2021年中国双翅目新分类单元

双翅目是世界上昆虫种类最为繁多的类群之一, 具有重要的经济和生态意义。本文对2021年国内外学者发表的中国双翅目新分类单元进行了系统的整理和总结。2021年共发表中国双翅目新分类单元136个, 涉及27个科, 包括新属1个, 新种135个; 增加了中国新记录属4个, 新记录种37个。在2021年发表的所有中国双翅目新种中, 果蝇科、舞虻科、摇蚊科和大蚊科的数量最多, 占全年发表新种总数的1/2。新分类单元和新记录涉及23个省级行政区, 云南发表的新种数明显高于其他地区, 占全国新种发表总数的1/3。2021年双翅目的新分类单元由150位作者贡献, 发表论文70篇; Zootaxa、ZooKeys和昆虫分类学报是发表中国双翅目新分类单元的主要期刊。2021年, 中国双翅目分类研究取得了很大进展, 但其在不同地区和类群间的研究水平并不均衡, 未来仍需投入更多的关注和支持。     

2020年中国蜘蛛分类年报

本文总结了2020年发表的中国蜘蛛新分类单元和中国分类学者发表的国外蜘蛛新分类单元。基于国内标本, 2020年共发表中国蜘蛛223个新分类单元, 其中中国学者在12种期刊的56篇文章中命名了1新亚科、12新属和201新种, 国外学者命名了9新种, 合计210新种。云南是发现新种数量最多的省份, 占全国发现新种总数的38.1%。基于缅甸等12个国家标本, 2020年中国分类学者发表了外国蜘蛛95个新分类单元, 包括2新科、7新属和86新种。本文还总结了过去5年中国分类学者对全球蜘蛛分类的贡献, 2016‒2020年有1位中国学者发表771个新分类单元。     

2021年膜翅目新增分类单元

本文对2021年发表的膜翅目昆虫新分类单元进行了梳理和总结。结合数据库检索, 基于标本记录, 全球膜翅目学者于2021年发表该目新分类单元的期刊论文355篇, 新增分类单元条目共1,152条, 隶属于21总科66科416属, 包括5新科4新亚科83新属3新亚属1,054新种和3新亚种。现生类群相关期刊论文309篇, 新增分类单元条目980条, 隶属于18总科52科332属, 包括2新科26新属3新亚属946新种和3新亚种。绝灭类群相关期刊论文46篇, 新增分类单元条目172条, 隶属于14总科27科86属, 包括3新科4新亚科57新属和108新种。2021年中国膜翅目新增分类单元的相关期刊论文83篇, 新增分类单元条目235条, 隶属于17总科34科91属, 包括3新属(绝灭类群1新属)和232新种(绝灭类群2新种); 现生类群中新增的2属分别记录自台湾和浙江, 新种数量排前五位的省级行政单位有云南(54个)、浙江(42个)、福建(18个)、西藏(18个)和新疆(16个)。在全球现生、绝灭和中国现生膜翅目总科新物种数量的对比中, 姬蜂总科新种数量最多, 分别约占全球现生、绝灭和中国现生膜翅目新种总数的32.5% (307个/946个)、19.4% (21个/108个)和37.0% (85个/230个)。有关现生膜翅目新种发表情况, 在洲级地理单元中, 亚洲发表新种数量最多, 约占56.9% (538个); 在洲级地理亚单元中, 东亚发表新种数量最多, 约占28.6% (271个); 在国家和地区行政单元中, 中国发表新种数量最多, 约占24.3% (230个)。在76种期刊的355篇论文中, 有348篇英文论文、4篇中文论文和3篇法语论文。这些结果表明, 中国膜翅目分类在全球膜翅目分类中发挥着十分重要的作用。     

世界维管植物新分类群2021年年度报告

2021年全球共发表维管植物新分类群2,219个, 包括新亚科1个、新族7个、新亚族7个、新属68个、新亚属7个、新组15个、新亚组8个、新系10个、新种1,979个、新亚种46个、新变种59个和新变型12个; 这些新分类群隶属于185科881属, 兰科、菊科和茜草科是本年度最受关注的类群。2,219个维管植物新分类群由来自全球的1,942位学者发表在165个期刊和14部专著中, 其中有42位作者发表了11个以上的新分类群。值得关注的是, Phytotaxa和PhytoKeys是2021年发表维管植物新分类群的主要期刊, 分别发表586个和112个。本年度发表的2,096个新种及种下单元中, 被子植物门1,940个、蕨类植物门147个、裸子植物门9个, 其中兰科植物最多, 共227个。2021年发表的新种及种下单元来自世界115个国家和地区。亚洲和南美洲是新种及种下单元发现的热点地区, 分别发现837个和571个。中国、巴西和马达加斯加是2021年贡献维管植物新种及种下单元最多的前3个国家, 分别发现283、269和169个。考虑到在2021年2月1日之后IPNI对2020年发表的维管植物新种增加了797个, 我们估计在2022年4月16日之后, 各数据库中2021年发表的新种及种下单元会增加700个左右。这将使2021年发表的新种(和种下分类群)数量增加到大约2,800个, 这与2001年以来每年发表的维管植物新种数量相当。     

中国膜翅目2020年新分类单元

本文对中国膜翅目昆虫2020年发表的新分类单元进行了梳理和总结。结合数据库检索和统计表格征集, 基于采自中国的膜翅目昆虫标本记录, 全世界膜翅目学者于2020年共发表涉及中国膜翅目分类单元的期刊论文104篇、出版1本图书专著, 分类单元新增及变动条目共469条: 4个新属(其中1个绝灭属), 1个新亚属, 321个新种(其中10个绝灭种), 8个新组合, 22个新异名, 1个中国新记录亚科, 18个中国新记录属, 93个中国新记录种, 1个替代名。绝灭类群有11条, 涉及3总科3科5属; 现生膜翅目有458条, 涵盖11总科29科170属, 其中6科40属不涉及新种。发表现生膜翅目新种的9总科23科130属: 广腰亚目(Symphyta)叶蜂总科(Tenthredinoidea) 23个新种; 细腰亚目(Apocrita)针尾部(Aculeata) 3个总科(蜜蜂总科(Apoidea) 29个新种、青蜂总科(Chrysidoidea) 2个新种、胡蜂总科(Vespoidea) 20个新种); 细腰亚目寄生部(Parasitica) 5个总科(小蜂总科(Chalcidoidea) 23个新种、瘿蜂总科(Cynipoidea) 12个新种、姬蜂总科(Ichneumonoidea) 206个新种、广腹细蜂总科(Platygastroidea) 4个新种、钩腹蜂总科(Trigonalyoidea) 2个新种)。2020年发表的所有中国膜翅目新种中, 姬蜂总科新种数量最多, 约占全年发表新种总数的2/3。云南、浙江、西藏、福建和辽宁等5个省级行政区为2020年中国膜翅目新种分布最多的省份, 超过全年发表新种总数的1/2。基于以上结果, 本文对膜翅目分类学现状和发展前景进行了讨论。     

2020-2021年世界甲螨亚目新分类单元和近15年中国发表新种概况——纪念中国甲螨学开创100周年

甲螨是土壤动物主要的三大类群之一, 数量庞大且种类丰富。截至2020年, 中国已报道的甲螨仅占世界所有已知甲螨种类的7.6%, 这与我国已知甲螨种类真实物种状况仍有较大的差距。值此中国甲螨学开创100周年之际, 本研究以甲螨亚目为研究对象, 分别基于世界2020-2021年度和中国2007-2021年度发表的分类学文献资料, 编制了世界新增分类单元名录和近15年中国发表甲螨新种名录, 分析了新分类单元的地理分布、学者贡献和出版刊物情况。研究结果表明, 2020-2021年, 世界甲螨亚目共描述238个新分类单元, 包括新属及新亚属21个, 新种217个; 新分类单元发表的热点地区在埃塞俄比亚界、东洋界和新热带界; 描述的新分类单元由27位作者所贡献, 其中外国学者贡献占比高; 论文均发表在国外期刊上, Systematic and Applied Acarology是新分类单元发表的主要期刊。2007-2021年, 中国发表甲螨亚目新种183个, 无新科和新属发表; 新种发表的热点地区在华南区和西南区; 描述的新种由24位作者所贡献, 中国学者占主要贡献; 论文多发表在国外期刊上, Systematic and Applied Acarology和Zootaxa是新分类单元发表的主要期刊。基于以上结果, 本文认为目前从事甲螨分类学研究的学者相对较少, 发表的新分类单元在类群分布和区域分布上均表现出极不均衡的现象。传统分类学未来的发展将面临机遇和挑战。     

中国鳞翅目新物种2020年度报告

本文总结了2020年国内外学者发表的中国鳞翅目新分类单元的情况。经过统计, 2020年中国共发表鳞翅目新分类群196个, 其中新属1个, 新种190个, 新亚种5个; 发表国家级新记录71个; 发表新组合55个; 将11个名称处理为9个名称的异名; 新种(亚种)分别隶属于23个科。海南和云南两省发表的新物种数明显高于其他地区, 占全国新物种发表总数的2/5; 新记录种发表最多的地区为云南, 占全国新记录种总数的约1/2。整体来看, 我国南方新物种和新记录种发表数量明显高于北方。     

2021年世界蜘蛛新分类单元

蜘蛛是陆地生态系统中重要的捕食者, 也是多样性最高的陆生节肢动物类群之一。定期对蜘蛛目新分类单元进行汇总整理, 有助于更好地了解蜘蛛多样性研究的发展动态。本文总结了2021年全球发表的蜘蛛新分类单元。2021年全世界304位学者在64种刊物的254篇文章中发表了81个国家的975个蜘蛛新分类单元(含琥珀), 包括47新属928新种, 隶属81科。中国是发现新种最多的国家, 占世界新种总数的28.7%; 中国学者李枢强命名的新分类单元最多, 占世界新分类单元总数的21.8%。数码图像已成为蜘蛛分类研究中最重要的类型图, 使用数码图的论文占总数的95.2%; 基于两性标本发表的新种多于单性的新种, 占比达到60.3%。2021年中国学者发表了中国、缅甸等15个国家的330个新分类单元, 包括13新属317新种, 隶属39科; 中国学者2021年发表的新分类单元对世界的贡献率达到了33.8%, 高于2016-2020年的平均贡献率(28.1%)。     

中国半翅目等29目昆虫2020年新分类单元

以中国半翅目等29目昆虫类群(除鞘翅目、双翅目、鳞翅目、膜翅目之外的其他目)为研究对象, 基于2020年度发表的新分类单元与文献资料, 编制了物种名录, 分析了新分类单元的地理分布与模式标本存放情况等。2020年, 中国半翅目等29目昆虫共描述349个新分类单元, 包括新属35个, 新种311个, 新亚种3个; 新种发表的热点地区在我国的西南山地及其邻近地区。模式标本存放单位多达69家, 其中正模标本主要存放在国内保藏机构, 而境外机构保藏的标本较少且以副模标本为主。本年度描述的349个新分类单元由356位作者所贡献, 共发表文献182篇; Zootaxa和ZooKeys是发表的主要期刊。本次调查为进一步深入研究物种演化的时空格局及生物多样性保护提供了基础数据。同时, 由于人类面临生物多样性急剧下降的威胁, 应加快大数据平台的建设及其多样化信息的挖掘, 支撑生物多样性的研究和保护。     

世界鞘翅目2020年新分类单元

鞘翅目昆虫是陆地上最大的生物类群, 具有极为丰富的物种多样性和形态多样性, 在陆地生态系统中发挥着重要作用, 与人类社会生产密不可分。定期对世界鞘翅目新分类单元进行汇总整理, 有助于更好地了解鞘翅目多样性的发展动态, 从而促进对生态系统结构与功能的了解以及鞘翅目昆虫资源的开发与保护。本文对2020年发表的世界鞘翅目分类学文献进行了系统地整理与分析。结果表明, 2020年共发表世界鞘翅目新分类单元3,228个(含化石种类), 包括1个新科5个新亚科13个新族218个新属18个新亚属2,973个新种; 提出了1,319个新组合610个新异名49个降级的分类单元及61个升级的分类单元。重点研究的类群包括隐翅虫科(Staphylinidae)、步甲科(Carabidae)、象甲科(Curculionidae)、天牛科(Cerambycidae)等。世界鞘翅目昆虫新物种模式标本产地涉及118个国家和地区, 大部分新物种分布于中国、巴西、墨西哥、厄瓜多尔、印度尼西亚、澳大利亚和越南。收录世界鞘翅目昆虫新发表种的论文/专著共995篇/部, 涉及期刊或出版社141个。2020年, 世界鞘翅目分类学取得了显著进展, 但同时也暴露了新种发现速度略慢于1978-2000年的平均速度以及地区和类群研究力度不均衡的问题, 未来仍需加大投入, 探寻更加高效准确的方法, 以期实现对全球生物多样性的全面评估和保护。     

基于芽苗砧嫁接油茶砧穗创伤后内源激素动态变化分析

为研究油茶(Camellia oleifera A)嫁接时穗条和砧木创伤后内源激素动态变化规律,解析影响砧穗嫁接面愈合的生理机制,为油茶砧穗愈合生长机理提供理论支持。以树龄6年的长林18号和53号的穗条和实生砧木为材料,按照芽苗砧嫁接方法切割穗条S0(0 min)、S10(10 min)、S40(40 min)和砧木茎段Z0(0 min)、Z10(10 min)后,利用液质联用法(HPLC-MS)测定吲哚乙酸(IAA)、脱落酸(ABA)、反式玉米素(TZR)、玉米素(Zeatin)、水杨酸(SA)和茉莉酸(JA)含量,分析不同时间段内源激素变化及品种间差异的关系。结果显示:创伤后18号的TZR、Zeatin和SA含量总体高于53号;18号IAA、SA和JA逐渐下降;TZR和Zeatin分别在S10和S0达最高值后下降;ABA在S10达最高值。53号IAA和JA爱S10达最高值后下降;TZR、Zeatin和SA在S10达低值后逐渐上升;ABA在S0达高值后逐渐下降。砧木茎段创伤前后激素含量除JA外18号高于53号;两品种Z0时激素含量下降,Z10后上升,仅53号ABA和SA含量在Z0达高值后下降。砧木茎段和根部激素含量在品种间除JA外18号高于53号,茎段的IAA、ABA高于根部,其他激素为根部高于茎段。激素比值在品种间和部位间差异明显;IAA/ABA、IAA/TZR、IAA/Zeatin和IAA/JA、ABA/TZR、ABA/Zeatin和ABA/JA比值为53号高于18号;穗条内SA/IAA为18号高于53号,SA/JA和SA/ABA为53号高于18号;砧木茎段均为18号高于53号;TZR/SA、TZR/JA比值在穗条和砧木茎段为18号高于53号。两品种创伤后IAA与JA极显著正相关,而IAA与SA,SA与JA在18号极显著正相关,53号极显著或显著负相关;53号TZR、Zeatin、SA间极显著或显著正相关,JA与TZR、Zeatin和SA极显著负相关。砧木茎段创伤后18号激素间为极显著或显著正相关;53号TZR和Zeatin与IAA、JA极显著正相关,与SA存在显著负相关,SA与JA有显著负相关。砧木茎段和根部间品种间仅在SA与各激素间相关性存在差异,其他激素间存在极显著正相关或负相关。综上所述,砧穗创伤后激素水平上18号在创伤面易于愈伤组织发育,而53号抗逆激素水平较高且与细胞分裂增殖类激素负相关,可能影响53号嫁接后愈合生长;嫁接应在创伤后10 min内较为适宜;砧穗间激素含量及比值的差异可能会影响后期嫁接部位形态重建以及穗条生长。     

Accumulation of elements in the arteries and cardiac valves of Thai with aging

To elucidate whether the extent of element accumulation in the arteries and cardiac valves with aging was different between different races, the authors investigated the accumulation of elements in the arteries and cardiac valves of the Thai with aging and the relationships among elements in the cardiac valves. After ordinary dissection at Chiang Mai University was finished, 16 arteries and 4 cardiac valves were resected and element contents were determined by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry. In the 16 arteries, the average content of calcium was the highest in the site of the abdominal aorta ramifying into the common iliac arteries, and it decreased in the order internal iliac, coronary, abdominal aorta, common iliac, external iliac, superior mesenteric, inferior mesenteric, thoracic aorta, brachial, radial, common carotid, subclavian, ulnar, axillary, renal, and internal thoracic arteries. The average contents of phosphorus and magnesium in respective arteries were parallel with the average contents of calcium, except for the coronary artery. In comparison with the arteries of the Japanese, the trend of calcium accumulation in the arteries of the Thai was almost similar to that in the arteries of the Japanese, except for the coronary artery and thoracic aorta. The calcium accumulation in the coronary artery was much higher in the Thai than in the Japanese, whereas that in the thoracic aorta was lower in the Thai than in the Japanese. Regarding elements in the cardiac valves, the calcium content increased remarkably in the seventies in the aortic valve and in the nineties in the pulmonary valve, but it hardly increased in both the mitral and tricuspid valves with aging. The average content of calcium was the highest in the aortic valve, and it decreased in the order pulmonary, tricuspid, and mitral valves. Regarding the relationship among elements in the aortic valves, it was found that there were extremely significant direct correlations among the contents of calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium, whereas there were significant direct correlations between zinc and either calcium or phosphorus contents. Although significant correlations were found between sulfur and the other element contents in the aortic valves of the Japanese, no significant correlations were found between them in the aortic valves of the Thai. In the mitral valves, extremely or very significant direct correlations were found among the contents of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and sulfur, with some exceptions that there were no significant correlations between phosphorus and either magnesium or sulfur contents. In addition, no significant correlation was found in the calcium content between the aortic valve and coronary artery in the same individuals.     

Dichloroacetate- and trichloroacetate-induced phagocytic activation and production of oxidative stress in the hepatic tissues of mice after acute exposure

Dichoroacetate (DCA) and trichloroacetate (TCA) are by-products formed during chlorination of the drinking water and were found to be hepatotoxic and hepatocarcinogenic in rodents. In this study, the abilities of the compounds to induce oxidative stress and phagocytic activation have been studied in B6C3F1 mice. Groups of mice were administered 300 mg/kg of either DCA or TCA, p.o, and were sacrificed after 6 or 12 h. Peritoneal lavage cells (PLCs) were isolated and assayed for superoxide anion (SA) production, and hepatic tissues were assayed for the production of SA, lipid peroxidation (LP), and DNA-single strand breaks (SSBs). TCA resulted in significant production of SA in the PLCs, and in the production of SA, LP, and DNA-SSBs in the hepatic tissues, 12 h after dosing, as compared with the control. DCA administration, on the other hand, resulted in significant increases in the productions of LP and DNA-SSBs in the hepatic tissues at both time points, and in SA production in PLCs and hepatic tissues, 6 h after dosing. However, DCA-induced increases in SA production in PLC and hepatic tissues declined at the 12-h time point, reaching control level in the hepatic tissues. These results may implicate the contribution of phagocytic activation to the induction of oxidative stress in the hepatic tissues and also the role of SA production in the induction of LP and/or DNA damage in those tissues, in response to the compounds. The results also suggest studying the involvement of these mechanisms in the long-term hepatotoxicity/hepatocarcinogencity of the compounds.     

Dynamics of growth and the content of endogenous phytohormones during kidney bean scoto-and photomorphogenesis

The dynamics of growth and the contents of free and bound endogenous IAA, gibberellins (GA), cytokinins (zeatin and its riboside), and ABA in kidney bean plants (Phaseolus vulgaris L., cv. Belozernaya) grown in darkness or in the light was studied. Phytohormones were quantified in 5–15-day-old plants by the ELISA technique. Plant growth and phytohormone content were shown to depend on plant age and the conditions of illumination. During scotomorphogenesis, changes in the biomass and hypocotyl length were highly correlated with the content of GA, whereas during photomorphogeneses, these parameters were correlated with the content of zeatin. In darkness, epicotyl growth displayed a positive correlation with the content of GA, whereas in the light, the correlation was negative. Growth characteristics of the primary leaves were shown to correlate with IAA in darkness and with GA and zeatin in the light. At a low concentration of cytokinins in illuminated leaves, cell divisions occurred, whereas, at the higher cytokinin concentrations, cell expansion occurred. The highest content of GA was characteristic of leaves in the period of growth cessation. ABA accumulated during active leaf and root elongation and biomass increment in the light and during hypocotyl growth in darkness. After plant illumination, the ratio of auxins to cytokinins increased in bean roots and decreased in their epicotyls. Thus, light changed the developmental programs of bean plants, which was manifested in the changed rate and duration of growth of various organs (root, hypocotyl, epicotyl, and leaf). Some mechanisms of light action depended on the contents of IAA, ABA, GA, and cytokinins and the ratios between these phytohormones. Differences between scotonorphogenesis of mono-and dicotyledonous plants are discussed in relation to the levels of phytohormones in them.     

Neurochemical Mechanisms Underlying Alcohol Addiction: Model Experiments on Rats

We measured the activities of the main alcohol-metabolizing enzymes (alcohol dehydrogenase, AlDH, and aldehyde dehydrogenase, AdhDH) in the blood serum, comparing these indices with the contents of ethanol and its main metabolite, acetaldehyde (AcAdh), in the blood, and also measured the contents of catecholamines (adrenaline, noradrenaline, and dopamine) in the blood and in different brain structures (hypothalamus, midbrain, and neocortex) of rats in the states of acute alcohol intoxication and chronic alcohol addiction. It was shown that, because of dissimilar changes in the activities of AlDH and AdhDH under conditions of alcohol intoxication, the dynamic balance between endogenous ethanol and AcAdh existing in the norm is disturbed, which results in an increase in the level of AcAdh. Such a phenomenon probably is one of the crucial factors underlying the development of alcohol addiction.     

啮齿动物作用下退耕地山杏种子扩散与贮藏的季节变化

啮齿动物对植物种子的取食和扩散影响种子的时空分布,继而影响种子的萌发和幼苗建成,因而在森林更新中起着重要作用.在国有济源市愚公林场,选择退耕地生境,于春季、夏季、秋季分别释放人工标记的山杏种子,观察啮齿动物扩散与埋藏山杏种子的季节性差异.结果表明：1）退耕地中的啮齿动物主要包括大林姬鼠、社鼠、黑线姬鼠;2）山杏种子扩散速率在春季显著慢于夏季,夏季显著慢于秋季;3）种子搬运量受季节和种子状态交互作用影响,春季显著少于夏季,夏季显著少于秋季;4）不同季节种子平均搬运距离不同,秋季不同状态种子的搬运距离均大于春季和夏季;5）啮齿动物对山杏种子的贮藏点大小多为1粒种子,少量为2、3粒种子,且贮藏点大小与季节间存在显著的交互作用,春季单粒种子的贮藏点数量显著少于夏季和秋季,而夏季与秋季的贮藏点则倾向于多粒种子;6）在夏季和秋季各有5枚（共释放1800枚）被啮齿动物分散贮藏的山杏种子建成幼苗.     

Seasonal variation of organogenetic activity and reserves allocation in the shoot apex of Pinus pinaster Ait

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To understand better the basic growth characteristics of pines and the fundamental properties of the shoot apical meristem (SAM), variations within the shoot apex of buds were studied. METHODS: A detailed structural comparison of meristem dimensions, organogenetic activity, and the presence of lipids, starch grains and tannins was performed on shoot apices of juvenile, and male and female adult Pinus pinaster at five different times in the annual growth cycle. KEY RESULTS: There were significant correlations among traits and differences in the pattern for juvenile and adult shoots. In juvenile shoots, peaks of organogenesis were present in spring and autumn, but not in summer. In adult shoots, one peak, characterized by an increase in meristem dimensions, was present in summer. The accumulation of starch grains beneath the SAM and of tannin in sub-apical pith parenchyma were at their maximum when organogenetic activity was high in spring and autumn in juvenile plants, and in summer in adult plants. In juvenile and adult plants, lipids were stored within the SAM in autumn, filling a large part of the bud in winter, and were depleted in the cortical parenchyma and then in the pith during shoot elongation. CONCLUSIONS: Depending on the sites of accumulation within the SAM and on the stage of the annual growth cycle, lipids, starch and tannins may be involved in different processes. In spring, energy and structural materials released by lipid hydrolysis may contribute to stem elongation and/or cell-to-cell communication. During organogenesis, energy and structural materials released by starch hydrolysis may influence developmental programmes in the SAM and adjacent cells. Tannins may be involved in cellular detoxification. At the end of the growing season, accumulation of lipid and starch is positively correlated with the onset of dormancy.     

Diverse synchrony of firing reflects diverse cell-assembly coding in the prefrontal cortex

In the present paper, we focus on the coding by cell assemblies in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and discuss the diversity of the coding, which results in stable and dynamic representations and the processing of various information in that higher brain region. The key activity that reflects cell-assembly coding is the synchrony of the firing of multiple neurons when animals are performing cognitive and memory tasks. First, we introduce some studies that have shown task-related synchrony of neuronal firing in the monkey PFC. These studies have reported fixed and several types of dynamic synchronous firing during working memory, long-term visual memory, and goal selection. The results of these studies have indicated that cell assemblies in the PFC can contribute to both the stability and the dynamics of various types of information. Second, we refer to rat studies and introduce the findings of cellular interactions that contribute to synchrony in working memory, learning-induced changes in synchrony in spatial tasks, and interactions of the PFC and hippocampus in dynamic synchrony. These studies have proposed neuronal mechanisms of cell-assembly coding in the PFC and its critical role in the learning of task demands in problematic situations. Based on the monkey and rat studies, we conclude that cell-assembly coding in the PFC is diverse and has various facets, which allow multipotentiality in the higher brain region. Finally, we discuss the problem of the sizes of cell assembly, how diverse the sizes are in the PFC, and the technical problems in their investigation. We introduce a unique spike-sorting method that can detect small and local cell assemblies that consist of closely neighboring neurons. Then, we describe the findings of our study that showed that the monkey PFC has both small and large cell assemblies, which have different roles in information coding in the working brain.     

Differences in accumulation of elements in human cardiac valves

To elucidate changes of human cardiac valves with aging, the authors determined age-related changes of element contents in the four human cardiac valves by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry and attempted to examine the relationships in the element contents among the four cardiac valves. The subjects consisted of 10 men and 15 women, ranging in age from 65 to 102 yr. The accumulation of calcium and phosphorus was the highest in the aortic valve, and decreased in the order mitral, pulmonary, and tricuspid valves. The contents of calcium and phosphorus in the aortic valves corresponded to about 12 and 19 times the amounts of those in the tricuspid valves, in which the contents were very low. The contents of calcium and phosphorus in the aortic valves were about 2.5-fold the amounts of those in the mitral valves. An examination was attempted to determine whether or not there were relationships in element contents among the four cardiac valves. As for the aortic and mitral valves, there were no relationships in the contents of calcium and phosphorus between them, but there were relationships in the contents of sulfur and magnesium between them. Three out of 24 cases contained high contents of calcium and phosphorus in both the mitral and aortic valves, whereas 16 out of 24 cases contained high contents of calcium and phosphorus in the aortic valves alone, without the high contents in the mitral valves. Likewise, there were no relationships in the element contents, such as calcium, phosphorus, sulfur, and magnesium, between the mitral and pulmonary valves or between the mitral and tricuspid valves. It is suggested that the accumulation of calcium and phosphorus in the cardiac valve occurs independent of the other cardiac valves.