1,25（OH）_2D_3缺失对膜内和软骨内成骨影响的比较研究

目的：比较1,25（OH）2D3缺失对膜内成骨和软骨内成骨影响的不同。方法：用免疫组织化学染色、HE染色和Western-blot等方法检测6周龄的野生型（wild type,WT）和1琢（OH）ase-/-小鼠的颅骨和股骨干骺端骨组织中I型胶原和甲状旁腺素受体（parathyroid hormone receptor,PTHR）的表达水平。结果：和WT小鼠相比较,1 ase-/-小鼠颅骨的I型胶原阳性面积明显减少,但是干骺端I型胶原阳性面积明显增加,差异有显著性（P〈0.01）;1琢（OH）ase-/-小鼠颅骨成骨细胞计数明显减少,差异存在统计学意义（P〈0.05）;但是干骺端成骨细胞计数明显增加,差异有显著性（P〈0.01）;1琢（OH）ase-/-小鼠颅骨的PHTR表达水平明显减少,但是在干骺端PHTR表达水平明显增加,差异均有显著性（P〈0.01）。结论：1,25（OH）2D3缺乏导致小鼠膜内成骨方式骨形成减少,而软骨内成骨骨形成增加。     

巨前颌契氏鸟(鹏鸟科:反鸟类)的形态学描述及早白垩世鸟类尾羽的空气动力学功能比较（英文）

契氏鸟(Chiappeavis)是首次发现保存有扇状尾羽的反鸟类,显示出尾羽球茎这一结构在较原始的反鸟类中已经发育。详细描述了巨前颌契氏鸟(C.magnapremaxillo)正型标本的骨骼形态学特征。契氏鸟的腭区形态与始祖鸟(Archaeopteryx)相似,而区别于晚白垩世的反鸟类戈壁鸟(Gobipteryx)。即使具有尾羽球茎,鹏鸟类的尾综骨形态也表明该结构发育较差。估算了在契氏鸟中由扇状尾羽所产生的浮力,并与其他早白垩世鸟类进行对比。结果显示,契氏鸟的扇状尾羽所产生的空气浮力小于同时代生活的今鸟型类,这有可能解释了反鸟类中具有空气动力学功能的尾羽形态普遍缺乏的现象。     

1,25（OH）2D3缺失对膜内和软骨内成骨影响的比较研究

目的:比较1,25(OH)2D3缺失对膜内成骨和软骨内成骨影响的不同。方法:用免疫组织化学染色、HE染色和Western-blot等方法检测6周龄的野生型(wild type,WT)和1琢(OH)ase-/-小鼠的颅骨和股骨干骺端骨组织中I型胶原和甲状旁腺素受体(parathyroid hormone receptor,PTHR)的表达水平。结果:和WT小鼠相比较,1 ase-/-小鼠颅骨的I型胶原阳性面积明显减少,但是干骺端I型胶原阳性面积明显增加,差异有显著性(P<0.01);1琢(OH)ase-/-小鼠颅骨成骨细胞计数明显减少,差异存在统计学意义(P<0.05);但是干骺端成骨细胞计数明显增加,差异有显著性(P<0.01);1琢(OH)ase-/-小鼠颅骨的PHTR表达水平明显减少,但是在干骺端PHTR表达水平明显增加,差异均有显著性(P<0.01)。结论:1,25(OH)2D3缺乏导致小鼠膜内成骨方式骨形成减少,而软骨内成骨骨形成增加。     

采用基质辅助激光解吸/电离飞行时间质谱(MALDI-TOF)鉴定曲霉属Flavi组和Fumigati组的一些种（英文）

一些曲霉是主要的食物腐败菌及人的病原体,特别是免疫系统受损的病人可能导致严重的感染。本研究评价了利用基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱对一些临床和环境中重要的Flavi组和Fumigati组曲霉,进行鉴定的可能性,并将结果与形态学及测序结果(ITS区和部分-tubulin和钙调蛋白基因)进行比较分析。通过曲霉中34个Flavi组菌株和30个Fumigati组菌株的质谱分析,来建立基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱的数据库。对光谱数据进行聚类分析表明Fumigati组的基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱的结果与系统发育结果完全一致;Flavi组的基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱方法将A.flavus,A.oryzae,A.sojae和A.parasiticus分开的效果比测序方法好。随后,再选取用于验证数据库的50个菌株中49个(98%)菌株用质谱数据得到正确鉴定。对于分离本研究中曲霉的隐形种,基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱方法优于测序方法。这种方法可以用于曲霉临床实验室鉴定的标准方法,因为临床需要快速和稳定的鉴定方法,这对于适当的治疗方案的选择很重要,此方法同样适于环境研究工作。     

郑蚱属的分类研究及一新种记述(直翅目: 蚱总科)（英文）

本文记述中国郑蚱属Zhengitettix昆虫6种, 包括采自云南的1新种, 即三角郑蚱Zhengitettix triangularis sp. nov. 此新种近似于海南郑蚱Z. hainanensis Liang, 1994, 但主要区别为: 颜面隆起纵沟的宽度等于触角基节的宽度; 触角着生于复眼下缘之间; 后突到达后足胫节顶端1/3处; 后翅超过后突顶端; 后足胫节黑色。并附有郑蚱属分种检索表和地区分布。模式标本分别保存于陕西师范大学动物研究所昆虫标本室及西南林业大学云南森林灾害预警与控制重点实验室。     

拉曼光谱对由X-ray和~(60)Coγ-ray照射的EC9706细胞的研究（英文）

食道癌细胞(EC9706)通过不同剂量x射线和60Coγ电子束曝光并继续培养24 h后,我们使用激光拉曼光谱分析EC9706细胞内蛋白质、核酸、脂肪和某些生物大分子的构象和内容的变化。结果表明,每个曝光组和对照组中的拉曼光谱的强度和频移存在巨大差异。由X射线辐照后,对照组中某些剂量组的一些波带消失了,骨架链蛋白质造成的1 114 cm-1峰在所有剂量组中消失。经60Coγ-ray照射后,在大剂量组中,在AmideⅡ波带中的β折叠构象变成中等剂量的无规则卷曲构象及磷酸二酯组中的非氢键的提升。从物理能级的角度,为进一步研究EC9706细胞由X射线和60Coγ-ray造成的辐射损伤机理提供了实验依据。     

孟氏苏崩猴(哺乳动物纲:近兔猴超科)的齿列以及亚洲窃果猴科系统发育关系的再研究（英文）

格沙头期的窃果猴类(carpolestid)孟氏苏崩猴(Subengius mengi)属于亚洲已知最早的近兔猴形类(plesiadapiform)。苏崩猴的新标本澄清了该类群的牙齿解剖结构。孟氏苏崩猴的齿列比以前认为的要原始得多,下齿列的齿式2.1.3.3,p4低冠,具有3个主尖,但不似Elphidotarsius的相应主尖那样完全并生,P3的舌侧缘更窄,结构更简单,m1不具有高度扩展的下前尖和下后尖。苏崩猴P3的独特结构以及对Elphidotarsius sp.,cf.E.florencae的P3解剖特征的重新研究表明,过去对窃果猴科P3的某些齿尖的同源性的解释是错误的。在详细的特征分析基础上,重新建立了窃果猴类及其近亲的系统发育关系。崩班期(Bumbanian)的同时猴(Chronolestes simul)被重新认定是窃果猴科最基部的成员。孟氏苏崩猴以及崩班期的另一个种旭日多脊食果猴(Carpocristes oriens)也是窃果猴类相对靠基部的成员,但这些亚洲窃果猴类之间似乎都没有特殊的相互关系。虽然北美和亚洲的窃果猴类均延续到古新世-始新世界线附近,但它们在两个大陆之间的扩散似乎仅限于古新世的较早期。     

Size scaling and stiffness of avian primary feathers: implications for the flight of Mesozoic birds

The primary feathers of birds are subject to cyclical forces in flight causing their shafts (rachises) to bend. The amount the feathers deflect during flight is dependent upon the flexural stiffness of the rachises. By quantifying scaling relationships between body mass and feather linear dimensions in a large data set of living birds, we show that both feather length and feather diameter scale much closer to predictions for geometric similarity than they do to elastic similarity. Scaling allometry also indicates that the primary feathers of larger birds are relatively shorter and their rachises relatively narrower, compared to those of smaller birds. Two-point bending tests indicated that larger birds have more flexible feathers than smaller species. Discriminant functional analyses (DFA) showed that body mass, primary feather length and rachis diameter can be used to differentiate between different magnitudes of feather bending stiffness, with primary feather length explaining 63% of variance in rachis stiffness. Adding fossil measurement data to our DFA showed that Archaeopteryx and Confuciusornis do not overlap with extant birds. This strongly suggests that the bending stiffness of their primary feathers was different to extant birds and provides further evidence for distinctive flight styles and likely limited flight ability in Archaeopteryx and Confuciusornis.     

Bone histological correlates of high-frequency flapping flight and body mass in the furculae of birds: a phylogenetic approach

A parsimony optimization of the presence of high-frequency flapping flight onto a phylogeny of 29 species of birds shows that this is a derived character state that has been acquired at least four independent times: by the last common ancestor of Alcidae, that of Podicipedidae, that of Anatidae, and that of Rallidae. Cineradiographic analysis has shown that the furculae of birds underwent extraordinary deformations during the wingbeat cycle. Cyclical deformations are known to produce microfractures in the bone tissue, which may be a stimulus for Haversian remodelling, a mechanism of resorption and reconstruction of bone tissue that may repair bone microdamage. In the present study, we performed a comparative analysis in a phylogenetic context to test the effect of the frequency of cyclical deformations and body mass on the rate of Haversian remodelling in the furculae of birds. A variation partitioning analysis showed that the type of flight (high-frequency flapping flight vs. other kinds of flight of lower wing beat frequency) and body mass explained a significant portion of Haversian bone density (the outcome of Haversian remodelling) and that the phylogeny also explained a significant part of this variation. This phylogenetic signal on Haversian bone density variation may be the outcome of phylogenetic signal on the proximate causes producing Haversian remodelling.  © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2007, 91 , 729–738.     

Multivariate analysis of neognath skeletal measurements: implications for body mass estimation in Mesozoic birds

The abundant fossils of avian stem taxa unearthed during the last years make it necessary to review and improve the models for estimating body mass used in palaeoecological studies. In this article, single and multiple regression functions based on osteological measurements were obtained from a large data set of extant flying birds for estimating the body mass of 42 Mesozoic specimens from stem taxa Archaeopterygidae, Jeholornithidae, Sapeornithidae, Confuciusornithidae, and Enantiornithes, and basal members of Ornithuromorpha. Traditionally, body mass has been estimated in fossil vertebrates using univariate scaling functions. In contrast, multiple regression functions have been used less frequently. Both predictive methods can be affected by different sources of error from statistics, phylogenetic relationships, ecological adaptations, and bone preservation; however, although some studies have addressed these biases, few have tested them within the context of a single data set. In our data set, we find that the models with greater predictive strength and applicability for new specimens, especially for stem taxa, are those derived from multiple regression analyses. For this reason, we suggest that multiple regression analyses may provide improved predictive strength for stem group specimens. Moreover, the methodology used for selecting variables allowed us to obtain specific sets of predictors for each fossil stem group that presumably minimized the variation resulting from historical contingency (i.e. differences in skeletal morphology arising from phylogeny), locomotor adaptations, and diagenetic compaction. The loss of generalizability in the multiple regression models resulting from collinearity effects was negligible on the body mass estimates derived from our data set. Therefore, the body mass values obtained for Mesozoic specimens are accurate and can be used in future studies in a number of palaeobiological and evolutionary aspects of extinct birds, particularly the first stages of avian flight. © 2015 The Linnean Society of London     

A three-dimensional analysis of tooth-root morphology in living bears and implications for feeding behaviour in the extinct cave bear

ABSTRACT

The morphology of both crowns and tooth-roots reflects dietary specialisation in mammalian carnivores. In this article, we analyse the tooth-root morphology of maxillary teeth from CT scans of living bears (Ursus arctos, Ursus americanus, Ursus maritimus, Ursus thibetanus, Melursus ursinus, Helarctos malayanus, Tremarctos ornatus and Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in order to make inferences about the diet and feeding behaviour of the extinct cave bear (Ursus spelaeus sensu lato). Specifically, we investigate two major mitochondrial clades of extinct cave bears recognized by previous authors: Ursus ingressus and Ursus spelaeus (U. spelaeus spelaeus, U. spelaeus ladinicus, U. spelaeus eremus). Our results indicate a close association between tooth-root surface area and feeding behaviour in all living bear species. Tooth-root surface area values of cave bears suggest that they relied more on vegetative matter than living brown bears (Ursus arctos) but subtle differences between these species/subspecies could also indicate different feeding strategies among the members of cave bear complex.     

Life history of a basal bird: morphometrics of the Early Cretaceous Confuciusornis

Confuciusornis sanctus stands out among the remarkable diversity of Mesozoic birds recently unearthed from China. Not only is this primitive beaked pygostylian (birds with abbreviated caudal vertebrae fused into a pygostyle) much more abundant than other avian taxa of this age but differences in plumage between specimens--some having a pair of long stiff tail feathers--have been interpreted as evidence for the earliest example of sexual dimorphism in birds. We report the results of a multivariate morphometric study involving measurements of more than 100 skeletons of C. sanctus. Our analyses do not show any correlation between size distribution and the presence or absence of blade-like rectrices (tail feathers), thus implying, that if these feathers are sexual characters, they are not correlated with sexual size dimorphism. Our results also provide insights into the taxonomy and life history of confuciusornithids, suggesting that these birds may have retained ancestral dinosaurian growth patterns characterized by a midlife exponential growth stage.     

Primary feather lengths may not be important for inferring the flight styles of Mesozoic birds

Chan, N.R., Dyke, G.J. & Benton, M.J. 2013: Primary feather lengths may not be important for inferring the flight styles of Mesozoic birds. Lethaia, Vol. 46, pp. 146–152. Although many Mesozoic fossil birds have been found with primary feathers preserved, these structures have rarely been included in morphometric analyses. This is surprising because the flight feathers of modern birds can contribute approximately 50% of the total wing length, and so it would be assumed that their inclusion or exclusion would modify functional interpretations. Here we show, contrary to earlier work, that this may not be the case. Using forelimb measurements and primary feather lengths from Mesozoic birds, we constructed morphospaces for different clades, which we then compared with morphospaces constructed for extant taxa classified according to flight mode. Consistent with older work, our results indicate that among extant birds some functional flight groups can be distinguished on the basis of their body sizes and that variation in the relative proportions of the wing elements is conservative. Mesozoic birds, on the other hand, show variable proportions of wing bones, with primary feather length contribution to the wing reduced in the earlier diverging groups. We show that the diverse Mesozoic avian clade Enantiornithes overlaps substantially with extant taxa in both size and limb element proportions, confirming previous morphometric results based on skeletal elements alone. However, these measurements cannot be used to distinguish flight modes in extant birds, and so cannot be used to infer flight mode in fossil forms. Our analyses suggest that more data from fossil birds, combined with accurate functional determination of the flight styles of living forms is required if we are to be able to predict the flight modes of extinct birds. □Birds, flight, morphospace, Mesozoic, wing.     

Phylogenetic interrelationships of living and extinct Tinamidae,volant palaeognathous birds from the New World

Tinamous, one of the earliest diverging living avian lineages, consists of a Neotropical clade of palaeognathous birds with a fossil record limited to the early Miocene–Quaternary of southern South America. Here, we conduct a comprehensive, morphology‐based phylogenetic study of the interrelationships among extinct and living species of tinamous. Morphological data of fossil species are included in a matrix of 157 osteological and myological characters of 56 terminal taxa. The monophyly of most recognized genera is supported by the results of the analysis. The cladistic analysis also recovers the traditional subdivision between those tinamous specialized for open areas (Nothurinae) and those inhabiting forested environments (Tinaminae). Temporal calibration of the resultant phylogeny indicates that such a basal divergence had already taken place in the early Miocene, some 17 million years ago. The placement of the fossil species within the open‐area (Nothurinae) and the forest‐dwelling (Tinaminae) tinamous is also consistent with the palaeoenvironmental conditions inferred from the associated fauna. © 2014 The Linnean Society of London     

Power and metabolic scope of bird flight: a phylogenetic analysis of biomechanical predictions

For flying animals aerodynamic theory predicts that mechanical power required to fly scales as P proportional, variant m (7/6) in a series of isometric birds, and that the flight metabolic scope (P/BMR; BMR is basal metabolic rate) scales as P (scope) proportional, variant m (5/12). I tested these predictions by using phylogenetic independent contrasts from a set of 20 bird species, where flight metabolic rate was measured during laboratory conditions (mainly in wind tunnels). The body mass scaling exponent for P was 0.90, significantly lower than the predicted 7/6. This is partially due to the fact that real birds show an allometric scaling of wing span, which reduces flight cost. P (scope) was estimated using direct measurements of BMR in combination with allometric equations. The body mass scaling of P (scope) ranged between 0.31 and 0.51 for three data sets, respectively, and none differed significantly from the prediction of 5/12. Body mass scaling exponents of P (scope) differed significantly from 0 in all cases, and so P (scope) showed a positive body mass scaling in birds in accordance with the prediction.     

The tail end of hummingbird evolution: parallel flight system development in living and ancient birds

Evolutionary innovations are central to debates about biological uniformitarianism because their very novelty implies a distinct evolutionary dynamic. Traditional scenarios for innovations in the development of avian powered flight exemplify the kinds of distinctions considered to occur at different times during the history of innovations. Thus, the progressive change of the wing stroke mechanism early in its evolution is considered to have imposed strong functional and historical constraints on tail shape diversity, whereas attainment of the modern flight stroke mechanism is considered to have liberated the tail to radiate into a wide variety of other functions and forms. Detailed analyses of living hummingbirds revealed that these highly aerial birds actually expressed many parallel functional constraints and historically progressive patterns observed earlier in avian history: (1) more basal lineages had relatively weak wing muscles (patagial muscles and tendons, TPB), convex to square tails, and more linear flight employed in nonterritorial foraging; (2) more derived lineages had a stronger TPB, forked tails, accentuated growth of tail fork, and more manoeuvrable and agile flight employed in territorial foraging; and (3) the most derived lineage had the strongest TPB, greatly reduced tails, and mainly bee-like flight. These associations make functional sense because convex tails increase stability and efficiency in linear flight, concave tails augment lift for turning flight in territorial defence, and tails become aerodynamically disadvantageous if the wings provide sufficient lift. Derived hummingbird lineages also demonstrated the same expansion of tail shape and taxonomic diversity associated with perfection of the modern wing stroke mechanism earlier in avian history. Thus, living hummingbirds are a microcosm of overall avian flight evolution. Other living avian (‘aerial courser') and extinct reptilian (Pterosaur) clades with extraordinary flight abilities provide evidence for similar patterns, suggesting a broadly defined uniformitarianism (early constraint followed by later radiation) at the limits of the flight performance envelope throughout vertebrate history. Correlated evolution of TPB and tail form suggests that natural selection on an integrated flight system was the principal mechanism fostering the avian patterns, although strengthening of wing muscles in derived lineages may have facilitated expansion of caudal morphological diversity through a balance between natural and sexual selection on males. These findings suggest that wing muscles, locomotor integration, and phylogenetic patterns are essential for understanding function and adaptation of tails in living as well as ancient birds. © 2009 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2009, 97 , 467–493.