Échinodermes de l'Ordovicien supérieur (Ashgill) de Sardaigne et d'Algérie

Research on the influence of sea level variations on the benthic faunas have been carried out in the Upper Ordovician of Sardinia. Study of the depositional facies and sequence analysis of the upper part (Lower Ashgill) of the Portixeddu Formation led to the identification of the sedimentary environments. Cystoids and crinoids are associated to bryozoans and brachiopods in most levels. The numerical analysis of associations and megaguilds shows that crinoids and cystoids have a higher frequency in the proximal and median facies of the upper offshore. The columnal association characterized by Conspectocrinus celticus and the coronoid Mespilocystites tregarvanicus has been discovered in the upper part of the formation. This material and complementary samples from Upper Ordovician of Sardinia and Kabylia (Algeria) bring additional data on the systematic and show the wide distribution of this fauna outside of the Ibero-armorican domain. The distribution of this echinoderm association supports a palaeogeographical position of the Ibero-armorican domain and Sardinia within the north gondwanan margin during the Lower Palaeozoic.     

A phylogenetic analysis of basal Anseriformes, the fossil Presbyornis, and the interordinal relationships of waterfowl

A phylogenetic analysis of 123 morphological characters of basal waterfowl (Aves: Anseriformes) and other selected avian orders confirmed that the screamers (Anhimae: Anhitn-idae) are the sister-group of other waterfowl (Anseres), and that the magpie goose (Anseranatidae: Anseranas semipalmata) is the sister group of other modern waterfowl exclusive of screamers (Anatidae sensu stricto). The analysis also supports the traditional hypothesis of the gallinaceous birds (Galliformes) as the sister group of the Anseriformes. Presbyornis, a fossil from the early Eocene of Wyoming and averred by Olson & Feduccia as showing that the Anseriformes were derived from shorebirds (Charadriiformes), was found to represent the sister group of the Anatidae. Associated hypotheses by Olson & Feduccia concerning the implications of Presbyornis for the phylogenetic relationships of flamingos (Phoenicopteriformes), the position of the Anhimidae within the waterfowl, relationships among modern Anatidae, and a plausible evolutionary scenario for waterfowl also are rejected. Analyses revealed that cranial characters were critical to the establishment of the Galliformes as the sister group of the Anseriformes; exclusion of the Anhimidae, especially in combination with Anseranas, also undermined the support for this inference. Placement of Presbyornis as the sister group of the Anatidae casts doubt on the role suggested by Feduccia of ‘transitional shorebirds' in the origin of modern avian orders, and calls into question the concept of ‘fossil mosaics’. The phylogenetic hypothesis is used to reconstruct an evolutionary scenario for selected ecomorphological characters in the galliform-anseriform transition, to predict the most parsimonious states of these characters for Presbyornis, and to propose a phylogenetic classification of the higher-order taxa of waterfowl. This re-examination of Presbyornis also is used to exemplify the fundamental methodological shortcomings of the intuitive approach to the reconstruction of phylogenetic relationships.     

人工合成多样性突变文库研究进展*

突变文库的构建是定向进化研究过程中一个关键步骤,主要利用天然存在的系统或者人工合成的分子技术来产生多样性核酸分子文库,为制备和筛选具有一定特性的蛋白酶、多肽、人工抗体等提供庞大的遗传基因库,也可用于合成生物学中相关基因元件的研究与筛选,为目标生物制品的高效工业化生产提供动力。随着对突变文库构建技术研究的日益深入,各种文库构建策略相继被开发出来,并在生物能源、生物化工、生物医药、生物试剂和食品工业等方面得到了广泛的应用。然而,定向进化中的文库构建策略多有不同,各种突变文库构建技术的核心方法也在不断创新。主要介绍近年来实验室中人工合成多样性文库的前沿技术,并对文库构建技术在自动化和智能化方向的发展进行了展望。     

L’habitat en grotte au Néolithique : vers une estimation de l’intensité des occupations

The archaeological excavation of the cave of the Gardon has brought to light a dilated and nearly continuous stratigraphy for the Neolithic era. The analysis of lithic industry has showed the existence of variations between those neolithic layers, which are independents of the technological processes of tools productions. Four criteria allow us to characterize the occupation’s type of each layer. Compared to the excavations data and to sedimentological analysis, these results allow us to display the evolution of the intensity of occupations of the cave throughout the whole Neolithic.     

An NMR Study of the Spatial Structure and Intramolecular Dynamics of Modified Analogues of Steroid Hormones

Special features of the use of homo- and heteronuclear correlation methods of NMR in one and two dimensions for studying the spatial structure and intramolecular dynamics of modified analogues of steroid hormones (MASH) are considered. The application of these methods to the assignment of resonances in the high-field ¹H NMR region and to the determination of the most stereospecifically important parameters, such as the vicinal constants of spin–spin coupling (³ J _H–H) and nuclear Overhauser effects (NOE), are discussed using the example of NMR studies of some estrogens and androgens at 300 MHz and on the basis of literature data. The most efficient combination of the methods and the necessary modification of each of them may be chosen considering the spectral and relaxation parameters of MASH in liquid medium, including the anisotropy of the overall diffusive motion. The characteristics of MASH are the wide use of correlations through long-range couplings (COSY-45 and DQF-COSY), the application of the ^4,5 J _H–H constants for the determination of spatial structure, and the advantage of heteronuclear HSQC methods with and without ¹³C decoupling over the corresponding HMQC methods in both resolution and sensitivity. In the conformationally rigid MASH molecules, the anisotropy of the MASH diffusive motion in liquid adversely affects the determination of interproton distances by the calibrating processing method for the NOE difference and NOESY spectra: it results in both overestimated and underestimated distance values depending on the polar angle ratios of the reference and the determined distances. Under certain conditions, conformationally mobile MASH demonstrate the additional contribution of the scalar relaxation mechanism between the indirectly (scalarly) bound protons. This mechanism is responsible for the underestimated values of NOE and the corresponding errors in the distance determination.     

Ultrastructural aspects of storage lipid mobilization in the tapetum of Lilium hybrida var. enchantment

Stages in the formation and degradation of pollenkitt in the anther of Lilium have been investigated using the electron microscope. This material, which appears to be a complex of lipid and carotenoids, is formed during the autolysis of the tapetal cells by the fusion of lipidic inclusions with globules derived from plastids. Autolysis of the tapetal cells is progressive for it commences with the disintegration of many cytoplasmic components, followed by the breakdown of storage lipids. The plasma membrane maintains its integrity during these events apparently, by proliferation, aiding in the transfer of the products of hydrolysis into the loculus. During the course of lipid breakdown, a striking vacuolar system is formed in the tapetal cytoplasm, presumably containing the products of this hydrolysis. The source of membranes for this system is clearly the lipid globules themselves. The generation of the membrane apparently involves the participation of electronopaque material, possibly enzymic, contained within the lipid globules.     

On the influence of fishes on the evolution of benthic crustaceans

Though the interweavement of trophic chains in marine ecosystems of the past cannot be reconstructed, as the abundance, nutrition, reproductive rates and other aspects of the biology of fossil species are not known, it is possible to correlate trends in the evolution of single groups of animals, in the presented case the Crustacea, with the influence of other evolving organisms. The evolution of carnivorous, buoyant, well swimming modern fishes probably induced profound changes in marine ecosystems and influenced the evolution of crustaceans. Indications for these interactions are a. the absence or rare occurrence of defenseless archaic crustaceans in habitats, which are populated by teleostean fishes and the survival of some of these forms in refuges like caves and subterranean waters, and b. the reduction of the pleon in the course of the mesozoic evolution of the Decapoda, which occurs parallel to the radiation of the Teleostei, namely in the period between the early Jurassic and the Tertiary. The shortening of the pleon is interreted as a consequence of the stepwise change from a hyperbenthic to a more benthic Iife-stJe and the abandonment of the caridoid escape reaction. Other adaptations are also construed as results from the selective pressure produced by predators. Extant crustaceans which are able to coexist with fishes, among the macrozoobenthos especially the Decapoda and Peracarida, have a variety of protective adaptations, which help to reduce predation.     

Seasonal distribution and abundance of tsetse flies (Glossina spp.) in the Faro and Deo Division of the Adamaoua Plateau in Cameroon

Ten years after the large-scale tsetse control campaigns in the important cattle rearing areas of the Faro and Deo Division of the Adamaoua Plateau in Cameroon, the seasonal distribution and abundance of tsetse flies (Glossina spp.) were determined. During a period of 12 consecutive months (January-December 2005), the tsetse population was monitored along four trap transects consisting of a total of 32 traps and two flyround transects traversing the study area, which comprised the tsetse-infested valley, a buffer zone and the supposedly tsetse-free plateau. Throughout the study period, a total of 2195 Glossina morsitans submorsitans and 23 Glossina tachinoides were captured in the traps and 1007 G. m. submorsitans (78.8% male flies) were captured along the flyround transects. All G. tachinoides and almost all G. m. submorsitans were captured in the valley. Five G. m. submorsitans were captured in traps located in the buffer zone, whereas no flies were captured in traps located on the plateau. The index of apparent abundance (IAA) of G. m. submorsitans was substantially higher in the areas close to game reserves. In the remaining part of the valley, where wildlife is scarce and cattle are present during transhumance (dry season), the IAA of tsetse was substantially lower. In this part of the valley, the abundance of tsetse seemed to be associated with the presence of cattle, with the highest IAA during transhumance when cattle are present and the lowest apparent abundance during the rainy season when cattle have moved to the plateau. It is concluded that the distribution of tsetse in a large part of the valley undergoes substantial seasonal changes depending on the presence or absence of cattle. The repercussions of those findings for the control of tsetse in the valley and the probability of reinvasion of the plateau are discussed.     

果实膨大期喷布磷酸二氢钾对三月红荔枝果实贮藏性的影响

在三月红荔枝(Litchi chinensis cv.Sanyuehong)果实膨大期对树冠喷施0.2%磷酸二氢钾(KP)水溶液,以探讨磷酸二氢钾对荔枝果实贮藏性的影响。结果表明:(1) KP处理的果实在贮藏期前17d,失重率及果肉可溶性固形物、酸、VitC、花色素苷等指标的变化趋势与对照基本相似;(2) KP处理的果肉可溶性蛋白质含量变化与对照有明显差异,而果皮的可溶性蛋白质含量在贮藏期前10d变化动态与对照一致,此后呈相反的变化趋势;(3)果皮POD活性显著高于果肉,KP处理和对照的果肉POD活性在贮藏第3d后、果皮POD活性在第17d前分别具有相似变化趋势;(4)果肉中CAT活性在贮藏第3~17d期间都显著或极显著高于果皮,KP处理和对照果肉、果皮CAT活性动态变化均为单峰曲线。     

Kinetic analysis of a general model of activation of aspartic proteinase zymogens

Starting from a simple general reaction mechanism of activation of aspartic proteinase zymogens involving an uni- and a bimolecular simultaneous route, the time course equation of the concentration of the zymogen and of the activated enzyme have been derived. From these equations, an analysis quantifying the relative contribution to the global process of the two routes has been carried out for the first time. This analysis suggests a way to predict the time course of the relative contribution as well as the effect of the initial zymogen and activating enzyme concentrations, on the relative weight. An experimental design and kinetic data analysis is suggested to estimate the kinetic parameters involved in the reaction mechanism proposed. Finally, we apply some of our results to experimental data obtained by other authors in experimental studies of the activation of some aspartic proteinase zymogens.     

Homeosis, morphogenetic gradient and the determination of floral identity in the inflorescences ofPhilodendron solimoesense (Araceae)

A comparative developmental study of the inflorescence ofPhilodendron solimoesense was conducted using scanning electron microscopy. The spadix ofP. solimoesense is characterized by unisexual flowers. Staminate flowers are initiated on the upper portion of the spadix while pistillate flowers develop on the lower portion of the spadix. An intermediate zone located between the upper male and lower female portion of the inflorescence consists of sterile male flowers. Within this intermediate zone a row of flowers exhibit polarity with respect to the identity of sexual organs. Stamens are initiated on the flank of the floral meristem facing the upper male zone and carpels are initiated on the portion of the floral meristem facing the lower female zone. The resulting flowers therefore assume a bisexual identity. At the level of the inflorescence, all floral buds are initiated along a series of contact parastichies and the continuity of these parastichies is not disrupted at any level in the male, intermediate, and female zones on the spadix. Results from this study support the presence of a morphogenetic gradient acting at the level of the inflorescence and appears to be independent of the boundaries of floral primordia.     

The influence of explant orientation and contact with the medium on the pathway of shoot regeneration in vitro in epicotyl cuttings of Troyer citrange

The effect of orientation as regards to gravity, and that of contact with the medium of culture, on shoot regeneration at the cut edges of epicotyl explants of Troyer citrange (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck×Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf.) have been separated. The shoot regeneration pathway was not affected by the orientation of the explants as regards to gravity, and was determined by explant polarity and the contact with the culture medium. At the apical edge of the explants, the contact with the medium shifted the pathway of shoot regeneration from a direct one to an indirect one, with formation of a callus. This callus formation was cytokinin-dependent, but the change in the pathway of organogenesis was not caused by the increase in cytokinin availability resulting from the contact with the medium. In contact with the media, regeneration at the basal edge of the explants occurred through an indirect pathway after callus formation. No regeneration occurred, at the basal edge, if the contact with the media was prevented. The orientation of the explants as regards to gravity affected shoot formation through the direct pathway of organogenesis. The number of buds differentiated, and that of growing shoots increased when the orientation of the explants departed from the vertical upright position.     

The influence of mass,volume and density on the frequency of recovery of fossil hominid hand and wrist bones

A study of the mass, volume and density of each of the wrist and hand bones of male and female human skeletons was undertaken. It was found that the mass and volume (i.e. size) of the bones are well correlated with the relative frequencies of preservation ofAustralopithecus and earlyHomo wrist and hand bones from fossil hominid sites in Africa. In general, the larger the bone, the greater its preservation frequency. In contrast to findings on bovid bones, the density of hand and wrist bones is not well correlated with the frequency of such bones recovered from these sites. These findings may be explained in terms of the agents of deposition of the bones, the physical nature of the deposit, and the methods of extraction of the fossils from the deposit.     

Rice bronzing in Nigeria caused by nutrient imbalances and its control by potassium sulfate application

Rice plants with bronzing, collected from fields in central and southern Nigeria, where the soils consisted of Tropaquent, Tropaquult and Tropaquept, showed higher iron and lower potassium, phosphorus, and magnesium concentrations than plants with little or no bronzing. Pot experiments with the soils indicated that the severity of the bronzing was affected not only by the iron concentration in the shoots but also by the potassium concentration. The application of chloride compounds to the soil increased severity of the bronzing and lead to deterioration of growth, whereas the application of sulfate compounds was beneficial.The application of potassium sulfate reduced the severity of bronzing and increased the dry matter production of rice plants grown in the field. The concentration and accumulation of potassium in the shoots increased when the bronzing severity decreased and the iron concentration was decreased by the dilution effect caused by the increased dry matter production.     

Observations on the histochemistry and ultrastructure of the epidermis of the tuatara,Sphenodon punctatus (Sphenodontida,Lepidosauria, Reptilia): a contribution to an understanding of the lepidosaurian epidermal generation and the evolutionary origin of the squamate shedding complex

Histochemical and TEM analysis of the epidermis of Sphenodon punctatus confirms previous histological studies showing that skin-shedding in this relic species involves the periodic production and loss of epidermal generations, as has been well documented in the related Squamata. The generations are basically similar to those that have been described in the latter, and their formation involves a cyclic alternation between beta- and alpha-keratogenesis. The six differences from the previously described squamate condition revealed by this study include: 1) the absence of a well-defined shedding complex; 2) the persistence of plasma membranes throughout the mature beta-layer, including the oberhautchen; 3) the concomitant presence of lipogenic lamellar bodies and PAS-positive mucous granules in most presumptive alpha-keratinizing cells; 4) the presence of the secreted contents of these organelles in the intercellular domains of the three derived tissues, the homologues of the squamate mesos, alpha-, and lacunar cells; 5) the paucity of lamellated lipid deposits in such domains; 6) the presence of keratohyalin-like granules (KHLG) in the presumptive lacunar, clear, and oberhautchen cells. In toto, the absence of many of the precisely definable, different pathways of cytogenesis discernible during squamate epidermal generation production might be interpreted as primitive for lepidosaurs. However, when the evolutionary significance of each of the six differences listed is evaluated separately, it becomes clear that the epidermis of S. punctatus possesses primitive amniote, shared and derived lepidosaurian, and some unique characters. This evaluation further elucidates the concept of a lepidosaurian epidermal generation as a derived manifestation of the sauropsid synapomorphy of vertical alternation of keratin synthesis and shows that further study of keratinocyte differentiation in the tuatara may contribute to our understanding of the origin and evolution of beta-keratinization in sauropsid amniotes.     

An Ultrastructural Study on the Development of Egg- apparatus in Rice Embryo Sac

The development of the egg-apparatus (consisted of an egg cell and two synergids) of rice ( Oryza sativa L. ) was studied at the uhrastructural level. The walls of the egg cell and synergids, immediately after their formation, possessed numerous plasmodesmata. Plasmodesmata were also present on walls between the egg cell and synergids. During the enlargement phase of the egg cell and synergids, the walls at the tip region began to loosen and vesiculate. By the time the embryo sac became mature, the part of the wall of the egg cell and synergids, facing the chalaza, disappeared. Consequently, the tip regions of the egg cell and synergids were only protected by a plasma membrane. When the embryo sac reached full maturity, the upper and middle region of the wall of the synergids broke up into pieces. At that time one synergid began to degenerate. Plasmodesmata persisted at the hook region of the wall of both the egg cell and synergids. Most plastids in the egg cell contained starch grains that persisted throughout the period of the embryo sac development. Starch grains in the plastids of the synergids appeared only before the time when the two polar-nuclei moved into the region above the egg-apparatus. They then disappeared and did not appear again until the embryo sac had reached full maturity. The size and location of the vacuoles in the egg cell were different from those in the synergids. The time of formation was also different. Vacuoles in the egg cell formed late in comparison with the synergids. Vacuoles in the chalazal region of the egg cell (especially at the early stage of the embryo sac development) were much larger than those in the micropylar region. Vacuoles in the synergids tended to concentrate mainly in the chalazal region. There was a peak period of lipid formation in the two synergids. The peak appeared when the embryo sac neared maturity. At the early stage of development, the nuclei of the synergids were elliptical in shape and were situated at the central region near the micropyle. The shape of the nuclei at the late stage of development became less regular and tended to move more towards the micropylar region. Changes in the uhrastructure of the egg cell and synergids of rice appeared to be closely related to the metabolic processes controlling the embryo sac formation and development.     

Iberia: bridge or cul-de-sac? implications of the Iberian record for the debate on the middle to upper palaeolithic transition

Recent discoveries and dating of materials from Spain and Portugal for the period between c. 40–30 kya highlight the fact that the Iberian Peninsula is a microcosm of the complex mosaic of conditions that characterized the middle to upper palaeolithic and Neanderthal to Cro-Magnon transitions. They would tend to suggest that the replacement of one way of life by another was suggest that the replacement of one way of life by another was far from rapid, abrupt or simple, and they call into question the “out of Africa” invasionist scenario. Although Iberia seems to have been a “bridge” between Africa and the rest of Europe during certain times (notably at the time of the first colonization(s) of Europe, perhaps in the late Lower Pleistocene, as suggested by the discoveries at Atapuerca), at other times it seems to have been cut off from Africa. Despite the presence of Aurignacian technology in Cantabria and Catalonia since 40 kya, the continued persistence of Neanderthals and of Mousterian technology for over 10 ky in southern Iberia would seem to belie the superiority and African origin of upper palaeolithic Cro-Magnon. Furthermore, even in northern Spain, where the taxonomic identity of the makers of the early Aurignacian remains unknown, the nature of the technological transition was variable: abrupt in Catalonia and gradual in Cantabria. Added to the rest of the record, which includes Neanderthals apparently making Chatelperronian tools in France, Szeletian tools in Hungary and later Aurignacian tools in Croatia, a complete lack of any fossils in definite association with early Aurignacian anywhere, evidence of subsistence and technological change during the Mousterian in certain regions of Europe, scant evidence for cultural differentiation between Neanderthals and early anatomically modern humans (Skhul & Qafzeh) in Israel, growing (albeit limited) evidence for middle palaeolithic artistic or ornamental activity, and evidence for considerable, on-going change in technology and subsistence during the upper palaeolithic, the Iberian record strongly argues for a long, uneven transition from middle to upper palaeolithic lifeways- not a simple, abrupt invasion of Europe out of Africa.     

Le Gravettien ancien d’Europe centrale revisité : mise au point et perspectives

Focusing on central Europe, the present article aims at appraising the unity of the lithic technical systems related to the early Gravettian of the Swabian Jura and Lower Austria, generally treated as distinct cultural entities. Until recently, our knowledge of the Swabian Gravettian was known only through partial studies. Furthermore, according to the ¹⁴C dates available until the mid-nineties, the Swabian Gravettian tended to be attributed to a recent phase of this techno-complex, in contrast to the first manifestations of the Gravettian in the Middle Danube region. However, in the light of the new ¹⁴C dates, it appears today that the Swabian Gravettian doubtlessly belongs to the early stage of this techno-complex, in that comparable with the Gravettian of Weinberghöhlen in Bavaria or the early Gravettian of Willendorf II in Lower Austria. Our comparative study, integrating both typology and technology, deals with two reference sites with regard to the appearance and evolution of the Gravettian in Central Europe, Geißenklösterle and Willendorf II. The present study is a contribution to integrate the early stage of the Gravettian of this part of Europe in a broader discussion concerning the emergence of the generic cultural features of the Gravettian in its socioeconomical and cultural dimension, if we wish to progress in our understanding of what matters in the transition from the Aurignacian to the Gravettian.     

Emerging novel functions of RNAs, and binary phenotype?

Loss-of-function technology has been one of the most popular knockout tools for the study of gene function in cell and developmental biology. This technology employs two basic approaches for elimination of the protein of interest. The morpholino antisense oligonucleotides approach relies on inhibiting translation of the given protein without degrading the cognate mRNA. The antisense deoxynucleotides and siRNA approach acts via removal of the mRNA template, which then prevents protein translation. In the latest approach, as well as in these genetic knockout approaches that eliminate or alter the level of mRNA transcribed from the gene of interest, the assumption is and always has been that the only relevant function of mRNA is to make a protein, and, thus, the effect of removing mRNA equals the effect of removing its protein function. However, the most recent studies of different biological systems point to completely novel and unexpected functions of the subpopulation of localized RNAs and suggest that, at least in some cases, the normal cell or embryo phenotype is in fact binary i.e. depends not only on the function of the protein but also on the autonomous function of its mRNA.