On A Statistical Test to Detect Spatial Pattern

In the analysis of spatial patterns, the most extensively used index of dispersion is s²/m in which s² and m are respectively the sample variance and sample mean of the count x in each sample unit. For statistical testing, the statistic I' = (n — 1) s²/m has been introduced since it has an approximate X distribution under the null hypothesis that individuals are distributed randomly. The main problem with the use of index I' is that the random distribution and the superdispersed distribution are not distinguished. In this paper, we have tried to induce a new statistical method for the detection of spatial pattern, based on the special characteristic of Poisson distribution that both of the m and s² are the unbiased estimates of the parameter.     

导入小麦的外源染色体片段的准确鉴定及外源抗性基因的稳定性分析

用抗白粉病的普通小麦一簇毛麦６ＶＳ／６ＡＬ易位系与普通小麦品种扬麦５号、普通小麦一簇毛麦６Ｖ代换系和中国春６Ａ双端二体以及６Ｖ代换系和６Ａ双端二体配制了４个测交组合,分析了这４个杂交组合Ｆ１ＰＭＣ’ｓＭＩＣ－分带的减数分裂构型。在（６ＶＳ／６ＡＬ易位系×扬麦５号）和（６ＶＳ／６ＡＬ易位系×６Ｖ代换系）的Ｆ１ＰＭＣ’ｓＭＩ,分别观察到由易位染色体与６Ａ染色体和６Ｖ染色体配对形成的具有特定Ｃ－分带带型的棒状二价体,杂种中的棒状二价体数目高于各自亲本中的棒状二价体数。在（易位系×Ｃ．Ｓ．ｄ．ｄ．ｔ６Ａ）Ｆ１中,在８７．９％的ＰＭＣ中观察到由易位染色体长臂与６ＡＬ端体配对形成的异形二价体（ｔｌ”）。而在（６Ｖ代换系×Ｃ．Ｓ．ｄ．ｄ．ｔ６Ａ）Ｆ１中,９６．６８％的ＰＭＣ具有两个单价端体（ｔ’,ｔ’）。该结果进一步证实易位涉及簇毛麦染色体６ＶＳ和小麦染色体６ＡＬ,易位断点靠近着丝粒。在减数分裂中,易位染色体的正常配对和分离,保证了６ＶＳ上白粉病抗性基因Ｐｍ２１的正常传递,为这一新抗源在小麦育种中的应用奠定了细胞学基础。     

Root development of ‘Red Lady’ papaya plants grown on a hillside

Red Lady papaya (Carica papaya L.) seedlings were grown for 7 weeks in one experiment and 17 weeks in a second experiment on a 60% to 70% sloped hillside. Depth and lateral root developmental characteristics were determined to establish a more informed basis for developing management procedures during hillside production of papaya. A trench was dug perpendicular to the contour line, and positioned 10 cm from the stem base of each plant. A 1 cm layer of soil was removed from the profile wall, and the roots on the trench profile were mapped. Thereafter, the intact half of each root system was excavated to determine the dry mass and length distribution. Roots were separated into the taproot system, and the lateral roots of the uphill and downhill sides. The downhill portion of lateral roots accounted for 56% of total length and 64% of total mass after 7 weeks, and 71% of total length and 69% of total mass after 17 weeks. Some lateral roots on the uphill side of the plants developed with a negative gravitropic orientation to maintain a portion of the root system, close to the surface of the slope. After 17 weeks, 34% of the roots on the uphill side of the trench profile walls were located above a horizontal plane positioned at the stem base. Root growth of Red Lady papaya plants growing on hillsides was maintained in all directions, including up the slope. The results signify that there may be no need to modify fertilizer placement practices for hillside production of papaya. However, the higher concentration of roots on the downhill side of these plants indicates a need for placement of soil moisture sensors for irrigation scheduling in uphill and downhill sites.     

炭凝集试验快速检测轮状病毒的研究

用炭凝集试验检测轮状病毒,结果表明该法是一种简便、快速、特异的诊断方法.用炭凝集试验及聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳法对105份粪样进行检测,结果两法阳性检出率无显著性差异,说明炭凝集试验可应用于临床.     

Daytime Functioning in Obstructive Sleep Apnea Patients: Exercise Tolerance, Subjective Fatigue, and Sleepiness

A sample of 32 obstructive sleep apnea patients (27 males, 5 females) was assessed with overnight polysomnography and the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT), an objective measure of daytime sleepiness. Patients also participated in a maximal exercise test, which served as an objective indicator of physical fatigue. The Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS) was used as a subjective measure of fatigue. Subjective fatigue ratings were significantly correlated with percent of predicted maximum heart rate achieved during exercise testing, suggesting that self-reported fatigue in apnea patients may refer to reduced physical fitness. FSS scores and exercise testing results were not significantly correlated with the MSLT, indicating that daytime fatigue and daytime sleepiness are independent problems in apnea patients. Participants self-reported a high level of fatigue, and exercise testing revealed decreased physical work capacity among apnea patients, but objective and subjective indicators of fatigue were not significantly correlated with apnea severity. A higher percentage of REM sleep predicted greater work capacity.     

A Standardized Test for the Identification and Characterization of Melanins Using Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) Spectroscopy

Melanins are complex, incompletely understood polymeric pigments that historically have been difficult to investigate with common chemical, histochemical, and physicochemical techniques. Because these pigments uniquely contain a stable population of organic free radicals, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy is a particularly effective method for studying them, and a set of qualitative EPR criteria has been established for their identification. However, a number of practical problems have arisen in applying these criteria to identify and characterize unknown pigments in relatively scarce pathological specimens, indicating that a standardized approach is needed. As reported here, a standardized EPR test for melanin based on the EPR criteria has been developed, guided by the requirements that it be sensitive, accurate, simple, and easy to interpret. It has been evaluated using the well-characterized synthetic melanin prepared by alkaline autooxidation of 5,6-dihydroxyphenylalanine (Dopa) and initially applied to the identification and characterization of an unknown pigment purified from an unusual malignant lung tumor.     

The coarse‐root system of mature Populus tremuloides in declining stands in Alberta,Canada

Abstract. The coarse‐root dynamics of ramets of Populus tremuloides (aspen) were investigated with respect to persistence of the original root connections (roots of parent trees from which the ramets originated), the time of establishment of new roots at the base of the stem and the fate of the communal root system after death of individual trees. Parts of the root systems of three declining stands of aspen ramets were hydraulically excavated. From each stand, sections of all structural roots were collected at the base of live and dead trees and were analysed using dendrochronology techniques. Parent roots were identified in the root system of every tree. The trees initiated new structural roots shortly after suckering. Live roots were often connected to the stump of dead and decayed trees. Grafting was common, especially at or near the stumps. Death of trees along the parent roots over time did not seem to favour the entry of significant decay, nor promote breakage of the original root connections. Instead of becoming independent of the parent root system the ramets incorporated the parent roots into their own root systems, remaining interconnected.     

The importance of culling in Johne's disease control

Johne's disease is caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) infection and results in economic losses in the dairy industry. To control MAP transmission in herds, test-based culling has been recommended and immediate culling of high shedding animals is typically implemented. In this study, we quantified the effects of MAP control in US dairy herds, using the basic reproduction ratio R₀. The effectiveness of culling strategies was evaluated for good and poor herd management (low- and high-transmission rates, respectively) by a phase diagram approach. To establish a quantitative relationship between culling rates and test properties, we defined the average detection times for low and high shedding animals. The effects of various culling strategies and test characteristics, such as test sensitivity, test turnaround time, and testing interval, were analyzed. To understand the overall effect of model parameters on R₀, we performed global uncertainty and sensitivity analyses. We also evaluated the effectiveness of culling only high shedding animals by comparing three test methods (fecal culture, fecal polymerase chain reaction, PCR, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, ELISA). Our study shows that, in the case of good herd management, culling of only high shedding animals may be effective in controlling MAP transmission. However, in the case of poor management, in addition to immediate culling of high shedding animals, culling of low shedding animals (based on the fecal culture test) will be necessary. Culling of low shedding animals may be delayed 6-12 months, however, if a shorter testing interval is applied. This study suggests that if farmers prefer culling only high shedding animals, faster MAP detection tests (such as the fecal PCR and ELISA) of higher sensitivity should be applied with high testing frequency, particularly on farms with poor management. Culling of infectious animals with a longer testing interval is generally not effective to control MAP.     

Resampling-based empirical Bayes multiple testing procedures for controlling generalized tail probability and expected value error rates: focus on the false discovery rate and simulation study

This article proposes resampling-based empirical Bayes multiple testing procedures for controlling a broad class of Type I error rates, defined as generalized tail probability (gTP) error rates, gTP (q,g) = Pr(g (V(n),S(n)) > q), and generalized expected value (gEV) error rates, gEV (g) = E [g (V(n),S(n))], for arbitrary functions g (V(n),S(n)) of the numbers of false positives V(n) and true positives S(n). Of particular interest are error rates based on the proportion g (V(n),S(n)) = V(n) /(V(n) + S(n)) of Type I errors among the rejected hypotheses, such as the false discovery rate (FDR), FDR = E [V(n) /(V(n) + S(n))]. The proposed procedures offer several advantages over existing methods. They provide Type I error control for general data generating distributions, with arbitrary dependence structures among variables. Gains in power are achieved by deriving rejection regions based on guessed sets of true null hypotheses and null test statistics randomly sampled from joint distributions that account for the dependence structure of the data. The Type I error and power properties of an FDR-controlling version of the resampling-based empirical Bayes approach are investigated and compared to those of widely-used FDR-controlling linear step-up procedures in a simulation study. The Type I error and power trade-off achieved by the empirical Bayes procedures under a variety of testing scenarios allows this approach to be competitive with or outperform the Storey and Tibshirani (2003) linear step-up procedure, as an alternative to the classical Benjamini and Hochberg (1995) procedure.     

实验动物屏障系统微生物动态状况

目的研究运行中的实验动物屏障系统微生物的情况。方法采用沉降菌法、棉拭子法等方法,研究运行中的屏障系统不同区域、不同环境指标下屏障系统内微生物的状况。结果动态下的屏障系统微生物情况与国标GB14925-2001中静态环境有较大不同,动物饲养室和动物实验室沉降菌浓度远高于静态要求;辅助区域在规范化消毒及严格管理的情况下,能达到国标要求。屏障系统的微生物情况存在一定的昼夜变化规律,在晚间出现峰值。结论合适的换气次数可有效控制实验动物屏障系统的沉降菌浓度;加强消毒及硬件的管理,是屏障系统内环境稳定的保障。