Mirrored Genome Size Distributions in Monocot and Dicot Plants

The variation in genome size and basic chromosome number was analyzed in the wide range of angiosperm plants. A divergence of monocots vs. dicots (eudicots) genome size distributions was revealed. A similar divergence was found for annual vs. perennial dicots. The divergence of monocots vs. dicots genome size distributions holds at different taxonomic levels and is more pronounced for species with larger genomes. Using nested analysis of variance, it was shown that putative constraints on genome size variation are not only stronger in dicots as compared to monocots but in the former they start to operate already at the family level, whereas in the latter they do so only at the order level. At the same time, variation in basic chromosome number is constrained at the order level in both groups. Higher basic chromosome numbers were found in perennial plants as compared to the annual ones, which can be explained by their need for a higher genetic recombination as compensation for the longer life-cycles. A negative correlation was found between genome size and basic chromosome number, which can be explained as a trade-off between different recombination mechanisms.     

Integration, phylogeny, and the hominid cranial base

Basicranial features were examined in catarrhine primates and early hominids in order to demonstrate how information about morphological integration can be incorporated into phylogenetic analysis. Hypotheses purporting to explain the functional and structural relationships of basicranial characters were tested using factor analysis. Characters found to be functionally or structurally related to each other were then further examined in order to determine whether there was evidence that they were phylogenetically independent. If phylogenetic independence could not be demonstrated, then the characters were presumed to be integrated and were grouped into a complex. That complex was then treated as if it were a single character for the purposes of cladistic analysis. Factor analysis revealed that five basicranial features may be structurally related to relative brain size in hominoids. Depending on how one defines phylogenetic independence, as few as two, or as many as all of those characters might be morphologically integrated. A cladistic analysis of early hominids based on basicranial features revealed that the use of integrated complexes had a substantial effect on the phylogenetic position of Australopithecus africanus, a species whose relationships are poorly resolved. Moreover, the use of complexes also had an effect on reanalyses of certain published cladistic data sets, implying that those studies might have been biased by patterns of basicranial integration. These results demonstrate that patterns of morphological integration need to be considered carefully in all morphology-based cladistic analyses, regardless of taxon or anatomical focus. However, an important caveat is that the functional and structural hypotheses tested here predicted much higher degrees of integration than were observed. This result warns strongly that hypotheses of integration must be tested before they can be adequately employed in phylogenetic analysis. The uncritical acceptance of an untested hypothesis of integration is likely to be as disruptive to a cladistic analysis as when integration is ignored.     

Tarsal asymmetry, nutritional condition, and survival in water boatmen (Callicorixa Vulnerata)

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) has been used as a measure of developmental stability and may indicate individual phenotypic or genotypic quality. Using water boatmen (Callicorixa vulnerata) from a natural population, we examined the relationship between tarsal FA (tarsal spine number, tarsal length) and indices of body condition in two habitats. We used body weight and residual body weight (controlling for body length) as indices of condition because experimental food deprivation in water boatmen led to a reduction in each. We detected a negative relationship between FA and both indices of condition in two ecologically distinct pond habitats. We predicted this association was due to a negative relationship between FA and competitive feeding ability. Consequently, we examined associations between survival time and tarsal FA in C. vulnerata under resource-limited laboratory conditions. Univariate analyses revealed a negative correlation between survival and tarsal FA in each trait. Inclusion of survival time, body length, gender, tarsal spine number, tarsal length, and measures of FA into multivariate analyses revealed a negative correlation between survival and FA. Individuals with the greatest survival had higher nutritional condition than individuals that succumbed early in the experiment. Asymmetric individuals may suffer a foraging handicap as a result of the use of tarsi in feeding or they may be of poor genetic quality. Our results suggest elevated FA may limit resource acquisition and are consistent with the use of FA as a measure of fitness.     

湖泊水库结构生态动态模型

综述了湖泊水库结构生态动态模型的研究进展及其在湖泊水库环境生态模拟中的应用。结果表明,热力学理论为获取湖泊水库生态系统的特性提供了一条整体性的途径,热力学概念“Ｙｏｎｇ”可将生态学理论（达尔文理论）和热力学理论（最大Ｙｏｎｇ原理）很好地联系起来。引入Ｙｏｎｇ后,许多重要模型参数的目标函数可根据最大Ｙｏｎｇ原理获得,达尔文“达者生存”理论可被定量为一个生态约束条件用于发展湖泊水库结构生态结构模型,从     

The tumor suppressor p53 can reduce stable transfection in the presence of irradiation

The tumor suppressor p53 is believed to play an essential role in maintaining genome stability. Although it is currently unknown how p53 is involved in this important biological safeguard, several previous publications indicate that p53 can help to maintain genome integrity through the recombination-mediated DNA repair process. The integration of linearized plasmid DNA into the host chromosome utilizes the same repair process, and the frequency can be measured by clonogenic assays in which cells that were stably transfected by plasmid integration can be scored by their colony-forming abilities. To gain insight into whether p53 has a direct role in plasmid integration into the host chromosome, we determined the frequency of stable transfection with CHO cells expressing either wild-type or mutant p53 in the presence and absence of irradiation. We found that low-dose irradiation (50 to 100 cGy) increased stable transfection frequencies in CHO cells regardless of their p53 status. However, the increase of transfection frequency was significantly lower in CHO cells expressing wild-type p53. Our data thus suggest that wild-type p53 can suppress plasmid DNA integration into the host genome. This p53 function may play a direct and significant role in maintaining genome stability.     

Ecological Succession of a Relict Central European Peat Bog and Variability of Its Insect Biodiversity

The isolated habitat of the ervené Blato bog (South Bohemia, Czech Republic) and its relict insect fauna have been the subject of long-term monitoring. The species composition and abundance of Lepidoptera (light traps) and Coleoptera (pitfall traps) were monitored for 4 years (1994–1997) simultaneously on two sites – in the edaphic climax pine forest and in wetland successional habitats. The method of statistical evaluation by RDA and CCA ordination, representing the habitat preference of species of Coleoptera (Carabidae only) and Lepidoptera (all nocturnal phototactic taxa) between the edaphic climax forest and succession stages, was used. All categories of the peatland taxa (tyrphobiontic, tyrphophilous and tyrphoneutral species) were analysed. Ten highly stenotopic tyrphobiontic species and 23 tyrphophilous species of Lepidoptera (out of 487) were most characteristic of the bog habitat. Only two tyrphophilous carabid species (out of 20) were characteristic of the bog. The most important relict species (tyrphobionts) of Lepidoptera are most diverse and abundant within the successional habitats and in the open wet forest. The relict fauna of the closed climax pine forest is much less diverse and composed mostly of abundant tyrphophilous and tyrphoneutral forest species. Preservation or restoration of sufficiently constant hydrological conditions, which prevents formation of the closed forest, is the basic management for habitat conservation of all relict tyrphobiontic species of the ervené Blato bog and similar peat land habitat islands. The peat bog is a unified complex system of specific diverse and relict taxa. The most specific taxa are tyrphobiontic Lepidoptera, but a number of other vulnerable tyrphophilous and tyrphoneutral insects are associated with the peat bog as well.     

Modeling heterogeneity in nest survival data

Current statistical methods for estimating nest survival rates assume that nests are identical in their propensity to succeed. However, there are several biological reasons to question this assumption. For example, experience of the nest builder, number of nest helpers, genetic fitness of individuals, and site effects may contribute to an inherent disparity between nests with respect to their daily mortality rates. Ignoring such heterogeneity can lead to incorrect survival estimates. Our results show that constant survival models can seriously underestimate overall survival in the presence of heterogeneity. This paper presents a flexible random-effects approach to model heterogeneous nest survival data. We illustrate our methods through data on redwing blackbirds.     

Empirical Bayes estimation of random effects parameters in mixed effects logistic regression models

We extend an approach for estimating random effects parameters under a random intercept and slope logistic regression model to include standard errors, thereby including confidence intervals. The procedure entails numerical integration to yield posterior empirical Bayes (EB) estimates of random effects parameters and their corresponding posterior standard errors. We incorporate an adjustment of the standard error due to Kass and Steffey (KS; 1989, Journal of the American Statistical Association 84, 717-726) to account for the variability in estimating the variance component of the random effects distribution. In assessing health care providers with respect to adult pneumonia mortality, comparisons are made with the penalized quasi-likelihood (PQL) approximation approach of Breslow and Clayton (1993, Journal of the American Statistical Association 88, 9-25) and a Bayesian approach. To make comparisons with an EB method previously reported in the literature, we apply these approaches to crossover trials data previously analyzed with the estimating equations EB approach of Waclawiw and Liang (1994, Statistics in Medicine 13, 541-551). We also perform simulations to compare the proposed KS and PQL approaches. These two approaches lead to EB estimates of random effects parameters with similar asymptotic bias. However, for many clusters with small cluster size, the proposed KS approach does better than the PQL procedures in terms of coverage of nominal 95% confidence intervals for random effects estimates. For large cluster sizes and a few clusters, the PQL approach performs better than the KS adjustment. These simulation results agree somewhat with those of the data analyses.     

Resistance of photosynthesis to high temperature in two bean varieties (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

The increase in the basal fluorescence (F₀) by increases in temperature has been widely used as a screening technique to assess the temperature at which plant species suffer irreversible damage in their photosynthetic apparatus. This method has been used in this study to assess the resistance to extreme high temperature in two bean varieties, Barbucho (Chilean, non commercially bred) and Blue lake (commercially available in the UK). The results suggested that the two varieties have a similar threshold for high temperature at 42–43 °C, however, at 40 °C, Barbucho maintains its photosynthetic functions for a longer period of time compared to Blue-Lake as observed by mean of simultaneous measurement of gas exchange and room temperature fluorescence. It seems likely that inhibition at 40 °C in Blue-Lake is related to the instability of Photosystem II.