bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Leukotrienes modulate cytokine release from dendritic cells
Authors: Jozefowski Szczepan , Biedroń Rafał , Bobek Malgorzata , Marcinkiewicz Janusz
Published: September 2005

Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) and cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLTs) are known as potent mediators of inflammation, whereas their role in the regulation of adaptive immunity remains poorly characterized. Dendritic cells (DCs) are specialized antigen‐presenting cells, uniquely capable to initiate primary immune responses. We have found that zymosan, but not lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulates murine bone marrow‐derived dendritic cells (BM‐DCs) to produce large amounts of CysLTs and LTB4 from endogenous substrates. A selective inhibitor of leukotriene synthesis MK886 as well as an antagonist of the high affinity LTB4 receptor (BLT1) U‐75302 slightly inhibited zymosan‐, but not LPS‐stimulated interleukin (IL)‐10 release from BM‐DCs. In contrast, U‐75302 increased zymosan‐stimulated release of IL‐12 p40 by ∼23%. Pre‐treatment with transforming growth factor‐β1 enhanced both stimulated leukotriene synthesis and the inhibitory effect of U‐75302 and MK886 on IL‐10 release from DCs. Consistent with the effects of leukotriene antagonists, exogenous LTB4 enhanced LPS‐stimulated IL‐10 release by ∼39% and inhibited IL‐12 p40 release by ∼22%. Both effects were mediated by the BLT1 receptor. Ligands of the high affinity CysLTs receptor (CysLT1), MK‐571 and LTD4 had little or no effect on cytokine release. Agonists of the nuclear LTB4 receptor peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐α, 8(S)‐hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid and 5,8,11,14‐eicosatetraynoic acid, inhibited release of both IL‐12 p40 and IL‐10. Our results indicate that both autocrine and paracrine leukotrienes may modulate cytokine release from DCs, in a manner that is consistent with previously reported T helper 2‐polarizing effects of leukotrienes.
Imaging spectroscopy as a tool for mapping Ellenberg indicator values
Authors: SCHMIDTLEIN SEBASTIAN
Published: September 2005

Maps of averaged plant indicator values can supply spatially explicit information about environmental gradients and are therefore tools of broad relevance in applied ecology. However, field‐based mapping demands extensive sampling and thus most assessments are at the level of plots rather than covering a whole area. To address these limitations, this study evaluated the potential of remote sensing to produce Ellenberg indicator maps.

Ellenberg indicator values for water supply, soil pH and soil fertility were derived using species data from vegetation plots in montane rangeland. The extrapolation of these data was accomplished by partial least‐squares (PLS) regression between indicator values and plot reflectance values extracted from airborne ‘hyperspectral’ imagery. Applying the regression to the imagery resulted in three largely accurate maps giving the spatial distribution of certain soil attributes as indicated by Ellenberg values (R2 = 0·58–0·68 in cross‐validation).

Synthesis and applications. Mean indicator values express floristic composition as a single, comparable, continuous and mappable variable. This makes them an appealing tool for vegetation monitoring. Imaging spectroscopy provides fast access to spatially contiguous and explicit information about soil conditions as indicated by plants. The technique allows the investigation to advance beyond plots and supplies indicator maps at a stand‐level resolution. The mapped gradients of environmental attributes are of direct relevance to plant growth. The maps depict life‐span growth conditions rather than ‘snap‐shots’ given by measurements that are often limited in space and time, cost intensive and difficult to implement.
An empirical test of source–sink dynamics induced by hunting
Authors: NOVARO ANDRÉS J. , FUNES MARTÍN C. , WALKER R. SUSAN
Published: September 2005

Under the source–sink model, persistence of populations in habitat sinks, where deaths outnumber births, depends on dispersal from high‐quality habitat sources, where births outnumber deaths. The persistence of the regional population depends on the proportion of sink relative to source habitat.

Hunting that occurs in some parts of the landscape and not in others can create patches where deaths outnumber births. We tested whether hunting of culpeo foxes Pseudalopex culpaeus, which is patchily distributed in relatively homogeneous habitat in Argentine Patagonia, induces source–sink dynamics.

On Patagonian sheep ranches, culpeos are hunted for fur and to protect sheep, and on cattle ranches hunting is usually banned. We monitored culpeo densities using scent stations and estimated survival, fecundity and dispersal by radio‐tracking 44 culpeos and analysing carcasses collected from hunters on two cattle and four sheep ranches between 1989 and 1997.

Survival of juvenile culpeos was lower on hunted than unhunted ranches, mainly as a result of hunting mortality. Reproduction could not compensate for high mortality on hunted ranches. Interruption of hunting led to an increase in juvenile survival, indicating that hunting and natural mortality were not compensatory. We concluded that sheep ranches were sinks because of the high mortality and that sink populations may be maintained by dispersal from cattle ranches.

We used a simulation model to assess implications of changes in the proportion of source and sink areas on population dynamics. The percentage of land on cattle ranches in the study area was 37%. Current hunting pressure on culpeos would not be sustainable if that percentage fell below 30%.

Synthesis and applications. Source–sink dynamics may occur in landscapes where hunting is intense and spatially heterogeneous. Wildlife management traditionally monitors demographic rates to evaluate the sustainability of hunting, but our results suggest that the size and spatial arrangement of areas with and without hunting should be considered as well. In regions where enforcement and monitoring are limited, securing large and regularly distributed source areas for hunted species may be more effective than trying to regulate harvest size.
Influence of agricultural management, sward structure and food resources on grassland field use by birds in lowland England
Authors: ATKINSON P. W. , FULLER R. J. , VICKERY J. A. , CONWAY G. J. , TALLOWIN J. R. B. , SMITH R. E. N. , HAYSOM K. A. , INGS T. C. , ASTERAKI E. J. , BROWN V. K.
Published: September 2005

Agricultural management of grassland in lowland Britain has changed fundamentally in the last 50 years, resulting in spatial and structural uniformity within the pastoral landscape. The full extent to which these changes may have reduced the suitability of grassland as foraging habitat for birds is unknown. This study investigated the mechanisms by which these changes have impacted on birds and their food supplies.

We quantified field use by birds in summer and winter in two grassland areas of lowland England (Devon and Buckinghamshire) over 3 years, relating bird occurrence to the management, sward structure and seed and invertebrate food resources of individual fields. Management intensity was defined in terms of annual nitrogen input.

There was no consistent effect of management intensity on total seed head production, although those of grasses generally increased with inputs while forbs were rare throughout.

Relationships between management intensity and abundance of soil and epigeal invertebrates were complex. Soil beetle larvae were consistently lower in abundance, and surface‐active beetle larvae counts consistently higher, in intensively managed fields. Foliar invertebrates showed more consistent negatively relationships with management intensity.

Most bird species occurred at low densities. There were consistent relationships across regions and years between the occurrence of birds and measures of field management. In winter, there was a tendency towards higher occupancy of intensively managed fields by species feeding on soil invertebrates. In summer, there were few such relationships, although many species avoided fields with tall swards.

Use of fields by birds was generally not related to measures of seed or invertebrate food abundance. While granivorous species were perhaps too rare to detect a relationship, in insectivores the strong negative relationships (in summer) with sward height suggested that access to food may be the critical factor.

While it appears that intensification of grassland management has been deleterious to the summer food resources of insectivorous birds that use insects living within the grass sward, intensification may have been beneficial to several species in winter through the enhancement of soil invertebrates.

Synthesis and applications. We suggest that attempts to restore habitat quality for birds in grassland landscapes need to create a range of management intensities and sward structures at the field and farm scales. A greater understanding of methods to enhance prey accessibility, as well as abundance, for insectivorous birds is required.
Adapting to climate change: is there scope for ecological management in the face of a global threat?
Authors: HULME PHILIP E.
Published: September 2005

Climate change is recognized as a major threat to the survival of species and integrity of ecosystems world‐wide. Although considerable research has focused on climate impacts, relatively little work to date has been conducted on the practical application of strategies for adapting to climate change. Adaptation strategies should aim to increase the flexibility in management of vulnerable ecosystems, enhance the inherent adaptability of species and ecosystem processes, and reduce trends in environmental and social pressures that increase vulnerability to climate variability.

Knowledge of the specific attributes of climate change likely to impact on species or habitats is central to any adaptive management strategy. Temperature is not the only climate variable likely to change as a result of anthropogenic increases in greenhouse gases. In some regions changes in precipitation, relative humidity, radiation, wind speed and/or potential evapotranspiration may be more marked than for temperature.

Uncertainty exists in the response of species and ecosystems to a given climate scenario. While climate will have a direct impact on the performance of many species, for others impacts will be indirect and result from changes in the spatiotemporal availability of natural resources. In addition, mutualistic and antagonistic interactions among species will mediate both the indirect and direct effects of climate change.

Approaches to predict species’ responses to climate change have tended to address either changes in abundance with time or in spatial distribution. While correlative models may provide a good indication of climate change impacts on abundance, greater understanding is generated by models incorporating aspects of life history, intra‐ and interspecific competition and predation. Models are especially sensitive to the uncertainty inherent in future climate predictions, the complexity of species’ interactions and the difficulties in parameterizing dispersal functions. Model outputs that have not been appropriately validated with real data should be treated with caution.

Synthesis and applications. While climate impacts may be severe, they are often exacerbated by current management practices, such as the construction of sea defences, flood management and fire exclusion. In many cases adaptation approaches geared to safeguard economic interests run contrary to options for biodiversity conservation. Increased environmental variability implies lower sustainable harvest rates and increased risks of population collapse. Climate change may significantly reduce habitat suitability and may threaten species with limited dispersal ability. In these cases, well‐planned species translocations may prove a better option than management attempts to increase landscape connectivity. Mathematical models, long‐term population studies, natural experiments and the exploitation of natural environmental gradients provide a sound basis for further understanding the consequences of climate change.
An astronomical pattern‐matching algorithm for computer‐aided identification of whale sharks Rhincodon typus
Authors: ARZOUMANIAN Z. , HOLMBERG J. , NORMAN B.
Published: September 2005

The formulation of conservation policy relies heavily on demographic, biological and ecological knowledge that is often elusive for threatened species. Essential estimates of abundance, survival and life‐history parameters are accessible through mark and recapture studies given a sufficiently large sample. Photographic identification of individuals is an established mark and recapture technique, but its full potential has rarely been exploited because of the unmanageable task of making visual identifications in large data sets.

We describe a novel technique for identifying individual whale sharks Rhincodon typus through numerical pattern matching of their natural surface ‘spot’ colourations. Together with scarring and other markers, spot patterns captured in photographs of whale shark flanks have been used, in the past, to make identifications by eye. We have automated this process by adapting a computer algorithm originally developed in astronomy for the comparison of star patterns in images of the night sky.

In tests using a set of previously identified shark images, our method correctly matched pairs exhibiting the same pattern in more than 90% of cases. From a larger library of previously unidentified images, it has to date produced more than 100 new matches. Our technique is robust in that the incidence of false positives is low, while failure to match images of the same shark is predominantly attributable to foreshortening in photographs obtained at oblique angles of more than 30°.

We describe our implementation of the pattern‐matching algorithm, estimates of its efficacy, its incorporation into the new ECOCEAN Whale Shark Photo‐identification Library, and prospects for its further refinement. We also comment on the biological and conservation implications of the capability of identifying individual sharks across wide geographical and temporal spans.

Synthesis and applications. An automated photo‐identification technique has been developed that allows for efficient ‘virtual tagging’ of spotted animals. The pattern‐matching software has been implemented within a Web‐based library created for the management of generic encounter photographs and derived data. The combined capabilities have demonstrated the reliability of whale shark spot patterns for long‐term identifications, and promise new ecological insights. Extension of the technique to other species is anticipated, with attendant benefits to management and conservation through improved understanding of life histories, population trends and migration routes, as well as ecological factors such as exploitation impact and the effectiveness of wildlife reserves.
Spatial and temporal patterns of species richness in a riparian landscape
Authors: Renöfält Birgitta Malm , Nilsson Christer , Jansson Roland
Published: September 2005

Aim  To test for control of vascular plant species richness in the riparian corridor by exploring three contrasting (although not mutually exclusive) hypotheses: (1) longitudinal patterns in riparian plant species richness are governed by local, river‐related processes independent of the regional species richness, (2) riparian plant species richness is controlled by dispersal along the river (longitudinal control), and (3) the variation in riparian plant species richness mirrors variation in regional richness (lateral control).

Location  The riparian zones of the free‐flowing Vindel River and its surrounding river valley, northern Sweden.

Methods  We used data from three surveys, undertaken at 10‐year intervals, of riparian reaches (200‐m stretches of riverbank) spanning the entire river. In addition, we surveyed species richness of vascular plants in the uplands adjacent to the river in 3.75‐km2 large plots along the same regional gradient. We explored the relationship between riparian and upland flora, and various environmental variables. We also evaluated temporal variation in downstream patterns of the riparian flora.

Results  Our results suggest that local species richness in boreal rivers is mainly a result of local, river‐related processes and dispersal along the corridor. The strongest correlation between species richness and the environment was a negative one between species number and soil pH, but pH varied within a narrow range. We did not find evidence for a correlation between species richness on regional and local scales. We found that the local patterns of species richness for naturally occurring vascular plants were temporally variable, probably in response to large‐scale disturbance caused by extreme floods. Most previous studies have found a unimodal pattern of species richness with peaks in the middle reaches of a river. In contrast, on two of three occasions corresponding to major flooding events, we found that the distribution of species richness of naturally occurring vascular plants resembled that of regional diversity: a monotonic decrease from headwater to coast. We also found high floristic similarity between the riparian corridor and the surrounding landscape.

Main conclusions  These results suggest that local processes control patterns of riparian species richness, but that species composition is also highly dependent on the regional species pool. We argue that inter‐annual variation in flood disturbance is probably the most important factor producing temporal variability of longitudinal species richness patterns.
Spatial patterns of tree recruitment in a relict population ofPinus uncinata: forest expansion through stratified diffusion
Authors: Julio Camarero J. , Gutiérrez Emilia , Fortin Marie‐Josée , Ribbens Eric
Published: September 2005

Aim To infer future changes in the distribution of isolated relict tree populations at the limit of a species’ geographical range, a deep understanding of the regeneration niche and the spatial pattern of tree recruitment is needed.

Location A relictPinus uncinatapopulation located at the south‐western limit of distribution of the species in the Iberian System of north‐eastern Spain.

Methods Pinus uncinataindividuals were mapped within a 50 × 40‐m plot, and their size, age and reproductive status were estimated. Data on seed dispersal were obtained from a seed‐release experiment. The regeneration niche of the species was assessed based on the associations of seedling density with substrate and understorey cover. The spatial pattern of seedlings was described using point‐pattern (Ripley'sK) and surface‐pattern (correlograms, Moran'sI) analyses. Statistical and inverse modelling were used to characterize seedling clustering.

Results Pine seedlings appeared aggregated in 6‐m patches. Inverse modelling estimated a longer mean dispersal distance (27 m), which corresponded to the size of a large cluster along the north to north‐eastward direction paralleled by an eastward trend of increasing seedling age. The two spatial scales of recruitment were related to two dispersal processes. The small‐scale clustering of seedlings was due to local seed dispersal in open areas near the edge ofCalluna vulgarismats: the regeneration niche. The long‐range expansion might be caused by less frequent medium‐distance dispersal events due to the dominant north‐westerly winds.

Main conclusions To understand future range shifts of marginal tree populations, data on seed dispersal, regeneration niche and spatial pattern of recruitment at local scales should be obtained. The monitoring of understorey communities should be a priority in order to predict correctly shifts in tree species range in response to global warming.
Historical biogeography of Australian Rhamnaceae, tribe Pomaderreae
Authors: Ladiges Pauline Y. , Kellermann Jürgen , Nelson Gareth , Humphries Christopher J. , Udovicic Frank
Published: September 2005

Aim To discover the pattern of relationships of areas of endemism for Australian genera in the plant family Rhamnaceae tribe Pomaderreae for comparison with other taxa and interpretation of biogeographical history.

Location Australian mainland, Tasmania and New Zealand.

Methods A molecular phylogeny and geographic distribution of species within four clades of Pomaderreae are used as a basis for recognition of areas of endemism and analysis of area relationships using paralogy‐free subtrees. The taxon phylogeny is the strict consensus tree from a parsimony analysis of 54 taxa, in four clades, and sequence data for the internal transcribed spacer regions of ribosomal DNA (ITS1‐5.8S‐ITS2) and the plastid DNA regiontrnL‐F.

Results The biogeographical analysis identified five subtrees, which, after parsimony analysis, resulted in a minimal tree with 100% consistency and seven resolved nodes. Three sets of area relationships were identified: the areas of Arnhem and Kimberley in tropical north Australia are related based on the phylogeny of taxa withinCryptandra; the moister South‐west of Western Australia, its sister area the coastal Geraldton Sandplains, the semi‐arid Interzone region and arid Western Desert are related, based on taxa withinCryptandra,Spyridium,TrymaliumandPomaderris; and the eastern regions of Queensland, McPherson‐Macleay, south‐eastern New South Wales (NSW), Victoria, southern Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand are related based onCryptandra,PomaderrisandSpyridium. Tasmania and NSW are related based entirely onCryptandra, but the position of New Zealand relative to the other south‐eastern Australian regions is unresolved.

Main conclusions The method of paralogy‐free subtrees identified a general pattern of geographic area relationships based on Australian Pomaderreae. The widespread distribution of clades, the high level of endemicity and the age of fossils for the family, suggest that the Pomaderreae are an old group among the Australian flora. Their biogeographical history may date to the early Palaeogene with subsequent changes through to the Pleistocene.
Historical biogeography of two alpine butterflies in the Rocky Mountains: broad‐scale concordance and local‐scale discordance
Authors: DeChaine Eric G. , Martin Andrew P.
Published: September 2005

Aim We inferred the phylogeography of the alpine butterflyColias meadiiEdwards (Pieridae) and compared its genetic structure with that of another high elevation, co‐distributed butterfly,Parnassius smintheusDoubleday (Papilionidae), to test if the two Rocky Mountain butterflies responded similarly to the palaeoclimatic cycles of the Quaternary.

Location Specimens were collected from 18 alpine sites in the Rocky Mountains of North America, from southern Colorado to northern Montana.

Methods We sequenced 867 and 789 nucleotides of cytochrome oxidase I from an average of 19 and 20 individuals forC. meadiiandP. smintheus, respectively, from each of the same 18 localities. From the sequence data, we calculated measures of genetic diversity within each population (H,θ), genetic divergence among populations (FST), and tested for geographic structure through an analysis of molecular variance (amova). Population estimates were compared against latitude and between species using a variety of statistical tests. Furthermore, nested clade analysis was implemented to infer historic events underlying the geographic distribution of genetic variation in each species. Then, we compared the number of inferred population events between species using a nonparametric Spearman's rank correlation test. Finally, we ran coalescent simulations on each species’ genealogy to test whether the two species of Lepidoptera fit the same model of population divergence.

Results Our analyses revealed that: (1) measures of within‐population diversity were not correlated with latitude for either species, (2) within‐site diversity was not correlated between species, (3) within a species, nearly all populations were genetically isolated, (4) both species exhibited significant and nearly identical partitioning of genetic variation at all hierarchical levels of theamova, including a strong break between populations across the Wyoming Basin, (5) both species experienced similar cycles of expansion and contraction, although fewer were inferred forC. meadii, and (6) data from both species fit a model of three refugia diverging during the Pleistocene.

Main conclusions While our findings supported a shared response of the two butterfly species to historic climate change across coarse spatial scales, a common pattern was not evident at finer spatial and temporal scales. The shared demographic history of the two species is consistent with an expanding–contracting archipelago model, suggesting that populations persisted across the geographic range throughout the climate cycles, experiencing isolation on ‘sky islands’ during interglacial periods and becoming connected as they migrated down‐slope during cool, wet climates.
Spider diversity in cereal fields: comparing factors at local, landscape and regional scales
Authors: Clough Yann , Kruess Andreas , Kleijn David , Tscharntke Teja
Published: September 2005

Aim  Factors acting at various scales may affect biodiversity, demanding analyses at multiple spatial scales in order to understand how community richness is determined. Here, we adopted a hierarchical approach to test the contribution of region, landscape heterogeneity, local management (organic vs. conventional) and location within field (edge vs. centre) to the species richness and abundance of spiders in cereals.

Location  Three regions of western and central Germany: Leine Bergland, Soester Boerde, and Lahn‐Dill Bergland.

Methods  Forty‐two paired organic and conventional winter wheat fields were compared. Field pairs were located in areas ranging from structurally simple to structurally complex landscapes. In May and June 2003, spiders were sampled using pitfall traps. Linear mixed models were used to determine the relationship of spider diversity and abundance with regional spatial factors and landscape heterogeneity within a 500‐m radius, as well as with local management and within‐field location.

Results  Within‐field location of the traps and landscape heterogeneity were the best predictors of species richness: more species were found in field edges and in heterogeneous landscapes. Region and local management had no effect on species richness. Activity density was higher in field edges and differed among regions.

Main conclusions  The diversity of farmland spiders was influenced by differences at two of the spatial scales (edge vs. centre, simple vs. complex landscapes), but not at the two others (field management, region), emphasizing the importance of analyses at a variety of spatial scales for an adequate explanation of patterns in biodiversity. Our study suggests that promoting heterogeneity in land use at landscape scales is one of the keys to promoting spider diversity in agroecosystems.
Serum uric acid levels and risk for acute ischaemic nonembolic stroke in elderly subjects
Authors: MILIONIS H. J. , KALANTZI K. J. , GOUDEVENOS J. A. , SEFERIADIS K. , MIKHAILIDIS D. P. , ELISAF M. S.
Published: September 2005

Background.  Elevated serum uric acid (SUA) levels have been proposed as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality. Recent evidence suggests that treatments with a hypouricaemic action have a favourable effect on CV event prevention.

Objectives.  The association between SUA and acute ischaemic/nonembolic stroke was assessed in a population‐based case–control study in the prefecture of Ioannina, Epirus, Greece.

Subjects and methods.  A total of 163 patients aged older than 70 years (88 men and 75 women) admitted due to a first‐ever‐in‐a‐lifetime acute ischaemic/nonembolic stroke and 166 volunteers (87 men and 79 women) without a history of CV disease were included. The association between SUA and stroke was determined by multivariate logistic regression modelling after adjusting for potential confounding factors.

Results.  Stroke patients showed higher concentrations of SUA compared with controls (333.1 ± 101.1 μmol L−1 vs. 285.5 ± 83.3 μmol L−1; P < 0.001). In univariate analysis elevated SUA levels were associated with increased risk for ischaemic stroke [odds ratio (OR) 1.42, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.21–1.64, P < 0.0001]. Compared to patients with SUA levels in the lowest quintile, those within the highest quintile had a 2.8‐time increase in the odds of suffering an ischaemic stroke (OR 2.81, 95% CI 1.67–4.73, P < 0.001). This association was strong even after controlling for gender, age, body mass index, the presence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus, drug treatment and lipids (OR 2.90, 95% CI 1.59–5.30, P = 0.001).

Conclusion.  Elevated SUA is associated with an increased risk for acute ischaemic/nonembolic stroke in a strictly defined population of elderly individuals independently of concurrent metabolic derangements. This association may need to be considered when treating the elderly.
The growth rate of Mycobacterium smegmatis depends on sufficient porin‐mediated influx of nutrients
Authors: Stephan Joachim , Bender Jennifer , Wolschendorf Frank , Hoffmann Christian , Roth Eva , Mailänder Claudia , Engelhardt Harald , Niederweis Michael
Published: September 2005

Mycobacteria have a unique outer membrane (OM) that is thicker than any other known biological membrane. Nutrients cross this permeability barrier by diffusion through porins. MspA is the major porin of Mycobacterium smegmatis. In this study we showed that three paralogues of MspA, namely MspB, MspC and MspD are also porins. However, only the mspA and mspC genes were expressed in the wild‐type strain. None of the single deletion mutants displayed a significant OM permeability defect except for the mspA mutant. Deletion of the mspA gene caused activation of transcription of mspB and/or mspD in three independent strains by unknown chromosomal mutations. It is concluded that mspB and mspD provide backup porins for M. smegmatis. This also indicated that a minimal porin‐mediated OM permeability is essential for survival of M. smegmatis. Electron microscopy in combination with quantitative image analysis of protein gels revealed that the number of pores per cell dropped from 2400 to 800 and 150 for the ΔmspA and ΔmspA ΔmspC mutant (ML10) respectively. The very low number of pores correlated well with the at least 20‐fold lower channel activity of detergent extracts of the ML10 strain and its 15‐ and 75‐fold lower permeability to nutrient molecules such as serine and glucose respectively. The amount of Msp porin and the OM permeability of the triple porin mutant lacking mspA, mspC and mspD was not altered. The growth rate of M. smegmatis dropped drastically with its porin‐mediated OM permeability in contrast to porin mutants of Escherichia coli. These results show that porin‐mediated influx of nutrients is a major determinant of the growth rate of M. smegmatis.
Beyond fecundity and longevity: trade‐offs between reproduction and survival mediated by behavioural responses of the seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus
Authors: Huang Chi‐Chun , Yang Rou‐Ling , Lee How‐Jing , Horng Shwu‐Bin
Published: September 2005

Abstract.  Many studies of life‐history traits have failed to find trade‐offs where they are predicted by theory. A hypothesis that explains the lack of trade‐offs between fecundity and longevity in the seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus, is proposed. By manipulating host availability time and host size, trade‐offs mediated by behavioural responses of the female to adapt to environmental change are tested. Females show no decrease in lifetime fecundity when host availability time is limited to only 4 h on each day. However, longevity significantly increases when the female is provided with small beans after host deprivation. Because neither acquisition, nor utilization by females of these four manipulation treatments significantly differs, studies are carried out to demonstrate whether the energy shifted from increased longevity without decreasing fecundity. Providing abundant small or large beans each day directly after host deprivation, significantly increases the number of daily eggs laid by the female for several days, whereas the female decreases the uniformity of her egg dispersion only when small beans are provided. Therefore, the female shows a response to a change in the environment by adjusting egg‐laying rate and/or egg‐dispersion pattern. This may change the traits of reproduction and survival. Because energy allocations can be shifted between components of reproduction (e.g. host‐selection behaviour and fecundity) or between reproduction and survival, fecundity and longevity may be inappropriate indices for trade‐off analyses in this study. A framework for exploring the costs of reproduction mediated by physiological and behavioural changes in C. maculatus is proposed and discussed.
Geophysical survey to estimate the 3D sliding surface and the 4D evolution of the water pressure on part of a deep seated landslide
Authors: Lebourg T. , Binet S. , Tric E. , Jomard H. , El Bedoui S.
Published: September 2005

Geophysical surveys were conducted on the very unstable front part of the La Clapière landslide in the French Alps (Alpes Maritimes). The electrical resistivity survey was carried out to obtain, for the first time on this deep‐seated landslide, 3D information on the slipping surface and the vertical drained faults. Moreover, we planned to follow within time (6 months) the evolution of the saturated zones (presence of gravitational water) and their percolation into the shearing zones. Our 4D results showed the importance of the complex water channelization within the slope and relation to geological discontinuities.
How did the Messinian Salinity Crisis end?
Authors: Loget Nicolas , Driessche Jean Van Den , Davy Philippe
Published: September 2005

The cause of the desiccation of the Mediterranean Sea during the Messinian Salinity Crisis has been widely debated, but its re‐flooding remains poorly investigated. Interpretations generally involve tectonic collapse of the Strait of Gibraltar or global sea‐level rise, or even a combination of both. The dramatic sea‐level fall in the Mediterranean has induced deep fluvial incision all around the desiccated basin. We investigate erosion dynamics related to this base level drop by using the numerical simulator EROS. We show that intense regressive erosion develops inevitably in the Gibraltar area eventually inducing the piracy of the Atlantic waters by an eastward‐flowing stream and the subsequent re‐flooding of the Mediterranean.
Timing and mechanisms of Central Himalayan exhumation: discriminating between tectonic and erosion processes
Authors: Bojar Ana‐Voica , Fritz Harald , Nicolescu Stefan , Bregar Martin , Gupta Ravi P.
Published: September 2005

The ability to deduce exhumation mechanisms from thermochronological data is hampered by the fact that assumptions on the thermal state of the lithosphere have to be made. Additional argumentation is generally required to discriminate between erosion‐controlled and tectonically induced exhumation. This problem can be overcome by studying the spatial distribution of zircon and apatite (U‐Th)/He and fission track data. In this work the variation of four different low temperature isotopic systems generating age trends along a sampling line is used to infer mechanisms of Quaternary exhumation in the Central High Himalayan Metamorphic Belt. Observed zircon age trends with southwards increasing cooling ages (from 0.5 to 1.7 Ma) are attributed to tectonically induced exhumation. The uniform apatite cooling ages clustered c. 0.5 Ma are attributed to erosion.
The myth of the brackish Sarmatian Sea
Authors: Piller Werner E. , Harzhauser Mathias
Published: September 2005

The biota of the 1.5 Ma period of the Middle Miocene Sarmatian of the Central Paratethys lack stenohaline components. This was the reason to interpret the Sarmatian stage as transitional between the marine Badenian and the lacustrine Pannonian stages. However, our new data indicate that brackish water conditions could not have prevailed. Sarmatian foraminifera, molluscs, serpulids, bryozoans, dasycladacean and corallinacean algae as well as diatoms clearly indicate normal marine conditions for the entire Sarmatian. During the Lower Sarmatian, however, a sea‐level lowstand forced the development of many marginal marine environments. During the Late Sarmatian a highly productive carbonate factory of oolite shoals, mass‐occurrences of thick‐shelled molluscs and larger foraminifera, as well as marine cements clearly point to normal marine to hypersaline conditions. This trend is not restricted to the western margin of the Pannonian Basin System but can be observed in the entire Central and even Eastern Paratethys.
Direct observation and analysis of a trapped COH fluid growth medium in metamorphic diamond
Authors: Dobrzhinetskaya L.F. , Wirth R. , Green H.W.
Published: September 2005

The mechanism by which diamonds grow in Earth's mantle has been a subject of discussion for many years. Arguments have been advanced for growth from a melt, from a COH fluid, and in the solid state. The discovery of microdiamonds within ultra‐high pressure terranes of continental collision settings re‐energized this debate because of their very different but well‐defined continental crust environment. We report here the discovery of filled nanometric fluid bubbles in diamonds from marble of the Kokchetav massif, Kazakhstan, and the serendipitous measurement of their contents due to bursting of a bubble very shortly after a measurement of chemical composition in the transmission electron microscope, thereby allowing immediate re‐analysis with exactly the same settings of all parameters of the microscope. The chemical composition of the fluid is C, H, O, Cl, S, Ca, Fe and K. The direct observation and composition of a low‐viscosity trapped fluid in microdiamond unambiguously establish their fluid growth medium.
Positive fault inversion triggering ‘intrusive diapirism’: an analogue modelling perspective
Authors: Ventisette Chiara Del , Montanari Domenico , Bonini Marco , Sani Federico
Published: September 2005

Understanding the formation and the development of salt structures is very important especially because they are of significant economical interest for hydrocarbon trapping and for long‐term storage of radioactive waste and energy reserves. Generally, the activity of normal faults developed in extensional regimes is considered the most efficient mechanism for salt diapirs. The results of analogue models reported in this paper suggest a new triggering mechanism for the rise of salt structures during basin inversion. This mechanism relates the localization of ductile diapirs to early normal faults only after their inversion during later shortening. In this case, diapiric growth is related to the strong dip‐slip reactivation component along the fault extruding the silicone‐simulating salt upward. Some natural cases, in which the timing and the mechanism of diapiric growth is not clear, can be re‐interpreted in the light of these analogue model results.
Attenuated familial adenomatous polyposis and Muir–Torre syndrome linked to compound biallelic constitutional MYH gene mutations
Authors: Ponti G , Ponz de Leon M , Maffei S , Pedroni M , Losi L , Di Gregorio C , Gismondi V , Scarselli A , Benatti P , Roncari B , Seidenari S , Pellacani G , Varotti C , Prete E , Varesco L , Roncucci L
Published: September 2005

Peculiar dermatologic manifestations are present in several heritable gastrointestinal disorders. Muir–Torre syndrome (MTS) is a genodermatosis whose peculiar feature is the presence of sebaceous gland tumors associated with visceral malignancies. We describe one patient in whom multiple sebaceous gland tumors were associated with early onset colon and thyroid cancers and attenuated polyposis coli. Her family history was positive for colonic adenomas. She had a daughter presenting with yellow papules in the forehead region developed in the late infancy. Skin and visceral neoplasms were tested for microsatellite instability and immunohistochemical status of mismatch repair (MMR), APC and MYH proteins. The proband colon and skin tumors were microsatellite stable and showed normal expression of MMR proteins. Cytoplasmic expression of MYH protein was revealed in colonic cancer cells. Compound heterozygosity due to biallelic mutations in MYH, R168H and 379delC, was identified in the proband. The 11‐year‐old daughter was carrier of the monoallelic constitutional mutation 379delC in the MYH gene; in the sister, the R168H MYH gene mutation was detected. This report presents an interesting case of association between MYH‐associated polyposis and sebaceous gland tumors. These findings suggest that patients with MTS phenotype that include colonic polyposis should be screened for MYH gene mutations.
Relative contribution of detoxifying enzymes to pyrethroid resistance in a resistant strain of Helicoverpa armigera
Authors: Yang E. , Yang Y. , Wu S. , Wu Y.
Published: September 2005

Abstract:  The relative contribution of oxidases and esterases to pyrethroid resistance was studied in a YS‐FP strain of Helicoverpa armigera from China. The YS‐FP strain was derived from a field‐collected strain (YS) by 16 generations of selection with a mixture of fenvalerate and phoxim. Compared with the YS strain, the YS‐FP strain showed 1850‐ to >7140‐fold resistance to four ester‐bonded phenoxybenzyl alcohol pyrethroids (fenvalerate, deltamethrin, cypermethrin and cyhalothrin), >205‐fold resistance to a non‐ester phenoxybenzyl alcohol pyrethroid (etofenprox) and only 19‐fold resistance to an ester‐bonded methylated biphenyl alcohol pyrethroid (bifenthrin). The oxidase inhibitor piperonyl butoxide eliminated most the of resistance to fenvalerate, deltamethrin, cypermethrin, cyhalothrin and etofenprox, whereas the esterase inhibitor S,S,S‐tributylphosphorothioate had a small synergistic effect for fenvalerate and cyhalothrin only. This suggests that the resistance to these pyrethroids in the YS‐FP strain was mainly because of enhanced oxidative detoxification. The monooxygenase activities of the midguts of sixth‐instar larvae of the YS‐FP strain to substrates p‐nitroanisole, ethoxycoumarin and methoxycoumarin were 3.7‐, 4.7‐ and 10‐fold, respectively, compared with that of the YS strain. Glutathione S‐transferase activity and esterase activity were not significantly altered in the YS‐FP strain. This confirms that enhanced oxidative detoxification was a major mechanism contributing to pyrethroid resistance in the YS‐FP strain.
Use of a Mini‐Dome Bioassay and Grafting to Study Resistance of Chickpea to Ascochyta Blight
Authors: Chen W. , McPhee K. E. , Muehlbauer F. J.
Published: September 2005

A mini‐dome bioassay was developed to study pathogenicity of Ascochyta rabiei and relative resistance of chickpea (Cicer arietanium). It was determined that the best condition for assaying pathogenicity of A. rabiei was to use 2 × 105 spores/ml as inoculum and to maintain a leaf wetness period of 24 h under mini‐domes at a temperature between 16 and 22°C. This mini‐dome pathogenicity assay was used to determine relative resistance of six chickpea cultivars (cvs) to isolates of two pathotypes of A. rabiei. Grafting was employed to detect any translocated factors produced in the chickpea plant that mediate disease response, which could help elucidate possible resistance mechanisms to Ascochyta blight. The six chickpea cv. were grafted in all possible scion–rootstock combinations, and then inoculated with isolates of two pathotypes of A. rabiei using the mini‐dome technique. Results showed that self‐grafted‐resistant plants remained resistant and self‐grafted‐susceptible plants stayed susceptible, indicating the grafting procedure did not alter host response to infection by A. rabiei. Susceptible scions always exhibited high and similar levels of disease severity regardless of rootstock genotypes, and resistant scions always showed low and similar levels of disease severity when they were grafted onto any of the six rootstock genotypes. Orthogonal contrasts showed that scion genotypes determined disease phenotype, and that rootstock genotypes had no contribution to disease phenotype of the scions. The pathogenicity assay did not detect any translocated disease‐mediating agents responsible for susceptibility or resistance in chickpea. Disease phenotypes of Ascochyta blight of chickpea were conditioned locally by scion genotypes.
Biological Control of Bacterial Wilt of Bean Using a Bacterial Endophyte, Pantoea agglomerans
Authors: Hsieh T. F. , Huang H. C. , Erickson R. S.
Published: September 2005

Indoor studies were conducted to determine the potential use of Pantoea agglomerans isolate LRC 8311 as a biocontrol agent for control of bacterial wilt of bean caused by Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens. Soaking seeds of great northern bean cv. US1140 in a suspension of 3 × 108 cfu/ml P. agglomerans resulted in thorough endophytic colonization of the entire bean seedling from root to apical stem after 7 days, regardless of whether the inoculated seeds were hilum injured or not. Colonization of seedlings by P. agglomerans increased seedling height after 10 days, and had no negative effect on seedling emergence. Treatment of hilum‐injured bean seeds of great northern bean cv. US1140 or navy bean cv. Morden003 with a mixture of P. agglomerans + C. flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens resulted in a high rate of colonization of seedlings by P. agglomerans, reduced frequency of infection by C. flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens, improved seedling emergence and height, and reduced disease severity, compared with seeds treated with the wilt pathogen alone. Application of P. agglomerans as a soil drench 24 h after planting was also effective in suppressing bacterial wilt in some instances, but was generally not as effective as seed treatment. The study suggests that seed treatment with P. agglomerans may be an effective and practical method for control of bacterial wilt of bean.
Cross‐pathogenicity between Formae Speciales of Fusarium oxysporum, the Pathogens of Cucumber and Melon
Authors: Cafri D. , Katan J. , Katan T.
Published: September 2005

The population structure of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum was studied using the vegetative compatibility grouping (VCG) approach. All 37 of the examined isolates from Israel were assigned to VCG 0180, the major VCG found in North America and the Mediterranean region. Approximately two‐thirds of the tested isolates were pathogenic to both cucumber and melon, but cumulatively they were more aggressive on cucumber, their major host, than on melon. Disease symptoms on melon plants were less destructive and often expressed as growth retardation. Melon cultivars differing in Fom genes for resistance to F. oxysporum f. sp. melonis were inoculated with three isolates of F. oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum. Results showed that Fom genes do not confer resistance to F. oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum, although different horticultural types may respond differently to this pathogen. The reciprocal inoculation of F. oxysporum f. sp. melonis on cucumber, using four physiological races, did not result in disease symptoms or growth retardation. It is concluded that cucumerinum and melonis should remain two distinct formae speciales.