Variability in the numbers of post-settlement King George whiting (Sillaginidae: Sillaginodes punctata, Cuvier) in relation to predation, habitat complexity and artificial cage structure

The importance of predation by fish in altering abundances of juvenile King George whiting (Sillaginodes punctata) was examined at multiple locations in Port Phillip Bay, Australia, by manipulating the numbers of piscivorous fish in unvegetated sand and seagrass habitats using cages. Additional information regarding the local abundances of, and habitat use by, the most common piscivorous fish, Western Australian salmon (Arripidae: Arripis truttacea, Cuvier), was gathered using netting surveys and underwater video. Regardless of habitat, abundances of S. punctata were similar in partial cages and uncaged areas. In unvegetated sand, S. punctata were more abundant inside cages than partial cages or uncaged areas. In seagrass, there was no difference in the numbers of S. punctata between caging treatments. Patterns in abundances of S. punctata between cage treatments in each habitat were consistent between sites, but the relative difference in the abundances of S. punctata between habitats was site specific. Abundances of A. truttacea varied significantly between sites, and they consumed a variety of epibenthic fishes including atherinids, clupeids, gobiids, syngnathids and pleuronectids. At one site in Port Phillip Bay (Blairgowrie), A. truttacea occurred more commonly in patches of unvegetated sand than seagrass. Over unvegetated sand, abundances of A. truttacea varied little between partial cages and uncaged areas. The numbers of S. punctata varied between caging treatments and habitats in a manner that was consistent with a model whereby seagrass interferes with foraging by predatory fish and provides juvenile fish with a refuge from predation. The almost total absence of A. truttacea in seagrass habitats and the lack of S. punctata in their diets implies, however, that patterns in S. punctata in seagrass/unvegetated sand mosaics are driven by processes other than direct predation.     

t-[3H]Butylbicycloorthobenzoate: New Radioligand Probe for the γ-Aminobutyric Acid–Regulated Chloride Ionophore

t-[3H]Butylbicycloorthobenzoate [( 3H]TBOB; 22 Ci/mmol) was prepared by reductive dechlorination of its 4-chlorophenyl analog with tritium gas. This new radioligand binds reversibly to fresh washed rat brain P2 membranes in 500 mM NaCl plus 50 mM sodium-potassium phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) at 25 degrees C, with 80-90% specific relative to total binding, a KD of 61 +/- 15 nM, and a Bmax of 1.6 +/- 0.5 pmol/mg of protein. [3H]TBOB association with its binding site(s) is monophasic, but its dissociation is biphasic. The binding characteristics of [3H]TBOB are essentially identical to those of t-[35S]butylbicyclophosphorothionate [( 35S]TBPS) with respect to pH dependence, stimulation by anions, regional distribution in the brain, and pharmacological profile. Saturation analyses and dissociation studies further indicate that TBOB and TBPS have a common binding site. However, binding of the two radioligands differs in respect to temperature effects. In contrast to [35S]TBPS, which exhibits negligible binding at 0 degrees C, [3H]TBOB binds to rat brain membranes at 0, 25, and 37 degrees C with similar KD values. [3H]TBOB with its long radioactive half-life and temperature-independent KD is a valuable supplement to [35S]TBPS in further biochemical and pharmacological characterization of the gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-ionophore complex.     

Lack of transmission of human immunodeficiency virus from infected to uninfected chimpanzees

Four uninfected chimpanzees were each housed in separate cages with an HIV-infected chimpanzee for six to twenty-nine months. Despite close daily contact, all uninoculated chimpanzees remained seronegative for HIV, and virus was never isolated from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of the uninfected chimpanzees. These data indicate that the probability of transmission from infected animals to humans is extremely low and also provide supportive evidence for lack of transmission of HIV by casual contact.     

实验雪貂饲育笼的设计与应用

目的设计开发一种实用的实验雪貂饲育笼具。方法根据雪貂的生物学特性并参考有关实验动物笼器具标准进行设计。结果该笼舍完全能适用于普通环境条件下的饲养和繁殖。结论该笼具操作和使用方便,具有一定的应用和推广前景。     

腰椎Cage手术并发症分析及其防治

目的:分析后路腰椎椎间cage融合术常见的并发症并探讨对策。方法:对89例腰椎间盘突出症、下腰椎失稳症患者,经临床症状、体征和影像资料明确诊断且具有手术指征,并采用后路cage融合术治疗,对其中出现的并发症进行原因分析。结果:89例中出现并发症的有24例,包括神经症状加重、脑脊液漏、感染等近期并发症和症状缓解不明显、植骨不融合等远期并发症。术后神经症状加重5例,主要与手术适应症选择正确与否、影像学资料阅读能力高低、术者操作技能熟练程度等因素有关。结论:cage融合术是外科治疗椎间盘突出症的一种优良方法,术后神经症状加重和神经根损伤是最常见的并发症,正确把握手术适应症、熟练掌握操作技巧、提高并发症的诊断和处理能力是顺利开展该技术、提高临床疗效的关键。     

A new method to measure substrate coherent strength of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Stenopsyche marmorata</Emphasis>

We developed a method for estimating the substrate coherent strength of a net-spinning caddis larva, Stenopsyche marmorata, in the field. Plastic experimental cages (prefabricated containers with 5-mm mesh; 0.1 m high, 0.12 m wide, 0.2 m long) that enclosed gravel substrate and an objective stone (5–6 cm in diameter) were prepared. We expected the caddisflies to build a retreat(s) between the objective stone and cage substrate when submerged in a riffle channel reach for 6 days. Ten final-instar larvae (4–5 cm long) were placed in the cage and allowed to form retreats. Two treatments (cages with and without larvae) with 15 replicates each were used in two experimental trials. The vertical lift-force of objective stones associated with a retreat (coherent strength) was measured using a spring weighing scale. In 87% of 30 cages of with-larvae treatment, retreats were formed between the objective stone and cage substrate. Coherent strength ranged from 0.0 to 1.6 kg. Our approach can be used under varying flow velocities, substrate conditions, and larval biomass, all of which are normally difficult to test in flume experiments. Findings based on our field method provide unique physical properties of the caddisfly retreats in stream ecosystems.     

微创单枚椎间融合器单边椎弓根螺钉内固定术治疗腰椎间盘突出症的疗效观察

目的：比较微创单边椎弓根螺钉加单枚椎间融合器和双边椎弓根螺钉加椎间植骨融合术治疗腰椎间盘突出症的临床疗效,探讨微创单边内固定的可行性。方法：选择2009年1月～2012年11月在我科行椎间盘切除椎体间融合内固定术治疗的腰椎间盘突出症患者共43例,其中微创单边内同定18例,平均随访15.8个月;双边内固定25例,平均随访16.3个月。对比分析两组患者的一般资料、手术时间、术中出血、住院天数、住院费用、疼痛视觉模拟评分（VAS）和日本骨科协会评估治疗（JOA）评分、植骨融合率及并发症的发生情况。结果：与单边内固定组比较,双边内固定处理的患者的手术时间明显缩短（P〈0.001）,术中失血量明显减少（P〈0.05）,平均住院费用明显降低（P〈0.05）。而两组之间的住院时间、随访时间、植骨融合率、并发症的发生率以及末次随访时的VAS和JOSA评分比较均无统计学差异（P〉0.05）。结论：单边内固定椎间融合治疗单间隙腰椎间盘突出症能够达到双边内固定同样的疗效,且具有手术时间短、出血量少、费用低等优点,但手术适应症需严格控制。     

Barriers to flow: The effects of experimental cage structures on water velocities in high-energy subtidal and intertidal environments

For decades, marine ecologists have used cages as biological enclosure or exclosure devices to manipulate movement, growth, and survival of organisms. The ability to control the densities of focal organisms makes these structures a powerful tool. However, cages can often produce artifacts that influence the outcome of experiments. Although a subset of these artifacts have been examined previously, the effects of cages on water motion have not been adequately addressed from a quantitative standpoint, especially in high-flow environments. We targeted this data gap by explicitly measuring the fractional degree of velocity reduction inside a variety of experimental cage structures across flow conditions spanning those typical of wave-swept shallow subtidal and intertidal zones. Cages decreased velocities inside by up to 47% and reduced high-energy impact forces by more than 40%. Associated cage controls, employed to mimic physical effects of cages without interfering with organism movement, often had effects on water flow similar to those of cages. However, the nearly half an order of magnitude change in velocities inside cages and their controls reveals the need to be vigilant in considering potential artifacts, especially those tied to secondary biological interactions. These artifacts may be reduced by maximizing mesh size, employing large plot sizes and low profile structures, using cage controls that best mimic effects of the full cage, and monitoring cage controls to avoid the establishment of high-density “consumer hotels” within them. Using such approaches, researchers can minimize experimental biases and simplify the explanation of experimental results.     

树鼩独立换气笼具的设计

目的设计研究一种满足于树鼩感染性疾病动物模型实验生物安全要求的独立换气专用隔离笼具。方法根据树驹的生物学特性、实验生物安全要求及有关实验动物笼具标准进行设计。结果该笼舍完全适用于感染性疾病实验树鼢的饲养和实验操作。结论该笼具能达到维护实验动物福利,保证实验动物质量,保障人身健康,保护环境的要求,对于使用树鼩开展人类重大传染病研究具有广泛的应用价值和市场前景。     

Population behaviour of the southern green stink bug,Nezara viridula,with special reference to the developmental stages of early-planted paddy

Population behaviour of adults and 5th-instar nymphs of Nezara viridula L. was analysed by means of the marking-and-recapture method in an early-planted paddy field. The field contained five varieties of rice which differend in growth states. It was estimated that a total of more, than 7,000 adults of the first generation, in which at least 3,000 were females, invaded the field from early July to middle August. Egg-mass census data, however, indicated that only 10 per cent or less of the females participated in egg-laying. This was largely due to the, low rate of adult survival. The adults preferred younger plants, for both feeding and oviposition. The method described byIwao et al. (1966) permitted estimate that 3,300–3,400 of the 5 th-instar nymphs and 1,100–1,200 of the adults of the second generation were produced from 298 egg-masses (25, 700 eggs); while 95–6 per cent of the individuals were thought to have died before reaching adulthood. Most of the 5 th-instar nymphs moved less than 4 m in three days as long as the condition of food plants remained suitable, but they tended to move more towards younger plants when those on which they lived became too mature. The apparent survival rate of the second generation adults was very low, probably due both to a rapid emigration and a high mortality of newly-emerged adults.