Age and growth of Anguilla bicolor bicolor leptocephali in the eastern Indian Ocean

A sampling survey for leptocephali was conducted in the eastern Indian Ocean to the west of Sumatra from 5 to 20 June 2003 in an overlapping area with the historical survey in September to November 1929 during the Danish Round the World Expedition. The age and larval growth rate of 34 Anguilla bicolor bicolor collected in 2003 were estimated using their otolith microstructure to obtain new information about the early life history of this sub-species. The total lengths and ages of these leptocephali were 44·1–55·5 mm and 114–158 days, respectively. Their hatching dates ranged from 3 January to 20 February 2003. Combining these age data and the estimated age of leptocephali collected by others in the same area, this sub-species was estimated to have a wide range of spawning periods. Individual growth rates of the leptocephali in 2003 ranged from 0·32 to 0·39 mm day⁻¹ with a mean ± s . d . of 0·35 ± 0·02 mm day⁻¹. These values were lower than the growth rates of leptocephali of other tropical eels such as Anguilla celebesensis or Anguilla borneensis , suggesting that A. b. bicolor from the eastern Indian Ocean have a longer leptocephalus period of oceanic migration.     

Survival of an introduced ectomycorrhizal Laccaria bicolor strain in a European forest plantation monitored by mitochondrial ribosomal DNA analysis

Mitochondrial and nuclear genes have different inheritance, thus studies of fungal populations should use both mitochondrial and nuclear markers. Using nuclear markers, the S238N strain of the ectomycorrhizal basidiomycete Laccaria bicolor ((Maire) Orton) has been previously shown to persist for at least 10 yr after outplanting in a plantation of Douglas fir ( Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mir.) Franco) inoculated with this strain. In the present study, we have sampled 539 sporophores of Laccaria spp. from this plantation, some of which had the S238N nuclear genotype, to study mitochondrial DNA polymorphism and persistence of the inoculated S238N mitochondrial genome. Length polymorphism in fragments of the large subunit of mitochondrial ribosomal DNA (LrDNA) allowed distinction of the haplotypes present in the plantation at the species level. In addition, heteroduplex analysis and sequencing revealed intraspecific polymorphism of LrDNA among the L. bicolor sporophores and enabled specific identification of S238N LrDNA. This haplotype was only retained in sporophores carrying the S238N nuclear genome, confirming the survival of this introduced strain in a natural population.     

Effects of breeding density, synchrony, and experience on extrapair paternity in tree swallows

Breeding density, synchrony, and experience are expected toinfluence the frequency of extrapair paternity in birds. UsingDNA fingerprinting, we examined the effect of these factorson tree swallows nesting at relatively high (grids of nest-boxes)and low (solitary boxes at least 100 m from the nearest neighbor)densities and in relatively synchronous (Alberta) and asynchronous(Ontario) populations in Canada. The mean percentage of extrapairoffspring per nest did not differ significantly between birdsnesting in grids (43%, n = 22 families) and solitary boxes (57%,n = 12 families). Similarly, there was no significant differencein the mean percentage of extrapair offspring per nest betweenrelatively synchronous (60%, n = 12 Alberta families) and asynchronous(41%, n = 22 Ontario families) populations. We also found noconsistent pattern between extrapair paternity and breedingexperience among seven males and seven females examined overtwo to three breeding seasons. Female tree swallows can influencethe fertilization success of extrapair males by active selectionand rejection of copulation partners. We suggest that this abilitylimits the predicted effect of various ecological factors onthe frequency of extrapair paternity     

SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF A PRIMITIVELY SOCIAL BEE: DOES GENETIC POPULATION STRUCTURE FACILITATE ALTRUISM?

Exoneura bicolor is a univoltine, facultatively social bee exhibiting a solitary/quasisocial/semisocial colony polymorphism (Schwarz, 1986, 1987). Intracolony relatedness in semisocial colonies has been previously estimated at 0.49 ± 0.06 (Schwarz, 1987), although the crucial relatedness between altruists and the brood that they rear will be about half this value. This value is unlikely to be increased by the preferential rearing of only close relatives (Schwarz, 1988a) and no known morphological specializations preclude workers from reproducing in this species. Hamilton (1972, 1975) suggested that relatedness may be increased through population subdivision, if this leads to significant inbreeding and increased between-colony genetic variance. The same process may also operate at higher levels of population structure (e.g., Wade, 1978). Population structure and intracolony relatedness in E. bicolor were investigated in seven localities in southern Victoria, Australia, to determine if inbreeding at any level of population structure was contributing to relatedness between altruists and beneficiaries within these colonies. Population structure was described using hierarchical F-statistics and an identity by descent measure, developed by Queller and Goodnight (1989), was used to estimate intracolony relatedness. It was found that inbreeding was not contributing to between-group genetic variance, at any level, in a consistent manner across localities. Therefore relatedness, considered in isolation, does not seem sufficient to account for the presence of worker behavior. It is suggested that large benefits for group living may be responsible for maintaining altruistic behavior, in part, in this species. Significant heterogeneity among localities for all F-statistics estimated in our analysis was found and this may be attributable to stochastic elements such as cofounding behavior and the low percentage of males in the brood. The possible consequences of such heterogeneity in population structure for the maintenance of altruism in E. bicolor are discussed.     

Analysis of subcellular localization of auxin carriers PIN,AUX/LAX and PGP in Sorghum bicolor

Auxin transport at least correlates to the three gene families: efflux carriers PIN-formed (PIN), p-glycoprotein (PGP), and influx carrier auxin resistant 1/like aux1(AUX/LAX) in Arabidopsis thaliana. In monocotyledon Sorghum bicolor, the biological function of these genes retains unclear. Our previous study reported that the member analysis, organ-specific expression and expression profiles of the auxin transporter PIN, PGP and AUX/LAX gene families in Sorghum bicolor under IAA, brassinosteroid, polar auxin transport inhibitors and abiotic stresses. Here we further supply the prediction of subcellular localization of SbPIN, SbLAX and SbPGP proteins and discuss the potential relationship between the subcellular localization and stress response. The predicted results showed that the most of SbPIN, SbLAX and SbPGP proteins are localized to the plasma membrane, except few localized to vacuolar membrane and endoplasmic reticulum. This data set provides novel information for investigation of auxin transporters in Sorghum bicolor.     

高梁肉桂酸羟化酶基因SbC4H1降低拟南芥的木质素合成

肉桂酸羟化酶（C4H）是苯丙烷代谢通路的关键酶,其活性和含量直接影响木质素合成的效率。本文研究通过高粱bmr突变体的抑制差减杂交筛选、克隆到了一个C4H基因sbC4H。半定量RT-PCR发现,SbC4H1在多个bmr突变体中上调表达。将SbC4H1-GFP融合基因转化拟南芥原生质体进行瞬时表达,发现SbC4H1表达产物蛋白定位于细胞质。SbC4H1在拟南芥中的异源表达明显降低其茎的木质素含量,并且下调了拟南芥4CL1、FSH和HCT质素合成基因的表达。这些结果表明,高粱SbC4H1抑制了拟南芥木质素的合成。