Elevationally biased avian predation as a contributor to the spatial distribution of geometrid moth outbreaks in sub‐arctic mountain birch forest

1. Population dynamics and interactions that vary over a species' range are of particular importance in the context of latitudinal clines in biological diversity. Winter moth (Operophtera brumata) and autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) are two species of eruptive geometrids that vary widely in outbreak tendency over their range, which generally increases from south to north and with elevation. 2. The predation pressure on geometrid larvae and pupae over an elevational gradient was tested. The effects of background larval density and bird occupancy of monitoring nest boxes on predation rates were also tested. Predation on larvae was tested through exclusion treatments at 20 replicate stations over four elevations at one site, while pupae were set out to measure predation at two elevations at three sites. 3. Larval densities were reduced by bird predation at three lower elevations, but not at the highest elevation, and predation rates were 1.9 times higher at the lowest elevation than at the highest elevation. The rate of predation on larvae was not related to background larval density or nest box occupancy, although there were more eggs and chicks at the lowest elevation. There were no consistent differences in predation on pupae by elevation. 4. These results suggest that elevational variation in avian predation pressure on larvae may help to drive elevational differences in outbreak tendency, and that birds may play a more important role in geometrid population dynamics than the focus on invertebrate and soil predators of previous work would suggest.     

Effects of estrogen deprivation on human benign prostatic hyperplasia

Sex steroids are thought to play an essential role in the pathogenesis of human benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Since recent studies in animal models and in men have shown that estrogens might be causally linked to the onset and maintenance of BPH, we examined the effect of 1-methyl-androsta-1,4-diene-3,17-dione (Atamestane), a newly developed aromatase inhibitor, in men with BPH. In an open multicenter study 49 men (mean age 70.1 years, range 55 to 84) with obstructive BPH were treated with atamestane (3 × 200 mg/day) for 3 months. Of the 49 patients 44 completed the treatment period; the other patients discontinued the study for reasons unrelated to treatment. With treatment BPH-related symptoms such as daytime voiding frequency, nycturia, peak flow and residual urine improved considerably; however, these parameters did not reach statistical significance. The mean prostatic volume decreased significantly from 74.2 ± 31.7 to 64.0 ± 31 ml (mean ± SD). Serum estrogen levels decreased markedly during treatment. In addition intraprostatic estrogen concentration decreased with treatment as compared to estrogen levels in hyperplastic prostates from untreated patients. The following conclusions can be drawn from this study: first, estrogens appear to have an important supportive role in established BPH, and second, estrogen deprivation improved BPH-related symptoms and reduced significantly prostatic volume.     

Osmotic relations during elongation growth in hypocotyls of Helianthus annum L.

The relationship between growth, change in cell osmotic pressure and accumulation of osmotic solutes was investigated in hypocotyls of sunflower (Helianthus annum L.) seedlings. During growth in darkness the osmotic pressure decreased by 50% between days 2 and 6 after sowing. After irradiation of dark-grown seedlings with continuous white light (WL) an inhibition of hypocotyl growth was measured, but the osmotic pressure of the growing cells was not lower than in the dark-grown control. Growth in darkness and after WL irradiation was accompanied by an increase in the amount of osmotic substances (soluble sugars) which was proportional to the increase in length of the organ. During growth in continuous WL the cell osmotic pressure decreased by 45 % between days 2 and 6 after sowing. The transfer of WL-grown seedlings to darkness (“re-etiolation”) resulted in a rapid acceleration of hypocotyl growth, but the cell osmotic pressure was the same as that of the WL grown control. Growth in continuous WL was accompanied by a corresponding accumulation of osmotic substances (soluble sugars). The transition from WL to darkness resulted in an enhanced accumulation of osmotica and an increase in cell-wall extensibility. The results indicate that the relative maintenance of cell osmotic pressure during rapid hypocotyl growth in darkness is caused by an enhanced accumulation of soluble sugars into the growing cells of the organ.     

Randomised,double blind,placebo controlled trial of penicillin V and amoxycillin in treatment of acute sinus infections in adults.

OBJECTIVES--To compare the effectiveness of penicillin V and amoxycillin with placebo in treatment of adult patients with acute sinusitis. DESIGN--Randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trial. SETTING--Norwegian general practice. SUBJECTS--130 adult patients with a clinical diagnosis of acute sinusitis confirmed by computed tomography. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Subjective status after three and 10 days of treatment, difference in clinical severity score between day 0 and day 10 as evaluated by the general practitioner, difference in score from computed tomography on day 0 and day 10, and duration of sinusitis. RESULTS--Amoxycillin and penicillin V led to significantly faster and better recovery than placebo. By day 10, 71 patients receiving antibiotic treatment- (86%) considered themselves to be recovered or much better compared with 25 (57%) receiving placebo. The mean (95% confidence interval) reductions in clinical severity scores by day 10 were 5.4 (5.0 to 5.8) for penicillin V, 5.5 (4.9 to 6.0 for amoxycillin, and 3.4 (2.8 to 4.0) for placebo. For the antibiotic groups combined the number of patients with the greatest degree of improvement on computed tomography (scale 0-16)-that is, score 5-16 on day 10-was 31/83 (37%) compared with 10/44 (23%) receiving placebo. The median duration of the sinusitis was nine days in the amoxycillin group, 11 days in the penicillin V group, and 17 days in the placebo group. CONCLUSION--Penicillin V and amoxycillin are significantly more effective than placebo in the treatment of acute sinusitis.     

Repression of lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis in Escherichia coli by an antisense RNA of Acetobacter methanolicus phage Acm1

Lysogenic Acetobacter methanolicus strains carrying the prophage Acm1 were found to be unable to synthesize both the capsutar polysaccharide (CPS) and the O-specific side-chain of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and to represent rough variants of the host bacterium. A 262 bp DNA fragment of phage Acm1, obviously required for interference with LPS biosynthesis, was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli Independently of the O-type, transformation of various E. coli strains with the recombinant DNA resulted in a suppression of biosynthesis of the O-specific chains. The DNA fragment of phage Acm1 contained three very short open reading frames of 21, 24, and 36 bp. However, attempts to express phage-encoded peptides were not successful. Instead, the Acm1-derived DNA fragment was shown to code for the synthesis of a trans-acting RNA molecule of 97 nucleotides, designated lbi (L PS b iosynthesis-i nterfering) RNA. This RNA contains sequence complementarity to E. coli target RNA sequences and appears to have the ability to form intracellularly RNA hybrid duplexes with mRNA. The data presented in this study support the hypothesis that the phenotypic effect of conversion to rough-type LPS is accompanied by the expression of an antisense RNA of phage Acm1.     

Rapid determination of members of the family Enterobacteriaceae in drinking water by an immunological assay using a monoclonal antibody against enterobacterial common antigen.

An immunological method for the detection of members of the family Enterobacteriaceae in drinking water was developed. The method was based on a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with monoclonal antibody immunoglobulin G2a 898 against enterobacterial common antigen. The enterobacterial common antigen sandwich ELISA combined with selective preenrichment culture could be performed in only 24 h. Six hundred sixty-eight water samples from a variety of German public water supplies were screened to verify the effectiveness of the new method. Ninety-eight percent of the results obtained by the immunological method could be confirmed by conventional microbiological methods. The immunological method proved to be considerably faster and more specific and sensitive than the standard method specified by the German drinking water regulations.     

Is methyl-branching in alpha-tocopherol's "tail" important for its in vivo activity? Rat curative myopathy bioassay measurements of the vitamin E activity of three 2RS-n-alkyl-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-6-hydroxychromans

The vitamin E activity of the acetates of three 2RS-n-alkyl-2,5,7,8-tetramethyl-6-hydroxychroman analogs of alpha-tocopherol have been measured and compared directly with all-rac-alpha-tocopheryl acetate, or indirectly via 2R,4'R,8'R-alpha-tocopheryl acetate, using the rat curative myopathy, plasma pyruvate kinase assay. The analogs with alkyl chain lengths of 11 and 13 carbons have activities which not only do not differ significantly (p greater than 0.05) from each other but also do not differ from that of all-rac-alpha-tocopheryl acetate. This finding indicates that methyl branching in the phytyl tail at the 4', 8', and 12' positions has little if any influence upon vitamin E activity. Thus physical interactions involving the methyl branches of the phytyl tail and the polyunsaturated moieties of membrane phospholipids are unimportant in vivo, insofar as this bioassay is concerned. However, the length of the hydrocarbon tail is important. This is indicated by the result obtained with the acetate of the analog with an alkyl chain length of 15 carbon atoms which had only 15% of the activity of 2R,4'R,8'R-alpha-tocopheryl acetate, i.e., 22% of the activity of all-rac-alpha-tocopheryl acetate since this form is 1.47 times less active than 2R,4'R,8'R-alpha-tocopheryl acetate in the curative myopathy bioassay (Weiser, Vecchi, & Schlachter, Internat. J. Vit. Nutr. Res. 55:149-158, 1985).     

Identification of C-terminal extensions that protect proteins from intracellular proteolysis

Revertants of defective mutants in the Arc repressor of bacteriophage P22 were isolated. Five of the six reverting mutations were frameshifts near the end of the coding sequence which resulted in proteins with C-terminal extensions. Each of the reverting mutations prolong the half-lives in vivo of the proteins in which they reside, yet they do not alter the thermodynamic stability, structure, oligomeric form, or DNA-binding properties of these proteins. Fusion of one of these tails to the C-terminal end of a mutant form of the N-terminal domain of lambda repressor also prevented proteolysis of this protein. These C-terminal sequences may prevent degradation by blocking the recognition of unstable proteins by the proteolytic machinery in the cell.     

Cephalic anatomy and three-dimensional reconstruction of the head of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Catops ventricosus</Emphasis> (Weise, 1877) (Coleoptera: Leiodidae: Cholevinae)

Adult head structures are well known in the coleopteran suborders Archostemata and Adephaga, whereas the available information is very fragmentary in the megadiverse Polyphaga, including the successful superfamily Staphylinoidea. In the present study, the cephalic morphology of the cholevine species Catops ventricosus is described in detail and documented. The results were compared to conditions occurring in other polyphagan lineages, especially staphylinoid and scarabaeoid representatives. Specific external features documented in Catops and potential autapomorphies of Leiodidae include a five-segmented antennal club with a reduced eighth antennomere and the presence of periarticular grooves filled with sensilla on antennomeres 7, 9, and 10. The firm connection of the head and pronotum is possibly an apomorphy of Cholevinae. The monophyly of Cholevinae excluding Eucatopini and Oritocatopini is supported by the apical maxillary palpomere as long as or shorter than the subapical one, and the presence of cryptic pore plates on the surface of these palpomeres—a feature described and documented here for the first time. The internal cephalic structures of Catops are mostly plesiomorphic, as for instance the complete tentorium. The pattern of the muscles is similar to what is found in other staphylinoid taxa. The unusual maxillary muscle “Mx” is likely a groundplan apomorphy of the clade Staphyliniformia?+?Scarabaeoidea. M. hypopharyngomandibularis (M13) was identified in Catops and is ancestral for Coleoptera, even though it is often missing. The same applies to M. tentoriohypopharyngalis (M42).