Morphological embedding and phonetic reduction: the case of triconstituent compounds

In this paper we propose that the internal bracketing of a word with more than two morphemes is reflected in the phonetic implementation. We hypothesize that embedded forms show more phonetic reduction than forms at higher structural levels (‘Embedded Reduction Hypothesis’). This paper tests the prediction of the Embedded Reduction Hypothesis with triconstituent compounds. The analysis of the durational properties of almost 500 compound tokens shows that there is a lengthening effect on the non-embedded constituent, and a shortening effect on the adjacent embedded constituent. Yet, this predicted effect of embedding interacts with other lexical factors, above all the bigram frequency of the embedded compound. At a theoretical level, these effects mean that the durational properties of the cross-boundary constituents are indicative of the hierarchical structure and of the strength of the internal boundary of triconstituent compounds. Hence, morphological structure is reflected in the speech signal.     

The impact of ticks on pheasant territoriality

Pheasants are competent reservoir hosts for the Lyme disease spirochaete, Borrelia burgdorferi s.l., and carry large, but highly over-dispersed, infestations of the vector ticks, Ixodes ricinus . The effects of experimental reduction of tick infestation levels on the survival and territorial behaviour of male pheasants were studied. Over three years in two woodlands in southern England, birds were marked individually and half were fitted with a slow-release acaricide, which substantially reduced their tick burdens from March to August. Acaricide treatment affected reproductive success but had no discernible impact on the survival rates of male pheasants. The degree of wattle inflation by males, an indicator of territorial status and a correlate of harem acquisition, was significantly greater among treated males. In each year, a significantly higher proportion of treated (overall 44%) than control (22%) males acquired harems. Males that acquired females ranged over small areas on field edges. By contrast, those with no females ranged more widely in woods and the adjoining fields, increasing their exposure to questing ticks. The relative contribution of such roving males to tick-borne pathogen transmission may thus increase.     

Einfluß von Epicoccum nigrum,Alternaria alternata,Mucor racemosus und Ulocladium chartarum auf die Protozoenpopulation im Pansen des Rindes (in vitro)

The influence of moulded hay (Alternaria alternata, Epicoccum nigrum, Mucor racemosus, Ulocladium chartarum) and the efficiency of Vitamin B1 substitution to cope these effects on rumen protozoa was investigated using the longterm rumen simulation technique (RUSITEC) for about 25 days. Moulded hay affected medium-sized protozoa to a different extent (Alternaria alternata: ?16 %, Epicoccum nigrum: ?27 %, Mucor racemosus: ?9 %, Ulocladium chartarum: +2 %). The vitamin B1 substitution had positive effects during the feeding of Mucor racemosus and Ulocladium chartarum.     

Moniliformin,deoxynivalenol, 3Acetyldeoxynivalenol and zearalenone — Mycotoxins associated with corn cob fusariosis in Poland

An isolated rat liver was perfused with deoxynivalenol (DON) at a dose of 3 mg in a recirculating perfusion system. To identify glucuronide conjugates equal amounts of bile samples, perfusate and liver homogenates were incubated with and without (control) a β-glucuronidase preparation and analyzed by thin layer chromatography and capillary gas liquid chromatography — chemical ionization mass spectrometry. A total of 40.4% of the administered dose of DON was found to be conjugated with glucuronic acid (perfusate 20.4%, bile 19.2%, liver 0.8%), while only 1.3% of the parent DON (perfusate 1.1%, bile 0.2%) was detected. The cleavage of DON-glucuronide was demonstrated by incubating DON-glucuronide containing bile samples with intestine contents under anaerobic conditions.     

Oxygen transfer properties and dimensions of red blood cells in high-altitude camelids,dromedary camel and goat

Summary To estimate the advantage of the small red blood cells (RBC) of high-altitude camelids for O₂ transfer, the kinetics of O₂ uptake into and release from the RBC obtained from llama, vicuña and alpaca were investigated at 37°C with a stopped-flow technique. O₂ transfer conductance of RBC (G) was estimated from the rate of O₂ saturation change and the corresponding O₂ pressure difference between medium and hemoglobin. For comparison, O₂ kinetics for the RBC of a lowaltitude camelid (dromedary camel) and the pygmy goat were determined and previously measured values for human RBC were used. O₂ transfer of RBC was found to be strongly influenced by extracellular diffusion, except with O₂ release into dithionite solutions of sufficiently high concentration (>30 mM). TheG values measured in these standard conditions,G _st (in mmol · min^–1 · Torr^–1 · (ml RBC)^–1) were: high-altitude camelids, 0.58 (averaged for llama, alpaca and vicuña since there were no significant interspecific differences); camel 0.42; goat, 0.42; man, 0.39. The differences can in part be attributed to expected effects of the size and shape of the RBC (volume, surface area, mean thickness), as well as to the intracellular O₂ diffusivity which depends on the concentration of cellular hemoglobin. The highG _st of RBC of highaltitude camelids may be considered to enhance O₂ transfer in lungs and tissues. But the O₂ transfer conductance of blood, , equal toG _st multiplied by hematocrit (in mmol · min^–1 · Torr^–1 · (ml blood)^–1), was only slightly higher as compared to other species: 0.20 (llama, alpaca, vicuña), 0.14 (camel), 0.18 (goat), 0.17 (man).Abbreviations DPG 2,3-diphosphoglycerate - G conductance - Hb hemoglobin - RBC red blood cells - percent saturation of hemoglobin