Emerging viral zoonoses: frameworks for spatial and spatiotemporal risk assessment and resource planning

Spatial epidemiological tools are increasingly being applied to emerging viral zoonoses (EVZ), partly because of improving analytical methods and technologies for data capture and management, and partly because the demand is growing for more objective ways of allocating limited resources in the face of the emerging threat posed by these diseases. This review documents applications of geographical information systems (GIS), remote sensing (RS) and spatially-explicit statistical and mathematical models to epidemiological studies of EVZ.Landscape epidemiology uses statistical associations between environmental variables and diseases to study and predict their spatial distributions. Phylogeography augments epidemiological knowledge by studying the evolution of viral genetics through space and time. Cluster detection and early warning systems assist surveillance and can permit timely interventions. Advanced statistical models can accommodate spatial dependence present in epidemiological datasets and can permit assessment of uncertainties in disease data and predictions. Mathematical models are particularly useful for testing and comparing alternative control strategies, whereas spatial decision-support systems integrate a variety of spatial epidemiological tools to facilitate widespread dissemination and interpretation of disease data. Improved spatial data collection systems and greater practical application of spatial epidemiological tools should be applied in real-world scenarios.     

两个谷子CIPK基因在非生物逆境胁迫下的表达分析

CIPK是一类丝氨酸/苏氨酸蛋白激酶,该蛋白在植物响应逆境胁迫过程中发挥重要作用。本文利用生物信息学方法从谷子基因组中鉴定出2个CIPK基因, 命名为SiCIPK6和SiCIPK16。序列分析表明SiCIPK6基因组序列长1994 bp,编码451个氨基酸;SiCIPK16基因组序列长1885 bp,编码473个氨基酸,2个基因均无内含子和可变剪切。生物信息学分析显示这2个基因在蛋白质序列和结构上与其他物种CIPK基因一样非常保守。实时定量PCR分析表明SiCIPK6和SiCIPK16在ABA、低温、高温、干旱、高盐诱导下表达量均有所上调, SiCIPK6基因在ABA、干旱和盐处理时表达量上调幅度较大,而SiCIPK16基因在低温、干旱和高温处理时表达量上调幅度较大。半定量PCR检测结果表明SiCIPK6和SiCIPK16两个基因在拔节、孕穗、灌浆期时均有表达,在相应生育时期受到干旱胁迫时它们表达量均有所提高。推测SiCIPK6和SiCIPK16基因在谷子的干旱或其他逆境胁迫中起一定作用。     

Long‐Term Field Drought Affects Leaf Protein Pattern and Chloroplast Ultrastructure of Winter Wheat in a Cultivar‐Specific Manner

Recurrent drought periods of varying duration often cause extensive crop damage and affect wheat production in Southern Europe. This study compares biochemical and ultrastructural responses of four wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars to long‐term field drought, and their contribution to final grain yield. Gel electrophoresis and immunoblotting analyses combined with transmission electron microscopy and grain yield evaluation were employed to assess drought susceptibility of the wheat cultivars. Two of them behaved as drought‐tolerant, the other two presented as drought sensitive. Enhanced degradation of Rubisco large subunit (RLS), Rubisco small subunit (RSS) and Rubisco activase (RA) accompanied by an increased protease activity and reduced levels of heat shock proteins (HSP70) and dehydrins (DHNs) were associated with drought sensitivity. Drought tolerance coincided with relatively stable or increased HSP70 and DHN contents, and unchanged/higher levels of RLS, RSS and RA. Sensitive cultivars were more vulnerable to ultrastructural damages, showing obvious degradation of chloroplast membrane systems and depletion of leaf starch reserves. These drought responses affected yield potential, as tolerant cultivars gave higher yield under intense drought. Thus, our results provide additional insights into the complexity of plant drought responses, identifying multiple interacting traits that may serve as indirect selection criteria for wheat drought tolerance.     

The composite genome of the legume symbiont Sinorhizobium meliloti

The scarcity of usable nitrogen frequently limits plant growth. A tight metabolic association with rhizobial bacteria allows legumes to obtain nitrogen compounds by bacterial reduction of dinitrogen (N2) to ammonium (NH4+). We present here the annotated DNA sequence of the alpha-proteobacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti, the symbiont of alfalfa. The tripartite 6.7-megabase (Mb) genome comprises a 3.65-Mb chromosome, and 1.35-Mb pSymA and 1.68-Mb pSymB megaplasmids. Genome sequence analysis indicates that all three elements contribute, in varying degrees, to symbiosis and reveals how this genome may have emerged during evolution. The genome sequence will be useful in understanding the dynamics of interkingdom associations and of life in soil environments.     

土壤保持耕作——全球农业可持续发展优先领域

 从农业活动对全球变化以及对农业可持续发展的影响进而导致全球性土壤保持需求的迫切性增加出发，追踪了国外土壤保持耕作领域的研究和发展动态；对中国该领域研究发展现状和研究水平，从时间、深度、方法、生产应用等方面与国外进行了比较分析。中国是一个水土流失和耕地退化严重的农业大国，而从全球统计数字来看，中国土壤保持耕作面积目前仅占全球保持耕作面积的0.2%，仅占全国耕地面积的0.1%， 其现状与中国耕地资源和环境的继续退化以及对土壤保持耕作需求的增加极不相符。加强中国土壤保持耕作系统研究和土壤保持耕作"节能固碳"长期建设不仅对中国而且对全球变化及农业可持续发展具有重大意义。鉴于中国土壤保持耕作领域研究和发展所存在的不足和所面临的更大挑战，以及该领域研究涉及到复杂的农业系统"耕作管理-生物过程-环境变化"相互作用及其系统能流-碳流循环过程，尤其农业生态系统碳汇/源估量尚存在诸多不确定性因素等科学问题，有必要运用综合的系统性研究分析方法，借助国外长期试验和理论研究经验，以及系统模型模拟研究手段等多学科和交叉学科知识，加速提升中国土壤保持耕作领域的科研实力和水平，为实现碳汇/源科学调控管理、减缓农业对温室效应贡献、促进农业可持续发展提供科学依据。     

Yield and quality components of silage maize in killed and live cover crop sods

In sloping areas with high precipitation, planting maize into live winter cover crop sods may help to alleviate the environmental problems associated with clean-tillage production systems of maize. The present study evaluates the performance of silage maize (Zea mays L.) under several cultivation methods: CC (conventional cropping system, i.e., maize was sown into the bare, autumn-ploughed soil); LGS/CK (maize was planted into a living Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam.) sod which was subsequently herbicidally killed); and LGS/MR (similar to LGS/CK, but the ryegrass was mechanically regulated). The research was conducted in the midlands of Switzerland on a fertile sandy loam under humid conditions during three cropping seasons. With 110 kg N ha⁻¹ (fertilizer nitrogen plus mineral nitrogen of the soil at maize planting), the CC system was much more productive than were the LGS/CK and LGS/MR systems in terms of dry matter and nitrogen yields of maize. Increasing the nitrogen supply to 250 kg N ha⁻¹ considerably reduced the yield advantage of CC over the LGS/CK and LGS/MR systems, indicating that nitrogen was the most limiting factor for maize yield in the mulch seeding systems. With 250 kg N ha⁻¹, the LGS/CK and LGS/MR systems produced greater total yields of digestible organic matter (maize plus ryegrass) than did the CC system, whereas the total nitrogen yield was similar for all cropping systems. The whole-shoot concentrations of nitrogen were highest under CC, irrespective of the level of nitrogen supply. With 110 kg N ha⁻¹, concentrations of phosphorus and magnesium were clearly higher for the mulch seeding systems. There were only minor differences among the cropping methods in the concentrations of potassium and calcium in the whole shoot. When 250 kg N ha⁻¹ were applied, there were no significant variations among the cropping systems in the concentrations of minerals. Changes in the botanical composition of the cover crop sod and in the time and method of cover crop control may help to reduce the competition for nitrogen between maize and the living mulch.     

Comparative Study on Growth Performance of Transgenic(Over-Expressed OsNHX1) and Wild-Type Nipponbare under Different Salinity Regimes

Transgenic Nipponbare which over-expressed a Na+/H+ antiporter gene OsNHX1 was used to compare its growth performance, water status and photosynthetic efficiency with its wild type under varying salinity regimes. Chlorophyll content, quantum yield and photosynthetic rate were measured to assess the impact of salinity stress on photosynthetic efficiency for transgenic and wild-type Nipponbare. Effects of salinity on water status and gas exchange to both lines were studied by measuring water use efficiency, instantaneous transpiration rate and stomatal conductance. Dry shoot weight and leaf area were determined after three months of growth to assess the impacts of salinity on the growth of those two lines. Our study showed that both lines were affected by salinity stress, however, the transgenic line showed higher photosynthetic efficiency, better utilization of water, and better growth due to low transpiration rate and stomatal conductance. Reduction of photosynthetic efficiency exhibited by the wild-type Nipponbare was correlated to its poor growth under salinity stress.     

Relationships between botanical composition,yield and forage quality of permanent grasslands over the first growth cycle

This study examined the relationships between botanical composition and forage parameters (yield and forage quality variables) in 153 permanent grasslands located in the Massif Central of France. Grasslands were sampled at two vegetation stages in the first growth cycle. Botanical composition, yield, ash, crude protein, neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre, acid detergent lignin, organic matter digestibility (OMD) and voluntary intake (VI) were estimated for each sample. Temporal variability in species–forage parameter relationships were accounted for using innovative multivariate analyses applied mainly in ecological science. Crude protein and OMD were weakly correlated when each harvest time was analysed separately. Species–forage parameter relationships remained stable during the first growth cycle. The stability of these relationships indicates that permanent grasslands dominated by competitive species were associated with high yield and forage quality values whereas permanent grasslands composed of conservative species and/or high proportions of senescent material were associated with high structural carbohydrate values and low yield, OMD and VI values. Based on these relationships, we propose a typology of permanent grasslands along with a set of indicator species enabling non‐specialist botanists to easily classify grasslands for grassland management purposes.     

A new type of meteoritic diamond in the enstatite chondrite abee

Diamonds with delta(13)C values of -2 per mil and less than 50 parts per million (by mass) nitrogen have been isolated from the Abee enstatite chondrite by the same procedure used for concentrating Cdelta, the putative interstellar diamond found ubiquitously in primitive meteorites and characterized by delta(13)C values of -32 to -38 per mil, nitrogen concentrations of 2,000 to 12,500 parts per million, and delta(15)N values of -340 per mil. Because the Abee diamonds have typical solar system isotopic compositions for carbon, nitrogen, and xenon, they are presumably nebular in origin rather than presolar. Their discovery in an unshocked meteorite eliminates the possibility of origins normally invoked to account for diamonds in ureilites and iron meteorites and suggests a low-pressure synthesis. The diamond crystals are approximately 100 nanometers in size, are of an unusual lath shape, and represent approximately 100 parts per million of Abee by mass.     

Explaining recreational angling catch rates of Eurasian perch,Perca fluviatilis: the role of natural and fishing‐related environmental factors

Angling catch records are frequently used to reveal fish population developments. It is therefore important to understand the determinants of angling catches. This study focused on angler‐related, biotic and abiotic factors influencing catchability of Eurasian perch, Perca fluviatilis L. A multi‐lake (21 lakes) study based on angling diaries collected in Mecklenburg‐Vorpommern, Germany (2006/2007), found that angler‐related factors such as fishing experience, species preference and bait/lure type had a large impact on perch catch rates. Additionally, environmental conditions (nutritional status and water transparency) affected either the size or the number of perch caught by anglers. Catch rates varied seasonally, which was confirmed by an experimental fishery on a gravel pit (2008). This portion of the study showed that altered food availabilities in the course of the year caused food limitation in perch, which in turn facilitated high catch rates and female‐biased exploitation in autumn. It is concluded that both angler‐related and abiotic factors interact affecting perch catch rates and size of perch captured in recreational angling.