Interaction between the black yeast Aureobasidium pullulans and the gall midge Lasioptera ephedricola in gall formation on the desert shrub Ephedra trifurca

Galls produced by the cecidomynd Lastoptera ephedncola on Ephedia trifurca always have a black ring associated with them while galls produced by the congener L ephedrae never do Black ring material after microscopic examination and culture proved to be Aureobasidium pullulans In addition to lacking black ring material neither L ephedrae galls nor healthy stems consistently yielded Aureobasidium on culture Gall and larva size measurements indicated that continued larval presence is not necessary for gall development, suggesting fungus initiated gall formation However inoculation of healthy stems with Aureobasidium caused lesions hut not galls The mycelium m galls did not appear grazed and neither larvae nor pupae contained Aureobasidium propagules suggesting that larvae do not feed directly on fungi These data also suggest that there is no trans-pupal passage of fungus from larvae or pupae to adults Newly emerged females do not carry fungal propagules suggesting that thcy are not inoculated upon exiting the gall Gall position leaf culture and stem culture data suggest that the fungus is picked up from leaves prior to oviposition     

Physical mapping of inhibin β-A in domestic cattle

The gene for the -A subunit of inhibin (INHBA) was assigned to bovine syntenic group U13 by bovine x rodent hybrid somatic cells and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A 482-bp PCR fragment was used to clone a 37-kb cosmid. This cosmid was assigned to bovine Chromosome (Chr) 4 (BTA 4) by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). This is the first assignment of a U13 marker to a bovine chromosome. A restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) was detected with PstI within the INHBA cosmid.     

Analysis of Orthologous Retrovirus-Like Elements in the White-Footed Mouse,Peromyscus leucopus

Three loci in the genome of the white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus, were examined for the presence or absence of orthologous copies of the retrovirus-like element mys using polymerase chain reaction. We examined these loci in 28 mice collected throughout the P. leucopus species range. Mys insertions were present in only one of the individuals examined at the mys-1 and mys-7 loci. Conversely, the mys-6 element was found in several individuals, but the presence of this element was limited to northern latitudes. Because the long terminal repeats (LTRs) of a given element are expected to be identical at the time of retrotransposition into the genome, and to accumulate changes over evolutionary time, within-element LTR sequence comparisons can be used to estimate the relative age of insertions. Within-element LTR differences are greater in mys-6 than in mys-1 or mys-7. The LTRs from orthologous mys-6 elements of six mice were sequenced. The alignment revealed 13 of the 22 differences between the right and left LTRs that were shared by all orthologous mys-6 sites, suggesting that relative to its time of insertion into the genome, mys-6 has only recently spread across the northern part of the species range. Received: 23 January 1996 / Accepted: 24 April 1996     

What is truth: Consensus and discordance in next‐generation phylogenetic analyses of Daucus

High‐throughput (next‐generation) DNA sequencing has removed barriers to data quantity and quality, and it has produced phylogenies with high statistical support. Such data are useful to address phylogenetic congruence among individual genes. Concatenated analyses of unlinked genes often produce well‐resolved phylogenetic trees with bootstrap support on major nodes at or approaching 100%, but they have been criticized for providing incorrect phylogenies for various reasons to include a history of hybridization, introgression, and incomplete lineage sorting. The present study compares next‐generation sequencing results of the same accessions of Daucus with different genomic regions, of which three have been reported before: (i) the entire plastid genome, (ii) 47 mitochondrial genes, and (iii) 94 conserved nuclear orthologs. Here, we report a fourth dataset, (iv) 564 895 nuclear SNPs. There are areas of discordance in all four results using the same accessions analyzed with maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood, and with the nuclear data species trees through a coalescent analysis. The nuclear results show significant areas of discordance that were unexpected, because these studies used the same DNA samples, the nuclear studies were generated from large and high‐quality datasets with the SNPs distributed on all nine linkage groups of Daucus carota, and the results were supported by high bootstrap values. These results raise questions concerning the best data and analytical methods to reconstruct and understand the “truth” of a phylogeny.     

Expanding the evolutionary explanations for sex differences in the human skeleton

While the anatomy and physiology of human reproduction differ between the sexes, the effects of hormones on skeletal growth do not. Human bone growth depends on estrogen. Greater estrogen produced by ovaries causes bones in female bodies to fuse before males' resulting in sex differences in adult height and mass. Female pelves expand more than males' due to estrogen and relaxin produced and employed by the tissues of the pelvic region and potentially also due to greater internal space occupied by female gonads and genitals. Evolutionary explanations for skeletal sex differences (aka sexual dimorphism) that focus too narrowly on big competitive men and broad birthing women must account for the adaptive biology of skeletal growth and its dependence on the developmental physiology of reproduction. In this case, dichotomizing evolution into proximate‐ultimate categories may be impeding the progress of human evolutionary science, as well as enabling the popular misunderstanding and abuse of it.     

Where’s wallaby? Using public records and media reports to describe the status of red‐necked wallabies in Britain

Investigating the range and population dynamics of introduced species provides insight into species behavior, habitat preferences, and potential of becoming established. Here, we show the current population status of the red‐necked wallaby (Notamacropus rufogriseus) in Britain based on records from an eleven‐year period (2008–2018). Records were obtained from Local Environmental Records Centres (LERCs), the National Biodiversity Network (NBN), and popular media. All records were mapped and compared to a historical distribution map (1940–2007), derived from published data. A total of 95 confirmed wallaby sightings were recorded between 2008 and 2018, of which 64 came from media sources, 18 from Local Environmental Records Centres (LERCs), seven from the National Biodiversity Network (NBN), and six from the published literature (Yalden, Br. Wildl., 24, 2013, 169). The greatest density of wallaby sightings was in southern England, with the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty a particular hot spot (n = 11). More sightings were recorded in August than in any other month. Much of the species’ ecology and responses to British biota and anthropogenic pressures are unknown, and therefore, further research is warranted. The methods used here are widely applicable to other non‐native species, particularly those that the public are more likely to report and could be an important supplement to existing studies of conservation and management relevance.     

The atlas of RNase H antisense oligonucleotide distribution and activity in the CNS of rodents and non-human primates following central administration

Antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) have emerged as a new class of drugs to treat a wide range of diseases, including neurological indications. Spinraza, an ASO that modulates splicing of SMN2 RNA, has shown profound disease modifying effects in Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) patients, energizing efforts to develop ASOs for other neurological diseases. While SMA specifically affects spinal motor neurons, other neurological diseases affect different central nervous system (CNS) regions, neuronal and non-neuronal cells. Therefore, it is important to characterize ASO distribution and activity in all major CNS structures and cell types to have a better understanding of which neurological diseases are amenable to ASO therapy. Here we present for the first time the atlas of ASO distribution and activity in the CNS of mice, rats, and non-human primates (NHP), species commonly used in preclinical therapeutic development. Following central administration of an ASO to rodents, we observe widespread distribution and target RNA reduction throughout the CNS in neurons, oligodendrocytes, astrocytes and microglia. This is also the case in NHP, despite a larger CNS volume and more complex neuroarchitecture. Our results demonstrate that ASO drugs are well suited for treating a wide range of neurological diseases for which no effective treatments are available.