Past vegetation changes in the Brazilian Pantanal arboreal–grassy savanna ecotone by using carbon isotopes in the soil organic matter

Measurements of the organic carbon inventory, its stable isotopic composition and radiocarbon content were used to deduce vegetation history from two soil profiles in arboreal and grassy savanna ecotones in the Brazilian Pantanal. The Pantanal is a large floodplain area with grass-dominated lowlands subject to seasonal flooding, and arboreal savanna uplands which are only rarely flooded. Organic carbon inventories were lower in the grassy savanna site than in the upland arboreal savanna site, with carbon decreasing exponentially with depth from the surface in both profiles. Changes in ¹³C of soil organic matter (SOM) with depth differed markedly between the two sites. Differences in surface SOM ¹³C values reflect the change from C₃ to C₄ plants between the sites, as confirmed by measurements of ¹³C of vegetation and the soil surface along a transect between the upland closed-canopy forest and lowland grassy savanna. Changes of ¹³C in SOM with depth at both sites are larger than the 3–4 per mil increases expected from fractionation associated with organic matter decomposition. We interpret these as recording past changes in the relative abundance of C₃ and C₄ plants at these sites. Mass balances with ¹⁴C and ¹³C suggest that past vegetational changes from C₃ to C₄ plants in the grassy savanna, and in the deeper part of the arboreal savanna, occurred between 4600 and 11 400 BP, when major climatic changes were also observed in several places of the South American Continent. The change from C₄ to C₃, observed only in the upper part of the arboreal savanna, was much more recent (1400 BP), and was probably caused by a local change in the flooding regime.     

HYDROBIIDAE (GASTROPODA: HYDROBIOIDEA) FROM THE RIBEIRA VALLEY, S.E. BRAZIL, WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF TWO NEW CAVERNICOLOUS SPECIES

Potamolithus karsticus n. sp. and Potamolithus troglo-bius n.sp., two Brazilian aquatic cavesnails (Gastropoda: Hydrobiidae),are described. P. troglobius is blind and depigmented, and isthe first stygobiontic snail to be described from Brazil Additionally, specimens of Potamolithus ribeirensis Pilsbry,1911 were collected near the type locality for comparison withthe new cave species (Received 2 December 1993; accepted 20 June 1994)     

Phylogenetic relationships of the garter snakes based on DNA sequence and allozyme variation

We estimated phylogenetic relationships among 26 species of garter snakes (genus Thamnophis ) using allozyme and mitochondrial cytochrome b gene nucleotide sequence variation. Parsimony analyses of the two data sets give substantially different estimates of phylogeny. Several lines of evidence indicate that much of this conflict is due to error associated with the restricted number of characters in each data set. Such sampling error may be reduced by combining all the characters; we therefore present an estimate of phylogeny based on parsimony analysis of all the data combined. All our analyses support several conclusions in conflict with previous views: a very distant relationship between T.errans and T. elegans , non-monophyly of the elegans group (even excluding T: errans ), and nesting of the form validus (previously considered a member of the genus Nerodia ) within Thamnophis.
The combined analysis gives an almost fully resolved tree. However, bootstrapping indicates only weak support for many clades in this tree. Furthermore, paraphyly of the assemblages of cytochrome b gene lineages within T. elegans and T. radix indicate the potential for discordance between the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and species phylogenies through the sorting of ancestral mtDNA polymorphisms. These problems suggest the need for assaying additional characters, especially ones likely to be independent of those used in the present study.     

Pleural Fluid Adenosine Deaminase and Lymphocyte Proportion: Clinical Usefulness In the Diagnosis of Tuberculosis

Adenosine deaminase (ADA) and lymphocyte proportion are known to be independently elevated in tuberculous effusions, but are non-specific, and false positive results are frequent. to overcome this problem the combined use of both parameters was prospectively studied in 276 patients with pleural effusion seen at Porto Alegre, Brazil. Using a cut-off level of 40 U/l at 37°C (method of Giusti¹⁹) for ADA activity and lymphocyte proportion of more than 50%, the correct diagnosis of tuberculosis (sensitivity) was made in 90.7% (CI 87.3–94.1%) of 54 patients. A specificity of 97.7% (CI 95.9–99.5%) was recorded. Five false positive diagnoses of tuberculous effusion were made. Five false negative diagnoses were made: three cases with haematogenous tuberculous dissemination with low ADA levels, and two other patients with low lymphocyte proportion. the combined use of ADA activity determination and lymphocyte proportion is a highly efficient diagnostic strategy of low cost, that merits wider use.     

Nonstructural carbohydrates in dormant and afterripened wild oat caryopses

Nonstructural carbohydrates were determined in both embryo and endosperm of dormant (nongerminating) and afterripened (germinating) intact caryopses of wild oat ( Avena fatua L.). No changes in endosperm starch or soluble sugar were observed at the onset of germination (18 h). No changes in glucose, fructose, sucrose or starch within dormant or afterripened embryos correlated with onset of visual germination. In afterripened embryos, depletion of raffinose (18 h), stachyose (18 h) and galactose (24 h) was correlated with germination. In contrast, raffinose-family oligosaccharide levels in dormant embryos remained constant for 7 days following imbibition. Germination of isolated dormant embryos on 88 m M galactose-containing media was accompanied by decreased endogenous levels of raffinose and stachyose. Isolated embryos from dormant caryopses incorporated ¹⁴C from ¹⁴C-fructose into both raffinose and stachyose during 24 h of imbibition. In contrast, no ¹⁴C incorporation into stachyose was observed in embryos from afterripened caryopses. No ¹⁴C incorporation into raffinose was observed at 18 and 24 h. When in vitro activities of α galactosidase were measured, no temporal differences between dormant or afterripened caryopses were detected in either embryo or endosperm tissue. Although the mechanism associated with differences in utilization of raffinose and stachyose is yet unidentified, alterations in raffinose-family oligosaccharide metabolism in the embryo appear to be a unique prerequisite for afterripening-induced germination.     

On Paraptychostomum almae N. G., N. Sp., a Commensal Ciliate from the Digestive Tract of Oligochaetes of the Cameroons, in a New Subclass Hysterocinetia

ABSTRACT. Morphological and ultrastructural studies on a new ciliate, Paraptychostomum almae , from the digestive tract of an oligochaete ( Alma emini ) from the Cameroons are carried out. The flattened cell has a large size; its left lateral face bears an anterior thigmotactic zone that includes seven-nine short kinetal segments. The somatic cortex is composed of flattened alveoli, a thin epiplasm and a microfibrillar ecto-endoplasmic boundary. Kineties are made of monokinetids, each particularly characterized by a long anteriorly directed kinetodesmal fiber, and a hyperdivergent postciliary ribbon. The postero-ventral buccal apparatus consists of a short peristome and a deep longitudinal infundibulum. The paroral organelle is a long stichodyad. The three adoral organelles are of different types: ADI and AD3 are of the membranoid type, respectively with two and one rows of ciliated kinetosomes; AD2 is of the peniculus type with six-seven rows of ciliated kinetosomes. A microfibrillar network with nodes arises from all the buccal kinetosomes and extends under the naked wall. Mitochondria are small and numerous and dispersed throughout the whole cell. The existence of an AD2 with more than two rows of kinetosomes warrants the creation of the new genus Paraptychostomum and a new family, Ptychostomatidae. The presence of a distinct ecto-endoplasmic boundary and of somatic kinetids exclusive without transversal dense tractus, hyperdivergent postciliary ribbons, and dispersed numerous mitochondria, added to particularities of the stomatogenesis, allow us to clearly separate hysterocinetians from the scuticociliates and to set up for them the new subclass Hysterocinetia, within the class Oligohymenophorea, with a single new order Hysterocinetida.     

A Comparative Study of Spider (Araneae) Communities of Rehabilitated Bauxite Mines and Surrounding Forest in the Southwest of Western Australia

A study of spider (Araneae) communities was conducted in rehabilitated bauxite mines at the Jarrahdale mine site of Alcoa of Australia Ltd. and in the nearby native jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest in southwest Western Australia. The study was conducted from March to August 1993 in five rehabilitated sites of different age and method of rehabilitation and in two forest sites. A variety of collection methods was used, including pitfall trapping, litter sampling, sweep netting, tree beating, and visual searching. These methods were the same as those carried out in a previous study of some of these areas in 1983. We collected 151 spider species belonging to 102 genera and 34 families. We examined the relationship between various habitat features, including the age and method of rehabilitation, of the spider communities present. It was found that leaf litter depth and cover and vegetation density had a significant positive influence on recolonization by the various spider guilds. The age and method of rehabilitation were found to influence different vegetational and habitat features; these, in turn, influenced the spider communities. Thus, the older a rehabilitated site the greater the species richness of both plants and spiders. We compared these results with those of the 1983 study to determine the spider succession of the aging rehabilitation. The spider communities and guild composition were found to change as the vegetation matured, from a dominance of pioneer species to a community of species requiring less harsh conditions. By comparison with the pre-1983 rehabilitation, the latest method of rehabilitation increased the rate of recolonization by both plants and spiders.     

Formation of crystalloid inclusions in the small intestine of neonatal pigs: an immunocytochemical study using colloidal gold

Summary Enterocytes of the small intestine in 1-day-old suckling piglets contain numerous vesicles in the apical cytoplasm and a large granule located beneath the nucleus. Within the next 3 days, these granules transform into electron-dense crystalloid inclusions. These membrane-bound inclusions are up to 10 m in length and 1–2 m in diameter, and they are composed of electron-dense lamellae 3.9 nm apart. Postembedding immunocytochemistry, using rabbit anti-porcine IgG and goat anti-rabbit IgG conjugated to 10 nm colloidal gold, revealed that both the granules and the crystalloid inclusions contained a high concentration of maternal IgG. Although the IgG content of the crystalloid inclusions was detected on epoxy-embedded sections, the use of LR White resin resulted in a much higher density of labelling. Quantification of the labelling density showed that the concentration of IgG in the crystalloid inclusions was approximately ten times higher than that in the lumenal colostrum and approximately three times higher than that in the granules. These observations showed that there are at least three compartments involved in the accretion of IgG in the small intestine of neonatal piglets: smaller apical endocytotic vesicles, large subnuclear granules and crystalloid inclusions. The role of these compartments in maternal immunoglobulin absorption and in the acquisition of passive immunity has yet to be explored.     

A surplus no more? Variation in krill availability impacts reproductive rates of Antarctic baleen whales

The krill surplus hypothesis of unlimited prey resources available for Antarctic predators due to commercial whaling in the 20th century has remained largely untested since the 1970s. Rapid warming of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) over the past 50 years has resulted in decreased seasonal ice cover and a reduction of krill. The latter is being exacerbated by a commercial krill fishery in the region. Despite this, humpback whale populations have increased but may be at a threshold for growth based on these human-induced changes. Understanding how climate-mediated variation in prey availability influences humpback whale population dynamics is critical for focused management and conservation actions. Using an 8-year dataset (2013–2020), we show that inter-annual humpback whale pregnancy rates, as determined from skin-blubber biopsy samples (n = 616), are positively correlated with krill availability and fluctuations in ice cover in the previous year. Pregnancy rates showed significant inter-annual variability, between 29% and 86%. Our results indicate that krill availability is in fact limiting and affecting reproductive rates, in contrast to the krill surplus hypothesis. This suggests that this population of humpback whales may be at a threshold for population growth due to prey limitations. As a result, continued warming and increased fishing along the WAP, which continue to reduce krill stocks, will likely impact this humpback whale population and other krill predators in the region. Humpback whales are sentinel species of ecosystem health, and changes in pregnancy rates can provide quantifiable signals of the impact of environmental change at the population level. Our findings must be considered paramount in developing new and more restrictive conservation and management plans for the Antarctic marine ecosystem and minimizing the negative impacts of human activities in the region.