Substrate moisture,particle size and temperature preferences of trap‐building larvae of sympatric antlions and wormlions from the rainforest of Borneo

1. Larvae of antlions (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae) and wormlions (Diptera: Vermileonidae) display a convergently evolved sit‐and‐wait hunting strategy of building pitfall traps in sandy areas. This study investigated a sympatric population of antlions and wormlions in the lowland rainforest of Borneo for substrate moisture, particle size and temperature preferences. It was hypothesised that these animals would show different preferences regarding these microhabitat traits. 2. The results showed that antlions had a higher aversion to moisture compared with wormlions, but that wormlions had a higher preference for small‐particle sand. Furthermore, thermal preferences in antlions and wormlions were significantly different, with antlions choosing higher temperatures. 3. The detected differences between antlions and wormlions might contribute to their niche partitioning in the mixed Bornean population and thus facilitate coexistence of these animals. It is possible that the hotter and dryer microhabitat edges are preferred by antlions.     

Substrate particle size affects pit building decision and pit size in the antlion larvae Euroleon nostras (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae)

Abstract. The larvae of the antlion Euroleon nostras are pit-builders, constructing pitfall traps in loose sand. The number of pits and the pit diameter are recorded when larvae are kept in substrates with different particle sizes. The most convenient pit-building sand fractions are two fractions with fine sand (≤ 0.23 mm; 0.23–0.54 mm). The largest pits are constructed in sand with a particle size of 0.23–0.54 mm. In this sand fraction, larvae of all three instars most readily build pits. No pits are constructed in sand with a particle size greater than 1.54 mm. First- and second-instar larvae avoid building pits in substrates of particle size 1–1.54 mm, but third-instar larvae construct pits in this sand fraction. It is assumed that the antlion is capable of distinguishing between substrate types and this hypothesis is tested by giving larvae the choice of building a pit in one of four particle-size fractions. Larvae of all three instars prefer to build pits in the fraction with a particle size of 0.23–0.54 mm. Only third-instar larvae build pits in all four fractions, but only occasionally in the coarser fraction.     

Mathematical model of honeycomb construction

We developed a mathematical model and an algorithm for numerical treatment of a model of honeycomb construction in a beehive. The model contains essential features of the bee-bee and bee-wax interactions, and in a qualitative way captures the dynamics of parallel comb construction. The construction is represented by a set of dynamical coupled partial differential equations for the density of bees situated on the hive ceiling, and the quantity of wax distributed by the bees. A spectral algorithm is invented for treatment of these equations, based on a modified thin-sheet gain scheme and a fast Fourier transform technique.Work at City College supported in part by the Army Research Office and the Department of Energy     

Information analysis by the paper wasp,Polistes fuscatus,during nest construction (Hymenoptera,Vespidae)

Summary The building decision process of the paper wasp,Polistes fuscatus, was studied by 1) analyzing the search pattern of the wasps prior to the addition of pulp to different areas of the nest, 2) comparing the pulp addition needs of the cell chosen for lengthening to those of other cells in the nest, and 3) presenting the wasps with eight types of dichotomous building choices, which provided information about the relative influence of different building cues. Wasps conduct a hierarchical search prior to pulp addition, which means that they search the comb face and petiole disproportionately more often and more thoroughly than the comb back and sides. Once a particular nest area triggers closer scrutiny, comparisons are made with adjoining areas. The most needy location is then chosen based on nest cues. When lengthening a cell, the development of the brood and relative cell length have a strong influence on which cell is chosen at all times, while distance of the brood from the cell mouth becomes important during the later stages of brood development. The results indicate that there is no simple hierarchical weighting of cues. The decision process involves comparisons among multiple cues, which for the most part have an additive influence when variation in relative cue strength is considered.     

Homology modeling of histidine-containing phosphocarrier protein and eosinophil-derived neurotoxin: Construction of models and comparison with experiment

Homology modeling methods have been used to construct models of two proteins—the histidine-containing phosphocarrier protein (HPr) from Mycoplasma capricolum and human eosinophil-derived neurotoxin (EDN). Comparison of the models with the subsequently determined X-ray crystal structures indicates that the core regions of both proteins are reasonably well reproduced, although the template structures are closer to the X-ray structures in these regions—possible enhancements are discussed. The conformations of most of the side chains in the core of HPr are well reproduced in the modeled structure. As expected, the conformations of surface side chains in this protein differ significantly from the X-ray structure. The loop regions of EDN were incorrectly modeled—reasons for this and possible enhancements are discussed. © 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Constrained C-terminal hexapeptide neurotensin analogues containing a 3-oxoindolizidine skeleton

Summary In order to enforce different spatial orientations in the C-terminal hexapeptide of neurotensin (NT_8–13) and to gain information about the importance of the 10–11 peptide bond for binding to NT receptors, the Pro¹⁰-Tyr¹¹ fragment has been replaced with (2R,8S,8aR)-, (2S,8S,8aR)-, (2S,8S,8aS)-, (2S,8R,8aS)- and (2R,8R,8aS)-8-amino-2-benzyl-3-oxoindolizidine-2-carboxylic acid. Molecular dynamics calculations and energy minimization studies have shown that, contrarily to the Pro-Tyr moiety, none of these indolizidines display a tendency to adopt type I and III -turns, but those having (8S,8aR) or (8R,8aS) stereochemistry essentially adopt extended conformations and the (8S,8aS) stereoisomer prefers a nonstandard folding. The four diastereomeric NT_8–13 analogues incorporating (8S,8aR) or (8R,8aS) indolizidines displayed binding affinities for the brain NT receptor similar to that of [Ala¹¹]-NT_8–13 and only five- to ninefold lower than that of the corresponding analogue, [Phe¹¹]NT_8–13. Although this slight decrease could be attributed to differences in conformational behavior between these constrained NT_8–13 analogues and [Phe¹¹]NT_8–13 or NT_8–13, it is not clear whether the -turn around Pro¹⁰-AA¹¹ (AA=Phe, Tyr) is conserved upon receptor binding. An excessive restriction in the motions of the aromatic side chain, imposed by the highly steric constraint of the indolizidine moiety, emerges as an alternative explanation. The findings reported here demonstrate the possibility of replacing the Pro¹⁰-Tyr¹¹ dipeptide in NT_8–13 with a non-peptide residue without affecting considerably the affinity for brain NT receptors.     

Iris: Interactive all‐in‐one graphical validation of 3D protein model iterations

Iris validation is a Python package created to represent comprehensive per‐residue validation metrics for entire protein chains in a compact, readable and interactive view. These metrics can either be calculated by Iris, or by a third‐party program such as MolProbity. We show that those parts of a protein model requiring attention may generate ripples across the metrics on the diagram, immediately catching the modeler's attention. Iris can run as a standalone tool, or be plugged into existing structural biology software to display per‐chain model quality at a glance, with a particular emphasis on evaluating incremental changes resulting from the iterative nature of model building and refinement. Finally, the integration of Iris into the CCP4i2 graphical user interface is provided as a showcase of its pluggable design.