Non‐pollinating cheater wasps benefit from seasonally poor performance of the mutualistic pollinating wasps at the northern limit of the range of Ficus microcarpa

1. Species interactions in tightly bound ecological mutualisms often feature highly specialised species' roles in which competitive exclusion may preclude multi‐species coexistence. Among the 800 fig (Ficus) species, it was originally considered that each was pollinated by their own wasp (Agaonidae). However, recent investigations show that this ‘one‐to‐one’ rule often breaks down, as fig species regularly host multiple agaonids but in ways suggesting that competitive processes still mediate biodiversity outcomes. 2. A phenological survey was conducted of the fig–fig wasp pair, Ficus microcarpa and its associated pollinating wasp, alongside its sister species, the cheating wasp, in Xishuangbanna, China. 3. Reproductive output underwent extreme seasonal variation. Seed and pollinator production fell markedly during cooler, drier months, although high levels of fig production continued. However, this resource was predominantly utilised by the cheater species, which offers no pollination services. Pollinators and cheaters rarely co‐occur, suggesting that temporal coexistence is constrained by competition for access to figs. 4. The overall findings indicate periodic rearrangements of mutualism dynamics, probably resulting from a strongly seasonal environment. Sympatric co‐occurrence may result from a window of opportunity for a functionally divergent agaonid, potentially due to constraints on the main pollinator in adapting to variable year‐round conditions that prevent competitive exclusion.     

Historical shrub–grass transitions in the northern Chihuahuan Desert: modeling the effects of shifting rainfall seasonality and event size over a landscape gradient

We use a spatially explicit landscape model to investigate the potential role of rainfall on shrub–grass transitions in the Jornada Basin of southern New Mexico during the past century. In long‐term simulations (1915–1998) along a 2700 m transect running from a dry lake bed to the foothills of a small mountain, we test two hypotheses: (i) that wetter winters and drier summers may have facilitated shrub encroachment in grasslands, and (ii) that increases in large precipitation events may have increased soil water recharge at deeper layers, thus favoring shrub establishment and growth. Our model simulations generally support the hypothesis that wetter winters and drier summers may have played a key role, but we are unable to reproduce the major shifts from grass‐ to shrub‐domination that occurred in this landscape during the early part of the 1900s; furthermore, the positive shrub response to wetter winters and drier summers was only realized subsequent to the drought of 1951–1956, which was a relatively short ‘window of opportunity’ for increased shrub establishment and growth. Our simulations also generally support the hypothesis that an increase in the number of large precipitation events may also have favored shrub establishment and growth, although these results are equivocal, depending upon what constitutes a ‘large’ event and the timing of such events. We found complex interactions among (i) the amount/seasonality of rainfall, (ii) its redistribution in the landscape via run‐on and runoff, (iii) the depth of the soil water recharge, and (iv) subsequent water availability for the growth and reproduction of shrubs vs. herbaceous plants at various landscape positions. Our results suggest that only a mechanistic understanding of these interactions, plus the role of domestic cattle grazing, will enable us to elucidate fully the relative importance of biotic vs. abiotic factors in vegetation dynamics in this semiarid landscape.     

Calcineurin B-like interacting protein kinase 31 confers resistance to sheath blight via modulation of ROS homeostasis in rice

Sheath blight (ShB) severely threatens rice cultivation and production; however, the molecular mechanism of rice defence against ShB remains unclear. Screening of transposon Ds insertion mutants identified that Calcineurin B-like protein-interacting protein kinase 31 (CIPK31) mutants were more susceptible to ShB, while CIPK31 overexpressors (OX) were less susceptible. Sequence analysis indicated two haplotypes of CIPK31: Hap_1, with significantly higher CIPK31 expression, was less sensitive to ShB than the Hap_2 lines. Further analyses showed that the NAF domain of CIPK31 interacted with the EF-hand motif of respiratory burst oxidase homologue (RBOHA) to inhibit RBOHA-induced H₂O₂ production, and RBOHA RNAi plants were more susceptible to ShB. These data suggested that the CIPK31-mediated increase in resistance is not associated with RBOHA. Interestingly, the study also found that CIPK31 interacted with catalase C (CatC); cipk31 mutants accumulated less H₂O₂ while CIPK31 OX accumulated more H₂O₂ compared to the wild-type control. Further analysis showed the interaction of the catalase domain of CatC with the NAF domain of CIPK31 by which CIPK31 inhibits CatC activity to accumulate more H₂O₂.     

毛乌素沙地草地种植管理咨询系统的开发

 本研究初步开发了一个用于毛乌素沙地草地种植管理咨询的专家系统ASSG。这个系统将当地生态系统管理专家们的经验知识和对土壤水分动态的理论研究成果结合起来以产生对于土地利用和种植的作物种类及品种的最优管理策略和最适的植被覆盖率。本系统利用3个层次的推理过程和结构化的知识库,通过咨询过程—步步地引导用户得到最优种植管理策略。在每—层次的推理中,本系统提供给用户多重选择,根据用户的意愿进行下一步的推理。这一推理的交互作用机制为用户获得适宜的咨询结果提供了最大的便利性。本系统的主体部分山Turbo Prolog语言完成,该语言是一种用于开发专家系统的描述性语言。基于土壤水分平衡原理的最优植被覆盖率模型由C语言实现,并应用多语言编程技术将之嵌入程序主体中。系统的样本运行结果表明本系统运行便利,并能产生合理的种植管理策略。     

松嫩草原碱化草地角碱蓬群落水分生态的研究

 本文采用自行设汁的蒸散仪和加拿大Campbe 11科学仪器公司生产的自动气象设备测定了松嫩草原碱化草地角碱蓬群落的蒸散、蒸腾量、太阳辐射及空气温度等环境因子。分析结果表明生长季的睛天条件下,角碱蓬群落的蒸散、蒸腾速率的日进程均为单峰曲线,且各月份间差异很大。群落蒸腾速率与太阳辐射强度、空气温度、相对湿度、风速等环境因子紧密相关,其中与太阳辐射强度呈极显著正相关关系。生长季降雨量和土壤含水量在角碱蓬群落水分循环与平衡的过程中起重要调节作用。1992年6～8月的生长季中,角碱蓬群落总的水分亏缺较少(6.3mm),但各月份间差异很大,其中6月份水分亏缺最高(30.1mm)。     

Adaptive Admixture of HLA Class I Allotypes Enhanced Genetically Determined Strength of Natural Killer Cells in East Asians

Human natural killer (NK) cells are essential for controlling infection, cancer, and fetal development. NK cell functions are modulated by interactions between polymorphic inhibitory killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) and polymorphic HLA-A, -B, and -C ligands expressed on tissue cells. All HLA-C alleles encode a KIR ligand and contribute to reproduction and immunity. In contrast, only some HLA-A and -B alleles encode KIR ligands and they focus on immunity. By high-resolution analysis of KIR and HLA-A, -B, and -C genes, we show that the Chinese Southern Han (CHS) are significantly enriched for interactions between inhibitory KIR and HLA-A and -B. This enrichment has had substantial input through population admixture with neighboring populations, who contributed HLA class I haplotypes expressing the KIR ligands B*46:01 and B*58:01, which subsequently rose to high frequency by natural selection. Consequently, over 80% of Southern Han HLA haplotypes encode more than one KIR ligand. Complementing the high number of KIR ligands, the CHS KIR locus combines a high frequency of genes expressing potent inhibitory KIR, with a low frequency of those expressing activating KIR. The Southern Han centromeric KIR region encodes strong, conserved, inhibitory HLA-C-specific receptors, and the telomeric region provides a high number and diversity of inhibitory HLA-A and -B-specific receptors. In all these characteristics, the CHS represent other East Asians, whose NK cell repertoires are thus enhanced in quantity, diversity, and effector strength, likely augmenting resistance to endemic viral infections.     

Elicitor hydrophobin Hyd1 interacts with Ubiquilin1‐like to induce maize systemic resistance

Trichoderma harzianum is a plant-beneficial fungus that secretes small cysteine-rich proteins that induce plant defense responses; however, the molecular mechanism involved in this induction is largely unknown.Here, we report that the class II hydrophobin Th Hyd1 acts as an elicitor of induced systemic resistance(ISR) in plants. Immunogold labeling and immunofluorescence revealed Th Hyd1 localized on maize(Zea mays) root cell plasma membranes. To identify host plant protein interactors of Hyd1, we screened a maize B73 root c DNA library. Th Hyd1 interacted directly with ubiquilin1-like(UBL). Furthermore, the N-terminal fragment of UBL was primarily responsible for binding with Hyd1 and the eight-cysteine amino acid of Hyd1 participated in the protein-protein interactions. Hyd1 from T. harzianum(Thhyd1) and ubl from maize were co-expressed in Arabidopsis thaliana, they synergistically promoted plant resistance against Botrytis cinerea. RNA-sequencing analysis of global gene expression in maize leaves 24 h after spraying with Curvularia lunata spore suspension showed that Thhyd1-induced systemic resistance was primarily associated with brassinosteroid signaling, likely mediated through BAK1. Jasmonate/ethylene(JA/ET)signaling was also involved to some extent in this response. Our results suggest that the Hyd1-UBL axis might play a key role in inducing systemic resistance as a result of Trichoderma-plant interactions.