Morphological and morphometrical analysis of Heterodera spp. populations in Jordan

Phenotypic diversity of five Jordanian populations of cyst nematodes, Heterodera spp. collected from five regions from Jordan (Ar-Ramtha, Madaba, Dana, Al-Karak, and Jerash) was investigated. Soil samples were collected from one representative field in each region. Morphological and morphometrical characteristics revealed that Heterodera latipons is dominated in cereal fields at Ar-Ramtha, Madaba, Dana and Al-Karak regions and Heterodera schachtii in Jerash. Cysts populations from all cereal fields had bifenestrate vulval cone and a strong underbridge. Wherever, cysts of the cabbage population had ambifenestrate vulval cone with long vulval slit. The bullae were absent in Ar-Ramtha, Madaba and Dana populations, but present in Al-Karak and Jerash. Based on 12 morphometrical characters, the first three functions in canonical discriminant analysis accounted 99.3% of the total variation. Distance from dorsal gland duct opening to stylet base, underbridge length, a = L/W (body length/midbody width) and length of hyaline tail tip had strong and significant contributions in the first function. While the second function was strongly influenced by length of hyaline tail, fenestral length, fenestral width and tail length. However, the third canonical discriminate function was found to be influenced by stylet length, fenestral length, a = L/W (body length/midbody width) and underbridge width. The graphical representation of the distribution of the samples showed that the first canonical discriminant function clearly separated H. schachtii from Jerash from other populations. Whereas, H. latipons collected from Madaba and Dana were clearly separated in the second function. The results indicated that differences at morphological and morphometrical levels revealed diverse populations of Heterodera spp. in Jordan.     

马占相思叶片液汁碳同位素甄别率和水分利用效率

利用PMS压力室压取叶片液汁并借助稳定碳同位素质谱仪测定碳同位素比率,分析了马占相思(Acacia mangium )叶片液汁光合产物的甄别率(△)和估测了水分利用效率.结果表明:阴天马占相思林冠层日平均空气CO2 的碳同位素比率(δa)为-7.57‰±1.41‰,晴天则为-8.54‰±0.67‰;阴天叶片液汁的光合产物碳同位素比率(δp)日变化呈鞍型,而晴天则从早上至黄昏逐步降低;晴天δp与叶片/空气水汽压亏缺(D)明显呈负相关,阴天的δp变化相对较小;δp随叶片水势(ψ)降低而降低,显示水分胁迫引起δp降低;叶片液汁的D和经气体交换法获得的细胞胞间(Pi)和外界(Pa)CO2分压之比呈正相关,测定结果与理论上碳同位素相关扩散和生化分馏相一致.分析结果显示,田间马占相思空气CO2经气孔扩散的稳定同位素效应口a=4.6‰,有关Pi的净固定的稳定碳同位素效应6=28.2‰.认为液汁碳同位素甄别率是外围空气CO2进入光合产物的净甄别率,由叶片液汁△估测的水分利用效率与气体交换法所得结果相一致(R2=0.86,P＜0.001).本文所采用的叶片液汁光合产物测定即时△以及计算水分利用效率的方法,可减少田间条件下环境因素明显变化对水分和碳同位素的影响,该方法有助于进一步开展由植株至冠层扩展的碳和水分平衡的生理生态研究.     

Immunofluorescent analysis of meiotic recombination in the domestic cat

The paper presents the analysis of the frequency, density, and distribution of recombination sites in the male meiosis of the domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus). The study was carried out using immunofluorescent staining of synaptonemal complex (SC) proteins, centromeric proteins and mismatch repair protein MLH1, a reliable marker of crossingover sites. We mapped 2633 sites of crossing over in 1098 individual autosomes. Based on these data, we estimated the total length of the genetic map of the domestic cat to be 2176 centimorgans. Positive correlation between the length of SC and the number of recombination sites common for mammalians was also found in the domestic cat. It was shown that this species was characterized by the highest density of recombination and the lowest interference in mammals.     

Relationship of lower limb height to sitting height in black populations of Africa and the United States.

This article examines a recently reported generalization. Materials from more than a score of invetigations are drawn upon. These materials show there is not a substantial research base for the claim that interbreeding in the United States between black people of African ancestry and white people of European ancestry has resulted in increased lower limb height relative to sitting height.     

Competition between co-dominant plants of the Serengeti plains depends on competitor identity,water, and urine

Kyllinga nervosa (Steud.) and Sporobolus kentrophyllus (K. Schum.) are co-dominant plants of the Serengeti short-grass plains, Tanzania. The plains are characterized by seasonal and sporadic rainfall and currently support in excess of 1.5 million migratory ungulates. The interactive effect of simulated bovine urine and water availability were tested on the competitive interactions of these species in the laboratory. Sporobolus kentrophyllus was a superior competitor to K. nervosa over the tested treatment levels with respect to growth and reproductive effort. Sporobolus kentrophyllus exhibited rapid growth in response to urine addition, leading to a significant species × urine interaction while reduced growth by K. nervosa in response to low water availability explained the significant species × water interaction and is likely explained by K. nervosa's shallow root system. Kyllinga nervosa, however, appears to be more tolerant of low nitrogen conditions based on its similar growth with and without the urine treatment. The effect of intraspecific competition on total biomass was similar for S. kentrophyllus and K. nervosa. Competition resulted in increased size differences (asymmetry) for K. nervosa and for the interspecific competition treatments compared to the size differences observed for plants grown individually (in absence of competition).Total reproductive biomass was reduced most by competition with S. kentrophyllus, irrespective of target species. The water treatment did not influence reproduction while the urine treatment significantly increased reproductive biomass and interacted with target species, competitor species, and yielded a three-way urine × target × competitor species interaction.Results suggest that codominance of these two species in the Serengeti is regulated by water availability, nitrogen input from grazers, and local neighbor identity.     

Interspecific competition between two species of the bean weevil

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Contributions from the Entomological Laboratory, Kyoto University, No. 110.     

Determination of human factor VIII (AHG-associated protein)-antigen in endothelial cells from Xenopus laevis (XTH cells)

Summary AHG-associated protein (AHG-a.p.), the antigen of the blood-clotting factor VIII complex, is a specific endothelial cell marker. Primary (p-XTH) and established (XTH-2) endothelial cells from the hearts of Xenopus laevis tadpoles were assayed for the presence of this marker by means of immunological cross-reaction (recognition of common antigenic sites) with antiserum against human AHG-a.p. Radial imtnunodiffusion and rocket immunoelectrophoresis proved to be insufficiently sensitive, whereas immunofluorescence and a newly evaluated ELISA technique gave positive results. The very high sensitivity of the ELISA (less than 1/240000 of the AHG-a.p. in 0.1 ml human standard plasma can be detected) and the removal of interfering proteins by gel filtration also revealed the presence of AHG-a.p. in the fetal calf serum used in the culture medium; earlier investigations into this subject by a one-step radioimmunoassay had reported negative results. Specially adapted XTH-2 cells were grown in a proteinand serum-free hydrolysate medium in order to demonstrate the presence of a Xenopus-derived antigen that was immunoreactive with the anti-human AHG-a.p.     

On the diploidization mechanism of the genus Aegilops: meiotic behaviour of interspecific hybrids

Chromosomal pairing of the three diploid hybrids Aegilops uniaristata × Ae. tauschii (ND), Ae. umbellulata × Ae. tauschii (UD) and Ae. comosa × Ae. uniaristata (MN), and a triploid hybrid Ae. cylindrica × Ae. caudata (DCC), was analyzed by electron microscopy in surface-spread-prophase-I nuclei and compared with light-microscopic observations of metaphase-I cells after C-banding and fluorescence in situhybridization. All hybrids showed extensive synapsis and complex multivalents in which up to 14 chromosomes were involved. In the diploid hybrids most metaphase-I chromosomal associations were between homoeologs, their frequencies being dependent on the relationship between the donor genomes. Despite the different overall bound-arm frequencies displayed by ND and MN hybrids at metaphase-I, chromosomes bearing rDNA sequences showed similar mean cell chromosomal association frequencies. In the triploid hybrid preferential associations involving C genomes were predominant. These observations are discussed in relation to the mechanism of diploidization showed by allotetraploid Aegilops species. Received: 13 January 1999 / Accepted: 12 March 1999