Evolutionary perspectives on human height variation

Human height is a highly variable trait, both within and between populations, has a high heritability, and influences the manner in which people behave and are treated in society. Although we know much about human height, this information has rarely been brought together in a comprehensive, systematic fashion. Here, we present a synthetic review of the literature on human height from an explicit evolutionary perspective, addressing its phylogenetic history, development, and environmental and genetic influences on growth and stature. In addition to presenting evidence to suggest the past action of natural selection on human height, we also assess the evidence that natural and sexual selection continues to act on height in contemporary populations. Although there is clear evidence to suggest that selection acts on height, mainly through life‐history processes but perhaps also directly, it is also apparent that methodological factors reduce the confidence with which such inferences can be drawn, and there remain surprising gaps in our knowledge. The inability to draw firm conclusions about the adaptiveness of such a highly visible and easily measured trait suggests we should show an appropriate degree of caution when dealing with other human traits in evolutionary perspective.     

Nonparametric Analysis of Thermal Proteome Profiles Reveals Novel Drug-binding Proteins*

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Highlights

• •Method for the analysis of response curves from thermal proteome profiling (TPP).
• •NPARC uses nonparametric statistics and provides false discovery-rate (FDR) control.
• •Increased proteome coverage and sensitivity to identify drug-binding proteins.

     

不同生态环境对蒲公英超氧物歧化酶（SOD）的影响

选择干生,湿生,阳生,阴生四种生境中生长的蒲公英Taraxacum mongolicum Hand.-Mazz分根,叶,花分别测定了SOD活性和比活性,并比较了同工酶谱的变化情况,结果表明不同生境未能改变SOD的同工酶条带数,但对其活性大小有影响,这种影响尤其表现在根上,湿生和阴生根的SOD活性明显高于干生和阳生根的SOD活性,显示出蒲公英的不同器官适应不同的环境效应。     

A simple device to measure root growth rates

The construction and use of a simple auxanometer is described. With this instrument students can readily and accurately measure root growth rates of intact seedlings. Typical time course data are presented for the effect of ethylene and indole acetic acid on pea root growth.     

基于LSMM与MSPA的深圳市绿色景观连通性研究

基于线性光谱混合模型(LSMM,Linear Spectral Mixture Model),引入形态学空间格局分析(MSPA,Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis)进行城市地域绿色景观连通性评价。根据城市绿色景观特点和MSPA方法中的7种连通性类型的涵义,定义了城市绿色景观连通性功能类型。以深圳市1986年、1995年、2000年、2005年及2010年五期Landsat TM影像为数据源,应用线性光谱混合模型提取植被覆盖率,得到深圳市植被覆盖图。在此基础上,提取出高、全植被覆盖作为目标像元进行MSPA处理,分析植被覆盖状况与绿色景观功能类型的时序总体特征及空间梯度动态。结果表明:深圳市绿色景观破碎程度较高,表现为对结构连通性贡献最小的斑块类型总数最大。城市内部东西部连通性呈现出不同变化的趋势;右侧外圈层的大鹏半岛结构连通性最佳;在同一城市化发展梯度上,东部的样带连通性水平比西部要好。在城市化过程中,深圳市高、全覆被植被像元连通性大小受以下因素的影响:城市化程度,地形因素及区域定位。在同一城市化程度上,地形因素对景观连通性的影响较大。从整体的时间变化和空间梯度动态分析可知,在快速城市化过程中植被覆盖率和连通性功能均下降,而到稳定城市化阶段植被覆盖率和连通性均得到改善。研究表明线性光谱混合模型与形态学空间格局分析相结合可以较好的表征城市绿色景观连通性类型时空分布特征,进而明晰城市化过程与区域内绿色景观数量及连通性动态变化关系。     

公共空间安全感研究：以上海城市街景感知为例

在文献基础上梳理了街道安全感影响因素,并采用上海样本检验了“街道眼”等西方街道安全理论。邀请30位学生和30位市民对上海5个不同发展时期社区的300张百度街景图片进行安全感评定。实验发现绿视率、管理程度、车道数等都对安全感起着显著作用,并分别建立了单双车道和多车道街道空间的安全感回归模型。其中发现绿视率（单双车道相关系数R=0.728,p<0.01;多车道相关系数R=0.471,p<0.01）、管理程度（单双车道相关系数R=0.766,p<0.01;多车道相关系数R=0.450,p<0.01）、车道数量因素（相关系数R=0.502,p<0.01）对安全感均有显著的积极作用,界面透明度（单双车道相关系数R=0.222,p<0.01）、独立自行车道（相关系数R=0.309,p<0.01）及设计美感（相关系数R=0.432,p<0.01）等因素在单双车道空间中具有积极影响,而助动车与自行车（单双车道相关系数R=-0.327,p<0.01;多车道相关系数R=-0.281,p<0.01）在对安全感知评价具有消极影响,机动车（单双车道相关系数R=0.251,p<0.01;多车道相关系数R=-0.327,p<0.01）在单双车道与多车道空间中呈现相反的作用。     

A data-driven framework to model the organism–environment system

Organisms modify their development and function in response to the environment. At the same time, the environment is modified by the activities of the organism. Despite the ubiquity of such dynamical interactions in nature, it remains challenging to develop models that accurately represent them, and that can be fitted using data. These features are desirable when modeling phenomena such as phenotypic plasticity, to generate quantitative predictions of how the system will respond to environmental signals of different magnitude or at different times, for example, during ontogeny. Here, we explain a modeling framework that represents the organism and environment as a single coupled dynamical system in terms of inputs and outputs. Inputs are external signals, and outputs are measurements of the system in time. The framework uses time-series data of inputs and outputs to fit a nonlinear black-box model that allows to predict how the system will respond to novel input signals. The framework has three key properties: it captures the dynamical nature of the organism–environment system, it can be fitted with data, and it can be applied without detailed knowledge of the system. We study phenotypic plasticity using in silico experiments and demonstrate that the framework predicts the response to novel environmental signals. The framework allows us to model plasticity as a dynamical property that changes in time during ontogeny, reflecting the well-known fact that organisms are more or less plastic at different developmental stages.     

洪湖生态环境的化学结构

本文探讨了化学元素在洪湖水、植物、沉积物中的分布,在此基础上分析了水生植物对元素的吸收特征及元素在生态系统中的贮存和迁移规律。指出湖水中Ｃａ￣（２＋）和是主要的阳离子和阴离子,湖水酸容纳能力在１．２×１０￣（－３）－２．０×１０￣（－３）ｍｏｌ／ｌＨ￣＋之间,水化学的稳定性受到碳酸盐地球化学平衡过程的控制;湖中水生植物具有富集Ｃ、Ｎ、Ｋ、Ｃａ和Ｃｄ的性质,并导致这些元素在沉积物表层集累;系统中Ｃ多存在于植物体中,Ｎ、Ｐ、Ｋ、Ｃａ和Ｍｇ多存在于沉积物中,沉积物分室是营养元素主要的贮存库。     

Production of St. John's wort plants under controlled environment for maximizing biomass and secondary metabolites

Summary St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) is a medicinal plant used in the treatment of neurological disorders and has been recently shown to have anticancer potential. The principle medicinal components of St. John's wort are hypericin. pseudohypericin, and hyperforin. One of the problems associated with medicinal plant preparations including St. John's wort is the extreme variability in the phytochemical content, mostly due to environmental variability, and biotic and abiotic contamination during cropping. The current study was undertaken to transplant St. John's wort plants from in vitro bioreactors in a closed controlled environment system (CCES) with CO₂ enrichment for the optimized production of biomas and phytochemicals. The growth and levels of hypericin, pseudohypericin, and hyperforin in plants grown in CCES were compared with those of the greenhouse and in vitro-grown plants. The environmental parameters in the greenhouse were found to be variable whereas in the CCES these parameters were controlled. Generally, all the growth parameters and hypericin and psendohypericin levels were significantly higher in the plants grown in the CCES. These results provide the first indication that growing St. John's wort plants, under CO₂ enrichment in a closed environment system can enhance the biomass and medicinal contents. The adaptation of this growing system may be useful for the production of optimized products of St. John's wort and other medicinal species.