Morphological dispersion of introduced Hawaiian finches: evidence for competition and a Narcissus effect

Summary Morphological analyses were conducted on finch species introduced to Oahu, Hawaii. As many as 25 species of finches representing four families (Emberizidae, Fringillidae, Ploecidae, Estrildidae) have been introduced to Oahu. Of these, 15 species currently have established wild populations. When compared with pools of 25 and 23 species introduced to Oahu, the 15 surviving species are morphologically overdispersed. This result is consistent with the hypothesis that competition has influenced the outcome of these introductions. We also tested the hypothesis that surviving introduced finches in one habitat (sugarcane fields) were morphologically overdispersed. When the seven surviving finch species found in sugarcane were compared with the pools of 25 and 23 species, they too were morphologically overdispersed. However, when the seven sugarcane species were compared with a species pool consisting of only the surviving 15 species found across Oahu, they were not morphologically overdispersed. This result suggests that morphological analyses of community structure based only on comparisons of assemblages of surviving species may be biased by a Narcissus effect.     

Nuclear genome characterization of the carrageenophyteAgardhiella subulata (Rhodophyta)

DNA reassociation kinetics were used to determine nuclear genome organization and complexity inAgardhiella subulata (Gigartinales, Rhodophyta). Results indicate the presence of three second-order components corresponding to fast (22%), intermediate (68%) and slow (10%) fractions. Thus, the genome consists of 90% repetitive sequences. Microspectrophotoometry with the DNA-localizing fluorochrome DAPI was used to confirm ploidy level differences in the gametophytic and tetrasporophytic phases. Results indicate that meiosis occurs during tetrasporogenesis. Comparison of mean nuclear DNA (I_f) values to chicken erythrocytes (RBC) resulted in an estimate of 0.9 pg/2C genome forAgardhiella. Karyological studies using aceto-orcein revealed a chromosome complement of 2N = 44 in carposporangia and the presence of 22 bivalents during diakinesis of tetraspore mother cells.     

The malmö polymorphism of coagulation factor IX, an immunologic polymorphism due to dimorphism of residue 148 that is in linkage disequilibrium with two other F.IX polymorphisms

A mouse monoclonal antibody (MAB 9.9) to coagulation factor IX (F.IX) detects a polymorphism in the plasma of normal people. Its epitope has been narrowed down to <6 amino acids in the activation peptide of the X-linked F.IX protein. The activation peptide contains a dimorphism—Thr:Ala—at position 148 of the protein. Using synthetic oligonucleotides, we have demonstrated that (1) the F.IX which reacts with 9.9 has Thr at position 148 and (2) that which does not has Ala. Positive reactors (148^thr) are designated Malmö A, and negative reactors (148^ala) are designated Malmö B. The plasma levels of AA women are indistinguishable from those of A men, and both B men and BB women are null against MAB 9.9. The plasma level of Malmö A in AB women is approximately half that of AA women, and “lyonization” is clearly operating in the heterozygotes. The dimorphism is in strong linkage disequilibrium with two other intragenic RFLPs, TaqI and XmnI. Furthermore, intragenic crossing-over—including double crossing-over—appears to have occurred between the three sites. Seven of the eight possible haplotypes have been identified, five in men and two others in women. The immunoassay that identifies ～50% of the AB women in the pool of Malmö A females with 95% confidence identifies men unambiguously as A or B. The assay would be very useful for population-genetic studies of the Malmö epitope if the studies were limited to men.     

Olive Pink and the Encounter with the Academy

Olive Pink studied anthropology at the University of Sydney under Professor A.P. Elkin. Although she did fieldwork among the Northern Aranda and Wailbri of Central Australia, she became disenchanted with anthropology and lived a reclusive life in Alice Springs. In this paper I present a brief outline of her life, particularly during the 1930's I point to the problems she encountered and suggested that she needs to be relocated within her discipline.     

Social behavior of infant and mother Japanese Macaques (Macaca fuscata): Effects of kinship,partner sex,and infant sex

The behavioral interactions of 22 infant and mother Japanese macaques with other group members were studied. Focal-animal observations were made from the time of each infant’s birth until 1 year of age. Infants and mothers both displayed exceedingly strong preferences for associating with matrilineal kin and, specifically, for female kin. The degree of genetic relatedness was positively correlated with levels of spatial proximity, contact, grooming, aggression, and play. Overall frequencies of interactions with nonkin were very low, and partner sex was not an important factor in interactions with nonkin. There were no significant differences between male and female infants in interactions with kin versus nonkin. There was only one significant difference between male and female infants in interactions with males versus females: female infants showed stronger preferences for initiating proximity with females over males than did male infants. Because mothers provide the focal point for infant interactions during the first year of life, we compared the behavior of infants and mothers. Mothers were the recipients of more social interactions than were infants, mothers engaged in more grooming than did infants, and infants engaged in more social play than did mothers. These findings are only partially consistent with kin-selection theory, and the inadequacies of studying matrilineal kin discrimination to test kin selection are reviewed. The near-absence of infant sex differences in associations with social partners suggests that although maternal kin other than the mother are important to infant socialization, they probably do not contribute to the development of behavioral sex differences until after the first year of life.     

Peroxide oxidation of primary alcohols to aldehydes by chloroperoxidase catalysis

Chloroperoxidase catalyzes the peroxidation of primary alcohols, specifically those that are allylic, propargylic, or benzylic. Aldehydes are the products. The reaction dislays appreciable activity throughout the entire pH range investigated, namely pH 3.0–7.0. This enzyme is the only haloperoxidase of four tested capable of carrying out the reaction. These results further establish chloroperoxidase as a unique haloperoxidase.     

Molecular evolution of enzyme structure: Construction of a hybrid hamster/Escherichia coli aspartate transcarbamoylase

Summary Aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATCase, EC 2.1.3.2) is the first unique enzyme common to de novo pyrimidine biosynthesis and is involved in a variety of structural patterns in different organisms. InEscherichia coli, ATCase is a functionally independent, oligomeric enzyme; in hamster, it is part of a trifunctional protein complex, designated CAD, that includes the preceding and subsequent enzymes of the biosynthetic pathway (carbamoyl phosphate synthetase and dihydroorotase). The complete complementary DNA (cDNA) nucleotide sequence of the ATCase-encoding portion of the hamster CAD gene is reported here. A comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences of the hamster andE. coli catalytic peptides revealed an overall 44% amino acid similarity, substantial conservation of predicted secondary structure, and complete conservation of all the amino acids implicated in the active site of theE. coli enzyme. These observations led to the construction of a functional hybrid ATCase formed by intragenic fusion based on the known tertiary structure of the bacterial enzyme. In this fusion, the amino terminal half (the “polar domain”) of the fusion protein was provided by a hamster ATCase cDNA subclone, and the carboxyl terminal portion (the “equatorial domain”) was derived from a clonedpyrBI operon ofE. coli K-12. The recombinant plasmid bearing the hybrid ATCase was shown to satisfy growth requirements of transformedE. coli pyrB ⁻ cells. The functionality of thisE. coli-hamster hybrid enzyme confirms conservation of essential structure-function relationships between evolutionarily distant and structurally divergent ATCases.