Zoosporic marine fungi from the Pacific Northwest (U.S.A.)

Summary An investigation of the zoosporic fungi in the vicinity of the Friday Harbor Laboratory, San Juan Is., Washington, revealed the presence of great numbers of fungi. With one exception (Olpidium sp.) these were all biflagellate organisms. Predominating were species (11) of Thraustochytriaceae which abounded in water, in association with seaweeds, intertidal sands, and particularly on the surface of bottom samples down to depths of 298 m. A twelfth species of this group has several peculiarities and needs further investigation. Of the algal parasites, one on Polysiphonia and Pterosiphonia is considered new and termed Eurychasma joycei n. sp.The assistance of Drs. R. E. Norris and G. J. Hollenberg in calling my attention to certain algal parasites is gratefully acknowledged. I am also indebted to my colleague Dr. H. C. Whisler, and to Dr. C. Anastasiou for assistance in photographic work.     

Genecology of Holodiscus discolor (Rosaceae) in the Pacific Northwest,U.S.A.

An important goal for land managers is the incorporation of appropriate (e.g., locally adapted and genetically diverse) plant materials in restoration and revegetation activities. To identify these materials, researchers need to characterize the variability in essential traits in natural populations and determine how they are related to environmental conditions. This common garden study was implemented to characterize the variability in growth and phenological traits relative to climatic and geographic variables of 39 Holodiscus discolor (Pursh) Maxim. accessions from locations throughout the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A. Principal component analysis of 12 growth and phenological traits explained 48.2% of the observed variability in the first principal component (PC‐1). With multiple regressions, PC‐1 was compared to environmental values at each source location. Regression analysis identified a four‐variable model containing elevation, minimum January temperature, maximum October temperature, and February precipitation that explained 86% of the variability in PC‐1 (r²= 0.86, p < 0.0001). Spatial analysis using this regression model identified patterns of genetic diversity within the Pacific Northwest that can help guide germplasm selection (i.e., seed collections) for restoration and revegetation activities.     

Variation in Hypericins from wild populations ofHypericum perforatum L. in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.A.

Representatives from eight wild populations ofHypericum perforatum L. were collected from Montana and Northern California at flowering, and subsequently analyzed for hypericin and pseudohypericin using HPLC analysis. Total individual plant concentrations in these wild populations were from 0.0003–0.1250% dry weight (DW) hypericin and 0.0019–0.8458% DW pseudohypericin. In general, hypericin concentrations were highest in the plant’s reproductive (flower and bud) tissues, followed by leaf and stem tissues, respectively. Hypericin and pseudohypericin concentrations were positively correlated in all samples, although the relative ratio of hypericin to pseudohypericin varied with site location.     

Consequences of reduced light for flower production in conifer-invaded meadows of the Pacific Northwest,U.S.A

Plant Ecology - Woody-plant encroachment threatens the biodiversity and ecosystem functioning of grasslands and meadows worldwide. An important but rarely described consequence of the transition to...     

Epicuticular wax of Agropyron intermedium

Wax on leaves of Agropyron intermedium contains hydrocarbons (11%, C₂₇–C₃₃), esters (11%, C₃₂–C₆₀), free alcohols (180%, C₂₆) 25-oxohentriacontane-14,16-dione (17%), 10-oxohentriacontane-14,16-dione (5y%), 25-hydroxyhentriacontane-14,16-dione (12%) and 26-hydroxyhentriacontane-14,16-dione (2%). Wax on spikes contains additional components, C₂₅–C₃₃cis 9-alkenes (32% of hydrocarbons), and more β-diketones, 25-hydroxy (17%) and 26-hydroxy (3%) hentriacontane-14,16-diones, 10,25-dioxohentriacontane-14,16-dione (1%) and 4-hydroxy-25-oxo-(2%), 25-hydroxy-10-oxo-(1.3%) and 26-hydroxy-10-oxo-(0.7%) hentriacontane-14,16-diones; free alcohols were very minor components (1%, C₂₄–C₃₂).     

Epicuticular wax of Colletia paradoxa

The composition of Colletia paradoxa epicuticular wax was determined. Hydrocarbons (27%), ketones (22%—mainly taraxerone), free acids (17%), free     

Epicuticular wax of Panicum virgatum

Leaf and stem wax of Panicum virgatum contains hydrocarbons (4%), esters (3%), free acids (2%), free alcohols (1%), triterpene alcohols (2%), β-diketones (69%) and hydroxy β-diketones (6%). Principal free alcohols range in chain length from C₂₆ to C₃₂. β-Diketones consist almost entirely of tritriacontane-12,14-dione and the hydroxy β-diketone consists only of 5(S)-5-hydroxytritriacontane-12,14-dione. The configuration of the hydroxyl group is the same as that of hydroxy β-diketones from festucoid grasses but opposite to that of the hydroxy β-diketone from Andropogon species.     

Epicuticular wax of Cirsium arvense

Epicuticular wax of Cirsium arvense contains hydrocarbons (12%), esters (35%), free acids (3%), free alcohols (10%), triterpene acetates (8%) and 1,3-ditetradecanoyl-2-hexanoylglycerol (8%) as major components. Minor components are triterpene alcohols (3%) and nonacosan-10-ol (2%). The esters contain triterpene alcohol esters (19%) as well as esters of alkanols.     

Epicuticular wax of Eragrostis curvula

Epicuticular wax of Eragrostis curvula contains hydrocarbons (6%), esters (13%), acids (3%), alkanols (4%), tritriacontane-12,14-dione (47%), 5(S)-5-hydroxytritriacontane-12,14-dione (14%) as major components. The esters consist of triterpenol esters (42%) as well as alkanol esters. The free alkanols consist principally Of C₁₆C₃₂ components, resembling those of waxes from panicoid, and some other eragrostoid, grasses. Minor components are triterpenols (0.7%), triterpenones (0.5%), triacylglycerols (0.3%), secondary alkanols (0.1%) and 5-oxotritriacontane-12,14-dione (0.1%).     

Amphibians as metrics of critical biological thresholds in forested headwater streams of the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A.

1. Amphibians are recognized both for their sensitivity to environmental perturbations and for their usefulness as cost-effective biometrics of ecosystem integrity (=system health).
2. Twenty-three years of research in headwater streams in the Klamath-Siskiyou and North Coast Bioregions of the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A., showed distinct patterns in the distribution of amphibians to variations in water temperature, % fine sediments and the amount of large woody debris (LWD).
3. Here, we review seven studies that demonstrate connections between species presence and abundance and these three in-stream variables. These data were then used to calculate realized niches for three species, the southern torrent salamander, the larval coastal tailed frog and the larval coastal giant salamander, relative to two of these environmental stressors (water temperature and % fine sediments). Moreover, multivariate generalized additive models were used to predict the presence of these three amphibians when these three stressors act in concert.
4. Stream-dwelling amphibians are shown to be extremely sensitive to changes in water temperature, amounts of fine sediment and LWD, and specific thresholds and ranges for a spectrum of animal responses can be used to manage for headwater tributary ecosystem integrity.
5. Consequently, amphibians can provide a direct metric of stream ecosystem integrity acting as surrogates for the ability of a stream network to support other stream-associated biota, such as salmonids, and their related ecological services.     

Epicuticular wax of Poa ampla leaves

Leaf wax of a glaucous variety of Poa ampla contains hydrocarbons (5%, C₂₃–C₃₅), esters (9%, C₃₆–C₅₆), free acids (3%, C₁₆–C₃₄), free alcohols (6%, mainly C₂₆); hentriacontane-14,16-dione (14%), 5-oxohentriacontane-14,16-dione (1%); hydroxy β-diketones (56%) and unidentified material (6%). The hydroxy β-diketones, which are more abundant in this wax than in others, were shown by ¹³C NMR to consist of 4-hydroxy (15%), 5-hydroxy (70%) and 6-hydroxy (15%) hentriacontane-14,16-diones.     

Epicuticular wax of Agropyron smithii leaves

Wax on the leaves of Agropyron smithii contains hydrocarbons (3%, C₂₇–C₃₃), esters (4%, C₂₆–C₅₆), free acids (5%, C₁₄–C₃₆), hentriacontane-14,16-dione (17%), 25-oxohentriacontane-14,16-dione (3%), 25-hydroxyhen-triacontane-14,16-dione (30%), 26-hydroxyhentriacontane-14,16-dione (18%) and unidentified material (20%). Free and combined acids and combined alcohols did not contain a characteristic major component and free alcohols were absent. A method of estimating proportions of isomeric hydroxy-β-diketones by ¹³C NMR spectroscopy of the hydroxy acids obtained from hydrolysis is described.     

The quality of care delivered to Parkinson's disease patients in the U.S. Pacific Northwest Veterans Health System

Background  

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common chronic neurological disorder of the elderly. Despite the fact that a comprehensive review of general health care in the United States showed that the quality of care delivered to patients usually falls below professional standards, there is limited data on the quality of care for patients with PD.     

Epicuticular wax of Juniperus scopulorum

Epicuticular wax from Juniperus scopulorum contains hydrocarbons (16%), esters (11%), free acids (1%), nonacosan-10-ol (27%), nonacosane-diols (7%) and estolides (16%). The major hydrocarbon is tritriacontane; the principal esters are C₃₄–C₄₆, mainly octyl and decyl esters of C₂₈-C₃₆ acids; and the diols consist of nonacosane-4,10-diol (57%),5,10-diol (28%), 7,10-diol (11%) and 10,13-diol (4%). Hydrolysis of the estolides gave a mixture of acids, ω-hydroxy acids, , ω-diols, alcohols and hydroxy acids. The hydroxy acids are a new class of C₂₈–C₃₆ acids with the OH attached to either the eighteenth or twentieth carbon from the terminal methyl end; the major component is 13-hydroxydotriacontanoic acid. Syntheses of this acid and of nonacosane-4,10-dione and nonacosane-4,10-diol are described.     

Epicuticular wax of Pinus radiata needles

Epicuticular wax isolated from the cotyledons and primary needles of 10-week-old Pinus radiata seedlings is similar in composition and contains 86% neutral compounds, viz. alkyl esters (25%, C₂₄–C₆₄), nonacosan-10-ol (52%), heptacosane-5,10-diol (2%), nonacosane-4,10-diol, nonacosane-5,10-diol, and nonacosane-10,13-diol (total 12%) and estolides, MW ca 800 (2%), MW ca 1100 (6%), and MW ca 1500 (1%). The acidic fraction (14%) contains n-acids (78%, C₁₂–C₃₂) and diterpene acids (22%, mainly abieta-8,11,13-trien-18-oic, with lesser amounts of pimara-8(14),15-dien-18-oic, isopimara-7,15-dien-18-oic and hydroxylated aromatic, diene and mono-ene acids). Wax isolated from primary needles of 1-yr-old seedlings had a similar neutral fraction composition, but the acidic fraction contained predominantly the diterpene acid mixture, with only trace amounts of n-acids. The wax from 1-yr-old secondary, needles from P. radiata forest trees aged 5 yr and 40 yr contained an acid fraction (12% 5 yr, 17% 40 yr trees) comprising the diterpene acid mixture, with trace amounts of n-acids together with ω-hydroxy acids (C₁₂, C₁₄ and C₁₆). The neutral fraction from both young and old trees had a similar composition containing alkyl esters (7%, C₂₄–C₆₆), estolides (90%, MW 566-ca 1500), nonacosan-10-ol (2%) and the heptacosane and nonacosane diols (1%). During growth and maturation of P. radiata, the nonacosan-10-ol content of the needle wax decreases while the proportion of estolides and diterpene acids increases, the latter probably being located around the stomatal pore.     

Stream amphibians as metrics of critical biological thresholds in the Pacific Northwest, U.S.A.: a response to Kroll et al.

1. Kroll, Hayes & MacCracken (in press) Concerns regarding the use of amphibians as metrics of critical biological thresholds: a comment on Welsh and Hodgson 2008 . Freshwater Biology, criticised our paper [ Welsh & Hodgson (2008) Amphibians as metrics of critical biological thresholds in forested headwater streams of the Pacific Northwest. Freshwater Biology, 53 , 1470–1488] proposing the use of headwater stream amphibians as metrics of stream status in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). They argued that our analysis of previously published data reflected circular reasoning because we reached the same conclusions as the earlier studies. In fact, we conducted a meta‐analysis to address new questions about the optimum values and thresholds (based on animal densities) for abiotic stream attributes that were found to be important to these amphibians in earlier studies. This is analogous to determining blood pressure thresholds or fat‐to‐weight ratios that facilitate predicting human health based on meta‐analyses of earlier data from studies that found significant correlations between these variables and relative health. 2. Kroll et al. argued that we should not make inference to environmental conditions across the PNW from data collected in California. We collected data from northern California and southern Oregon, the southern extent of the PNW. We made inference to the Klamath‐Siskiyou and North Coast bioregions, and argued that available research on these headwater species indicates that our results have the potential to be applied throughout the PNW with minimal regional adjustments. 3. Kroll et al. contended that we need reproductive success, survival estimates and density estimates, corrected for detection probabilities, to establish relationships between animal density and stream attributes. Reproductive success and survival estimates are important for demographic modelling and life tables, but they are not necessary to demonstrate meaningful relationships with abiotic conditions. Both corrected occupancy estimates and individual detection probabilities are unnecessary, and take multiple sampling efforts per site, or onerous mark release and re‐capture studies, respectively, to determine accurately. 4. Kroll et al. questioned the use of stream amphibians as a surrogate for measuring physical parameters, such as water temperature, claiming that measuring the physical parameters directly is more efficient. Here they misinterpreted the main point of our paper: stream organisms are integrators of what happens in a catchment, and carefully selected species can serve as surrogates for the biotic community and the relative condition of the network environment. 5. Kroll et al. claimed that we demonstrated weak inferences regarding ecosystem processes. We argue that by relating densities of stream amphibians with changes along abiotic environmental gradients that are commonly affected by anthropogenic activities, we are establishing biological links to gradients that represent important ecosystem processes and identifying biometrics that can be used to quantify the status (health) of these gradients.     

Epicuticular wax of Triticum aestivum demar 4

The composition of epicuticular wax from plants of bread wheat (Demar 4 variety) at 3 stages of growth was studied. After germination for 30 and 130 da