A Method for Chronic Registration of Brain Cortical Electrical Activity in Rats

Journal of Evolutionary Biochemistry and Physiology - Electrocorticogram registration and analysis (electrocorticography, ECoG) is widely used in small-animal biomedical research. To date, a...     

Molecular genetic diversity of musk deer Moschus moschiferus L., 1758 (Ruminantia, Artiodactyla) from the northern subspecies group

Genetic diversity within the northern subspecies group of musk deer Moschus moschiferus L., 1758 was examined based on the mtDNA control region hypervariable fragment (300-bp) sequence polymorphism. Nucleotide diversity, constituting 2.6% for the whole sample (n = 34), varied in the range from 0.6 to 1.9% for individual subspecies. Maximum values of this index were observed for Siberian subspecies (M. m. moschiferus), which had the widest range. Genetic similarity between the haplotypes of the musk deer from the Far East (Russia) and Sakhalin Island, which grouped in one cluster in a phylogenetic tree, was demonstrated. The data obtained indicate that the distribution of musk deer along the territory of Russia occurred from Eastern Siberia to the Far East, and from there to the Sakhalin Island. A currently observed decrease of the musk deer population number along with the increased habitat fragmentation can result in a decrease of the total genetic diversity and in inbreeding depression in the local isolated groups.     

Influence of <Emphasis Type="Italic">TRPV4</Emphasis> gene polymorphisms on the development of osmotic airway hyperresponsiveness in patients with bronchial asthma

The effect of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of TRPV4 gene on the development of airway hyperresponsiveness (39.7% of cases) in response to the decrease in osmolarity under inspiration of distilled water aerosol was studies in 189 patients with uncontrolled bronchial asthma. rs6606743 SNP was found to significantly contribute to the development of osmotic airway hyperresponsiveness. Analysis of the dominant genetic model revealed substantial prevalence of AG + GG genotype frequency in the group of patients with asthma with osmotic hyperresponsiveness in comparison with the patients who had negative response to bronchoprovocation. In addition, carriers of GG or AG genotypes had significantly more profound decrease of lung function parameters in relation to A homozygous patients.     

An Insect Complex of Large Animal Carcasses and the Peculiarities of Their Decomposition in Northern European Russia

Entomological Review - An insect complex decomposing large animal carcasses was studied in two habitat types in northern European Russia (the Republic of Karelia), with the domestic pig Sus scrofa...     

Diversity of murine norovirus strains isolated from asymptomatic mice of different genetic backgrounds within a single U.S. research institute

Antibody prevalence studies in laboratory mice indicate that murine norovirus (MNV) infections are common, but the natural history of these viruses has not been fully established. This study examined the extent of genetic diversity of murine noroviruses isolated from healthy laboratory mice housed in multiple animal facilities within a single, large research institute- the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health (NIAID-NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, U.S. Ten distinct murine norovirus strains were isolated from various tissues and feces of asymptomatic wild type sentinel mice as well as asymptomatic immunodeficient (RAG 2(-/-)) mice. The NIH MNV isolates showed little cytopathic effect in permissive RAW264.7 cells in early passages, but all isolates examined could be adapted to efficient growth in cell culture by serial passage. The viruses, although closely related in genome sequence, were distinguishable from each other according to facility location, likely due to the introduction of new viruses into each facility from separate sources or vendors at different times. Our study indicates that the murine noroviruses are widespread in these animal facilities, despite rigorous guidelines for animal care and maintenance.     

Genetic structure of the protist Physarum albescens (Amoebozoa) revealed by multiple markers and genotyping by sequencing

Myxomycetes are terrestrial protists with many presumably cosmopolitan species dispersing via airborne spores. A truly cosmopolitan species would suffer from outbreeding depression hampering local adaptation, while locally adapted species with limited distribution would be at a higher risk of extinction in changing environments. Here, we investigate intraspecific genetic diversity and phylogeography of Physarum albescens over the entire Northern Hemisphere. We sequenced 324 field collections of fruit bodies for 1–3 genetic markers (SSU, EF1A, COI) and analysed 98 specimens with genotyping by sequencing. The structure of the three-gene phylogeny, SNP-based phylogeny, phylogenetic networks, and the observed recombination pattern of three independently inherited gene markers can be best explained by the presence of at least 18 reproductively isolated groups, which can be seen as cryptic species. In all intensively sampled regions and in many localities, members of several phylogroups coexisted. Some phylogroups were found to be abundant in only one region and completely absent in other well-studied regions, and thus may represent regional endemics. Our results demonstrate that the widely distributed myxomycete species Ph. albescens represents a complex of at least 18 cryptic species, and some of these seem to have a limited geographical distribution. In addition, the presence of groups of presumably clonal specimens suggests that sexual and asexual reproduction coexist in natural populations of myxomycetes.     

Taking a Call Is Facilitated by the Multisensory Processing of Smartphone Vibrations,Sounds, and Flashes

Many electronic devices that we use in our daily lives provide inputs that need to be processed and integrated by our senses. For instance, ringing, vibrating, and flashing indicate incoming calls and messages in smartphones. Whether the presentation of multiple smartphone stimuli simultaneously provides an advantage over the processing of the same stimuli presented in isolation has not yet been investigated. In this behavioral study we examined multisensory processing between visual (V), tactile (T), and auditory (A) stimuli produced by a smartphone. Unisensory V, T, and A stimuli as well as VA, AT, VT, and trisensory VAT stimuli were presented in random order. Participants responded to any stimulus appearance by touching the smartphone screen using the stimulated hand (Experiment 1), or the non-stimulated hand (Experiment 2). We examined violations of the race model to test whether shorter response times to multisensory stimuli exceed probability summations of unisensory stimuli. Significant violations of the race model, indicative of multisensory processing, were found for VA stimuli in both experiments and for VT stimuli in Experiment 1. Across participants, the strength of this effect was not associated with prior learning experience and daily use of smartphones. This indicates that this integration effect, similar to what has been previously reported for the integration of semantically meaningless stimuli, could involve bottom-up driven multisensory processes. Our study demonstrates for the first time that multisensory processing of smartphone stimuli facilitates taking a call. Thus, research on multisensory integration should be taken into consideration when designing electronic devices such as smartphones.