The role of flow dependency and water availability in fish assemblage homogenization in tributaries of the Chattahoochee River,Alabama, USA

The availability of water is becoming more variable as flow regime alterations intensify both locally and on a global scale. This pattern has been observed in the tributaries of the central Chattahoochee River System as water withdrawal and natural drought have caused flows to diminish. Stream discharge has steadily decreased in the study area by 31% over the last 50 years, and during this time, fish assemblage homogenization has occurred throughout the system. Our primary objective was to assess whether spawning mode and water availability are catalysts for fish assemblage change in tributaries of the Chattahoochee River System. We found that species which prefer or have adapted to low flow conditions (e.g. blacktail shiner Cyprinella venusta, redbreast sunfish Lepomis auritus and blackbanded darter Percina nigrofasciata) are becoming dominant and replacing historically dominant fluvial specialists. When examining short‐term changes between a dry year (2009) and a wet year (2010), some species preferring higher flows such as the highscale shiner Notropis hypsilepis were detected during the wet year, suggesting that the amount of water is important for the presence of these species in upstream reaches where they were historically abundant. Species that can reproduce successfully in low flow conditions are thriving and expanding their native ranges as more habitat becomes suitable. Species that require higher flows for part of their life cycle, however, appear to be declining from upstream areas as water availability continues to decrease, despite temporary recovery from downstream refugia during wet years.     

Salinity and geomorphology drive long‐term changes to local and regional fish assemblage attributes in the lower Pecos River,Texas

River systems throughout arid regions worldwide have been heavily impacted by human activities, resulting in long‐term ecological consequences. The lower Pecos River in the Trans‐Pecos region of Texas is no exception, having undergone anthropogenic changes that include decreased flow, elevated salinity, species loss and species invasion. We compared historical and contemporary fish assemblage attributes from the Pecos River at local (site‐specific) and regional (Trans‐Pecos region) scales across a 24‐year time period. Fish assemblage data were collected in October 1987 and 2011, by seining at 15 sites spanning 430 km of the river in Texas. Additionally, we examined contemporary environmental conditions to determine species–environment relationships. We found that fish assemblages were significantly different between time periods, likely due to increased salinisation in the upper half of the study region. Decreased species richness, species replacement and increases in euryhaline species were documented in the upstream sites. Freshwater springs lower the salinity and maintain flows in the downstream reach, allowing for maintenance of the native fish fauna. Careful management of regional aquifers, irrigation practices and petroleum waste water will be necessary for protecting biodiversity and environmental flows in the lower Pecos River.     

中国仙女蛤人工育苗试验

2009年在福建平潭进行了2批次中华仙女蛤人工育苗试验。结果表明,亲贝性腺发育成熟程度与催产方法是影响中国仙女蛤亲贝催产成功率和排放率高低的主要因素;在2批亲贝的平均鲜出肉率分别为(31.6±2.0)%和(32.8±2.3)%的前提下,采用阴干、碘钨灯照射提高亲贝体温、流水刺激相结合的物理综合刺激方法可有效地催产中国仙女蛤并培育出健康苗种。但中国仙女蛤亲贝排精产卵的个数比例较小,即亲贝的排放率较低,2批次育苗的排放率分别仅为16.7%和26.7%。2批次共培育出平均壳长为2.87±0.14mm的中国仙女蛤苗种1 331×106cfu。     

Transcatheter closure of patent ductus arteriosus in 11 dogs and one cat after incomplete or aborted surgical ligation

ObjectiveTo describe the characteristics and outcomes of transcatheter patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) occlusion after incomplete or aborted surgical ligation in dogs and cats.AnimalsTwelve client-owned animals (11 dogs and one cat).Materials and methodsThis retrospective study describes data from animals with aborted or incomplete surgical PDA ligation that subsequently underwent transcatheter closure using endovascular methods. Patient demographics, reason for incomplete or aborted surgery, complications, and method of transcatheter occlusion were recorded. Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation or median (interquartile range), where appropriate.ResultsFor all cases, median age at surgery was 12.2 months (4.9–15.1 months) and at catheterization was 15.4 months (8.9–21.9 months), with 79 days (29–209 days) between surgical and interventional procedures. Median weight at catheterization was 4.5 kg (2.5–12.6 kg). Reasons for failed surgical ligation included hemorrhage during ductal dissection in seven dogs, residual flow in four dogs, and inability to identify the ductus in one cat. Transcatheter closure was successfully performed using a canine duct occluder in eight dogs, transarterial coil embolization in two dogs, and transvenous coil embolization in one dog and one cat. Metallic hemoclips partially obscured angiographic findings in three cases with prior surgical hemorrhage but did not prevent transcatheter closure. In all cases, ductal flow was successfully attenuated, with no or trace residual shunting on angiography and complete occlusion the following day on echocardiography.ConclusionsWhen surgery is unsuccessful, either owing to hemorrhage or residual flow, transcatheter closure of PDA is feasible, even in small patients.     

植物低温诱导蛋白和诱导基因研究新进展

本文就近年来植物低温诱导蛋白和低温诱导基因的研究进展进行了概述，同时探讨了低温诱导蛋白和低温诱导基因与植物抗寒能力之间的关系。     

Improved doubled haploid production protocol for Brassica napus using microspore colchicine treatment in vitro and ploidy determination by flow cytometry

A rapid and efficient microspore culture protocol was applied to produce homozygous progeny of crosses between low erucic canola and high erucic resynthesized rapeseed (Brassica napus L.). Microspores of Canadian cultivars ‘Excel’ and ‘Profit’ as well as three F₁ hybrids with the resynthetic line ‘RS239’ were treated with colchicine immediately after isolation. Flow cytometry was applied for early identification of doubled haploid (DH) regenerants. The diploidization rate was subsequently verified by scoring flower morphology. In vitro colchicine treatment had a positive effect on induced diploidization, and was associated with the frequency of preliminary spontaneous diploidization which was, however, determined by the genotype. In addition, the effects of colchicine treatment on embryoid formation and regeneration have been evaluated. The method presented is feasible for commercial large‐scale production of DHs in rapeseed as the genotype‐specific diploidization can be efficiently balanced by in vitro colchicine treatment. In addition, the use of flow cytometry immediately after in vitro culture allows efficient selection for DHs, thus saving labour and cost and in the laboratory and subsequent greenhouse phase.     

穿流引风组合加热式蔬菜脱水机的改进设计

现有平流组合加热式蔬菜脱水机存在热交换不充分和干燥速度慢等问题。对现有设备进行了穿流组合加热技术改造:将送风管和引风管连接管的直径自上而下依次减小,满足了各层干燥箱对送风量和引风量的不同要求;采用冲孔板制造输送链板,满足了穿流供风的要求;采用供风管变截面供风技术,提高了供风的均匀性。设备改造后,分别对胡萝卜和甘蓝两种蔬菜进行了脱水干燥对比试验。结果表明,采用穿流组合加热时,不仅干燥速度快,而且其平均单位脱水的能耗分别由平流组合加热的7.03,7.29MJ/kg下降为6.83,6.65MJ/kg。     

Gene flow in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

This study was conducted in Brazil in order to assess the potential risk posed by gene escape from transgenic into non-transgenic plants and wild populations. A new methodology was applied to evaluate the gene flow between common bean cultivars, by means of a specially delineated experiment in two stages. The first stage consisted of the planting of one cultivar with violet flowers (BB) as pollen source (‘Diamante Negro’), and a receiver (‘Talismã’) with white flowers (bb), at different distances. The source was sown in the center of the area. The pollen receiver cultivar was sown, in concentrical squares around it. At maturity, the rows were sampled at varied distances from the source in the four cardinal directions. In the second stage, the sampled seeds of the previous stage were sown, and the percentage of outcrossing was evaluated during flowering through the presence of violet flowers (Bb). The highest frequency of natural hybrids, 0.136%, occurred at a distance of 0.5 m between the cultivars. The natural outcrossing rate was practically zero beyond a distance of 3.25 m.     

Ploidy analysis in water yam, Dioscorea alata L. germplasm

Poor reproductive development in yams (Dioscorea spp.) has often been attributed to the polyploid nature of the crop. In this study, flow cytometry was used to determine the ploidy level of 53 accessions of Dioscorea alata, mostly from West African countries, Chad and Puerto Rico. Nuclei were isolated from young leaf material and stained with DAPI(4,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole). The nuclear genome size (2C) was measured as an indicator of the ploidy level. Dioscorea rotundata genotypes with known ploidy levels were used as standards. The results showed that the majority of plants were hexaploid (84.9%) with a smaller percentage of tetraploids (15.1%). A higher number of male plants were hexaploid than tetraploids. This is at variance with earlier findings, which reported that hexaploid male plants are rare. Higher ploidy levels were not directly related to sparse or erratic flowering as previously reported as profuse flowering occurred in some male hexaploid accessions. These findings have important implications for yam breeding in relation to yam genetic resources. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.