Impaired littoral energy pathways cause a shift to pelagic resources by fish in recovering lake food webs

Fish communities may increase in biomass and productivity due to energy subsidies from the littoral invertebrate community. In lakes recovering from acidification and metal contamination, such as those in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, impaired benthic invertebrate communities (i.e., low diversity with higher abundance of small‐bodied taxa) allowed a critical test of the role of these littoral pathways on fish diet. We compared fish abundance, diversity, diet and biomass in eight recovering and eight reference lakes and related availability of the main littoral and pelagic invertebrate groups to fish diet regime using stable isotope analysis. A Bayesian mixing model (MixSIR) was used to estimate diet likelihood, and convex hull analysis was used to estimate trophic niche space of fish communities. Fish biomass did not differ between impaired and reference lakes despite substantial differences in potential diet. Fish depended strongly on littoral benthos in the reference lakes but consumed more pelagic food in the impaired lakes. The trophic niche of the focal, most common fish species (i.e., yellow perch, smallmouth bass, pumpkinseed and brown bullhead) was larger in the impaired lakes. We attributed these differences to low diversity at the highest trophic levels of fish communities in the impaired lakes as well as to depauperate benthic invertebrate communities. In contrast to the food webs of most temperate lakes, fish in impaired lakes preyed less on littoral invertebrates yet still managed to maintain a reference lake level of biomass standing crop by relying more on pelagic resources – macro zooplankton such as Chaoborus.     

Molecular architecture of the multiprotein splicing factor SF3b

The splicing factor SF3b is a multiprotein complex essential for the accurate excision of introns from pre-messenger RNA. As an integral component of the U2 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) and the U11/U12 di-snRNP, SF3b is involved in the recognition of the pre-messenger RNA's branch site within the major and minor spliceosomes. We have determined the three-dimensional structure of the human SF3b complex by single-particle electron cryomicroscopy at a resolution of less than 10 angstroms, allowing identification of protein domains with known structural folds. The best fit of a modeled RNA-recognition motif indicates that the protein p14 is located in the central cavity of the complex. The 22 tandem helical repeats of the protein SF3b155 are located in the outer shell of the complex enclosing p14.     

Provisions for returning rehabilitated wild bird patients to the wild state

For the receiving, care, and rehabilitation of normally free-living birds which are sick or capable of rehabilitation, the provisions of the Civil Code, the game-law, the laws relating to nature protection and protection of endangered species have to be considered. In this paper the requirements of the veterinarian, the patients, and the "rehabilitator" are given as a simplified review. Generally, it can be concluded that the rehabilitation of avian patients does not necessarily constitute a contribution to the support of the free-living population and is therefore not unconditionally useful. A relaxation of the regulations governing the keeping of protected avian species may better promote the interests of the birds involved.     

Artemisia dracunculus L. (tarragon): a critical review of its traditional use, chemical composition, pharmacology, and safety

Artemisia dracunculus L. (tarragon) has a long history of use as a spice and remedy. Two well-described "cultivars" (Russian and French) are used widely and differ in ploidy level, morphology, and chemistry. Key biologically active secondary metabolites are essential oils (0.15-3.1%), coumarins (>1%), flavonoids, and phenolcarbonic acids. In vivo studies mainly in rodents, particularly from Russian sources, highlight potential anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and antihyperglycemic effects. Despite concerns about the toxic effects of two of its main constituents, estragole (up to 82%) and methyleugenol (up to 39%), no acute toxicity or mutagenic activity has been reported at doses relevant for human consumption. Water extracts of A. dracunculus contain very low amounts of estragole and methyleugenol and, therefore, are considered to pose a very limited risk. Overall, a stronger focus on clinical studies and precise taxonomic and phytochemical definition of the source material will be essential for future research efforts.     

Amazon pox at an import station

Within this case report from a Bavarian import unit clinical appearance, diagnosis and treatment of Amazonapox infection is described in detail.     

Modelling dead wood islands in European beech forests: how much and how reliably would they provide dead wood?

Dead wood is an important element of forests both for biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Due to intensive silviculture, however, dead wood usually is strongly underrepresented in European forests. Forest reserves cannot fully compensate for this because they comprise only a small proportion of forested areas and are often isolated. Retaining a certain number of dead trees in managed forests is important, but may cause safety problems for lumbermen and visitors and still does not necessarily lead to an amount and incidence (i.e., probability of occurrence) of dead wood that might be required for many species and certain ecosystem functions. Our studies concentrate on a third and complimentary dead wood management strategy: dead wood islands, i.e. small unmanaged islands distributed throughout managed forests. As an example, we focus on European beech forests (Fagus sylvatica). An important question related to this strategy is: how do amount, quality, and incidence of dead wood depend on the island’s size? To provide an answer, we use the spatially explicit, rule-based simulation model BEFORE-CWD that was developed to analyse dead wood dynamics in natural beech forests. This model and its predecessor, BEFORE, are well-verified and validated. They reproduce a suite of observed patterns and generate valid secondary and independent predictions. We found that islands that are too small, i.e. smaller than 0.33 and 0.08 ha for standing and lying dead wood, respectively, can fail to provide dead wood for several decades. The shape of the islands has only a minor effect. Extreme storm events temporarily increase and then decrease the amount of standing dead wood. In terms of the amount and incidence of dead wood, it makes no difference if one big or several small islands are set aside from management, unless the islands are not too small. We conclude that even relatively small unmanaged islands within managed forests can reliably provide dead wood and therefore should be considered as a management option. Our results can be used, for example by using metapopulation models of species of interest, to develop management plans for creating networks of dead wood islands.     

Thoracic and abdominal organ uptake of 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (18FDG) with positron emission tomography in the normal dog.

Positron emission tomography (PET) has found widespread application for staging and monitoring neoplastic diseases in humans. PET is becoming more available in veterinary medicine, therefore biodistribution of 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (18FDG) in normal dogs is needed for lesion interpretation in disease states. A large field-of-view (FOV) PET scanner with a 70 cm bore diameter and a 53-cm FOV was used in this study to acquire dynamic 18FDG uptake data from parenchymal organs in seven normal dogs. A 2-h, dynamic list-mode acquisition was initiated simultaneously with intravenous 18FDG injection. Regions of interest (ROIs) were manually drawn over liver, spleen, left and right renal cortices, left ventricular free wall, and thymus. Standardized uptake values (SUVs) of these organs were calculated for 24 5-min frames over the 2-h acquisition. This SUV data from parenchymal organs of normal dogs compares favorably with those of normal humans and will be used in ongoing canine studies using PET to evaluate various diseases.     

Contribution of fallow periods between rice crops to seasonal GHG emissions: effect of water and tillage management

ABSTRACT

Irrigated rice cultivation is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from agriculture. Methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) are emitted not only throughout the growing season but also in the fallow period between crops. A study was conducted for two transition periods between rice crops (dry to wet season transition and wet to dry season transition) in the Philippines to investigate the effect of water and tillage management on CH₄ and N₂O emissions as well as on soil nitrate and ammonium. Management treatments between rice crops included (1) continuous flooding (F), (2) soil drying (D), (3) soil drying with aerobic tillage (D + T), and (4) soil drying and wetting (D + W). The static closed chamber method was used to measure CH₄ and N₂O fluxes.

Soil nitrate accumulated and N₂O was emitted in treatments with soil drying. Nitrate disappeared while ammonium gradually increased after the soil was flooded during land preparation, indicating net nitrogen mineralization. N₂O emissions were highest in both transition periods in D + W (437 and 645 µg N₂O m^?2 h^?1). Methane emissions were significant in only the F treatment. The highest global warming potential (GWP) in the transition between rice crops occurred in F, with CH₄ contributing almost 100% to the GWP. The GWP from other treatments was lower than F, with about 60–99% of the GWP attributed to N₂O emissions in treatments with soil drying. The GWP in the transition between rice crops represented up to 26% of the total GWP from harvest to harvest. This study demonstrates that the transition period can be an important source of GHG emissions with relative importance of CH₄ and N₂O depending on the soil water regime. Therefore, the transition period should not be disregarded when estimating GHG emissions for rice cropping systems.