Effects of combined ozone and nitrogen deposition on the in situ properties of eleven key plant species of a subalpine pasture

Tropospheric O₃ and deposition of reactive N threaten the composition and function of natural and semi-natural vegetation even in remote regions. However, little is known about effects of these pollutants individually or in combination on plant species in alpine habitats. We analyzed 11 frequent plant species of a subalpine Geo-Montani-Nardetum pasture exposed at 2,000 m a.s.l. in the Swiss Alps during 3 years using a factorial free-air exposure system with three concentrations of O₃ and five rates of N application. The aim was to detect subtle effects on leaf chlorophyll and N concentrations, leaf weight, specific leaf area (SLA), and δ¹⁸O and δ¹³C as proxies for gas exchange. We expected that the species’ responsiveness to O₃ and N would be related to their functional traits and that N-induced changes in these traits would modify the species’ response to O₃ via increased growth and higher leaf conductance (g _s). Most species reacted to N supply with the accumulation of N and chlorophyll, but with no change in SLA, g _s, and growth, except Carex sempervirens which showed increased water use efficiency and leaf weight. Elevated O₃ reduced g _s in most species, but this was not related to a reduction in leaf weight, which was recorded in half of the species. Contrary to our expectation, the magnitude of the response to both O₃ and N was not related to species-specific traits such as SLA or g _s. No pronounced O₃ × N interactions were observed. In conclusion, since for most species neither N nor gas exchange limited growth, their short-term response to O₃ and N and to their combination was small. O₃ × N interactive effects are expected to be more pronounced in habitats where species are more responsive to N due to favorable growth conditions in terms of nutrient availability and temperature. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

丙酮酸发酵过程中光滑球拟酵母过程功能的强化

对不同葡萄糖浓度下光滑球拟酵母分批发酵生产丙酮酸的动力学模型分析发现, 葡萄糖浓度是影响光滑球拟酵母发酵生产丙酮酸过程功能的关键因素。在发酵初始阶段, 低浓度葡萄糖可维持较高的菌体比生长速率; 对数生长中前期, 葡萄糖快速进料使菌体浓度接近最大值, 并实现碳流从菌体生长转向丙酮酸积累; 对数生长后期葡萄糖浓度控制在33.4 g/L以维持高丙酮酸对葡萄糖产率系数 (0.71 g/g)。采用奇异控制的葡萄糖流加方式, 在7 L发酵罐上控制不同发酵阶段葡萄糖浓度处于最佳水平以强化光滑球拟酵母过程功能, 丙酮酸产量 (83.1 g/L)、产率 (0.621 g/g)、生产强度[1.00 g/(L·h)]与分批发酵对比, 分别提高了21.3%、21.6%和29.9%。     

Paedomorphosis in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ambystoma talpoideum</Emphasis>: effects of initial body size variation and density

Facultative paedomorphosis is the ability of a salamander to either metamorphose into a terrestrial, metamorphic adult or retain a larval morphology to become a sexually mature paedomorphic adult. It has been hypothesized that density and initial body size variation within populations are instrumental in cueing metamorphosis or paedomorphosis in salamanders, yet few studies have adequately tested these hypotheses in long-term experiments. Beginning in the spring of 2004, 36 experimental ponds were used to manipulate three body size variation levels (low, medium, high) and two density levels (low, high) of Ambystoma talpoideum larvae. Larvae were individually marked using visible implant elastomers and collected every 2 weeks in order to measure snout–vent length and mass. Bi-nightly sampling was used to collect new metamorphs as they appeared. Analysis revealed significant effects of density, size variation and morph on body size of individuals during the summer. Individuals that metamorphosed during the fall and following spring were significantly larger as larvae than those becoming paedomorphic across all treatments. These results support the Best-of-a-Bad-Lot hypothesis, which proposes that the largest larvae metamorphose in order to escape unfavorable aquatic habitats. Large larvae may metamorphose to leave aquatic habitats, regardless of treatment, due to the colder climate and lower productivity found in Kentucky, which is in the northern-most part of A. talpoideum’s range. By maintaining a long-term experiment, we have provided evidence for the transition of both larvae and paedomorphs into metamorphs during fall and spring metamorphosis events. Furthermore, the production of similar morphs under different environmental conditions observed in this research suggests that the ecological mechanisms maintaining polyphenisms may be more diverse that first suspected. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

白蚁及其共生菌来源的4种木质纤维素酶的共表达

天然的木质纤维素材料含有纤维素、半纤维素和木质素等成分。降解天然木质纤维素底物时,需要木质纤维素酶共同作用。近年在木质纤维素酶的相互协同作用方面的研究引起人们的关注,成为一个新的研究热点,文中使用两个不同的共表达载体pETDuet-1和pRSFDuet-1,在大肠杆菌中共表达了白蚁及其肠道微生物来源的β-葡萄糖苷酶、内切β-1,4-葡聚糖酶、漆酶和木聚糖酶这4种木质纤维素酶,经过SDS-PAGE分析得到了与理论值一致的蛋白条带,同时经过酶活验证,这4种蛋白都具有酶活性。以磷酸处理的微晶纤维素(PASC)为底物,测定了共表达酶粗酶液与单独表达酶混合液的协同作用因子,从还原糖的产量上经计算共表达的粗酶液比单独表达酶的混合液对PASC的降解协同作用提高44%;以滤纸和磷酸处理的玉米芯为底物,测定降解协同作用,分别提高了34%和20%。结果表明,共表达酶的降解效率要高于混合的单组分酶液降解效率的总和。     

Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Polyacrylamide Gel Protein Electrophoresis of Freshwater Photosynthetic Sulfur Bacteria

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel protein electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) was carried out using different bacterial strains of the photosynthetic sulfur bacteria Chlorobium, Thiocapsa, Thiocystis, and Chromatium cultured in the laboratory, and the natural blooms in two karstic lakes (Lake Cisó and Lake Vilar, NE Spain) where planktonic photosynthetic bacteria (purple and green sulfur bacteria) massively developed accounting for most of the microbial biomass. Several extraction, solubilization, and electrophoresis methods were tested to develop an optimal protocol for the best resolution of the SDS-PAGE. Protein composition from different water depths and at different times of the year was visualized within a molecular mass range between 100 and 15 kDa yielding up to 20 different protein bands. Protein banding patterns were reproducible and changed in time and with depth in agreement with changes in photosynthetic bacteria composition. When a taxonomically stable community was followed in time, differences were observed in the intensity but not in the composition of the SDS-PAGE banding pattern. Three environmental variables directly related to the activity of sulfur bacteria (light, oxygen, and sulfide concentrations) had a significant effect on protein banding patterns and explained 33% of the variance. Changes in natural protein profiles of the bacterial blooms agreed with changes in species composition and in the in situ metabolic state of the populations.     

Airborne pollen parameters and their relationship with meteorological variables in NE Iberian Peninsula

The present study explores the role of the meteorological variability in the pollen production and the timing of the airborne pollen season by analysis of the correlation between precipitation, insolation and temperature and the main standardised airborne pollen parameters of 22 taxa collected at 6 localities in Catalonia (NE Spain). The pollen parameters included in the study were: Annual Pollen Integral and the Start, End and Length of the Main Pollen Season. Considering that the Main Pollen Season of most of the taxa in Catalonia lasts from spring to summer or autumn, correlations between the pollen parameters and winter (from December to March) values of meteorological variables were calculated. Correlations between Monthly Pollen Integral and monthly values of the meteorological variables were also calculated. The results obtained report the synchronism registered in the variations of pollen concentration with precipitation (negative), insolation (positive) and temperature (positive). Temperature was the meteorological variable that showed a greater influence in the pollen production and the timing of the pollen season, being insolation the least one. The Start of the Main Pollen Season was the pollen parameter more correlated with the meteorological variables, especially with winter temperatures.     

Eastern spread of the invasive <Emphasis Type="Italic">Artemia franciscana</Emphasis> in the Mediterranean Basin,with the first record from the Balkan Peninsula

Long-term (1987–2015) monitoring data from Lake Lugano (Switzerland/Italy) were used to examine the effects of winter weather, solar radiation and mixing regime on the recovery of the trophic state of a lake undergoing nutrient management. Main hypotheses were that (H1) trends in trophic state were influenced not only by nutrient management, but also by winter weather and solar radiation, and (H2) the effects of management were more pronounced in the holomictic South basin than in the meromictic North basin of the lake. External loadings of phosphorus were strongly reduced during the study period, but key indicators of trophic state, including phosphorous concentration, primary production, chlorophyll a and deep-water oxygenation, showed inconsistent responses. Supporting H1, winter weather (parameterized using an index of the East Atlantic pattern) influenced temporal variation in phosphorus concentration and primary production in the North basin. Supporting H2, the effects of management on trophic state were clearer in the South basin, where most trophic-state indicators declined. Meromixis affected the restoration of the North basin lake by transmitting effects of climatic variation on trophic state. The added variability obscured the effects of restoration and caused sudden deteriorations in water quality, indicating that the restoration of meromictic lakes presents unique challenges.     

自噬体膜的来源

细胞自噬是指细胞通过自噬-溶酶体(autolysosome)降解变性蛋白聚集物和受损细胞器的过程. 自噬对于细胞内环境的稳态、物质的平衡、胚胎发育以及疾病的发生发挥重要作用. 在电镜下观察,自噬体膜是一个双层脂质膜结构. 细胞中因缺乏除了自噬相关蛋白9 (autophagy-related protein 9,ATG9)以外的自噬体膜相关蛋白,故难以确定自噬体膜的来源. 自噬体膜的来源也因此成为目前自噬研究领域的热点问题. 关于自噬体膜的来源,学术界存在两种观点：一种认为自噬体膜是细胞在自噬体组装位点(pre-autophagosomal structure, PAS)重新合成的;另一种观点则认为自噬体膜来源于细胞已有的某些细胞器(如内质网、高尔基体、内吞体、质膜和线粒体). 该文综述了近年有关自噬体膜来源于细胞已有的某些细胞器的研究进展,旨在为相关领域的研究提供参考.     

Optimized production of lignolytic manganese peroxidase in immobilized cultures of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phanerochaete chrysosporium</Emphasis>

Manganese peroxidase (MnP) is a key enzyme involved in the lignolysis of white-rot fungi. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of immobilization and culture conditions on MnP production in cultures of Phanerochaete chrysosporium grown on polyurethane foam. Higher concentrations of foam and lower levels of spore inoculums resulted in the formation of scattered mycelial pellets, increased autolysis of chlamydospore-like cells (a reservoir of MnP), and a higher activity of MnP. Even though MnP was a secondary metabolite, the addition of 5 times more glucose and diammonium tartrate, as carbon and nitrogen sources, resulted in a 4 fold increase in the dry cell mass. However, MnP activity decreased under these conditions to less than half, due to the formation of increasingly dense pellets and the inhibited lysis of chlamydospore-like cells.     

新疆乌鲁木齐HIV—1流行毒株膜蛋白基因C2—V3区序列测定和亚型分析

应用ＰＣＲ方法对７份１９９６年３－５月采集于新疆乌鲁木齐ＨＩＶ－１阳性静脉吸毒者的外周血单核细胞样品进行扩增,获得了ＨＩＶ－１膜蛋白基因的核酸片段,并对其Ｃ２－Ｖ３区及邻区３５０－４５０个核苷酸序列进行了测定和分析。