Signaling active CD95 receptor molecules trigger co-translocation of inactive CD95 molecules into lipid rafts

The capability of soluble CD95L trimers to trigger CD95-associated signaling pathways is drastically increased by oligomerization. The latter can be achieved, for example, by antibodies recognizing a N-terminal epitope tag in recombinant CD95L variants or by genetic engineering-enforced formation of hexamers. Using highly sensitive and accurate binding studies with recombinant CD95L variants equipped with a Gaussia princeps luciferase reporter domain, we found that oligomerization of CD95L has no major effect on CD95 occupancy. This indicates that the higher activity of oligomerized CD95L trimers is not related to an avidity-related increase in apparent affinity and points instead to a crucial role of aggregation of initially formed trimeric CD95L-CD95 complexes in CD95 activation. Furthermore, binding of soluble CD95L trimers was found to be insufficient to increase the association of CD95 with the lipid raft-containing membrane fraction. However, when Gaussia princeps luciferase-CD95L trimers were used as tracers to "mark" inactive CD95 molecules, increased association of these inactive receptors was observed upon activation of the remaining CD95 molecules by help of highly active hexameric Fc-CD95L or membrane CD95L. Moreover, in cells expressing endogenous CD95 and chimeric CD40-CD95 receptors, triggering of CD95 signaling via endogenous CD95 resulted in co-translocation of CD40-CD95 to the lipid raft fraction, whereas vice versa activation of CD95-associated pathways with Fc-CD40L via CD40-CD95 resulted in co-translocation of endogenous CD95. In sum, this shows that signaling-active CD95 molecules not only enhance their own association with the lipid raft-containing membrane fraction but also those of inactive CD95 molecules.     

Confidence in emotion perception in point-light displays varies with the ability to perceive own emotions

One central issue in social cognitive neuroscience is that perceiving emotions in others relates to activating the same emotion in oneself. In this study we sought to examine how the ability to perceive own emotions assessed with the Toronto Alexithymia Scale related to both the ability to perceive emotions depicted in point-light displays and the confidence in these perceptions. Participants observed video scenes of human interactions, rated the depicted valence, and judged their confidence in this rating. Results showed that people with higher alexithymia scores were significantly less confident about their decisions, but did not differ from people with lower alexithymia scores in the valence of their ratings. Furthermore, no modulating effect of social context on the effect of higher alexithymia scores was found. It is concluded that the used stimuli are fit to investigate the kinematic aspect of emotion perception and possibly separate people with high and low alexithymia scores via confidence differences. However, a general difference in emotion perception was not detected in the present setting.     

No effect of elevation and fragmentation on genetic diversity and structure in Polylepis australis trees from central Argentina

Phenological differences in flowering arising along elevational gradients may be caused by either local adaptation or phenotypic plasticity. Local adaptation can lead to reproductive isolation of populations at different elevational zones and thus produce elevational genetic structuring, while phenotypic plasticity does not produce elevational genetic structuring. In this study, we examined the effects of elevation and fragmentation on genetic diversity and structure of Polylepis australis populations, where individuals exhibit phenological differences in flowering along an elevational gradient. We assessed the polymorphism of amplified fragment length polymorphism markers in adults and saplings from one conserved and one fragmented forest covering elevations from 1600 to 2600 m asl. Over 98% of variation was found within populations, and we found very low and similar genetic differentiation along elevational gradients for adults and saplings in both continuous and fragmented forests. In addition, there was no significant relationship between genetic diversity and elevation. Results indicated that phenological differences along elevational gradients are more likely caused by phenotypic plasticity than local adaptation, and fragmentation does not appear to have affected genetic diversity and differentiation in the studied populations. Results therefore imply that if necessary, seeds for reforestation purposes may be collected from different elevations to the seeding or planting sites.     

Kin Recognition and Inbreeding Avoidance in a Butterfly

Owing to the risk of inbreeding depression, the evolution of inbreeding avoidance by means of kin recognition is expected for many biological systems. Nevertheless, an ability to distinguish among relatives and non‐relatives has been only rarely demonstrated, especially so in non‐social organisms. We here show that, in the non‐social tropical butterfly Bicyclus anynana, females discriminate against relatives by preferentially mating with non‐relatives. Inbreeding avoidance was more pronounced in inbred as compared with outbred butterflies, suggesting that it is partly condition dependent. We argue that, in our system, the evolution of inbreeding avoidance is related to carrying a high genetic load and thus to being particularly sensitive to inbreeding depression. We suggest that kin recognition might be more widespread than currently thought and that future studies may possibly benefit from considering condition dependence, especially by paying attention to and/or manipulating population history, genetic load, and the risk of inbreeding depression. We further suggest that kin recognition in B. anynana might be based on cuticular hydrocarbons used for self‐referencing.     

Comparison of vertical distributions of prokaryotic assemblages in the anoxic Cariaco Basin and Black Sea by use of fluorescence in situ hybridization

Individual prokaryotic cells from two major anoxic basins, the Cariaco Basin and the Black Sea, were enumerated throughout their water columns using fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with the fluorochrome Cy3 or horseradish peroxidase-modified oligonucleotide probes. For both basins, significant differences in total prokaryotic abundance and phylogenetic composition were observed among oxic, anoxic, and transitional (redoxcline) waters. Epsilon-proteobacteria, Crenarchaeota, and Euryarchaeota were more prevalent in the redoxclines, where previous studies reported high rates of chemoautotrophic production relative to those in waters above and below the redoxclines. Relative abundances of Archaea in both systems varied between 1% and 28% of total prokaryotes, depending on depth. The prokaryotic community composition varied between the two anoxic basins, consistent with distinct geochemical and physical conditions. In the Black Sea, the relative contributions of group I Crenarchaeota (median, 5.5%) to prokaryotic communities were significantly higher (P < 0.001; n = 20) than those of group II Euryarchaeota (median, 2.9%). In contrast, their proportions were nearly equivalent in the Cariaco Basin. Beta-proteobacteria were unexpectedly common throughout the Cariaco Basin's water column, accounting for an average of 47% of 4',6'-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI)-stained cells. This group was below the detection limit (<1%) in the Black Sea samples. Compositional differences between basins may reflect temporal variability in microbial populations and/or systematic differences in environmental conditions and the populations for which they select.     

The Impact of Attention on Judgments of Frequency and Duration

Previous studies that examined human judgments of frequency and duration found an asymmetrical relationship: While frequency judgments were quite accurate and independent of stimulus duration, duration judgments were highly dependent upon stimulus frequency. A potential explanation for these findings is that the asymmetry is moderated by the amount of attention directed to the stimuli. In the current experiment, participants'' attention was manipulated in two ways: (a) intrinsically, by varying the type and arousal potential of the stimuli (names, low-arousal and high-arousal pictures), and (b) extrinsically, by varying the physical effort participants expended during the stimulus presentation (by lifting a dumbbell vs. relaxing the arm). Participants processed stimuli with varying presentation frequencies and durations and were subsequently asked to estimate the frequency and duration of each stimulus. Sensitivity to duration increased for pictures in general, especially when processed under physical effort. A large effect of stimulus frequency on duration judgments was obtained for all experimental conditions, but a similar large effect of presentation duration on frequency judgments emerged only in the conditions that could be expected to draw high amounts of attention to the stimuli: when pictures were judged under high physical effort. Almost no difference in the mutual impact of frequency and duration was obtained for low-arousal or high-arousal pictures. The mechanisms underlying the simultaneous processing of frequency and duration are discussed with respect to existing models derived from animal research. Options for the extension of such models to human processing of frequency and duration are suggested.     

Biparental inbreeding depression,genetic relatedness and progeny vigour in a wind-pollinated treeline species in Argentina

Spatially restricted gene flow and resulting spatial genetic structure are generally considered as being the primary controlling factors in the dynamics of biparental inbreeding depression in a wide range of plant species. However, wind-pollinated angiosperm trees have not been studied adequately in this respect. The present study analyses the relationships among parental genetic similarity, outcrossing distances, progeny vigour and mortality in Polylepis australis (Rosaceae), a wind-pollinated treeline species endemic to Argentina. We investigated whether spatial genetic structuring occurs in anthropogenically fragmented P. australis woodlands of the Córdoba Mountains. We also performed a controlled crossing experiment using pollen collected from different distances. Genetic variability (using RAPD-PCR), vigour (N-metabolism capacity) and mortality of the resulting progeny were contrasted with progeny from unmanipulated flowers. We found a continuous decrease in parental genetic similarity with spatial distance among mates and an increase in N-metabolism capacity in the progeny produced from pollen at increasing distances, as well as a very high mortality of seedlings resulting from short-distance crosses. Additionally, our results suggest that there is still fragment connectivity in P. australis through long-distance pollen-mediated gene flow.     

Cytolytic toxins as triggers of plant immune response

NEP1-like proteins (NLPs) are secreted proteins from fungi, oomycetes and bacteria, triggering immune responses and cell death in dicotyledonous plants. It has been unclear for a long time, whether NLPs are toxins or triggers of plant immunity. In a recent study we report that NLPs are toxins that exert cytolytic activity on dicotyledonous plants. Mutational analysis revealed a causal link between membrane damaging, cell death inducing and virulence promoting properties of NLPs. Interestingly, also induction of immune responses by NLPs required the same protein fold, providing evidence for damage-induced immunity in plants. Structural similarity to pore forming toxins from marine invertebrates allows the proposal of a model for the mode of NLP interaction with the host''s membrane.Key words: toxin, immunity, virulence, crystal structure, plant immunity, pathogen