野大豆(Glycine soja)叶绿体的光谱及其激子能量转移

野大豆叶绿体在低温(77K)时出现三条荧光发射谱带,它们来源于不同的色素蛋白复合体。 在纳秒脉冲激光激发下,捕光天线色素的相对荧光量子产额,随激光强度的增加有明显下降现象。用激子理论和动力学方程讨论和计算了激子扩散参量。指出激子转移是随机的,非相干的。     

Sinoinsula,a name to replace Insula （Araneae,Salticidae）

Sinoinsula nom. nov. = Insuht Zhou ＆ Li, 2013. Zootaxa 3712 （I）： 11.     

Chronic rapamycin treatment or lack of S6K1 does not reduce ribosome activity in vivo

Reducing activity of the mTORC1/S6K1 pathway has been shown to extend lifespan in both vertebrate and invertebrate models. For instance, both pharmacological inhibition of mTORC1 with the drug rapamycin or S6K1 knockout extends lifespan in mice. Since studies with invertebrate models suggest that reducing translational activity can increase lifespan, we reasoned that the benefits of decreased mTORC1 or S6K1 activity might be due, at least in part, to a reduction of general translational activity. Here, we report that mice given a single dose of rapamycin have reduced translational activity, while mice receiving multiple injections of rapamycin over 4 weeks show no difference in translational activity compared with vehicle-injected controls. Furthermore, mice lacking S6K1 have no difference in global translational activity compared with wild-type littermates as measured by the percentage of ribosomes that are active in multiple tissues. Translational activity is reduced in S6K1-knockout mice following single injection of rapamycin, demonstrating that rapamycin’s effects on translation can occur independently of S6K1. Taken together, these data suggest that benefits of chronic rapamycin treatment or lack of S6K1 are dissociable from potential benefits of reduced translational activity, instead pointing to a model whereby changes in translation of specific subsets of mRNAs and/or translation-independent effects of reduced mTOR signaling underlie the longevity benefits.     

Late‐life rapamycin treatment reverses age‐related heart dysfunction

Rapamycin has been shown to extend lifespan in numerous model organisms including mice, with the most dramatic longevity effects reported in females. However, little is known about the functional ramifications of this longevity‐enhancing paradigm in mammalian tissues. We treated 24‐month‐old female C57BL/6J mice with rapamycin for 3 months and determined health outcomes via a variety of noninvasive measures of cardiovascular, skeletal, and metabolic health for individual mice. We determined that while rapamycin has mild transient metabolic effects, there are significant benefits to late‐life cardiovascular function with a reversal or attenuation of age‐related changes in the heart. RNA‐seq analysis of cardiac tissue after treatment indicated inflammatory, metabolic, and antihypertrophic expression changes in cardiac tissue as potential mechanisms mediating the functional improvement. Rapamycin treatment also resulted in beneficial behavioral, skeletal, and motor changes in these mice compared with those fed a control diet. From these findings, we propose that late‐life rapamycin therapy not only extends the lifespan of mammals, but also confers functional benefits to a number of tissues and mechanistically implicates an improvement in contractile function and antihypertrophic signaling in the aged heart with a reduction in age‐related inflammation.     

Sexual selection in cane toads Rhinella marina： A male＇s body size affects his success and his tactics

Abstract Male body size can play an important role in the mating systems of anuran amphibians. We conducted labora- tory-based trials with cane toads Rhinella （Bufo） marina from an invasive population in the wet-dry tropics of northern Australia, to clarify the effects of a male＇s body size on his reproductive success and behavior （mate choice）. Males were stimulated with a synthetic hormone to induce reproductive readiness. Larger body size enhanced a male toad＇s ability to displace a smaller rival from amplexus, apparently because of physical strength： more force was required to dislodge a larger than a smaller amplectant male. A male＇s body size also affected his mate-choice criteria. Males of all body sizes were as likely to attempt amplexus with another male as with a female of the same size, and preferred larger rather than smaller sexual targets. However, this size prefe- rence was stronger in larger males and hence, amplexus was size-assortative. This pattern broke down when males were given access to already-amplectant male-female pairs： males of all body sizes readily attempted amplexus with the pair, with no size discrimination. An amplectant pair provides a larger visual stimulus, and prolonged amplexus provides a strong cue for sex iden- tification （one of the individuals involved is almost certainly a female）. Thus, a male cane toad＇s body size affects both his ability to defeat rivals in physical struggles over females, and the criteria he uses when selecting potential mates, but the impacts of that selectivity depend upon the context in which mating occurs     

The bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus foraging around a fish farm：Effects of prey abundance on dolphins＇ behavior

The extent to which prey abundance influences both bottlenose dolphin foraging behavior and group size in the presence of human activities has not previously been studied.The primary aim of this study was to identify and quantify how wild bottlenose dolphins respond,individually and as groups,to the relative abundance of prey around a fish farm.Detailed views of dolphins＇ behavior were obtained by focal following individual animals whilst simultaneously collecting surface and underwater behavioral data.A total of 2150 dive intervals were analyzed,corresponding to 342 focal samples,lasting over 34 hours.Bottlenose dolphins remained submerged for a mean duration of 46.4 seconds and a maximum of 249 seconds.This study provides the first quantified data on bottlenose dolphin diving behavior in a marine fin-fish farm area.This study＇s results indicate that within a fish farm area used intensively by bottlenose dolphins for feeding,dolphins did not modify dive duration.Additionally,underwater observations confirmed that dolphins find it easier to exploit a concentrated food source and it appears that hunting tactic and not group size plays an important role during feeding activities.Thus,bottlenose dolphins appear capable of modifying their hunting tactics according to the abundance of prey.When top predators display behavioral responses to activities not directed at them,the task of studying all possible effects of human activities can become even more challenging.     

Genealogy and phylogeography of Cyprinid fish Labeo rohita （Hamilton, 1822） inferred from ATPase 6 and 8 mitochondrial DNA gene analysis

ATPase 6/8 gene （842 bp） of mitochondrial DNA was sequenced in Labeo rohita samples （n = 253） collected from nine rivers belonging to four river basins; Indus, Ganges, Brahmaputra and Mahanadi. Analysis revealed 44 haplotypes with high haplotype diversity （Hd） 0.694 and low nucleotide diversity （π） 0.001. The within population variation was larger （83.44%） than among population differences （16.56%）. The mean Fsv value （0.166; P 〈 0.05） for overall populations revealed moderate level of genetic structuring in the wild L. rohita populations. The haplotype network presented a single clade for wild L. rohita population, from different rivers. Negative values for Fu＇s index （Fs）, mismatch distribution analysis indicated period of expansion in L. rohita population. The time after recent expansion was estimated for each population, between 0.042 to 0.167 mya. The pattern of Isolation by Distance （IBD） was not significant （r = -0.113, P 〈 0.287）, when all the sampling locations were compared （Mantel test）, however, when an outlier （Indus, Brahmaputra and Mahanadi） was removed from the whole population set, a clear positive correlation between pairwise Fsv and geographic distance （Km） was seen. The analysis of data demonstrated that ATPase6/8 gene polymorphism is a potential marker to understand genetic population structure of wild L. rohita existing in different rivers. The study identified population substructure in wild L. rohita with common ancestral origin [Current Zoology 60 （4）： 460--471, 2014].     

Boldness is related to the development of the cephalic crest in the male of the river blenny Salariafluviatilis （Asso, 1801）

Boldness is defined as the tendency of an individual to take risks when exposed to novel objects or situations. The main aim of this work was to dilucidate if boldness was related to the development of the secondary sexual traits （SSTs） in the male of the fiver blenny Salariafluviatilis, a freshwater fish which takes care of eggs. As a second objective SSTs effect on pa rental status adoption was also be explored. Wild young fish were caught in the Segre River （Ebro basin） in November 2010. Fish were kept in five aquaria in groups of eight males and eight females with artificial nests. Boldness （boldness score and hesitancy） of males （initially with little SSTs development） was tested as the time required to exit a refuge when exposed to a new environ ment. Fish were mantained in the same aquaria for several months, and males＇ SSTs development and reproductive behaviour were monitored. Boldness score was negatively associated to cephalic crest development. Hesitancy was negatively related to male length and was also influenced by the interaction between male length and cephalic crest. Parental status acquisition was positively related to the male＇s length, marginally related to anal gland development, and nonrelated to cephalic crest. These re sults suggest an intrasexual role of the crest as an informative trait of boldness （honest signal） which might not necessarily be chosen by the females. It is also discussed that correlational selection could be responsible for linking boldness and growth rate in this species. Sexual selection, in addition to having directed the evolution of secondary sexual traits, might have favored certain personality traits （e.g. boldness） associated with the achievement of a larger body length .     

Genotoxicity testing for radon exposure： Dolichopoda （Orthoptera,Rhaphidophoridae） as potential bio-indicator of confined environments

Radon represents the major source of natural radioactivity in confined environments. Despite the clear evidence of a direct association between residential exposure and human lung cancer provided by case-control studies, results relating indoor exposure and genotoxic/mutagenic effect induction are still contradictory. The present study attempts to estimate the genotoxic effects induced by exposure to radioactive radon in wild cricket populations sampled from caves where varying concentrations of radon are present. Cave crickets are also tested as possible bio-indicator organisms of genotoxic potential of contaminated residential and confined environments. Six caves in Central Italy are considered covering a broad spectrum of radon radioactivity concentration （221-26,000 Bq/m3）. Dolichopoda specimens were sampled from each cave; both haemocytes and brain cells taken from individuals were tested for responsiveness to DNA damage induced by radon through the Comet assay. Specimens from the least radioactive cave, housed in controlled conditions for 60 days before analysis, were used as control group. Statistically significant increase of DNA damage was found in all groups of individuals from each cave, for both cell types. Very low values of all Comet parameters were found in control group individuals, which gave indications of a good responsiveness of the organism to the variable environmental levels of radioactive contamination. Results indicate that cave crickets represent a reliable tool for the detection of genotoxic potential induced by radioactive contamination of confined environments and can be proposed as a possible bio-indicator system for air （-radioactive） pollution related to indoor exposure [Current Zoology 60 （2）： 299-307, 2014].     

腎上腺素和交感神經對貓胃分泌的作用

(一)靜脈注射腎上腺素對組織胺引起的貓胃分泌不論在急性或慢性實驗,通常是双相的,開頭抑制分泌,接着增加分泌,兩相大小相似,有時第二相還稍為大些。在一次注射0.02—0.1毫克腎上腺素之後,整個效應過程歷時約10—15分钟。若用較長的間隔如每10—30分鐘收集一次胃分泌,則此双相效應就會被掩蓋,因而得出腎上腺素對貓胃分泌無明顯效應或有增加分泌的效應的結論,如Baxter等人所得到的一樣。 (二)在急性實驗中,刺激大内臟神經對组織胺引起的貓胃分泌有顯著的抑制效應。与腎上腺素的效應不同,刺激大內臟神經的效應通常是單相的。我們在工作中经常得到馮德培所长的指导。谨致谢意.