Scale-dependent bi-trophic interactions in a semi-arid savanna: how herbivores eliminate benefits of nutrient patchiness to plants

The scale of resource heterogeneity may influence how resources are locally partitioned between co-existing large and small organisms such as trees and grasses in savannas. Scale-related plant responses may, in turn, influence herbivore use of the vegetation. To examine these scale-dependent bi-trophic interactions, we varied fertilizer [(nitrogen (N)/phosphorus (P)/potassium (K)] applications to patches to create different scales of nutrient patchiness (patch size 2 × 2 m, 10 × 10 m, or whole-plot 50 × 50 m) in a large field experiment in intact African savanna. Within-patch fertilizer concentration and the total fertilizer load per plot were independently varied. We found that fertilization increased the leaf N and P concentrations of trees and grasses, resulting in elevated utilization by browsers and grazers. Herbivory off-take was particularly considerable at higher nutrient concentrations. Scale-dependent effects were weak. The net effect of fertilization and herbivory was that plants in fertilized areas tended to grow less and develop smaller rather than larger standing biomass compared to plants growing in areas that remained unfertilized. When all of these effects were considered together at the community (plot) level, herbivory completely eliminated the positive effects of fertilization on the plant community. While this was true for all scales of fertilization, grasses tended to profit more from coarse-grained fertilization and trees from fine-grained fertilization. We conclude that in herbivore-dominated communities, such as the African savanna, nutrient patchiness results in the herbivore community profiting rather more than the plant community, irrespective of the scale of patchiness. At the community level, the allometric scaling theory’s prediction of plant—and probably also animal—production does not hold or may even be reversed as a result of complex bi-trophic interactions.     

Hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia are associated with endothelial dysfunction during the development of type 2 diabetes

Diabetes mellitus impairs endothelial function, which can be considered as the hallmark in the development of cardiovascular diseases. Hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, and hyperlipidemia are believed to contribute to endothelial dysfunction. In the present study, we investigated the possible links among these plasma metabolic markers and endothelial function in a mouse model during the development of type 2 diabetes. C57BL/6J-Lepob/ob mice at 8, 12, and 16 weeks were used to study endothelial function during the establishment of type 2 diabetes. Endothelial function was accessed in vitro in the thoracic aorta by measuring acetylcholine (ACh)-stimulated vasodilatation. Blood plasma was obtained for the measurements of glucose, insulin, triglycerides, and cholesterol levels. Correlation and multiple regression analysis revealed strong negative associations between the ACh responsiveness and the plasma levels of glucose, insulin, and lipid profiles at the age of 8 weeks. Associations were observed at neither older age nor in C57BL/6J mice. In conclusion, the increase in plasma levels of glucose, insulin, and lipids is associated with the impairment of the endothelial function during the early stage of the development of type 2 diabetes. The loss of correlation at an older age suggests multifactorial regulation of endothelial function and cardiovascular complications at later stages of the disease.     

Antipredator behaviour of invasive geckos in response to chemical cues from snakes

Antipredator behaviours and the ability to appropriately assess predation risk contribute to increased fitness. Predator avoidance can be costly; however, so we expect prey to most strongly avoid predators that pose the greatest risk (i.e., prey should show threat sensitivity). For invasive species, effectively assessing the relative risk posed by predators in the new environment may help them establish in new environments. We examined the antipredator behaviour of introduced Asian house geckos, Hemidactylus frenatus (Schlegel), by determining if they avoided shelters scented with the chemical cues of native predatory snakes (spotted pythons, Antaresia maculosa [Peters]; brown tree snakes, Boiga irregularis [Merrem]; common tree snakes, Dendrelaphis punctulata [Grey]; and carpet pythons, Morelia spilota [Lacépède]). We also tested if Asian house geckos collected from vegetation vs. anthropogenic substrates (buildings) responded differently to the chemical cues of predatory snakes. Asian house geckos did not show a generalised antipredator response, that is, they did not respond to the chemical cues of all snakes in the same way. Asian house geckos avoided the chemical cues of carpet pythons more strongly than those of other snake species, providing some support for the threat‐sensitivity hypothesis. There was no difference in the antipredator behaviour of Asian house geckos collected from buildings vs. natural vegetation, suggesting that individuals that have invaded natural habitats have not changed their antipredator behaviour compared to urban individuals. Overall, we found some evidence indicating Asian house geckos are threat‐sensitive to some Australian predacious snakes.     

Microbiome dynamics of human epidermis following skin barrier disruption

Background

Recent advances in sequencing technologies have enabled metagenomic analyses of many human body sites. Several studies have catalogued the composition of bacterial communities of the surface of human skin, mostly under static conditions in healthy volunteers. Skin injury will disturb the cutaneous homeostasis of the host tissue and its commensal microbiota, but the dynamics of this process have not been studied before. Here we analyzed the microbiota of the surface layer and the deeper layers of the stratum corneum of normal skin, and we investigated the dynamics of recolonization of skin microbiota following skin barrier disruption by tape stripping as a model of superficial injury.

Results

We observed gender differences in microbiota composition and showed that bacteria are not uniformly distributed in the stratum corneum. Phylogenetic distance analysis was employed to follow microbiota development during recolonization of injured skin. Surprisingly, the developing neo-microbiome at day 14 was more similar to that of the deeper stratum corneum layers than to the initial surface microbiome. In addition, we also observed variation in the host response towards superficial injury as assessed by the induction of antimicrobial protein expression in epidermal keratinocytes.

Conclusions

We suggest that the microbiome of the deeper layers, rather than that of the superficial skin layer, may be regarded as the host indigenous microbiome. Characterization of the skin microbiome under dynamic conditions, and the ensuing response of the microbial community and host tissue, will shed further light on the complex interaction between resident bacteria and epidermis.     

Differential kinetics of antigen-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses in the regression of retrovirus-induced sarcomas

Despite the accepted role for CD4+ T cells in immune control, little is known about the development of Ag-specific CD4+ T cell immunity upon primary infection. Here we use MHC class II tetramer technology to directly visualize the Ag-specific CD4+ T cell response upon infection of mice with Moloney murine sarcoma and leukemia virus complex (MoMSV). Significant numbers of Ag-specific CD4+ T cells are detected both in lymphoid organs and in retrovirus-induced lesions early during infection, and they express the 1B11-reactive activation-induced isoform of CD43 that was recently shown to define effector CD8+ T cell populations. Comparison of the kinetics of the MoMSV-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses reveals a pronounced shift toward CD8+ T cell immunity at the site of MoMSV infection during progression of the immune response. Consistent with an important early role of Ag-specific CD4+ T cell immunity during MoMSV infection, CD4+ T cells contribute to the generation of virus-specific CD8+ T cell immunity within the lymphoid organs and are required to promote an inflammatory environment within the virus-infected tissue.     

Competitive membrane adsorption of Na+, K+, and Ca2+ in smooth muscle cells

Summary A theory for Na⁺, K⁺ and Ca²⁺ competitive adsorption to a charged membrane is used to explain a number of experimental observations in smooth muscle. Adsorption is described by Langmuir isotherms for mono- and divalent cations which in turn are coupled in a self-consistent way to the bulk solution through the diffuse double layer theory and the Boltzman equations. We found that the dissociation constants for binding of Na⁺, K⁺ and Ca²⁺ in guinea pig taenia coli areca. 0.009, 1.0, and 4×10^–8 m, respectively. Furthermore, the effect of a Ca²⁺ pump that maintains free surface Ca²⁺ concentration constant is investigated. A decrease in intracellular Na⁺ content results in an increased Ca²⁺ uptake; part of this uptake is due to an increase in surface-bound Ca²⁺ in an intracellular compartment which is in contact with the myofilaments. Variations in the amount of charge available to bind Ca²⁺ and the surface charge density are studied and their effect interpreted in terms of different pharmacological agents.     

Structural variation and functional importance of a D-loop-T-loop interaction in valine-accepting tRNA-like structures of plant viral RNAs

Valine-accepting tRNA-like structures (TLSs) are found at the 3′ ends of the genomic RNAs of most plant viruses belonging to the genera Tymovirus, Furovirus, Pomovirus and Pecluvirus, and of one Tobamovirus species. Sequence alignment of these TLSs suggests the existence of a tertiary D-loop–T-loop interaction consisting of 2 bp, analogous to those in the elbow region of canonical tRNAs. The conserved G₁₈·Ψ₅₅ pair of regular tRNAs is found to covary in these TLSs between G·U (possibly also modified to G·Ψ) and A·G. We have mutated the relevant bases in turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV) and examined the mutants for symptom development on Chinese cabbage plants and for accumulation of genetic reversions. Development of symptoms is shown to rely on the presence of either A·G or G·U in the original mutants or in revertants. This finding supports the existence and functional importance of this tertiary interaction. The fact that only G·U and A·G are accepted at this position appears to result from steric and energetic limitations related to the highly compact nature of the elbow region. We discuss the implications of these findings for the various possible functions of the valine-accepting TLS.     

Selective Pressures on RNA Hairpins In Vivo and In Vitro

Comparison of the most stable potential hairpins in the sequences of natural ribozymes with those in the randomized sequences has revealed that the hairpin loop energies are lower than expected by chance. Although these hairpins are not necessarily parts of functional structures, there is a selective pressure to diminish the destabilizing free energies of the hairpin loops. In contrast, no significant bias is observed in the stacking values of the most stable stems. In the ribozymes isolated in vitro the loops of potential hairpins are closer to random values, which can result in less efficient folding rates. Furthermore, the effects of kinetic traps seem to be more significant in the folding pathways of the in vitro isolates due to a potential to form stable stacks incompatible with the functional folds. Similarly to natural ribozyme sequences, the untranslated regions of viral RNAs also form hairpins with relatively low loop free energies. These evolutionary trends suggest ways for efficient engineering of improved RNA constructs on the basis of analysis of in vitro isolates and approaches for the search of regions coding for functional RNA structures in large genome sequences. Received: 12 January 2001 / Accepted: 21 May 2001