科尔沁沙地景观研究中的尺度效应

从研究区域取样尺度和分析尺度两个方面入手 ,对科尔沁沙地景观的尺度效应进行了分析 ,结果表明 :取样尺度的尺度效应可以通过回归分析和统计分析来判断其变化趋势和范围。回归分析的结果表明 ,景观中斑块数量 ( y)与取样面积 ( x)之间有很好的拟合关系 y=- 7.1 2 82 x+ 2 2 0 .31 ( R=0 .95 8>0 .70 8=α0 .0 1(10 ) ) ;最大斑块面积 ( y)和取样面积 ( x)二者的关系为 y=0 .0 0 4 x2 - 0 .0 0 96x+ 0 .3346( R=0 .947>0 .70 8=α0 .0 1(10 ) ) ,关系密切。取样面积对景观结构特征的影响分析显示 ,在取样面积最小为 0 .2 8的情况下 ,景观多样性指数的变化为抛物线型 ,在取样面积约为研究区面积的一半左右时 ,景观多样性最高 ,为1 .931。不同取样面积的平均多样性指数为 1 .863(± 0 .0 75 )。从景观优势度指数的变化来看 ,呈倒抛物线型。在取样面积约为研究区面积的一半左右时 ,优势度最低 ,为 0 .467。不同取样面积的平均优势度指数为0 .5 34(± 0 .0 75 )。在取样面积不变的情况下 ,研究尺度的分析表明 ,沙地景观间隙度具有分形结构。间隙度与研究斑块的占有概率有关 ,占有概率越高 ,分维数越大。在研究对象占有概率相同的情况下 ,不同分布格局存在不同的景观间隙度 ,研究尺度越大 ,差别越大。相对而     

Movement patterns of the bush cricket Platycleis albopunctata in different types of habitat: matrix is not always matrix

Abstract.  1. Inter-patch movement is usually assumed to be homogeneous across a landscape. As the intervening area between suitable patches is usually richly textured, it cannot be assumed to be uniform in real landscapes.
2. In an experimental mark-and-resight study, the movement behaviour of the bush cricket Platycleis albopunctata in four habitat types as well as at the border between two of these habitat types was observed.
3. Analysis of recapture data indicated differences in mortality risk (or emigration rates) between habitat types.
4. When released at the border between suitable habitat and a crop field, P. albopunctata did not show a consistent preference for the suitable habitat. This suggests that the crop field is at least temporarily attractive for P. albopunctata .
5. Movement in suitable habitat was not always different from movement in the matrix, and movement between different types of matrix also differed.
6. The results indicate that the movement behaviour of P. albopunctata is influenced not only by suitability for breeding but also by structural resistance and other factors (e.g. food availability or habitat-specific mortality risk).     

Pharmacological characterization of TMEM16A currents

Recent studies have shown that transmembrane protein 16 A (TMEM16A) is a subunit of calcium-activated chloride channels (CACCs). Pharmacological agents have been used to probe the functional role of CACCs, however their effect on TMEM16A currents has not been systematically investigated. In the present study, we characterized the voltage and concentration-dependent effects of 2 traditional CACC inhibitors (niflumic acid and anthracene-9-carboxcylic acid) and 2 novel CACC / TMEM16A inhibitors (CACC_inhA01 and T16A_inhA01) on TMEM16A currents. The whole cell patch clamp technique was used to record TMEM16A currents from HEK 293 cells that stably expressed human TMEM16A. Niflumic acid, A-9-C, CACC_inhA01 and T16A_inhA01 inhibited TMEM16A currents with IC₅₀ values of 12, 58, 1.7 and 1.5 µM, respectively, however, A-9-C and niflumic acid were less efficacious at negative membrane potentials. A-9-C and niflumic acid reduced the rate of TMEM16A tail current deactivation at negative membrane potentials and A-9-C (1 mM) enhanced peak TMEM16A tail current amplitude. In contrast, the inhibitory effects of CACC_inhA01 and T16A_inhA01 were independent of voltage and they did not prolong the rate of TMEM16A tail current deactivation. The effects of niflumic acid and A-9-C on TMEM16A currents were similar to previous observations on CACCs in vascular smooth muscle, strengthening the hypothesis that they are encoded by TMEM16A. However, CACC_inhA01 and T16A_inhA01 were more potent inhibitors of TMEM16A channels and their effects were not diminished at negative membrane potentials making them attractive candidates to interrogate the functional role of TMEM16A channels in future studies.     

Methods for Cell-attached Capacitance Measurements in Mouse Adrenal Chromaffin Cell

Neuronal transmission is an integral part of cellular communication within the brain. Depolarization of the presynaptic membrane leads to vesicle fusion known as exocytosis that mediates synaptic transmission. Subsequent retrieval of synaptic vesicles is necessary to generate new neurotransmitter-filled vesicles in a process identified as endocytosis. During exocytosis, fusing vesicle membranes will result in an increase in surface area and subsequent endocytosis results in a decrease in the surface area. Here, our lab demonstrates a basic introduction to cell-attached capacitance recordings of single endocytic events in the mouse adrenal chromaffin cell. This type of electrical recording is useful for high-resolution recordings of exocytosis and endocytosis at the single vesicle level. While this technique can detect both vesicle exocytosis and endocytosis, the focus of our lab is vesicle endocytosis. Moreover, this technique allows us to analyze the kinetics of single endocytic events. Here the methods for mouse adrenal gland tissue dissection, chromaffin cell culture, basic cell-attached techniques, and subsequent examples of individual traces measuring singular endocytic event are described.     

Effects of plot vegetation diversity and spatial scale on Coccinella septempunctata movement in the absence of prey

The influence that vegetation diversity and the spatial scale of that diversity exert on insect behavior has increasingly been explored in the ecological literature, but relatively few experiments have explicitly incorporated both factors in experimental treatments. We conducted a field study designed to explore the effect of both of these factors on insect movement behavior in a broccoli agroecosystem. We caught and released seven‐spotted ladybird beetles (Coccinella septempunctata L.) in plots containing different degrees of vegetation diversity at two different spatial scales in which prey had been removed. Beetle movement was recorded at timed intervals, and move lengths and turning angles were used to generate discrete path maps for each beetle. Observed mean beetle net squared displacements were compared with predicted net squared displacements, and 95% confidence intervals were generated using a bootstrap method described by Turchin (1998 ) [Quantitative Analysis of Movement: Measuring and Modeling Population Redistribution in Animals and Plants. Sinauer Associates Inc., Sunderland, MA.]. Predicted net squared displacements underestimated beetle movement in smaller plots with both low and higher vegetation diversity for the first five move lengths, whereas no significant difference between observed and predicted net squared displacement for beetles in larger plots of either level of vegetation diversity were detected. These findings highlight the need for a better understanding of how natural enemies are influenced by vegetation diversity and the spatial scale of that vegetation in agroecosystems. The implications of these results for biological control are discussed.     

Inhibition of electrical coupling in pairs of murine pancreatic acinar cells by OAG and isolated protein kinase C

Summary Gap junctional coupling was studied in pairs of murine pancreatic acinar cells using the double whole-cell patch-clamp technique. During stable electrical coupling, addition of OAG (1-oleoyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycerol) induced a progressive reduction of the junctional conductance to the detectable limit (3 pS). Prior to complete electrical uncoupling, varius discrete single channel conductances between 20 and 100 pS could be observed. Polymyxin B, a potent inhibitor of the protein kinase C (PKC) system, completely suppressed OAG-stimulated electrical uncoupling. Dialysis of cell pairs with solutions containing PKC. isolated from rat brain, also caused electrical uncoupling. The presence of 0.1mm dibutyryl cyclic AMP and 5mm ATP in the pipette solution, which serves to stabilize the junctional conductance, did not suppress the effects of OAG or isolated PKC. We conclude that an increase of protein kinase C activity leads to the closure of gap junction channels, presumably via a PKC-dependent phosphorylation of the junctional peptide, and that this mechanism is dominant over cAMP-dependent upregulatory effects in the experimental time range (1 hr). A correlation of the observed single channel conductances with the appearance of channel subconductance states or various channel populations is discussed.     

Voltage-independent barium-permeable channel activated inLymnaea neurons by internal perfusion or patch excision

Summary Isolated nerve cells fromLymnaea stagnalis were studied using the internal-perfusion and patch-clamp techniques. Patch excision frequently activated a voltage-independent Ba²⁺-permeable channel with a slope conductance of 27 pS at negative potentials (50mm Ba²⁺). This channel is not seen in patches on healthy cells and, unlike the voltage-dependent Ca channel, is not labile in isolated patches. The activity of the channel in inside-out patches is unaffected by intracellular ATP, Ca²⁺ below 1mm or the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase but is reversibly blocked by millimolar intracellular Ca²⁺ or Ba²⁺. The channel can be activated in on-cell patches by either internal perfusion with high Ca²⁺ or the long-term internal perfusion of low Ca²⁺ solutions not containing ATP. These channels may carry the inward Ca²⁺ current which causes a regenerative increase in intracellular Ca⁺ when snail neurons are perfused with high Ca²⁺ solutions. High internal Ca²⁺, or long periods of internal perfusion with ATP-free solutions, induces an increase in a resting (–50 mV) whole-cell Ba²⁺ conductance. This conductance can be turned off by returning the intracellular perfusate to a low Ca²⁺ solution containing ATP and Mg²⁺. The activity of this channel appears to have an opposite dependence on intracellular conditions to that of the voltage-dependent Ca channel.     

A nonselective cation channel activated by membrane deformation in oocytes of the ascidianBoltenia villosa

Summary Cell-attached patch clamp recordings from unfertilized oocytes of the ascidianBoltenia villosa reveal an ion channel which is activated by mechanical deformation of the membrane. These channels are seen when suction is applied to the patch pipette, but not in the absence of suction or during voltage steps. The estimated density of these stretch-activated channels is about 1.5/m², a figure equal to or greater than the density of known voltage-dependent channels in the oocyte. Ion substitution experiments done with combined whole-cell and attached patch recording, so absolute potentials are known, indicate that the channel passes Na⁺, Ca²⁺ and K⁺, but not Cl^–. The channel has at least two open and two closed states, with the rate constant that leaves the longer-lived closed state being the primary site of stretch sensitivity. External Ca²⁺ concentration affects channel kinetics: at low calcium levels, long openings predominate, whereas at high calcium virtually all openings are to the short-lived open state. In multiple channel patches, the response to a step change in suction is highly phasic, with channel open probability decreasing over several hundred milliseconds to a nonzero steady-state level after an initial rapid increase. This channel may play a role in the physiological response of cells of the early embryo to the membrane strains associated with morphogenetic events.     

The effects of shrub patch sizes on the colonization of pioneer plants on the volcano Mount Koma,northern Japan

Vegetation recovery on Mount Koma, Hokkaido, Japan, has been slow after the catastrophic eruption in 1929, due to undeveloped soil and limited plant colonization. Nowadays, the seedling establishment is supported mostly by a nurse plant, Salix reinii forming shrub patches, facilitates the plant colonization. Although the effects of shrub patches should differ with patch sizes, the size effects have not been examined well. To examine the size effects, seed-sowing experiments were conducted on two common pioneer herbaceous species, Miscanthus sinensis and Polygonum sachalinense, in the field. The seed germination and seedling survival were monitored by the seeds sown into S. reinii patches (0.97 m²–4.12 m² in area) for 4 months during snow-free periods. Microenvironments altered by the patches were measured. Lab-experiments were performed to characterize the seed germination and seedling growth.Larger patches decreased light intensity and temperature more and increased litter and water content. The large patches promoted the seed germination of the two species. Interspecific interactions, examined by a seed mixture experiment, showed that the interaction increased the seed germination on M. sinensis and decreased that on P. sachalinense. On the lab-experiments at three temperatures (15, 20 and 25 °C), M. sinensis seeds germinated more at higher temperatures and obtained higher seedlings biomass. P. sachalinense germinated the seeds more at 20 °C and grew faster at lower temperatures. The total biomass of the two species was reduced by shade that intercepted 50% of light intensity. The seed germination and seedling growth of these two species became higher on litter with 2 cm in depth than on no litter. Soil water supported seed germination when the seeds of these two species were mixed while the water reduced the growth of P. sachalinense seedlings. Therefore, the dry soils were suitable for their growths. In all the treatments, P. sachalinense seedlings showed higher mortalities than M. sinensis.In conclusion, the large patches facilitated more to the colonization of pioneer plants via seed germination and growth. Large patches acted as a nursery supporting the natural regeneration in the disturbed area by improving litter accumulation, maintaining soil water, reducing strong light and/or protecting from heat.     

细胞外Ba2+对大鼠心肌细胞L型钙通道的影响

目的：观察细胞外Ba²⁺对记录大鼠心肌细胞L型钙通道的影响。方法：采用急性酶解分离法获得大鼠的单个心肌细胞,使用全细胞膜片钳技术记录L型钙通道电流。采用Ba²⁺替换台式液中的Ca²⁺和直接向台式液中加入Ba²⁺（0~8 mmol/L）,观察峰值电流15 min内的变化,数据采用5个以上细胞进行重复。结果：（1）台式液中的Ca²⁺被Ba²⁺替换后,L型钙通道电流的失活速率明显减慢（P<0.01）;在台式液中加入少量Ba²⁺（0.2,0.4 mmol/L）时L型钙通道电流的失活速率无明显改变（P>0.05）,加入0.8 mmol/L Ba²⁺时失活速率明显减慢（P<0.05）。（2）与正常台式液比较,在细胞外液中加入Ba²⁺（0.2,0.4 mmol/L）峰值电流衰减减弱,其中10 min和15 min两个时间点衰减差异明显（P<0.01）。（3）在细胞外液中加入Ba²⁺可下移电流电压曲线,改变翻转电位,减弱丹酚酸A对钙电流的抑制强度,使量效关系曲线右移。结论：在细胞外液中加入一定浓度的Ba²⁺,能够减弱全细胞膜片钳技术记录大鼠心室肌细胞L型钙通道时出现的峰值电流衰减,改变通道的电压依赖特性,影响药物量效关系。