Latitudinal gradient of nestedness and its potential drivers in stream detritivores

Understanding what mechanisms shape the diversity and composition of biological assemblages across broad‐scale gradients is central to ecology. Litter‐consuming detritivorous invertebrates in streams show an unusual diversity gradient, with α‐diversity increasing towards high latitudes but no trend in γ‐diversity. We hypothesized this pattern to be related to shifts in nestedness and several ecological processes shaping their assemblages (dispersal, environmental filtering and competition). We tested this hypothesis, using a global dataset, by examining latitudinal trends in nestedness and several indicators of the above processes along the latitudinal gradient. Our results suggest that strong environmental filtering and low dispersal in the tropics lead to often species‐poor local detritivore assemblages, nested in richer regional assemblages. At higher latitudes, dispersal becomes stronger, disrupting the nested assemblage structure and resulting in local assemblages that are generally more species‐rich and non‐nested subsets of the regional species pools. Our results provide evidence that mechanisms underlying assemblage composition and diversity of stream litter‐consuming detritivores shift across latitudes, and provide an explanation for their unusual pattern of increasing α‐diversity with latitude. When we repeated these analyses for whole invertebrate assemblages of leaf litter and for abundant taxa showing reverse or no diversity gradients we found no latitudinal patterns, suggesting that function‐based rather than taxon‐based analyses of assemblages may help elucidate the mechanisms behind diversity gradients.     

Optimal analytical conditions for catalase in fresh water prawn,Macrobrachium malcolmsonii

The cytosol of hepatopancreas was prepared from the freshwater prawn Macrobrachium malcolmsonii, and optimal assay conditions, i.e., concentration of substrate, pH, and temperature, were determined to measure basal activities and kinetic constants of catalase activity. The properties of catalase were examined in M. macolmsonii, because quantitative data on catalase are limited in crustacean species. The optimal pH for catalase was 7.0. The activation energy was 3.55 Kcal/mol and energy inhibition value was 5.16 Kcal/mol. The value of energy inhibition is higher than that of energy activation. This may be due to inhibition of catalase by some substrate other than H2O2. A Km of 66.6?mM was also determined from various concentrations of substrate.     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cohnella ferri</Emphasis> sp. nov. A Novel Member of the Genus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cohnella</Emphasis> Isolated from Haematite Ore

The taxonomic position of a Gram-positive, endo-spore forming bacterium isolated from a haematite ore sample was analyzed by a polyphasic approach. The strain designated as HIO-4^T matched most of the phenotypic and chemical characteristics of the genus Cohnella and represents a novel species. The sequence of the almost complete 16S rRNA (1489 bases) was compared with those of previously studied Cohnella type strains and confirmed that the strain belongs to the genus Cohnella. Strain HIO-4^T differs from all other species of Cohnella by at least 3.9% at the 16S rRNA level and the moderately related species are Cohnella phaseoli (96.1%) and Cohnella yongneupensis (96.1%), respectively. Predominant polar lipids are diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE); few unknown phospholipids, mannose containing lipid, aminophospholipid and aminophosphoglycolipids. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed the genotypic and phenotypic distinctiveness of strain HIO-4^T with its phylogenetic relatives and suggest that the strain HIO-4^T should be recognized as a novel species, for which the name Cohnella ferri sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is HIO-4^T (=MTCC 8365^T = JCM 16139^T)     

Exploring the conformational space of protein loops using a mean field technique with MOLS sampling

We have recently developed a computational technique that uses mutually orthogonal Latin square sampling to explore the conformational space of oligopeptides in an exhaustive manner. In this article, we report its use to analyze the conformational spaces of 120 protein loop sequences in proteins, culled from the PDB, having the length ranging from 5 to 10 residues. The force field used did not have any information regarding the sequences or structures that flanked the loop. The results of the analyses show that the native structure of the loop, as found in the PDB falls at one of the low energy points in the conformational landscape of the sequences. Thus, a large portion of the structural determinants of the loop may be considered intrinsic to the sequence, regardless of either adjacent sequences or structures, or the interactions that the atoms of the loop make with other residues in the protein or in neighboring proteins.     

Whole plant response of Pongamia pinnata to drought stress tolerance revealed by morpho-physiological,biochemical and transcriptome analysis

Molecular Biology Reports - Pongamia is considered an important biofuel species worldwide. Drought stress in the early growth stages of Pongamia influences negatively on the germination and...     

Pre‐Clinical Testing of Microwave Radiometer and a Pilot Study on the Screening Inflammation of Knee Joints

This article presents the pre‐clinical evaluation of our custom‐built, single‐band microwave radiometer centered at 1.3 GHz for deep tissue thermometry, and a pilot study on volunteers for passive detection of inflammation in knee joints. The electromagnetic (EM) compatibility of the battery‐operated radiometer for clinical use was assessed as per International Special Committee on Radio Interference (CISPR) 22 standard. The ability to detect inflammation in knee joints was assessed using a substrate integrated waveguide antenna connected to the radiometer. EM compatibility tests carried out in the laboratory indicated device immunity to intentional radiated interference up to ?20 dBm injected power in the global system for mobile communication frequency band, and pre‐compliance to CISPR 22 standard. Radiometer temperature measurements recorded at the lateral and medial aspects of both knees of 41 volunteers indicated mean temperature greater than 33°C for the diseased sites compared with the mean temperature of 28°C measured for the healthy sites. One‐way analysis of variance statistics indicated significantly (P < 0.005) higher radiometer temperature at the diseased sites unlike the healthy sites. Thus, the EM pre‐compliance of the device and the potential to measure deep tissue inflammation were demonstrated. Bioelectromagnetics. 2019;40:402–411. © 2019 Bioelectromagnetics Society.     

Methane and carbon dioxide emissions from inland waters in India – implications for large scale greenhouse gas balances

Inland waters were recently recognized to be important sources of methane (CH₄) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) to the atmosphere, and including inland water emissions in large scale greenhouse gas (GHG) budgets may potentially offset the estimated carbon sink in many areas. However, the lack of GHG flux measurements and well‐defined inland water areas for extrapolation, make the magnitude of the potential offset unclear. This study presents coordinated flux measurements of CH₄ and CO₂ in multiple lakes, ponds, rivers, open wells, reservoirs, springs, and canals in India. All these inland water types, representative of common aquatic ecosystems in India, emitted substantial amounts of CH₄ and a major fraction also emitted CO₂. The total CH₄ flux (including ebullition and diffusion) from all the 45 systems ranged from 0.01 to 52.1 mmol m^?2 d^?1, with a mean of 7.8 ± 12.7 (mean ± 1 SD) mmol m^?2 d^?1. The mean surface water CH₄ concentration was 3.8 ± 14.5 μm (range 0.03–92.1 μm ). The CO₂ fluxes ranged from ?28.2 to 262.4 mmol m^?2 d^?1 and the mean flux was 51.9 ± 71.1 mmol m^?2 d^?1. The mean partial pressure of CO₂ was 2927 ± 3269 μatm (range: 400–11 467 μatm). Conservative extrapolation to whole India, considering the specific area of the different water types studied, yielded average emissions of 2.1 Tg CH₄ yr^?1 and 22.0 Tg CO₂ yr^?1 from India's inland waters. When expressed as CO₂ equivalents, this amounts to 75 Tg CO₂ equivalents yr^?1 (53–98 Tg CO₂ equivalents yr^?1; ± 1 SD)_, with CH₄ contributing 71%. Hence, average inland water GHG emissions, which were not previously considered, correspond to 42% (30–55%) of the estimated land carbon sink of India. Thereby this study illustrates the importance of considering inland water GHG exchange in large scale assessments.     

Cloning of Acinetobacter calcoaceticus chromosomal region involved in catechin degradation

Acinetobacter calcoaceticus utilizes catechin as sole carbon source. The chromosomal region involved in catechin catabolism was cloned in Escherichia coli DH5alpha from the genomic DNA of A. calcoaceticus. A recombinant E. coli containing 9.2 kb DNA fragment of A. calcoaceticus inserted in pUC19 showed a halo zone around the colony in plate assays, indicating the catechin utilizing ability of the clone. Enzyme assays revealed the expression of the cloned DNA fragment of A. calcoaceticus. High performance thin layer chromatography confirmed protocatechuic acid and phloroglucinol carboxylic acid as cleavage products of catechin in A. calcoaceticus and the catechin degrading ability of the clones. A. calcoaceticus followed the beta-ketoadipate pathway for catechin degradation. The sub-clone (pASCI) of this insert was sequenced and analyzed. The sequence showed three major ORFs but only ORF 2 showed similarities to other aromatic oxygenases and the sequence of ORF 2 was submitted to GenBank (AF369935).