Selfish DNA in protein-coding genes of Rickettsia

Rickettsia conorii, the aetiological agent of Mediterranean spotted fever, is an intracellular bacterium transmitted by ticks. Preliminary analyses of the nearly complete genome sequence of R. conorii have revealed 44 occurrences of a previously undescribed palindromic repeat (150 base pairs long) throughout the genome. Unexpectedly, this repeat was found inserted in-frame within 19 different R. conorii open reading frames likely to encode functional proteins. We found the same repeat in proteins of other Rickettsia species. The finding of a mobile element inserted in many unrelated genes suggests the potential role of selfish DNA in the creation of new protein sequences.     

Neglect of mowing and manuring leads to slower nitrogen cycling in subalpine grasslands

Nitrogen (N) availability in grasslands varies with agricultural land use. Traditional management regimes of mowing for hay and manuring in subalpine meadows maintain plant communities with exploitative functional strategies suited to fertile soils with fast turnover of nutrients. We investigated whether the neglect of traditional practices has led to a reduction in N availability in two parallel ecosystems (terraced and unterraced fields). Soil nitrate and ammonium contents were assessed using soil cores and ion exchange resins over a 1-year period, and assays of microbial nitrifying and denitrifying enzyme activities, made early in the growing season. A large difference in pH between the two ecosystems, caused by historical ploughing, facilitated greater N availability in terraced than unterraced fields. Abandonment of manuring and mowing caused a reduction in N availability and N transformation processes, which correlated with a shift in the plant community towards more-conservative functional strategies and greater dominance by grasses. We propose that positive feedback between the grassland management regime and dominant plant functional strategy maintained high N availability in these managed subalpine grasslands. When traditional practices of mowing and manuring are neglected, direct management effects combined with the spread of grass species with conservative strategies force down N availability in the soil, reduce microbial activity, change the pH, and lead to a long-term loss of characteristic herbaceous subalpine-meadow species.     

Symbiotic bacterium modifies aphid body color

Color variation within populations of the pea aphid influences relative susceptibility to predators and parasites. We have discovered that infection with a facultative endosymbiont of the genus Rickettsiella changes the insects' body color from red to green in natural populations. Approximately 8% of pea aphids collected in Western Europe carried the Rickettsiella infection. The infection increased amounts of blue-green polycyclic quinones, whereas it had less of an effect on yellow-red carotenoid pigments. The effect of the endosymbiont on body color is expected to influence prey-predator interactions, as well as interactions with other endosymbionts.     

The impact of conservation on the status of the world's vertebrates

Using data for 25,780 species categorized on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, we present an assessment of the status of the world's vertebrates. One-fifth of species are classified as Threatened, and we show that this figure is increasing: On average, 52 species of mammals, birds, and amphibians move one category closer to extinction each year. However, this overall pattern conceals the impact of conservation successes, and we show that the rate of deterioration would have been at least one-fifth again as much in the absence of these. Nonetheless, current conservation efforts remain insufficient to offset the main drivers of biodiversity loss in these groups: agricultural expansion, logging, overexploitation, and invasive alien species.     

Differing nitrogen use strategies of two tropical rainforest late successional tree species in French Guiana: Evidence from 15N natural abundance and microbial activities

Previous studies in lowland tropical rainforests of French Guiana showed that, among non-N₂-fixing trees, two groups of late successional species contrasting in their leaf ¹⁵N natural abundance coexist, suggesting two different main ways of nitrogen acquisition. Two abundant late-successional species typically co-occurring in rainforests in French Guiana, namely Eperua falcata and Dicorynia guianensis, were chosen as representative of each group. Stable isotope techniques and measurements of potentials of microbial N transformation were performed to assess to what extent leaf ¹⁵N natural abundance of these species could be related to (i) δ¹⁵N signatures of soil mineral N sources and (ii) the capacity of soil to express nitrification and denitrification (both processes being directly involved in the balance between NH₄⁺ and NO₃^–). Soil δ¹⁵N-NH₄⁺ was roughly similar to leaf δ¹⁵N of D. guianensis (around 3.5‰), suggesting a preferential use of NH₄⁺, whereas in E. falcata, leaf δ¹⁵N values were closer to root δ¹⁵N-NO₃^? values (0.2 and ?2.0‰, respectively), suggesting a preferential use of NO₃^?. These differences in N source utilization were not accompanied by differences in availability in soil NO₃^? or in intensity of microbial functions responsible for soil N mineral evolution. However, (i) under both tree species, these functions showed clear spatial partitioning, with denitrification occurring potentially in soil and nitrification in the litter layer, and (ii) E. falcata fine roots colonized the litter layer much more strongly than D. guianensis fine roots. This strongly suggests that (i) the contrasted leaf δ¹⁵N values found in the two late-successional species reveal distinct N acquisition strategies and (ii) the ability of roots to predominantly exploit the litter layer (E. falcata) or the soil (D. guianensis) may constitute an important explanation of the observed differences. A complementarity between tree species, based on mineral N resource partitioning (itself resulting from a spatially structured location of the microbial functions responsible for the balance between NH₄⁺ and NO₃^–), can thus be supposed.     

Neighbourhood landscape effect on population kinetics of the fossorial water vole (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Arvicola terrestris scherman</Emphasis>)

This paper addresses the issue of whether landscape structure affects A. terrestris population kinetics on a neighbourhood spatial scale, and if so, at what spatial scale is that effect at its maximum. We investigated how the growth of A. terrestris populations is influenced by the landscape context of parcels used for hay production in the French Jura Mountains. Five landscape metrics (relative area of grassland, mean patch area of grassland, patch density of grassland, woodland patch density in grassland, grassland–woodland edge density) were computed over an increasing radius around each parcel (max. 3 km). Redundancy analysis showed that the extent, rate and early onset of A. terrestris population growth were favoured in open grassland areas. Landscape effects on A. terrestris populations as determined by the five metrics are scale-dependent: mean patch area of grassland, patch density of grassland and woodland patch density in grassland had an impact on a grassland parcel within a neighbourhood radius of about 800 m, while relative area of grassland and grassland–woodland edge density had an impact within a neighbourhood radius of about 400 m. Those findings corroborate earlier hypotheses about a multifactorial regulation of A. terrestris populations and a spatial hierarchy of regulating factors. They have potential implications in terms of landscape management and small mammal pest control.     

Anchoring tick salivary anti-complement proteins IRAC I and IRAC II to membrane increases their immunogenicity

Tick salivary proteins are promising targets for the development of anti-tick vaccines. Recently, we described two paralogous anti-complement proteins, called Ixodes ricinus anti-complement (IRAC) proteins I and II, that are co-expressed in tick I. ricinus salivary glands. However, our previous attempts to immunize rabbits against IRAC via infection with recombinant Bovine herpesvirus 4 (BoHV-4) vectors invariably failed although both recombinants expressed high levels of functional IRAC proteins in vitro. As IRAC are soluble monovalent antigens, one of the possible explanations is that monovalent ligation of the B-cell receptor induces receptor activation but fails to promote antigen presentation, a phenomenon that is thought to induce a state of B-cell tolerance. In the present study, we tried to increase IRAC immunogenicity by expressing them as oligovalent antigens. To this end, IRAC were fused to membrane anchors and BoHV-4 vectors expressing these recombinant forms were produced. The immunization potentials of recombinant viruses expressing either secreted or transmembrane IRAC proteins were then compared. While the former did not induce a detectable immune response against IRAC, the latter led to high titres of anti-IRAC antibodies that only marginally affected tick blood feeding. All together, the data presented in this study demonstrate that the immunogenicity of a soluble antigen can be greatly improved by anchoring it in membrane.