Structural organization of the beta-globin locus of B-haplotype sheep

Goats and some sheep synthesize a juvenile hemoglobin, Hb C (alpha 2 beta C2), at birth and produce this hemoglobin exclusively during severe anemia. Sheep that synthesize this juvenile hemoglobin are of the A haplotype. Other sheep, belonging to a separate group, the B haplotype, do not synthesize hemoglobin C and during anemia continue to produce their adult hemoglobin. To understand the basis for this difference we have determined the structural organization of the beta- globin locus of B-type sheep by constructing and isolating overlapping genomic clones. These clones have allowed us to establish the linkage map 5' epsilon I-epsilon II-psi beta I-beta B-epsilon III-epsilon IV- psi beta II-beta F3' in this haplotype. Thus, B sheep lack four genes, including the BC gene, and have only eight genes, compared with the 12 found in the goat globin locus. The goat beta-globin locus is as follows: 5' epsilon I-epsilon II-psi beta X-beta C-epsilon III-epsilon IV-psi beta Z-beta A-epsilon V-epsilon VI-psi beta Y-beta F3'. Southern blot analysis of A-type sheep reveals that these animals have a beta- globin locus similar to that of goat, i.e., 12 globin genes. Thus, the beta-globin locus of B-haplotype sheep resembles that of cows and may have retained the duplicated locus of the ancestor of cows and sheep. Alternatively, the B-sheep locus arrangement may be the result of a deletion of a four-gene set from the triplicated locus.      

Selective inhibition of prostaglandin biosynthesis by gold salts and phenylbutazone

Gold salts and phenylbutazone selectively inhibit the synthesis of PGF_2α and PGE₂ respectively. Lowered production of one prostaglandin species is accompanied by an increased production of the other. Selective inhibition by these drugs was observed in the presence of adrenaline, reduced glutathione and copper sulphate under conditions when most anti-inflammatory compounds inhibited PGE₂ and PGF_2α syntheses equally. It is postulated that selective inhibitors may have a different mode of action and beneficial effects may be related to the endogenous ratio of PGE to PGF required for normal function.     

Two silicone nontoxic fouling release coatings: Hydrosilation cured PDMS and CaCO3 filled,ethoxysiloxane cured RTV11

Two silicone coatings have been evaluated for barnacle adhesion. One coating is an unfilled hydrosilation cured polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) network, while the other is a room temperature vulcanized (RTV), filled, ethoxysiloxane cured PDMS elastomer, RTV11^?. The adhesion strength of one species of barnacle, Balanus eburneus, to the hydrosilation coatings is in the range of 0.37–0.60 kg cm^‐2 while the corresponding range for RTV11 is 0.64–0.90 kg cm^‐2. The easier release of B. eburneus from the hydrosilation cured network compared to RTV11 is discussed in relationship to differences in bulk and surface properties. Preliminary results suggest bulk modulus may be the most important parameter in determining barnacle adhesion strength. In light or mechanical property analysis, a re‐evaluation of surface properties and chemical stability is presented.     

Toads on Lava: Spatial Ecology and Habitat Use of Invasive Cane Toads (Rhinella marina) in Hawai’i

Most ecological research on cane toads (Rhinella marina) has focused on invasive populations in Australia, ignoring other areas where toads have been introduced. We radio-tracked and spool-tracked 40 toads, from four populations on the island of Hawai’i. Toads moved extensively at night (mean 116 m, from spool-tracking) but returned to the same or a nearby retreat-site each day (from radio-tracking, mean distance between successive retreat sites 11 m; 0 m for 70% of records). Males followed straighter paths during nocturnal movements than did females. Because moist sites are scarce on the highly porous lava substrate, Hawai’ian toads depend on anthropogenic disturbance for shelter (e.g. beneath buildings), foraging (e.g. suburban lawns, golf courses) and breeding (artificial ponds). Foraging sites are further concentrated by a scarcity of flying insects (negating artificial lights as prey-attractors). Habitat use of toads shifted with time (at night, toads selected areas with less bare ground, canopy, understory and leaf-litter), and differed between sexes (females foraged in areas of bare ground with dense understory vegetation). Cane toads in Hawai’i thrive in scattered moist patches within a severely arid matrix, despite a scarcity of flying insects, testifying to the species’ ability to exploit anthropogenic disturbance.     

The impact of invasive cane toads on native wildlife in southern Australia

Commonly, invaders have different impacts in different places. The spread of cane toads (Rhinella marina: Bufonidae) has been devastating for native fauna in tropical Australia, but the toads' impact remains unstudied in temperate‐zone Australia. We surveyed habitat characteristics and fauna in campgrounds along the central eastern coast of Australia, in eight sites that have been colonized by cane toads and another eight that have not. The presence of cane toads was associated with lower faunal abundance and species richness, and a difference in species composition. Populations of three species of large lizards (land mullets Bellatorias major, eastern water dragons Intellagama lesueurii, and lace monitors Varanus varius) and a snake (red‐bellied blacksnake Pseudechis porphyriacus) were lower (by 84 to 100%) in areas with toads. The scarcity of scavenging lace monitors in toad‐invaded areas translated into a 52% decrease in rates of carrion removal (based on camera traps at bait stations) and an increase (by 61%) in numbers of brush turkeys (Alectura lathami). The invasion of cane toads through temperate‐zone Australia appears to have reduced populations of at least four anurophagous predators, facilitated other taxa, and decreased rates of scavenging. Our data identify a paradox: The impacts of cane toads are at least as devastating in southern Australia as in the tropics, yet we know far more about toad invasion in the sparsely populated wilderness areas of tropical Australia than in the densely populated southeastern seaboard.     

The impact of fire regimes on populations of an endangered lizard in montane south‐eastern Australia

The Blue Mountains water skink (Eulamprus leuraensis; Scincidae) is restricted to less than 40 fragmented swamp sites, all within the Blue Mountains and Newnes Plateau areas of New South Wales, Australia. Climate change is expected to increase fire frequency in the area, potentially degrading habitat quality for this endangered reptile. We quantified lizard abundances in 12 swamps using standardized surveys, and constructed a Global Information System (GIS) database to determine fire‐histories for each swamp since 1967. The abundance of Blue Mountains water skinks was negatively correlated with fire frequency, but not with time since fire. Indirect impacts of fire (mediated via shifts in vegetation density, moisture levels, prey availability and post‐fire predation) may be more important than direct effects in these cool, moist habitats. Although lizards were less common in swamps close to urban areas, and less common in frequently burnt areas, viable populations of this endangered reptile still persist even in anthropogenically disturbed swamps and in swamps that have experienced up to four fires in 20 years. Future research could usefully extend these analyses to other swamps in the locality, and explore the broader impacts of fire regimes on the distinctive flora and fauna of this threatened ecological community.     

Analysis of mutations and bone marrow micronuclei in Big Blue rats fed leucomalachite green

Leucomalachite green (LMG) is the major metabolite of malachite green (MG), a triphenylmethane dye that has been used widely as an antifungal agent in the fish industry. Concern over MG and LMG is due to the potential for consumer exposure, suggestive evidence of tumor promotion in rodent liver, and suspicion of carcinogenicity based on structure-activity relationships. In order to evaluate the risks associated with exposure to LMG, female Big Blue rats were fed up to 543 ppm LMG; groups of these rats were killed after 4, 16, or 32 weeks of exposure and evaluated for genotoxicity. We previously reported that this treatment resulted in a dose-dependent induction of liver DNA adducts, and that the liver lacI mutant frequency (MF) was increased, but only in rats fed 543 ppm LMG for 16 weeks. In the present study, we report the results from lymphocyte Hprt mutant assays and bone marrow micronucleus assays performed on these same rats. In addition, we have determined the types of lacI mutations induced in the rats fed 543 ppm LMG for 16 weeks and the rats fed control diet. No significant increases in the frequency of micronuclei or Hprt mutants were observed for any of the doses or time points assayed. Molecular analysis of 80 liver lacI mutants from rats fed 543 ppm LMG for 16 weeks revealed that 21% (17/80) were clonal in origin and that most (55/63) of the independent mutations were base pair substitutions. The predominant type of mutation was G:C --> A:T transition (31/63) and the majority (68%) of these involved CpG sites. When corrected for clonality, the 16-week lacI mutation frequency (36 +/- 10) x 10(-6) in treated rats was not significantly different from the clonally corrected control frequency (17 +/- 9 x 10(-6); P = 0.06). Furthermore, the lacI mutational spectrum in treated rats was not significantly different from that found for control rats (P = 0.09). Taken together, these data indicate that the DNA adducts produced by LMG in female rats do not result in detectable levels of genotoxicity, and that the increase in lacI MF observed previously in the liver of treated rats may be due to the disproportionate expansion of spontaneous lacI mutations.     

Effects of an invasive anuran [the cane toad (Bufo marinus)] on the invertebrate fauna of a tropical Australian floodplain

The ways in which invasive organisms influence native ecosystems remain poorly understood. For example, feral cane toads Bufo marinus have spread extensively through tropical Australia over the last 70 years, but assessments of their ecological impact remain largely anecdotal. We conducted experimental trials to examine the effect of cane toad presence on invertebrate fauna in relatively small (2.4 × 1.2 m) outdoor enclosures on a floodplain near Darwin in the wet–dry tropics. Toads significantly reduced invertebrate abundance and species richness, but only to about the same degree as did an equivalent biomass of native anurans. Thus, if toads simply replaced native anurans, the offtake of invertebrates might not be substantially different from that due to native anurans before toad invasion. However, our field surveys suggest that toads cause a massive (fourfold) increase in total amphibian biomass. The end result is that cane toads act as a massive nutrient sink in the floodplain ecosystem because they consume vast numbers of invertebrates but (unlike native frogs) are largely invulnerable to predation by frog-eating predators.     

Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Contact Rates in Female White-Tailed Deer

Abstract: White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are important game mammals and potential reservoirs of diseases of domestic livestock; thus, diseases of deer are of great concern to wildlife managers. Contact, either direct or indirect, is necessary for disease transmission, but we know little about the ecological contexts that promote intrasexual contact among deer. Using pair-wise direct contacts estimated from Global Positioning System collar locations and joint utilization distributions (JUDs), we assessed habitats in which contacts occur to test whether direct contact rates among female white-tailed deer in different social groups differs among land-cover types. We also tested whether contact rates differed among seasons, lunar phases, and times of day. We obtained locations from 27 female deer for periods of 0.5–17 months during 2002–2006. We designated any simultaneous pair of locations for 2 deer <25 m apart as a direct contact. For each season, we used compositional analysis to compare land-cover types where 2 deer had contact to available land-cover weighted by their JUD. We used mixed-model logistic regression to test for effects of season, lunar phase, and time of day on contact rates. Contact rates during the gestation season were greater than expected from random use in forest and grassland cover, whereas contact rates during the fawning period were greater in agricultural fields than in other land-cover types. Contact rates were greatest during the rut and lowest in summer. Diel patterns of contact rates varied with season, and contact rates were elevated during full moon compared to other lunar periods. Both spatial and temporal analyses suggest that contact between female deer in different social groups occurs mainly during feeding, which highlights the potential impact of food distribution and habitat on contact rates among deer. By using methods to associate contacts and land-cover, we have created beneficial tools for more elaborate and detailed studies of disease transmission. Our methods can offer information necessary to develop spatially realistic models of disease transmission in deer.     

The establishment and eradication of an extra-limital population of invasive cane toads

Biological invasions expand not only as a continuous front, but also via translocation of small numbers of individuals to sites far from the main distribution. Detecting and eradicating such satellite populations is critical to curtailing the invasion. Cane toads (Rhinella marina) have been spreading through Australia since 1935, and in 2010 were reported in suburban Sydney, 500 km from the main invasion. The amphibians arrived as stowaways in trucks, and bred successfully in at least 3 years. Local residents noted the toads’ presence long before management authorities. As soon as they recognised the population’s establishment, however, the authorities surveyed locations of toads, assessed toad demography, and culled toads. Radio-tracking revealed the locations of spawning sites, which were then fenced to exclude access. As a result of reproduction, growth, and sex-specific culling (due to sex differences in distribution and catchability), successive years saw major changes in toad abundance, body-size distributions and sex ratios. Rates of infection of toads by parasites (lungworms) increased through time also. Adult male toads were collected primarily from the initial introduction site, whereas adult females were collected from a broader area. A total of > 900 post-metamorphic cane toads and > 5000 earlier life stages were collected, and those efforts (plus predation by rats and birds) exterminated the population (no sightings for the past 3 years). Cane toads will continue to be translocated to sites far outside their main invaded range, but the successful eradication effort suggests that well-integrated programs, with close collaboration among stakeholders, can prevent such populations from establishing.