The annual habitat selection of released Père David’s Deer in Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve

The number of Père David’s (Elaphurus davidinus) deer which have been released into the wild is over one hundred in the third core area of Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve. Annual habitat selection of released Père David’s deer was studied from November 2008 to November 2009. The results of our research showed that: in autumn and winter released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at Spartina alterniflora community with higher plant density, higher plant height and larger aboveground biomass; in spring and summer released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at S. alterniflora community with lower plant height, smaller aboveground biomass. Released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at S. alterniflora community which are close to water sources and shallow bogs but have a moderate distance from the sea. Principal components analysis was performed on 8 ecological factors. The cumulative contribution of the first 3 principal components reached to 75% and these factors could represent the annual habitat features of released Père David’s deer. According to the results of principal component analysis, the influential factors for annual habitat selection of released Père David’s deer were classified separately as food factor (aboveground biomass, plant height), water factor (distance to water, distance from the shallow bogs), disturbance factor (distance from human disturbance).     

The annual habitat selection of released Père David’s Deer in Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve

The number of Père David’s (Elaphurus davidinus) deer which have been released into the wild is over one hundred in the third core area of Dafeng Milu National Nature Reserve. Annual habitat selection of released Père David’s deer was studied from November 2008 to November 2009. The results of our research showed that: in autumn and winter released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at Spartina alterniflora community with higher plant density, higher plant height and larger aboveground biomass; in spring and summer released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at S. alterniflora community with lower plant height, smaller aboveground biomass. Released Père David’s deer preferred to choose the locations at S. alterniflora community which are close to water sources and shallow bogs but have a moderate distance from the sea. Principal components analysis was performed on 8 ecological factors. The cumulative contribution of the first 3 principal components reached to 75% and these factors could represent the annual habitat features of released Père David’s deer. According to the results of principal component analysis, the influential factors for annual habitat selection of released Père David’s deer were classified separately as food factor (aboveground biomass, plant height), water factor (distance to water, distance from the shallow bogs), disturbance factor (distance from human disturbance).     

利用尿液中的雌二醇、孕酮含量监测雌性川金丝猴的月经周期和妊娠

During two consecutive mating seasons from August 2001 to December 2002, we observed the sexual behavior of Sichuan golden monkeys in the Chengdu Zoo and the Shanghai Wild Animal Park. We collected urine samples from females in the early morning. We also measured urinary estradiol and progesterone levels using radioimmunoassay. Based on the estradiol concentration during the menstrual cycle, we discovered that the length of the menstrual cycle was 286.33 1.67 days. The length of pregnancy was about 200 days. The level of estradiol after impregnation was significantly different with the level during the ,same period in the non-receptive part of the cycle. Thus we could diagnose early pregnancy in female Sichuan golden monkeys by checking their urinary estradiol level .     

Lead concentrations and lead and strontium stable-isotope ratios in teeth of European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus)

The study reports lead concentrations and lead and strontium stable-isotope ratios in mandibular molars of roe deer from three different areas in western Germany. Lead concentrations in third molars ranged between 0.23 and 36.61 μg/g (dry weight). Comparing lead concentrations in first molars and third molars in a group of ca. 1.5- or ca. 2.5-year-old individuals from the same area revealed an effect of tooth age on tooth lead content. The higher lead concentrations in the first molars were attributed to the longer period of lead accumulation by the dentin of these teeth compared with the later-forming third molars. Differences in lead isotopic signatures of the teeth were observed between the three areas, presumably reflecting variation in exposure to different sources of environmental lead. We also found marked variation in the ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotope ratios of the teeth, with only a small overlap in values between two of the areas. Strontium isotope analysis alone or in combination with lead isotope analyses can be a useful means of assessing the provenance of deer teeth of unknown geographical origin.     

Iron concentrations in intestinal cancer tissue and in colon and rectum polyps

A prospective randomized trial was used to determine iron concentrations in intestinal cancer tissue and colorectum polyps. We investigated the possible difference between the concentrations of iron, ferritin, albumin, and hemoglobin in the serum of patients with colorectal cancer and polyps. We also determined the relationship between the iron and ferritin levels in cancer tissue, the localization of neoplasms, and the stage of their development. The study comprises 67 patients with colorectum cancer and 42 patients with colon and rectum polyps. The metal was determined by using the total-reflection X-ray fluorescence (TRXRF) method. The mean concentration of iron in colorectal cancer equaled 46.1 μg/g of the tissue and was higher than in the case of polyps (43.2 μg/g). The mean serum iron level in patients with colorectal cancer was statistically lower than in the serum of patients with polyp and in the control group (54.5, 91.3, and 108.0 μg/g, respectively). The determined average concentration of ferritin in the serum of patients with colorectal cancer equaled 60.4 μg/g and was statistically lower than the level of this enzyme in the serum of patients with polyps (85.2 μg/g) and in the control group (102.0 μg/g). There was no difference between the serum albumin and hemoglobin concentrations in patients with colorectal cancer, polyps, and the control. There was no difference in the levels of iron and ferritin depending on the location of the neoplasm and the stage of its development. Also, there was no difference between the concentrations of iron in the cancer tissue of malignant and benign tumors after taking into consideration sex and age of patients. During the examination we determined significantly higher concentrations of iron in the cancer tissue and not in the polyp. The low levels of iron in the serum of patients with malignant tumor may increase colorectal cancer risk.     

Generalization of predator recognition:Velvet geckos display anti-predator behaviours in response to chemicals from non-dangerous elapid snakes

<正> Many prey species detect chemical cues from predators and modify their behaviours in ways that reduce their risk ofpredation. Theory predicts that prey should modify their anti-predator responses according to the degree of threat posed by thepredator. That is, prey should show the strongest responses to chemicals of highly dangerous prey, but should ignore or respondweakly to chemicals from non-dangerous predators. However, if anti-predator behaviours are not costly, and predators are rarelyencountered, prey may exhibit generalised antipredator behaviours to dangerous and non-dangerous predators. In Australia, mostelapid snakes eat lizards, and are therefore potentially dangerous to lizard prey. Recently, we found that the nocturnal velvetgecko Oedura lesueurii responds to chemicals from dangerous and non-dangerous elapid snakes, suggesting that it displays generalisedanti-predator behaviours to chemicals from elapid snakes. To explore the generality of this result, we videotaped the behaviourof velvet geckos in the presence of chemical cues from two small elapid snakes that rarely consume geckos: the nocturnalgolden-crowned snake Cacophis squamulosus and the diurnal marsh snake Hemiaspis signata. We also videotaped geckos in trialsinvolving unscented cards (controls) and cologne-scented cards (pungency controls). In trials involving Cacophis and Hemiaspischemicals, 50% and 63% of geckos spent long time periods ( 3 min) freezing whilst pressed flat against the substrate, respectively.Over half the geckos tested exhibited anti-predator behaviours (tail waving, tail vibration, running) in response to Cacophis(67%) or Hemiaspis (63%) chemicals. These behaviours were not observed in control or pungency control trials. Our resultssupport the idea that the velvet gecko displays generalised anti-predator responses to chemical cues from elapid snakes.Generalised responses to predator chemicals may be common in prey species that co-occur with multiple, ecologically similar,dangerous predators [Current Zoology 56 (3): 337-342, 2010].     

Gene admixture in ethnic populations in upper part of Silk Road revealed by mtDNA polymorphism

To evaluate the gene admixture on the current genetic landscape in Gansu Corridor (GC) in China, the upper part of the ancient Silk Road which connects the Eastern and Central Asia, we examined mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) polymorphisms of five ethnic populations in this study. Using PCR-RFLP and sequencing, we analyzed mtDNA haplotypes in 242 unrelated samples in three ethnic populations from the GC region and two ethnic populations from the adjacent Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. We analyzed the data in comparison with the previously reported data from Eastern, Central and Western Asia and Europe. We found that both European-specific haplogroups and Eastern Asian-specific haplogroups exist in the Gansu Corridor populations, while a modest matrilineal gene flow from Europeans to this region was revealed. The Gansu Corridor populations are genetically located between Eastern Asians and Central Asians, both of who contributed significantly to the maternal lineages of the GC populations. This study made the landscape of the gene flow and admixture along the Silk Road from Europe, through Central Asia, to the upper part of the Silk Road more complete.     

Induction and inhibition of human lymphocyte transformation by the lectin from the red marine alga Amansia multifida

Lectins are powerful stimulants of quiescent peripheral blood lymphocytes. They can induce blast transformation leading to mitosis of these cells in vitro. We report here the dose-dependent proliferative curve for human peripheral blood monouclear cells (PBMC) stimulated by the lectin amansin, from Amansia multifida. Amansin stimulated proliferation of (PBMC) at relatively low concentrations (3.12 to 12.5 μg mL^-1). We observed also a gradual reduction in mitogenic capacity with progressive increase in the lectin concentration above 12.5 μg mL^-1. This decrease in the mitogenic potential did not result from a toxic effect on the cells, and was predominant at a lectin concentration above 50 μg mL^-1. This decrease in lymphocyte proliferation could be blocked by avidin and could not be overcome by IL-2 or another lectin (Con Br) at stimulatory concentrations. Additionally, we observed that cells incubated at stimulatory concentrations of amansin produced IFN-γ. Analysis of the culture supernatants established a direct correlation between the IFN-γ and the mitogenic and anti-mitogenic capacity of amansin. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

浙江天目山国家级自然保护区三种鹿科动物舔盐行为比较

To study the salt-licking behavior of South China sika deer (Cervus nippon kopschi), black muntjac (Muntiacus crinifrons) and Chinese muntjac(M. reevesi), twelve artificial salt fields were set up in the Tianmushan National Nature Reserve in Zhejiang Province, China.Two cameras were set up in each site to monitor the visits of deers from April 2018 to March 2019.The frequency and duration of each visits were recorded to reveal the daily salt-licking rhythm and seasonal pattern of different species, and the allometricl model was employed to test the gender differences of visitors.The results show that:(1) all the three species use artificial salt fields, but Chinese muntjac and South China sika deer have relatively high frequency of visiting;(2) The South China sika deer and black muntjac prefer to use salt fields at high and low altitude, respectively, however Chinese muntjac have no preference for altitude;(3) Chinese muntjac is a typical morning-dusk animal to visit salt fields, and South China sika deer and black muntjac mainly at dusk and night;(4) most identifiable visitors are single sex, and no more than two species appear in a same record;(5) the three species have different salt-licking patterns:South China sika deer has relatively low frequency but large quantity, black muntjac with low frequency and small quantity, and Chinese muntjac with high frequency and large quantity.Accordingly, We suggest that the wildlife management departments could set up more artificial salt fields in spring and summer, and appropriately reduce the salt bricks in autumn and winter.     

Agricultural Risk Factors Influence Microbial Ecology in Honghu Lake

Agricultural activities, including stock-farming, planting industry, and fish aquaculture,can affect the physicochemical and biological characters of freshwater lakes. However, the effects of pollution producing by agricultural activities on microbial ecosystem of lakes remain unclear.Hence, in this work, we selected Honghu Lake as a typical lake that is influenced by agriculture activities. We collected water and sediment samples from 18 sites, which span a wide range of areas from impacted and less-impacted areas. We performed a geospatial analysis on the composition of microbial communities associated with physicochemical properties and antibiotic pollution of samples. The co-occurrence networks of water and sediment were also built and analyzed. Our results showed that the microbial communities of impacted and less-impacted samples of water were largely driven by the concentrations of TN, TP, NO_3^--N, and NO_2^--N, while those of sediment were affected by the concentrations of Sed-OM and Sed-TN. Antibiotics have also played important roles in shaping these microbial communities: the concentrations of oxytetracycline and tetracycline clearly reflected the variance in taxonomic diversity and predicted functional diversity between impacted and less-impacted sites in water and sediment samples, respectively. Furthermore, for samples from both water and sediment, large differences of network topology structures between impacted and less-impacted were also observed. Our results provide compelling evidence that the microbial community can be used as a sentinel of eutrophication and antibiotics pollution risk associated with agricultural activity; and that proper monitoring of this environment is vital to maintain a sustainable environment in Honghu Lake.     

Recording of calcium transient and analysis of calcium removal mechanisms in cardiac myocytes from rats and ground squirrels

With confocal microscopy, we recorded calcium transients and analyzed calcium removal rate at different temperatures in cardiac myocytes from the rat, a non-hibernator, and the ground squirrel, a hibernator. The results showed a remarkable increase of the diastolic level of calcium transients in the rat but no detectable change in the ground squirrel. Calcium transient of the ground squirrel, compared with that of the rat at the same temperature, had a shorter duration and showed a faster calcium removal. As indicated by the pharmacological effect of cyclopiazonic acid, calcium uptake by sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) was the major mechanism of calcium removal, and was faster in the ground squirrel than in the rat. Our results confirmed the essential role of SR in hypothermia-tolerant adaptation, and negated the importance of Na-Ca exchange. We postulated the possibility to improve hypothermia-tolerance of the cardiac tissue of non-hibernating mammals.     

Perinatal stem cells: A promising cell resource for tissue engineering of craniofacial bone

In facing the mounting clinical challenge and suboptimal techniques of craniofacial bone defects resulting from various conditions, such as congenital malformations, osteomyelitis, trauma and tumor resection, the ongoing research of regenerative medicine using stem cells and concurrent advancement in biotechnology have shifted the focus from surgical reconstruction to a novel stem cell-based tissue engineering strategy for customized and functional craniofacial bone regeneration. Given the unique ontogenetical and cell biological properties of perinatal stem cells, emerging evidence has suggested these extraembryonic tissue-derived stem cells to be a promising cell source for extensive use in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. In this review, we summarize the current achievements and obstacles in stem cell-based craniofacial bone regeneration and subsequently we address the characteristics of various types of perinatal stem cells and their novel application in tissue engineering of craniofacial bone. We propose the promising feasibility and scope of perinatal stem cell-based craniofacial bone tissue engineering for future clinical application.     

Zn concentration in thyroid tissue and whole blood of women with different diseases of thyroid

The Zn concentration in thyroid tissue and whole blood of patients with Graves’ disease, thyroid cancer, and nodular goiter disease was determined using the total-reflection X-ray fluorescence method. The dependence of obtained concentrations on the clinical stage of the examined disease, histopathological grading, and kind of analyzed material (thyroid tissue and blood) was studied. The determined concentration of Zn was the lowest in the thyroid tissue of patients with thyroid cancer (23.1 μg/g) and it was the highest in the case of Graves’ disease (41.7 μg/g), whereas in the blood samples, the reverse results were found (7.1 μg/g and 4.8 μg/g, respectively). The physical basis of the method used, the experimental setup, and the procedure of sample preparation are described.     

Association of different zinc concentrations combined with a fixed caffeine dose on plasma and tissue caffeine and zinc levels in the rat

Because caffeine and tissue levels of Zn are closely related, the objectives of this study were to determine the changes in plasma caffeine levels over a period of 5 h when different concentrations of Zn combined with a fixed concentration of caffeine were injected into the femoral vein of rats and to determine the relationship between tissue levels of caffeine and Zn at 5 h postinjection. Rats were divided into three groups: group 1, 220 μg caffeine; group 2,220 μg caffeine + 8 μg Zn/g body weight (BW); group 3, 220 μg caffeine +16 μg Zn/g BW. Blood from groups 1 and 3 was collected at 3 min, 30 min, 1h, 3h, and 5h to determine the pharmacokinetics of caffeine. All groups were killed at 5 h. Caffeine and Zn concentrations of the brain, kidney, heart, and liver of all groups were determined. The plasma-caffeine curve in group 3 showed a lower concentration at 3 min and a slower caffeine-elimination rate during the first 3 h. Brain and kidney caffeine levels remained constant in all groups, whereas caffeine levels were increased in the heart in group 2 and in the liver in group 3. Zn concentrations in the brain and kidney were lower in group 2 compared with groups 1 and 3 and higher in group 3 compared to groups 1 and 2. Zn concentration in the heart was the same among the three groups but was increased in the liver in group 3 compared to groups 1 and 2. Therefore, we concluded that caffeine combined with Zn affects caffeine pharmacokinetics. With caffeine intake, levels of Zn (16 μg/g BW) that are slightly higher than the daily requirements (12 μg/g BW) may prevent a reduction of Zn in tissue. In addition, caffeine’s effects on Zn concentration among organs are different.     

Geochemistry and clay mineralogy of soils eaten by Japanese macaques

Three groups of soils from two Japanese monkey parks at Arashiyama (Honshu) and Takasakiyama (Kyushu) were analyzed for their geochemistry and clay and primary mineral content. Two groups (Y and T) of soils are regularly eaten by Japanese macaques; a third group (N) is not eaten. Of the elements analyzed, soil group N (not eaten) is within the range of all elements in the Y group, and is very different from the T group. These preliminary data suggest there is no chemical stimulus in soil eating behaviour. We also analyzed the mineralogy of the clay fraction (<2 μm) but could find only a possible stimulus from ingesting plagioclase and orthoclase minerals. The clay mineral content consists of small to trace amounts of metahalloysite that might play a role in countering the effects of diarrhea. However, from the available data there are no clear trends that would provide a stimulus for geophagic behaviour.     

Family-level leaf nitrogen and phosphorus stoichiometry of global terrestrial plants

Leaf nitrogen(N) and phosphorus(P) concentrations are critical for photosynthesis, growth, reproduction and other ecological processes of plants. Previous studies on large-scale biogeographic patterns of leaf N and P stoichiometric relationships were mostly conducted using data pooled across taxa, while family/genus-level analyses are rarely reported. Here, we examined global patterns of family-specific leaf N and P stoichiometry using a global data set of 12,716 paired leaf N and P records which includes 204 families, 1,305 genera, and 3,420 species. After determining the minimum size of samples(i.e., 35 records), we analyzed leaf N and P concentrations, N:P ratios and N～P scaling relationships of plants for 62 families with 11,440 records. The numeric values of leaf N and P stoichiometry varied significantly across families and showed diverse trends along gradients of mean annual temperature(MAT) and mean annual precipitation(MAP). The leaf N and P concentrations and N:P ratios of 62 families ranged from 6.11 to 30.30 mg g~(–1), 0.27 to 2.17 mg g~(–1), and 10.20 to 35.40, respectively. Approximately 1/3–1/2 of the families(22–35 of 62) showed a decrease in leaf N and P concentrations and N:P ratios with increasing MAT or MAP, while the remainder either did not show a significant trend or presented the opposite pattern. Family-specific leaf N～P scaling exponents did not converge to a certain empirical value, with a range of 0.307–0.991 for 54 out of 62 families which indicated a significant N～P scaling relationship. Our results for the first time revealed large variation in the family-level leaf N and P stoichiometry of global terrestrial plants and that the stoichiometric relationships for at least one-third of the families were not consistent with the global trends reported previously. The numeric values of the family-specific leaf N and P stoichiometry documented in the current study provide critical synthetic parameters for biogeographic modeling and for further studies on the physiological and ecological mechanisms underlying the nutrient use strategies of plants from different phylogenetic taxa.     

Identification and functional characterization of an odorant receptor in pea aphid,Acyrthosiphon pisum

The sensitive olfactory system is necessary for survival of insects.Odorant receptors (ORs)are located on the dendrites of olfactory receptor neurons and play a critical role in odor detection.Insect ORs are functionally analyzed via heterologous expression in a Xenopus oocyte system using a two-electrode voltage-clamp (TEVC)electrophysiological recording.Here,we have identified a novel OR in the pea aphid,Acyrthosiphon pisum,then we cloned and named it ApisOR4.We analyzed the ApisOR4 tissue expression patterns and found expression only in antennae tissues.Further functional analysis using TEVC revealed that ApisOR4 is broadly tuned to eight volatiles,which elicit electrophysiological response in pea aphid antennae.This study provides an initial functional analysis of aphid ORs and identifies candidate volatiles to be used in developing new strategies for aphid control.     

Whole miRNome-wide Differential Co-expression of MicroRNAs

Co-regulation of genes has been extensively analyzed, however, rather limited knowledge is available on co-regulations within the miRNome. We investigated differential co-expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) based on miRNome profiles of whole blood from 540 individuals. These include patients suffering from different cancer and non-cancer diseases, and unaffected controls. Using hierarchi-cal clustering, we found 9 significant clusters of co-expressed miRNAs containing 2-36 individual miRNAs. Through analyzing multiple sequencing alignments in the clusters, we found that co-expression of miRNAs is associated with both sequence similarity and genomic co-localization. We calculated correlations for all 371,953 pairs of miRNAs for all 540 individuals and identified 184 pairs of miRNAs with high correlation values. Out of these 184 pairs of miRNAs, 16 pairs (8.7%) were differentially co-expressed in unaffected controls, cancer patients and patients with non-cancer diseases. By computing correlated and anti-correlated miRNA pairs, we constructed a network with 184 putative co-regulations as edges and 100 miRNAs as nodes. Thereby, we detected specific clusters of miRNAs with high and low correlation values. Our approach represents the most comprehensive co-regulation analysis based on whole miRNome-wide expression profiling. Our findings further decrypt the interactions of miRNAs in normal and human pathological processes.