Habitat use and mating system of the houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata undulata) in a semi-desertic area of North Africa: implications for conservation

Studies of the movements and home-ranges of houbara bustards (Chlamydotis undulata undulata) showed sexual and seasonal differences in the use of space, with a polygynous mating system similar to an ‘exploded-lek’ or a ‘resource-defence-polygyny’, that remains undefined. We used the arthropod biomass as an index of the trophic quality of six defined habitats and we radio-tracked 7 females and 13 males to test whether sexual and seasonal variations in habitat use were related to resource availability, and to verify if critical resources for breeding females were monopolised by males. We analysed habitat selection in both sexes separately. We used the habitat type composition of buffer zones around radio-locations to study annual and seasonal habitat selection and to identify preferred habitats, using the chi-square goodness-of-fit test. Habitat use between sexes and between seasons were compared using MANOVA based on log-ratios of habitat proportions. During the year, and in each season, both sexes appeared to be significantly selective for habitats in comparison to their availability. But males avoided esparto grass, while females used all habitats. Habitat use differed between sexes in the breeding season, but not in the non-breeding season. In spring, when food resources were abundant and uniformly distributed in space, males preferred ‘temporarily flooded areas’ and females preferred ‘reg with tall perennials’ that offered both food and cover for brooding. Critical resources were not monopolised by males and the mating system fulfilled the definition of the ‘exploded-lek’. Leks are key sites for reproduction and should be considered as priority areas in further conservation plans.     

Effects of meal size,meal type,and body temperature on the specific dynamic action of anurans

Specific dynamic action (SDA), the increase in metabolism stemming from meal digestion and assimilation, varies as a function of meal size, meal type, and body temperature. To test predictions of these three determinants of SDA, we quantified and compared the SDA responses of nine species of anurans, Bombina orientalis, Bufo cognatus, Ceratophrys ornata, Dyscophus antongilli, Hyla cinerea, Kassina maculata, Kassina senegalensis, Pyxicephalus adspersus, and Rana catesbeiana subjected to meal size, meal type, and body temperature treatments. Over a three to seven-fold increase in meal size, anurans experienced predicted increases in postprandial rates of oxygen consumption the duration of elevated and SDA. Meal type had a significant influence on the SDA response, as the digestion and assimilation of hard-bodied, chitinous crickets, mealworms, and superworms required 76% more energy than the digestion and assimilation of soft-bodied earthworms, waxworms, and neonate rodents. Body temperature largely effected the shape of the postprandial metabolic profile; peak increased and the duration of the response decreased with an increase in body temperature. Variation in body temperature did not significantly alter SDA for four species, whereas both H. cinerea and R. catesbeiana experienced significant increases in SDA with body temperature. For 13 or 15 species of anurans ranging in mass from 2.4 to 270 g, SMR, postprandial peak and SDA scaled with body mass (log–log) with mass exponents of 0.79, 0.93, and 1.05, respectively.     

A "moving metal mechanism" for substrate cleavage by the DNA repair endonuclease APE-1

Apurinic/apyrimidinic endonuclease (APE-1) is essential for base excision repair (BER) of damaged DNA. Here molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of APE1 complexed with cleaved and uncleaved damaged DNA were used to determine the role and position of the metal ion(s) in the active site before and after DNA cleavage. The simulations started from an energy minimized wild-type structure of the metal-free APE1/damaged-DNA complex (1DE8). A grid search with one Mg2+ ion located two low energy clusters of Mg2+ consistent with the experimentally determined metal ion positions. At the start of the longer MD simulations, Mg2+ ions were placed at different positions as seen in the crystal structures and the movement of the ion was followed over the course of the trajectory. Our analysis suggests a "moving metal mechanism" in which one Mg2+ ion moves from the B- (more buried) to the A-site during substrate cleavage. The anticipated inversion of the phosphate oxygens occurs during the in-line cleavage reaction. Experimental results, which show competition between Ca2+ and Mg2+ for catalyzing the reaction, and high concentrations of Mg2+ are inhibitory, indicate that both sites cannot be simultaneously occupied for maximal activity.     

Can probability of genetic mutation be an indicator of clinical relevance?

NPM1 gene mutation evaluated on a population basis is a valuable and realistic tool to reflect the pathophysiological relevance of cancer. In a comparison of the NPM1 cDNA of human bladder cancer with its consensus sequence, we have found that a higher NPM1 sequence identity in a population is consistent with poor tumor differentiation, advanced tumor stage, and likelihood of recurrence. These data imply that "probability" of NPM1 mutation is an indicator of status of malignancy.     

Domain motions of glucosamine-6P synthase: comparison of the anisotropic displacements in the crystals and the catalytic hinge-bending rotation

Glucosamine-6-phosphate synthase channels ammonia over 18 A from glutamine at the glutaminase site to fructose-6P at the synthase site. We have modeled the anisotropic displacements of the glutaminase and synthase domains from the two crystallized states, the enzyme in complex with fructose-6P or in complex with glucose-6P and a glutamine affinity analog, using TLS (rigid-body motion in terms of translation, libration, and screw motions) refinement implemented in REFMAC. The domains displacements in the crystal lattices are compared to the movement of the glutaminase domain relative to the synthase domain that occurs during the catalytic cycle upon glutamine binding, which was visualized by comparing the two structures. This movement was analyzed by the program DYNDOM as a 22.8 degrees rotation around an effective hinge axis running approximately parallel to helix 300-317 of the synthase domain, the glutaminase loop that covers the glutaminase site upon glutamine binding acting as the mechanical hinge.     

黄土塬区3种豆科牧草对土壤水分的消耗利用研究

在田间完全旱作条件下采用3个密度和2种播种方式观察了3种多年生豆科牧草生长第2年对土壤水分的消耗利用情况。结果表明:苜蓿主要耗水深度在2~3 m,最深可达5 m,其中、高密度处理3 m以上土壤水分含量都在稳定田间持水量之下,已经开始形成土壤下伏干层;沙打旺耗水深度在0~2 m,最低含水量(11.61%)处于80~100 cm,在雨季可以恢复到稳定田间持水量之上;达乌里胡枝子主要耗水深度在1 m以上,最低含水量也在稳定田间持水量之上。单播沙打旺、苜蓿和达乌里胡枝子全生长期内对土壤水分的消耗分别为249.9、180.2和136.6 mm,水分利用效率分别是29.39、26.04和8.91 kg.mm-1.hm-2。混播、加大播种密度都会增加3种牧草土壤水分消耗,降低土壤储水量,提高干草产量和水分利用效率,但影响程度因牧草种类、播种方式以及不同的生长时段而异。     

塔里木河上游天然胡杨林种群空间分布格局与动态研究

以新疆塔里木河上游阿瓦提县天然胡杨林为研究对象,采用相邻格子法进行实地调查,应用方差/均值比率法和5种聚集度指标研究了塔里木河上游天然胡杨林主要种群的空间分布格局与动态特征.结果显示:胡杨群落中除草本西北天冬种群空间分布格局呈随机分布外,其它主要种群均呈聚集分布;拟合检验表明,胡杨、灰叶胡杨种群为聚集分布.种群空间分布动态分析表明,灰叶胡杨在小树、中树与大树阶段均为聚集分布;胡杨种群在小树与中树阶段为聚集分布,但聚集强度减弱,到大树阶段为随机分布.研究表明,物种分布格局主要与物种本身的生物生态学特性和生境有关.     

肉苁蓉细胞悬浮培养的代谢动力学研究

通过研究肉苁蓉细胞悬浮培养过程中碳源、氮源、磷源的消耗,pH、电导率的变化,以及细胞的生长、胞内外蛋白质含量和次生代谢产物苯乙醇苷、总黄酮和多糖合成的情况,掌握了细胞生长、营养消耗与次生代谢产物积累的基本规律,为建立结构化动力学模型奠定了基础。     

Demystifying optimal dynamic treatment regimes

A dynamic regime is a function that takes treatment and covariate history and baseline covariates as inputs and returns a decision to be made. Murphy (2003, Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Series B 65, 331-366) and Robins (2004, Proceedings of the Second Seattle Symposium on Biostatistics, 189-326) have proposed models and developed semiparametric methods for making inference about the optimal regime in a multi-interval trial that provide clear advantages over traditional parametric approaches. We show that Murphy's model is a special case of Robins's and that the methods are closely related but not equivalent. Interesting features of the methods are highlighted using the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study and through simulation.     

Invasion of an intermediate predator: Fish population dynamics in a mathematical model of a trophic chain (As applied to Syamozero lake)

A mathematical model is presented for the dynamics of a spatially heterogeneous predator-prey population system; a prototype is the Syamozero lake fish community. We show that the invasion of an intermediate predator can evoke chaotic oscillations in the population densities. We also show that different dynamic regimes (stationary, nonchaotic oscillatory, and chaotic) can coexist. The “choice” of a particular regime depends on the initial invader density. Analysis of the model solutions shows that invasion of an alien species is successful only in the absence of competition between the juvenile invaders and the native species.