Hunting behavior of a marine mammal beneath the antarctic fast Ice

The hunting behavior of a marine mammal was studied beneath the Antarctic fast ice with an animal-borne video system and data recorder. Weddell seals stalked large Antarctic cod and the smaller subice fish Pagothenia borchgrevinki, often with the under-ice surface for backlighting, which implies that vision is important for hunting. They approached to within centimeters of cod without startling the fish. Seals flushed P. borchgrevinki by blowing air into subice crevices or pursued them into the platelet ice. These observations highlight the broad range of insights that are possible with simultaneous recordings of video, audio, three-dimensional dive paths, and locomotor effort.     

半夏SSR分子标记开发与遗传多样性

对半夏转录组数据进行分析,设计开发SSR引物,利用筛选出的SSR引物分析不同居群间半夏的遗传多样性,为半夏分子标记辅助育种提供支撑。结果显示:筛选出的19对多态性较高的引物在17个半夏居群中共检测到49个多态性位点,具有较高的多态性;利用UPGMA作图共将17个半夏居群分为3个类群;通过分子方差分析(AMOVA)发现半夏居群内的变异达到88%,说明群体与群体间的差异相对较小,遗传变异主要来源于个体间;居群间平均分化系数Fst为0.124,居群间基因流Nm值为1.765,表明居群间能正常地进行基因交流,且居群间遗传分化受基因流的影响较大。本研究利用SSR技术开发的19对SSR引物在不同半夏居群间具有一定的通用性、多态性,能将17份半夏材料明确区分。     

Ecological fitness and strategies of adaptation of Bartonella species to their hosts and vectors

Bartonella spp. are facultative intracellular bacteria that cause characteristic host-restricted hemotropic infections in mammals and are typically transmitted by blood-sucking arthropods. In the mammalian reservoir, these bacteria initially infect a yet unrecognized primary niche, which seeds organisms into the blood stream leading to the establishment of a long-lasting intra-erythrocytic bacteremia as the hall-mark of infection. Bacterial type IV secretion systems, which are supra-molecular transporters ancestrally related to bacterial conjugation systems, represent crucial pathogenicity factors that have contributed to a radial expansion of the Bartonella lineage in nature by facilitating adaptation to unique mammalian hosts. On the molecular level, the type IV secretion system VirB/VirD4 is known to translocate a cocktail of different effector proteins into host cells, which subvert multiple cellular functions to the benefit of the infecting pathogen. Furthermore, bacterial adhesins mediate a critical, early step in the pathogenesis of the bartonellae by binding to extracellular matrix components of host cells, which leads to firm bacterial adhesion to the cell surface as a prerequisite for the efficient translocation of type IV secretion effector proteins. The best-studied adhesins in bartonellae are the orthologous trimeric autotransporter adhesins, BadA in Bartonella henselae and the Vomp family in Bartonella quintana. Genetic diversity and strain variability also appear to enhance the ability of bartonellae to invade not only specific reservoir hosts, but also accidental hosts, as shown for B. henselae. Bartonellae have been identified in many different blood-sucking arthropods, in which they are typically found to cause extracellular infections of the mid-gut epithelium. Adaptation to specific vectors and reservoirs seems to be a common strategy of bartonellae for transmission and host diversity. However, knowledge regarding arthropod specificity/restriction, the mode of transmission, and the bacterial factors involved in arthropod infection and transmission is still limited.     

云南景东县豆科固氮树种及根瘤菌资源调查

对云南景东县豆科固氮树种进行调查采集与鉴定,确认并记录70种与相应的根瘤菌(菌株)共生的豆科固氮树种.其中,云实亚科1属1种,含羞草亚科6属20种,蝶形花亚科23属49种.根瘤大小不一,形状各异,有球形、椭圆形、棒状、珊瑚状;表面颜色有浅黄色、棕黑色、棕色或黑色.对以活体保存的材料进行根瘤菌的分离、鉴定,获得并保存了分别与其中38种豆科树种相共生的根瘤菌菌株147株.调查表明,在景东县及云南南亚热带区域和热带区域,不仅拥有可供在多方面开发利用的豆科固氮树种,且具有丰富的可供科研和开发利用的根瘤菌资源.     

A reassessment of the electrophoretic mobility of high molecular weight glutenin subunits of wheat

The high molecular weight subunits of wheat glutenin (HMW-GS) are important for bread-making quality. Their composition is routinely identified by Tris-glycine SDS-PAGE after reduction of glutenin disulfide bonds. However, the relation between their molecular weight and, hence, their primary structure, and their mobility in Tris-glycine SDS-PAGE has proven to be ambiguous. We demonstrate a Bis-Tris SDS-PAGE procedure with a neutral, instead of alkaline, pH in the gel and running buffers. In this method commonly occurring HMW-GS from wheat migrated in the order 5 > 2 ≈ 3 > 1 > 6 ≈ 2* > 7 > 8 > 9 > 12 > 10, which is different from the order obtained in the Tris-glycine system. HMW-GS were identified by N-terminal sequencing after isolation with RP-HPLC. Protein sequences of HMW-GS were further confirmed by LC-MS/MS analyses of chymotryptic peptides after comparing the MS data to amino acid sequences in protein databases. The numbers of amino acids of HMW-GS reflected well the mobility order in Bis-Tris SDS-PAGE. The results indicate that Bis-Tris SDS-PAGE may not only be used to identify HMW-GS, but also to estimate the length of their polypeptide chain, as such avoiding previously observed anomalies in migration order.     

毕节地区植烟土壤肥力状况评价

2007～2008年对在毕节地区主要烟区采集的200个植烟土壤样品进行了土壤养分含量分析,结果表明:植烟土壤的有机质含量平均在27.70 g/kg,总体上处于适宜水平;pH值以偏酸性或中性为主;有效氮含量偏高;速效磷含量偏低;速效钾含量整体丰富,平均为158.42 mg/kg;土壤水溶性氯含量整体适宜。此外,针对土壤养分含量状况,提出了一些相应的改良措施。     

Health and growth performance of the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis L.) from two hanging cultivation sites in the German Bight: a nearshore—offshore comparison

The health of cultivated blue mussels from an offshore and a nearshore sites was compared by assessing lysosomal membrane stability (LMS) and accumulations of lipofuscin and neutral lipids in the digestive glands. In addition, the condition index, parasite infestation rates, growth performance and energy status of the mussels were assessed during 10?months of sampling. Abiotic and biotic site characteristics were investigated by water analysis for each sampling cycle. Further, data of contaminant loads of the softbody and pollutant concentration of the water column, suspended particles and sediments from both sites were analysed. Results show that positive offshore effects due to dilution of contamination were not evident for all parameters analysed. Condition indices were high, and parasites were not present in offshore mussels. In contrast, the integrative health parameter LMS and growth performance were slightly, but not significantly, better in the nearshore cultivated mussels. These findings correspond with the higher contaminant concentrations in the softbodies of mussels and the water column from the offshore testing site. Both sites showed low LMS values and high accumulations of lipofuscin and neutral lipids, indicating that environmental conditions in the German Bight are generating stress for blue mussels even in the offshore areas. Exposure to fluvial transport points to a comparable probability for high contamination loads similar to nearshore areas. We therefore recommend adding a minimum salinity threshold to the definition of offshore aquaculture to exclude areas under fluvial influence.     

芥蓝芥子油苷提取条件优化研究

采用正交试验设计,研究了提取温度、提取剂甲醇浓度(V/V)、提取时间和待测物质与提取液比例(简称“物液比”) 对芥蓝菜薹中芥子油苷(总芥子油苷含量、总脂肪族芥子油苷和总吲哚族芥子油苷)提取效果的影响。结果表明,物液比和提取温度对总芥子油苷、总脂肪族芥子油苷和总吲哚族芥子油苷提取效果影响显著(P<0.05),而甲醇浓度和提取时间对芥子油苷提取率无显著影响(P>0.05)。综合考虑提取效果和成本,芥蓝中芥子油苷最佳提取条件为75℃,物液比1∶45(g∶mL),甲醇浓度70%,提取时间5 min。在该条件下,总芥子油苷提取量为8.31 μmol/g DW,总脂肪族芥子油苷提取总量为7.58 μmol/g DW,总吲哚族脂肪族芥子油苷提取总量为0.73 μmol/g DW。     

Reducing tillage intensity affects the cumulative emergence dynamics of annual grass weeds in winter cereals

Annual grass weeds such as Apera spica‐venti and Vulpia myuros are promoted in non‐inversion tillage systems and winter cereal‐based crop rotations. Unsatisfactory weed control in these conditions is often associated with a poor understanding of the emergence pattern of these weed species. The aim of this study was to investigate, understand and model the cumulative emergence patterns of A. spica‐venti, V. myuros and Poa annua in winter cereals grown in three primary tillage regimes: (i) mouldboard ploughing, (ii) pre‐sowing tine cultivation to 8–10 cm soil depth and (iii) direct drilling. Direct drilling delayed the cumulative emergence of A. spica‐venti and V. myuros (counted together) in contrast with ploughing, while the emergence pattern of P. annua was unaffected by the type of tillage system. The total density of emerged weed seedlings varied between the tillage systems and years with a higher total emergence seen under direct drilling, followed by pre‐sowing tine cultivation and ploughing. The emergence patterns of all species were differently influenced by the tillage systems, suggesting that under direct drilling, in which these species occur simultaneously, management interventions should first and foremost consider that A. spica‐venti and V. myuros emerge over a longer period to avoid control failures.     

Regional distribution and integrity of equine ovarian pre‐antral follicles

The goal of this study was to determine the distribution of pre‐antral follicles in the ovarian parenchyma of mares. For Experiment 1, each ovary was cut longitudinally at the greater curvature, performing two hemiovaries. After that, six fragments from each hemiovary were obtained, resulting in 12 fragments, which were divided into the innermost region of the parenchyma, the middle region and the outermost region. All the three obtained sections were cut transversally to obtain two fragments from each one. For Experiment 2, each ovary also submitted to a longitudinal cut on the greater curvature, forming two hemiovaries. Each hemiovary was sectioned into four symmetrical fragments, resulting in eight fragments per ovary. The fragments were related as being near to or far from the ovulatory fossa. The fragments of both experiments were immediately fixed in Carnoy for 12 hr and kept in 70% ethanol for 24 hr. Follicles were classified according to the stages of development and for morphological integrity according to oocyte morphology and granulosa cells. After the histological assessment, a total of 1,130 follicles were visualized from Experiment 1, being 1,054 (93.3%) primordial follicles and 76 (4.7%) follicles in development. The innermost region had the highest percentage of pre‐antral follicles compared to the other regions (p < .05). The middle and outermost regions showed higher percentages of intact primordial and developing follicles than the innermost region (p < .05). Considering Experiment 2, 938 follicles were found, being 894 (95.3%) primordial and 44 (4.7%) follicles in development. The region near the ovulatory fossa presented higher (58.7%; 551 of 938) follicular concentration compared to the region far from the ovulatory fossa (41.3%; 387 of 938; p < .05). As a conclusion, distribution of pre‐antral follicles in the equine ovary has a specific pattern through the parenchyma. Also, the follicular integrity differed in the studied ovarian areas.