Structure of a neutral exopolysaccharide produced by Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus LBB.B26

The neutral exopolysaccharide produced by Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus LBB.B26 in skimmed milk was found to be composed of d-glucose and d-galactose in a molar ratio of 2:3. Linkage analysis and 1D/2D NMR ((1)H and (13)C) studies performed on the native polysaccharide, and on an oligosaccharide obtained from a partial acid hydrolysate of the native polysaccharide, showed the polysaccharide to consist of branched pentasaccharide repeating units with the following structure. [structure: see text]     

沙枣和柠条种子萌发期耐盐性研究

采用室内控制实验的方法,系统研究了沙枣和柠条种子萌发、生长、活力以及生理过程;对萌发、生长及活力指标与盐胁迫进行相关与回归分析,发现了实验室条件下沙枣和柠条种子萌发期的耐盐临界值;对生理指标与盐胁迫,生理指标与相应的萌发及生长指标进行相关性分析,在生理水平对沙枣和柠条种子萌发期对盐胁迫的响应进行了解释。主要结果包括：(1)胚根相对干重含水量与盐胁迫无相关性,初始萌发时间、休眠率以及死亡率与盐胁迫呈显著正相关,其它指标均与盐胁迫呈显著负相关;(2)胚根相对干重含水量与萌发种子初期生长无相关性,休眠率、死亡率与萌发率呈显著负相关,其它指标均与初期生长呈显著正相关;(3)受盐胁迫的抑制程度：萌发速度>萌发启动>萌发率;胚根生长>胚轴生长>萌发率;(4)种子萌发期,沙枣耐盐性强于柠条,两者耐盐临界值均高于0.1 mol·L^-1。     

米卡芬净对分离自中国的念珠菌和曲霉临床株体外抑菌活性的研究

目的了解新型抗真菌药物米卡芬净(micafungin,MFG)对分离自中国的念珠菌和曲霉临床株的体外抑菌活性。方法参照CLSI(Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute,以前为NCCLS)制定的M27-A2和M38-A方案测定86株念珠菌和35株曲霉的最低抑菌浓度(MIC)或最低有效浓度(MEC)。结果MFG对大多数念珠菌属和曲霉属均有较好的抑菌作用。对念珠菌属的MIC90从高到低依次为:氟康唑(FLC)敏感的白念珠菌、热带念珠菌、光滑念珠菌为0.125μg/ml,FLC耐药和剂量依赖敏感株为0.25μg/ml,克柔念珠菌为0.5μg/ml,近平滑念珠菌8μg/ml,季也蒙念珠菌>16μg/ml。MFG对烟曲霉的MEC90为≤0.03μg/ml,对非烟曲霉的曲霉属MEC90为0.06μg/ml。MFG与唑类药物、两性霉素B(AMB)不存在交叉耐药,对FLC耐药的念珠菌、伊曲康唑耐药的曲霉、AMB不敏感的曲霉均有好的抑菌活性。结论MFG对多数念珠菌属和曲霉属(包括对唑类耐药和AMB不敏感的菌株)有较好的体外抑菌作用。     

鄱阳湖越冬白鹤在农业用地的食物组成

白鹤(Grus leucogeranus)是IUCN极危物种,全球仅存3 500～4 000只,其中约98%的个体在鄱阳湖越冬。以前白鹤在鄱阳湖主要在浅水生境挖掘苦草(Vallisneria spp.)的冬芽为食。然而,近年来农业用地已成为白鹤的重要觅食地。目前对于白鹤在农业用地的食物组成尚不清楚。本研究采用粪便显微镜检法对2017年11月至2018年4月采集的70份白鹤粪便样品进行分析。结果表明,白鹤的食物来源于10科15种植物,其中,水稻(Oryza sativa)、莲藕(Nelumbo nucifera)和紫云英(Astragalus sinicus)为最主要的食物,这3种植物在检测到的食物中的相对密度分别为34.34%、22.99%和10.61%,而白鹤的传统食物苦草冬芽所占的比例极低(2.05%)。由此可见,白鹤的食物组成已经发生变化,农作物已成为白鹤的重要食物来源。白鹤在农业用地中觅食使该物种的保护面临一系列问题,尤其是高强度的人为干扰,对此,提出了相应的保护措施,希望为白鹤提供安全、稳定的觅食环境。     

Variation in cranial morphology of bottlenose dolphins (genus Tursiops) off South Africa

Taxonomy plays an important role in conservation biology. Despite the variety of methods used to differentiate units, some groups, such as Delphinidae within the Cetacea have proven difficult to untangle. This study aimed to shed light on morphological variation of the genus Tursiops in South African waters using geometric morphometrics and to distinguish morphological groups and variation in these groups. A total of 241 crania of Tursiops spp. were analyzed using a suite of 2‐dimensional landmarks defined on photographs of the specimens. Results revealed two distinct morphological groups, with the smaller cluster comprised mainly of specimens from the cold temperate region off the west coast and the larger cluster comprised of specimens mainly from the warm temperate and subtropical regions off the south and east coast, respectively. We suggest that these groups correspond to different species of Tursiops, but this result requires further support. These groups were treated as separate entities and sexual dimorphism and geographic variation were assessed within each group. While sexual dimorphism and geographic variation were not significant within Cluster D1 and V1, they were significant within Clusters D2 and V2. The few Cluster 1 specimens found in the warm temperate and subtropical regions, relative to the number of Cluster 2 specimens, could be an indication of an offshore distribution for this group in these regions. Alternatively, the smaller cluster may also be indicative of a potentially small population size.     

Eliminating murine norovirus,Helicobacter hepaticus,and intestinal protozoa by embryo transfer for an entire mouse barrier facility

Pathogens can affect physiological and immunological reactions in immunocompromised animals and genetically engineered mice. Specifically, murine norovirus (MNV), Helicobacter, and intestinal protozoa are prevalent in rodent laboratory facilities worldwide. In this study, microbiological test results of the soiled bedding of sentinel mice showed the prevalence of MNV (50.9%, 28/55), Helicobacter hepaticus (29.1%, 16/55), Trichomonas spp. (14.5%, 8/55), and Entamoeba spp. (32.7%, 18/55). No single infections were detected as all cases were confirmed to have complex infections with two or four pathogens. In previous studies, the success rate of the cross-fostering method was not perfect; therefore, in this study, the entire mouse strain of the SPF rodent facility was rederived using embryo transfer. For up to three years, we confirmed that the results were negative with regular health surveillance tests. Embryo transfer was, thus, determined to be an effective method for the rederivation of specific pathogen free (SPF) barrier mouse facilities. This is the report for the effectiveness of embryo transfer as an example of successful microbiological clean-up of a mouse colony with multiple infections in an entire SPF mouse facility and embryo transfer may be useful for rederiving.