A New Species of the Amolops mantzorum Group (Anura: Ranidae: Amolops) from Northwestern Hunan Province,China

We described anew species of the Amolops mantzorum group(Anura:Ranidae) from northwestern Hunan Province,China based on morphological and molecular evidence.The new species differs from its congeners by a combination of the following characteristics:moderate body size of SVL 403-409 mm in adult males(N=3),and 52.6-57.7 mm in adult females(N=3);head length about equal to or larger than head width(HDL/HDW 1.01-1.03);skin on dorsum smooth;dorsolateral folds absent,but developed a series of elongate...     

康定湍蛙物种界定

康定湍蛙Amolops kangtingensis依据多地混合标本订立,其分类地位一直存在争议。本文从居群水平出发,涵盖其多个模式产地及分布区,联合染色体核型、形态数量性状、分子系统发育分析,对其有效性及物种进行界定。结果表明,以新都桥为模式产地的康定湍蛙成立,分布区域大致界定于折多山以西雅砻江流域,海拔3000 m及以上高原地区,而原康定湍蛙大渡河流域各居群应划归四川湍蛙A.mantzorum物种之中。     

中国横断山区湍蛙属4个物种有效性的探讨

分布于中国横断山区的景东湍蛙、金江湍蛙、凉山湍蛙和康定湍蛙4种湍蛙的有效性存在不同意见.本文利用形态判别与线粒体COⅠ基因和Cyt b基因计算遗传距离相结合的方法,对这4个种的有效性进行探讨.结果 表明景东湍蛙和金江湍蛙为有效种;凉山湍蛙可能是棕点湍蛙的同物异名;康定湍蛙的有效性需要进一步研究才能确定.     

云南省两栖动物新纪录--棕点湍蛙

20 0 2年 8月 ,笔者在云南省昭通市巧家县东坪乡威宁村进行两栖爬行动物调查时 ,采集到 6号蛙类标本 ,经鉴定为蛙科湍蛙属棕点湍蛙 (Amolopsloloen sis) ,是云南省两栖动物新纪录 ,标本现保存于云南大学生命科学学院生物学系脊椎动物标本室。采集地巧家县东坪乡威宁村地理位置为 1 0 3°0 5′1 0″E ,2 7°1 8′45″N ,海拔 2 2 0 0m左右。生活于灌丛茂密、山溪湍流地带。成蛙白昼多隐蔽在溪流边石下或洞内 ;黄昏时多蹲在水中或岸边石上 ,受惊扰后立即跃入溪水中。省外目前仅分布于四川的部分县市。表 1　棕点湍蛙的量度　　　　　　 (单…     

The food and feeding habits of the Torrent frog, Amolops larutensis

The stomach contents of 661 Amolops larutensis (Blgr.) showed that this frog feeds on a wide range of terrestrial and aquatic animals of which insects form the greater part. Feeding was confined to the rocks and vegetation bordering the water-falls. Although adult frogs were capable of ingesting large prey up to a maximum length of 47.0 mm, they showed a definite preference for prey animals within the size-range of 1 to 6.5 mm length. No clear seasonal variation in the diet was found and it was suggested that the monthly fluctuations in the amount and type of prey ingested depend largely on the activity of the prey.     

Five novel antimicrobial peptides from skin secretions of the frog,Amolops loloensis

While investigating antimicrobial peptide diversity of Amolops loloensis, five novel antimicrobial peptides belonging to two families were identified from skin secretions of this frog. The first family including two members is esculentin-2-AL (esculentin-2-ALa and -ALb); the second family including three members is temporin-AL (temporin-ALd to -ALf). The family of esculentin-2-AL is composed of 37 amino acid residues (aa); the family of temporin-AL is composed of 16, 13 and 10 aa, respectively. All of these antimicrobial peptides showed antimicrobial activities against tested microorganisms. cDNAs encoding precursors of esculentin-2-ALs and temporin-ALs were cloned from the skin cDNA library of A. loloensis. All the precursors share similar overall structures. There is a typical prohormone processing signal (Lys-Arg) located between the acidic propiece and the mature peptide. The antimicrobial peptide family of esculentin-2 is firstly reported in the genus of Amolops. Combined with previous reports, a total of four antimicrobial peptide families have been identified from the genus of Amolops; three of them are also found in the genus of Rana. These results suggest the possible evolutionary connection between the genera Amolops and Rana.     

A new species of Amolops from Thailand (Amphibia, Anura, Ranidae)

We describe a new species of torrent-dwelling ranid frog of the genus Amolops from western to peninsular Thailand. Amolops panhai, new species, differs from its congeners by the combination of: small body, males 31-34 mm, females 48-58 mm in snout-vent length; head narrower than long; tympanum distinct; vomerine teeth in short, oblique patches; first finger subequal to second; disc of first finger smaller than that of second, with circummarginal groove; no wide fringe of skin on third finger; toes fully webbed; outer metatarsal tubercle present; supratympanic fold present; dorsolateral fold indistinct; axillary gland present; horny spines on back, side of head and body, and chest absent; large tubercles on side of anus absent; glandular fold on ventral surface of tarsus absent; nuptial pad and paired gular pouches present in male; white band along the upper jaw extending to shoulder absent; larval dental formula 7(4-7)/3(1). This new species is the second anuran discovered which has a disjunct distribution around the Isthmus of Kra.     

A new species of the genus Amolops (Anura: Ranidae) from high-altitude Sichuan,southwestern China,with a discussion on the taxonomic status of Amolops kangtingensis

A new species of the genus Amolops Cope,1865 is described from Xinduqiao,Kangding,Sichuan.It was previously identified as Amolops kangtingensis,which is synonymized to Amolops mantzorum in this study.The new species,Amolops xinduqiao sp.nov.,is distinguished from all other congeners by the following combination of characters:(1) medium body size,adult males SVL 41.2-47.5 mm (n=15,average 43.9 mm),adult females SVL 48.5-56.6 mm (n=15,average 52.5 mm);(2) head length equal to width or slightly wider than long;(3) tympanum small,but distinct;(4) vomerine teeth in two tiny rows,separated by a space about one vomerine teeth row;(5) bony projections on lower jaw absent;(6) dorsolateral folds usually absent;(7) tarsal folds or glands on tarsus absent;(8) circummarginal groove on disc of finger Ⅰ absent;(9) tibiotarsal articulation reaching nostril or beyond;(10) webs of toe Ⅳ reaching to distal articulation,other toes fully webbed to disc;and (11) vocal sac absent in males.     

Antimicrobial peptide diversity in the skin of the torrent frog, Amolops jingdongensis

Antimicrobial peptide diversity has been found in some amphibians. The diversity of antimicrobial peptides may have resulted from the diversity of microorganisms encountered by amphibians. Peptidomics and genomics analyses were used to study antimicrobial peptide diversity in the skin secretions of the torrent frog, Amolops jingdongensis. Thirty-one antimicrobial peptides belonging to nine groups were identified in the skin secretions of this frog. Among them, there are two novel antimicrobial groups (jingdongin-1 and -2) with unique structural motifs. The other seven groups belong to known antimicrobial peptide families, namely brevinin-1, brevinin-2, odorranain-F, esculentin-2, temporin, amolopin-3, and ranacyclin. Combined with previous reports, more than 13 antimicrobial peptide groups have been identified from the genus Amolops. Most of these antimicrobial peptide groups are also found in amphibians belonging to the genus Rana or Odorrana which suggests a possible evolutionary connection among Amolops, Rana, and Odorrana. Two novel antimicrobial groups (jingdongin-1 and -2) were synthesized and their antimicrobial activities were assayed. Some of them showed strong antimicrobial abilities against microorganisms including Gram-negative and -positive bacteria, and fungi. The extreme diversity of antimicrobial peptides in the Amolops amphibians was demonstrated. In addition, several novel peptide templates were provided for antimicrobial agent design.     

A novel bradykinin-like peptide from skin secretions of rufous-spotted torrent frog, Amolops loloensis

A bradykinin-like peptide has been isolated from skin secretions of rufous-spotted torrent frog, Amolops loloensis. This bradykinin-like peptide was named amolopkinin. Its primary structure, RAPVPPGFTPFR, was determined by Edman degradation and mass spectrometry. It is structurally related to bradykinin-like peptides identified from skin secretions of other amphibians. Amolopkinin is composed of 12 amino acid residues and is related to bradykinin composed of nine amino acid residues, identified from the skin secretions of Odorrana schmackeri. Amolopkinin was found to elicit concentration-dependent contractile effects on isolated guinea pig ileum. cDNA clones encoding the precursor of amolopkinin were isolated by screening a skin cDNA library of A. loloensis and then sequenced. The amino acid sequences deduced from the cDNA sequences match well with the results from Edman degradation. Analysis of different amphibian bradykinin cDNA structures revealed that a deficiency of an18-nucleotide fragment (TCAAGAATGATCAGACGC in the cDNA encoding bradykinin from O. schmackeri) in the peptide-coding region resulted in absence of a di-basic site for trypsin-like proteinases and an unusual - APV - insertion in the N-terminal part of amolopkinin. This is the first report of a bradykinin-like peptide comprised of bradykinin with an insertion in its N-terminal part. Our results demonstrate the hypervariability of amphibian bradykinin-like peptides, as well as the diversity of antimicrobial peptides in amphibians.     

Population estimation in the Torrent frog, Amolops lamtensis (Anura: Ranidae)

The results of four attempts at yearly intervals to estimate populations of Amolops lamtensis (Blgr.) along 360 m of forest stream are discussed and the most consistent estimates are obtained using Jolly's (1965) method of analysing such data. Observations of movement within the population indicate that most frogs are recaptured close to the original point of capture although a few show considerable downstream movement, possibly as a result of being swept away by the current. The recapture expectations are not, however, random and there is a strong indication that larger frogs are more liable to recapture. There is also evidence that frogs are available for recapture for different lengths of time, and it is likely that this leads to an under-estimate of the total population.     

Description of a New Species of Amolops (Anura:Ranidae) from Tibet,China

A new species,Amolops pallasitatus sp.nov.is described based on specimens collected from Chentang Town,Dinggyê County,southern Tibet,China.The new species can be distinguished from other known congeners by mitochondrial divergence and morphological characteristics including:(1)medium body size,SVL 70.6–72.3 mm in adult females;(2)skin smooth over the entire body;(3)absence of dorsolateral fold;(4)tympanum small,edge indistinct,less than half of eye diameter;(5)vomerine teeth in two short oblique;(6)circummarginal and transverse grooves absent on disk of the first finger;(7)presence of inner metacarpal tubercle;(8)toes fully webbed,webbing formula Ⅰ0-0~-Ⅱ0-1/2Ⅲ0-1~+Ⅳ1~+-0Ⅴ;(9)absence of outer metatarsal tubercle and tarsal glands;(10)tibiotarsal articulation of the hind limb reaches posterior corners of the eye;(11)dorsum yellow-green,with irregular dark brown blotches without margins;(12)blotches concentrated on the dorsum,less on the flanks.In morphology,Amolops pallasitatus sp.nov.is similar to A.himalayanus and A.formosus,the difference between them is length of hind limbs,web of toe and dorsal colour pattern.The systematic placement of the new species within the genus is unresolved and it is not assigned to any recognized species group,for the lack of convictive evidences.     

Two families of antimicrobial peptides with multiple functions from skin of rufous-spotted torrent frog, Amolops loloensis

There are around 27 species of Amolops amphibian distributed in South-east of Asia. Seven antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) belonging to two different families were purified from skin of rufous-spotted torrent frog, Amolops loloensis, and designated brevinins-ALa, b, c, and d, and temporins-ALa, b, and c. The brevinins-AL family which is structurally related to brevinins-1 from skin secretions of the European frog, Rana brevipoda, is composed of 24 amino acids and has an intra-disulfide bridge at the C-terminus. The temporins-AL family, composed of 13 or 16 amino acid residues, is related with temporins from the skin secretions of R. temporaria. The findings of this study will facilitate the solutions to the taxonomic questions of the ranid genus Amolops and Staurois. In the work of this paper, both brevinins-ALb and temporin-Ma induced mast cell degranulation and histamine release, and had cytotoxic activity toward solid tumor cell line HepG₂. Brevinins-ALb also exerted strong hemolytic activity while temporin-Ma had no such activity.     

Two novel families of antimicrobial peptides from skin secretions of the Chinese torrent frog, Amolops jingdongensis

The characterization of new natural antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) can help to solve the serious problem of bacterial resistance to currently used antibiotics. In the current study, we analyzed two families of AMPs from the Chinese torrent frog Amolops jingdongensis with a range of bioactivities. The first family of peptides, named jindongenin-1a, is 24 amino acids in length; a BLAST search of jindongenin-1a revealed no sequence similarity with other AMPs. The second family consists of two peptides containing 29 amino acid residues each. These peptides have high sequence similarity with the AMPs of palustrin-2 and are therefore designated palustrin-2AJ1 and palustrin-2AJ2. The cDNA sequences encoding these AMPs have been cloned and the deduced protein sequence of each AMP has been determined by protein sequencing. Sequence and structural analysis showed that each precursor is composed of a putative signal peptide, an N-terminal spacer, a processing site and a disulfide-bridged heptapeptide segment at the C-terminus. We synthesized jindongenin-1a and palustrin-AJ1 to test their antimicrobial, hemolytic, antioxidative and cytotoxic activities. These two peptides showed broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity to standard and clinically isolated strains of bacteria. In addition, they exhibited weak hemolytic activity to human and rabbit erythrocytes under our experimental conditions. Moreover, these peptides also displayed cytotoxic activity against the K562 and HT29 mammalian cell lines and low anti-oxidant activity. These findings provide helpful insight that will be useful in the design of anti-infective peptide agents.     

Ultrasonic communication in concave-eared torrent frogs (Amolops tormotus)

The concave-eared torrent frogs (Amolops tormotus) have highly unusual ear morphology--in males the eardrums are embedded deep inside ear cavities. In collaboration with our colleagues we investigated the functional significance of this morphological feature in hearing. Sound recordings in the field showed that males of A. tormotus produce diverse bird-like melodic calls with pronounced frequency modulations and non-linear phenomena (e.g., frequency jumps, different orders of subharmonics, and chaos) that often contain spectral energy in the ultrasonic range. The audible as well as the ultrasonic components of the species call could effectively evoke males' vocal responses, demonstrating that they can hear and respond to ultrasound. Electrophysiological recordings from the auditory midbrain confirmed the ultrasonic hearing capacity of these frogs. The recessed tympana and extremely thin tympanic membranes are adaptations for hearing ultrasound--this sensitivity may have evolved in response to the intense, predominately low-frequency ambient noise from local streams. Finally, results from the isolated laryngeal preparation in euthanized frogs revealed that the origin of call complexity and diversity lies with having a vocal system with nonlinear properties.     

贵州省两栖类新记录种——中华湍蛙及其蝌蚪描述

2015—2018年在贵州省梵净山国家级自然保护区和雷公山国家级自然保护区采集到湍蛙属Amolops 3号成体标本及1号蝌蚪标本,经过系统发育分析和形态学比较,确定为中华湍蛙Amolops sinensis,为贵州省两栖动物新记录。另外,本文首次对该种的蝌蚪进行了形态描述。     

Hainanenins: a novel family of antimicrobial peptides with strong activity from Hainan cascade-frog, Amolops hainanensis

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) secreted by amphibian skin represent an important innate immune defense strategy. There are more than 340 species in the family of Ranidae worldwidely, and from which nearly 100 families of AMPs comprising between 8 and 48 amino acid (aa) residues have been characterized. In current work, two novel AMPs were purified from the skin secretion of Hainan cascade-frog, Amolops hainanensis, and 31 cDNA sequences encoding 10 novel AMPs belonging to 4 families were cloned from the constructed skin cDNA library of A. hainanensis. Among these 10 AMPs, 5 peptides represent the prototypes of a novel amphibian AMP family. According to the generic name of the species of origin, they were designated as hainanenin-1-5. Each of them consists of 21 aa residues with a C-terminal disulphide loop of 7 residues between Cys(15) and Cys(21). Two of them (hainanenin-1 and 5) were then synthesized and their in vitro activities were screened, including antimicrobial, hemolytic and antioxidant activities. The results showed that hainanenin-1 and 5 possessed strong and broad-spectrum antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria and fungi, including a large number of clinically isolated drug-resistant pathogenic microorganisms, and slight antioxidant activity. Undesirably, hainanenin-1 and 5 exhibited strong hemolytic activity on human erythrocytes. The discovery of hainanenins and their great antimicrobial potency provides new templates for anti-infective agent design.     

湖南壶瓶山国家级自然保护区华南湍蛙种群监测

2004年5～11月,在湖南壶瓶山国家级自然保护区,采用标志一重捕法对华南湍蛙种群进行了生态监测,结果发现,华南湍蛙出蛰以后种群开始增加,繁殖期过后种群开始下降。在壶瓶山当气温低于10℃以下时,华南湍蛙就开始进入冬眠期。种群的存活率从出蛰到再次冬眠期间基本上呈直线下降,在8月之前种群中均有新添加的数量,以后未发现。在整个过程中,雌雄性比一般大于1,在繁殖季节基本接近于1。