Divergent growth of Norway spruce on Babia Góra Mountain in the western Carpathians

Growth divergence – i.e. the expression of divergent growth trends of neighboring trees – has certain implications for dendrochronological research, for instance in the context of climate reconstructions but also in terms of estimating net ecosystem productivity. Thus, understanding the underlying mechanisms is essential to extend our fundamental dendroecological knowledge. In this context, the Picea genus plays an important role since several of its species were reported to exhibit growth divergence. Here, we investigate a well sampled Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst) data set for growth divergence comprising ring-width and Blue Intensity measurements from seven sites on Babia Góra Mountain, at the border between Poland and Slovakia. By means of Principal Component Gradient Analysis, inter-series correlations, and climate growth relationships, we are able to show that I) Norway spruce on Babia Góra expressed growth divergence since the 1970s, II) the definition of groups increased the strength of population signals and the stability of climate-growth relationships, and III) Blue Intensity appeared as a more robust proxy for environmental conditions. We discuss soil heterogeneity, genetics, and air pollution as possible underlying mechanisms, thereby indicating further research avenues to obtain a better understanding of growth divergence.     

Origin of the cultivated passion fruit Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa and genomic relationships among species of the subgenera Decaloba and Passiflora

• Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa is the most economically important species in the genus Passiflora. However, the origin of this yellow form of passion fruit remains unclear, being suggested as a hybrid (P. edulis f. edulis × P. ligularis) or wild mutant.
• Here, the origin and genomic relationships of P. edulis f. flavicarpa with some related species in the genus Passiflora (subgenera Decaloba and Passiflora) were investigated using genomic in situ hybridization (GISH). Genomic DNA of 18 species was used as probe, which was hybridized onto chromosomes of P. edulis f. flavicarpa.
• Of all genomic DNA probes tested, none allowed us to identify a specific chromosome set in P. edulis f. flavicarpa. Conversely, probes from the subgenus Passiflora, P. edulis f. edulis, P. alata, P. cincinnata, P. coccinea, P. nitida and P. vitifolia, produced intense and uniform hybridizations on all chromosomes of P. edulis f. flavicarpa. Moreover, probes from P. ligularis, P. foetida and P. sublanceolata produced more intense hybridizations in the terminal region of four chromosomes, corresponding to the DNAr 45S locus, and also dispersed, less intense, hybridization across all chromosomes. Probes from the subgenus Decaloba, P. biflora, P. capsularis, P. cervii, P. coriacea, P. micropetala, P. morifolia, P. rubra and P. suberosa, produced hybridizations restricted to the DNAr 45S sites.
• The hybrid origin of P. edulis f. flavicarpa could not be supported based on the GISH results, and it is suggested that this species is conspecific with P. edulis f. edulis, because the probe with DNA of this form hybridized strongly throughout the target genome. The other putative parent species, P. ligularis, showed only a distant relationship with the target genome. The results also suggest that species of the subgenus Passiflora share many repetitive sequences and that the relationship between subgenera Decaloba and Passiflora is very distant.

     

Shape analysis of the jaws between two minnow species over ontogeny

This study compares sand shiner (Notropis stramineus ) and silverjaw (Ericymba buccata ) minnows, in terms of the morphological shape changes of the upper, lower, and pharyngeal jaws over ontogeny. These two species of minnows initially feed on midge larvae and undergo an ontogenic prey shift. The traditional morphometrics measured—total length, snout‐to‐vent length, eye diameter, premaxilla length, lower jaw length, gape—were regressed onto total length to test for allometry. Digital pictures were processed with tpsDig and further analyzed with MorphoJ utilizing a regular geometric morphometrics procedure using principle component analyses. We examined gut contents for 16 fish of each species. For the silverjaw minnows, we found all jaw variables to exhibit positive allometric growth with increasing total length, while most of the jaw variables for the sand shiner exhibited negative allometric growth with increasing total length. This correlates with an ontogenic prey shift for both species. Sand shiner minnows have been found to be more omnivorous, feeding on algae later in life, while silverjaw minnows undergo a prey shift to larger invertebrates. These species lack oral dentition causing an increased reliance on the pharyngeal apparatus. Principle component analyses revealed elongation of pharyngeal jaw elements in the silverjaw minnows and a relative shortening and bulking of pharyngeal jaws in the sand shiner minnows. The ontogenic dietary shifts observed in these two species provide possible explanation for the morphological changes over ontogeny in jaw elements, which are likely enabling these species to occupy the same habitat with little niche overlap.     

The influence of ants on patterns of colonization and establishment within a set of coexisting lycaenid butterflies in a south-east Asian tropical rain forest

In Peninsular Malaysia ten species of lycaenid butterflies use leaf flushes or inflorescences of the legume tree Saraca thaipingensis as larval hostplant. Resource partitioning among these species is regulated by a complex mixture of patterns of interaction with ants. Females of obligately myrmecophilous species lay their eggs exclusively on trees colonized by their specific host ants. On trees colonized by weaver ants, only specialist mutualists adapted to these territorial ants are able to survive, while larvae of other species are killed. The formicine ant Cladomyrma petalae, which inhabits hollow twigs of the myrmecophytic hostplant, likewise precludes oviposition by female butterflies. Lycaenid larvae confronted with this ant species never survive, but one concealed feeding species (Jamides caeruleus) escapes removal due to the cryptic life-habits of the larvae. Two facultative myrmecophiles associate in a mutualistic way with a wide and largely overlapping range of ant genera which forage at the extrafloral nectaries of leaf flushes. One species (Cheritra freja) is not myrmecophilous, but is tolerated by all but the most territorial ants. Ant-dependent hostplant selection and egg-clustering characterize the obligate mutualists, whereas facultative myrmecophiles and the non-myrmecophile distribute their eggs singly over appropriate hostplants. Signals mediating caterpillar-ant communication are highly specialized in one obligate myrmecophile (Drupadia theda), but rather unspecific in four other species tested. Altogether our observations indicate that colonization and establishment of lycaenid butterflies on S. thaipingensis trees are governed by specializations as well as opportunistic use of resources (ants and hostplant parts). Therefore, the diversity of this species assemblage is maintained by deterministic as well as stochastic factors.     

High temperature and oxygen supplementation can mitigate the effects of hypoxia on developmental stability of bilateral traits during incubation of broiler breeder eggs

Hypoxia strongly affects embryonic development during the pre-hatch period. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of oxygen supplementation (O) and a 38.5°C high temperature (HT) at high altitude (HA, 1720 m) on morphological traits during a pre-hatch period and on relative fluctuating asymmetry (relative FA) and allometric growth during an early post-hatch period in broilers. A total of 720 eggs were obtained from a 45-week-old Ross 308 broiler breeder flock raised at sea level (2 m). The eggs were divided into six incubation condition (IC) groups and were incubated at HA. O groups were exposed to 23.5% O₂ for 1 h daily from either days 0 to 11 (O_0–11), days 12 to 21 (O_12–21) or days 18 to 21 (O_18–21) of incubation. HT groups were exposed to 38.5°C daily from either days 12 to 21 (HT_12–21) or days 18 to 21 (HT_18–21) of incubation. A control was maintained at 37.8°C and 21% O₂. The hatched chicks were raised for 6 days at HA. Embryo/chick and beak lengths and head diameter were measured during pre- and post-hatch periods. The face, middle toe and shank lengths were measured for each chick. The relative asymmetry (RA), mean RA (MRA) and allometric growth of the lengths were computed and the existence of FA was demonstrated. The IC significantly affected the embryo length, with embryos of the O_0–11 group shorter than embryos of the other O groups. Chicks were longer in the O and HT groups than those in the control, except for the O_0–11. We found significant interactions between the IC and each development period for beak length. During the post-hatch period, the head diameter of the O_0-11 was significantly smaller than that of the other groups, but not in O_12–21. The interactions among IC, age and sex were significant for the RA of the face and middle toe lengths and for MRA. All the examined bilateral traits were evaluated as allometric growth. The FA for bilateral traits was determined in both sexes. The right (R) – left (L) and IR-Ll were the lowest in females for face length and in males for shank length from the O_18–21 and in males for middle toe length from the O_0–11 and HT_18–21 groups. Therefore, the effects of factors such as HT and O₂ could mitigate the adverse effects of HA-induced hypoxia on optimal developmental stability of bilateral traits of broiler.     

Unraveling Ascaris suum experimental infection in humans

Ascaris lumbricoides and Ascaris suum are two closely related parasites that infect humans and pigs. The zoonotic potential of A. suum has been a matter of debate for decades. Here we sought to investigate the potential human infection by A. suum and its immunological alterations. We orally infected five healthy human subjects with eggs embraced by A. suum. The infection was monitored for symptoms and possible respiratory changes, by an interdisciplinary health team. Parasitological, hematological analyses, serum immunoglobulin, cytokine profiles, and gene expression were evaluated during the infection. Our results show that A. suum is able to infect and complete the cycle in humans causing A. lumbricoides similar symptoms, including, cough, headache, diarrhea, respiratory discomfort and chest x-ray alterations coinciding with larvae migration in the lungs. We also observed activation of the immune system with production of IgM and IgG and a Th2/Th17 response with downregulation of genes related to Th1 and apoptosis. PCA (Principal componts analysis) show that infection with A. suum leads to a change in the immune landscape of the human host. Our data reinforce the zoonotic capacity of A. suum and bring a new perspective on the understanding of the immune response against this parasite.     

Synthesis,characterization, in vitro cytotoxicity and antimicrobial investigation and evaluation of physicochemical properties of novel 4-(2-methylacetamide)benzenesulfonamide derivatives

In this study, several sulfonamide derivatives, 4-(2-methylacetylamino)benzenesulfonamides were synthesized. Chemical structures of the derivatives were characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, LC–MS–MS, UV–Vis, FTIR, photoluminescence and elemental analysis. Sulfanilamide was reacted with 2-bromopropionyl bromide, in the presence of pyridine, to form bromo-substituted sulfonamide key intermediates, which were subsequently treated with secondary amines to obtain novel sulfonamide derivatives. All the synthesized compounds were evaluated for in vitro antimicrobial activities and cytotoxicity. Increases in ring size, and rings bearing a nitrogen heteroatom led to improvements in antimicrobial activities. As the presence of CA IX and CA XII enzymes have been implicated in some cancerous tumors, the studies presented herein focuses on targeting these enzymes. It was found that the synthesized derivatives had in vitro anti-cancer properties, where compounds (3–6) were found to be active against all cancerous cells, and no cytotoxic effects on normal cells were observed.     

Synthesis of novel substituted pyrimidine derivatives bearing a sulfamide group and their in vitro cancer growth inhibition activity

The synthesis of two series of novel substituted pyrimidine derivatives bearing a sulfamide group have been described and their in vitro cancer growth inhibition activities have been evaluated against three human tumour cell lines (HT-29, M21, and MCF7). In general, growth inhibition activity has been enhanced by the introduction of a bulky substituent on the aromatic ring with the best compound having GI₅₀ < 6 μM for all the human tumour cell lines. The MCF7 selective compounds were evaluated on four additional human invasive breast ductal carcinoma cell lines (MDA-MB-231, MDA-MB-468, SKBR3, and T47D) and were selective against T47D cell line in all cases except one, suggesting a potential antiestrogen activity.