Ellipsosomes: organelles containing a cytochrome-like pigment in the retinal cones of certain fishes

Ellipsosomes are dense spherical bodies containing a very large concentration of a heme pigment spectroscopically resembling pure cytochrome c. They are located at the outer ends of the inner segments of the cones of certain fishes. Although, superficially, they resemble the similarly located oil droplets in the cones of birds and reptiles, their ultrastructure and staining properties resemble those of the neighboring mitochondria. However, like the oil droplets, they may serve as intracellular color filters.     

Calmodulin plays a pivotal role in cellular regulation

The role of calcium ions (Ca2+) in cell function is beginning to be unraveled at the molecular level as a result of recent research on calcium-binding proteins and particularly on calmodulin. These proteins interact reversibly with Ca2+ to form a protein . Ca2+ complex, whose activity is regulated by the cellular flux of Ca2+. Many of the effects of Ca2+ appear to be exerted through calmodulin-regulated enzymes.     

利用卫星遥感进行加拿大花旗松林虫害监测的研究

森林虫害监测是森林经营管理中的一个重要内容,为此作者利用陆地卫星第5号的主题成图仪数据,在加拿大不列颠哥伦比亚省卡奇河试验区对花旗松林被云杉茅卷蛾危害的状况进行了监测。试验表明,在直方均衡的基础上进行比值处理和最大概似分类,其图象处理效果比较理想。利用直升飞机航空目视调查所勾绘的虫害分布图进行对照检验,其位置和形状基本吻合,面积也达到一定的精度。这种分析方法所取得的结果,可作为虫害防治的依据。     

Determination of quinomethionate (6-methylquinoline-2,3-diyldithiocarbonate) residues in crops by in situ fluorometry.

A simple method is described for the quantitative determination of quinomethionate (6-methylquinoline- 2,3 - diyldithiocarbonate) in crops. The pesticide residue is extracted with acetonitrile and partitioned in petroleum ether. After separation from the co-extractives by thin layer chromatography (TLC), the fluorescence is measured directly on a silica gel TLC plate. An average of 89% recovery is obtained at the 0.05 ppm level in apples, peaches, pears, and tomatoes.     

Resources and bioactive substances from Taiwania (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Taiwania cryptomerioides</Emphasis>)

 Taiwania (Taiwania cryptomerioides Hayata), native to Taiwan, is one of the most economically important tree species grown there. In this article we summarize the current results of phytochemistry and bioactivity of Taiwania extracts, including antifungal, antitermite, antibacterial, and antimite activities as well as cytotoxicity against three tumor cells. The resources of Taiwania are also addressed. Received: January 23, 2002 / Accepted: March 8, 2002 Acknowledgment The authors thank the National Science Council of R.O.C. for financial support (NSC-90-2313-B-002-344). Correspondence to:S.-T. Chang     

Potassium fertilization improves apple fruit (Malus domestica Borkh. Cv. Fuji) development by regulating trehalose metabolism

Potassium (K) fertilization and antioxidant enzymes both positively influence plant growth and development. However, it is not known whether K treatment improves fruit development via increasing soluble sugar. In this study, K-treated apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) fruit was harvested from 60 to 150 days after full bloom and was analyzed for ROS production and trehalose metabolism. The results show that K fertilization improved fruit firmness, increased growth according to several parameters, increased soluble sugar content, and decreased ROS production. The ascorbate metabolic pathway more effectively reduced ROS production than catalase and peroxidase (POD) did under K treatment. Trehalose-treated fruit also showed higher activity of ascorbate-related enzymes (DHAR, GR, and APX) compared with non-treated fruit. The changes of antioxidant enzyme activity in trehalose-treated fruit corresponded to those in K-treated fruit. Moreover, trehalase (TREH) activity in fruit was notably reduced by K treatment. This demonstrates that K influences ROS production via regulating trehalose content and TREH activity in fruit. This study provides new insight into the K mechanism which improves fruit development, including fruit firmness and size.     

Vole abundance and reindeer carcasses determine breeding activity of Arctic foxes in low Arctic Yamal,Russia

Background

High latitude ecosystems are at present changing rapidly under the influence of climate warming, and specialized Arctic species at the southern margin of the Arctic may be particularly affected. The Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus), a small mammalian predator endemic to northern tundra areas, is able to exploit different resources in the context of varying tundra ecosystems. Although generally widespread, it is critically endangered in subarctic Fennoscandia, where a fading out of the characteristic lemming cycles and competition with abundant red foxes have been identified as main threats. We studied an Arctic fox population at the Erkuta Tundra Monitoring site in low Arctic Yamal (Russia) during 10 years in order to determine which resources support the breeding activity in this population. In the study area, lemmings have been rare during the last 15 years and red foxes are nearly absent, creating an interesting contrast to the situation in Fennoscandia.

Results

Arctic fox was breeding in nine of the 10 years of the study. The number of active dens was on average 2.6 (range 0–6) per 100 km² and increased with small rodent abundance. It was also higher after winters with many reindeer carcasses, which occurred when mortality was unusually high due to icy pastures following rain-on-snow events. Average litter size was 5.2 (SD = 2.1). Scat dissection suggested that small rodents (mostly Microtus spp.) were the most important prey category. Prey remains observed at dens show that birds, notably waterfowl, were also an important resource in summer.

Conclusions

The Arctic fox in southern Yamal, which is part of a species-rich low Arctic food web, seems at present able to cope with a state shift of the small rodent community from high amplitude cyclicity with lemming dominated peaks, to a vole community with low amplitude fluctuations. The estimated breeding parameters characterized the population as intermediate between the lemming fox and the coastal fox ecotype. Only continued ecosystem-based monitoring will reveal their fate in a changing tundra ecosystem.

     

南方建筑非透明围护结构热工与节能设计

如何兼顾冬夏两季建筑供暖空调负荷和能耗,保证室内热环境质量,确定最适宜的热工特性,是长期困扰中国南方建筑围护结构热工与节能设计的难点。通过对夏热冬冷和夏热冬暖地区建筑在采暖、空调与自然通风条件下动态热过程的分析,研究了这一地区围护结构热特性与能耗的制约关系,以及对室内热环境与建筑热稳定性的作用机理。在兼顾冬季保温与夏季隔热的情况下,将建筑全年能耗作为控制目标,从室内热环境质量、节能效果、围护结构的安全性、可靠性、经济性和实用性等角度评价目前所采用的围护结构节能技术存在的问题,提出一种适宜南方气候的建筑围护结构热特性指标及构造形式。     

考虑植株氮垂直分布的夏玉米营养诊断敏感位点筛选

探明夏玉米氮素营养生化指标(叶绿素a、叶绿素b、类胡萝卜素、叶片氮含量和叶片氮积累量)与叶片SPAD值垂直分布特征及两者间定量回归关系,确立基于叶绿素仪的夏玉米氮营养无损诊断敏感叶位和叶片部位,以实现氮营养时空变化的快捷和精准监测。利用2018-2019年连续2季不同氮营养水平下夏玉米关键生育期主茎各叶位(顶1叶~顶12叶,TL1~TL12)和叶片部位(每张叶片从叶片基部开始根据叶片长度每20%分为1个测试区间) SPAD值及氮营养指标数据,研究基于偏最小二乘(partial least square, PLS)回归模型的夏玉米不同位点SPAD值与氮营养指标间关系,确定可稳定指示夏玉米氮营养空间异质性变化的敏感叶位及叶片部位。结果表明,不同叶位间夏玉米叶片SPAD值和氮营养指标于植株间分布均呈典型的"钟型"特征,至TL5或TL6时达至峰值。同一叶位不同部位间SPAD值由20%至100%位点时则逐步升高,且80%~100%位点间无显著差异(P>0.05)。PLS分析结果显示,夏玉米不同叶位SPAD值与氮营养指标间模型精度决定系数(coefficient of determination, R2)和相对分析误差(relative percent deviation,RPD)范围分别为0.693~0.821和1.425~2.744。不同测试位点R2和RPD值范围则分别为0.660~0.847和1.607~2.451,满足模型精确诊断需求。此后,基于PLS模型中各叶位和叶片部位无量纲评价指标变量重要性投影值(variable importance for projection,VIP),确定顶4叶(TL4)完展叶60%~80%区间为夏玉米氮营养诊断的敏感区域,VIP值均高于临界值1.40,预测效果较为理想。研究可为实现氮营养的高效、快捷诊断和精准施氮提供参考。     

Hyperspectral species mapping for automatic weed control in tomato under thermal environmental stress

This work studied the impacts of variations in environmental temperature on hyperspectral imaging features in the visible and near infrared regions for robust species identification for weed mapping in tomato production. Six major Californian processing tomato cultivars, black nightshade (Solanum nigrum L.) and redroot pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus L.) were grown under a variety of diurnal temperature ranges simulating conditions common in the Californian springtime planting period and one additional treatment simulating greenhouse growing conditions. The principal change in canopy reflectance with varying temperature occurred in the 480-670 and 720-810 nm regions. The overall classification rate ranged from 62.5% to 91.6% when classifiers trained under single temperatures were applied to plants grown at different temperatures. Eliminating the 480-670 nm region from the classifier’s feature set mitigated the temperature effect by stabilizing the total crop vs. weed classification rate at 86.4% over the temperature ranges. A site-specific recalibration method was also successful in alleviating the bias created by calibrating the models on the extreme temperatures and increased the classification accuracy to 90.3%. A global calibration method, incorporating all four temperature conditions in the classifier feature space, provided the best average total classification accuracy of 92.2% out of the methods studied, and was fairly robust to the varying diurnal temperature conditions.