Identification and characterization of PiORP1, a Petunia oxysterol-binding-protein related protein involved in receptor-kinase mediated signaling in pollen, and analysis of the ORP gene family in Arabidopsis

Oxysterol-binding proteins (OSBPs) and oxysterol-binding-protein related proteins (ORPs) are encoded by most eukaryotic genomes examined to date; however, they have not yet been characterized in plants. Here we report the identification and characterization of PiORP1, an ORP of Petunia inflata that interacts with the cytoplasmic kinase domain of a receptor-like kinase, named PRK1, of P. inflata. PiORP1 is phosphorylated by PRK1 in vitro and therefore may be involved in PRK1 signaling during pollen development and growth. RNA gel blot analysis showed that PiORP1 and PRK1 had very similar expression patterns in developing pollen, mature pollen and pollen tubes. GFP fusion proteins of PiORP1 localized in the plasma membrane of pollen tubes at distinct foci and its PH domain alone was sufficient to mediate this localization. The sequence for the oxysterol-binding domain of PiORP1 was used to search the genome of Arabidopsis; 12 ORPs were identified and phylogenetic analysis revealed that they fell into two distinct clades, consistent with the ORPs of other eukaryotes. RT-PCR analysis showed that all 12 Arabidopsis ORPs were expressed; 10 were expressed in most of the tissues examined under normal growth conditions, but only three were expressed in pollen. Electronic supplementary material Electronic supplementary material is available for this article at and accessible for authorised users. GenBank accession number for PiORP1: DQ241801     

Linguistic Anthropology in 2008: An Election-Cycle Guide

ABSTRACT   Loosely following the structure of the U.S. election cycle, I identify some of the more important institutions and events that have recently served as venues for field-building scholarly practices and processes in linguistic anthropology. I examine various trends and concerns animating recent publications on language and social life. I discuss the ongoing impact on the field of recent major works that attempt to codify methodological and theoretical approaches to the intersection of language and society. I also consider some of linguistic anthropology's emergent ventures, including new collaborative projects and new proposals for interdisciplinary work. Finally, I discuss some of the political implications of academic specialization, disciplinary boundaries, and impending "generational shift," both in the subdiscipline and the academy generally. I close by raising questions about future directions and possibilities for research in linguistic anthropology and other interdisciplinary enterprises. [Keywords: linguistic anthropology, interdisciplinarity, linguistic ideology, semiotic practices, linguistic variation]     

The annual Day of the Dead song contest: musical‐linguistic ideology and practice,piratability, and the challenge of scale

Building on research theorizing scale, this article proposes augmentations to existing frameworks that will help illuminate how localities are linked to ‘stranger collectives’ like nations, ethnicities, and global religious ‘communities’. In this case of ethnic revival from Mexico's Sierra Mazateca, people use new vernacular literacy practices tied to local musical performances as a way of ‘customizing’ modular forms deployed by national and global institutions to manage indigenous difference. People ‘re‐imagine’ locality through a localized indigenous literacy that takes templates provided by the Mexican state and the Catholic Church and places them in productive tension with local context: musical properties of the indigenous language Mazatec, locally valued performance practices, and local musical‐linguistic ideologies. While this revival movement draws on immanently modular forms, once locally embedded they become ‘unpiratable’, and constitute a new resource for inscribing local belonging. This case suggests the importance of considering linguistic and musical aspects of social context often taken for granted in anthropological investigations of scale.     

Novel Insights from Live-imaging in Shoot Meristem Development

Microscopic imaging of fluorescent reporters for key meristem regulators in live tissues is emerging as a powerful technique, enabling researchers to observe dynamic spatial and temporal distribution of hormonal and developmental regulators in living cells. Aided by time-lapse microphotography, new types of imaging acquisition and analysis software, and computational modeling, we are gaining significant insights into shoot apical meristem (SAM) behavior and function. This review is focused on summarizing recent advances in the understanding of SAM organization, development, and behavior derived from live-imaging techniques. This includes the revelation of mechanical forces in microtubule-controlled anisotropic growth, the role of the CLV-WUS network in the specification of peripheral zone and central zone cells, the multiple feedback loops involving cytokinin in controlling WUS expression, auxin dynamics in determining the position of new primordia, and, finally, sequence of regulatory events leading to de novo assembly of shoots from callus in culture. Future studies toward formulating "digital SAM" that incorporates multi-dimensional data ranging from images of SAM morphogenesis to a genome-scale expression map of SAM will greatly enhance our ability to understand, predict, and manipulate SAM, containing the stem cells that give rise to all above ground parts of a plant.     

Effect of fruit host on wing morphology in Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae): A first view using geometric morphometrics

The invasive alien fruit pest Drosophila suzukii, (Matsumura 1931) causes economic loss in soft‐skinned fruit production across Europe. After its first detection in 2008, the species has successfully expanded to a wide geographic area and invaded new host plants in a relatively short period of time. The aim of the present study was to analyze the connection between food preferences as host specialization and the morphology of D. suzukii. Population morphological variation in wings was investigated in two different host fruits (grape and strawberry) in which economic damage has been recorded. The geometric morphometric results revealed two noticeable wing shape morphotypes in D. suzukii (i.e. vein configuration) between the grape and strawberry fruits. Flies reared in grapes had wider wings, whereas flies grown in strawberries had more narrow wings. These differences in morphotype could be explained by the effects of wing aerodynamics, which affect the strength of the wings in flight. This, in turn, can lead to better dispersion within the associated fruit host. These results confirm that this extremely invasive species, found worldwide, is successful at spreading in part because of its potential to adapt rapidly under different rearing conditions. Therefore, adaptive variations in the wing shape of D. suzukii can be used to differentiate populations based on food preference (e.g. soft fruits) and can serve as an additional tool for detecting different bioecological types of D. suzukii.