Multilevel studies on the two phenological forms of Large Blue (Maculinea arion) (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)

The main goal of our research was to study comprehensively the differences between the two phenological forms of the socially parasitic and globally threatened Large Blue (Maculinea arion) in the Carpathian Basin using four character sets (mitochondrial sequences, allozymes, male genitalia and wing morphometrics). Comparative analyses of distance matrices, phylogenetic trees and ordination patterns have been applied. The genetic and morphometric patterns revealed by our studies were discordant. While we experienced a significant differentiation between the ‘spring’ and ‘summer type’ of M. arion in both wing and genital traits, the two phenological forms did not show any genetic differentiation on two mitochondrial loci and in allozymes. At the same time, all individuals were infected by Wolbachia. Although certain wing traits may not represent reliable tracers of phylogeny because of the particular adaptive significance, the wing characteristics involved in our research are probably determined genetically. Additionally, the significant differentiation of male genitalia also indicates incipient prezygotic isolation arising from phenological differentiation between the ‘spring and summer arion’. It is possible that all extant differences between the two forms are attributable to (1) different host‐ant use, (2) incipient speciation, (3) cytoplasmatic incompatibility (CI) by Wolbachia or the combination of these factors. In addition, discordant results indicate that the combined use of different approaches and data sets is strictly necessary to clarify systematic and evolutionary relationships.     

The historical dendroarchaeology of the Green Hotel,Cave Spring,Georgia, U.S.A.

The lands including Cave Spring and most of northwest Georgia were held by the Cherokee until Cherokee removal in 1838. In 2010, a two-story pine structure that was encased inside the Green Hotel in downtown Cave Spring, Georgia, was revealed during renovation. Local Cave Spring historians insist the log structure was built by Avery Vann in 1810, making it a Cherokee structure. However, the Gold Lottery maps of 1832 show no structure on lot 871, which today contains the Green Hotel. A construction date also cannot be verified by historical documents, maps, or artifacts discovered around the Green Hotel. The purpose of this research was to determine the construction date of the Green Hotel log structure. Archaeological dating of the window glass thickness of the hotel gave dates of 1810 or 1823. However, the dendroarchaeological dating of the wood indicates cutting dates during the late spring/early summer of 1839. This would indicate that the log structure inside the Green Hotel was not built by Avery Vann or any Cherokee, but by later Euro-American settlers.     

A spring poleward current and its influence on microplankton assemblages and harmful dinoflagellates on the western Iberian coast

Along-shore currents can propagate harmful algal blooms (HABs) over long distances in many coastal areas of the ocean. Harmful dinoflagellate blooms on the west coast of Iberia frequently occur when the Iberian poleward current (IPC) establishes on the continental slope. This has led to the suggestion that HABs could be transported northward by the IPC. To examine this possibility, the microplankton composition along the west coast of Iberia was studied in May 1993 coinciding with the presence of the IPC. The microplankton of the IPC was almost exclusively composed of small flagellates, with the notable absence of the harmful species usually associated with coastal waters. The primary influence of the IPC was to confine coastal microplankton populations to the shelf, where a downwelling convergence prevented their export from the coastal environment. Microplankton assemblages on the shelf revealed a north–south gradient related to different stages of succession. Earlier stages of succession in which diatoms were prominent were found on the northern shelf, whereas dinoflagellates were more abundant in the south. The toxic species Gymnodinium catenatum, which was only present in the southern shelf, did not show a northward transport associated with the IPC. It is suggested that the northward spreading of HABs along the west coast of Iberia must be related to the interaction between the IPC, which accumulates coastal populations on the shelf, and the latitudinal progress of microplankton succession that determines species composition. Thus, during the course of the season, HABs are likely to be observed in the south prior to their development in the north.     

In Pursuit of Safety: One-Hundred Years of Toxicological Risk Assessment

The publication in 1962 of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring marks the mid-point in a century that saw, in its first half, the emergence of public health concerns related to human exposures to chemicals, and, in its second half, the emergence of public policies to deal with those concerns. Those policies made it imperative that the scientific community come to grips with the problem of identifying exposure levels not likely to cause harm. This problem was not significantly discussed within the scientific community until the 1950s, and well-described methods for practical solutions to it did not appear until the 1970s. An important report from the National Academy of Sciences, published in 1983 (Risk Assessment in the Federal Government), provided an analysis of these emerging methods, and recommended a useful framework for the assessment and management of risk. This framework remains central to public health and regulatory decision-making. A high-level perspective is offered on events leading to and following the 1983 report. The article describes early thinking about chemical toxicity and the scientific path that thinking followed through the 20th century, and to the present.     

Modela-r as a Froude and Strouhal dimensionless numbers combination for dynamic similarity in running

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that running at fixed fractions of Froude (Nfr) and Strouhal (Str) dimensionless numbers combinations induce dynamic similarity between humans of different sizes. Nineteen subjects ran in three experimental conditions, (i) constant speed, (ii) similar speed (Nfr) and (iii) similar speed and similar step frequency (Nfr and Str combination). In addition to anthropometric data, temporal, kinematic and kinetic parameters were assessed at each stage to measure dynamic similarity informed by dimensional scale factors and by the decrease of dimensionless mechanical parameter variability. Over a total of 54 dynamic parameters, dynamic similarity from scale factors was met for 16 (mean r=0.51), 32 (mean r=0.49) and 52 (mean r=0.60) parameters in the first, the second and the third experimental conditions, respectively. The variability of the dimensionless preceding parameters was lower in the third condition than in the others. This study shows that the combination of Nfr and Str, computed from the dimensionless energy ratio at the center of gravity (Modela-r) ensures dynamic similarity between different-sized subjects. The relevance of using similar experimental conditions to compare mechanical dimensionless parameters is also proved and will highlight the study of running techniques, or equipment, and will allow the identification of abnormal and pathogenic running patterns. Modela-r may be adapted to study other abilities requiring bounces in human or animal locomotion or to conduct investigations in comparative biomechanics.     

Production of C3 as a marker of lymphokine-mediated macrophage activation

C3 production was assayed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in cell-free supernatants harvested from thioglycollate-elicited macrophages exposed to a variety of macrophage stimulating and activating agents. Macrophage monolayers treated with the stimulating agents starch, glycogen, and zymosan secreted three- to four-fold less C3 (mean 12 ng/10(5) cells/12 hr) than macrophages exposed to lymphokines containing macrophage-activating factor (MAF) (mean C3 production 44 ng/10(5) cells/12 hr). The increased production of C3 in macrophages exposed to MAF parallels the ability of these macrophages to acquire tumoricidal capacity as monitored in an in vitro 72 hr tumor cell cytotoxicity assay using B16 melanoma cells. Macrophages previously rendered tumoricidal by exposure to MAF and which are refractory to further challenge by MAF following decay of their tumoricidal properties, do not produce C3 on rechallenge with MAF. Exposure of refractory macrophages to liposome-encapsulated MAF overcomes the refractory state and induces re-expression of the tumoricidal phenotype and C3 production. We conclude that quantitative detection of macrophage-generated C3 antigen provides a useful biochemical marker for monitoring the acquisition of tumoricidal properties in macrophages exposed to MAF and offers a sensitive assay for screening novel agents that activate macrophages via mechanisms similar to MAF.     

Molecular Characterization and Expression Analysis of ftr01, ftr42, and ftr58 in Zebrafish (Danio rerio)

Tripartite motif(TRIM) proteins were shown to play an important role in innate antiviral immunity. FinTRIM(ftr) is a new subset of TRIM genes that do not possess obvious orthologs in higher vertebrates. However, little is known about its function. In this study, we used bioinformatic analysis to examine the phylogenetic relationships and conserved domains of zebrafish(Danio rerio) ftr01, ftr42, and ftr58, as well as qualitative real-time PCR to examine their expression patterns in zebrafish embryonic fibroblast(ZF4) cells and zebrafish tissues. Sequence analysis showed that the three finTRIMs are highly conserved, and all contain a RING domain, B-box domain, and SPRY-PRY domain. In addition, ftr42 and ftr58 had one coiled-coil domain(CCD), whereas ftr01 had two CCDs. Tissue expression analysis revealed that the m RNA level of ftr01 was the highest in the liver, whereas those of ftr42 and ftr58 were the highest in the gill; the expression of thesefinTRIMs was clearly upregulated not in the eyes, but in the liver, spleen, kidney, gill, and brain of zebrafish following spring viremia of carp virus(SVCV) infection. Similarly, the expression of these three finTRIM genes also increased in ZF4 cells after SVCV infection. Our study revealed that ftr01, ftr42, and ftr58 may play an important role in antiviral immune responses, and these findings validate the need for more in-depth research on the finTRIM family in the future.     

The impact of daylight on suicide rates

Since Durkheim and Morselli found a spring peak in suicides in the late 19th century, researchers have presented possible explanations, including daylight variation, for this seasonal pattern. Our identification strategy exploits the idiosyncratic variation in daylight within Norwegian regions, arising from the country’s substantial latitudinal range. We use full population data for a period of 45 years in a pre-registered research design. We find a small and non-significant relationship: One extra hour of daylight increases the suicide rate by merely 0.75 % (95 % CI: −0.4 % to 1.9 %).     

余甘子种子的抗逆生理特性及其对天然更新的影响

余甘子（Phylanthus emblica）是干热河谷植被的重要特征种和建群树种。本文通过模拟金沙江干热河谷典型地区元谋盆地4月气候条件下,研究了余甘子种子的活力散失机制及其有关生理生化变化情况,并对余甘子天然群落的自然更新状况进行了调查。结果表明: 随着高温干旱处理时间延长,种子活力不断降低,相对电导率、Pro含量和MDA含量呈持续上升趋势;呼吸强度、SOD活性、POD活性、CAT活性、可溶性糖含量呈单峰曲线变化;膜保护酶系统活力降低和保护性物质含量减少是造成种子活力下降的主要因素;实验处理的第18天至第24天是余甘子种子抵御逆境的临界期;每年3月下旬至4月上、中旬,应采取人工辅助措施来提高其种子的天然更新能力。