叶表面角质层在贝母属植物叶鉴定中的意义

叶表面角质层在贝母属植物叶鉴定中的意义李萍，濮祖茂，蒋鑫，刘惠娟，徐国钧（中国药科大学生药学教研室；分析中心电镜室南京２１０００９）ＴｈｅｄｉａｇｎｏｓｔｉｃｖａｌｕｅｏｆｔｈｅｃｕｔｉｃｌｅｉｎｔｈｅｌｅａｖｅｓｆｒｏｍｇｅｎｕｓＦｒｉｔｉｌｌａｒ...     

Turnover of O-Glucosides of Dihydrozeatin and Dihydrozeatin-9-riboside During the Cell Growth Cycle of Photoautotrophic Cell Suspension Cultures of Chenopodium rubrum

The cellular levels of O-glucosides of ³H-(diH)Z and ³H-(diH)[9R]Z, the major short-term metabolites of ³H-(diH)Z having been exogenously supplied to photoautotrophically growing suspension cell cultures of Chenopodium rubrum, decreased significantly during further culture, irrespective of whether the cells were maintained in the stationary phase or were transferred to conditions restoring cell divison. Metabolism of both compounds was more pronounced during the active growth phase than during the stationary phase. The O-glucosides were converted preferentially to polar compounds of as yet unknown nature, which were partly excreted into the medium. The cellular pools of both glycosides remained compartmented within the vacuole. In contrast to the O-glycosides, the small cellular pools of the aglycones ³H-(diH)Z and ³H-(diH)[9R]Z maintained their level during the experimental period of 30 days. Small amounts of the glucosides, as well as of the aglycones, were recovered from the medium and could have resulted from the lysis of a few cells. The results demonstrate, for the first time, that O-glucosides of cytokinins are not irreversibly deposited within the vacuole of plant cells but may serve to maintain a small, but more or less constant pool of extra-vacuolar, presumably cytosolic, aglycones. (DiH)Z and its derivatives could be demonstrated to be endogenous cytokinins of Chenopodium rubrum suspension cultured cells occurring along with those of the isopentenyladenine and zeatin types.     

Landscape structure influences tree density patterns in fragmented woodlands in semi‐arid eastern Australia

Landscape and local‐scale influences are important drivers of plant community structure. However, their relative contribution and the degree to which they interact remain unclear. We quantified the extent to which landscape structure, within‐patch habitat and their confounding effects determine post‐clearing tree densities and composition in agricultural landscapes in eastern subtropical Australia. Landscape structure (incorporating habitat fragmentation and loss) and within‐patch (site) features were quantified for 60 remnant patches of Eucalyptus populnea (Myrtaceae) woodland. Tree density and species for three ecological maturity classes (regeneration, early maturity, late maturity) and local site features were assessed in one 100 × 10 m plot per patch. All but one landscape characteristic was determined within a 1.3‐km radius of plots; Euclidean nearest neighbour distance was measured inside a 5‐km radius. Variation in tree density and composition for each maturity class was partitioned into independent landscape, independent site and joint effects of landscape and site features using redundancy analysis. Independent site effects explained more variation in regeneration density and composition than pure landscape effects; significant predictors were the proportion of early and late maturity trees at a site, rainfall and the associated interaction. Conversely, landscape structure explained greater variation in early and late maturity tree density and composition than site predictors. Area of remnant native vegetation within a landscape and patch characteristics (area, shape, edge contrast) were significant predictors of early maturity tree density. However, 31% of the explained variation in early mature tree differences represented confounding influences of landscape and local variables. We suggest that within‐patch characteristics are important in influencing semi‐arid woodland tree regeneration. However, independent and confounding effects of landscape structure resulting from previous vegetation clearing may have exerted a greater historical influence on older cohorts and should be accounted for when examining woodland dynamics across a broader range of environments.     

Homarus Americanus Stomatogastric Nervous System Dissection

With the goal of understanding how nervous systems produce activity and respond to the environment, neuroscientists turn to model systems that exhibit the activity of interest and are accessible and amenable to experimental methods. The stomatogastric nervous system (STNS) of the American lobster (Homarus americanus; also know was the Atlantic or Maine lobster) has been established as a model system for studying rhythm generating networks and neuromodulation of networks. The STNS consists of 3 anterior ganglia (2 commissural ganglia and an oesophageal ganglion), containing modulatory neurons that project centrally to the stomatogastric ganglion (STG). The STG contains approximately 30 neurons that comprise two central pattern generating networks, the pyloric and gastric networks that underlie feeding behaviors in crustaceans^1,2. While it is possible to study this system in vivo³, the STNS continues to produce its rhythmic activity when isolated in vitro. Physical isolation of the STNS in a dish allows for easy access to the somata in the ganglia for intracellular electrophysiological recordings and to the nerves of the STNS for extracellular recordings. Isolating the STNS is a two-part process. The first part, dissecting the stomach from the animal, is described in an accompanying video article⁴. In this video article, fine dissection techniques are used to isolate the STNS from the stomach. This procedure results in a nervous system preparation that is available for electrophysiological recordings.     

Galanin Signaling in the Brain Regulates Color Pattern Formation in Zebrafish

1. Download : Download high-res image (251KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image

     

Retarded Charge–Carrier Recombination in Photoelectrochemical Cells from Plasmon‐Induced Resonance Energy Transfer

N‐type metal oxides such as hematite (α‐Fe₂O₃) and bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) are promising candidate materials for efficient photoelectrochemical water splitting; however, their short minority carrier diffusion length and restricted carrier lifetime result in undesired rapid charge recombination. Herein, a 2D arranged globular Au nanosphere (NS) monolayer array with a highly ordered hexagonal hole pattern (hereafter, Au array) is introduced onto the surface of photoanodes comprised of metal oxide films via a facile drying and transfer‐printing process. Through plasmon‐induced resonance energy transfer, the Au array provides a strong electromagnetic field in the near‐surface area of the metal oxide film. The near‐field coupling interaction and amplification of the electromagnetic field suppress the charge recombination with long‐lived photogenerated holes and simultaneously enhance the light harvesting and charge transfer efficiencies. Consequently, an over 3.3‐fold higher photocurrent density at 1.23 V versus reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) is achieved for the Au array/α‐Fe₂O₃. Furthermore, the high versatility of this transfer printing of Au arrays is demonstrated by introducing it on the molybdenum‐doped BiVO₄ film, resulting in 1.5‐fold higher photocurrent density at 1.23 V versus RHE. The tailored metal film design can provide a potential strategy for the versatile application in various light‐mediated energy conversion and optoelectronic devices.     

大豆品种(系)和种植密度对豆天蛾幼虫存活及生长发育的影响

豆天蛾Clanis bilineata tsingtauica Mell幼虫,是一种食用昆虫,富含蛋白质、维生素和矿质元素,具有很高的营养、药用和经济价值。了解适宜豆天蛾幼虫生长发育的大豆品种（品系）和种植密度,可为豆天蛾幼虫规模化饲养提供理论基础。研究通过设置两因素裂区实验,在10个品种（品系）大豆和2个种植密度水平下,测定豆天蛾幼虫生物学参数,明确适宜豆天蛾幼虫养殖的大豆品种（品系）和种植密度。结果表明,不同大豆品种（系）和种植密度对豆天蛾幼虫存活及生长发育均有显著影响;其中使用连151、淮豆9号、东辛3号和H0573大豆饲养的豆天蛾幼虫产量和存活率较高,虫体长度较长,发育历期较短;大青豆饲养的豆天蛾幼虫产量较低,幼虫发育整齐度较差,发育历期长。当种植密度为40 cm×30 cm时,豆天蛾幼虫存活和发育历期整齐度均显著高于种植密度40 cm×15 cm。综上所述,较适宜豆天蛾幼虫养殖的大豆品种（品系）为连151、淮豆9号、东辛3号和H0573,种植密度为40 cm×30 cm。     

Functional analyses of small secreted cysteine-rich proteins identified candidate effectors in Verticillium dahliae

Secreted small cysteine-rich proteins (SCPs) play a critical role in modulating host immunity in plant–pathogen interactions. Bioinformatic analyses showed that the fungal pathogen Verticillium dahliae encodes more than 100 VdSCPs, but their roles in host–pathogen interactions have not been fully characterized. Transient expression of 123 VdSCP-encoding genes in Nicotiana benthamiana identified three candidate genes involved in host–pathogen interactions. The expression of these three proteins, VdSCP27, VdSCP113, and VdSCP126, in N. benthamiana resulted in cell death accompanied by a reactive oxygen species burst, callose deposition, and induction of defence genes. The three VdSCPs mainly localized to the periphery of the cell. BAK1 and SOBIR1 (associated with receptor-like protein) were required for the immunity triggered by these three VdSCPs in N. benthamiana. Site-directed mutagenesis showed that cysteine residues that form disulphide bonds are essential for the functioning of VdSCP126, but not VdSCP27 and VdSCP113. VdSCP27, VdSCP113, and VdSCP126 individually are not essential for V. dahliae infection of N. benthamiana and Gossypium hirsutum, although there was a significant reduction of virulence on N. benthamiana and G. hirsutum when inoculated with the VdSCP27/VdSCP126 double deletion strain. These results illustrate that the SCPs play a critical role in the V. dahliae–plant interaction via an intrinsic virulence function and suppress immunity following infection.     

Molecular mechanisms of homeostatic plasticity in central pattern generator networks

Central pattern generator (CPG) networks rely on a balance of intrinsic and network properties to produce reliable, repeatable activity patterns. This balance is maintained by homeostatic plasticity where alterations in neuronal properties dynamically maintain appropriate neural output in the face of changing environmental conditions and perturbations. However, it remains unclear just how these neurons and networks can both monitor their ongoing activity and use this information to elicit homeostatic physiological responses to ensure robustness of output over time. Evidence exists that CPG networks use a mixed strategy of activity‐dependent, activity‐independent, modulator‐dependent, and synaptically regulated homeostatic plasticity to achieve this critical stability. In this review, we focus on some of the current understanding of the molecular pathways and mechanisms responsible for this homeostatic plasticity in the context of central pattern generator function, with a special emphasis on some of the smaller invertebrate networks that have allowed for extensive cellular‐level analyses that have brought recent insights to these questions.