A potential role of TNFR gene polymorphisms in autoimmune thyroid diseases in the Tunisian population

Autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITDs) including Graves disease (GD) and autoimmune hypothyroidism (AH) are associated with TNF genes polymorphisms. TNF molecules bind to TNFRI and TNFRII. No genetic association was reported between TNFR and AITDs. In this study, we have analysed two polymorphisms in TNFRI gene (TNFRI+36A/G SNP and a microsatellite (GT)₁₇ (GA)_n) and one polymorphism in TNFRII gene (TNFRII +676 T/G). All these polymorphisms were studied in a large Tunisian family with high prevalence of AITDs, and on a case-control sample of 91 GD patients and 165 controls. The present study was undertaken to investigate the genetic association of these polymorphisms with AITDs development. We reported the implication of TNFRIA3 allele in AITDs pathogenesis in familial and case control studies, respectively (χ² = 4.13, p = 0.042; χ² = 9.26, p_c = 0.005). In addition, Case-control study has revealed for the first time that TNFRII+676G allele was associated with GD (χ² = 11.53; p = 0.0007). Two TNFRI haplotypes were found to be associated with GD: TNFRI+36G-A8, TNFRI+36A-A3 (χ² = 88.07; p = 6.32 × 10⁻²¹, χ² = 16.78; p = 4.2 × 10⁻⁵, respectively). Our data showed that TNFRI polymorphisms have an important role in AITDs pathogenesis in both familial and case-control samples and that TNFRII was rather implicated in GD development in the Tunisian population.     

甜瓜属植物种间杂交研究进展

在甜瓜属野生种Cucumis hystrix Chakr.和栽培黄瓜之间的种间杂交取得成功的基础上,简要回顾了甜瓜属植物种质资源和系统学的研究情况,然后从甜瓜属植物种间杂交的概况、种间杂交的障碍及其解决途径等三个方面,回顾和讨论了甜瓜属植物的种间杂交的研究进展,并对进一步通过种间杂交研究利用甜瓜属野生植物资源的前景进行了展望.     

Putting the ‘upstairs–downstairs’ into ecosystem service: What can aboveground–belowground ecology tell us?

Interactions between spatially-separated aboveground and belowground biota exert important influences on the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems. Plant root exudates and litter inputs affect root-associated and decomposer sub-communities, which, in turn, regulate nutrient availability and plant growth. Ecosystem services theoretically attributed to specific functional components of aboveground or belowground biota are, therefore, influenced by indirect (plant-mediated) interactions with the wider community. Some recent studies have considered aboveground–belowground interactions in a climate change context, with implications for altered ecosystem service provision. This review is a conceptual discussion of the mechanisms by which aboveground–belowground interactions affect specific ecosystem services: control of herbivores by natural enemies, insect pollination and nutrient mineralization by soil decomposers. While some mechanisms are well-characterized, others are poorly understood. Reducing root and shoot herbivory, in addition to the direct plant benefit, indirectly promotes antagonism of the spatially-separate herbivore by its natural enemies. Soil decomposers and mycorrhizal fungi can increase shoot herbivore performance such that control by natural enemies is weakened, or initiate bottom-up trophic cascades which strengthen antagonism of shoot herbivores. Aboveground herbivory generally stimulates nutrient cycling by decomposers. Root herbivory and mycorrhizal association both appear to increase floral attractiveness to insect pollinators. Mechanisms reflect alterations to plant growth, nutritional quality and chemical defenses. Climate change has considerable potential to alter aboveground–belowground interactions, with largely unexplored implications for biological control, pollination and soil nutrient cycling.     

南方丘陵人工林林下植物种间关系分析

在2×2联列表的基础上,应用X²检验和联结系数,检测南方丘陵人工林林下植物种间关系,以期分析南方丘陵人工林植被恢复程度及其稳定性.结果表明,灌草两层联结程度达到显著的种对很少;灌木层极显著的有12种对,显著的有19种对,其余200种对联结程度不显著;草本层极显著和显著各有11种对,其余83种对联结程度不显著.按组间联系及种间的正负关联性,灌木层植物可分为2个种组:Ⅰ.四川红淡比、三叶赤楠、乌饭树、满树星、长托菝葜、格药柃;Ⅱ.大叶胡枝子、白马骨、牡荆.种组Ⅰ与种组Ⅱ之间许多种群间存在显著负关联.优势种往往在种间关系中起着关键作用.草本层优势种狗脊蕨、暗鳞鳞毛蕨、扇叶铁线蕨之间存在极显著正关联,且与多种群存在极显著或显著正关联;灌木层中2个种组均以优势种为联结核心.灌草层中正负关联的比例反映了灌木层和草本层物种处在动态变化中.灌木层正负关联比例为125/10,草本层42/3.最后分析了种间联结方法的几个缺陷,并对该方法的使用提出建议.     

Does the invasive species Ailanthus altissima threaten floristic diversity of temperate peri-urban forests?

We examined the influence of the invasive species Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle on the understory of the Fontainebleau forest, a peri-urban forest of Paris (France), by comparing invaded versus control plots. We performed floristic inventories in fixed plots around the base of A. altissima vs native trees in different habitat types of the forest. Our findings suggest that the understory vegetation is significantly poorer and more common under A. altissima than under the other tree species and that the floristic composition is significantly different. Furthermore, the number of A. altissima root suckers growing in the plots was significantly negatively correlated with floristic richness. This effect can be attributed to both interspecific competition and allelopathic properties of A. altissima. These results give an estimate of the threat to biodiversity ascribed to A. altissima in the Fontainebleau forest.     

PI2PE: a suite of web servers for predictions ranging from protein structure to binding kinetics

PI²PE (http://pipe.sc.fsu.edu) is a suite of four web servers for predicting a variety of folding- and binding-related properties of proteins. These include the solvent accessibility of amino acids upon protein folding, the amino acids forming the interfaces of protein–protein and protein–nucleic acid complexes, and the binding rate constants of these complexes. Three of the servers debuted in 2007, and have garnered ～2,500 unique users and finished over 30,000 jobs. The functionalities of these servers are now enhanced, and a new sever, for predicting the binding rate constants, has been added. Together, these web servers form a pipeline from protein sequence to tertiary structure, then to quaternary structure, and finally to binding kinetics.     

Reproductive seasonality and nest-site differentiation in three closely related armoured catfishes (Siluriformes: Callichthyidae)

Synopsis Three sympatric, closely related armoured catfishes showed a similar, bimodal breeding season in coastal plain swamps in Suriname (South America). The bimodal pattern of reproduction inCallichthys callichthys,Hoplosternum littorale andHoplosternum thoracatum was correlated to the annual distribution of rainfall. Floating bubble nests were constructed throughout the period of swamp inundation (rainy season). Close inspection of the timing of reproduction ofH. littorale in northern South America revealed the relationship between reproduction and rainfall, but also unexpected differences in the length of the breeding season. Strong interspecific competition among the three species was probably avoided through differentiation of nest sites with respect to water depth, distance to the nearest tree, distance to the edge of the swamp, and cover above the nest. Nests ofH. littorale were built in herbaceous swamps, whileC. callichthys andH. thoracatum build their nests in swamp-forest. Nests ofC. callichthys were observed in extremely shallow water or in holes. Few nests of the three species were observed in canals. Over large parts of their geographical rangeC. callichthys andH. thoracatum are found in small rainforest streams. Several aspects of the reproductive ecology and behaviour of both species are probably related to the unpredictability of the stream habitat.     

黄土丘陵区不同立地条件下猪毛蒿种内、种间竞争

猪毛蒿(Artemisia scoparia)通常是黄土丘陵区撂荒演替前期群落优势种,在无人为干扰的情况下,猪毛蒿群落通常会向冰草(Agropyron cristatum)群落或阿尔泰狗娃花(Heteropappus altaicus)群落,或长芒草(Stipa bungeana)群落等演替。该文通过河阶地和梁峁阴坡中猪毛蒿生长特征的调查和种内、种间竞争田间试验,从植物竞争角度对猪毛蒿群落的演替机制给予了解释。结果表明:1)两类样地中猪毛蒿的生长都趋于小型化,有少数大个体和多数小个体,都存在异速生长现象,说明两类样地存在竞争,且对猪毛蒿的生长形态具有塑造作用; 2)由于单位地上生物量竞争效应排除了立地条件和个体大小的影响,因而比总竞争效应更能说明种对间的相对竞争能力。梁峁阴坡地和一、二级河阶地三种立地条件下,7种测试植物中对猪毛蒿的相对竞争能力以演替后期多年生植物较高,而演替前期一年生植物较低,说明演替后期种对前期种的竞争抑制是演替驱动力之一; 3)以各测试植物对猪毛蒿单位重量竞争抑制程度平均值来看,以梁峁阴坡地最大,二级河阶地次之,一级河阶地最小,说明立地条件越差,土壤资源可利用水平越低,竞争越激烈; 4)一级河阶地和梁峁阴坡地各测试植物对猪毛蒿的竞争等级发生了显著变化,说明环境条件差别较大时,植物的竞争等级会发生变化。     

Interspecific variability of δ13C among trees in rainforests of French Guiana: functional groups and canopy integration

The interspecific variability of sunlit leaf carbon isotope composition (δ¹³C), an indicator of leaf intrinsic water-use efficiency (WUE, CO₂ assimilation rate/leaf conductance for water vapour), was investigated in canopy trees of three lowland rainforest stands in French Guiana, differing in floristic composition and in soil drainage characteristics, but subjected to similar climatic conditions. We sampled leaves with a rifle from 406 trees in total, representing 102 species. Eighteen species were common to the three stands. Mean species δ¹³C varied over a 6.0‰ range within each stand, corresponding to WUE varying over about a threefold range. Species occurring in at least two stands displayed remarkably stable δ¹³C values, suggesting a close genetic control of species δ¹³C. Marked differences in species δ¹³C values were found with respect to: (1) the leaf phenology pattern (average δ¹³C=–29.7‰ and –31.0‰ in deciduous-leaved and evergreen-leaved species, respectively), and (2) different types of shade tolerance defined by features reflecting the plasticity of growth dynamics with respect to contrasting light conditions. Heliophilic species exhibited more negative δ¹³C values (average δ¹³C=–30.5‰) (i.e. lower WUE) than hemitolerant species (–29.3‰). However, tolerant species (–31.4‰) displayed even more negative δ¹³C values than heliophilic ones. We could not provide a straightforward ecophysiological interpretation of this result. The negative relationship found between species δ¹³C and midday leaf water potential (Ψ_wm) suggests that low δ¹³C is associated with high whole tree leaf specific hydraulic conductance. Canopy carbon isotope discrimination (Δ _A ) calculated from the basal area-weighed integral of the species δ¹³C values was similar in the three stands (average Δ _A =23.1‰), despite differences in stand species composition and soil drainage type, reflecting the similar proportions of the three different shade-tolerance types among stands. Received: 30 November 1999 / Accepted: 23 March 2000     

The effect of isozyme selection on metric characters in an interspecific backcross of tomato — basis of an early screening procedure

Summary The extent of correlation was estimated between isozyme genotypes and the four widely segregating characters — leaf segment W/L ratio, stigma exsertion, fruit weight, and seed weight — in the first backcross of F₁ Lycopersicon esculentum x Solanum pennellii to the former parent. The inbred parents differ in their alleles at the 12 tested isozymic loci, which are known to mark a minimum of eight of the twelve tomato chromosomes. Based on the isozyme data, a mean heterozygosity value, ¯H, was calculated which estimates the proportion of pennillii alleles in each individual. Correlations between mean heterozygosity and observed levels of each quantitative trait were highly significant and positive or negative as expected from the relative parental values. Plants with the lowest mean heterozygosity — i.e., closest to the esculentum zymotype also had mean values closest to those of this parent amongst the whole backcross population for each of the quantitative traits.Bivariate and multiple regression analysis was used to evaluate the ability of isozymes vs diagnostic morphological characters to estimate the portion of recurrent parent genes carried in each backcross individual. The results suggest that isozyme data gives better estimates than single diagnostic morphological characters and approach the level obtained by combinations of three morphological traits. Since electrophoretic determinations are made on small seedlings, selection at that stage can effect great savings of space and effort by greatly deminishing the size of the population needed at maturity. As such, isozyme selection would precede morphological selection but not replace it, thus the predictive value of these biochemical markers as well as diagnostic morphological characters could be obtained.