Classification of lactic acid bacteria isolated from chigee and mare milk collected in Inner Mongolia

One hundred and seventeen isolates from chigee and 191 isolates from mare milk collected in Inner Mongolia were classified into six and 10 groups, respectively, based on the protein profiles obtained by sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE). A dendrogram on the basis of the molecular sizes of the protein bands was drawn and the similarity among the groups ranged from 96% to 44%. Representative isolates from all groups were identified by 16S rDNA sequencing and a phylogenetic tree was drawn. Furthermore, the results of carbohydrate fermentation tests of all groups were compared with those obtained by 16S rDNA sequencing and SDS‐PAGE analyzes. The isolates from chigee consisted of mainly Lactobacillus sp., Lactobacillus (Lb.) plantarum, Lb. pentosus and Lactococcus (Lc.) lactis ssp. cremoris were isolated at the rates of 48, 33 and 19%, respectively. The isolates from mare milk consisted of coccus, namely, Leuconostoc (Leuc.) mesenteroides, Leuc. pseudomesenteroides, Lc. garvieae, Lc. lactis ssp. lactis, Streptococcus (Sc.) parauberis and Enterococcus (Ec.) faecium. The isolation rates were 45, 19, 7, 8, 16 and 6%, respectively. The results demonstrated that the species isolated from chigee were different from those in mare milk.     

Carotenoids in marine invertebrates living along the Kuroshio current coast

Carotenoids of the corals Acropora japonica, A. secale, and A. hyacinthus, the tridacnid clam Tridacna squamosa, the crown-of-thorns starfish Acanthaster planci, and the small sea snail Drupella fragum were investigated. The corals and the tridacnid clam are filter feeders and are associated with symbiotic zooxanthellae. Peridinin and pyrrhoxanthin, which originated from symbiotic zooxanthellae, were found to be major carotenoids in corals and the tridacnid clam. The crown-of-thorns starfish and the sea snail D. fragum are carnivorous and mainly feed on corals. Peridinin-3-acyl esters were major carotenoids in the sea snail D. fragum. On the other hand, ketocarotenoids such as 7,8-didehydroastaxanthin and astaxanthin were major carotenoids in the crown-of-thorns starfish. Carotenoids found in these marine animals closely reflected not only their metabolism but also their food chains.     

A review of tower flux observation sites in Asia

Aggregating and sharing the metadata of flux observation sites results in a strong collaboration among various fields of study. Such data sharing will also be a part of the future design of a tower flux observation network in Asia. The aim of this review is to comprehend the state of tower flux observation sites in Asia. There are 109 tower flux observation sites in Asia including 51 forest sites. There are more new sites under construction in Asia than in America and Europe. These sites range from the taiga in Siberia to the rainforest in Southeast Asia, and from the equatorial to polar Koeppen climate zones. There are many highly humid areas in Asia, not only at low latitudes but also at middle latitudes. This climate condition has developed unique vegetation such as lucidophyllous (evergreen broadleaf) forest, which is distributed in warm areas with high precipitation in the growing season. However, there are only a few observations taking place in lucidophyllous forest. Rice paddy fields are also unique land cover in Asia. It is important to accumulate long-term data for rice fields with their management records, because plant activity depends highly on both climate conditions and land-use management. Flux data, especially net ecosystem exchange and related elements, are used for widespread studies not only within the flux-research community but also in other fields of study, for example remote sensing. At present, however, both the quantity and quality of the data are not sufficient for these studies. Regarding the quantity, there are many recently established sites that have not published data yet; regarding quality, flux data include uncertainties caused by methodological problems. Flux researchers are required not only to obtain flux data but also to improve their quality. Meanwhile, data users must understand there are still uncertainties in flux data. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

不同消毒方式对设施草莓花药愈伤组织诱导的影响

以栽培品种京藏香草莓(Fragaria ananassa Duch.)花药(单核靠边期)为材料,75%乙醇为对照,研究了5种不同组合的消毒方式对草莓花药愈伤组织的诱导影响。结果表明,处理T_1经过Tween-80消毒后,用75%乙醇进行消毒30 s可以有效控制花药污染,同时还能减少花药褐化率;其次是处理T_3,该处理虽能减少污染,但是褐化率略高于T_1;处理T_0(CK)、T_2均有不同程度的污染,处理T4褐化率最高。     

管道进口空气吸入的临界水深试验研究

制作1∶3比尺的大小水槽模型,试验研究了灌溉管道进口空气吸入的形式及临界水深与管道流速的关系,得出空气吸入的形式及临界水深与水槽内水流的紊动状态有关,且临界水深随流速的增加而增加的结论。相似性分析表明,临界水深在流速较小时大致符合0.2次方准则,而当流速较大时接近流速一致准则。此外,还根据试验结果对日本有关最小水深标准值进行了讨论     

The specific antibody to Brachyspira aalborgi in serum obtained from a patient with intestinal spirochetosis

Serum obtained from a patient histopathologically diagnosed as intestinal spirochetosis was investigated serodiagnostically by agglutination test. B. aalborgi which is a human intestinal spirochete reacted strongly with the human serum, while B. pilosicoli which has potential pathogenicity to humans reacted with the serum, but as strongly and its titer was different than the other three species. On the other hand, intestinal spirochetes (Matsumoto isolates) were isolated from the biopsy samples of the patient. The morphological, biochemical, and genetic characteristics of the isolates were very similar to those of B. aalborgi. Furthermore, the protein profiles of the Matsumoto isolates were also similar to those of B. aalborgi but were different than those of B. pilosicoli and B. hyodysenteriae. The reaction profiles of the Matsumoto isolates in immunoblotting were relatively similar to those of B. aalborgi except for a 74 kDa band but were different from those of B. pilosicoli and B. hyodysenteriae. Therefore, we identified the Matsumoto isolates as B. aalborgi and diagnosed the patient with a B. aalborgi infection.     

Growth-dependent survival mechanisms during the early life of a temperate seabass (Lateolabrax japonicus): field test of the ‘growth–mortality’ hypothesis

Three concepts based on size, time and growth rate are contained in the functional mechanisms of the ‘growth–mortality’ hypothesis, and are known as the ‘bigger is better’, ‘stage duration’ and ‘growth-selective predation’ hypotheses, respectively. Although it is sufficiently documented in fishes that faster growing and bigger larvae selectively survive, synergistic operation of the three components of the ‘growth–mortality’ hypothesis within a species have received little attention. In this study, we have tested the components of the ‘growth–mortality’ hypothesis based on the growth characteristics of original population (OP) and survivors (SV) of Japanese seabass (JSB) Lateolabrax japonicus. Larval and juvenile JSB were repeatedly sampled from the Tango Sea in 2007 and 2008. Otoliths from larvae and juveniles were analyzed to produce back-calculated daily records of size-at-age and growth rate, and were compared between OP and SV. Selective survival for fast-growing and bigger larvae was evident, and our results strongly support the ‘bigger is better’ hypothesis as well as the ‘growth-selective predation’ hypothesis. Growth rates of the individuals that metamorphosed into juveniles had significantly faster growth rates than non-metamorphosing larvae older than 48 days, the minimum age for metamorphosis, suggesting a clear relationship between growth rates and the timing of metamorphosis. On average, SV completed the larval stage ∼13 days earlier than those of OP, supporting the ‘stage duration’ hypothesis. Thus, SV of JSB exhibited traits consistent with all aspects of the ‘growth–mortality’ hypothesis: faster growth, bigger size-at-age, and shorter larval stage duration (LSD), i.e., larvae with faster growth, bigger size-at-age and a shorter LSD selectively survived the larval period. Although maternal influence on growth and survival was evident, factors that regulate growth–mortality mechanisms remain to be explored for JSB.     

Spatial distribution of the Japanese common squid, Todarodes pacificus, during its northward migration in the western North Pacific Ocean

The spatial distribution of Todarodes pacificus in and near the Kuroshio/Oyashio Transition Zone during its northward migration was examined by comparative surveys using two types of mid‐water trawl net and supplementary squid jigging from June to July 2000. The vertical and horizontal distribution patterns varied for different body sizes in relation to the oceanographic structure. Todarodes pacificus of 1–20 cm dorsal mantle length (ML) were widely distributed from the coastal waters of Japan to near 162°E longitude, probably due to transport by the Kuroshio Extension (KE). Todarodes pacificus smaller than 10 cm ML were mainly distributed in temperate surface layers at sea surface temperatures (SSTs) >15°C near the KE meander probably because of their poor tolerance to lower temperatures and limited swimming ability. Squid of 10–15 cm ML were distributed in the offshore waters of 10–15°C SST and in the coastal waters of northern Honshu, and underwent diel vertical migrations between the sea surface at night and deeper layers during the daytime. Squid larger than 15 cm ML were distributed in the coastal feeding grounds of northern Honshu and Hokkaido until they began their southward spawning migration. They also underwent diel vertical migrations, but remained deeper at night than the squid of 10–15 cm ML; this migration pattern closely matched that of their main prey such as euphausiids. We concluded that as T. pacificus grow, they shift their distribution range from the temperate surface layer around the KE toward the colder deeper layers, above 5°C, in the Oyashio and coastal areas.