Planktonic food web in marine mesocosms in the Eastern Mediterranean: bottom-up or top-down regulation?

A mesocosm experiment was conducted in order to studythe structure of the planktonic food web. The dynamicsof pico-, nano- and microplankton populations werefollowed during 40 days in four large (40 m³)enclosures. In three tanks a gradient of addednutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) was applied, whilea fourth tank was used as a control. On day 14, thetop predator (sea bream Sparus aurata larvae)was introduced into the tanks and part of the watercolumn in each tank was isolated in a plastic bagwithout fish larvae, to act as a control forpredation. Physical parameters, chlorophyll aand nutrient concentrations, as well as planktonconcentrations were monitored. A diatom bloom wasobserved in all four tanks, in the first phase endingwith silicate depletion. Flagellate and dinoflagellateabundance subsequently increased, these organismsbeing limited by zooplankton grazing. The zooplanktonpopulations were controlled by both resources (mostlyflagellates) and predation (by fish larvae) asindicated by the results of the control experiments. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Induced Resistance to the Designer Proline-rich Antimicrobial Peptide A3-APO does not Involve Changes in the Intracellular Target DnaK

The designer proline-rich antimicrobial peptide A3-APO and its Chex1-Arg20 single chain in vivo metabolite were studied for their ability to induce bacterial resistance upon repeated incubation of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae strains in sublethal concentrations. While no resistant E. coli phenotype emerged to either peptides, after 10 passages the K. pneumoniae strain became resistant to the monomer but not the dimer. The major microbiological difference between A3-APO and Chex1-Arg20 is the improved membrane-disintegrating ability of the dimeric prodrug. Thus, in agreement with earlier studies, the induced resistance likely resides in some membrane component rather than the intracellular target protein DnaK. In support, no genetic alteration in the DnaK multihelical lid region could be observed in any of the sensitive or resistant bacterial strains.     

Natural vs. mariculture induced variability in nutrients and plankton in the eastern Mediterranean

The water column in three Mediterranean fish farms was investigated in terms of physical, chemical and biological characteristics. A significant increase in concentrations of phosphate and ammonium was detected within the cages over the control site in one of the farms but without any significant effect on chlorophyll concentration. Analysis of variation within the data set identified location and season as the major factors of variability in most of the variables examined except phosphate and ammonium for which variability induced by fish farming seemed to be of major importance. Plankton abundance for the major taxonomic groups (diatoms, flagellates, dinoflagellates and ciliates), microplankton species diversity and community structure were also determined by the effects of season and location rather than by fish farming.     

An empirical investigation of value-added product recovery activities in SMEs using multiple case studies of OEMs and independent remanufacturers

This paper presents an empirical study of certain features of the practices and management of value recovery processes that follow the acquisition of used products. The research focuses on the implementation of refurbishing and remanufacturing in small and medium enterprises. Twelve cases have been examined in detail, representing both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and independent remanufacturers (IRs), with different products and nature of operations. The analysis indicates that the factors having the strongest influence on the choice of value-added product recovery activities (PRA) at the OEMs are the type, features, and quality of the returned products, along with the consumer perceptions for recovered products, while the main factor influencing the choice of PRA for IRs is market demand for recovered products. Furthermore, willingness to pay for a recovered product constitutes the basic factor defining the pricing policy for recovered products. The findings of the research also include measurements of important quantifiable parameters of refurbishing and remanufacturing, such as the actual costs and prices expressed as fractions of the respective values for new products.     

Metal (Fe, Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd) concentration patterns in components of a macrophyte-based coastal lagoon ecosystem

Information on the metal biological fate in macrophyte-based coastal lagoons is provided; this information can contribute to the assessment of the environmental effects of metal pollution and to the development of predictive models for rational management of coastal lagoons. Iron, Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd concentrations in the dominant invertebrate and fish species of Monolimni Lagoon, Mediterranean Sea, as well as in potential major sources for metal accumulation in these animals (water, sediments, angiosperms, seaweeds), were measured. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was conducted using metal concentrations in invertebrates and fishes. All five metal concentrations loaded significantly on the first PCA axis; however, Zn and Cu loadings were less significant than Cd and even less than Fe and Pb ones. The samples of deposit-feeding invertebrates were separated from those of the rest of the organisms (browsing, herbivorous and carnivorous invertebrates, carnivorous gobies and muscle tissues of detritivorous mullets) along the first PCA axis. Deposit-feeding invertebrates displayed the highest Fe and Pb contents, and in general, the highest or comparatively high Cd, Zn and Cu ones. Carnivorous gobies showed comparatively high Zn contents and carnivorous shrimps the highest Cu ones, while muscle tissues of detritivorous mullets had low metal loads. In addition, there was no essential increase in metal concentrations corresponding to the increasing trophic level (autotrophs, to herbivores, to carnivores). Our findings suggest that (a) the variability in Fe, Pb and Cd contents in invertebrates and gobies depends at least to some extent on interspecific differences in feeding habits—deposit feeders accumulated the highest metal amounts probably due to high rates of uptake from sediments, (b) the variability in Zn and Cu concentrations in these organisms depends also on other interspecific differences apart from those in feeding habits, (c) metal accumulation in mullet muscle tissues does not depend markedly on feeding habits and (d) the trophic transfer of macrophyte-bound metals to the coastal lagoon food web is of relatively minor importance.     

Modulation of the extracellular matrix patterning of thrombospondins by actin dynamics and thrombospondin oligomer state

Thrombospondins (TSPs) are evolutionarily-conserved, secreted glycoproteins that interact with cell surfaces and extracellular matrix (ECM) and have complex roles in cell interactions. Unlike the structural components of the ECM that form networks or fibrils, TSPs are deposited into ECM as arrays of nanoscale puncta. The cellular and molecular mechanisms for the patterning of TSPs in ECM are poorly understood. In the present study, we investigated whether the mechanisms of TSP patterning in cell-derived ECM involves actin cytoskeletal pathways or TSP oligomer state. From tests of a suite of pharmacological inhibitors of small GTPases, actomyosin-based contractility, or actin microfilament integrity and dynamics, cytochalasin D and jasplakinolide treatment of cells were identified to result in altered ECM patterning of a model TSP1 trimer. The strong effect of cytochalasin D indicated that mechanisms controlling puncta patterning depend on global F-actin dynamics. Similar spatial changes were obtained with endogenous TSPs after cytochalasin D treatment, implicating physiological relevance. Under matched experimental conditions with ectopically-expressed TSPs, the magnitude of the effect was markedly lower for pentameric TSP5 and Drosophila TSP, than for trimeric TSP1 or dimeric Ciona TSPA. To distinguish between the variables of protein sequence or oligomer state, we generated novel, chimeric pentamers of TSP1. These proteins accumulated within ECM at higher levels than TSP1 trimers, yet the effect of cytochalasin D on the spatial distribution of puncta was reduced. These findings introduce a novel concept that F-actin dynamics modulate the patterning of TSPs in ECM and that TSP oligomer state is a key determinant of this process.     

Viral Detection: Past,Present, and Future

Viruses are essentially composed of a nucleic acid (segmented or not, DNA, or RNA) and a protein coat. Despite their simplicity, these small pathogens are responsible for significant economic and humanitarian losses that have had dramatic consequences in the course of human history. Since their discovery, scientists have developed different strategies to efficiently detect viruses, using all possible viral features. Viruses shape, proteins, and nucleic acid are used in viral detection. In this review, the development of these techniques, especially for plant and mammalian viruses, their strengths and weaknesses as well as the latest cutting‐edge technologies that may be playing important roles in the years to come are described.