Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2004. / Last two leaves of Table of Contents misnumbered v, vi instead of x, xi. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)-- Florida State University, 2006. / Advisor: Cathy W. Levenson, Florida State University, College of Human Sciences, Dept. of Nutrition, Food, and Exercise Science. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Jan. 2, 2007). Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 83 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Typescript (photocopy). / Digitized by Kansas Correctional Industries

Thesis (MSc. Agriculture (Agronomy)) --University of Limpopo, 2015 / Agronomic field trial was planted at two sites, Ukulima and Syferkuil, in Limpopo Province, to determine the response of cowpea to variable rates and methods of zinc application under supplementary irrigation and rainfed conditions, respectively. The experiment was laid out in a split plot arrangement and fitted into a randomized complete block design (RCBD). Treatments consisted of two factors namely zinc rates (0, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 kg ha-1) and methods of application (soil and foliar) with white cowpea variety (IT00K-1217) seeds sown. The zinc fertilizer was applied as ZnSO4 (38.5% Zn) while basal phosphorus (30 kg P ha-1) was applied in the form of single super phosphate (10.5% P) so as to eliminate P constraints. Soil application of the zinc fertilizer was band placed near the row of cowpea plant while foliar application was done 3-5 weeks after plant emergence. Growth parameters measured included plant height, number of primary branches, canopy cover, number of trifoliate leaves, days to 50% flowering and pod formation, and fresh biomass as well as yield component attributes. Twenty young cowpea leaves and immature green pods were each harvested at approximately 75% physiological maturity. Crude protein, total nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, and iron content and uptake were assessed in the different plant parts. Growth, yield and nutrients data collected were subjected to analysis of variance. Treatments means were separated using Tukey’s test at probability level of 5%, while the response variables were modelled using quadratic polynomial equation. Results obtained revealed that total above ground biomass yield of 6219 kg ha-1 and fresh pod weight of 142.3 g were obtained when zinc was soil applied under rainfed condition compared to 6019 kg ha-1 and 138.0 g for total above ground biomass yield and fresh pod weight, respectively when foliar applied. Soil application gave a total above ground biomass yield of 6298 kg ha-1 and pod fresh weight of 150.9 g while foliar application gave total above ground biomass yield and pod fresh weight of 4791 kg ha-1 and 124.0 g, respectively at Ukulima. Soil application also gave a significantly higher grain yield (2251 kg ha-1) than the foliar application (1503 kg ha-1) at Ukulima. A higher but inconsequential effect on grain yield was obtained with soil over foliar application at Syferkuil. Application of zinc fertilizer at a rate beyond 5 kg ha-1 resulted in a grain yield reduction of up to 22.2% and 6.6% respectively at vi Ukulima and Syferkuil. Thus, this rate appeared optimum for both grain and fodder production when soil applied at both sites. Based on the quadratic model, total biomass (4897 kg ha-1) and grain (1602 kg ha-1) yields were optimized at an estimated zinc rate of 54.7 and 33.4 kg ha-1, respectively under supplementary irrigation, while total biomass (5913 kg ha-1) and grain (2696 kg ha-1) yields were obtained at an estimated optimum zinc rate of 20.1 and 26.8 kg ha-1, respectively under rainfed condition. A scorching effect of cowpea leaves was observed following foliar application of zinc fertiliser at 25 kg ha-1 that resulted in a decreased growth and yield at Ukulima. Foliar application resulted in improve cowpea leaf zinc concentration (43.9 mg kg-1) compared to soil application (23.2 mg kg-1) at Syferkuil. It also resulted in increased crude protein, total N, P, Fe and Zn uptake compared to soil application at Ukulima. Both soil and foliar zinc application gave 28.5% zinc concentration in the fresh immature pods samples collected. Findings from this study reveal that foliar zinc sulphate application resulted in higher grain and biomass yields as well as zinc concentration in the various cowpea plant parts. Based on the quadratic model used in this study, the optimum zinc rate required to guarantee high cowpea yield and zinc-rich grain and leaf content at both trial sites is highly variable; and thus requires further study for validation. Keywords: Cowpea production, grain yield, dryland farming, leafy vegetables, foliar fertilizer, improved nutrition, zinc deficiency.

Bibliography: leaves 218-233. / xiii, 233 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This thesis identifies a strong relationship between Zn nutrition of medics and severity of disease by R. solani (AG8) which may be a major factor contributing to the current decline in medic pastures observed in Australia. The effect of seed nutritional value had a profound impact on the growth of medics and may also be a key factor in poor medic growth. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Plant Science, 1998

Marginal zinc deficiency (MZD) exists in children of industrialized societies and can impair growth and development. Presently there are no data available on its global prevalence. It is believed that MZD is one of the most common hidden deficiencies throughout the world. This is partly because of the lack of sensitivity and specificity of serum zinc, the most commonly used biomarker of zinc status, to detect MZD. This deficiency in children is always accompanied by a decrease in hair zinc. Although in research settings hair zinc is a recognized biomarker of MZD in children, health practitioners do not presently use it. These cross-sectional studies were designed to examine the hair zinc status of preschoolers in Vancouver. They also aimed at exploring some dietary and non-dietary factors associated with hair zinc status in an attempt to construct and validate a screening tool for detection of MZD. Our first study indicated a mean hair zinc of 75��30 ��g/g, with 46% below the cutoff (<70��g/g) for a group (n=87) of low-income preschoolers (Chapter II). Among these children we observed negative associations between the hair zinc and consumption of dairy (R�� =0.09, P=0 .01) and milk (R�� =0.08, P=0.01), being described as "often sick" (R�� =0.55, P=0 .00) and "eating unhealthy" (R�� =0.16 P=0.00), and prolonged breastfeeding (R�� =0.11, P=0.01). Our citywide survey (n=719) indicated a mean hair zinc of 116��43 ��g/g with 17% below the cutoff (Chapter III). Logistic regression analysis indicated sex, age, maternal education, the number of adults at home, consumption frequency of milk, "scores of activity level", "being described as frequently sick" and "taking supplements containing iron" as the significant predictors of hair zinc status. However, the final model had 16% sensitivity while having 98 .3% specificity, indicating its lack of usefulness as a screening tool. Our study provides important information on the hair zinc status of Vancouver preschoolers. Although we did not accomplish our primary goal of constructing and validating a screening tool, we did identify some factors in children and their environment associated with hair zinc, which may help in better understanding of hair zinc as a biomarker of MZD.

Zinc (Zn) is an essential trace element and its deficiency is known to compromise a wide range of functions, including vascular function and immune function. The hypothesis of the thesis was that suboptimal Zn status would induce changes in the vascular system, thus raising the potential risk of developing atherosclerosis. After 2 wk, aorta was taken from male adult rats fed by either acute Zn deficient (AZD, <1mg Zn/kg), Zn adequate Pair fed of AZD (PF, 35mg Zn/kg), or Zn adequate control (ZA, 35mg Zn/kg, fed ad libitum) diet. It was found most genes which were significantly regulated between AZD and PF aorta belong to cytoskeleton remodelling. Plasma from the same rats was used to incubate primary VSMC in vitro. Dramatic changes of gene expression in pathways associated with immune function. While AZD plasma induced marked changes in VSMC gene expression in vitro, no significant change was found by depleting Zn from PF plasma. Therefore it is possible that a Zn deficiency induced humoral factor was responsible for influencing VSMC gene expression. By semi-purifying plasma using gel filtration and molecular filtration, it was confirmed that the humoral factor has a molecular weight of around 2kDa and is thought to be a peptide hormone, which could serve as a potential biomarker of Zn status. Splenocytes and whole blood were taken from rats and used to measure cytokine secretion before and after either LPS or ConA treatment. Different concentrations of several cytokines, such as IL2, IL6, TNFα and IFNγ were found from different Zn status. Overall the thesis emphasises the participation of Zn in several aspects of the vascular system, such as regulating cytokine production and maintaining vascular structure. It provides important evidence of the role that Zn plays in the development of atherosclerosis.

The ability of human growth hormone (hGH) to alleviate the effects of zinc deficiency on growth was investigated in the rat. Human GH treatment had no significant effect on food consumption, growth parameters or plasma IGF-I. Food consumption, tail length, liver weight, and tibia weight were significantly lower in the zinc deficient group. Body weight was significantly reduced in the zinc deficient and pair fed groups compared to the control. A significant interaction between zinc and hGH was found for tibial epiphyseal cartilage width but there were no significant differences between the groups receiving hGH and the respective shams. Tissue zinc content and plasma alkaline phosphatase were significantly decreased by the dietary zinc deficiency. Plasma zinc was higher in the groups receiving hGH. Significant interactions between zinc and hGH was found for liver iron, tibial zinc, and tibial copper. Copper and iron showed a competitive interaction with zinc and were lower in the rats receiving the control diet. Both lowered zinc and food intake contributed to the effects of the zinc deficiency; however, these effects were not equally distributed. Food intake had the greater effect on growth and plasma IGF-I while tissue mineral content showed a greater effect for zinc intake.

The SLC30A2 zinc transporter has been investigated due to its important role in zinc secretion into human milk. SLC30A2 is expressed in mammary epithelial cells, and the presence of genetic variations in this transporter could cause low zinc transport into the milk, leading to Transient Neonatal Zinc Deficiency (TNZD) in newborns. Through bioinformatics analysis 22 SNPs were identified. Therefore, we aim to identify the functional changes caused by 4 SNPs. By subcloning the SLC30A2 open reading frames into the Gateway expression plasmid tagged with red and green fluorescent proteins (mCherry, tGFP). Four SNPs were introduced by mutagenesis and tagged with mCherry. We transfected individual plasmids into mammary epithelial cells (HC11) and observed cellular targeting using epifluorescent imaging. The most common variants located to secreting endosomes and membrane in HC11 cells. Incorrect targeting of SLC30A2 causes mislocalization. It may be possible to identify mothers carrying risk genotypes for infant zinc deficiency.

The SLC30A2 zinc transporter has been investigated due to its important role in zinc secretion into human milk. SLC30A2 is expressed in mammary epithelial cells, and the presence of genetic variations in this transporter could cause low zinc transport into the milk, leading to Transient Neonatal Zinc Deficiency (TNZD) in newborns. Through bioinformatics analysis 22 SNPs were identified. Therefore, we aim to identify the functional changes caused by 4 SNPs. By subcloning the SLC30A2 open reading frames into the Gateway expression plasmid tagged with red and green fluorescent proteins (mCherry, tGFP). Four SNPs were introduced by mutagenesis and tagged with mCherry. We transfected individual plasmids into mammary epithelial cells (HC11) and observed cellular targeting using epifluorescent imaging. The most common variants located to secreting endosomes and membrane in HC11 cells. Incorrect targeting of SLC30A2 causes mislocalization. It may be possible to identify mothers carrying risk genotypes for infant zinc deficiency.