泥河湾盆地马圈沟遗址化石哺乳动物及年代讨论

本文简述了马圈沟旧石器遗址产出的哺乳动物化石:出自马圈沟遗址Ⅲ的20个种,马圈沟遗址Ⅰ的4个种,半山遗址的7个种;分析了以Allophaiomys deucalion,Cromeromys gansunicus,Borsodia chinensis等小哺乳动物组合为代表的马圈沟遗址Ⅲ的生物地层时代为早更新世早期,绝对年龄应大于1.80Ma;讨论了该遗址生物地层时代与磁性地层年代的关系.     

野生哺乳动物的疥螨病

疥螨病是一种呈世界性分布的传染性外寄生虫病,暴发流行时可引起野生哺乳动物的大量死亡,导致种群数量急剧下降,严重时甚至可能威胁到整个种群的生存。了解并分析野生哺乳动物疥螨病的发病规律、传播与增殖的影响因素、监测与防控等一般手段,既为未来科研工作者对该病的深入研究,为我国野生哺乳动物疥螨病的监测和防控提供科学依据,也为促进我国野生哺乳动物保护工作的逐渐完善,保护我国野生哺乳动物的生物多样性奠定基础。     

Phylogenetic Age is Positively Correlated with Sensitivity to Timber Harvest in Bornean Mammals

The reasons that forest vertebrates differ in their response to selective timber extraction in tropical forests remain poorly characterized. Understanding what determines response and sensitivity can indicate how forest management might yield greater conservation benefits, and help us identify which lesser-known species may be especially vulnerable. We assessed the response of 41 Bornean mammals to selective timber harvest and tested eight hypotheses regarding the correlation between those responses and a range of species characteristics. Multivariate analyses show that phylogenetic species age is a key variable determining sensitivity. Older species are less able to cope with the effects of selective timber harvest. Most of these species are endemic to insular southeast Asia, and do not occur on the Asian mainland. These species are more specialized, and appear less able to cope with habitat change. In contrast, species tolerant to logging evolved more recently. This group tends to be omnivorous or herbivorous, to use all vegetation strata, and to be regionally widespread. This finding allows the sensitivity to habitat disturbance of lesser-known species to be predicted, and therefore has important conservation implications. These new insights also help in the design of large-scale forest landscapes that combine sustainable forest management and species conservation requirements. We recognize that these functions can be compatible, but that some species still need completely protected areas for their survival.     

The Control of Color in Mammals

SYNOPSIS. Recent advances in the biology of mammalian pigmentationare reviewed.Particular attention is given to emerging informationon the integration of pigmentary events occurring at differentlevels of biological organization within mammalian skin andhair. The structural and functional significance of keratinocytesand melanocytes as components of mammalian epidermal melaninunits is viewed from this perspective. New evidence on the natureof genetic, developmental, endocrine, and radiation influenceson performance of melanocytes and the establishment of pigmentarypatterns is summarized.     

Gorilla Behavior Index revisited: Age,housing and behavior

While personality and temperament assessments are becoming more common in animal science as a means for predicting behavior patterns, they are virtually unstudied in exotic animals outside of chimpanzees. We assessed behavioral profiles of 119 male gorillas using the Gorilla Behavior Index (GBI) and paired this assessment with behavior data on 25 male gorillas from our ongoing analysis of multi-male gorilla groups in North America. This comparison was made to determine if the GBI could be predictive of behavior patterns, with the hope that this could eventually be utilized to aid in the management of multi-male gorilla groups. With few exceptions, GBI factor scores were not related to age of subjects or their current housing condition. Individuals scoring high on the Extroverted factor were more likely to initiate and receive affiliative behaviors, but they were also more likely to initiate contact aggression. Those gorillas who scored high on the Dominant factor were more likely to initiate displacements and less likely to receive them. Gorillas rated as more Fearful were less likely to initiate displacements and those rated as less Understanding were more likely to initiate non-contact aggression. Two facts are evident from these data: (1) further work needs to be done to verify that the GBI is indeed assessing traits and not current behavioral states and (2) any relationships with behavior frequency are relatively weak. In addition to further exploration of the GBI we recommend other assessments to compliment the GBI to establish stronger links between subjective assessments and objective behavior patterns. If established, these short-term assessments may be combined with other historical information on these animals, such as age, rearing history, the number of animals in the group, and the design of the exhibit, to aid in forming and maintaining multi-male gorilla groups in captivity.     

The Fates of Spiracular Allostoses in Mammals

The human temporal bone includes an upper and a lower allostotic component, which are referred to, respectively, as the pars squamosa and pars tympanica in the adult and as the os squamosum and os tympanicum in the fetus. The consensus is that the former is descended from a cheek bone and the latter from a jaw bone in piscine osleolepipods. However, no corroborating evidence supports this view. It is concluded here that both these allostotic components of the human temporal bone derive from spiracular allostoses, except for the zygomatic process of the pars squamosa, this being a cheek allostosis that has been secondarily united with the squama. This is the first recognition of erstwhile spiracular allostoses in tetrapods. These conclusions challenge the widely accepted Reichert-Gaupp theory as well as the oft-alleged monophyletic status of the mammals and their derivation from therapsid reptiles.     

哺乳动物精卵融合机制

最近基因打靶研究揭示出了参与精卵结合和融合的各种分子。精子中ADAMs因子（是含有裂解蛋白和金属蛋白酶结构域蛋白质家族）,包括繁殖因子α、繁殖因子β以及cyritestin,经过研究已经发现它们对精卵结合有重要作用,而对精卵的融合不重要。通过研究推测出其受体为卵母细胞整合蛋白,其对精卵交互作用是必需的。最近,一些研究表明CD9和卵母细胞上GPI锚定蛋白（glycosyl phosphatidyl inositol糖基磷脂酰肌醇）,以及精子上的附睾蛋白DE均是精卵融合过程中的侯选因子,如果缺乏这些蛋白质分子或其作用受到干扰将导致精卵融合机制紊乱。综述重点讨论了参与精卵交互作用的相关分子的最新研究进展。     

哺乳动物性别分化的调控

哺乳动物性别分化调控的分子机制的研究特别是性别分化的层次调控、剂量补偿和性染色体进化这三个领域,已取得快速进展。已经发现Ｙ染色体性别决定区基因（ＳＲＹ）、Ｘ染色体ＤＳＳ－ＡＨＣ决定区基因１（ＤＡＸ－１）、甾类生成因子１基因（ＳＦ１）和Ｗｉｌｍｓ瘤抑制基因（ＷＴ－１）等与哺乳动物性别决定有关。ＳＲＹ启动睾丸分化,但胚胎发育成雄性的其余步骤由事丸分泌的激素控制。ＤＡＸ－１且编码一种女性特异功能的蛋白质,它在男性中被ＳＲＹ所抑制。ＳＦ－１和ＷＴ－１在ＳＲＹ开启之前作用于性腺和肾上腺发育的启动。哺乳动物通过随机失活雌性两条Ｘ染色体中的一条来使Ｘ连锁的基因在两性间的表达水平达到平衡（剂量补偿）。Ｘ染色体失活由Ｘ染色体失活中心（ＸＩＣ）控制。失活的Ｘ染色体专一转录基因（ＸＩＳＴ）是ＸＩＣ的强烈候选者,它可能参与Ｘ失活的启动。对有袋目和单孔目动物性染色体的研究为我们提供了其进化的信息。有证据支持性染色体起源于一对同源常染色体,而ＳＲＹ的祖先基因可能是ＳＯＸ－３。     

Cloning of Mammals

A review of the development of the method of nuclear transplantation and cloning of animals with the use of nuclei of embryonic and adult cells is presented. We also present the results of studies of nuclear remodeling and reprogramming in the reconstructed oocyte and of cytoplasmic factors that control these processes.     

The Foundations of High-Frequency Hearing in Early Mammals

It has become common in the paleontological literature to assume that the presence of secondary bony laminae in the cochleae of early mammals indicates that these species were able to perceive high sound frequencies (>20 kHz). This review examines the validity of this idea in the context of comparative physiological data from extant amniotes and surveys a number of unique features of mammalian cochleae that correlate with high-frequency hearing. As it is difficult to imagine how all of these features could have arisen simultaneously, high-frequency hearing probably had a more gradual origin. This suggests that the presence or absence of secondary laminae should be interpreted with greater caution.