Bone mineral content of the hyperprolactinemic rat femur by single photon absorptiometry

Chronic hyperprolactinemia was obtained in the rat by an implantation of two adenohypophyses under the kidney capsule. This experimental model was set to evaluate the influence that high prolactin levels may have on bone mineralization when an intervention of estrogens can reasonably be excluded. Bone density was measured by single photon absorptiometry at the femur level. Our results indicate that the increase in PRL throughout the period of observation was associated with a significant decrease in bone mineral content, while calcium and parathyroid hormone serum levels remained unchanged. This would suggest that PRL plays a role in bone calcium metabolism, that might be included among the effects of this hormone.     

Cypriniform fish in running waters reduce hyporheic oxygen depletion in a eutrophic river

1. The hyporheic zone is an important habitat for benthic invertebrates and early-developmental stages of gravel spawning fish. However, the eutrophication of running waters and, in turn, the excessive periphyton biomass leads to its biological clogging. The result of these processes is oxygen depletion and a reduction in the habitat quality of the hyporheic zone.
2. This study assessed whether top-down effects of two important European river fish species, the large herbivorous cypriniform common nase (Chondrostoma nasus, L.) and the large omnivorous cypriniform European chub (Squalius cephalus, L.), can reduce eutrophication effects in the hyporheic zone. A 4-week mesocosm-based field experiment in a eutrophic river was conducted using cage enclosures stocked or not with either nase or chub.
3. The top-down control of periphyton was expected to reduce biological clogging and thereby increase oxygen availability in the hyporheic zone. Accordingly, we hypothesised that in enclosures stocked with either fish the concentrations of dissolved oxygen in the hyporheic zone would be higher and the periphyton biomass would be lower than in enclosures without fish stocking.
4. Hyporheic oxygen concentrations were significantly higher in enclosures stocked with either nase or chub than in enclosures without fish stocking. However, periphyton ash-free dry mass was significantly reduced only in enclosures stocked with nase, not in those stocked with chub. Thus, the positive effects of nase and chub on hyporheic oxygen availability were caused by different mechanisms.
5. Our results demonstrate that nase and chub can reduce eutrophication effects in the hyporheic zone of running waters. Hence, protecting and enhancing stocks of herbivorous and omnivorous fish will contribute to restoring the hyporheic zone in efforts to preserve biodiversity in eutrophic rivers.

     

Motivation Matters: Lessons for REDD+ Participatory Measurement,Reporting and Verification from Three Decades of Child Health Participatory Monitoring in Indonesia

Participatory Measurement, Reporting and Verification (PMRV), in the context of reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation with its co-benefits (REDD+) requires sustained monitoring and reporting by community members. This requirement appears challenging and has yet to be achieved. Other successful, long established, community self-monitoring and reporting systems may provide valuable lessons. The Indonesian integrated village healthcare program (Posyandu) was initiated in the 1980s and still provides effective and successful participatory measurement and reporting of child health status across the diverse, and often remote, communities of Indonesia. Posyandu activities focus on the growth and development of children under the age of five by recording their height and weight and reporting these monthly to the Ministry of Health. Here we focus on the local Posyandu personnel (kaders) and their motivations and incentives for contributing. While Posyandu and REDD+ measurement and reporting activities differ, there are sufficient commonalities to draw useful lessons. We find that the Posyandu kaders are motivated by their interests in health care, by their belief that it benefits the community, and by encouragement by local leaders. Recognition from the community, status within the system, training opportunities, competition among communities, and small payments provide incentives to sustain participation. We examine these lessons in the context of REDD+.     

Phylogenetic analysis ofEremosyne pectinata (Saxifragaceae s. l.) based onrbcL sequence data

Earlier analyses ofrbcL sequences clarified phylogenetic relationships of 16 of 17 subfamilies ofSaxifragaceae s. l. This study investigates the affinities of the monotypicEremosynoideae, the only subfamily ofSaxifragaceae s. l. not examined previously forrbcL sequence variation. Our analyses suggest thatEremosyne is only distantly related to core members ofSaxifragaceae s. l. (i.e.Saxifragoideae = Saxifragaceae s. str.); it is allied instead with members ofAsteridae. A particularly close relationship is indicated betweenEremosyne andEscallonia, another traditional member ofSaxifragaceae s. l. that also appears as part ofAsteridae. Inclusion ofEremosyne withinAsteridae is in agreement with embryology, as well as with 18S rDNA sequence data.