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Soft-rot testing. Memo to CEN
1983 - IRG/WP 2206 A
1. Development of a single test procedure to assess performance of preservatives against soft rot fungi is an ideal that cannot be realised at present, if results are to be both reproducible between laboratories and pertinent to the practical requirements of individual countries. 2. Consensus opinion amongst members of Sub Group I - Soft rot tests, of Working Group II - Fundamentals of Testing, of the IRG, is that the immediate needs of CEN would be best answered by: (a) a code of recommended practice, (b) a multiplicity of test procedures, and (c) a degree of flexibility in test procedures. 3. The code of recommended practice should recognise the need for: (a) a pure culture, synthetic medium (sand or vermiculite + nutrients), single wood species test to be adopted by all laboratories as a common reference point of testing, (b) mixed inoculum and/or unsterile soil laboratory or fungus cellar tests which account for local variations in the fungal flora, (c) incorporation of a range of wood species where applicable (i.e. where mixed hardwoods comprise the main resource), (d) provision of local internal standards of known performance under field conditions, (e) incorporation of leaching procedures other than standard methods with deionized water (e.g. mild acid, milk alkali, ionic solutions of various salts) where applicable to local exposure conditions, (f) precise definition of the criteria used for establishing toxic thresholds (mass loss, strength loss, microscopic examination). 4. Initial screening tests should remain the province of the individual research worker. 5. The code of recommended practice should have the sole purpose of establishing provisional retention levels for subsequent confirmation by field trial. 6. IRG should list and approve test procedures considered adequate to establish toxic thresholds for preservatives against soft rot fungi. 7. It should be clearly understood that when using a series of test techniques, it is inevitable that a range of toxic thresholds will be obtained for the same preservative. 8. Guidelines should be drawn up for interpretation of test data for subsequent transformation to provisional retention levels. 9. Adoption of the broad principles outlines above is recognition of the dynamic nature of toxic thresholds. The additional information obtained by a more flexible, and complex, approach to testing may make interpretation more difficult but should provide data from which response of preservatives to varying biological and environmental hazards can be more realistically assessed. 10. It is recommended that CEN adopt, in principle, the basic philosophy of testing outlined above and move towards formulation of a Working Document in collaboration with IRG
J A Butcher, D J Dickinson


An analysis of the effects of some factors on the natural durability of pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and spruce (Picea abies Karst.)
1986 - IRG/WP 1279
The effects of some factors on the natural resistance of pine and spruce sapwood against fungal decay and against attack of house-longhorn beetle larvae have been studied in laboratory tests and the results are evaluated by analysis of variance and regression analysis. Following conclusions were reached: Wood from summer-felled trees did not have a lower inherent natural durability against fungal ...
J B Boutelje, T Nilsson, S Rasmussen


Utilisation of carbohydrates by stain fungi in agar culture
1998 - IRG/WP 98-10248
Stain fungi are often defined by their ability to utilise the starch and free sugars found in ray parenchyma cells, and their inability to utilise other wood constituents. However, several species of stain fungi produce bore holes in wood cell walls. This suggests that enzymatic activity capable of degrading structural polysaccharides and/or lignin is associated with the growth of the appressorium...
J Snow, P Vinden, S M Read


Biological control of sapwood-inhabiting fungi by living bacterial cells of Streptomyces rimosus as a bioprotectant
1992 - IRG/WP 92-1564
The objective of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of antifungal activity of living bacterial cells for the protection of wood against sapwood-inhabiting fungi. The following sapwood-inhabiting fungi were selected: sapstain --Ceratocystis coerulescens, Ceratocystis minor, Ceratocystis pilifera, and Aureobasidum pullulans; mold fungi --Aspergillus niger, Penicillium spp, and Trichoderma spp. L...
S C Croan, T L Highley


The influence of timber species and preservative treatment on spore germination of some wood-destroying Basidiomycetes
1988 - IRG/WP 2300
Basidiospores from six wood decay fungi exhibited varying germination rates on untreated softwood and hardwood blocks. Germination inhibition of all test fungi was recorded on pine sapwood. No preference for a certain timber species by a particular fungus was evident. Whereas almost complete inhibition of germination occurred on wood treated with a quarternary-ammonium based wood preservative, mos...
B M Hegarty, G Buchwald


The microbial ecology of treated birch stakes in a soil-bed
1983 - IRG/WP 1209
The microbial ecology of small birch stakes exposed in soil beds in two Fungus Cellars was investigated. Patterns of fungal colonisation and decay initiation are described in untreated birch and copper fluosilicate-treated stakes. Results are based on fungal isolation onto selective media and direct light microscopical observations of decay features. In untreated stakes there was a rapid build-up ...
C P Clubbe


Wood preservation in Japan
1982 - IRG/WP 3218
The report indicates the importance of wood preservation in Japan, which is the world's largest importer. The main hazards of timber are listed, fungi, insects and marine borers. Besides wood preservation fire protection treatments are also important in Japan. Classifications are given of the durability and treatability of the timbers used. In describing the wood preservation industry, th...
S Amemiya, R Cockcroft


Partial characterization of inhibitors extracted from pine (Pinus sylvestris) sapwood active against germination of wood rotting fungi
1988 - IRG/WP 1351
Germination inhibitors in pine sapwood could be extracted and separated with the aid of solvent partitioning and chromatography on silicic acid. The inhibitory action was tested by three different bioassays. Active fractions have been characterized by TLC and HPLC. Inhibitory activity could be correlated with phenolic compounds. The minimum active concentration of inhibitors have been determined....
J Bjurman


Isolation of a gene from the melanin pathway of the sapstaining fungi Ophiostoma piceae using PCR
1997 - IRG/WP 97-10219
To prevent sapstaining fungi from discoloring wood, it is necessary to determine what factors affect the biosynthesis and characteristics of the pigment(s) and to identify the genes involved in the pathway. Using inhibitors and heterologous DNA probes from Alternaria alternata, we suggest that melanin, the pigment of Ophiostoma piceae, is produced by the dihydroxynaphthalene (DHN) pathway. Recentl...
R Eagen, J Kronstad, C Breuil


Factors affecting decay rates in a fungus cellar
1985 - IRG/WP 2242
Birch and pine stakes treated with chromated copper arsenate and didecyldimethylammonium chloride were incubated in two soils in a "Fungus Cellar" test. At three month intervals, sets of stakes were inspected and assigned visual ratings or removed from the soil beds for weight loss determination. Preliminary results after nine months exposure have shown differences in the decay rates between birch...
P A McKaig


Degradation of woods by obligately anaerobic fungi
1990 - IRG/WP 1452
Little is known about the processes occurring during the degradation of wood by obligately anaerobic fungi. When woods from a range of hardwood species were incubated for 11 days with a strain of the Chytrid Neocallimastix frontalis many of the woods were measurably fermented; Fagus sylvatica (23%) was the most highly degraded. Microscopic examination of Populus tremuloides wood after incubation w...
K N Joblin, G E Naylor


A Novel Type of Multiple Cavity Attack in Wood Cell Walls of Heat-treated Timber Exposed in Seawater – Preliminary Observations
2004 - IRG/WP 04-10523
Samples of untreated and heat-treated Norway spruce and Douglas fir were submerged in Langstone Harbour, Portsmouth for 4 years at a depth of ca. 0.3 metres. The heat-treated samples had been prepared using the Plato process. Samples were initially assessed for the severity of marine borer damage and were then examined microscopically for evidence of microbial decay. Longitudinal and transverse wo...
R A Eaton, C Björdal, T Nilsson


Collaborative soft rot tests: Specific gravity loss resulting from soft rot
1973 - IRG/WP 227
It was proposed at the 5th meeting of Working Group II of the IRG in June 1973 in Lahti, Finland, that the specific gravity (swollen volume basis) of test blocks used in the IRG Collaborative Soft Rot Tests should be determined on all the blocks at the completion of the exposure period. Specific gravity determined on the basis of the oven dry weight and water swollen volume was selected because (1...
C R Levy


Movement of chloropicrin, Vapam, and methylisothiocyanate in southern pine and Douglas fir timbers
1987 - IRG/WP 3410
Douglas fir and southern pine timbers, 15.2 x 15.2 x 426 cm³ (6-in x 6-in x 14-ft), were "inoculated" with brown-rot and white-rot fungi as vapor-sensing agents to evaluate the movement and distribution of fungitoxic concentrations of chloropicrin, Vapam, and methylisothiocyanate (MIT) over a 20-week period. Residual fumigant in timbers was determined by a bioassay with Gloeophyllum trabeum. The ...
T L Highley


The use of organic wood preservatives in ground contact and the suitability of laboratory test procedures to determine their efficacy
1999 - IRG/WP 99-20175
Organic fungicides, such as propiconazole, have proven to be highly effective when used as a co-biocide in recently developed wood preservative formulations. They have however been ineffective when used as a stand alone preservative, particularly when used in ground contact (European Hazard class 4). Previous research, using the test methods of ENV 807 (1993), provided conflicting evidence regardi...
I J Herring, D J Dickinson


The effect of kerfing on check formation in treated white spruce (Picea glauca) poles
1981 - IRG/WP 3167
62 white spruce poles, 6 m in length, were cut from full size utility poles commercially pressure treated with preservative. 21 of the poles were treated with pentachlorophenol, while of the remainder, all of which were treated with ammoniacal copper arsenate, 22 were kerfed and 19 were unkerfed. The poles were installed in the Westham Island field test site, near Vancouver, and inspected annually...
J N R Ruddick


Bethoguard; A new wood protecting fungicide for use in metal free ground contact wood preservatives
2002 - IRG/WP 02-30301
Research has identified the limitations in both the spectrum of activity and permanence of organic biocides placed in wood in high hazard environments, particularly in the absence of heavy metals such as copper. More specifically, the control of soft rot decay in wood in soil contact has proven to be most problematic. The new organic biocide, Bethoguard; an oxathiazine, has demonstrated excellen...
S C Forster, G R Williams, M Van Der Flaas, M Bacon, J Gors


Assessment of the biocontrol potential of a Trichoderma viride isolate in a field trial
1998 - IRG/WP 98-10252
A field trial has been set up near Dundee, to assess the biological control potential of a Trichoderma viride isolate T60. This isolate has been shown in laboratory tests to be particularly effective in protecting wood against certain basidiomycete decay fungi. Wood was treated with T60 spores using vacuum-pressure impregnation in a pilot preservation plant. Scots pine and Sitka spruce stakes wer...
H F Brown, A Bruce


Soft rot - Soil burial - Tests. Influence of the addition of nitrogen compounds to the soil on wood decay by soft rot
1972 - IRG/WP 213
The decay of wood specimens buried in soil is influenced by various factors. Decisive are the water content, the content of organic substances, the pH-value, the content of mineral nutritive salts, nitrogen content, etc. of the soil. These tests were carried out in order to investigate if the decay of wood in the soil will be influenced by additions of various nitrogen-compounds in different conce...
O Wälchli


Characterization and differentiation of wood rotting fungi by protein and enzyme patterns
1999 - IRG/WP 99-20177
Standardized tests for wood preservatives are performed with defined fungal strains to ensure comparability between laboratories. However, changes of virulence and variation of results are well known events. Suitable and reliable measures to control the stability of the test organisms are necessary.Comparison of protein patterns produced by SDS-electrophoresis was already described by several auth...
U Schoknecht


Safe handling of solvents in relation to classification and labelling
1990 - IRG/WP 3569
The classification and labelling of chemical products, safety data sheets and personal protective equipment are topics which at present are given a very high priority in Denmark. The area is very large and may seem extremely difficult to comprehend. The frequent publication of acts and announcements from the authorities does not make the work any easier. In the following I will try explain how we ...
J Haugaard


Methods of testing anti-stain chemicals for protecting sawn timber during storage and transport
1976 - IRG/WP 273
No international standard method for testing anti-stain chemicals for protecting fresh sawn timber exists. The methods used can be divided into three types: a) Rapid screening tests for finding chemicals effective against blue-stain and mould fungi. The chemicals are tested in agar medium, in pieces of filter paper or on small pieces of wood using pure cultures. b) Laboratory tests for evaluating ...
T Vihavainen


A comparison of fatty acid and molecular profiles for identification of wood colonizing basidiomycota
2003 - IRG/WP 03-20278
Two methods that are currently being employed to detect and identify wood decay fungi are Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) analysis and Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) analysis. A FAME library and RFLP library for 9 species and up to 10 strains within each species have been developed. The profiles generated by these methods have been compared for each species and strain to test for...
T C McElroy, L Prewitt, S V Diehl


Detection of the dry rot fungus Serpula lacrymans by amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis
1998 - IRG/WP 98-10245
Isolates of the dry rot fungus Serpula lacrymans and the wild merulius S. himantioides were investigated by amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analyses (ARDRA) of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS). The technique uses the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify the variable region of the ITS between the conserved 18S and 28S genes of the nuclear ribosomal DNA (rDNA). The ITS region of all isolates of Serpula lacrymans and S. himantioides was successfully amplified. The length of the amplified product was about 630 bp. Subsequent double digest of the ITS with the restriction endonucleases Haelli and Taql separated the closely related fungi by species-specific fragments. Thus, ARDRA-ITS proved to be suited for the detection of the dry rot fungus.
O Schmidt, U Moreth


Analysis of the degradation of carbohydrates by blue-stain fungi
1990 - IRG/WP 1457
The topic of the degradative ability of blue-stain fungi literature is not clear. Many authors support the idea that those fungi don't have enzymatic capability to decay the wall of the ligneous cells. However, others have found some decay activity. In this study, we have attempted to analyze which wall cells soluble carbohydrates are metabolized by some blue-stain fungi, found in Spain. ...
M T De Troya, A M Navarrete, E Relano


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