Glycosylation sites identified by solid-phase Edman degradation: O-linked glycosylation motifs on human glycophorin A

The human red blood cell sialoglycoprotein, glycophorin A (GpA),contains a ‘mucin-like’ extensively O-glycosylatedextracellular domain which carries the MN blood group antigens.We have revised the sites of O-glyccsylation in the extracellulardomain of GpA by automated solid-phase Edman degradation, whichallowed positive identification and quantitation of O-glycosylatedSer and Thr residues, as well as the single N-glycosylationsite. One N-linked and 16 O-linked sites were identified. Carbohydratewas absent on Ser 1, Ser14, Ser15, Ser23, Thr28 and Thr58 inGpA. We propose that the glycosyltransferases present in erythrocytesrecognize specific flanking sequences around potential O-glycosylationsites. All 16 O-glycosylation sites are explained on the basisof four motifs. Three motifs are associated with Thr-glycosylation:Xaa—Pro—Xaa—Xaa where at least one Xaa = Thr;Thr—Xaa—Xaa—Xaa where at least one Xaa = Thr;Xaa—Xaa—Thr—Xaa where at least one X = Argor Lys. The fourth motif is associated with Ser-glycosylation:Ser—Xaa—Xaa—Xaa where at least one Xaa = Ser.These simple rules explain the glycosylation (or lack of it)on 21 of 22 Ser/Thr in the extracellular domain of GpA. glycophorin A O-glycosylation motif solid-phase Edman degradation     

Peatlands as scientific archives of past biodiversity

Peat bogs preserve past biodiversity in a way which is unique among ecosystems, but the full realization of this, and the exploitation of the various records which are archived in the stratified layers of peat, is only now beginning. Present knowledge of peat formation in ombrotrophic or rain-fed bogs is reviewed and the many advantages of such systems as proxy-data sources are summarized. Some results of recent work involving pollen analysis and human impact, pollution histories, volcanic ash layers, plant macrofossils and the prospects for a detailed proxy-climate record are presented. The present vegetation of such bogs is only a very partial view of their past biodiversity; the conservation of the peat that remains must have a high priority.     

THE FLAGELLAR APPARATUS OF HYMENOMONAS CORONATA (PRYMNESIOPHYTA)1

The ultrastructure of Hymenomonas coronata Mills was reinvestigated to determine the microarchitecture of the flagellar apparatus. Cell morphology and flagellar apparatus structure are very similar to those of Pleurochrysis. Some important variations occur. First, a crystalline root (= compound root) is absent on microtubular root 1. Second, a two-stranded microtubular root emanates at a right angle from microtubular root 2. Third, a fibrous root emanates from the dorsal region between the basal bodies and extends to the cell's right, paralleling microtubular root 3. These similarities and variations in flagellar apparatus characters are discussed in reference to known variations in the Prymnesiophyta.     

Measuring Success: Evaluating the Restoration of a Grassy Eucalypt Woodland on the Cumberland Plain, Sydney, Australia

Abstract We compared the floristic composition and structure of restoration areas of eucalypt woodland with untreated pasture (control) and remnant vegetation (reference) in western Sydney. The restored areas comprised over 1,000 ha of abandoned pasture, which had been treated to reduce weeds and planted with seedlings of 26 native plant species raised from seed obtained locally from remnant vegetation. Plantings were carried out 0–9 years ago. Floristic composition was measured in quadrats using frequency scores and cover abundance. As far as possible treatments and restoration ages were replicated across sites. Ordination and analyses of similarity failed to distinguish the composition of restored vegetation from that of untreated pasture, which were both significantly different from that of remnant vegetation. There was a weak compositional trend with age of restored vegetation, but this was not in the direction of increasing resemblance to remnant vegetation. There was some evidence for convergence in structural features of restored with remnant vegetation, but this was at least partly attributed to plant growth. Subject to constraints imposed by the sampling design, environmental factors, and spatial variation were discounted as explanations for the results. The results therefore suggest either failure of restoration treatments or a restoration trajectory that is too slow to detect within 10 years of establishment. Our conclusions agree with those of similar studies in other ecosystems and support: (1) the need to monitor restoration projects against ecological criteria with rigorous sampling designs and analytical methods, (2) further development of restoration methods, and (3) regulatory approaches that seek to prevent damage to ecosystems rather than those predicated on replacing losses with reconstructed ecosystems.     

A dynamic global vegetation model for use with climate models: concepts and description of simulated vegetation dynamics

Changes in vegetation structure and biogeography due to climate change feedback to alter climate by changing fluxes of energy, moisture, and momentum between land and atmosphere. While the current class of land process models used with climate models parameterizes these fluxes in detail, these models prescribe surface vegetation and leaf area from data sets. In this paper, we describe an approach in which ecological concepts from a global vegetation dynamics model are added to the land component of a climate model to grow plants interactively. The vegetation dynamics model is the Lund–Potsdam–Jena (LPJ) dynamic global vegetation model. The land model is the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Land Surface Model (LSM). Vegetation is defined in terms of plant functional types. Each plant functional type is represented by an individual plant with the average biomass, crown area, height, and stem diameter (trees only) of its population, by the number of individuals in the population, and by the fractional cover in the grid cell. Three time‐scales (minutes, days, and years) govern the processes. Energy fluxes, the hydrologic cycle, and carbon assimilation, core processes in LSM, occur at a 20 min time step. Instantaneous net assimilated carbon is accumulated annually to update vegetation once a year. This is carried out with the addition of establishment, resource competition, growth, mortality, and fire parameterizations from LPJ. The leaf area index is updated daily based on prevailing environmental conditions, but the maximum value depends on the annual vegetation dynamics. The coupling approach is successful. The model simulates global biogeography, net primary production, and dynamics of tundra, boreal forest, northern hardwood forest, tropical rainforest, and savanna ecosystems, which are consistent with observations. This suggests that the model can be used with a climate model to study biogeophysical feedbacks in the climate system related to vegetation dynamics.     

COMPLEMENTARY SEX DETERMINATION IN HYMENOPTERAN PARASITOIDS AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR BIOLOGICAL CONTROL

Abstract In haplodiploid Hymenoptera, unfertilized eggs produce haploid males while fertilized eggs lead to diploid females under most circumstances. Diploid males can also be produced from fertilization under a system of sex determination known as complementary sex determination (CSD). Under single-locus CSD, sex is determined by multiple alleles at a single sex locus. Individuals heterozygous at the sex locus are female while hemizygous and homozygous individuals develop as haploid and diploid males, respectively. In multiple-locus CSD, two or more loci, each with two or more alleles, determine sex. Diploid individuals are female if one or more sex loci are heterozygous, while a diploid is male only if homozygous at all sex loci. Diploid males are known to occur in 43 hymenopteran species and single-locus CSD has been demonstrated in 22 of these species. Diploid males are either developmentally inviable or sterile, so their production constitutes a genetic load. Because diploid male production is more likely under inbreeding, CSD is a form of inbreeding depression. It is crucial to preserve the diversity of sex alleles and reduce the loss of genetic variation in biological control. In the parasitoid species with single-locus CSD, certain precautionary procedures can prevent negative effects of single-locus CSD on biological control.     

REPRODUCTIVE SEASONALITY OF WESTERN ATLANTIC BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS OFF NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A.

We describe reproductive seasonality of bottlenose dolphins in North Carolina (NC), U.S.A., using strandings data from the entire coast of NC and sighting data from Beaufort, NC and by estimating dates of birth of known females. We found a strong peak of neonate strandings in the spring (April-May), and low levels of neonate strandings in the fall and winter. The distribution of neonate strandings was significantly different from a uniform distribution ( P < 0.001, K = 3.8). We found a unimodal distribution of 282 sightings of neonates with a diffuse peak in the summer. The temporal distribution of sightings of neonates departed significantly from a uniform distribution (P < 0.001, K = 5.1). Estimated birth dates of neonates from known females occurred in May ( n = 6) and June ( n = 4), with a single fall birth. These methods shed light on bottlenose reproductive patterns and underscore the value of using information from multiple types of data. Clarification of bottlenose dolphin reproductive patterns, such as the seasonality of birth, may enhance our understanding of the population structure of this species in the mid-Atlantic region.