Estimating population structure from AFLP amplification intensity

In the last decade, amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs) have become one of the most widely used molecular markers to study the genetic structure of natural populations. Most of the statistical methods available to study the genetic structure of populations using AFLPs consider these markers as dominant and are thus unable to distinguish between individuals being heterozygous or homozygous for the dominant allele. Some attempts have been made to treat AFLPs as codominant markers by using AFLP band intensities to infer the most likely genotype of each individual. These two approaches have some drawbacks, the former discarding potentially valuable information and the latter being sometimes unable to correctly assign genotypes to individuals. In this study, we propose an alternative likelihood‐based approach, which does not attempt at inferring the genotype of each individual, but rather incorporate the uncertainty about genotypes into a Bayesian framework leading to the estimation of population‐specific F_IS and F_ST coefficients. We show with simulations that the accuracy of our method is much higher than one using AFLP as dominant markers and is generally close to what would be obtained by using the same number of Single‐Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers. The method is applied to a data set of four populations of the common vole (Microtus arvalis) from Grisons in Switzerland, for which we obtained 562 polymorphic AFLP markers. Our approach is very general and has the potential to make AFLP markers as useful as SNP data for nonmodel species.     

Spatially patterned guild structure in larval parasitoids of cyclically outbreaking winter moth populations

1. Wide temporal fluctuations in host abundance are a potential source of instability and stochasticity in the spatiotemporal population dynamics of associated parasitoid species. Within parasitoid guilds (i.e. parasitoids with similar modes of host utilisation), a conceivable outcome is guild organisation according to a lottery model, in which guild members attain local dominance by colonising previously emptied habitats during increasing host density, before other guild members. In the spatial dimension, an expected manifestation of such dynamics is variable guild structure even across homogeneous habitats. 2. We examined the extent of large‐scale spatial patterning of guild characteristics in larval parasitoid wasps associated with cyclically outbreaking populations of the geometrid moth Operophtera brumata in northern Fennoscandia. The study was performed at the onset of the crash‐phase of the geometrid's outbreak cycle, along a 70‐km transect in costal northern Norway, characterised by largely homogeneous environmental conditions, except for a small climatic gradient. 3. There was a distinct large‐scale spatial turnover in dominance among the major parasitoid groups (i.e. guild structure) in O. brumata along the transect, whereas the total prevalence rate of the guild and its diversity showed no consistent variation. Guild structure was unrelated to host density. 4. Although group‐specific responses to a slight spatial climatic gradient cannot be rejected as a causal mechanism, we conclude that our results are consistent with the expectation from large‐scale stochastic extinction‐recolonisation dynamics among functionally equivalent parasitoids relying on a host with strongly cyclic population fluctuations.     

Plant patch structure modifies parasitoid assemblage richness of a specialist herbivore

1. The spatial structure of plant patches has been shown to affect host–parasitoid interactions, but its influence on parasitoid diversity remains largely ignored. Here we tested the prediction that parasitoid species richness of the specialist leafminer Liriomyza commelinae increases in larger and less isolated patches of its host plant Commelina erecta. We also explored whether parasitoid abundance and body size affected the occurrence of parasitoid species in local assemblages. 2. A total of 893 naturally established C. erecta patches were sampled on 18 sites around Córdoba city (Argentina). Also, two experiments were performed by creating patches differing in the number of plants and the distance from a parasitoid source. For these tests, plants were infected with the miner in the laboratory prior to placement in the field. 3. Plant patch size, independently of host abundance, positively affected the number of parasitoid species in both survey observations and experimental data. However, plant patch isolation did not influence parasitoid species richness. 4. The probability of finding rare parasitoid species increased with patch size, whereas occupation of isolated patches was independent of dispersal abilities (body size) of parasitoid species. 5. Overall, the results highlight the importance of considering spatial aspects such as the size of plant patches in the study of parasitoid communities.     

不同类型慢性心力衰竭患者临床特征及心功能危险因素、预后影响因素分析

摘要 目的：分析不同类型慢性心力衰竭患者临床特征及心功能危险因素、预后影响因素。方法：回顾性分析2020年1月-2022年1月我院收治的慢性心力衰竭患者80例，根据左室射血分数（LVEF）分为A组（n=25，LVEF<30%）、B组（n=25，LVEF 40%~50%）、C组（n=25，LVEF≥50%）三组，另根据随访1年后是否存活分为生存组（n=51）和死亡组（n=29）。比较不同组别临床相关指标，采用Pearson检验分析患者临床特征与慢性心力衰竭患者心功能、预后之间的相关性，采用多因素Logistic回归分析影响慢性心力衰竭患者心功能、预后的独立危险因素。结果：A组的心率及患有冠心病、心律失常1年以上、合并非心血管疾病人数占比、LAD、RAD、Scr、Hcy水平高于B组和C组（P<0.05）。死亡组的心率及患有冠心病、心律失常1年以上、LAD、RAD、Scr水平明显高于生存组（P<0.05）。Pearson相关性检验显示，心率、冠心病、心律失常、合并非心血管疾病、LAD、RAD、Scr、Hcy水平与慢性心力衰竭患者心功能之间呈正相关（P<0.05）；心率、冠心病、心律失常、LAD、RAD、Scr水平与慢性心力衰竭患者预后之间呈正相关（P<0.05）。多因素Logistic回归分析结果显示，心率、冠心病、心律失常、合并非心血管疾病、LAD、RAD、Scr、Hcy水平是影响慢性心力衰竭患者心功能的独立危险因素（P<0.05）；心率、冠心病、心律失常、LAD、RAD、Scr水平是影响慢性心力衰竭患者预后的独立危险因素（P<0.05）。结论：心率、冠心病、心律失常、LAD、RAD、Scr水平与慢性心力衰竭患者心功能、预后之间均呈正相关，是影响慢性心力衰竭患者心功能、预后的独立危险因素，可用来预测慢性心力衰竭的发生。     

先天性心脏病"双期三步法"筛查诊断流程推广应用初探

摘要 目的：分析"双期三步法"筛查诊断流程在西安咸阳地区新生儿先天性心脏病筛查中的推广与应用价值。方法：选取2021年1月1日-2021年12月31日在医院产检的胎儿和出生的新生儿作为研究对象，收集胎儿期、新生儿期和婴儿期的先心筛查数据，将新生儿分为杂音组、经皮氧饱和度阳性组、双阳性组，评价"双期三步法"筛查方法的使用价值。结果：共对12318例新生儿进行了筛查，筛查阳性497例。确诊126例，实际发病率为10.23‰。在确诊的例先心病患儿中，位于前3位的疾病类型分别为房间隔缺损66例（52.38%），室间隔缺损41例（32.54%），动脉导管未闭11例（8.73%）。杂音组184例，单纯心脏杂音筛查检出率1.49%，灵敏度为82.5%，特异度为99.3%。经皮氧饱和度阳性组147例，单纯经皮氧饱和度阳性筛查检出率1.19%，灵敏度为58.7%，特异度为99.4%。双阳性组166例，两项指标联合筛查检出率1.35%，灵敏度为94.4%，特异度为99.6%。结论："双期三步法"筛查诊断流程特别是心脏听诊和经皮氧饱和度联合筛查有利于早期发现新生儿CHD，值得推广应用。     

Ecological biogeography of Malagasy non‐volant mammals: community structure is correlated with habitat

Aim To examine the relationship between ecoregions, as a proxy for regional climate and habitat type, and mammalian community structure, defined by species composition and richness (e.g. taxonomic structure) and ecological diversity (e.g. ecological structure) of non‐volant species. Location Madagascar. Methods Faunal lists of non‐volant mammal species occurring in 35 communities from five World Wildlife Fund ecoregions were collected from published and unpublished sources. Species were assigned to ecological groups defined by trophic status, locomotor habits, activity cycle and body mass. We used Mantel tests, cluster analysis and principal coordinates analysis to evaluate geographic patterning in taxonomic composition and species richness. We used stepwise multiple discriminant analysis to characterize patterns in the ecological diversity of the mammalian communities from each ecoregion. Communities from transitional habitats (e.g. representing more than one ecoregion) were used to test the predictive power of the analyses. Results Non‐volant mammal communities divided into clusters that correspond to ecoregions. There was a strong distance effect in the taxonomic structure of communities across the island and within both humid and dry forest communities, but this effect was weak within humid forest communities. Mammalian species richness was significantly lower in dry forest than in humid forest communities. The ecological structure of communities was also correlated with ecoregions. Changes in the relative percentages of omnivory, arboreal quadrupedalism, terrestrial/arboreal quadrupedalism and two body mass classes accounted for 98.1% of the variation in ecological structure. Transitional communities were projected in intermediate positions by the discriminant model. Main conclusions Our analysis demonstrates that the broad‐scale habitat and climate variables captured by the ecoregion model have shaped the assembly of non‐volant mammal communities in Madagascar over evolutionary time. The spatial pattern is consistent with ecological sorting of species ranges along environmental gradients. Historical processes, such as recent extinction and migration, may have also affected the structure of mammal communities, although these factors have played a secondary role.     

Effects of biological invasions on forest carbon sequestration

There has been a rapidly developing literature on the effects of some of the major drivers of global change on carbon (C) sequestration, particularly carbon dioxide (CO₂) enrichment, land use change, nitrogen (N) deposition and climate change. However, remarkably little attention has been given to one major global change driver, namely biological invasions. This is despite growing evidence that invasive species can dramatically alter a range of aboveground and belowground ecosystem processes, including those that affect C sequestration. In this review, we assess the evidence for the impacts of biological invaders on forest C stocks and C sequestration by biological invaders. We first present case studies that highlight a range of invader impacts on C sequestration in forest ecosystems, and draw on examples that involve invasive primary producers, decomposers, herbivores, plant pathogens, mutualists and predators. We then develop a conceptual framework for assessing the effects of invasive species on C sequestration impacts more generally, by identifying the features of biological invaders and invaded ecosystems that are thought to most strongly regulate C in forests. Finally we assess the implications of managing invasive species on C sequestration. An important principle that emerges from this review is that the direct effects of invaders on forest C are often smaller and shorter‐term than their indirect effects caused by altered nutrient availability, primary productivity or species composition, all of which regulate long‐term C pools and fluxes. This review provides a conceptual basis for improving our general understanding of biological invaders on ecosystem C, but also points to a paucity of primary data that are needed to determine the quantitative effects of invaders on ecosystem processes that drive C sequestration.     

The adipokinetic hormones of Heteroptera: a comparative study

The adipokinetic hormones (AKHs) from 15 species of heteropteran Hemiptera (encompassing eight families, six superfamilies and three infraorders) have been isolated and structurally identified using liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. None of the structures are novel and all are octapeptides. These peptide sequence data are used, together with the previously available AKH sequence data on Heteroptera, to create a larger dataset for comparative analyses. This results, in total, in AKH sequences from 30 species (spanning 13 families), which are used in a matrix confronted with the current hypotheses on the phylogeny of Heteroptera. The expanded dataset shows that all heteropterans have octapeptide AKHs; three species have two AKHs, whereas the overwhelming majority have only one AKH. From a total of 11 different AKH peptides known from Heteroptera to date, three AKHs occur frequently: Panbo‐red pigment‐concentrating hormone (RPCH) (×10), Schgr‐AKH‐II (×6) and Anaim‐AKH (×4). The heteropteran database also suggests that particular AKH variants are family‐specific. The AKHs of Heteroptera: Pentatomomorpha (all terrestrial) are not present in Nepomorpha (aquatic) and Gerromorpha: Gerridae (semiaquatic); AKHs with a Val in position 2 are absent in the Pentatomomorpha (only AKHs with Leu² are present), whereas Val² predominates in the nonterrestrial species. An unexpected diversity of AKH sequences is found in Nepomorpha, Nepoidea, Nepidae and Nepinae, whereas Panbo‐RPCH (which has been identified in all infraorders of decapod crustaceans) is present in all analysed species of Pentatomidae and also in the only species of Tessaratomidae investigated. The molecular evolution of Heteroptera with respect to other insect groups and to crustaceans is discussed     

The scales of salticid spiders

The form and location of the scales of salticid spiders, as revealed by light and scanning electron microscopy, provide useful diagnostic characters for the separation of species, the assignment of species to genera, and a further understanding of the relationships between salticid genera. Partly on the basis of distinctions provided by scale structure, the new genus Platycryptus , type-species Aranea undata De Geer, 1778, is defined. Metaphidippus vitis Cockerell, 1894, is placed in the genus Sassacus Peckham, 1895, and Paromaevia michelsoni (Barnes), 1955, is returned to the genus Maevia . The placement of Eris, Hentzia, Icius, Metaphidippus, Phidippus , and Sassacus in the subfamily Dendryphantinae is substantiated; Tutelina and Zygoballus are added to this group. On the basis of common scale structure, Evarcha, Habrocestum, Menememerus, Phlegra, Platycryptus , and Sitticus are tentatively assigned to the subfamily Habrocestinae. Scales of Anasntis, Corythalia, Cosmophasis, Hyllus, Marpissa, Metacyrba, Pellenes, Plexippus, Salticus, Sarinda, and Thiodina are also described.