Protein and carbohydrate are two major macronutrients that exert profound influences over fitness in many insects, including Drosophila melanogaster. Until recently, most studies examining the impacts of these macronutrients on various life-history traits in this species have used semi-synthetic diets that are not nutritionally well-defined. Here we used chemically defined diets to examine the patterns of larval and adult traits expressed across 34 diets systematically varying in the ratio and concentration of protein and carbohydrate. The shapes of the nutritional landscapes plotted for all larval and adult traits differed significantly from one another. Diverging nutritional optima identified for these landscapes suggest that D. melanogaster cannot maximize the expression of all life-history traits simultaneously, thus leading them to face a nutrient-dependent life-history trade-off.

Recent research has suggested that the dietary protein:carbohydrate (P:C) balance is a critical determinant of fitness in insects. In this study, we examined the effects of dietary P:C balance on life-time reproductive success in the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor. Both males and females lived the longest when fed on P:C 1:1 diet. Throughout their adult lives, females fed on P:C 1:1 diet laid significantly more eggs than those on nutritionally imbalanced diets (P:C 1:5 or 5:1). When given a choice, beetles regulated their intake of protein and carbohydrate to a ratio close to 1:1. Taken together, our results indicate the balanced intake of protein and carbohydrate maximizes life-time reproductive success in this species.

The dietary intake of nutritional elements by Koreans as determined by the Ministry of Health and Welfare's National Nutrition Survey have been reported for 1969~1993. But these data were based on not dish but food. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to compare dish sources of energy and macronutrients (carbohydrate, fat, protein) in the diets of three area (large city, small city and rural). Dish sources were evaluated from two-day record obtained in the secondary analysis of the 1993 Korean National Nutrition Survey. The result, large city and small city had higher fat and protein intake than did rural. Otherwise, carbohydrate intake among rural was higher than those among large and small city (p〈0.05). The primary dish source of energy and macronutrients was cooked rice for all area. The percentage of cooked rice in daily carbohydrate intake was 52.64% for nationwide, 48.40% for large city, 50.52% for small city, 61.79% for rural. The cumulative percent of top 10 dish sources to carbohydrate for large city, small city, rural were 78.02%, 81.16%, 85.69%, respectively. These was higher than cumulative percent of other macronutrients. The milk as good protein source ranked 3 for large city, 6 for small city, 22 for rural. The major dish sources to fat were cooked rice and pork that prepared by various cooking way. These results show that the major dish sources of energy and macronutrients were cooked rice based of Korea traditional consumption pattern. The most of nutrient intake consumed some dishes for all area. The dish consumption pattern was generally similar between large and small city. But rural was different from other area. Threfore, nutrition educations and interventions should be targeted to each area and should be attended with studies that comparision of dish sources to nutritional elements by specific age-sex groups.

A long-term experiment was carried out to examine the effects of compost on the long-term trends and synergy effects with chemical fertilizer and saving the chemical fertilizers of paddy cropping. The experiment was conducted for the past 36 years with constant amounts of N, P, K and compost in a paddy field at Milyang, South Korea. Grain yield was significantly increased in the plots with compost application. Twenty five years after the compost treatment, grain yield was significantly increased and it reached almost 90% of NPK plots. The effect of rice straw compost on grain yield was not clear during the early cropping years about 60%, but it slightly increased there after about 95% during the late five years. In compost plots, soil organic matter content, K and SiO2 was greater in the compost applied plots than with application of recommended doses of NPK. However, soil pH was reduced in compost applied plots and Ca, and Mg were remained unchanged when compared to the application of recommended doses NPK. Soil nutrient contents were less in compost applied plots than with the application of recommended doses of NPK along with compost but was found to be increased than that of un-fertilized plots. The present study indicated that the application of rice straw compost with NPK is the best of all and followed by NPK and Compost. However, treatment of Compost is time consuming and hard working desired and eventually non economical practice in mechanized agricultural systems, even though Compost is very useful source of improving the soil fertility and its physical characteristics and also the application of inorganic N and P are essential for sustaining high yield.