A spawning aggregation of Nassau grouperEpinephelus striatus (Pisces: Serranidae) in the Mexican Caribbean

Synopsis An annual spawning aggregation of Nassau grouper,Epinephelus striatus, observed off the southern coast of Quintana Roo, Mexico, on full moon days in December and January, was surveyed during the winters from 1991 to 1993. A fish aggregation had been appearing at one traditional site off Mahahual for more than 80 years, but currently it forms at undetermined sites far from the original site. Fish migration was northwards in the fore reef border along the 14 m isobath and isolated groups were observed. Through visual assessment fish aggregations were found to include 200 to 500 individuals. The fishing on Nassau grouper aggregations has been active since 1910 by using hook and line; however, recently fishermen used gill nets. It is necessary to continue the research on this aggregation and establish management guidelines to protect the species.     

Biology of the Galapagos shark,Carcharhinus galapagensis, in Hawai'i

Synopsis Catch records from the Hawai'i Cooperative Shark Research and Control Program, which operated in Hawai'i from 1967–1969, were examined and data on the Galapagos shark,Carcharhinus galapagensis were analyzed. A total of 304 Galapagos sharks was caught, predominantly with longlines. More female sharks were caught than males, and the catch was skewed geographically. On the island of O'ahu the highest catch rates occurred along the north and south coasts. High catch rates also occurred near points of land, where longshore currents converge. Average depth of capture was greater for juveniles (45.1 m) and mature males (60.2 m), than for subadults (38.8 m) and mature female sharks (34.2 m). Males appear to reach maturity between 205 and 239 cm total length, and females between 215 and 245 cm. Litter size ranged from 4 to 16 pups, with an average of 8.7. In Hawaiian waters Galapagos sharks are born at just over 80 cm total length. Mating and parturition apparently occur early in the year, and gestation is estimated to be about 12 months. Stomach contents consisted mainly of teleosts and benthic prey, and ontogenetic changes in diet occurred as sharks increased in size. Sharks consumed a smaller proportion of teleosts and more elasmobranchs with increasing size. Dietary diversity also increased with increasing size of shark.     

The biology and use of the African brush-tailed porcupine (Atherurus africanus, Gray, 1842)as a food animal. A review

The brush-tailed porcupine (Atherurus africanus) is a hystricomorph rodent, which frequents the forests of West and Central Africa. With an average weight of 3 kg, it is a favourite source of meat for urban and rural populations of Gabon, Nigeria, Cameroon or Congo. Hunted in large quantities, its price is often higher than that of other game or domestic animals. Although its current productivity in captivity is limited to a single young per birth and two to three births per year per female, this species could be a good candidate for minilivestock programmes in African forest areas if its current reproductive potential in captivity could be improved. Further research should be encouraged on its biology and reproduction since the current level of hunting for this species is probably not sustainable. Captive breeding programmes could play a role in assessing a better knowledge of the species' biology, and in reducing the effects of intensive hunting in areas where this activi ty is no longer sustainable.     

结构生物学研究的一些新进展

近年来,结构生物学的发展呈现出快速增长的新态势.精确测定的生物大分子结构以指数曲线增加,速率已达到5.1个/d.截止1998年4月的统计,已从PDB库释放出来的生物大分子原子坐标套数已达7 454.同时,以精确结构知识为基础揭示生命活动的规律已达到前所未有的深度和广度.在技术和方法方面,近年来第三代同步辐射的应用与一些新方法的结合,可用极小的晶体测定极大的结构,使某些膜蛋白及亚细胞器的精确结构测定成为可能.NMR溶液结构测定的分子质量已突破35 000,电子晶体学阐释结构的分辨率已接近0.3 nm,可探测的动态过程的时间尺度已达到10^－9 s.结构生物学与基因组学的结合正在产生一个新的科学领域：结构基因组学（structural genomics）,它在未来后基因组时代的生物学中占有重要地位.     

Towards an ecological basis for the conservation of subalpine heath-grassland on the upper ridges of the Vosges

Abstract. The subalpine oligotrophic heath-grasslands, assigned to the Pulsatillo-Vaccinietum and Violo-Nardetum, occurring at the upper ridges in the Vosges at 1100 - 1300 m a.s.l. are of conservational interest because they form natural, mature and stable ecosystems. The Pulsatillo-Vaccinietum is particularly rich in endemic plant species and subspecies due to a local oceanic-subarctic climate and the continuous occurrence of the community throughout the Holocene period, when the association was not affected by changes in the prevailing environmental conditions. After a period of abandonment during and after World War II, agriculture was intensified through mineral fertilization and liming, sometimes mowing, and even ploughing and sowing. Seven pastures were selected to estimate the present plant biodiversity. Losses of biodiversity were assessed on the Kastelberg ridge by diachronic analysis of the vegetation composition and structure over the last 30 years. Species diversity changed in both associations through a decrease in the abundance of oligotrophic, acidophilic species, typical of the mountains of western Europe, and an extension of grassland types of the Violo-Nardetum trifolietosum. Strategies for a return to more natural conditions include the abandonment of fertilization and liming, except locally around farms. Regular mowing is needed in order to decrease the nutrient level of the sites.     

Contamination of a dredged material disposal site La Rochelle Bay,France .The use of the acetylcholinesterase activity of Mytilus edulis L. as a biomarker of pesticides: the need for a critical approach

A single aspect of the toxic impact of a dredged material disposal site located near a mussel-farming zone was followed for eight months. Acetylcholinesterase activity (AChE) of Mytilus edulis was investigated as a biomarker for possible contamination by neurotoxic compounds (carbamates and/or organophosphorous pesticides). Our observations showed that the enzymatic activities (including AChE) of these harbour mussels were decreased in sites directly and indirectly influenced (according to hydrodynamic conditions) by the dumping of dredged sediments, suggesting possible contamination by pesticides. The strong correlations observed between AChE activity and growth parameters (length and weight) seems to show, however, that the enzyme activity is also indirectly controlled through growth restriction, which may imply limitation of the development of the nervous system in juveniles. The concentration of total proteins, as well as the spawning process also seem to disturb the assessment of AChE activity. These field observations clearly indicate that the use of this enzyme activity as a biomarker should proceed with caution. For example, the seasonal variability of such activity should be taken into account in a biomonitoring programme.     

Hypertension,calcium channel and pyridoxine (vitamin B6)

The moderately pyridoxine (vitamin B₆)-deficient male rat was introduced by us as an animal model (B6DHT) for the study of hypertension. Hypertension in this rat is associated with increased sympathetic stimulation. Arterial segments from B6DHT rats maintained a higher resting tone. The influx of ⁴⁵calcium into intracellular compartment of the vascular smooth muscle of the caudate artery of B6DHT rats was also enhanced. Administration of pyridoxine attenuated the hypertension in B6DHT rats as well as in genetic or dietary-induced moderately hypertensive conditions such as in the Zucker obese rat and sucrose or low calcium-fed rats. However, pyridoxine did not have any effect or the spontaneously hypertensive rat. All classes of calcium channel blockers were effective in lowering the systolic blood pressure of B6DHT rats. The increased in vitro influx of⁴⁵ calcium into intracellular compartment of artery segments of B6DHT rats as well as the BAY K 8644-induced influx of⁴⁵ calcium into artery segments from normal rats were blocked by pyridoxal phosphate as well as by dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channel blockers (DHP). Pyridoxal phosphate (PLP) in vitro enhances the binding of calcium channel antagonists to membrane preparations from vascular tissue. PLP corrects the membrane abnormality in responsive hypertensive conditions and thus, could be an endogenous modulator of DHP - sensitive calcium channels.     

Localized hybridization betweenSaxifraga aizoides andS. mutata (Saxifragaceae): Reproductive ecology ofS. ×hausmannii and implications for conservation

The roles of hybridization and of introgression as potential threats to small native populations are current topics of interest both for evolutionary and conservation biologists. Two factors are mainly involved in the threat to natural populations through hybridization: demographic swamping and genetic assimilation. At prealpine locations, twoSaxifraga species with very different growth habits,S. aizoides andS. mutata, form a hybrid,S. ×hausmannii. Investigation of meiosis and crossing experiments revealed regular pairing of the 26 chromosomes and development of viable seeds in the hybrid. Analysis of hybrid indices, GPI allozymes, germination experiments and seed sizes showed an intermediate position ofS. ×hausmannii between its parental species.Saxifraga aizoides andS. mutata were separated by only weak hybridization barriers. Introgression occurred mostly in direction ofS. aizoides, although to a small amount. There is no actual threat to small, prealpine populations ofS. aizoides andS. mutata through interspecific gene flow because hybridization is localized, resulting from different flowering phenologies of the parental species and from the narrow habitat requirements ofS. ×hausmannii, which are similar to those ofS. aizoides. The major threat to local, prealpine populations ofS. aizoides andS. mutata is the loss of landscape dynamics. Both species need open erosion slopes for successful recruitment.     

刺五加传粉生物学研究

本文报道刺五加Eleutherococcus seticosus(Rupr．et Maxim．)Maxim的花朵酬物、访花者类别、访花 者在花序上的访花行为、访花频率及传粉效果。主要结果如下:(1)每朵雄花可提供的报偿是58 000～ 81 000粒花粉,5.5～8.0 µl／d×2～4d花蜜。每朵雌花仅可提供4.0～8.0µl／d× 2～3 d花蜜,不能提 供花粉。每朵两性花可提供19 000～54 000粒花粉和7.0～10.0 µl／d× 2～6 d花蜜。(2)花粉提供者 (雄花和两性花)提供报偿的日期是开花后1～3天,花粉接受者(雌花和两性花在柱头外翻变白时)是 开花后5～7或7～9天,这进一步证实了剌五加雄蕊先熟。另外,花粉提供者提供花蜜的时间在一天中 是8:30至15:30,其高峰是9:00～15:00;花粉接受者提供花蜜的时间在一天中是10:30至16:30,其高 峰是11:00～16:00。这种时间差异可能是刺五加影响传粉者流向(从花粉提供者到花粉接受者)的关键 因素。(3)在刺五加花朵上记录到的访花昆虫有50余种,分别隶属于膜翅目、鳞翅目、鞘翅目、双翅目和 半翅目。在不同天气、不同生境、不同性别的植株记录到的访花频率及高峰时间不同:花粉提供者的 访花高峰早于花粉接受者的;雄株上的访花频率高于雌株的;两性株接受花粉时的访花频率高于提供花 粉时的;而天气越晴朗,刺五加地块(patch)越大,则访花频率越高;每日接受光照越早,访花高峰越早。 (4)从传粉效果看,刺五加种子的形成完全依赖于传粉昆虫的活动。其中,蜂类,如熊蜂、花蜂、切叶蜂、胡蜂和蜜蜂等是最有效的传粉者,其它昆虫如粉蝶、食蚜蝇、寄蝇和鳃角金龟等对传粉也有帮助。     

濒危植物南川升麻传粉生物学的研究

南川升麻（ＣｉｍｉｃｉｆｕｇａｎａｎｃｈｕａｎｅｎｓｉｓＨｓｉｓｏ）的繁育系统以异交为主,传粉昆虫主要为蝇类,盛花时的访花频率平均每花每天１１次,雄蕊脱落后约０６次;单穗升麻（Ｃ．ｓｉｍｐｌｅｘＷｏｒｍｓｋ）以虫媒为主,风也可以帮助其花粉在近距离传播。单穗升麻的传粉昆虫有蝇类和蜂类,盛花时的访花频率蝇类为１．４次,蜂类为１．２次。南川升麻和单穗升麻都是靠大的花序和气味来吸引传粉昆虫,报酬是退化雄蕊基部分泌的蜜液。自然条件下南川升麻每个柱头上平均有４枚花粉,结籽率平均为６４％,而单穗升麻每个柱头上平均有１７枚花粉,结籽率平均为４５９％。南川升麻有性生殖中传粉的限制是其致濒的重要因素之一。