bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A pre‐European settlement pollen–climate calibration set for Minnesota, USA: developing tools for palaeoclimatic reconstructions
Authors: Jacques Jeannine‐Marie St. , Cumming Brian F. , Smol John P. 
Published: September 2007

AbstractAim The bias in modern North American pollen assemblages by landscape disturbance from Euro‐American settlement has long been overlooked in the construction of pollen–climate transfer functions. Our aim is to examine this problem and to develop an unbiased pre‐settlement pollen–climate transfer function, and to test its performance and inference power in comparison with commonly used techniques.Location Minnesota, USA, is of palaeoclimatic interest because within the state are located two continental‐scale ecotones, controlled by temperature and available moisture. Shifts of these ecotones can be tracked using palaeoecological techniques.Methods Using a data set of pre‐settlement pollen assemblages from 133 lakes, which were coupled to climate data from the earliest instrumental records (i.e. 1895–1924), a pre‐settlement pollen–climate data set was developed that lacked the influence of anthropogenic landscape disturbance. A corresponding modern pollen data set (from lake sediment core tops) and a modern climate (i.e. 1961–90) data set were also developed. The two pollen sets were compared to demonstrate the effects of landscape disturbance from human activities. Ordination (redundancy analysis with Monte Carlo permutation tests) and regression techniques (generalized linear modelling) were used to establish the relationships between the early instrumental climate variables and pre‐settlement pollen assemblages and individual taxa, respectively. Transfer functions for the most suitable climate variables (i.e. those forming a minimal set of non‐collinear climate variables that explained the greatest amount of pollen variance) were developed from the pre‐settlement data set using bootstrapping.Results Comparison of pre‐settlement pollen and modern pollen showed an over‐representation ofAmbrosia, Chenopodiaceae and Poaceae, and an under‐representation of arboreal taxa (e.g.Pinus,Quercus,Ostrya) in the modern assemblages. Not surprisingly, ordination and regression techniques showed a strong relationship between the early instrumental climate variables and pre‐settlement pollen assemblages and taxa. Transfer functions were developed for May and February mean temperature and available moisture. Pre‐settlement transfer functions substantially improved the root mean squared error by 37–72% in comparison with modern transfer functions inferring pre‐settlement conditions, suggesting that the modern transfer functions have poorer predictive abilities.Main conclusions For climatic reconstructions, there can be a serious distortion of inferences based solely on modern pollen–climate data sets in regions where anthropogenic landscape disturbance has occurred. By using historical climate data, coupled with pre‐disturbance pollen assemblages, robust transfer functions for temperature and effective moisture were developed.
Contrasting population genetic structure for workers and queens in the putatively unicolonial antFormica exsecta
Authors: KÜMMERLI ROLF , KELLER LAURENT 
Published: September 2007

AbstractThe theory of inclusive fitness provides a powerful explanation for reproductive altruism in social insects, whereby workers gain inclusive fitness benefit by rearing the brood of related queens. Some ant species, however, have unicolonial population structures where multiple nests, each containing numerous queens, are interconnected and individuals move freely between nests. In such cases, nestmate relatedness values may often be indistinguishable from zero, which is problematic for inclusive fitness‐based explanations of reproductive altruism. We conducted a detailed population genetic study in the polygynous antFormica exsecta, which has been suggested to form unicolonial populations in its native habitat. Analyses based on adult workers indeed confirmed a genetic structuring consistent with a unicolonial population structure. However, at the population level the genetic structuring inferred from worker pupae was not consistent with a unicolonial population structure, but rather suggested a multicolonial population structure of extended family‐based nests. These contrasting patterns suggest limited queen dispersal and free adult worker dispersal. That workers indeed disperse as adults was confirmed by mark–recapture measures showing consistent worker movement between nests. Together, these findings describe a new form of social organization, which possibly also characterizes other ant species forming unicolonial populations in their native habitats. Moreover, the genetic analyses also revealed that while worker nestmate relatedness was indistinguishable from zero at a small geographical scale, it was significantly positive at the population level. This highlights the need to consider the relevant geographical scale when investigating the role of inclusive fitness as a selective force maintaining reproductive altruism.
Rapid morphological and genetic change in Chicago‐area Peromyscus
Authors: PERGAMS OLIVER R. W. , LACY ROBERT C. 
Published: September 2007

AbstractWe report rapid change of morphology and mitochondrial genes in white‐footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) in the Chicago (Illinois, USA) region. We sequenced mitochondrial DNA COX2 from 55 museum skins of white‐footed mice caught in the Chicago area since 1855 and from 44 mice recently trapped in the same locations. We found consistent directional genotype replacement at five separate collection locations. We later focused on a single one of these locations (Volo Bog State Natural Area) and sequenced mitochondrial D‐loop control region from 58 museum skins of mice collected in 1903–1976 and 32 mice recently trapped there. We found complete and more recent replacement of D‐loop haplotypes, apparently occurring between 1976 and 2001. We tested whether these genetic changes were mirrored by changes in morphology by comparing 15 external and cranial traits. We found no significant morphological differences between mice collected in 1903–1976; however, mice collected in 2001–2003 showed 9 of 15 measurements to be significantly changed relative to the earlier samples. Recent mice were longer in total length, with broader, longer noses, and longer but shallower skulls1. Discriminant function analysis allowed for 100% correct classification using these traits. Principal components analysis shows variance over time is well distributed across both external and cranial measures. The sequential replacements of haplotypes and the rapid change of morphology can best be explained by replacement of the regional population with immigrants from genetically distinct neighbouring populations, likely facilitated by the large environmental changes occurring over the time period. Replacement with genotypes from external populations may be a common mechanism of evolution of newly adaptive local forms in an increasingly human‐impacted world.
Spatial pattern of black spot incidence within citrus trees related to disease severity and pathogen dispersal
Authors: Spósito M. B. , Amorim L. , Bassanezi R. B. , Filho A. Bergamin , Hau B. 
Published: September 2007

Guignardia citricarpa, the causal agent of citrus black spot, forms airborne ascospores on decomposing citrus leaves and water‐spread conidia on fruits, leaves and twigs. The spatial pattern of diseased fruit in citrus tree canopies was used to assess the importance of ascospores and conidia in citrus black spot epidemics in São Paulo State, Brazil. The aggregation of diseased fruit in the citrus tree canopy was quantified by the binomial dispersion index (D) and the binary form of Taylor's Power Law for 303 trees in six groves. D was significantly greater than 1 in 251 trees. The intercept of the regression line of Taylor's Power Law was significantly greater than 0 and the slope was not different from 1, implying that diseased fruit was aggregated in the canopy independent of disease incidence. Disease incidence (p) and severity (S) were assessed in 2875 citrus trees. The incidence‐severity relationship was described (R2 = 88·7%) by the model ln(S) = ln(a) + bCLL(p) where CLL = complementary log‐log transformation. The high severity at low incidence observed in many cases is also indicative of low distance spread of G. citricarpa spores. For the same level of disease incidence, some trees had most of the diseased fruit with many lesions and high disease severity, whereas other trees had most of the fruit with few lesions and low disease severity. Aggregation of diseased fruit in the trees suggests that splash‐dispersed conidia have an important role in increasing the disease in citrus trees in Brazil.
Real‐time PCR identification and detection of Fuscoporia torulosa in Quercus ilex
Authors: Campanile G. , Schena L. , Luisi N. 
Published: September 2007

Fuscoporia torulosa is the causal agent of white alveolar wood decay on several species including a large number of forest trees. Early detection of the fungus is essential to identify diseased trees before spread occurs to healthy plants. However, current detection methods based on isolation from infected tissues on semi‐selective media are laborious, time consuming and require expertise in identifying the pathogen after isolation. In the present study, a rapid and reliable Scorpion‐PCR based molecular method to identify and detect F. torulosa in planta was developed in a highly polymorphic portion of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. Specificity of primers and probe was assessed by means of both BLAST analyses and by using genomic DNA from 131 F. torulosa isolates and 43 other fungi and oomycetes from different hosts and geographic areas. In Scorpion‐PCR the limit of detection was 1 pg of total DNA and a high correlation (r2 = 0·996) was achieved between target DNA quantity and cycle threshold (Ct). Real‐time PCR combined with effective procedures for DNA extraction enabled the detection of F. torulosa from naturally infected tissues of oaks with and without fruit bodies in approximately 6 h. Comparative testing showed that detection of F. torulosa in wood samples is more sensitive and reliable with real‐time PCR than with conventional isolation.
Dendritic Cell Regeneration in the Bone Marrow of Children Treated for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia
Authors: Laane E. , Björklund E. , Mazur J. , Lönnerholm G. , Söderhäll S. , Porwit A. 
Published: September 2007

AbstractDendritic cells (DC) play a pivotal role in coordinating functions of the immune system. Little is known about DC levels in the bone marrow (BM) of patients receiving cytostatic treatment. We investigated DC levels by flow cytometry in BM at diagnosis, during and post‐treatment in 76 children with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL). The levels of both plasmacytoid DC (pDC) and myeloid DC (mDC) were profoundly reduced at diagnosis. However, the levels of pDC and mDC were significantly higher in T‐precursor ALL patients when compared with B‐precursor ALL patient group (P = 0.044 and 0.041 respectively). Both subsets normalized in both standard‐risk (SR) and high‐risk patients after the end of induction at day 50. Patients with minimal residual disease (MRD) at day 50 had significantly higher pDC levels than MRD‐negative patients (P = 0.021). In B‐precursor SR ALL patients, mDC levels but not pDC levels decreased during prolonged maintenance treatment, remaining reduced at the end of treatment (P = 0.032) and at 6 months post‐treatment (P = 0.028). In conclusion, levels of DC in BM normalize quickly in children treated for ALL. Long‐term treatment may more profoundly affect mDC subset, which shows reduced levels several months after treatment.
Facies architecture and cyclicity in a mosaic carbonate platform: effects of fault‐block tectonics (Lower Lias, Causses platform, south‐east France)
Authors: HAMON YOURI , MERZERAUD GILLES 
Published: September 2007

AbstractIn the Causses platform (south‐east France), Late Hettangian to Sinemurian deposits were interpreted previously as shallow‐water carbonate ramp deposits. A new look at these deposits has shown a fault‐controlled mosaic carbonate platform that is different from the carbonate ramp models. Within the platform mosaic, 15 lithofacies have been recognized, which are organized in four facies associations, including peritidal, restricted shallow sub‐tidal, sand dunes and sub‐tidal shelf facies associations. The rapid lateral and vertical facies changes, and the lack of consistent landward or seaward direction indicated by the pattern of facies changes, question the existence of a shoreline suggested by the traditional models for this region. Instead, the facies organization and cycle stacking pattern suggest deposition in a mosaic of intertidal islands between which sub‐tidal restricted or open conditions could coexist in very close proximity. Such a platform mosaic would have been defined by tectonic activities along normal faults which segmented the shallow‐water Causses platform.The facies and facies associations are arranged into metre‐scale, peritidal and sub‐tidal cycles that are also variable. Certain cycles show the same stacking pattern in all the sections and seem to be traceable over tens of kilometres. On the contrary, other cycles cannot be correlated; they are present only in specific sections and have a maximum lateral extension of 1 or 2 km. These metre‐scale cycles stack to form four medium‐scale cycles bounded by surfaces that display sub‐aerial exposure features. Medium‐scale cycles stack into two larger‐scale cycles (tens of metres thick) and are bounded by well‐defined karstic surfaces. Based on their lateral continuity and their stacking pattern, the metre‐scale cycles are controlled probably by high frequency eustatic variations overprinting the topographic irregularities formed by differential subsidence of fault‐bounded blocks. Episodic fault activities may reorganize the topography so that, even if eustatic changes may still be the major control of cycles, the expression and number of cycles could be different. Cycles of medium and large‐scale are interpreted as being allogenic, controlled by changes in eustasy and/or subsidence rates as evidenced by their lateral continuity and the correlations of the large‐scale cycles with third‐order depositional sequences.
Nitric oxide accumulation is required for molecular and physiological responses to iron deficiency in tomato roots
Authors: Graziano Magdalena , Lamattina Lorenzo 
Published: September 2007

SummaryIron is an essential and commonly limited nutrient for plants. To increase the uptake of iron during times of low iron supply, plants, except the grasses, activate a set of physiological and morphological responses in their roots that include iron reduction, soil acidification, Fe(II) transport and proliferation of root hairs. It is not known how root cells sense and transduce the changes that occur after the onset of iron deficiency. This work presents evidence that nitric oxide (NO) is produced rapidly in the root epidermis of tomato plants (Solanum lycopersicum) that are grown in iron‐deficient conditions. The scavenging of NO prevented iron‐deficiency‐induced upregulation of the basic helix‐loop‐helix transcription factor FER, the ferric‐chelate reductase LeFRO1 and the Fe(II) transporter LeIRT1 genes. On the other hand, exogenous application of the NO donor S‐nitrosoglutathione enhanced the accumulation of FER, LeFRO1 and LeIRT1 mRNA in roots of iron‐deficient plants. The activity of the root ferric‐chelate reductase and the proliferation of root hairs induced by iron deficiency were stimulated by NO supplementation and suppressed by NO scavenging. Nitric oxide was ineffective in inducing iron‐deficiency responses in the tomato fer mutant, which indicates that the FER protein is necessary to mediate the action of NO. Furthermore, NO supplementation improved plant growth under low iron supply, which suggests that NO is a key component of the regulatory mechanisms that control iron uptake and homeostasis in plants. In summary, the results of this investigation indicate that an increase in NO production is an early response of roots to iron deprivation that contributes to the improvement of iron availability by (i) modulating the expression of iron uptake‐related genes and (ii) regulating the physiological and morphological adaptive responses of roots to iron‐deficient conditions.
Plant SET‐ and RING‐associated domain proteins in heterochromatinization
Authors: Liu Shiming , Yu Yu , Ruan Ying , Meyer Denise , Wolff Michel , Xu Lin , Wang Ning , Steinmetz Andre , Shen Wen‐Hui 
Published: September 2007

SummaryThe heterochromatin of many eukaryotes is marked by both histone H3 lysine 9 (H3K9) methylation and DNA cytosine methylation. Several studies have revealed links between these two epigenetic markers. The molecular mechanisms involved in establishment of these links, however, remain largely unknown. In plants, H3K9 methylation is primarily carried out by a highly conserved family of proteins that contain SET and SRA (SET‐ and RING‐associated) domains. Here, we show that the SRA‐SET domain H3K9 methyltransferase NtSET1, as well as LIKE HETEROCHROMATIN PROTEIN1, binds heterochromatin DNA repeats. In the yeast two‐hybrid assay, NtSET1 binds the DNA methylcytosine‐binding protein VARIANT IN METHYLATION1 (VIM1), which contains conserved PHD, SRA and RING domains. This binding requires either the N‐terminus of NtSET1 containing the SRA domain or the C‐terminus of NtSET1 containing the SET domain and the PHD domain of VIM1. Consistent with a role in the establishment/maintenance of chromatin structure during cell division, VIM1 transcripts are abundant in actively dividing cells and the VIM1 protein is localized in the nucleus. While null vim1 mutant plants show a normal growth phenotype, transgenic Arabidopsis plants over‐expressing VIM1 show inhibition in root growth and delay in flowering. We propose that SRA‐SET domain H3K9 methyltransferases associate with the PHD‐SRA‐RING domain protein VIM1, mutually reinforcing H3K9 and DNA methylation in heterochromatinization.
Quality of leucoreduced red blood cell concentrates: 5 years of follow‐up in France
Authors: Chabanel A. , Carrat F. , Begue S. , Masse M. , Perrault M. P. , Andreu G. 
Published: September 2007

Background  Since 1998, prestorage leucoreduction of all cellular blood components has been made mandatory in France. The French blood service needed to follow the data on the quality of the blood components prepared by blood centres.Material and Methods  Quality control (QC) data were submitted to a central data bank by each blood centre. The data were stratified by preparation method for analysis of key performance criteria – residual white blood cell (WBC) and total haemoglobin content. The red blood cell (RBC) preparation processes and the methods for measuring haemoglobin content and residual WBC count were those routinely employed by blood centres. Each year, more than 15 500 RBCs were tested.Results  Red blood cells had a mean haemoglobin content between 53·6 and 54·9 g/unit depending on the year (2001 to 2005). The requirement of 40 g/unit was reached for about 99% of units. The haemoglobin content was influenced by the preparation process: 56·8 ± 6·9 vs. 50·6 ± 5·6 g/unit in average for whole blood filtration or RBC filtration, respectively. Apheresis RBCs exhibited a reduced variability (51·8 ± 3·1 g/unit). The median residual WBC count remained low (0·046 to 0·057 × 106 WBCs/unit), and the percentage of RBC units exceeding the 1 × 106 WBCs/unit cut‐off ranged from 1·5 to 0·6% depending on the year. A seasonal pattern was observed, with a significant increase (P < 0·001) of the median residual WBC count and of the percent of non‐conforming units during the summer months.Conclusion  Our QC data suggest an overall compliance with the standard. Our data bank is useful to inform on the performance of leucoreduced RBC preparation processes carried out with market available devices.
Induction of Phenolic Compounds in Pea (Pisum sativum L.) Inoculated by Rhizobium leguminosarum and Infected with Orobanche crenata
Authors: Mabrouk Y. , Simier P. , Arfaoui A. , Sifi B. , Delavault P. , Zourgui L. , Belhadj O. 
Published: September 2007

AbstractParasitic plants are among the most important problematic weeds, they are responsible of major losses of many crops. Early growth stages, such as seed germination stimulated by host root exudates and tubercle development, are key phases for these parasites development. Inhibition of these early phases could be a general strategic option for parasitic plants management. In our previous study, we have demonstrated that some Rhizobium leguminosarum strains decrease pea infection by Orobanche crenata and germinated seeds enhanced browning symptoms. These observations suggested the probability of toxic compounds accumulation such as gallic acid and naringenin used as a defence strategy by inoculated pea plants. In this study, we demonstrate that these two phenolic compounds cause severe physiological disorder of germination broomrape seeds. They inhibited germination of O. crenata seeds induced by strigol analogue GR24, and caused a browning reaction in germinated seeds.
Non‐contiguous recurrence or secondary choroidal melanoma following plaque radiotherapy
Authors: Maia Mauricio , Pieramici Dante J , Eong Kah‐Guan Au , Schachat Andrew P , Rodrigues Eduardo B , Green W Richard 
Published: September 2007

AbstractNon‐contiguous local recurrence of posterior uveal melanoma occurs rarely after plaque therapy. A 50‐year‐old white first presented with choroidal melanoma. He underwent therapy with episcleral iodine‐125 radioactive plaque therapy. Nine years later fundus evaluation revealed a new pigmented lesion in the inferotemporal equatorial area. Patient was considered to have a non‐contiguous recurrent melanoma and the eye was enucleated. Histologic microscopic examination disclosed a 3 × 1.8 mm densely pigmented tumour internal to the choroid at the equator. The tumour was composed of large round cells with round nuclei, prominent nucleoli, abundant cytoplasm and spindle‐shaped cells with spindle‐shaped nuclei and prominent nucleoli. The tumour extended through the retina. The superior nasal area of plaque therapy had extensive chorioretinal atrophy with loss of retinal pigment epithelium, thinning of the retina and thinning and depigmentation of the choroids. Within this area of atrophy, there was a pigmented lesion composed by densely packed, spindle‐shaped cells with spindle‐shaped nuclei. Our patient illustrated non‐contiguous recurrence of choroidal melanoma, such finding raises concerns about physiopathology and treatment of choroidal melanoma.
Optic perineuritis as a rare initial presentation of sarcoidosis
Authors: Yu‐Wai‐Man Patrick , Crompton Douglas E , Graham James Y , Black Fiona M , Dayan Margaret R 
Published: September 2007

AbstractSarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous disorder of unknown aetiology and establishing the correct diagnosis can be challenging. Although dysfunction of the anterior visual pathways is uncommon, it is the most common neuro‐ophthalmological manifestation of this condition and given the potential for irreversible, severe visual loss, prompt diagnosis and treatment are essential. We describe a patient with optic perineuritis as a rare initial presentation of sarcoidosis and discuss the underlying pathophysiology and management.