A Comparative Study on the Cleavage of Stereoisomeric Uridylyl (3',5')Uridines [D,D-, D,L- and L,D-UPU] by Acid,Base and Metal Ion Catalysts

Stereoisomeric uridylyl(3',5')uridines D,L-UpU andL,D-UpU were synthesised. Their cleavage was followed in thepresence of acid, base and metal ion catalysts to studywhether the stereochemistry affects the inherent reactivity ofthe internucleosidic phosphodiester bond, and whether the lowmolecular weight catalysts can distinguish between thesubstrates. The rate constants obtained were compared to thoseof D,D-UpU. The comparison shows that the stability of thephosphodiester bond does not depend on the stereochemistry ofthe sugar rings. In contrast slight reactivity differences areobserved in the presence of metal ion catalysts, whichsuggests that selective cleavage of stereoisomeric substrateseven by small molecular weight chemical catalysts may bepossible.     

Island properties dominate species traits in determining plant colonizations in an archipelago system

The extrinsic determinants hypothesis emphasizes the essential role of environmental heterogeneity in species’ colonization. Consequently, high resident species diversity can increase community susceptibility to colonizations because good habitats may support more species that are functionally similar to colonizers. On the other hand, colonization success is also likely to depend on species traits. We tested the relative importance of environmental characteristics and species traits in determining colonization success using census data of 587 vascular plant species collected about 70 yr apart from 471 islands in the archipelago of SW Finland. More specifically, we explored potential new colonization as a function of island properties (e.g. location, area, habitat diversity, number of resident species per unit area), species traits (e.g. plant height, life-form, dispersal vector, Ellenberg indicator values, association with human impact), and species’ historical distributions (number of inhabited islands, nearest occurrence). Island properties and species’ historical distributions were more effective than plant traits in explaining colonization outcomes. Contrary to the extrinsic determinants hypothesis, colonization success was neither associated with resident species diversity nor habitat diversity per se, although colonization was lowest on sparsely vegetated islands. Our findings lead us to propose that while plant traits related to dispersal and establishment may enhance colonization, predictions of plant colonizations primarily require understanding of habitat properties and species’ historical distributions.     

Clone-specific responses in leaf phenolics of willows exposed to enhanced UVB radiation and drought stress

The effects of enhanced UVB radiation and drought stress on willow secondary phenolics were studied using the leaves of 8‐week‐old micropropagated plantlets from interspecific hybrids (Salix myrsinites L. ×S. myrsinifolia Salisb.) and pure species (S. myrsinifolia). The plantlets were subjected for 4 weeks to two levels of UVB radiation (ambient, enhanced) and two levels of watering (well‐watered, drought‐stressed) according to a 2 × 2 factorial design. Enhanced UVB radiation increased the total concentration of flavonoids and phenolic acids in all plantlets, while the total concentration of salicylates remained unaffected. Drought stress reduced the total concentration of salicylates and phenolic acids in S. myrsinifolia plantlets, while in hybrids only phenolic acids were affected. The response of phenolic acids to enhanced UVB in drought‐stressed plantlets was different from that in well‐watered ones, indicating that drought stress limited the accumulation of phenolic acids under enhanced UVB radiation. Flavonoids increased in response to enhanced UVB radiation in drought‐stressed plantlets, although drought caused serious physiological stress on growth. There were significant differences between hybrid and S. myrsinifolia plantlets with respect to the composition of phenolics and between families and clones with respect to their concentration. In addition, the response of salicylates, flavonoids and phenolic acids to enhanced UVB and drought stress was clone‐specific, which may indicate that climatic changes will alter the genetic composition of northern forests.     

The invasive herb <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lupinus polyphyllus</Emphasis> attracts bumblebees but reduces total arthropod abundance

Invasive plant species generally reduce the abundance and diversity of local plant species, which may translate into alterations at higher tropic levels, such as arthropods. Due to the diverse functional roles of arthropods in the ecosystems, it is critical to understand how arthropod communities are affected by plant invasions. Here, we investigated the impact of the invasive ornamental herb Lupinus polyphyllus (Lindl.) on arthropod communities during its main flowering period in southwestern Finland over two years. The total number of arthropods was about 46% smaller at the invaded sites than at the uninvaded sites in both study years, and this difference was mainly due to a lower abundance of beetles, Diptera, Lepidoptera, and ants. However, the number of bumblebees (particularly Bombus lucorum) was about twice as high at invaded sites compared with uninvaded sites, even though bumblebee richness did not differ between sites. There was no statistically significant difference between invaded and uninvaded sites in the abundances of the other arthropod groups considered (Hymenoptera (excluding bumblebees and ants), Hemiptera, and Arachnida). In addition, L. polyphyllus affected the relative abundance of four arthropod groups, with the order Lepidoptera being less common at invaded sites than at uninvaded sites, while the opposite was true for bumblebees, Hemiptera, and Arachnida. Overall, these results demonstrate that the negative impact of L. polyphyllus on biodiversity goes beyond its own trophic level, suggesting that this species has the potential to alter the abundance of different arthropod groups and, consequently, the structure of arthropod communities at a large scale.     

Importance of correlations among matrix entries in stochastic models in relation to number of transition matrices

Stochastic matrix models are used to predict population viability and the risk of extinction. Different stochastic methods require different amounts of estimation effort and may lead to divergent estimates. We used 16 transition matrices collected from ten populations of the perennial herb Primula veris to compare population estimates produced by different stochastic methods, such as selection of matrices, selection of vital rates, selection of matrix elements, and Tuljapurkar's approximation. Specifically, we tested the reliability of the methods using different numbers of transition matrices, and examined the importance of correlations among matrix entries. When correlations among matrix entries were included in the models, selection of vital rates produced the lowest and Tuljapurkar's approximation produced the highest estimates of mean population growth rates. Selection of matrices and matrix elements often produced nearly similar population estimates. Simulations based on incompletely estimated correlations among matrix entries considerably differed from those based on all correlations estimated, particularly when correlations were strong. The magnitude of correlations among matrix entries depended on the number of matrices, which made it difficult to generalize correlations within a species. Given that selection of vital rates or matrix elements is used, correlations among matrix entries should usually be included in the model, and they should preferably be estimated from the present data rather than according to other information of the species.     

Prokaryotic microbiota of recycled paper mills with low or zero effluent

The tendency in the paper industry is to close all water loops to save water. This leads to higher process temperatures and may increase the colloidal and dissolved material in the process circulation. Increase of nutrients in the water circuits may favor microbiological growth and fouling. In this paper the chemical and microbial compositions of water circuits and deposits were studied of two closed cycled paper/board mills, one mill totally closed (0 m(3) waste water t(-1)), and the other low discharging (about 4 m(3 )t(-1)). The zero discharge mill accumulated high amounts (>10 g C L(-1)) of organic carbon in the circulation waters, about 40% of which composed of volatile acids (lactic, acetic, propionic and butyric acid). Water contents of sulfate, chloride, sodium and calcium increased to >1 g L(-1) of each. q-PCR targeted on 16S rRNA genes indicated that the bacteria in water circuits were mainly viable cells. In both mills anaerobic growth (10(6)-10(8) CFU mL(-1)) equalled or exceeded aerobic growth, with odor problem but no actual slime problem. The major part (40%) of all identifiable bacterial sequences were closest but yet distant (<96%) to Enterococcus cecorum and in the 4 m(3 )t(-1) discharging mill also Bacillus thermoamylovorans and Bacillus coagulans. Slimes and deposits from the mills contained high amounts, >/=10(8) g(-1), of archaean, but only the genus Methanothrix was identifiable from the cloned sequences. The findings indicate that closing the water circuits strongly limited diversity of the microbiota but allowed efficient mineralization of the dissolved and suspended matter.     

Responses to the timing of damage in an annual herb: Fitness components versus population performance

The timing of damage plays an important role in plant fitness but its effect on population performance has received relatively little attention. I examined the effect of the timing of damage on nine components of fitness and population performance in four populations of the annual Melampyrum pratense by clipping plants at the vegetative stage (early clipping) or at the beginning of the flowering period (late clipping). I estimated population performance using a matrix population model that predicts the long-term population growth rate, λ. In early clipping, the plants were usually able to compensate for the damage during the growing season. In consequence, early clipping reduced λ in only one out of four populations, whereas late clipping reduced it in three populations. The elasticity analyses revealed that the relative importance of different demographic transitions to λ varied among the populations. This among-population variation in the sensitivities of λ to demographic transitions makes it difficult to use changes in specific fitness components as a measure of population performance for annual plants with a seed bank. The current study illustrates that although early-season damage may have a negligible impact on population dynamics in annual plants, the effect of the timing of damage often varies among populations.