Morphological evolution of the mammalian cecum and cecal appendix

The evolutionary pressures leading to the appearance of the cecal appendix, its evolutionary relationships with the cecum, and the link between these gastrointestinal characters and ecology remain controversial. We collected data on appendix presence and size, other gastrointestinal characters, ecological variables, dietary habits, and social characters hypothesized to drive appendix evolution for 533 mammalian species. Using phylogeny-informed analyses, we identified the first evidence of a positive correlation between appendix presence and cecal apex thickness, and a correlation with cecal morphology, suggesting that the appendix and cecum may be evolving as a module, the cecoappendicular complex. A correlation between appendix presence and concentration of cecal lymphoid tissue supports the hypothesis of an adaptive immune function for this complex. Other new findings include an inverse correlation between relative cecum length and habitat breadth, and positive relationships between cecum length and mean group size, and between colon length and weaning age.     

Comparative anatomy and phylogenetic distribution of the mammalian cecal appendix

A recently improved understanding of gut immunity has merged with current thinking in biological and medical science, pointing to an apparent function of the mammalian cecal appendix as a safe‐house for symbiotic gut microbes, preserving the flora during times of gastrointestinal infection in societies without modern medicine. This function is potentially a selective force for the evolution and maintenance of the appendix, and provides an impetus for reassessment of the evolution of the appendix. A comparative anatomical approach reveals three apparent morphotypes of the cecal appendix, as well as appendix‐like structures in some species that lack a true cecal appendix. Cladistic analyses indicate that the appendix has evolved independently at least twice (at least once in diprotodont marsupials and at least once in Euarchontoglires), shows a highly significant (P < 0.0001) phylogenetic signal in its distribution, and has been maintained in mammalian evolution for 80 million years or longer.     

Interrelationship of static mechanical factors and anatomical structure in lung evolution

Summary The inflation curves in 8 reptilian and in 2 avian lungs are sigmoid in comparison with the complex curve in the rat. Compliance is greatest in the lungs of those reptiles possessing well developed, membranous lung regions, and is similar to the extremely high compliance of avian air sacs. The body-weight standardized compliance of mammalian lungs is 1 to 2 orders of magnitude lower than that in reptilian lungs or in avian air sacs. Comparison of breathing pattern, elastic work of breathing and ventilatory rate indicates that a low-work strategy predominates in reptiles and in birds, which are obligatory rib breathers. Mammals can sustain a work rate per unit ventilation rate some 10 times greater than that of other groups because of efficient diaphragm breathing. The evolutionary implications of static mechanics for lung structure are discussed.Supported by grants Du 50/3 and 50/4 from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft     

Biological characteristics and ecological factors determining mammalian radioresistance in the Rodentia order

Both the results of our investigations and published data on mammalian radioresistance, biological characteristics and ecological factors which modify it are generalized in this paper. The described diversity among large taxa in radioresistance is based on the data obtained on the rodents from the Old and the New Worlds (totally 51 samples from 22 genera of four families--Sciurudae, Muridae, Cricetidae, Heteromyidae). It was found that radioresistance substantially depended on which family the species belonged. The main biological characteristics and ecological factors (body size, nutrition type, biotopical restriction) were revealed; in sum they determined 40% of radioresistance of small mammals.     

山西省生态安全时空演变特征及影响因素

基于压力-状态-响应模型（PSR）,运用综合权重法对山西省2000-2018年的生态安全水平进行综合评价并分析其时空演变特征,采用Dagum基尼系数测度生态安全水平的区域差异与来源,利用空间计量模型进行影响因素探究。研究发现：2000-2018年山西省生态安全综合指数呈逐年增长趋势,生态环境改善明显,总体生态安全水平较低,不同行政单元尺度下增幅表现为省域 > 市域 > 县域。县域生态安全在空间上呈"带状"分布,呈现由中部向南北两侧递减的非均衡化空间格局,空间上集聚程度在增强。县域生态安全水平空间上存在非均衡性特征,非均衡性程度不断下降,空间差异的主要来源是子群间差异,并呈现明显的空间溢出效应,经济规模、人口密度、城镇化率、NDVI、高程是影响县域生态安全空间演变的关键因素。生态安全水平空间特征存在尺度效应,研究尺度越大,尺度效应的作用越大,需要在更大范围内维持生态系统功能的完整与可持续性的平衡。县域生态安全水平演化存在路径依赖现象,需创新发展模式摆脱路径依赖,实现路径突破。在经济发展的基础上维持生态系统相对稳定状态与人类社会经济持续发展之间的平衡,是促进区域生态安全水平提升,维持人与自然和谐相处的关键。     

甘肃省生态安全时空演变特征及影响因素解析

生态安全是维持经济社会与生态可持续发展的重要保障。西部大开发与"一带一路"倡议实施以来,西部城镇发展迅速,经济效益大幅提高,生态环境却面临极大挑战。因此,以西北地区重要生态屏障区甘肃省为研究对象,基于"省公顷"概念改进传统生态足迹模型,评价2005—2015年甘肃省生态环境演变特征和生态安全状况,定量解析其驱动因素。结果表明:(1)2005—2015年甘肃省人均生态足迹与人均生态承载力分别由0.51 hm²/人和0.22 hm²/人增加至0.69 hm²/人和0.47 hm²/人,生态承载力增加速度较快,但自然资源依旧呈"供小于求"的状态。(2)甘肃省人均生态赤字由-0.20 hm²/人变化至-0.33 hm²/人,生态恶化程度不断加深。生态压力也由2.07升至2.74,生态安全处于很不安全状态,总体"西北高、东南低"的格局与城镇化布局相一致。(3)各影响因素对生态安全变化的决定力存在明显差异,其中人均GDP对生态安全扰动最强,其余因素影响程度依次为"人均...     

黄河流域城市生态韧性时空演变及其影响因素

城市作为最复杂的社会生态系统,在经历经济快速积累、城镇化加快推进的同时,面临着资源短缺、环境污染、生物多样性锐减等生态环境挑战,增强城市生态韧性对城市可持续发展至关重要。从韧性的内涵角度评估城市生态韧性水平,探究城市防范内外生态风险能力的时空特征,剖析城市生态韧性差异的影响机制,对实施城市生态文明建设与风险防控具有指导意义。基于"演化韧性"视角从"抵抗-响应-转型"三个能力构建城市生态韧性指标体系,以黄河流域七大城市群59个地级市2011-2020年面板数据为例,运用熵权-逼近理想解排序法(熵权-TOPSIS法)、传统和空间马尔可夫链,在对黄河流域城市生态韧性进行定量测算的基础上,分析其时空特征。最后利用面板分位数回归深入探索黄河流域城市生态韧性影响因素的分段效应,提高对城市生态韧性影响机制的认识。结果表明:(1)2011-2020年,城市生态韧性均值在(0.092,0.125)范围内,呈现缓慢增长态势;离散程度呈倒"U"型变化特征趋势;空间上,城市生态韧性表现为"下游强、上中游弱",城市群内部以省会城市为核心向外围地级市递减,"中心-外围"的分布格局明显。(2)城市生态韧性主要在相邻等级之间进行递次转移,仍未实现跨等级转移,具有"路径依赖"和"自身锁定"特征;地理空间背景在城市生态韧性动态演变过程中发挥着重要作用,表现为"强强联合、低低临近"的集聚效应。(3)影响因素方面,经济发展水平、科技创新对城市生态韧性具有显著促进作用;产业结构对城市生态韧性表现为显著抑制作用,人口密度和环境规制对城市生态韧性不同分位点的影响作用存在显著的异质性。研究结果可为黄河流域全面推进生态保护与建设"韧性城市"提供一定的科学参考和理论依据。     

京津冀特大城市群生态安全格局时空演变特征及其影响因素

京津冀特大城市群的快速发展显著提升了地区生活水平,但也对生态环境造成了负面影响。以2000—2015年京津冀城市群面板数据为研究样本,建立"压力-状态-响应(PSR)"城市群生态安全协同会诊指标体系,采用TOPSIS和灰色关联组合方法计量其生态安全综合指数(Comprehensive Index of Ecological Security,CIES),运用因子分析法提取关键因素,并通过多元线性回归方法计算上述因素对生态安全的影响程度。结果表明:(1)京津冀城市群生态安全指数已经达到了预警状态,呈现"北高南低,西高东低"的空间格局,亟需建立三地协同联防联控的生态安全防治机制;(2)2000—2015年京津冀城市群的生态安全指数呈小幅波动状态,规划与政策对城市群生态安全指数具有显著影响效应;(3)13地市生态安全指数的演变趋势存在显著的差异,承德、廊坊仍呈下降趋势;(4)城镇化、社会发展以及技术进步对京津冀城市群生态安全具有显著的正相关性,开发水平、经济发展以及生态病理度则呈负相关性。由此,需要划定并严守城市群生态保护红线,控制空间开发强度与速度,以遏制生态恶化;完善并落实京津冀城市群协同发展的规划体系与相应的配套政策支撑体系,以保障城市群生态安全稳定提升;控制经济发展速度,提升社会发展水平,构建城市群一体化社会服务保障体系;提升生态技术研发水平,加大生态空间保护与修复,以降低生态安全风险,保障城市群生态安全格局。     

Mechanical factors in the evolution of the mammalian secondary palate: a theoretical analysis

The secondary palate of mammals is a bony shelf that closes the ventral aspect of the rostrum. The rostrum, therefore, approximates to a tapered semicylindrical tube that is theoretically a mechanically efficient structure for resisting the forces of biting, including the more prolonged bouts of mastication typical of mammals. Certain mammal-like reptiles illustrate stages in the development of the palate in which the shelves projecting medially from each premaxilla and maxilla do not meet in the midline. We evaluate several geometric properties of sections through the rostrum of the American opossum (Didelphis virginiana). For loading at the incisors and canines, these properties indicate the structural strength and stiffness in both bending and torsion of the rostrum and of single maxillae. We then repeat the analysis but progressively omit segments of the palatal shelf, a procedure which simulates, in reverse, the evolutionary development of the structure. The results demonstrate that the secondary palate contributes significantly to the torsional strength and stiffness of the rostrum of Didelphis and to the strength of each maxilla in lateromedial bending. The major evolutionary implications of the results are that the rapid increase in rostral strength with small increments of the palatal shelves may have been a significant factor in the development of the complete structure. The results indicate that there was a marked jump in torsional strength and stiffness when the shelves met in the midline, which is likely to have been important in the subsequent development of the diverse masticatory mechanisms of cynodonts and mammals. On the basis of this analysis the mammalian secondary palate may be interpreted as one of a number of methods, seen in the mammal-like reptiles, for strengthening the rostrum.     

Competition theory,evolution, and the concept of an ecological niche

This article examines some of the main tenets of competition theory in light of the theory of evolution and the concept of an ecological niche. The principle of competitive exclusion and the related assumption that communities exist at competitive equilibrium - fundamental parts of many competition theories and models - may be violated if non-equilibrium conditions exist in natural communities or are incorporated into competition models. Furthermore, these two basic tenets of competition theory are not compatible with the theory of evolution. Variation in ecologically significant environmental factors and non-equilibrium in population numbers should occur in most natural communities, and such changes have important effects on community relations, niche overlap, and the evolution of ecosystems. Ecologists should view competition as a process occurring within a complexdynamic system, and should be wary of theoretical positions built upon simple laboratory experiments or simplistic mathematical models.In considering the relationship between niche overlap and competition, niche overlap should not be taken as a sufficient condition for competition; many factors may prevent or diminish competition between populations with similar resource utilization patterns. The typically opposing forces of intraspecific and interspecific competition need to be simultaneously considered, for it is the balance between them that in large part determines niche boundaries.     

太湖水华程度及其生态环境因子的时空分布特征

湖泊水华是全世界面临的严重生态环境问题之一,对人类和生态系统健康都有重大影响。由于湖泊水华受流域面源、点源污染、气候、水文因子以及湖泊生态系统自身特征等众多因素影响,水华是否爆发、其严重程度及时空分布特征呈现明显的复杂性。以我国太湖为研究区域,基于近年的水华及水环境的监测数据,用自组织特征映射神经网络对太湖不同监测点的水华程度进行了自动聚类分析。结果表明,太湖水华程度呈现为明显的无水华、轻度、中度和重度水华4类。不同程度水华的叶绿素a、水温、COD_(Mn)、营养盐、浮游植物生物量以及藻种(蓝藻、绿藻、硅藻)结构的时空差异显著,不同变量间的关系复杂,有助于深入认识太湖近年水华发生的时空变异特性。     

NuMA: an unusually long coiled-coil related protein in the mammalian nucleus

A bank of 892 autoimmune sera was screened by indirect immunofluorescence on mammalian cells. Six sera were identified that recognize an antigen(s) with a cell cycle-dependent localization pattern. In interphase cells, the antibodies stained the nucleus and in mitotic cells the spindle apparatus was recognized. Immunological criteria indicate that the antigen recognized by at least one of these sera corresponds to a previously identified protein called the nuclear mitotic apparatus protein (NuMA). A cDNA which partially encodes NuMA was cloned from a lambda gt11 human placental cDNA expression library, and overlapping cDNA clones that encode the entire gene were isolated. DNA sequence analysis of the clones has identified a long open reading frame capable of encoding a protein of 238 kD. Analysis of the predicted protein sequence suggests that NuMA contains an unusually large central alpha-helical domain of 1,485 amino acids flanked by nonhelical terminal domains. The central domain is similar to coiled-coil regions in structural proteins such as myosin heavy chains, cytokeratins, and nuclear lamins which are capable of forming filaments. Double immunofluorescence experiments performed with anti-NuMA and antilamin antibodies indicate that NuMA dissociates from condensing chromosomes during early prophase, before the complete disintegration of the nuclear lamina. As mitosis progresses, NuMA reassociates with telophase chromosomes very early during nuclear reformation, before substantial accumulation of lamins on chromosomal surfaces is evident. These results indicate that the NuMA proteins may be a structural component of the nucleus and may be involved in the early steps of nuclear reformation during telophase.     

盐城海滨湿地景观演变关键土壤生态因子与阈值研究

文章以盐城海滨湿地典型区域为案例,以2011年4月和2012年4月对海滨湿地土壤数据为基础,结合2011年ETM 遥感影像,运用灰色关联分析、线性回归模拟和地统计学方法,辨识海滨湿地景观演变的关键生态因子,并确定其生态阈值。得出基本结论如下：(1)海滨湿地土壤理化性质海陆差异明显：从米草沼泽—碱蓬沼泽—芦苇沼泽,土壤水分和盐度表现出递减的趋势;土壤有机质、营养盐总体上从米草沼泽—碱蓬沼泽—芦苇沼泽,表现出两头高中间低的特征;湿润年份土壤水分高于干旱年份,湿润年份土壤盐度低于干旱年份。(2)灰色关联分析表明:干旱年份,水分＞盐度＞铵态氮＞速效钾＞有机质＞有效磷;湿润年份为：盐度＞水分＞有效磷＞铵态氮＞速效钾＞有机质,因此把土壤水分和盐度确定为海滨湿地景观演变的关键生态因子。(3)土壤水分和盐度在东西海陆方向上的变异大于南北海岸延伸方向上的变异。(4)将景观类型图和海滨湿地土壤水分与盐度分异图叠加分析,得出：芦苇滩土壤水分阈值＜42.332%,盐度阈值＜0.745%;碱蓬滩土壤水分阈值为38.836%～46.593%,盐度阈值为0.403%～1.314%;米草滩土壤水分阈值＞39.475%,盐度阈值＞0.403%;光滩的土壤阈值＞41.550%,盐度阈值＞0.656%。     

Multiple facets of stream macroinvertebrate alpha diversity are driven by different ecological factors across an extensive altitudinal gradient

Environmental filtering and spatial structuring are important ecological processes for the generation and maintenance of biodiversity. However, the relative importance of these ecological drivers for multiple facets of diversity is still poorly understood in highland streams. Here, we examined the responses of three facets of stream macroinvertebrate alpha diversity to local environmental, landscape‐climate and spatial factors in a near‐pristine highland riverine ecosystem. Taxonomic (species richness, Shannon diversity, and evenness), functional (functional richness, evenness, divergence, and Rao's Quadratic entropy), and a proxy of phylogenetic alpha diversity (taxonomic distinctness and variation in taxonomic distinctness) were calculated for macroinvertebrate assemblages in 55 stream sites. Then Pearson correlation coefficient was used to explore congruence of indices within and across the three diversity facets. Finally, multiple linear regression models and variation partitioning were employed to identify the relative importance of different ecological drivers of biodiversity. We found most correlations between the diversity indices within the same facet, and between functional richness and species richness were relatively strong. The two phylogenetic diversity indices were quite independent from taxonomic diversity but correlated with functional diversity indices to some extent. Taxonomic and functional diversity were more strongly determined by environmental variables, while phylogenetic diversity was better explained by spatial factors. In terms of environmental variables, habitat‐scale variables describing habitat complexity and water physical features played the primary role in determining the diversity patterns of all three facets, whereas landscape factors appeared less influential. Our findings indicated that both environmental and spatial factors are important ecological drivers for biodiversity patterns of macroinvertebrates in Tibetan streams, although their relative importance was contingent on different facets of diversity. Such findings verified the complementary roles of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity, and highlighted the importance of comprehensively considering multiple ecological drivers for different facets of diversity in biodiversity assessment.     

The independent evolution of two closely related satellite DNA elements in rats (Rattus).

We have identified and determined the sequence and organization of a new rat satellite DNA in Rattus rattus, the roof rat. This satellite DNA, which we call R. rattus satellite I', consists of tandem arrays of a 185 base pair (bp) repeat unit that we call a'. a' is 86% homologous to a 185 bp portion of the 370 bp repeat unit of the previously described rat satellite [Pech et al. (1979) Nucleic Acids Res. 7, 417-432] present in the common laboratory rat species, R. norvegicus. We can thereby distinguish two 185 bp portions of the satellite I 370 bp repeat unit: "a" (homologous to a') and "b". Satellite I has the structure (a,b)n, and satellite I' has the structure (a')n. Like a, a' is only about 60% homologous to b and fails to hybridize to b. Although R. norvegicus and R. rattus contain about the same total concentration of satellite sequences, R. norvegicus contains essentially only the a,b type (satellite I), whereas R. rattus contains a' type (satellite I') and lesser amounts of the a,b type (satellite I). The a,b type (satellite I) in R. rattus is very similar to that in R. norvegicus as judged both by hybridization and by the presence of all but one of the major restriction enzyme sites that characterize the R. norvegicus satellite I. In R. rattus the a' and a,b repeat units are not detectably present in the same tandem array. All of the sequence differences between a' (R. rattus) and a (R. norvegicus) can be accounted for by simple base substitutions, and the implication of this and other features of rat satellite DNA structure for satellite DNA evolution are discussed.