bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Spatial and seasonal distribution of Culicoides imicola in Iberia in relation to the transmission of African horse sickness virus
Authors: RAWLINGS PETER , PRO MARIA‐JOSÉ , PENA ISABEL , ORTEGA MARIA‐DOLORES , CAPELA RUBEN 
Published: March 2008

Abstract. Collections of biting midges were made over 24 months from sixty sites spread across Iberia. Information on the distribution of the vector of African horse sickness virus, Culicoides imicola, from these 3119 samples showed that this species was annually present across south‐western Spain as far as 3o53'W and throughout most of Portugal, up to 41o5'N. C.imicola was found in all areas where African horse sickness epizootics had occurred in 1987‐90 and also in areas outside the epizootic zones.Seasonal patterns of capture success of C.imicola, from seventeen frequently sampled sites where the vector was present, usually showed a late summer‐early autumn peak. At the sites furthest south there was a discrete peak, mostly in September or October, before and after which the numbers captured increased or decreased steadily. At higher latitudes peak abundances occurred as early as May or as late as November, population build up was less uniform and numbers often declined rapidly after the peak was reached. Both the distribution and seasonal abundance patterns closely matched transmission patterns of African horse sickness virus, which rose during late summer and caused most cases during the autumn months.
The gecko: an environmentally friendly biological agent for mosquito control
Authors: CANYON D. V. , HII J. L. K. 
Published: March 2008

Abstract Laboratory experiments with Aedes aegypti mosquitoes investigated the effects of light, mosquito density and physiological state on predation rates by the Australian gecko Gehydra dubia and the exotic Asian house gecko Hemidactylusfrenatus.For both gecko species a positive correlation was demonstrated between prey density and the predation rate. Using Ae.aegypti males and unfed females as prey in a terrarium (0.054m3), consumption rates reached 76–108/day for G.dubia and 63–109/day for H.frenatus, with significantly more female mosquitoes than males being eaten in most experiments. Comparing dark with semi‐illuminated conditions no consistent contrast of predation rate was demonstrated. Gehyra dubia predation rates on various Australian mosquito species were compared in an experimental room (32 m3) for 24 h exposure with photoperiod L:D 12:12h. Five photophilic species (Aedes vigilax, Anopheles annulipes, Coquillettidia xanthogaster, Culex annulirostris, Cx sitiens) suffered 78–100% predation, compared with only 33–53 % predation of four non‐photophilic species: Aedes aegypti, Ae. notoscriptus, Ae. vittiger and Cx quinquefasciatus. This demonstrates the potential benefit of domestication for geckoes that learn to hunt at light.When offered a mixture of unfed, freshly blood‐fed and gravid females of Ae.aegypti in an illuminated terrarium, both gecko species consumed significantly more unfed than fed or gravid female mosquitoes, presumably because the latter rested wheras the former foraged more actively. H.frenatus consumed significantly more mosquitoes of all categories than did G.dubia per 24h: unfeds 5.1+0.1% v. 4.5 + 0.5%, blood‐feds 4.5 ± 0.3% v. 4.0 ± 0.5% and gravids 4.8 ± 0.4% v. 3.9 ± 0.5%. Possible relevance of these results to competetive displacement of G.dubia by H.frenatus is discussed.
Safety and efficiency conflicts in hydraulic architecture: scaling from tissues to trees
Authors: SPERRY JOHN S. , MEINZER FREDERICK C. , McCULLOH KATHERINE A. 
Published: March 2008

ABSTRACTTree hydraulic architecture exhibits patterns that propagate from tissue to tree scales. A challenge is to make sense of these patterns in terms of trade‐offs and adaptations. The universal trend for conduits per area to decrease with increasing conduit diameter below the theoretical packing limit may reflect the compromise between maximizing the area for conduction versus mechanical support and storage. Variation in conduit diameter may have two complementary influences: one being compromises between efficiency and safety and the other being that conduit tapering within a tree maximizes conductance per growth investment. Area‐preserving branching may be a mechanical constraint, preventing otherwise more efficient top‐heavy trees. In combination, these trends beget another: trees have more, narrower conduits moving from trunks to terminal branches. This pattern: (1) increases the efficiency of tree water conduction; (2) minimizes (but does not eliminate) any hydraulic limitation on the productivity or tissue growth with tree height; and (3) is consistent with the scaling of tree conductance and sap flow with size. We find no hydraulic reason why tree height should scale with a basal diameter to the two‐thirds power as recently claimed; it is probably another mechanical constraint as originally proposed. The buffering effect of capacitance on the magnitude of transpiration‐induced xylem tension appears to be coupled to cavitation resistance, possibly alleviating safety versus efficiency trade‐offs.
Heterologous expression, and biochemical and cellular characterization of CaPLA1 encoding a hot pepper phospholipase A1 homolog
Authors: Seo Young Sam , Kim Eun Yu , Mang Hyung Gon , Kim Woo Taek 
Published: March 2008

SummaryPhospholipid signaling has been recently implicated in diverse cellular processes in higher plants. We identified a cDNA encoding the phospholipase A1 homolog (CaPLA1) from 5‐day‐old early roots of hot pepper. The deduced amino acid sequence showed that the lipase‐specific catalytic triad is well conserved in CaPLA1. In vitro lipase assays and site‐directed mutagenesis revealed that CaPLA1 possesses PLA1 activity, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of phospholipids at the sn‐1 position. CaPLA1 was selectively expressed in young roots, at days 4–5 after germination, and rapidly declined thereafter, suggesting that the expression of CaPLA1 is subject to control by a development‐specific mechanism in roots. Because transgenic work was extremely difficult in hot peppers, in this study we overexpressed CaPLA1 in Arabidopsis so as to provide cellular information on the function of this gene. CaPLA1 overexpressors had significantly longer roots, leaves and petioles, and grew more rapidly than the wild‐type plants, leading to an early bolting phenotype with prolonged inflorescence. Microscopic analysis showed that the vegetative tissues of 35S:CaPLA1 plants contained an increased number of small‐sized cells, which resulted in highly populated cell layers. In addition, mRNAs for cell cycle‐controlled proteins and fatty acid catabolizing enzymes were coordinately upregulated in CaPLA1‐overexpressing plants. These results suggest that CaPLA1 is functionally relevant in heterologous Arabidopsis cells, and hence might participate in a subset of positive control mechanisms of cell and tissue growth in transgenic lines. We discuss possible biochemical and cellular functions of CaPLA1 in relation to the phospholipid signaling pathway in hot pepper and transgenic Arabidopsis plants.
Impact of Humidity on Temperature‐Induced Grain Sterility in Rice (Oryza sativa L)
Authors: Weerakoon W. M. W. , Maruyama A. , Ohba K. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractHigh temperature‐induced grain sterility in rice is becoming a serious problem in tropical rice‐growing ecosystems. We studied the mechanism of high temperature‐induced grain sterility of different rice (Oryza sativa L) cultivars at two relative humidity (RH) levels. Four varieties of Indica and Japonica rice were exposed to over 85 % RH and 60 % RH at 36/30 °C, 34/30 °C, 32/24 °C and 30/24 °C day/night air temperatures from late booting to maturity inside sunlit phytotrons. Increasing both air temperature and RH significantly increased spikelet sterility while high temperature‐induced sterility decreased significantly with decreasing RH. Neither Indica nor Japonica rice types were superior to the other in the response of their spikelets to increased air temperature and RH. Increased spikelet sterility was due to increased pollen grain sterility which reduced deposition of viable pollen grains on stigma. Reduction in sterility with decreased RH was more due to decreased spikelet temperature than to air temperature. Thus the impact of RH should be considered when interpreting the effect of high temperature on grain sterility. Spikelet fertility was curvilinearly related to spikelet temperature. Grain sterility increased when spikelet temperature increased over 30 °C while it became completely sterile at 36 °C. The ability of a variety to decrease its spikelet temperature with decreasing RH could be considered as avoidance while the variability in spikelet sterility among varieties at a given spikelet temperature could be considered as true tolerance.
Root Nitrogen Remobilization and Ion Status of Two Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) Cultivars in Response to Salinity Stress
Authors: Mohammadi H. , Poustini K. , Ahmadi A. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractIn a pot experiment the responses of two alfalfa cultivars differing in salt tolerance were evaluated in terms of root nitrogen remobilization rates (RNRR) and their relationship with the ionic status of the plants. A split‐plot design with factorial treatments in three replications was used. Three levels of salinity stress with electrical conductivities (ECs) of 1.2, 7 and 12 ds m−1 were established in irrigation water by using tap water with and without NaCl. The average data taken from plant materials at three defoliations were used for statistical analysis. Each time, plant materials were harvested at the 10 % flowering stage and then 10 days later. From the results observed, it was found that alfalfa shoot growth is highly dependent on RNRR under salinity stress. However, the total N reserves within the roots do not appear to be a limiting factor. The high positive correlation coefficient between shoot K+/Na+ and RNRR (r = 0.77; P = 0.01) indicates that lower demands for N because of diminished metabolic activities within the shoot sink may have reduced the rates of root N utilization. Unlike in some other species, the shoot K+ concentration and contents of alfalfa plants were significantly reduced by increasing salt stress. However, a relatively suitable K+/Na+ ratio of 7.1 is maintained in the shoots at the second level of salinity, as lowering the rates of salt induced an increase in Na+ uptake (Na exclusion). The salt tolerance recognized in the Bami cultivar may be attributed to the 339 % increase in its selectivity rates of K+ over Na+ in ion transport from the soil to the shoots, as the shoot Na+ content did not increase with increasing salt levels.
Contents of Total Phenolics and Ferulic Acid, and PAL Activity during Water Potential Changes in Leaves of Maize Single‐Cross Hybrids of Different Drought Tolerance
Authors: Hura T. , Hura K. , Grzesiak S. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThe aim of this study was to determine whether the resistance and/or sensitivity to drought stress, can be attributed to the level of phenolic compounds in the leaves of maize genotypes. The experiments were carried out on seedlings of three maize genotypes characterized by different levels of drought resistance. Experiments with three periods of drought were conducted (8, 11 and 14 days), to obtain plants with different levels of water potential in leaves, which induced changes in the total phenolic content and ferulic acid, and l‐phenylalanine ammonia‐lyase (PAL) activity. Only for the drought‐resistant genotype Tina, was the low water potential found to be correlated with the high level of the total phenolic content and ferulic acid, which is the main source of blue fluorescence emissions. Moreover, only for Tina were the highest intensities of blue fluorescence emission correlated with the low water potential in leaves. The phenolic compounds present in leaf tissues can protect the deeper situated mesophyll, by absorbing light reaching the leaf and transforming it into a blue fluorescence. Phenolic compounds can, in this way, function as photoprotectors limiting the excitation of chlorophyll during conditions of water deficit in leaves.
Influence of High Shoot and Root‐Zone Temperatures on Growth of Three Wheat Genotypes during Early Vegetative Stages
Authors: Tahir I. S. A. , Nakata N. , Yamaguchi T. , Nakano J. , Ali A. M. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractHigh temperatures, whether of shoot or root, are reported to affect shoot and root growth of various plant species. The scanty information available on the differential response of wheat genotypes to high shoot and root‐zone temperatures triggered this investigation to study the response and adaptation of shoot and root growth of three wheat genotypes to high shoot and root‐zone temperatures during early growth stages. Three wheat genotypes; Fang (heat tolerant), Siete Cerros (heat sensitive) and Imam (recent cultivar adapted to a hot irrigated environment) were grown in soil and hydroponically. Three shoot/root‐zone temperatures (23/23, 23/35 and 35/35 °C for the soil experiment and 22/22, 22/38 and 38/38 °C for the hydroponic experiment) were applied at three‐leaf growth stage. High root‐zone temperature alone or combined with high shoot temperature reduced xylem sap flow rate, root dry weight, root length and root/shoot ratio. Unexpectedly, shoot fresh and dry weights and relative growth rate (RGR) were not significantly affected by the high root‐zone temperature except for the susceptible genotype, Siete Cerros, after prolonged exposure in the hydroponic experiment. In contrast, high shoot/root‐zone temperature significantly reduced shoot fresh and dry weights from as early as the first week of the hydroponic experiment. The 38/38 °C treatment also caused significant reduction in RGR and net assimilation rate during the first 2 weeks, but no significant differences were found during the last 2 weeks compared with 22/22 °C. Interesting responses were observed among genotypes in terms of shoot and root dry weights and root/shoot ratio at 38/38 °C treatment. The heat‐sensitive Siete Cerros showed the least reduction in these traits during the first 2 weeks while the heat‐tolerant Fang and Imam responded by greatly reducing their shoot and root weights. The situation was almost reversed with the duration of treatments such that Siete Cerros became the most affected genotype while Fang and Imam were better adapted to high shoot/root‐zone temperature. Specific root weight was the exceptional trait that increased under high temperature treatments. Results indicate that despite the reduction in root length and weight observed under high root‐zone temperature, shoot growth was not much affected suggesting that the use of suitable cultivar coupled with proper management could alleviate most of high root‐zone temperature effects during early growth stages.
Endogenous opioids inhibit ischemia‐induced generation of immature hippocampal neurons via the µ‐opioid receptor
Authors: Kolodziej Angela , Stumm Ralf , Becker Axel , Höllt Volker 
Published: March 2008

AbstractIt is established that hippocampal neurogenesis is dynamically regulated by physiological and pathological stimuli including learning, environmental complexity, mental disorders and brain lesion. Little is known about factors regulating adaptive changes in neurogenesis. Using µ‐opioid receptor (MOP)‐knockout mice we addressed whether endogenous opioids influence ischemia‐induced enhancement of hippocampal neurogenesis. Permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) produced similar corticostriatal infarcts in MOP‐knockout and wildtype mice. Analyses of BrdU/doublecortin‐colabelled cells in the granule cell layer 14 days after MCAO showed that ischemic knockouts contained more immature neurons generated during days 9–11 than wildtypes. After 29 days, similar quantities of BrdU/NeuN‐labelled cells were found in ischemic knockout and wildtype mice, suggesting that granule cells that were formed in excess during days 9–11 in the knockouts were eliminated by day 29. Neurogenesis was similar in knockout and wildtype mice subjected to sham operation. In addition to a transient increase in neurogenesis, MCAO caused a transient up‐regulation of preprodynorphin and preproenkephalin mRNA expression in the granule cell layer. Our findings suggest that activated signalling via endogenous opioids and the MOP limits the enhanced generation of neuronal cells after ischemic corticostriatal lesions.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain RW41 mineralizes 4‐chlorobenzenesulfonate, the major polar by‐product from DDT manufacturing
Authors: Blasco Rafael , Ramos Juan‐Luis , Wittich Rolf‐Michael 
Published: March 2008

Summary Pseudomonas aeruginosa RW41 is the first bacterial strain, which could be isolated by virtue of its capability to mineralize 4‐chlorobenzenesulfonic acid (4CBSA), the major polar by‐product of the chemical synthesis of 1,1,1‐trichloro‐2,2‐bis‐(4‐chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT). This capability makes the isolate a promising candidate for the development of bioremediation technologies. The bacterial mineralization of 4CBSA proceeds under oxygenolytic desulfonation and transient accumulation of sulfite which then is oxidized to sulfate. High enzyme activities for the turnover of 4‐chlorocatechol were measured. The further catabolism proceeded through 3‐chloromuconate and, probably, the instable 4‐chloromuconolactone, which is directly hydrolyzed to maleylacetate. Detectable levels of maleylacetate reductase were only present when cells were grown with 4CBSA. When the ordinary catechol pathway was induced during growth on benzenesulfonate, catechol was ortho‐cleaved to cis,cis‐muconate and a partially purified muconate cycloisomerase transformed it to muconolactone in vitro. The same enzyme transformed 3‐chloro‐cis,cis‐muconate into cis‐dienelactone (76%) and the antibiotically active protoanemonin (24%). These observations are indicative for a not yet highly evolved catabolism for halogenated substrates by bacterial isolates from environmental samples which, on the other hand, are able to productively recycle sulfur and chloride ions from synthetic haloorganosulfonates.
Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis of the interactions between honeybee larvae and Paenibacillus larvae, the causative agent of American foulbrood of honeybees (Apis mellifera)
Authors: Yue Dominique , Nordhoff Marcel , Wieler Lothar H. , Genersch Elke 
Published: March 2008

SummaryAmerican foulbrood (AFB) is a bacterial disease of honeybee larvae caused by the spore‐forming bacterium Paenibacillus larvae. Although AFB and its aetiological agent are described now for more than a century, the general and molecular pathogenesis of this notifiable disease is poorly understood. We used fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) performed with P. larvae‐specific, 16S rRNA‐targeted oligonucleotide probes to analyse the early steps in the pathogenesis of American foulbrood. The following chain of events could be demonstrated: (i) the spores germinate in the midgut lumen, (ii) the vegetative bacteria massively proliferate within the midgut before, and (iii) they start to locally breach the epithelium and invade the haemocoel. The paracellular route was shown to be the main mechanism for invasion contrasting earlier hypotheses of phagocytosis of P. larvae. Invasion coincided with the death of the host implicating that the penetration of the midgut epithelium is a critical step determining the time of death.
The Meaning of Parental Control in Migrant, Sending, and Host Communities: Adaptation or Persistence?
Authors: Güngör Derya 
Published: March 2008

The goal of the present study was to investigate whether migrant adolescents tend to adopt the host culture's view of parental control or whether they are inclined to reaffirm their heritage culture with regard to the meaning assigned to parental control. The hypotheses regarding the level and meaning of parental control were tested on 296 Turkish‐Belgian adolescents, 306 Turks in Turkey, and 304 Belgians in Belgium with median ages of 16, 17, and 16, respectively. Although migrants reported the highest level of parental control, their ratings of parental warmth, satisfaction with the relationships with their parents, and self‐esteem did not correlate with parental control as was the case among Belgians. The findings suggest that traditional parenting is accentuated in migrant families, and that there is continuity in the traditional meaning of parental control in migration. Findings are discussed with reference to contextual factors that may reinforce culture maintenance in migration.Le but de cette recherche était d’étudier le sens que des adolescents immigrés assignaient au contrôle parental: adoptent‐ils la culture d’accueil ou ont‐ils plutôt tendance à réaffirmer leur héritage culturel? Des hypothèses tenant compte du niveau et de la signification du contrôle parental ont été testées auprès de 296 adolescents Turcs‐Belges, 306 Turcs de Turquie et 304 Belges de Belgique dont les âges médians étaient respectivement de 16, 17 et 16 ans. Bien que les immigrés présentent un plus haut niveau de contrôle parental, leurs résultats concernant la chaleur parentale, la satisfaction de leurs relations avec leurs parents, et l’estime de soi n’étaient pas corrélés avec le contrôle parental contrairement aux adolescents Belges. Ces résultats montrent que l’éducation traditionnelle est accentuée dans les familles immigrées, et que la signification traditionnelle accordée au contrôle parental persiste dans l’immigration. Ces résultats sont discutés en référence à des facteurs contextuels pouvant renforcer le maintien de la culture d’origine dans l’immigration.
Crossing the Tracks? Trends in the Training of Male and Female Workers in Great Britain
Authors: Jones Melanie K. , Latreille Paul L. , Sloane Peter J. 
Published: March 2008

AbstractA small number of recent empirical studies report the intriguing finding that the ‘advantage’ in training incidence previously enjoyed by men has been reversed. The present article explores the sources of this gender differential using Labour Force Survey data, updating previous British studies and providing further insights into the above phenomenon. The results suggest that the greater part of the gender ‘gap’ derives from differences in characteristics, among the most important being occupation, industry and sector. However, the increased training incidence among females over time is not explained by changes in characteristics and suggests preferences for training may have changed.
GOD AND NATURAL LAW: REFLECTIONS ON GENESIS 22
Authors: LEVERING MATTHEW 
Published: March 2008

AbstractThis essay first explores Immanuel Kant's reading of Genesis 22, which Kant identifies as a preeminent case of the irrationality of biblical religion. After comparing Kant's assurance about the norms of rationality with the postmodern work of John Thiel, which finds the world of disorder and death to be outside God's ordering and therefore unintelligible, the essay argues that one finds in Thomas Aquinas's and Duns Scotus's contrasting accounts of Genesis 22 the beginnings of the breakdown of the theocentric understanding of the natural law as a participation in God's wise ordering of created realities to their fulfillment. Modern and postmodern thinkers operate within the context of this anthropocentric shift.
ELECTION AND THE TRINITY: TWENTY‐FIVE THESES ON THE THEOLOGY OF KARL BARTH
Authors: HUNSINGER GEORGE 
Published: March 2008

AbstractA new and “revisionist” reading would argue that the later Karl Barth saw the existence of the eternal Trinity not as the ground and presupposition, but as the consequence of God's pre‐temporal decision of election. A more “traditionalist” reading, on the other hand, as defended by this essay, denies that proposition. The texts adduced by the revisionists, it is argued, fail to make their case. More plausible, alternative readings are offered, counter‐evidence is marshaled, and the deleterious theological consequences of the revisionist alternative are spelled out. Barth could not have adopted it without contradicting his most basic convictions.