FLAVONOID EVOLUTION IN DENDROSERIS (COMPOSITAE,LACTUCEAE) FROM THE JUAN FERNANDEZ ISLANDS,CHILE

Leaf flavonoid chemistry was examined from the three subgenera and 11 species of the endemic genus Dendroseris (Compositae, Lactuceae) of the Juan Fernandez Islands, Chile. Eight of the species are restricted to the older island (Masatierra, ca. 4 million years old), which is also closer to the mainland. Three species, one from each subgenus, are restricted to Masafuera, which is younger geologically (1–2 million years old) and 145 km further west of Masatierra. A total of 16 compounds was identified, with the 7-0-glucosides of the flavones apigenin and luteolin accounting for 12 of the constituents. Two glucosides of the flavonol quercetin were detected. Despite considerable interpopulation variation within species, six of the taxa have distinctive flavonoid profiles. Although there are few absolute differences among the subgenera, they can be distinguished chemically. Subgenus Rea contains the greatest number of compounds, and a previous cladistic analysis based on morphological features suggested this subgenus as most primitive. Subgenus Phoenicoseris is considered highly derived morphologically, and it has a reduced flavonoid chemistry. Very little reduction in flavonoid diversity was seen in the morphologically specialized subg. Dendroseris as compared to subg. Rea. A trend in reduction of numbers of compounds was seen for two of the three species on the younger island of Masafuera when compared to their presumed ancestors on Masatierra. Flavonoids of selected species of Hieracium and Hypochaeris, presumptive mainland progenitors of Dendroseris, reveal a close chemical affinity with the former genus.     

Phylogenetic analysis of the Rhabdocoela (Platyhelminthes) with emphasis on the Neodermata and relatives

Phylogenetic systematic analysis of 24 taxa representing the rhabdocoel platyhelminths, based on a suite of 89 morphological characters, produced two equally parsimonious trees, 181 steps long, with a consistency index (CI) of 0.69 and a rescaled consistency index (RCI) of 0.56, differing only with respect to that portion of the tree containing Umagillidae, Acholadidae, Graffillinae, Pseudograffillinae, Pterastericolidae and Hypoblepharinidae. Our results accommodate all previously proposed sister taxa to the Neodermata in a single clade in which ((Dalyelliidae + Temnocephalida) Typhloplanidae) is the sister group of ((Fecampiidae +  Urastoma ) ( Udonella ((Aspidogastrea + Digenea) (Monogenea (Gyrocotylidea (Amphilinidea + Eucestoda)))))). Bootstrap and jackknife analyses indicate that the groupings of ((Dalyelliidae + Temnocephalida) Typhloplanidae) and of ((Fecampiidae +  Urastoma ) ( Udonella ((Aspidogastrea + Digenea) (Monogenea (Gyrocotylidea (Amphilinidea + Eucestoda)))))) are highly robust, with the latter clade having a CI of 90% and RCI of 82%. Disagreements among previous analyses of these taxa have been due to the influence of missing data for critical characters in key taxa and differences in the taxa analysed, rather than any inherent weakness in the morphological data. Non-phylogenetic systematic approaches to homology assessment and misconceptions regarding phylogenetic systematic methodology are discussed. Recent analyses combining sequence data with a subset of approximately 60% of the morphological characters should be re-assessed using the entire morphological database. Even if Udonella is a monogenean, it is most parsimonious to suggest that the common ancestor of the Neodermata had a vertebrate–arthropod two-host life cycle.     

Kin Discrimination in a Macropod Marsupial

Differential treatment of kin is ubiquitous in social animals. Parents often behave preferentially towards their dependent offspring. Species in several taxa also bias behaviour towards non-descendent kin. This latter phenomenon has not been demonstrated in marsupials, which are reportedly less social than eutherian mammals. We report the first evidence of non-parental kin-biased behaviour in a macropodid marsupial. Experimental pairing of individuals based on kinship reliably altered the rate of aggression between individuals in pairs of female tammar wallabies ( Macropus eugenii ). This effect is probably attributable to relatedness rather than to familiarity. Marsupial sociality may be substantially more complex than is currently recognized.     

The promoters of Arabidopsis thaliana genes AtCOX17-1 and -2, encoding a copper chaperone involved in cytochrome c oxidase biogenesis, are preferentially active in roots and anthers and induced by biotic and abiotic stress

AtCOX17 genes encode Arabidopsis thaliana homologs of the yeast metallochaperone Cox17p, involved in the delivery of copper for cytochrome c oxidase (COX) assembly. Two different AtCOX17 genes, located in chromosomes 1 and 3, are present in the Arabidopsis genome. Sequences available in data banks indicate that the presence of two genes is a common feature in monocots, but not in dicots, suggesting that Arabidopsis genes may be the result of a recent duplication. Sequences upstream from the translation start sites of AtCOX17 genes, which include an intron located in the 5' leader region, were introduced into plants in front of the gus gene. For both genes, expression was localized preferentially in young roots and anthers, but almost 10-fold higher β-glucuronidase activity levels were observed in plants transformed with AtCOX17-1 upstream regions. Both promoters were induced to different extents by wounding, treatment of leaves with the bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae and incubation with agents that produce oxidative stress and metals. AtCOX17-2 showed similar responses to these factors, while AtCOX17-1 was more strongly induced by relatively low (10–100 μ M ) copper. The results indicate that both AtCOX17 genes have similar, though not identical, expression characteristics and suggest the existence in their promoters of elements involved in tissue-specific expression and in responses to factors that may produce mitochondrial or cell damage. It can be speculated that Arabidopsis COX17 accumulates under stress conditions to actively replace damaged or inactive cytochrome c oxidase to sustain cyanide-sensitive respiration in plant cells.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
Applied Anthropology: The Aboriginal Arts and Crafts Industry . Jon Altman
Marketing Aboriginal Art in the 1990s . Jon Altman and Luke Taylor     

Application of muonic X-rays for elemental analysis

Because of the large μ mass compared to the electron mass, the muonic X-rays have energies very suitable for standard γ-ray spectroscopy (Ge detectors), so every element is easily recognized. By selecting the primary μ energies appropriately any part of the specimen, also well inside, can be nondestructively investigated. On the other hand, surface layers may be analyzed. Accuracies of quantitative analyses are 1% of the atomic abundance of the element in question in favorite cases. Results on applications in nuclear medicine and surface physics are presented, and ways of improving the muon flux density are discussed.     

The biogeochemical cycle of the adsorbed template

Experimental results are presented for the verification of the first adsorption step of the ‘adsorbed template’ biogeochemical cycle, a simple model for a primitive prebiotic replication system. The adsorption of Poly-C, Poly-U, Poly-A, Poly-G, and 5′-AMP, 5′-GMP, 5′-CMP and 5′-UMP onto gypsum was studied. It was found that under the conditions of the experiment, the polymers have a very high affinity for the mineral surface, while the monomers adsorb much less efficiently.