Establishment of Peristenus digoneutis and P. relictus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in California for the control of Lygus spp. (Heteroptera: Miridae)

Lygus hesperus Knight is native to the western United States and is a perennial pest of numerous crops in California. It is responsible for triggering the early season application of insecticides on cotton, Gossypium hirsutum L., and strawberries, Fragaria L. Despite several surveys conducted in alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) grown in central California, nymphal parasitoids associated with L. hesperus and L. elisus have not been found. Two exotic parasitoids were released into California beginning in 1998. Peristenus relictus (Ruhte), formerly P. stygicus Loan, and P. digoneutis Loan were collected from several locations in southern Europe and released at up to six locations over a 6-year period. At the original release site in Sacramento, a 0.25-ha plot of alfalfa, parasitism by P. digoneutis and P. relictus combined increased from zero to 90%, 3 years after the last releases were made. Parasitoids have been recovered from vacant fields of weedy annuals within 2 km of this site. Recoveries at more southerly release sites in central California have been poor.     

DNA Barcoding of Economically Important Mushrooms: A Case Study on Lethal Amanitas from China

Some species of the genus Amanita are economically important gourmet mushrooms, while others cause dramatic poisonings or even deaths every year in China and in many other countries. A DNA barcode is a short segment or a combination of short segments of DNA sequences that can distinguish species rapidly and accurately. To establish a standard DNA barcode for poisonous species of Amanita in China, three candidate markers, the large subunit nuclear ribosomal RNA (nLSU), the internal transcribed spacer (ITS), and the translation elongation factor 1 alpha (tef1 α) were tested using the eukaryotic general primers for their feasibility as barcodes to identify seven species of lethal fungi and two species of edible ones which can easily be confused with the lethal ones known from China. In addition, A.phalloides—a European and North American species closely related to one of the seven taxa, A.subjunquillea was also included. PCR amplification and sequencing success rate, intra and inter specific variation and rate of species identification were considered as main criteria for evaluation of the candidate DNA barcodes. Although the nLSU had high PCR and sequencing success rates (100% and 100% respectively), occasional overlapping occurred between the intra and inter specific variations. The PCR amplification and sequencing success rates of ITS were 100% and 85.7% respectively. ITS showed high sequence variation among species group and low variation within a given species. There was a relatively high PCR amplification and sequencing success rate for tef1 α (85.7% and 100% respectively), and its intra and inter specific variation was higher than that of ITS or nLSU. All three candidate markers showed hight species resolution. ITS and tef1 α had a more clearly defined barcode gap than nLSU. Our study showed that the tef1 α and nLSU can be proposed as supplementary barcodes for the genus Amanita, while ITS can be used as a primary barcode marker considering that the ITS region may become a universal barcode marker for the fungal kingdom.     

Genetic Diversity of Global Aromatic Rice Varieties

Genetic diversity of 434 rice accessions collected from 16 countries, including 345 fragrance rice varieties and 89 non fragrance rice varieties, have been analyzed. A total of 573 alleles were detected by using 77 simple sequence repeats (SSR) primer pairs covering all rice 12 chromosomes. The value of allelic polymorphism information content (PIC) ranged from 0090 to 0845, with an average of 0516 per locus; Gene diversity (GD) varied from 0091 to 0859, with an average of 0573; The mean value of major allele frequencies (MAF) was 0540, covering from 0251 to 0953. In addition, 434 rice accessions are divided into three sub populations by cluster and population structure analysis, and FST between sub populations showed a mean of -0116, ranging from -0623 to 0494; The score of genetic distance calculated by Nei′s method appeared from 0207 to 0355. Major allele frequencies within each sub population distributed from 0408 to 0746, and gene diversity level from 0354 to 0699, while PIC from 0320 to 0658. Sequencing 6 mitochondrion genes in 18 rice varieties exhibited no different in 5 genes, whereas Mit4 contains a 3 SNPs in the gene body, which acts as an important marker to understanding the relationship between Indica/Japonica differentiation and the evolution of fragrant gene. Finally, genetic diversity and mitochondrion gene sequencing would help to know about the origin of fragrant resource and benefit rice breeding.     

DNA methyltransferase homologue TRDMT1 in Plasmodium falciparum specifically methylates endogenous aspartic acid tRNA

In eukaryotes, cytosine methylation regulates diverse biological processes such as gene expression, development and maintenance of genomic integrity. However, cytosine methylation and its functions in pathogenic apicomplexan protozoans remain enigmatic. To address this, here we investigated the presence of cytosine methylation in the nucleic acids of the protozoan Plasmodium falciparum. Interestingly, P. falciparum has TRDMT1, a conserved homologue of DNA methyltransferase DNMT2. However, we found that TRDMT1 did not methylate DNA, in vitro. We demonstrate that TRDMT1 methylates cytosine in the endogenous aspartic acid tRNA of P. falciparum. Through RNA bisulfite sequencing, we mapped the position of 5-methyl cytosine in aspartic acid tRNA and found methylation only at C38 position. P. falciparum proteome has significantly higher aspartic acid content and a higher proportion of proteins with poly aspartic acid repeats than other apicomplexan pathogenic protozoans. Proteins with such repeats are functionally important, with significant roles in host-pathogen interactions. Therefore, TRDMT1 mediated C38 methylation of aspartic acid tRNA might play a critical role by translational regulation of important proteins and modulate the pathogenicity of the malarial parasite.     

Quantitative and phenotypic analysis of bone marrow-derived cells in the intact and inflamed central nervous system

Bone marrow has been proposed as a possible source of cells capable of replacing injured neural cells in diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Previous studies have reported conflicting results regarding the transformation of bone marrow cells into neural cells in vivo. This study is a detailed analysis of the fate of bone marrow derived cells (BMDC) in the CNS of C57Bl/6 mice with and without experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis using flow cytometry to identify GFP-labeled BMDC that lacked the pan-hematopoietic marker CD45 and co-expressed neural markers polysialic acid-neural cell adhesion molecule or A2B5. A small number of BMDC displaying neural markers and lacking CD45 expression was identified within both the non-inflamed and inflamed CNS. However, the majority of BMDC exhibited a hematopoietic phenotype.Key words: bone marrow, transplantation, transdifferentiation, central nervous system, green fluorescence protein, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, multiple sclerosis     

21st century climate change threatens mountain flora unequally across Europe

Continental‐scale assessments of 21st century global impacts of climate change on biodiversity have forecasted range contractions for many species. These coarse resolution studies are, however, of limited relevance for projecting risks to biodiversity in mountain systems, where pronounced microclimatic variation could allow species to persist locally, and are ill‐suited for assessment of species‐specific threat in particular regions. Here, we assess the impacts of climate change on 2632 plant species across all major European mountain ranges, using high‐resolution (ca. 100 m) species samples and data expressing four future climate scenarios. Projected habitat loss is greater for species distributed at higher elevations; depending on the climate scenario, we find 36–55% of alpine species, 31–51% of subalpine species and 19–46% of montane species lose more than 80% of their suitable habitat by 2070–2100. While our high‐resolution analyses consistently indicate marked levels of threat to cold‐adapted mountain florae across Europe, they also reveal unequal distribution of this threat across the various mountain ranges. Impacts on florae from regions projected to undergo increased warming accompanied by decreased precipitation, such as the Pyrenees and the Eastern Austrian Alps, will likely be greater than on florae in regions where the increase in temperature is less pronounced and rainfall increases concomitantly, such as in the Norwegian Scandes and the Scottish Highlands. This suggests that change in precipitation, not only warming, plays an important role in determining the potential impacts of climate change on vegetation.     

Hominin Dispersal into the Nefud Desert and Middle Palaeolithic Settlement along the Jubbah Palaeolake,Northern Arabia

The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding hominin dispersals and the effect of climate change on prehistoric demography, although little information on these topics is presently available owing to the poor preservation of archaeological sites in this desert environment. Here, we describe the discovery of three stratified and buried archaeological sites in the Nefud Desert, which includes the oldest dated occupation for the region. The stone tool assemblages are identified as a Middle Palaeolithic industry that includes Levallois manufacturing methods and the production of tools on flakes. Hominin occupations correspond with humid periods, particularly Marine Isotope Stages 7 and 5 of the Late Pleistocene. The Middle Palaeolithic occupations were situated along the Jubbah palaeolake-shores, in a grassland setting with some trees. Populations procured different raw materials across the lake region to manufacture stone tools, using the implements to process plants and animals. To reach the Jubbah palaeolake, Middle Palaeolithic populations travelled into the ameliorated Nefud Desert interior, possibly gaining access from multiple directions, either using routes from the north and west (the Levant and the Sinai), the north (the Mesopotamian plains and the Euphrates basin), or the east (the Persian Gulf). The Jubbah stone tool assemblages have their own suite of technological characters, but have types reminiscent of both African Middle Stone Age and Levantine Middle Palaeolithic industries. Comparative inter-regional analysis of core technology indicates morphological similarities with the Levantine Tabun C assemblage, associated with human fossils controversially identified as either Neanderthals or Homo sapiens.