The failed invasion of Harmonia axyridis in the Azores,Portugal: Climatic restriction or wrong population origin?

We tested two questions:(i)whether the climatic conditions of the Azorean Islands in Portugal may have restricted the invasion of Harmonia axyridis across this archipelago and(ii)determine what population of this species could have a higher probability of invading the islands.We used MaxEnt to project the climate requirements of different H.axyridis populations from three regions of the world,and the potential global niche of the species in the Azorean islands.Then we assessed the suitability of the islands for each of the three H.axyridis populations and global potential niche through histograms analysis,Principal Component Analysis(PCA)of climate variables,and a variable-by-variable assessment of the suitability response curves compared with the climatic conditions of the Azores.Climatic conditions of the Azores are less suitable for the U.S.and native Asian populations of H.axyridis,and more suitable for European populations and the global potential niche.The PCA showed that the climatic conditions of the islands differed from the climatic requirements of H.axyridis.This difference is mainly explained by precipitation of the wettest month,isothermality,and the minimum temperature of the coldest month.We concluded that the climatic conditions of the Azores could have influenced the establishment and spread of H.axyridis on these islands from Europe.Our results showed that abiotic resistance represented by the climate of the potentially colonizable zones could hinder the establishment of invasive insects,but it could vary depending of the origin of the colonizing population.     

Ultrastructure of the Mature Egg and Fertilization in the Fern Ceratopteris thalictroides

The ultrastructure of the mature egg and fertilization in the fern Ceratopteris thafictroides （L.） Brongn. were observed by transmission electron microscopy. The results revealed that the mature egg possesses an obvious egg membrane at the periphery of the egg. Furthermore, a fertilization pore was identified in the upper egg membrane of the mature egg. The structure of the pore is described for the first time. The fertilization experiment indicated that spermatozoids crowd into the cavity above the egg through the neck canal of the archegonium; however, only one of these can penetrate into the egg through the fertilization pore. Immediately on penetration of the spermatozoid, the egg begins to shrink. The volume of the fertilized egg decreases to almost one-half that of the unfertilized egg. As a result, the protoplasm of the fertilized egg becomes dense and opaque, which may lead to a situation where the organelles of both the egg and the fertilizing spermatozoid become indistinguishable. Simultaneously, abundant vesicles containing concentric membranes or opaque materials appear near the fertilization pore in the cytoplasm of the fertilized egg. These vesicles are considered to act as a barrier that prevents polyspermy. The present study provides a new insight into the ultrastructure of the mature egg and the cytological mechanism of fertilization in ferns.     

Kinematic Analysis and Experimental Verification on the Locomotion of Gecko

This paper presents a kinematic analysis of the locomotion of a gecko,and experimental verification of the kinematicmodel.Kinematic analysis is important for parameter design,dynamic analysis,and optimization in biomimetic robot research.The proposed kinematic analysis can simulate,without iteration,the locomotion of gecko satisfying the constraint conditionsthat maintain the position of the contacted feet on the surface.So the method has an advantage for analyzing the climbing motionof the quadruped mechanism in a real time application.The kinematic model of a gecko consists of four legs based on 7-degreesof freedom spherical-revolute-spherical joints and two revolute joints in the waist.The motion of the kinematic model issimulated based on measurement data of each joint.The motion of the kinematic model simulates the investigated real gecko’smotion by using the experimental results.The analysis solves the forward kinematics by considering the model as a combinationof closed and open serial mechanisms under the condition that maintains the contact positions of the attached feet on the ground.The motions of each joint are validated by comparing with the experimental results.In addition to the measured gait,three othergaits are simulated based on the kinematic model.The maximum strides of each gait are calculated by workspace analysis.Theresult can be used in biomimetic robot design and motion planning.     

Comparison of Algorithms for an Electronic Nose in Identifying Liquors

When the electronic nose is used to identify different varieties of distilled liquors, the pattern recognition algorithm is chosen on the basis of the experience, which lacks the guiding principle. In this research, the different brands of distilled spirits were identified using the pattern recognition algorithms （principal component analysis and the artificial neural network）. The recognition rates of different algorithms were compared. The recognition rate of the Back Propagation Neural Network （BPNN） is the highest. Owing to the slow convergence speed of the BPNN, it tends easily to get into a local minimum. A chaotic BPNN was tried in order to overcome the disadvantage of the BPNN. The convergence speed of the chaotic BPNN is 75.5 times faster than that of the BPNN.     

Prototype Design and Experimental Study on Locust Air-Posture Righting

Locust has the capacity to maintain a righting posture and glide through attitude adjustment after leaping. A prototype inspired by the dynamic mechanism of attitude adjustment of locusts was developed. The prototype consists of a pair of wings driven by a four-bar mechanism, and a 2 Degree of Freedom （DOF） tail to imitate the movement of the locust abdomen. The power source, microcontroller, wireless data transmission module, and attitude sensors are contained in the fuselage. Experiments imitating the flight of locust were conducted to determine the mechanism of locust Subsequent Attitude Adjustment （SAA）. The tethered prototype was driven by the movement of the tail and the flapping of the wings. Results show that the pitch and yaw of the tail, and the asymmetric action of the flapping wings significantly influence the posture of the prototype. These findings suggest that both the wiggling abdomen and flapping wings contribute to the locust SAA in the air. This research lays the groundwork and technical support for the probable design and development of practical jumping robots with attitude adjustment function.     

江豚肝内门静脉系的初步观察

The portal venous system within liver of Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis was observed.The portal venous system is similar to other mammals (pig,rabbit,ox,dog,goat,rhesus monkey).The R.sinister of the portal vein gives off the v.dorsalis lobi sin lat.,the v. ventralis lobi sin.lat.,the v.lateralis lobi sin.med.,the v. medialis lobi sin,med.,Rr.lobi caudati and Rr.lobi quadrati;the R.dexter of portal vein gives off the v.lobi dext.med.,the v.lobi dext.lat,and the V.processus caudati.It seems that the portal venous system of aquatic mammals and terrestrial mammals show no obvious difference.     

Do the microorganisms from laboratory culture spent growth medium affect house dust mite fitness and microbiome composition?

The interaction of house dust mites(HDM)and microorganisms is the key factor in the survival of these mites in human-made environments.Spent growth medium(SPGM)provides the rest of the dict,along with dead mite bodies and microorganisms.SPGM represents a source of microorganisms for the recolonization of mite food and the mite digestive tract.An experiment was performed to observe how adding SPGM to the HDM diet affects HDM population growth,the microbiome composition and the microbial respiration in microcosms.We analyzed American house dust mite(Dermatophagoides farinae)and European house dust mite(Dermatophagoides pleronyssinus)originating from control diets and diets treated with an extract of SPGM from 1-and 3-month-old mite cultures.The microbiome was described using 16S and 18S barcode sequencing.The composition of the bacterial and fiungal microbiomes differed between the HDM species,but the SPGM treatment influenced only the bacterial profile of D.farinae.In the D.farinae microbiome of specimens on SPGM-treated dicts compared to those of the control situation,the Lactobacillus profile decreased,while the Candinium,Staphylococ-cus,Acinetobacter,and Sphingomonas profiles increased.The addition of SPGM extract decreased the microbial respiration in the microcosms with and without mites in almost all cascs.Adding SPGM did not influence the population growth of D.farinae,but it had a variable effect on D.pteronyssimus.The results indicated that the HDM are marginally influenced by the microorganisms in their feces.     

The stationary distribution and extinction of a double thresholds HTLV-I infection model with nonlinear CTL immune response disturbed by white noise

This paper investigates the stochastic HTLV-I infection model with CTL immune response,and the corresponding deterministic model has two basic reproduction numbers.We consider the nonlinear CTL immune response for the interaction between the virus and the CTL immune cells.Firstly,for the theoretical needs of system dynamical behavior,we prove that the stochastic model solution is positive and global.In atldition,we obtain the existence of ergodic stationary distribution by stochastic Lyapunov functions.Meanwhile,sufficient condition for the extinction of the stochastic system is acquired.Reasonably,the dynamical behavior of deterministic model is included in our result of stochastic model when the white noise disappears.     

Modeling and dynamics of an ecological-economic model

In this paper, an eco-economic model with harvesting on biological population is established, which takes the form of a differential-algebra system. The impact of the economic profit from harvesting upon the dynamics of the model is studied. By using a suitable parameterization for the differential-algebra system, we derive an equivalent parameterized system which gives the stability results for the positive equilibrium point of our model. Moreover, based on the parameterized system as well as the approaches of normal form and formal series, the conditions on the Hopf bifurcation and the stability of center are obtained. Several numerical simulations for demonstrating the theoretical results are also presented. Lastly, according to the dynamical analysis, we provide a threshold value for the economic profit, which can maintain the sustainable development of our eco-economic system.     

Oil Body Biogenesis during Brassica napus Embryogenesis

Although the oil body is known to be an important membrane enclosed compartment for oil storage in seeds, we have little understanding about its biogenesis during embryogenesis. In the present study we investigated the oil body emergence and variations in Brassica napus cv. Topas. The results demonstrate that the oil bodies could be detected already at the heart stage, at the same time as the embryos began to turn green, and the starch grains accumulated in the chloroplast stroma. In comparison, we have studied the development of oil bodies between Arabidopsis thaliana wild type （Col） and the low-seed-oil mutant wrinkled1-3. We observed that the oil body development in the embryos of Col is similar to that of B. napus cv. Topas, and that the size of the oil bodies was obviously smaller in the embryos of wrinkled1-3. Our results suggest that the oil body biogenesis might be coupled with the embryo chloroplast.     

Molecular recognition by gold, silver and copper nanoparticles

The intrinsic physical properties of the noble metal nanoparticles,which are highly sensitive to the nature of their local molecular environment,make such systems ideal for the detection of molecular recognition events.The current review describes the state of the art concerning molecular recognition of Noble metal nanoparticles.In the first part the preparation of such nanoparticles is discussed along with methods of capping and stabilization.A brief discussion of the three common methods of functionalization:Electrostatic adsorption;Chemisorption;Affinity-based coordination is given.In the second section a discussion of the optical and electrical properties of nanoparticles is given to aid the reader in understanding the use of such properties in molecular recognition.In the main section the various types of capping agents for molecular recognition;nucleic acid coatings,protein coatings and molecules from the family of supramolecular chemistry are described along with their numerous applications.Emphasis for the nucleic acids is on complementary oligonucleotide and aptamer recognition.For the proteins the recognition properties of antibodies form the core of the section.With respect to the supramolecular systems the cyclodextrins,calix[n]arenes,dendrimers,crown ethers and the cucurbitales are treated in depth.Finally a short section deals with the possible toxicity of the nanoparticles,a concern in public health.     

A conformable mathematical model for alcohol consumption in Spain

A study on the conformable model of alcohol consumption in Spain has been presented.For the proposed model,the existence as well as the uniqueness of the solution has been discussed with the help of fixed-point theory.An analytical technique,Variational Iteration Method (VIM),has been used to obtain the solution to the governing system of differential equations.With the help of suitable plots,the role of fractional order derivative has been highlighted.For decreasing values of fractional order derivative,decrease in the number of non-consumers and non-risk consumers has been observed.By increasing the value of fractional order derivative,a sharp decrease can be seen in the compartment of risk-consumers.The agreement between the current study and the already existing studies,with ordinary derivatives,has also been pointed out.     

Dynamics of the current front in a current-carrying plasma bridge

At the RRC Kurchatov Institute, high-impedance plasma opening switches have recently been developed that enable efficient pulse sharpening and are capable of operating in a repetitive mode. This paper presents the results of studying the conduction phase preceding the current break. In this stage, the magnetic-field and current waves propagate in the plasma from the switch to the load. The magnetic-field and current detectors placed along the plasma axis are used to measure the velocity and acceleration of the current front near the cathode and anode. At the end of the conduction phase, the characteristic velocities near the cathode and anode attain 100 and 50 cm/μs, respectively. During the current front propagation, the width of the front nearly triples. The acceleration and widening of the front are reasonably explained within electron magnetohy-drodynamics. It is shown that the voltage during the current break depends on the length of the coaxial cathode of the switch. When the cathode length is shorter than the distance covered by the current front, the generated voltage decreases substantially. __________ Translated from Fizika Plazmy, Vol. 27, No. 1, 2001, pp. 64–70. Original Russian Text Copyright ? 2001 by Dolgachev, Kingsep, Ushakov.     

A New Species of the Genus Tylototriton （Urodela： Salamandridae） from Northeastern Hunan Province,China

We describe a new species from the family Salamandridae from northeastern Hunan Province of China based on morphological and molecular genetic evidences.The new species,Tylototriton liuyangensis,is a member of the T.asperrimus group,and shares a number of similarities with T.wenxianensis and T.broadoridgus.The dorsal surface of the new Tylototriton species is completely black,with nodule-like warts distributed evenly along the lateral margin of dorsal body,and there is no transverse striae between the warts.There are several diagnostic characters of the new species that differ from those of T.wenxianensis and T.broadoridgus as follows：（1）the interorbital space（IOS）is comparatively wide;（2）there is a bony ridge present on the dorsal head surface,running along the upper eyelids;（3）the space between axilla and groin（AGS）is comparatively large,with the mean male AGS approximately equal to 50%of the snout-vent length（SVL）and the mean female AGS being 53%of SVL;and（4）there is a small genital armature on the anterior angle of labial folds present inside the anal fissure of adult males during the breeding season.The result from the molecular phylogenetic analysis of the genus Tylototriton（including the type specimen of the new species）based on the complete DNA sequence of the mitochondrial ND2 gene（1035 bp）indicated that the new species was similar to T.wenxianensis,T.dabienicus,and T.broadoridgus,but formed an independent clade.This result was consistent with the morphological analysis above,supporting that the Liuyang Population represented a distinct species.     

Population dynamics between a prey and a predator using spectral collocation method

The struggle for the existence of the biological species is a well-known Prey-Predator model study in the literature.In this study,we present an improved model of Jerri [J.Abdul,Introduction to Integral Equations with Applications,Vol.10 (Wiley,New York,1999)] by introducing the intra-species competition term between the same species in additiuu to the existing environmental changeb and lew other factors in the model.The derntmcl from the exiting (limited) retjources arid other requirements induces competition between the same species which may after the survival tactics among themselves.This intra species term provides strength to tho model ns it makes the model moro realistic.The governing equations are a system of two nonlinear delay integro differential pqimtions,which are solved using spectral collocation method.The role of intra-species coefficients denoting the logistic growth/decay of the two species and two other parameters affecting the population dynamics are analyzed with the three basis functions such as Chebyshev,Legendre and Jacobi polynomials.With the help of simple matrix analysis,the governing equations are converted into a system of nonlinear algebraic equations.Detailed error estiination is computed to compare our results witli the existing inethudb.It is shown with the help of tables and figures that the present method is very efficient,has better accuracy and has least computational cost.     

The structure-function relationship of MSI7, a matrix protein from pearl oyster Pinctada fucata

We previously identified a matrix protein, MSI7, from pearl oyster Pinctada fucata. According to the structural analysis, the DGD site in the N-terminal of MSI7 is crucial for its role in the shell formation. In this study, we expressed a series of recombinant MSI7 proteins, including the wild-type and several mutants directed at the DGD site, using an Escherichia coli expression system to reveal the structure-function relationship of MSI7. Furthermore, in vitro crystallization, crystallization speed assay, and circular dichroism spectrometry were carried out. Results indicated that wild-type MSI7 could induce the nucleation of aragonite and inhibit the crystallization of calcite. However, none of the mutants could induce the nucleation of aragonite, but all of them could inhibit the crystallization of calcite to some extent. And all the proteins accelerated the crystallization process. Taken together, the results indicated that MSI7 could contribute to aragonite crystallization by inducing the nucleation of aragonite and inhibiting the crystallization of calcite, which agrees with our prediction about its role in the nacreous layer formation of the shell. The DGD site was critical for the induction of the nucleation of aragonite.     

Three-Dimensional Geometrical Modelling of Wild Boar Head by Reverse Engineering Technology

In this paper, a wild boar head was taken as the bionic research object for the development of new ridgers, a kind of plough. The reverse engineering technology was adopted to obtain the surface geometrical information of the head. Several three-dimensional （3D） point clouds of the head were captured first using a non-touch laser scanner, and an integrated point cloud was generated by aligning these point clouds using UG/Imageware. Then, the digital surface model of the head was rebuilt by means of CATIA. The characteristic curves of the surface model were analyzed. The results show that the average error between the rebuilt surface and the point cloud is -0.431 ram. The max curvature of the ridge on the neb of the head is 0.187 mm^-1, and the max and rain Gauss curvatures on the surface are 0.008 mm^-2 and -0.002 mm^-2. These geometrical information are the essential parameters for biomimetics study of the ridger.     

Three-dimensional biomagnetic Maxwell fluid flow over a stretching surface in presence of heat source/sink

The present paper deals with the study of three-dimensional boundary layer flow of biomagnetic Maxwell fluid over a plane horizontal surface stretched linearly along two mutually perpendicular directions. Basic principles of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) and ferro-hydrodynamics (FHD) have been employed. The effect of heat generation/absorption has been taken into consideration. The study is theoretical and is conducted by using a combination of approximate and numerical techniques. By using the method of similarity transformation, the governing nonlinear partial differential equations are converted into a set of coupled ordinary differential equations. In the sequel, a suitable numerical method has been developed to solve the coupled differential equations. The accuracy of the numerical method has been checked by comparing the numerical results with those of an earlier study reported in available literatures. Effects of various parameters involved in the study, viz. the magnetohydrodynamic and ferromagnetic parameters, Deborah number, stretching ratio and heat generation on the fluid flow profiles are investigated and the results have been presented graphically. Variations of the skin friction, heat transfer rate and relative wall pressure with change in hydrodynamic and ferromagnetic parameters have also been illustrated. It is found that due to the influence of the Kelvin force, the velocity component in xx-direction is greater than the corresponding one in the hydrodynamic case, but the opposite is true for the velocity component in the yy-direction. We also found that the temperature of the fluid for hydrodynamic flow is greater than that for MHD or FHD flow. It is even greater for BFD flows. The numerical results of the study reveal that the characteristics of blood flow are significantly affected by the presence of a magnetic field.     

Time delay and cross-correlated Gaussian noises-induced stochastic stability and regime shift between steady states for an insect outbreak system

In this paper, we focus on investigating the stochastic stability and the regime transition between the endangered state and the boom state for a time-delayed insect growth system driven by correlated external and internal noises. By use of the Fokker Planck equation, the method of small time delay approximation and the fast descent method, we explore in detail the joint action of noise terms and time delay on the mean reproduction and depression time for the insect population. Our investigations indicate that the pseudo-resonance phenomenon of the mean first-passage time (MFPT) occurs because of the impact of different noises and time delay. Through the numerical calculation, it is discovered that multiplicative noise can speed up the shift of the insect population from the boom state to the endangered one, while the noise correlation and time delay can propel the insect system to evolve from the endangered state to the boom state and improve the biological stability. In addition, the impact of the additive noise on the stability of the biological system depends on the positive and negative situation of the noise correlation. On the other hand, during the process of suppressing the insect explosion, it is beneficial to the pest control to amplify the association noise strength and weaken the intensities of the multiplicative, additive noises and time delay. However, during the process of eliminating the pests, it can produce nice effect on the disinsection to increase time delay, the intensities of multiplicative and additive noises and weaken the strength of noise correlation.     

Solution structure of the RNA recognition domain of METTL3-METTL14 N^6-methyladenosine methyltransferase

N^6-methyladenosine(m6A),a ubiquitous RNA modification,is installed by METTL3-METTL14 complex.The structure of the heterodimeric complex between the methyltransferase domains(MTDs)of METTL3 and METTL14 has been previously determined.However,the MTDs alone possess no enzymatic activity.Here we present the solution structure for the zinc finger domain(ZFD)of METTL3,the inclusion of which fulfills the methyltransferase activity of METTL3-METTL14.We show that the ZFD specifically binds to an RNA containing 5'-GGACU-3'consensus sequence,but does not to one without.The ZFD thus serves as the target recognition domain,a structural feature previously shown for DNA methyltransferases,and cooperates with the MTDs of METTL3-METTL14 for catalysis.However,the interaction between the ZFD and the specific RNA is extremely weak,with the binding affinity at several hundred micromolar under physiological conditions.The ZFD contains two CCCH-type zinc fingers connected by an anti-parallel P-sheet.Mutational analysis and NMR titrations have mapped the functional interface to a contiguous surface.As a division of labor,the RNA-binding interface comprises basic residues from zinc finger 1 and hydrophobic residues fromβ-sheet and zinc finger 2.Further we show that the linker between the ZFD and MTD of METTL3 is flexible but partially folded,which may permit the cooperation between the two domains during catalysis.Together,the structural characterization of METTL3 ZFD paves the way to elucidate the atomic details of the entire process of RNA m6A modification.