Fruit fate,frugivory, and fruit characteristics: a study of the hawthorn,Crataegus monogyna (Rosaceae)

Summary The fate of fruits from a population of European hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) in western Oregon, USA, was examined over a two-year period. Only one frugivore, the American robin (Turdus migratorius) foraged on the C. monogyna fruits, making this an unusually straightforward fruit-frugivore system. Dispersal efficiency was low, with an average 21% of seeds being dispersed (carried away from parent plants) each year; the most common fate of fruits was to simply fall. Robins dropped 20% of the fruits that they picked, and defecated/regurgitated 40% of the fruits (seeds) that they swallowed, beneath parent plants. One trait, gruit abundance, strongly affected the probability of bush visitation by robins, bushes with larger fruit displays being preferred. Both absolute dispersal success (number of seeds) and dispersal efficiency (proportion of seeds; success per propagule) were also found to be correlated most strongly with initial fruit abundance. Individual plant fecundity and fruit quality were found to vary little between years; as a result, dispersal efficiencies for individual plants were also annully consistent. Larger (older) plants produced more fruits and therefore had higher fitness. These results suggest that the optimal fruiting strategy for C. monogyna is therefore to get as big as possible as quickly as possible by delaying fruiting until later in life.     

Phytogeographical and community similarities of alpine tundras of Changbaishan Summit,China, and Indian Peaks,USA

Abstract. We compared the diversity, phytogeography, and plant communities in two mid-latitude alpine tundras with comparable aerial and elevational extents: Changbaishan Summit in eastern Asia and Indian Peaks in western North America. Despite wide separation, the two areas shared 72 species. In all, 43% of the species on Changbaishan Summit are also distributed in the alpine zones of western North America, while 22% of the species on Indian Peaks are also distributed in the alpine zones of eastern Asia. Almost all the shared species also occur in the Beringian region. Phytogeographical profiles of species and genera showed that 69% of species and over 90% of genera in both alpine tundras belong to the three phytogeographical categories: cosmopolitan, circumpolar, and Asian-North American. We attributed the current floristic relationship between these widely separated areas to the periodic past land connection between the two continents during the Tertiary and Pleistocene. Indian Peaks has a closer floristic relationship with the Arctic tundra than does Changbaishan Summit. Indian Peaks also has 45% higher species richness and lower vegetation cover than Changbaishan Summit. Plant communities from the two areas were completely separated in the two-way indicator species analysis and non-metric multidimensional scaling on floristic data at both species and generic levels, whereas ordination of communities by soil data produced a greater overlap. The plant communities on Changbaishan Summit in general have lower alpha diversity, higher beta diversity (lower between-community floristic similarity), and more rare species than does Indian Peaks. Mosaic diversity does not differ in the two alpine tundras, although the analysis suggests that Changbaishan Summit communities are more widely spaced on gradients than the Indian Peaks communities.     

‘I'm black and I'll always be that way’: black identities through the lens of interracial intimacy

Early research on black racial identity development cautioned that close relationships with whites signalled an alienation from blackness and a subconscious acceptance that ‘white is right’. These assumptions mirrored popular media and political discourse suggesting that romantic relationships outside of one's racial group reflect a devalued or inauthentic racial self. More recent scholarly research presents a mixed picture about the role of interracial intimacy on black racial identities. Using in-depth qualitative narratives with forty-two interracially partnered African Americans, this article explores whether interracial intimacy recasts the meaning or intensity of black racial identities. Findings affirm that black racial identities are heterogeneous – some partners experienced blackness as a central, fundamental identity while others possessed ambivalent attachments to blackness. Across these experiences, however, adult interracial intimacy had at most an incremental influence on racial identity. Interracial contact during adolescence was far more influential because it allowed blacks to develop dimensions of white cultural identity.     

Cancer mortality in a population-based cohort of American Indians – The strong heart study

BackgroundCancer mortality among American Indian (AI) people varies widely, but factors associated with cancer mortality are infrequently assessed.MethodsCancer deaths were identified from death certificate data for 3516 participants of the Strong Heart Study, a population-based cohort study of AI adults ages 45–74 years in Arizona, Oklahoma, and North and South Dakota. Cancer mortality was calculated by age, sex and region. Cox proportional hazards model was used to assess independent associations between baseline factors in 1989 and cancer death by 2010.ResultsAfter a median follow-up of 15.3 years, the cancer death rate per 1000 person-years was 6.33 (95 % CI 5.67–7.04). Cancer mortality was highest among men in North/South Dakota (8.18; 95 % CI 6.46–10.23) and lowest among women in Arizona (4.57; 95 % CI 2.87–6.92). Factors independently associated with increased cancer mortality included age, current or former smoking, waist circumference, albuminuria, urinary cadmium, and prior cancer history. Factors associated with decreased cancer mortality included Oklahoma compared to Dakota residence, higher body mass index and total cholesterol. Sex was not associated with cancer mortality. Lung cancer was the leading cause of cancer mortality overall (1.56/1000 person-years), but no lung cancer deaths occurred among Arizona participants. Mortality from unspecified cancer was relatively high (0.48/100 person-years; 95 % CI 0.32−0.71).ConclusionsRegional variation in AI cancer mortality persisted despite adjustment for individual risk factors. Mortality from unspecified cancer was high. Better understanding of regional differences in cancer mortality, and better classification of cancer deaths, will help healthcare programs address cancer in AI communities.     

The American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) as a paradigm for adult automimicry

Summary The body of theory concerning life-history strategies predicts that the duration of high-mortality stages should be minimized by natural selection. This is especially applicable to the avian pre-flight stage, during which growth rates typically are rapid. Using the American Avocet (Recurvirostra americana) as a paradigm, I propose a developmental strategy by which young animals can lower their mortality rates by an accelerated (and deceptive) acquisition of adult or adult-like characters. The benefit accrues when predators misidentify the vulnerable young as adults and fail to attack them because adults are much less vulnerable. This strategy, termed adult automimicry, is most likely to occur in precocial species living in open habitats.American Avocets are large, precocial, open-country shorebirds that first fly when about 4–5 weeks old. They develop a juvenal, plumage in their third week that resembles adult breeding plumage in pattern and color, even though plumage details are different. At this time chicks begin using adult foraging techniques and tend to move away rather than hide from potential predators. A few weeks later they acquire a first winter plumage that resembles adult winter plumage. Thus, avocet chicks appear unusually adult-like after their second week. This should make it difficult for distant predators to distinguish flightless chicks from volant adults.     

Antibiogram,prevalence of methicillin-resistant and multi-drug resistant Staphylococcus spp. in different clinical samples

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus spp. (MRSS) are causing numerous forms of illness in humans ranging from mild to fatal infections. We need to investigate the resistant pattern for different clinical isolates to control the resistance phenomena. This study was designed to provide the resistance pattern of isolated Staphylococcus spp. from various clinical samples in Khartoum State and to elucidate the frequencies of Multidrug-resistant (MDR), Extensively drug-resistant (XDR) and pan-drug resistant (PDR). Two hundred and ten bacterial isolates were from different sources (catheter tip, sputum, vaginal swab, urine, tracheal aspirate, blood, pus, nasal swab, stool, throat swab, pleural fluid, and ear swab). Isolates were identified based on their morphological characters and biochemical reaction. Antibiotics susceptibility screening was performed using twenty-three antibiotics from eighteen classes against all isolated Staphylococcus spp. following the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guideline. The result revealed that out of 63 Gram-positive isolated bacteria, 52 (82.5%) were Staphylococcus spp. with a high incidence of S. aureus 37(71.2%). Out of all Staphylococcus spp., 38 (73.1%) were Methicillin-resistant (MR). The prevalence of MDR was higher in S. aureus (89.2%) than in S. epidermidis (75%). All Staphylococcus spp. displayed resistance to ampicillin and penicillin, while all S. aureus were sensitive to daptomycin and fosfomycin. One isolate was XDR possible PDR, while no PDR was reported in all isolated bacteria. This study provided evidence for the antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) burden in Sudan and highlighted the need for a practical and functional stewardship program to reduce the unreasonable costs of antibiotics.     

Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma in Malaysia – Pooled data from upper gastrointestinal centers in a multiethnic Asian population

BackgroundEsophageal cancer is the sixth leading cause of cancer death worldwide with considerable geographical histological variation There is a paucity of data in esophageal cancer in demographics, histology, and survival among the multi-ethnic Malaysian population. This paper is a review of esophageal cancer epidemiology and survival among esophageal cancer patients from data collected by the Malaysian Upper Gastrointestinal Surgical Society.MethodsThis is a multicenter retrospective observational study of esophageal cancer patients from six upper gastrointestinal surgical centers in Malaysia between 2005 and 2019. Patient characteristics, histological type and stage were compared and survival analyzed.ResultsThere were 820 patients with esophageal cancer included, where 442 (53.9 %) cases had squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) and 378 (46.1 %) had adenocarcinomas (AC). Malays were the predominant ethnicity with AC (66.7 %) while Indians were the ethnic majority (74.6 %) with SCC. Majority of patients (56.8 %) presented as stage IV disease. Overall, the 1-, 3-, and 5-years’ survival were 35.8 %, 13.8 % and 11.0 %, respectively. Surgical resection with curative intent yielded the best 5-year survival (29.4 %). Intervention in stage IV AC yielded superior survival when compared to SCC (median survival, 7.9 months vs 4.8 months; p, 0.018) Our series demonstrated an increase in AC to SCC over the last 15 years.ConclusionsThere was an ethnic preponderance seen between different histology in this region, not previously discussed. An increase in AC was observed over the last 15 years. Late diagnosis seen in most patients imparts poor prognosis as curative surgery affords the best outcome.     

The contested meanings of 'Asian American': racial dilemmas in the contemporary US

This article explores the contested meanings of the ‘Asian American’ concept in the US today. Since its emergence in the late 1960s, ‘Asian American’ has been defined by pan-Asian groups and organizations in the US as a collectivity bound by shared racial interests. Contemporary conditions have sharpened and highlighted the inherent contradictions and ambiguities of this conception of ‘Asian American’ as a racial interest group. Especially important have been the shifts in the composition of the Asian American population that followed the immigration reforms of 1965. Contestations of ‘Asian American’ also reflect larger uncertainties about the meaning of race in the US today, in particular, the nature of racial boundaries and racial disadvantage.     

Army ant invasions reveal phylogeographic processes across the Isthmus of Panama

Female army ants cannot fly, making them very poor dispersers across water barriers. This dependence on terrestrial corridors motivated the investigation by Winston et al. ( 2017 ), published in this issue of Molecular Ecology, into the role of Panamanian isthmus formation in the diversification of Eciton army ants. Complete closure of this isthmus occurred around three million years ago (3 Ma), but it has also been hypothesized that earlier, temporary land connections facilitated additional colonization events between South and Central America over the past 13 million years or more. The phylogenomic and population genomic analyses by Winston et al. ( 2017 ) uncovered multiple incursions of Eciton lineages into Central America between 4 and 7 Ma. Their study contributes to a growing body of evidence arguing that transitory land bridges predating 3 Ma supported substantial intercontinental biotic exchange.     

Differences in physical growth of Aymara and Quechua children living at high altitude in Peru

Physical growth of Amerindian children living in two Aymara and three Quechua peasant communities in the Andean highlands of southern Peru (altitude 3,810–3,840 m) was studied, taking into account differences in the microclimate, agronomic situation, and sociodemographic variables. Anthropometric measurements were taken in 395 children aged under 14 years of age in a sample of 151 families in these communities, who were surveyed for sociodemographic variables as well. Data on the land system were available for 77 families. In comparison with reference populations from the United States (NCHS) and The Netherlands, stature, weight, head circumference, and midupper arm circumference (but not weight for stature) in the sample children were reduced. Growth retardation increased after the age of 1 year. Stature and weight in the present sample were very similar compared with previously published data on growth of rural Aymara children living near Lake Titicaca in Bolivia. Head circumference, midupper arm circumference, and weight for stature were significantly larger in Aymara children compared with Quechua children. Land was significantly more fragmented in Aymara compared with Quechua families, but amount of land owned was not different. Perinatal and infant mortality was elevated in Aymara vs. Quechua communities. Most families in Aymara communities used protected drinking water. One Quechua community had a severe microclimate, grim economic outlook, and weak social cohesion. Children in this community showed significant reductions in weight and midupper arm circumference compared with their peers in the other communities. We conclude that (presumably nutritionally mediated) intervillage and Aymara-Quechua differences in childhood physical growth existed in this rural high-altitude population in Peru and were associated with microclimate and the village economy, sociodemographic factors, and differences in the land system. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.