Significance of the Leaf Area Ratio in Hevea brasiliensis Under High Irradiance and Low Temperature Stress

Adjustment in leaf area : mass ratio called leaf area ratio (LAR) is one of the strategies to optimize photon harvesting. LAR was recorded for 10 genotypes of Hevea brasiliensis under high irradiance and low temperature and the genotypes were categorized into two groups, i.e. high LAR and low LAR types. Simultaneously, the growth during summer as well as winter periods, photosynthetic characteristics, and in-vitro oxidative damage were studied. Low LAR (19.86±0.52 m² kg^–1) types, recorded an average of 18.0 % chlorophyll (Chl) degradation under high irradiance and 7.1 % Chl degradation under low temperature. These genotypes maintained significantly higher net photosynthetic rate (P _N) of 10.4 mol(CO₂) m^–2 s^–1 during winter season. On the contrary, the high LAR (24.33±0.27 m² kg^–1) types recorded significantly lower P _N of 4 mol(CO₂) m^–2 s^–1 and greater Chl degradation of 37.7 and 13.9 % under high irradiance and low temperature stress, respectively. Thus LAR may be one of the physiological traits, which are possibly involved in plant acclimation process under both stresses studied.     

The genesis of intercellular spaces in developing leaves ofPhaseolus vulgaris L.

Summary Observations by light, transmission electron and scanning electron microscopy have shown that intercellular spaces (ICS) are formed schizogenously in expanding leaves ofPhaseolus vulgaris. ICS formation occurs in predictable positions at the junctions between three or more cells, and follows three phases of development. The first, initiation, phase occurs soon after cell division, and is marked by the formation of an electron-dense osmiophilic body, probably proteinaceous, at the end of the cell plate/middle lamella of the daughter cell wall and across the adjacent piece of the primary wall of the mother cell. This part of the mother cell wall is digested, involving cellulolysis. The second phase, of cell separation, is marked by the first appearance of the ICS. InPhaseolus primary leaves this phase begins about day 3 after sowing, at which time the leaf area is about 1 cm². In the final enlargement phase, lysis of cell wall material continues in the region of the middle lamella, and mechanical tensions arising from the rapid expansion of the lamina lead to further separation of the mesophyll cells so that spaces enlarge and merge.     

Synthesis of Deoxyglucose-1-Phosphate, Deoxyglucose-1,6-Bisphosphate, and Other Metabolites of 2-Deoxy-D-[14C]Glucose in Rat Brain In Vivo: Influence of Time and Tissue Glucose Level

Abstract: Abstract: When the kinetics of interconversion of deoxy[¹⁴C]glucose ([¹⁴C]DG) and [¹⁴C]DG-6-phosphate ([¹⁴C]DG-6-P) in brain in vivo are estimated by direct chemical measurement of precursor and products in acid extracts of brain, the predicted rate of product formation exceeds the experimentally measured rate. This discrepancy is due, in part, to the fact that acid extraction regenerates [¹⁴C]DG from unidentified labeled metabolites in vitro. In the present study, we have attempted to identify the ¹⁴C-labeled compounds in ethanol extracts of brains of rats given [¹⁴C]DG. Six ¹⁴C-labeled metabolites, in addition to [¹⁴C]DG-6-P, were detected and separated. The major acid-labile derivatives, DG-1-phosphate (DG-1-P) and DG-1,6-bisphosphate (DG-1,6-P₂), comprised ?5 and ?10–15%, respectively, of the total ¹⁴C in the brain 45 min after a pulse or square-wave infusion of [¹⁴C]DG, and their levels were influenced by tissue glucose concentration. Both of these acid-labile compounds could be synthesized from DG-6-P by phosphoglucomutase in vitro. DG-6-P, DG-1-P, DG-1,6-P₂, and ethanol-insoluble compounds were rapidly labeled after a pulse of [¹⁴C]DG, whereas there was a 10–30-min lag before there was significant labeling of minor labeled derivatives. During the time when there was net loss of [¹⁴C]DG-6-P from the brain (i.e., between 60 and 180 min after the pulse), there was also further metabolism of [¹⁴C]DG-6-P into other ethanol-soluble and ethanol-insoluble ¹⁴C-labeled compounds. These results demonstrate that DG is more extensively metabolized in rat brain than commonly recognized and that hydrolysis of [¹⁴C]DG-1-P can explain the overestimation of the [¹⁴C]DG content and underestimation of the metabolite pools of acid extracts of brain. Further metabolism of DG does not interfere with the autoradiographic DG method.     

Cellular uptake of intracerebroventricularly administered biotin- or digoxigenin-Labeled antisense oligodeoxynucleotides in the rat

Summary 1. Antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) internally labeled with biotin or digoxigenin were injected into the lateral ventricle of rats and the distribution of the labeled ODNs was examined at several timepoints following the intracerebroventricular (icv) injections. The stability of these injected antisense ODNs, which had no backbone modifications, was also studied by performing recovery experiments.2. The most intense labeling was observed near the injection site, in periventricular areas, and in perivascular regions. Many of the labeled cells appeared to be neurons, and both the cytoplasm and the nuclei were stained. The labeled cells were detected 15 min after icv injection, demonstrating that the antisense ODNs were taken up rapidly by cells in the parenchyma. The digoxigeninated antisense ODNs were presented in both the cytoplasmic and the nuclear fractions of rat brain extracts, however, the levels appeared to be much lower in the nuclear fractions.3. Antisense ODNs injected into the lateral ventricle seemed to follow the bulk flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), i.e., from the injection site in the lateral ventricle, through the ventricular system, to the subarachnoid spaces and the perivascular spaces. From the ventricular and perivascular spaces, the antisense ODNs diffused into the extracellular space and were taken up by cells. The full-length digoxigeninated antisense ODNs were detectable within cells after only 15 min, indicating their rapid uptake. In addition, the antisense ODNs appeared to be relatively stable in the brain since the full-length digoxigeninated ODNs were still detectable after 4 hr.     

Intercellular separation forces generated by intracellular pressure

Turgor pressure tends to force plant cells towards a spherical form, thus separating them at the angles from adjacent cells. In cooked vegetables containing starch, the swelling pressure of starch gelatinization generates analogous cell separation forces. A theoretical analysis of the relationship between internal pressure and cell separation forces is presented. Apart from the effect of internal pressure, cell separation forces increase with the diameter of the cell and decrease with the number of cell sides. Cell separation forces are reduced by the introduction of intercellular spaces and decrease further as these expand. The relationship between intracellular pressure and cell separation forces provides a basis upon which the strength of intercellular adhesion can be measured by experiment.     

Methane consumption in two temperate forest soils

Forest soils are thought to be an important sink for atmospheric methane. To evaluate methane consumption,¹⁴C-labeled methane was added to the headspace of intact soil cores collected from a mixed mesophytic forest and from a red spruce forest located in the central Appalachian Mountains. Both soils consumed the added methane at initially high rates that decreased as the methane mixing ratio of the air decreased. The mixed mesophytic forest soil consumed an average of 2 mg CH₄ m^–2 d^–1 versus 1 mg CH, m^–2 d^–1 for the spruce forest soil. The addition of acetylene to the headspace completely suppressed methane consumption by the soils, suggesting that an aerobic methane-consuming microorganism mediated the process. At both forest sites, methane mixing ratios in soil air spaces were greater than that in the air overlying the soil surface, indicating that these soils had the ability to produce methane. Models of methane emission from forest soils to the atmosphere must represent methane flux as the balance between production and consumption of methane, which are controlled by very different factors     

The cellular envelope of oocytes in teleosts

Summary Structural and functional relationships between oocytes and their envelopes were studied by means of electron microscopy in several teleost species after injection of live fish with horseradish peroxidase. The marker first appeared in the capillaries and the pericapillary spaces of the ovarian stroma. It then entered the collagen-filled spaces between the granulosa and theca cells; these spaces are in direct connection with the pericapillary spaces. The marker penetrated between the follicle cells and into the channels of the zona radiata surrounding the microvilli which traverse these channels. The marker was never found inside the microvilli or in the follicle cells; finally, it reached the surface of the oocytes and was internalized via micropinocytosis. Six stages in the course of folliculogenesis were observed, determined by (1) the formation of follicular and thecal cellular layers and a collagen-filled space between them, (2) the development of microvilli of oocytal and follicular origin, (3) the differentiation of the vitelline envelope and the pore channels, (4) pinocytotic activity of the oocytes, and (5) rapid growth of the oocyte and its envelopes during vitellogenesis.This research was supported by a grant from the National Council for Research and Development, Israel, and the GKSS GeesthachtTesperhude, Federal Republic of Germany     

Spatial Distribution of Marine Ciliates: Micro-Ecologic and Biogeographic Aspects of Protozoan Ecology*†

SYNOPSIS Free-living marine ciliates occur in the interstitial spaces of a wide vareity of filamentous and particulate substrata, on the surfaces of planar substrata, and in the plankton. In addition, they are found in association with a wide variety of plant and animal hosts. In this paper I review the progress during the past decade in understanding the distribution of marine ciliates, with particular emphasis on the relationship between ciliate biogeography and the species problem. It is concluded that as a general rule among marine ciliates, genera and species complexes are cosmopolitan. Specific locales may support a confusing array of sibling species or subspecific morphologic variants. Because the distributional processes and breeding biology of marine ciliates are only beginning to be understood, conventional ideas that marine ciliate species are cosmopolitan may require modification.     

广州市中心镇公共绿化植物应用调查研究

在对广州市17个中心镇公共绿化植物应用现状及其多样性调查的基础上,分析广州市中心镇公共绿化中园林植物应用的特点及存在问题,可为珠江三角洲中心镇公共绿地树种规划、区域绿地建设以及该地区的生态系统建设和可持续发展提供参考。     

川西农牧交错带“三生”空间冲突演变特征分析及模拟预测——以阿坝州四县为例

川西农牧交错带处于我国第一、第二阶梯的交替地带，是西部生态脆弱典型区，地势起伏显著，地形及生态环境复杂，积极开展川西农牧交错带"三生"空间冲突（生活、生产、生态）研究，将有助于川西农牧交错带生态安全保障与社会经济协调良性发展。研究区域为阿坝藏族羌族自治州四县（马尔康、理县、黑水、松潘），以2005-2020年土地利用数据为基础，通过CLUE-S软件模拟了未来的土地利用模式；将研究区域"三生"空间分为生活生产空间、生态生产空间、生产生态空间、生态空间4种类型，并建立空间冲突测算模型，对研究区域2005-2025年四期空间冲突水平进行了测算。结果表明：（1）2005-2025年四县域面积所占比重最大的是生态生产空间，之后依次为生态空间、生产生态空间、生活生产空间。生活生产、生产生态空间面积连续上升，仅生态生产空间面积减少，生态空间面积以波动变化为主。（2）2005-2025年该区域以中等空间冲突为主。（3）2005-2025年，总体而言空间冲突值的高-高聚集区主要位于四县域的农牧交错带、生活生产空间的交叉区域且表现明显，高-高聚集区在松潘县和马尔康县的农牧交错带有逐渐扩大的趋势，黑水县和理县集聚区面积先减少后轻微扩张；空间冲突值的低-低集聚区主要位于以生态生产空间为主与生态空间的交叉区域；集聚不显著的区域以生态空间为主。（4）整体来看，川西农牧交错区域"三生"空间中生态生产空间冲突强度最高。