Morphological study of the heart innervation of bats Myotis daubentoni and Eptesicus serotinus (Microchiroptera: Vespertilionidae) during hibernation

The capability of bats to have heart rates fewer than 10 beats/min during hibernation and greater than 700 beats/min during flight surprises biologists and cardiologists. Cardioacceleration of hibernating bats is considered to be a function of their intracardiac nervous system. In the present study we investigated the morphology of the heart innervation of ten M. daubentoni and four E. serotinus bats during their natural hibernation in order to determine which intracardiac structures may be involved in cardioacceleration during their short-term (in av. 15-30 min) arousal from hibernation. The primary conclusions were as follows: (1) The innervation pattern of bats differs from many mammals in that bats have: (a) a subepicardiac nerve plexus which is vastly developed and contains a large number of intrinsic ganglia on both atria and ventricles, and (b) very small diameter axons within the unmyelinated nerve fibres, from 0.15 to 0.7 microm. (2) During hibernation an intercellular space of the sinoatrial node of M. daubentoni bats was in part filled with a cottony substance which can presumably be considered to be a temporary barrier between the conductive cardiomyocytes and nerve fibres. (3) In the hibernating bats, the acetylcholine vesicles were aggregated in the synaptic bulbs away from the presynaptic membrane. Possibly, the aggregation of the acetylcholine vesicles is capable of modifying cholinergic influences on the heart activity of hibernating bats. (4) The dense cores of catecholamine synaptic vesicles within, adrenergic axon terminals were seldomly observed in hibernating bats. Therefore, catecholamines probably do not play a crucial role in the cardioacceleration of hibernating bats.     

Ragweed plants and airborne pollen in the Baltic states

Presence of pollen in the atmosphere was determined inTartu in 1989–1997, in Kuressaare in 1996–1997 and iniauliai in 1997. Ragweed airpollen was found in latesummer in three years. The distribution, abundance andflowering of local ragweed plants were estimated. Itappeared that the number of local sources did notexceed twenty per country per year. Majority of thesesources consisted of a small number of pollinating A. artemisiifolia individuals. The largest localsources, consisting of several hundreds ofindividuals, were exclusively rare. Transport ofragweed pollen by air masses from distant sources wasstudied. It was found that incursions of ragweedpollen were determined by air fluxes originating fromthe Ukraine as well as from the southeastern andsouthern regions of the European part of Russia. Theseincursions occurred in extensive high-pressure areaswhose centre was located in the central region of theEuropean part of Russia with a periphery extending tothe Baltic countries.     

Influence of baking enzymes on antimicrobial activity of five bacteriocin‐like inhibitory substances produced by lactic acid bacteria isolated from Lithuanian sourdoughs

Aim: To evaluate the effect of four different baking enzymes on the inhibitory activity of five bacteriocin‐like inhibitory substances (BLIS) produced by lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from Lithuanian sourdoughs. Methods and Results: The overlay assay and the Bioscreen methods revealed that the five BLIS exhibited an inhibitory effect against spore germination and vegetative outgrowth of Bacillus subtilis, the predominant species causing ropiness in bread. The possibility that the observed antibacterial activity of BLIS might be lost after treatment with enzymes used for baking purposes was also examined. Conclusions: The enzymes tested; hemicellulase, lipase, amyloglucosidase and amylase had little or no effect on the majority of the antimicrobial activities associated with the five BLIS studied. Significance and Impact of the Study: This study suggests a potential application in the sourdough baking industry for these antimicrobial producing LAB strains in the control of B. subtilis spore germination and vegetative outgrowth.     

Pinus sylvestris forest regeneration under different post-fire restoration practices in the northwestern Italian Alps

It is frequently believed that a post-fire environment requires immediate actions in order to be restored. Salvage logging followed by plantation is a common post-fire restoration practice in many forests of the northwestern Italian Alps.The objectives of this study were to assess the impact of active and passive management techniques on the restoration of a burned area of the Aosta Valley and to determine which approach is the most suitable for enhancing Pinus sylvestris regeneration after stand replacing wildfires.The influence of five management options (no intervention; salvage logging; broadleaves plantation; Larix decidua plantation; P. sylvestris or Pseudotsuga menziesii plantation) and environmental variables on natural regeneration structure and composition was evaluated through direct gradient analysis.Pinus sylvestris and Populus tremula were the dominant tree species (40 and 29%, respectively) in the regeneration layer. Density, size, and structural diversity of natural regeneration were higher in the no intervention area. The proximity to forest edge was found to be the most important environmental variable.This study provided evidence that taking advantage of natural restoration processes may be a suitable alternative strategy to the active restoration practices adopted according to the Aosta Valley policy of post-fire management.     

Ecosystem services–A tool for sustainable management of human–environment systems. Case study Finnish Forest Lapland

The concept of ecosystem services (ESs) is a relatively new scientific methodology, offering a possible approach to the prevention of ecological problems caused by human action and to the resolution of conflicts arising from land-use questions. Since ESs were launched as a major conceptual tool in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA, 2005), interest in them has been increasing. Despite the scientific as well as economic and political enthusiasm for the ES approach, only few case studies have as yet been published. We studied the interface between ESs and landscape planning in Forest Lapland, in northern Finland. In the article, we present a methodology and various databases which can be used in applied research on ESs. We classify the ESs offered by various biotopes of the study area, and examine the effects of different land-use forms on the provision of ESs. On the basis of our results, we suggest possible uses of the European CORINE land cover database in case studies.