O-Linked glycome and proteome of high-molecular-mass proteins in human ovarian cancer ascites: Identification of sulfation, disialic acid and O-linked fucose

The O-linked glycosylation of the main acidic high-molecular-weight glycoprotein from ascites fluid from patients with ovarian cancer were analyzed. The O-linked oligosaccharides were shown to consist of mainly highly sialylated core 1 and 2 structures with a smaller amount of sulfated core 2 structures. These structures were shown to be able to be further extended into small keratan sulfate (KS)-type oligosaccharides with up to four N-acetyllactosamine units. Proteomic studies of the acidic fraction of ascites fluid from patients with ovarian cancer showed that this fraction was enriched in proteoglycans. Among them, lumican, agrin, versican and dystroglycans were potential candidates, with threonine- and serine-rich domains that could carry a significant amount of O-linked glycosylation, including also the O-linked KS. Glycomic analysis using liquid chromatography (LC)-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) also showed that the disialic acid NeuAc-NeuAc- was frequently found as the terminating structure on the O-linked core 1 and 2 oligosaccharides from one ascites sample. Also, a small amount of the epidermal growth factor (EGF)-associated O-linked fucose structure Gal-GlcNAc-Fucitol was detected with and without sialic acid in the LC-MS/MS analysis. Candidate proteins containing O-linked fucose were suggested to be proteoglycan-type molecules containing the O-linked fucose EGF consensus domain.     

Epitope‐specificity of recombinant antibodies reveals promiscuous peptide‐binding properties

Protein–peptide interactions are a common occurrence and essential for numerous cellular processes, and frequently explored in broad applications within biology, medicine, and proteomics. Therefore, understanding the molecular mechanism(s) of protein–peptide recognition, specificity, and binding interactions will be essential. In this study, we report the first detailed analysis of antibody–peptide interaction characteristics, by combining large‐scale experimental peptide binding data with the structural analysis of eight human recombinant antibodies and numerous peptides, targeting tryptic mammalian and eukaryote proteomes. The results consistently revealed that promiscuous peptide‐binding interactions, that is, both specific and degenerate binding, were exhibited by all antibodies, and the discovery was corroborated by orthogonal data, indicating that this might be a general phenomenon for low‐affinity antibody–peptide interactions. The molecular mechanism for the degenerate peptide‐binding specificity appeared to be executed through the use of 2–3 semi‐conserved anchor residues in the C‐terminal part of the peptides, in analogue to the mechanism utilized by the major histocompatibility complex–peptide complexes. In the long‐term, this knowledge will be instrumental for advancing our fundamental understanding of protein–peptide interactions, as well as for designing, generating, and applying peptide specific antibodies, or peptide‐binding proteins in general, in various biotechnical and medical applications.     

Sexual selection uncouples the evolution of brain and body size in pinnipeds

The size of the vertebrate brain is shaped by a variety of selective forces. Although larger brains (correcting for body size) are thought to confer fitness advantages, energetic limitations of this costly organ may lead to trade-offs, for example as recently suggested between sexual traits and neural tissue. Here, we examine the patterns of selection on male and female brain size in pinnipeds, a group where the strength of sexual selection differs markedly among species and between the sexes. Relative brain size was negatively associated with the intensity of sexual selection in males but not females. However, analyses of the rates of body and brain size evolution showed that this apparent trade-off between sexual selection and brain mass is driven by selection for increasing body mass rather than by an actual reduction in male brain size. Our results suggest that sexual selection has important effects on the allometric relationships of neural development.     

Forecasting Environmental Responses to Restoration of Rivers Used as Log Floatways: An Interdisciplinary Challenge

Log floating in the 19th to mid 20th centuries has profoundly changed the environmental conditions in many northern river systems of the world. Regulation of flow by dams, straightening and narrowing of channels by various piers and wing dams, and homogenization of bed structure are some of the major impacts. As a result, the conditions for many riverine organisms have been altered. Removing physical constructions and returning boulders to the channels can potentially restore conditions for these organisms. Here we describe the history of log driving, review its impact on physical and biological conditions and processes, and predict the responses to restoration. Reviewing the literature on comparable restoration efforts and building upon this knowledge, using boreal Swedish rivers as an example, we address the last point. We hypothesize that restoration measures will make rivers wider and more sinuous, and provide rougher bottoms, thus improving land-water interactions and increasing the retention capacity of water, sediment, organic matter and nutrients. The geomorphic and hydraulic/hydrologic alterations are supposed to favor production, diversity, migration and reproduction of riparian and aquatic organisms. The response rates are likely to vary according to the types of processes and organisms. Some habitat components, such as beds of very large boulders and bedrock outcrops, and availability of sediment and large woody debris are believed to be extremely difficult to restore. Monitoring and evaluation at several scales are needed to test our predictions.     

Group stability and homing behavior but no kin group structures in a coral reef fish

Understanding the reasons behind stable group formations hasreceived considerable theoretical and empirical attention. Stablegroups displaying homing behavior have been suggested to formas a result of, for instance, benefits from knowledge of thesocial or physical environment or through kin selection andthe forming of kin groups. However, no one has disentangledpreference for grouping in a familiar location from preferencefor grouping with familiar or related individuals. To investigatethis, we conducted a series of field experiments and a groupgenetic analysis on the group-living Banggai cardinalfish (Pterapogonkauderni). We found homing behavior but no evidence for recognitionof familiar group members. Instead, homing was based on theoriginal location of their group rather than the individualsin that group. Moreover, we found no evidence for kin structureswithin these groups. We suggest that benefits from living ina known social environment drive homing behavior in this speciesand that homing behavior is not enough for the formation ofkin group structures. Instead, our results suggest that kinrecognition may be a prerequisite for the forming of kin groups.     

The precision of radiostereometric measurements. Manual vs. digital measurements.

The precision of digital vs. manual radiostereometric measurements in total hip arthroplasty was evaluated using repeated stereoradiographic exposures with an interval of 10-15 min. Ten Lubinus SP2 stems cemented into bone specimens and 12 patients with the same stem design were used to evaluate the precision of stem translations and rotations. The precision of translations and rotations of the cup and femoral head penetration was studied in 12 patients with whole polyethylene cups.The use of a measurement method based on digitised radiographs improved the precision for some of the motion parameters, whereas many of them did not change. A corresponding pattern was observed for both the intra- and interobserver error. Of the wear parameters, the most pronounced improvements were the 3D wear and in the proximal-distal direction, although the anterior-posterior precision was also improved. The mean errors of rigid body and elliptic fitting decreased in all evaluations but one, consistent with a more reproducible identification of the markers centres and the edge of the femoral head.Increased precision of radiostereometric measurements may be used to increase the statistical power of future randomised studies and to study new fields in orthopaedics requiring higher precision than has been available with RSA based on manual measurements.     

Uncertain biotic and abiotic interactions in benthic communities

We analyze marine benthic communities at different sites in Skagerrak with the purpose of understanding the role of exogenous and endogenous factors in explaining the species' temporal dynamics. The previous finding that the dynamics of these species communities are mainly driven and synchronized by environmental (temperature) forcing was only weakly supported when analyzing single-species dynamics at five sites where four of the species were present every year. There was no consistent pattern in how the temperature affected the realized per capita growth rate, either across species at a given site, or among sites for a given species. Furthermore, there was no net-interaction from the community on a given species strong enough to give rise to second-order dynamics. However, when implementing a Multi Dimensional Scaling (MDS) analysis and incorporating all sampling sites and species -we found that the different communities clustered in relation to depth, hence, communities at the same depth were more "similar" than communities at different depth. Revealing the underlying interactions shaping these marine benthic communities is a challenge that calls for an array of various and complementary approaches.     

Polymorphic microsatellite DNA markers in the ant Formica exsecta

Highly polymorphic genetic markers provide a useful tool for estimating important genetic parameters in studies of the evolution of sociality in insects. Here we report 14 polymorphic microsatellite markers developed in the ant Formica exsecta. The number of alleles found ranged between 3 and 18 per locus. These markers were developed for studying genetic population structure and mating structure in F. exsecta populations with varying social organizations (monogyne and polygyne types of societies). Cross‐species amplification indicated that some of the markers might be usable even in species belonging to different subfamilies.     

Females produce larger eggs for large males in a paternal mouthbrooding fish.

When individuals receive different returns from their reproductive investment dependent on mate quality, they are expected to invest more when breeding with higher quality mates. A number of studies over the past decade have shown that females may alter their reproductive effort depending on the quality/attractiveness of their mate. However, to date, despite extensive work on parental investment, such a differential allocation has not been demonstrated in fish. Indeed, so far only two studies from any taxon have suggested that females alter the quality of individual offspring according to the quality/attractiveness of their mate. The banggai cardinal fish is an obligate paternal mouth brooder where females lay few large eggs. It has previously been shown that male size determines clutch weight irrespective of female size in this species. In this study, I investigated whether females perform more courtship displays towards larger males and whether females allocate their reproductive effort depending on the size of their mate by experimentally assigning females to either large or small males. I found that females displayed more towards larger males, thereby suggesting a female preference for larger males. Further, females produced heavier eggs and heavier clutches but not more eggs when paired with large males. My experiments show that females in this species adjust their offspring weight and, thus, presumably offspring quality according to the size of their mate.     

Spider silk felting—functional morphology of the ovipositor tip of Clistopyga sp. (Ichneumonidae) reveals a novel use of the hymenopteran ovipositor

Apical serrations of the hymenopteran ovipositor have been widely postulated to originally constitute adaptations for cutting through hard substrates. Simplifications of the ovipositor tip have occurred in several ichneumonid wasp genera associated with spiders. Despite such reduction in Clistopyga (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae), the ovipositor still possesses some apical serrations. Through the first detailed study, we believe, on the behaviour of an ovipositing Clistopyga species, we show that it can alter its ovipositor for different purposes and that the primary function of the apical serrations is clinging to its spider host as the spider attempts to escape. Intriguingly, we also discover a hitherto undocumented adaptation for the hymenopteran ovipositor. The female wasp seals openings in the silken spider nest by using its ovipositor on the silk in a highly sophisticated way that is comparable to how humans entangle wool by needle felting. By studying the ovipositor morphology through a scanning electron microscope, we elucidate how this works, and we hypothesize that by closing the nest the female wasp protects its developing kin.