21世纪生态学的几个热点问题

２１世纪生态学的几个热点问题蓝盛芳陈飞鹏（华南农业大学生物系,广州５１０６４２）自从１８６６年ＥｒｎｓｔＨａｅｃｋｅｌ首次给生态学以明确的定义之后,生态学在相当长时间发展缓慢．本世纪中叶以来,工业化造成环境污染、资源短缺等一系列问题,推动了生态学的迅...     

民族植物学认识的几个误区

民族植物学是研究一定地区的人群与植物界(包括所有在经济上、文化上和其他方面有重要价值的植物)之间的全面关系, 同时也研究社会结构、行为和植物之间的相互作用。民族植物学在寻找新资源、探索植物资源可持续利用和保护途径中已经发挥了非常重要的作用。但民族植物学在我国的发展还相对滞后, 其中对民族植物学在理解上存在的误区是导致民族植物学不为更多人所了解的主要因素之一。本文对容易导致对民族植物学产生误解的6个方面(包括“民族植物学就是研究少数民族利用植物的科学”、“民族植物学仅仅是文献考证的一门学科”、“民族植物学无定量方法”等) 进行了初步分析, 以期让更多的人了解民族植物学, 参与到民族植物学研究中来。     

民族植物学认识的几个误区

民族植物学是研究一定地区的人群与植物界(包括所有在经济上、文化上和其他方面有重要价值的植物)之间的全面关系,同时也研究社会结构、行为和植物之间的相互作用.民族植物学在寻找新资源、探索植物资源可持续利用和保护途径中已经发挥了非常重要的作用.但民族植物学在我国的发展还相对滞后,其中对民族植物学在理解上存在的误区是导致民族植物学不为更多人所了解的主要因素之一.本文对容易导致对民族植物学产生误解的6个方面(包括"民族植物学就是研究少数民族利用植物的科学"、"民族植物学仅仅是文献考证的一门学科"、"民族植物学无定量方法"等)进行了初步分析,以期让更多的人了解民族植物学,参与到民族植物学研究中来.     

结构植物学在中国的五十年发展

结构植物学由植物解剖学发展而来,是植物学的一个重要分支学科.本文根据其近代的发展,分别就植物发育解剖学向植物发育生物学的发展、植物比较解剖学向植物系统发育生物学的发展,以及环境生态结构植物学三个主要部分简要介绍了50年来在我国的发展,并对它们的发展趋势进行了预测.     

结构植物学在中国的五十年发展

结构植物学由植物解剖学发展而来 ,是植物学的一个重要分支学科。本文根据其近代的发展 ,分别就植物发育解剖学向植物发育生物学的发展、植物比较解剖学向植物系统发育生物学的发展 ,以及环境生态结构植物学三个主要部分简要介绍了 5 0年来在我国的发展 ,并对它们的发展趋势进行了预测     

植物学

本书是国内第一本全彩色的植物学教材。全书分为种子植物形态解剖、植物指纹和种子植物分类三大部分,此外,还介绍了植物与环境及植物多样性的内容。     

植物学海藻野外实习的几点做法

海藻野外实习是植物学教学中的重要内容,是与课堂教学、实验教学密切联系又必不可少的教学环节,对于开拓学生的视野、培养学生的兴趣、认识海洋植物等具特殊的意义。海藻野外实习中,由于实习时间短、学生缺乏识别经验等因素直接影响了实习的效果,根据多年青岛海滨海藻实习的经验,笔者总结出几点效果较好的做法如下:     

论动态经济植物学

经济植物学是植物科学中与生产实际及人民经济生活联系最密切的分支学科。由于过去对经济植物的市场动态重视不够 ,未能发挥植物资源的最大作用。该文提出的动态经济植物学是研究那些直接及间接对人类有利及有害的植物 ;研究它们的植物学特性 (分类、生理、生化、解剖、细胞、遗传、生态及用途等 )、栽培、繁殖、收获和加工 ,特别是市场情况、经济效益及社会效益。还对动态经济植物学的定义、研究对象、内容及教学和研究工作进行了较全面探讨 ,旨在使植物资源的开发利用更有效地为国民经济的发展服务     

胡先骕的古植物学情结

..世界著名植物分类学家胡先骕教授(1894-1968),是一位博古通今、学贯中西的学者。他不仅对植物分类学家有很深的造诣,而且对古植物学也情有独钟。如他在《植物分类学简编》这本著名教科书中,就特别谈到“演化和分类的关系”,认为“演化是分类的基础”,并十分强调化石植物是探讨植物系统演化的重要证据。同时,他还有意识地向读者介绍一些古植物学基本知识与经典文献,以引导植物科学工作者培养古今结合的思想方法和工作作风。胡先骕教授曾先后两次赴美国留学,头一次是1913—1916年,在美国加州大学农学院学习森林植物,获学士学位。第二次是192…     

Biotechnology in the 21st century

Although the future is unpredictable, it is highly likely that biotechnology will play a much more visible and significant role in the 21st century than it did in the 20th century. The number and kinds of drugs provided by biotechnology will expand markedly and biotechnology will stand at the center of the oncoming revolution in bioinformatics.     

Interdisciplinary sciences in the 21st century

With the advance of genome projects the search for the order of cellular processes has become a realistic goal. Yet this order is hidden behind a screen of data, which obscures the actual connectivity of genes and proteins. In order to expose the true nature of these networks it becomes necessary to apply in silico analysis based on certain parallels between biological and complex technical systems. These efforts far exceed current notions of computational biology.     

Crop improvement in the 21st century

Crop yields increased dramatically in the 20th century as recorded on Broadbalk or in world averages. The vast majority of that increase has occurred since the last world war and has been powered by changes in the genetic potential of the crop and in the way in which it has been managed. Nevertheless, the challenge to feed a world population that is likely to rise to 8 billion is formidable, particularly since recent analyses suggest that the rate of increase in yields of several crops may have dropped over the last decade. What are the opportunities to meet this challenge and to continue to improve the yields of our crops? Improvements in agronomy are likely to be more concerned with efficiency and elegance rather than in major breakthroughs. More sophisticated crop protection chemicals designed on the basis of vastly increased screening potentials and (at last?) possibilities of rational design will be supplemented by a battery of decision support systems to aid management choices which can be precisely implemented. Genetic improvement is the area in which to-look for the major breakthroughs. The broad potential of recombinant DNA technology will provide the possibility of both molecular analyses of crop productivity and ways in which it may be possible to improve that productivity. The goal of analysis may be approached in three ways: starting at the beginning by generating complete sequences of the plant genome; starting at the end by genetic analysis of phenotypes using genetic marker technology; or, starting in the middle, by metabolic analysis. Improvements may be obtained by re-assorting what has been achieved through enhanced breeding technologies, by randomly induced change, and by generation of totally new possibilities through biochemical engineering. Examples of all approaches will be given. The onset of genomics will provide massive amounts of information, but the success will depend on using that to improve crop phenotypes. The ability to meet the challenges of the 21st century will depend on the ability to close that 'phenotype gap'.     

Comparative endocrinology in the 21st century

Hormones coordinate developmental, physiological, and behavioral processes within and between all living organisms. They orchestrate and shape organogenesis from early in development, regulate the acquisition, assimilation, and utilization of nutrients to support growth and metabolism, control gamete production and sexual behavior, mediate organismal responses to environmental change, and allow for communication of information between organisms. Genes that code for hormones; the enzymes that synthesize, metabolize, and transport hormones; and hormone receptors are important targets for natural selection, and variation in their expression and function is a major driving force for the evolution of morphology and life history. Hormones coordinate physiology and behavior of populations of organisms, and thus play key roles in determining the structure of populations, communities, and ecosystems. The field of endocrinology is concerned with the study of hormones and their actions. This field is rooted in the comparative study of hormones in diverse species, which has provided the foundation for the modern fields of evolutionary, environmental, and biomedical endocrinology. Comparative endocrinologists work at the cutting edge of the life sciences. They identify new hormones, hormone receptors and mechanisms of hormone action applicable to diverse species, including humans; study the impact of habitat destruction, pollution, and climatic change on populations of organisms; establish novel model systems for studying hormones and their functions; and develop new genetic strains and husbandry practices for efficient production of animal protein. While the model system approach has dominated biomedical research in recent years, and has provided extraordinary insight into many basic cellular and molecular processes, this approach is limited to investigating a small minority of organisms. Animals exhibit tremendous diversity in form and function, life-history strategies, and responses to the environment. A major challenge for life scientists in the 21st century is to understand how a changing environment impacts all life on earth. A full understanding of the capabilities of organisms to respond to environmental variation, and the resilience of organisms challenged by environmental changes and extremes, is necessary for understanding the impact of pollution and climatic change on the viability of populations. Comparative endocrinologists have a key role to play in these efforts.     

Haldane's rule in the 21st century

Haldane's Rule (HR), which states that 'when in the offspring of two different animal races one sex is absent, rare, or sterile, that sex is the heterozygous (heterogametic) sex', is one of the most general patterns in speciation biology. We review the literature of the past 15 years and find that among the ～85 new studies, many consider taxa that traditionally have not been the focus for HR investigations. The new studies increased to nine, the number of 'phylogenetically independent' groups that comply with HR. They continue to support the dominance and faster-male theories as explanations for HR, although due to increased reliance on indirect data (from, for example, differential introgression of cytoplasmic versus chromosomal loci in natural hybrid zones) unambiguous novel results are rare. We further highlight how research on organisms with sex determination systems different from those traditionally considered may lead to more insight in the underlying causes of HR. In particular, haplodiploid organisms provide opportunities for testing specific predictions of the dominance and faster X chromosome theory, and we present new data that show that the faster-male component of HR is supported in hermaphrodites, suggesting that genes involved in male function may evolve faster than those expressed in the female function.     

Rotamer libraries in the 21st century

Rotamer libraries are widely used in protein structure prediction, protein design, and structure refinement. As the size of the structure data base has increased rapidly in recent years, it has become possible to derive well-refined rotamer libraries using strict criteria for data inclusion and for studying dependence of rotamer populations and dihedral angles on local structural features.     

Avian genomics in the 21st century

The chicken has long been an important model organism for developmental biology, as well as a major source of protein with billions of birds used in meat and egg production each year. Chicken genomics has been transformed in recent years, with the characterisation of large EST collections and most recently with the assembly of the chicken genome sequence. As the first livestock genome to be fully sequenced it leads the way for others to follow--with zebra finch later this year. The genome sequence and the availability of three million genetic polymorphisms are expected to aid the identification of genes that control traits of importance in poultry. As the first bird genome to be sequenced it is a model for the remaining 9,600 species thought to exist today. Many of the features of avian biology and organisation of the chicken genome make it an ideal model organism for phylogenetics and embryology, along with applications in agriculture and medicine. The availability of new tools such as whole-genome gene expression arrays and SNP panels, coupled with information resources on the genes and proteins are likely to enhance this position.     

21st century zoo design

A review of Conservation Centres for the New Millennium. Proceedings of the 5^th International Symposium on Zoo Design, edited by Amy B. Plowman and Peter M.C. Stevens. Paignton, Devon, U.K.: Whitely Wildlife Conservation Trust, 1999, 181 pp., paperback.