ákos Tarnawa

TOLERABLE PESTICIDE CONTAMINATION IN FOOD - MOTILITY CHANGES OF RAT ILEUM AS A NEW BIOMARKER OF TOXICITY TESTING

Results obtainable by bio-sensing techniques and life science tools, where living organisms or living tissues are used as biosensors, can be applied directly in food safety regulation and production technologies helping the risk assessment of pesticides under analytical detection limit and to select them with less harmful effect. A new quantitative in vitro biosensing method can reveal functional impairment of the ileum in an early, reversible stage of harmful agrotoxical agent exposure.

Agronomic benefits of long-term trials

Long-term trials are established in order to explore and observe plant and soil interrelationships in situ. Long-term trials can be described as live instruments providing ceteris paribus conditions in temporal sequences. This review provides an introduction to major long-term trials in Hungary and in other parts of the world. It gives a brief summary of the origins of plant nutritional research, beginning with some data from Homer and the willow tree experiment of van Helmont, as well as the discovery of physiological processes by von Liebig, Lawes and Boussingault. The most profound long-term trials, like the Orto Botanico in Padova, the Linne Garden in Uppsala and the Broadbalk in Rothamsted are presented in the paper. The agronomic, educational and scientific benefits of the major Hungarian long-term trials are also discussed, from Westsik (1929) to Martonvasar and the National Plant Nutrition Trials (OMTK) set up in 1963. There is a list of experimental sites giving information on the most important ...

Sustainability and weediness at winter wheat production

Introduction Sustainability is an attempt to provide the best outcomes for the human and natural environments both now and into the indefinite future. Sustainable production practices involve a variety of approaches. Specific strategies must take into account topography, soil characteristics, climate, pests, local availability of inputs and the individual grower’s goals. Despite the site-specific and individual nature of sustainable agriculture, several general principles can be applied to help growers select appropriate management practices: selection of specifies and varieties that are well suited to the site and to conditions on the farm; diversification of crops and cultural practices to enhance the biological and economic stability of the farm; management of the soil to enhance and protect soil quality; efficient and humane use of inputs; and consideration of farmer’s goals and lifestyle choices. Agriculture can produce large amount of negative externalities include nutrient and pesticides run off, soil erosion, air pollution, loss of biodiversity etc. (Fekete-Farkas et al., 2006.). Many inputs and practices used by conventional farmers are also used in sustainable agriculture. The goal is to develop efficient, biological systems, which do not need high levels of material inputs. Chemical inputs are seen by the public to be a primary cause of food contamination and environmental pollution arising from agriculture (Jolankai et al., 2006). Sustainable approaches are those that are the least toxic and least energy intensive, and yet maintain productivity and profitability. This study focuses on the weed-control, the weediness in association with the sustainability at the winter wheat production. One of the most important elements of the plant protection procedure of winter wheat is the weed control. Herbicides application became the traditional element of the production technology of winter wheat. But according to Nagy (1986) when the good fore crop (maize for silage, oil flax) keep the field free from weeds, there is no need for chemical weed control. Pepo (2005a, 2005b) state that the yields are determined basically by the crop year.