Increased brain myo-inositol 1-phosphate in lithium-treated rats

Lithium was found to produce a marked elevation in the levels of $\text{myo}$-inositol 1-phosphate in the cerebral cortex of treated rats. This effect was completely inhibited by atropine. A 40% reduction in the levels of $\text{myo}$-inositol 1-phosphate was observed when atropine was given alone.     

Différenciation des mécanismes induisant la segmentation et l'asymétrie des chromatides, après traitement par le 5-bromodéoxyuridine

5-Bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR)-induced segmentation and BUdR-induced asymmetry of the chromatids probably reflect a two-stage mechanism. The first stage consists of a BUdR substitution of the thymidine in the DNA during S period. The second stage, less obviously demonstrated, involves either alteration of chromosomal proteins or an imperfect association between substituted DNA and normal or abnormal proteins. This second stage takes place at different times, according to the type of chromatid modification: during S or G 2 period in the case of segmentation, and during G 1 in the case of asymmetry. One important implication of our experimental results is that the appearance of metaphasic chromatids is at least partly determined by the time of the G 1 period.L'induction d'une asymétrie, ou d'une segmentation des chromatides par un traitement au BUdR, résulte probablement d'un mécanisme à deux étapes distinctes. La première consiste en une substitution de la thymidine par le BUdR survenant lors de la replication de l'ADN. La seconde, plus difficile à mettre en évidence, consiste en une modification des protéines chromosomiques, ou en une mauvaise association entre les protéines, modifiées ou non, et l'ADN ayant incorporé le BUdR. Cette seconde étape est nécessairement différente selon la modification chromatidienne induite: elle se déroule en phase S ou G 2, en cas de segmentation, et en phase G 1 surtout, en cas d'asymétrie. Dans l'un et l'autre cas, la modification de l'association ADN-protéines pourrait être en rapport avec la régulation chromosomique. Une déduction importante de nos résultats expérimentaux est que l'aspect des deux chromatides métaphasiques dépend, au moins en partie, de la constitution de l'ADN dès la phase G 1.     

Beitrag zur Termiologie der Diasporologie

Aufgrund des Studiums von Diasporologie der FamilieFabaceae und anderer Arten der tschechoslowakischen Flora wurde im vorliegenden Beitrag die diasporologische Terminologie durch folgende neue Fachausdrücke ergänzt: Hydroballochorie, Xeroballochorie, Euxeroballochorie, Hemixeroballochorie. Die Xerochasie ist in Euxerochasie und Pseudoxerochasie und die Hygrochasie in Euhygrochasie, Hemihygrochasie und Pseudohygrochasie geteilt. Bei der Synaptospermie wird Eusynaptospermie und Pseudosynaptospermie unterscheidet. Weiter wurde ein neuer Typ der Aërokarpie—die Chamelokarpie beschrieben, der in Euchamelokarpie und Pseudochamelokarie eingeteilt ist.     

Das Futterwahlverhalten des Rehes in einem voralpinen Revier

European Journal of Wildlife Research - Von April bis Juli 1972 wurden im voralpinen Revier Grabs Ost Beobachtungen zum Futterwahlverhalten des Rehes ausgeführt. Die Rehe wurden beim Äsen...     

Dynamics of Salmonella enterica and antimicrobial resistance in the Brazilian poultry industry and global impacts on public health

Non-typhoidal Salmonella enterica is a common cause of diarrhoeal disease; in humans, consumption of contaminated poultry meat is believed to be a major source. Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of chicken meat globally, and previous studies have indicated the introduction of Salmonella serovars through imported food products from Brazil. Here we provide an in-depth genomic characterisation and evolutionary analysis to investigate the most prevalent serovars and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Brazilian chickens and assess the impact to public health of products contaminated with S. enterica imported into the United Kingdom from Brazil. To do so, we examine 183 Salmonella genomes from chickens in Brazil and 357 genomes from humans, domestic poultry and imported Brazilian poultry products isolated in the United Kingdom. S. enterica serovars Heidelberg and Minnesota were the most prevalent serovars in Brazil and in meat products imported from Brazil into the UK. We extended our analysis to include 1,259 publicly available Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Minnesota genomes for context. The Brazil genomes form clades distinct from global isolates, with temporal analysis suggesting emergence of these Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Minnesota clades in the early 2000s, around the time of the 2003 introduction of the Enteritidis vaccine in Brazilian poultry. Analysis showed genomes within the Salmonella Heidelberg and Salmonella Minnesota clades shared resistance to sulphonamides, tetracyclines and beta-lactams conferred by sul2, tetA and bla_CMY-2 genes, not widely observed in other co-circulating serovars despite similar selection pressures. The sul2 and tetA genes were concomitantly carried on IncC plasmids, whereas bla_CMY-2 was either co-located with the sul2 and tetA genes on IncC plasmids or independently on IncI1 plasmids. Long-term surveillance data collected in the UK showed no increase in the incidence of Salmonella Heidelberg or Salmonella Minnesota in human cases of clinical disease in the UK following the increase of these two serovars in Brazilian poultry. In addition, almost all of the small number of UK-derived genomes which cluster with the Brazilian poultry-derived sequences could either be attributed to human cases with a recent history of foreign travel or were from imported Brazilian food products. These findings indicate that even should Salmonella from imported Brazilian poultry products reach UK consumers, they are very unlikely to be causing disease. No evidence of the Brazilian strains of Salmonella Heidelberg or Salmonella Minnesota were observed in UK domestic chickens. These findings suggest that introduction of the Salmonella Enteritidis vaccine, in addition to increasing antimicrobial use, could have resulted in replacement of salmonellae in Brazilian poultry flocks with serovars that are more drug resistant, but less associated with disease in humans in the UK. The plasmids conferring resistance to beta-lactams, sulphonamides and tetracyclines likely conferred a competitive advantage to the Salmonella Minnesota and Salmonella Heidelberg serovars in this setting of high antimicrobial use, but the apparent lack of transfer to other serovars present in the same setting suggests barriers to horizontal gene transfer that could be exploited in intervention strategies to reduce AMR. The insights obtained reinforce the importance of One Health genomic surveillance.     

Evolutionary divergence of anaphase spindle mechanics in nematode embryos constrained by antagonistic pulling and viscous forces

Cellular functions such as cell division are remarkably conserved across phyla. However, the evolutionary principles of cellular organization that drive them are less well explored. Thus, an essential question remains: to what extent do cellular parameters evolve without altering the basic functions they sustain? Here we have observed six different nematode species for which the mitotic spindle is positioned asymmetrically during the first embryonic division. Whereas the C. elegans spindle undergoes oscillations during its displacement, the spindle elongates without oscillations in other species. We asked which evolutionary changes in biophysical parameters could explain differences in spindle motion while maintaining a constant output. Using laser microsurgery of the spindle, we revealed that all species are subjected to cortical pulling forces of varying magnitudes. Using a viscoelastic model to fit the recoil trajectories and with an independent measurement of cytoplasmic viscosity, we extracted the values of cytoplasmic drag, cortical pulling forces, and spindle elasticity for all species. We found large variations in cytoplasmic viscosity, whereas cortical pulling forces and elasticity were often more constrained. In agreement with previous simulations, we found that increased viscosity correlates with decreased oscillation speeds across species. However, the absence of oscillations in some species despite low viscosity can only be explained by smaller pulling forces. Consequently, we find that spindle mobility across the species analyzed here is characterized by a tradeoff between cytoplasmic viscosity and pulling forces normalized by the size of the embryo. Our work provides a framework for understanding mechanical constraints on evolutionary diversification of spindle mobility.     

Functional and phylogenetic diversity of an agricultural matrix avifauna: The role of habitat heterogeneity in Afrotropical farmland

Varied strategies to alleviate the loss of farmland biodiversity have been tested, yet there is still insufficient evidence supporting their effectiveness, especially when considering phylogenetic and functional diversity alongside traditional taxonomic diversity metrics. This conservation challenge is accentuated in the Afrotropics by the rapid agricultural expansion and intensification for the production of cash crops and by a comparative lack of research. In this study, we assessed how farming practices influence avian phylogenetic and functional diversity. We conducted point‐count surveys to assess avian diversity in monocultures of tea and mixed crop farming systems surrounding the Nyungwe rainforest in south‐west Rwanda, allowing us to investigate the drivers of avian diversity at farm level. Species composition was found to be moderately different between farm types, with mixed crop farms supporting higher phylogenetic diversity than tea plantations. There were no significant seasonal differences in species composition, functional or phylogenetic diversity. Overall, functional diversity did not differ between farm types, but the dispersion of trophic‐related traits was significantly higher in mixed crop farms. Both functional and phylogenetic diversity were influenced by floristic diversity, vegetation height, tree number, and elevation to varying degrees. Our results also (i) highlight the role of farmland heterogeneity (e.g., crop species composition, height, and tree cover extent) in encouraging avian functional and phylogenetic diversity in the Afrotropics and (ii) indicate that the generally negative biodiversity impacts of monoculture agriculture can be partially alleviated by extensive agroforestry with an emphasis on indigenous tree species.