兴安落叶松叶碳利用效率对环境变化的适应

兴安落叶松(Larix gmelinii)作为北方森林的主要组成树种,具有广阔的分布范围和多样的生长环境,是研究树木对环境变化响应的理想树种。叶碳利用效率(CUE_L)不仅与树木的碳代谢及生长发育密切相关,而且能反映树木对环境变化的响应与适应。将来自不同地区(即环境条件)的6个兴安落叶松种源的种子播种培育在帽儿山森林生态系统研究站内,在其生长30a后采用研究站和种子来源地间干燥度(AI)的差值(ΔAI)来代表环境变化梯度,研究环境变化对CUE_L的影响。结果表明:CUE_L在不同环境变化梯度间存在显著差异(P0.05),且呈现随ΔAI的增大而减小的趋势。CUE_L与叶片氮含量、叶片磷含量、比叶重及叶绿素含量等均呈线性正相关关系,但较大ΔAI梯度下的CUE_L敏感性更高。CUE_L与种子来源地平均年降水量呈显著线性正相关关系(P=0.05),而与种子来源地AI则呈显著线性负相关关系(P0.01);随种子来源地年平均气温、平均年蒸发量的增加而下降,但其相关性不显著。以上结果表明,环境变化使兴安落叶松CUE_L产生了适应性变异,表现出树木对原生长环境的生态适应。     

EVA dosimetry in manned spacecraft

Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA) will become a large part of the astronaut's work on board the International Space Station (ISS). It is already well known that long duration space missions inside a spacecraft lead to radiation doses which are high enough to be a significant health risk to the crew. The doses received during EVA, however, have not been quantified to the same degree. This paper reviews the space radiation environment and the current dose limits to critical organs. Results of preliminary radiation dosimetry experiments on the external surface of the BION series of satellites indicate that EVA doses will vary considerably due to a number of factors such as EVA suit shielding, temporal fluctuations and spacecraft orbit and shielding. It is concluded that measurement of doses to crew members who engage in EVA should be done on board the spacecraft. An experiment is described which will lead the way to implementing this plan on the ISS. It is expected that results of this experiment will help future crew mitigate the risks of ionising radiation in space.     

Tropical nematode diversity: vertical stratification of nematode communities in a Costa Rican humid lowland rainforest

Comparisons of nematode communities among ecosystems have indicated that, unlike many organisms, nematode communities have less diversity in the tropics than in temperate ecosystems. There are, however, few studies of tropical nematode diversity on which to base conclusions of global patterns of diversity. This study reports an attempt to estimate nematode diversity in the lowland tropical rainforest of La Selva Biological Research Station in Costa Rica. We suggest one reason that previous estimates of tropical nematode diversity were low is because habitats above the mineral soil are seldom sampled. As much as 62% of the overall genetic diversity, measured by an 18S ribosomal barcode, existed in litter and understorey habitats and not in soil. A maximum-likelihood tree of barcodes from 360 individual nematodes indicated most major terrestrial nematode lineages were represented in the samples. Estimated 'species' richness ranged from 464 to 502 within the four 40 × 40 m plots. Directed sampling of insects and their associated nematodes produced a second set of barcodes that were not recovered by habitat sampling, yet may constitute a major class of tropical nematode diversity. While the generation of novel nematode barcodes proved relatively easy, their identity remains obscure due to deficiencies in existing taxonomic databases. Specimens of Criconematina, a monophyletic group of soil-dwelling plant-parasitic nematodes were examined in detail to assess the steps necessary for associating barcodes with nominal species. Our results highlight the difficulties associated with studying poorly understood organisms in an understudied ecosystem using a destructive (i.e. barcode) sampling method.     

An active principle from the corpora cardiaca,corpora allata and suboesophageal ganglion of the locust,inducing egg diapause in Bombyx mori

The activity of the substance(s) which are contained in the cephalic endocrine organs of the locust which induce egg diapause in Bombyx mori was examined by implantation and injection of saline extracts of these organs. Extracts from the median and lateral neurosecretory parts of the locust brain were not effective in inducing egg diapause. Extracts of the corpora cardiaca, corpora allata, and suboesophageal ganglion of the locust induced diapause eggs in Bombyx pharate adults from which the suboesophageal ganglion had been removed. The first two extracts could induce egg diapause even in isolated abdomens of pharate adults of Bombyx. In the locust corpora cardiaca, the activity was present only in the glandular lobe and not in the nervous region. This activity decreased when the nervi corporis cardiaci I and II and of nervi corporis allati I were cut. Allatectomy also brought about a decrease in the activity in the glandular lobe which could not be restored by the injection of juvenile hormone. The activity in the corpora allata was enhanced slightly by the disconnection though not significantly.From these results, it is assumed that the corpora cardiaca, corpora allata and suboesophageal ganglion of the locust contain and active principle(s) capable of inducing egg diapause in Bombyx mori. The nervous connections between the brain, corpora cardiaca, and corpora allata are essential for the accumulation of the active substance(s) in the glandular lobes of the corpora cardiaca.     

Unexpected CH4 emission from the Three Gorges Reservoir and its implications

Until the end of last century, scientists began to show their concern about greenhouse gas emission from reservoirs and questioned the “green credential” of hydroelectric dams since then. Through measurements along the channel of the TGR, an unexpectedly low CH₄ emission rate was recently observed from the surface of the TGR, much lower than our assumed estimate before. Moreover, the rate from the TGR is lower than that from many hydroelectric reservoirs. One possible reason for such a low emission rate is that lack of substrates supplied by decomposed vegetation limits the CH₄ production in the sediment of the TGR because of vegetation clearance since 2002 before impounding, whose primary purpose is to conserve the water quality. These results indicated that TGR is not a hotspot of CH₄ emission. On a broader sense, it also indicated that removal of flooded vegetation would help to decrease CH₄ emission from dam reservoirs before impounding, especially in the drawdown area.     

Hispines (chrysomelidae, cassidinae) of la selva biological station, costa rica

Survey work from 1992-2001 identified 139 species of hispines at the lowland part of La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica. The tribe Cephaloleiini was the most speciose with 58 species (41.7%) followed by the Chalepini with 55 (39.5%). The fauna is most closely related to that in South America but with some genera which are more speciose in the Nearctic Region. Plant associations are known for 88 (63.3%) of the species but many of these are merely collecting records, not host plant associations. The first plant associations are reported for Alurnus ornatus, Alurnus salvini, and Acentroptera nevermanni.     

Unexpected CH4 emission from the Three Gorges Reservoir and its implications

Until the end of last century, scientists began to show their concern about greenhouse gas emission from reservoirs and questioned the “green credential” of hydroelectric dams since then. Through measurements along the channel of the TGR, an unexpectedly low CH₄ emission rate was recently observed from the surface of the TGR, much lower than our assumed estimate before. Moreover, the rate from the TGR is lower than that from many hydroelectric reservoirs. One possible reason for such a low emission rate is that lack of substrates supplied by decomposed vegetation limits the CH₄ production in the sediment of the TGR because of vegetation clearance since 2002 before impounding, whose primary purpose is to conserve the water quality. These results indicated that TGR is not a hotspot of CH₄ emission. On a broader sense, it also indicated that removal of flooded vegetation would help to decrease CH₄ emission from dam reservoirs before impounding, especially in the drawdown area.     

Localization of a gene for a minor chorion protein in Drosophila melanogaster: a new chorion structural locus

A minor chorion protein (called s70) with an approximate molecular weight of 70,000 D has been characterized in Drosophila melanogaster. The Staket geographic strain was found to carry an electrophoretic variant of this eggshell component and was used to determine the chromosomal location of the s70 gene. Our results establish a new locus for a chorion gene near yellow on the X chromosome and represent the first mapping of a quantitatively minor eggshell protein.     

Assemblage structure and dynamics of terrestrial birds in the southwest Amazon: a camera‐trap case study

Habitat spatial distribution, seasonal variation, and activity patterns influence changes in vertebrate assemblages over time. Terrestrial birds play major roles in the dynamics of tropical forests, but there are few effective methods to study these species due to their cryptic coloration and elusive behavior. We used camera‐trap data collected during 16 mo (February 2017–June 2018) to describe the terrestrial avifauna in southeastern Peru, assess to what extent the composition of terrestrial avifauna changes among seasons and across two major habitats (terra firme and floodplain forests), and determine daily activity patterns of terrestrial birds. We used overlap analyses to examine temporal co‐occurrence between ecologically similar and sympatric species. Camera traps recorded 16 species, including eight species in the family Tinamidae. Capture rates were highest for Pale‐winged Trumpeters (Psophia leucoptera; Psophiidae) and Gray‐fronted Doves (Leptolila rufaxilla; Columbidae). Species composition did not differ between habitats or seasons, and capture rates between habitats only differed for White‐throated Tinamous (Tinamus guttatus). Overlaps of activity patterns were high between ecologically similar species and species found in terra firme habitats (White‐throated Tinamous and Cinereous Tinamous, Crypturellus cinereus) and in both habitat types (Pale‐winged Trumpeters and Gray‐fronted Doves). Low numbers of captures of possibly locally rare or less abundant species hindered a complete analysis of spatial and seasonal patterns of terrestrial bird assemblages. We suggest a greater sampling effort and greater spatial replication to better understand the spatial and seasonal dynamics of the terrestrial avifauna. Further studies that assess the mechanisms that allow the coexistence of sympatric tinamous would be valuable, both in our study area and elsewhere. The use of camera traps in long‐term monitoring projects proved to be an effective tool for monitoring terrestrial birds, identifying cryptic and often rare animals to species level, and providing valuable ecological information at species and community levels.     

Swainsonine, a potent mannosidase inhibitor, elevates rat liver and brain lysosomal alpha-D-mannosidase, decreases Golgi alpha-D-mannosidase II, and increases the plasma levels of several acid hydrolases

Swainsonine, a toxic plant alkaloid reported to be the agent that induces in animals a neurological condition very similar to the hereditary lysosomal storage disease mannosidosis, and to inhibit the formation of complex glycoproteins of the asparagine-linked class, was recently shown [D.R.P. Tulsiani, T.M. Harris, and O. Touster, (1982) J. Biol. Chem. 257, 7936-7939] to be a highly potent and specific inhibitor of Golgi mannosidase II in addition to being a strong inhibitor of lysosomal mannosidase. In the present study the effect of administered swainsonine on tissue enzyme levels was investigated. The activity of Golgi mannosidase II was markedly decreased (22% of control) without changes occurring in the activities of several other Golgi enzymes. However, the effects of swainsonine on lysosomal enzymes was unexpected. In liver, acid mannosidase increased markedly, instead of decreasing as would be expected from a compound reported to induce a mannosidosis-like condition. Similarly, the principal change in brain was a substantial increase in lysosomal mannosidase levels. In plasma, most lysosomal enzymes increased. These results indicate that the pathological effects of swainsonine are not solely attributable to its being an inhibitor of lysosomal alpha-D-mannosidase and are probably a consequence of abnormal processing of glycoproteins.