Suppression of generalized seizures activity by intrathalamic 2-chloroadenosine application

In the present study, we investigated the effects of micro-injecting 2-chloroadenosine (2-CADO; an adenosine receptor agonist) into the thalamus alone and with theophylline (a nonspecific adenosine receptor antagonist) pretreatment on pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced tonic-clonic seizures in male Wistar albino rats. Following intrathalamic 2-CADO injection alone or theophylline pretreatment, 50 mg kg(-1) PTZ was given ip after 1 and 24 hrs. The duration of epileptic seizure activity was recorded by cortical electroencephalogram (EEG), and seizure severity was behaviorally scored. Intrathalamic 2-CADO administration induced significant decreases in both seizure duration and seizure severity scores at 1 and 24 hrs, but the effects were more abundant on the seizures induced after 24 hrs. On the other hand, pretreatment with theophylline prevented the inhibitor effect of 2-CADO on seizure activity and increased both seizure duration and seizure scores. Present results suggest that the activation of adenosine receptors in the thalamus may represent another anticonvulsant/modulatory site of adenosine action during the course of the PTZ-induced generalized tonic-clonic seizures and provide additional data for the involvement of the adenosinergic system in the generalized seizures model.     

大车前与平车前营养器官的比较解剖学研究

利用光学显微镜和石蜡切片技术对生长在盐碱地的大车前和平车前的营养器官进行了比较解剖学研究。结果表明二者的解剖结构存在差异:平车前根的木栓层较大车前的狭窄,栓内层细胞层数较少;平车前叶表皮的细胞角质膜较薄,孔下室较小,构成维管束鞘的薄壁细胞较大车前小,束鞘细胞两层。二者都具有适应盐渍环境的结构特征:营养器官中通气组织发达;根结构中薄壁组织和木栓发达;叶表皮角质层发达。     

Species Richness Patterns and Water-Energy Dynamics in the Drylands of Northwest China

Dryland ecosystems are highly vulnerable to climatic and land-use changes, while the mechanisms underlying patterns of dryland species richness are still elusive. With distributions of 3637 native vascular plants, 154 mammals, and 425 birds in Xinjiang, China, we tested the water-energy dynamics hypothesis for species richness patterns in Central Asian drylands. Our results supported the water-energy dynamics hypothesis. We found that species richness of all three groups was a hump-shaped function of energy availability, but a linear function of water availability. We further found that water availability had stronger effects on plant richness, but weaker effects on vertebrate richness than energy availability. We conducted piecewise linear regressions to detect the breakpoints in the relationship between species richness and potential evapotranspiration which divided Xinjiang into low and high energy regions. The concordance between mammal and plant richness was stronger in high than in low energy regions, which was opposite to that between birds and plants. Plant richness had stronger effects than climate on mammal richness regardless of energy levels, but on bird richness only in high energy regions. The changes in the concordance between vertebrate and plant richness along the climatic gradient suggest that cautions are needed when using concordance between taxa in conservation planning.     

胡杨(Populus euphratica Oliv.)根繁殖特征

以新疆塔里木河中游河岸北部河漫滩的胡杨幼林带为对象,从克隆生态学的角度,采用挖掘法、高压冲洗法及断根胁迫实验,研究了胡杨在资源异质环境中的风险分担、资源觅食与保持功能以及根源性克隆生长形态特征。结果表明:胡杨的地下根分枝类型为单轴型,同一生长方向2水平根的夹角平均约为180°,水平根与垂直根的夹角为90°～100°,水平根和垂直根的空间构型近似T形;基株的胚根周长>分株的次根周长;水平根呈侧圆台形,胡杨的2水平根之间存在着养分的传递。     

犬地卷[Peltigera canina(L.)Willd.]叶状体的光合速率与温度和湿度的关系

利用CID-310便携式光合作用测定系统,测定了叶状体地衣犬地卷[Peltigera canina(L.)Willd.]的光合速率及其与气候要素的关系,结果表明叶状体地衣的生长与湿度(水分)关系密切。犬地卷在长期进化的过程中,每日在日出后湿度最高的时刻,积极地进行光合作用;一天内最高光合速率在上午9:00~10.00时之间(东经87°地方时间为准),其余时间处于休眠状态,进行光合作用时温度的变化范围不大。