光氮互作对闽楠幼苗叶片光合生理特性的影响

以5月龄闽楠幼苗为材料,采用4种光照水平(100%、41.3%、14.3%、3.6%自然光)和4种氮素水平(0、0.5、1、2 mol/L纯氮)的双因素盆栽试验,研究光氮互作下闽楠幼苗的光合生理特性,以探讨其对环境适应性的生理机制。结果表明:(1)遮荫和施氮均能显著提高闽楠叶片光合色素含量;在同一氮素水平下,随光照强度下降,闽楠幼苗叶片可溶性糖(SS)、可溶性蛋白(SP)、净光合速率(P_n)、气孔导度(G_s)、最大净光合速率(P_(max))、暗呼吸速率(R_d)、表观量子系数(AQY)均呈先增后降趋势,并在41.3%自然光照水平时最高;而同期叶片胞间CO_2浓度(C_i)、蒸腾速率(T_r)、光饱和点(LSP)、光补偿点(LCP)均呈下降趋势;闽楠幼苗的叶片PSⅡ最大光化学效率(F_v/F_m)和PSⅡ潜在活性(F_v/F_o)则随光照减弱逐渐增加。(2)同一光照水平下,随着氮素施用量增加,闽楠幼苗叶片SS、SP、光合气体交换参数、光响应曲线特征参数总体呈现先升高后降低的趋势,F_v/F_m和F_v/F_o呈先降后增趋势。(3)不同光照和氮素水平之间存在显著的互作效应,隶属函数分析结果以41.3%自然光照、0.5 mol/L纯N处理的效果最优。研究表明,闽楠幼苗为喜光耐荫植物;适宜遮荫和施氮处理组合可显著改善闽楠渗透调节能力,提高光能利用率,促进光合作用进行,而全光照、过度遮荫、缺氮、或过量施氮均不利于闽楠正常生理代谢。     

Autophagy in plants: Physiological roles and post‐translational regulation

In eukaryotes, autophagy helps maintain cellular homeostasis by degrading and recycling cytoplasmic materials via a tightly regulated pathway.Over the past few decades, significant progress has been made towards understanding the physiological functions and molecular regulation of autophagy in plant cells. Increasing evidence indicates that autophagy is essential for plant responses to several developmental and environmental cues, functioning in diverse processes such as senescence, male fertility, root meristem maintenance, responses to nutrient starvation,and biotic and abiotic stress. Recent studies have demonstrated that, similar to nonplant systems,the modulation of core proteins in the plant autophagy machinery by posttranslational modifications such as phosphorylation, ubiquitination,lipidation, S-sulfhydration, S-nitrosylation, and acetylation is widely involved in the initiation and progression of autophagy. Here, we provide an overview of the physiological roles and posttranslational regulation of autophagy in plants.     

Effects of Deficit Irrigation on the Photosynthetic and Physiological Characteristics of Leaves and Yield of Isatis tinctoria

以北板蓝根(Isatis tinctoria)为研究对象, 于2018年在河西走廊中部干旱绿洲开展水分控制试验, 设轻、中、重度亏水及充分供水4个控水水平, 通过大田试验探究膜下滴灌条件下亏缺灌溉对板蓝根叶片生理指标、灌水量及产量的影响, 为河西地区板蓝根灌溉策略的制定提供理论依据。结果表明, 板蓝根叶片净光合速率(P_n)、蒸腾速率(T_r)和气孔导度(G_s)因营养和肉质根生长期受到亏缺灌溉影响而显著下降, 降幅随亏水程度的加剧而增大, 轻度亏水处理对叶片光合能力的影响不显著, 且在复水之后存在一定的补偿响应; 轻度亏水处理的产量与对照(8 348.91 kg·hm^-2)相比无显著差异, 而其它处理的产量均有不同程度的下降; 灌水量与产量的拟合关系呈二次抛物线, 即产量不随灌水量的增加而升高。因此, 综合分析表明膜下滴灌调亏降低了板蓝根叶片的光合能力, 而营养生长期轻度亏缺灌溉可以节水并提高产量和灌溉效率。     

Direct numerical simulation of a 2D-stented aortic heart valve at physiological flow rates

We study the nonlinear interaction of an aortic heart valve, composed of hyperelastic corrugated leaflets of finite density attached to a stented vessel under physiological flow conditions. In our numerical simulations, we use a 2D idealised representation of this arrangement. Blood flow is caused by a time-varying pressure gradient that mimics that of the aortic valve and corresponds to a peak Reynolds number equal to 4050. Here, we fully account for the shear-thinning behaviour of the blood and large deformations and contact between the leaflets by solving the momentum and mass balances for blood and leaflets. The mixed finite element/Galerkin method along with linear discontinuous Lagrange multipliers for coupling the fluid and elastic domains is adopted. Moreover, a series of challenging numerical issues such as the finite length of the computational domain and the conditions that should be imposed on its inflow/outflow boundaries, the accurate time integration of the parabolic and hyperbolic momentum equations, the contact between the leaflets and the non-conforming mesh refinement in part of the domain are successfully resolved. Calculations for the velocity and the shear stress fields of the blood reveal that boundary layers appear on both sides of a leaflet. The one along the ventricular side transfers blood with high momentum from the core region of the vessel to the annulus or the sinusoidal expansion, causing the continuous development of flow instabilities. At peak systole, vortices are convected in the flow direction along the annulus of the vessel, whereas during the closure stage of the valve, an extremely large vortex develops in each half of the flow domain.     

Upward ant distribution shift corresponds with minimum,not maximum,temperature tolerance

Rapid climate change may prompt species distribution shifts upward and poleward, but species movement in itself is not sufficient to establish climate causation. Other dynamics, such as disturbance history, may prompt species distribution shifts resembling those expected from rapid climate change. Links between species distributions, regional climate trends and physiological mechanism are needed to convincingly establish climate‐induced species shifts. We examine a 38‐year shift (1974–2012) in an elevation ecotone between two closely related ant species, Aphaenogaster picea and A. rudis. Even though A. picea and A. rudis are closely related with North American distributions that sometimes overlap, they also exhibit local‐ and regional‐scale differences in temperature requirements so that A. rudis is more southerly and inhabits lower elevations whereas A. picea is more northerly and inhabits high elevations. We find considerable movement by the warm‐habitat species upward in elevation between 1974 and 2012 with A. rudis, replacing the cold‐habitat species, A. picea, along the southern edge of the Appalachian Mountain chain in north Georgia, USA. Concomitant with the distribution shifts, regional mean and maximum temperatures remain steady (1974–2012), but minimum temperatures increase. We collect individuals from the study sites and subject them to thermal tolerance testing in a controlled setting and find that maximum and minimum temperature acclimatization occurs along the elevation gradient in both species, but A. rudis consistently becomes physiologically incapacitated at minimum and maximum temperatures 2 °C higher than A. picea. These results indicate that rising minimum temperatures allow A. rudis to move upward in elevation and displace A. picea. Given that Aphaenogaster ants are the dominant woodland seed dispersers in eastern deciduous forests, and that their thermal tolerances drive distinct differences in temperature‐cued synchrony with early blooming plants, these climate responses not only impact ant‐ant interactions, but might have wide implications for ant‐plant interactions.     

Shaping up for action

The Malpighian tubule is the main organ for excretion and osmoregulation in most insects. During a short period of embryonic development the tubules of Drosophila are shaped, undergo differentiation and become precisely positioned in the body cavity, so they become fully functional at the time of larval hatching a few hours later. In this review I explore three developmental events on the path to physiological maturation. First, I examine the molecular and cellular mechanisms that generate organ shape, focusing on the process of cell intercalation that drives tubule elongation, the roles of the cytoskeleton, the extracellular matrix and how intercalation is coordinated at the tissue level. Second, I look at the genetic networks that control the physiological differentiation of tubule cells and consider how distinctive physiological domains in the tubule are patterned. Finally, I explore how the organ is positioned within the body cavity and consider the relationship between organ position and function.     

Alveolar mimics with periodic strain and its effect on the cell layer formation

We report on the development of a new model of alveolar air–tissue interface on a chip. The model consists of an array of suspended hexagonal monolayers of gelatin nanofibers supported by microframes and a microfluidic device for the patch integration. The suspended monolayers are deformed to a central displacement of 40–80 µm at the air–liquid interface by application of air pressure in the range of 200–1,000 Pa. With respect to the diameter of the monolayers, that is, 500 µm, this displacement corresponds to a linear strain of 2–10% in agreement with the physiological strain range in the lung alveoli. The culture of A549 cells on the monolayers for an incubation time of 1–3 days showed viability in the model. We exerted a periodic strain of 5% at a frequency of 0.2 Hz for 1 hr to the cells. We found that the cells were strongly coupled to the nanofibers, but the strain reduced the coupling and induced remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton, which led to a better tissue formation. Our model can serve as a versatile tool in lung investigations such as in inhalation toxicology and therapy.     

暗黑菌(Atribacteria)的环境分布和功能特征

暗黑菌门包括OP9和JS1两大分支,成员大多为未培养微生物,在自然环境中广泛分布,并且在部分环境如厌氧海洋沉积物、地热环境以及油藏中为优势微生物。基于基因组信息的研究表明,暗黑菌为严格的厌氧微生物,同时具有降解糖类、小分子酸、短链正构烷烃的能力,在地球碳循环过程中可能扮演着重要的角色。然而,由于缺乏相应代表性的纯培养菌株,对于暗黑菌的生理生化功能推测仍有待验证。文章概述了暗黑菌的发现及发展历史,分析了其环境分布和多样性,简述了目前提出的三种代谢方式,提出了未来暗黑菌的研究发展方向。