内质网应激在不同钙水平下对母鼠氟暴露后仔鼠脑海马细胞的作用

为探讨内质网应激在不同饲料钙水平下对母鼠氟暴露后仔鼠脑海马细胞的作用,选用SD雌性大鼠75只,雄性大鼠25只,雌鼠随机分为对照组(DZ)、染氟组(RF)、低钙组(LG)、染氟低钙组(LF)和染氟高钙组(HF)。雌鼠染毒3个月,交配产仔,检测胎鼠与14日龄、28日龄仔鼠脑海马内质网应激伴侣分子BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达水平。结果显示,与DZ组比,胎鼠、14日龄仔鼠RF组、LF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达均显著升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.01),HF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达均升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.05),28日龄仔鼠RF组BIP、CHOP蛋白表达显著升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.01),CRT蛋白表达升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.05),LF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达均显著升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.01),HF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达均显著升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.05)。与RF组比,胎鼠与14日龄、28日龄仔鼠LF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达水平升高,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.01),胎鼠、14日龄仔鼠HF组BIP、CHOP和CRT蛋白表达水平下降,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.05),28日龄仔鼠BIP、CHOP蛋白表达水平下降,差异具有统计学意义(P 0.05)。研究表明,内质网应激可能参与了母鼠氟暴露致仔鼠脑损伤,高钙饲料可缓解母鼠氟暴露致仔鼠脑海马神经细胞的损伤,低钙饲料则进一步加剧了母鼠氟暴露致仔鼠脑海马神经细胞损伤。     

辣椒秸秆不同部位化学组分及厌氧发酵产沼气潜力

以辣椒苏椒16号为试验材料,调查统计了辣椒生物量和产废系数,并在实验室条件下,研究了辣椒秸秆不同部位理化特性及厌氧发酵产沼气潜力,及各部位对辣椒整株的影响.结果表明：辣椒秸秆生物量高达21t/hm²,产废系数为0.36.辣椒秸秆各部位间理化特性及产沼气潜力具有显著性差异（P<0.05）,产沼气潜力大小顺序为：叶（185.2mL/gVS）>茎（104.2mL/gVS）>根（68.9mL/gVS）.各部位对辣椒整株的影响主要表现在纤维素和碳水化合物的相对含量对其产沼气的影响.且根据经验分子式推测的理论产沼气量,对辣椒秸秆厌氧发酵产沼气转化率进行了评估,各部位转化率均较低,其原因有待进一步研究.     

黄土丘陵区土壤抗水蚀能力变化的动态评估

以黄土丘陵区典型小流域纸坊沟为研究对象,建立了土壤抗水蚀能力动态评价的指标体系,利用层次分析法对1938～2000年间研究区域的土壤抗水蚀能力进行了动态评估。引入土壤相对抗水蚀能力指标,并采用生态系统健康和承载力相关概念,研究了流域土壤抗水蚀能力偏离理想状态程度的变化情况,分析了其健康状态变化、恢复力和可恢复程度;通过与土地利用结构状态变化过程与恢复特性的比较,揭示了土壤抗水蚀能力对于土地利用结构变化的响应关系,指出了响应曲线中的滞后特点并对其产生的原因进行了分析。研究结果与前人所得的结果吻合较好,说明研究中采用的方法能够有效预测土壤抗水蚀能力,也可为水土保持恢复和管理工作提供科学支持。     

COSMOS,a spatially explicit model to simulate the epidemiology of Cosmopolites sordidus in banana fields

A stochastic individual-based model called COSMOS was developed to simulate the epidemiology of banana weevil Cosmopolites sordidus, a major pest of banana fields. The model is based on simple rules of local movement of adults, egg laying of females, development and mortality, and infestation of larvae inside the banana plants. The biological parameters were estimated from the literature, and the model was validated at the small-plot scale. Simulated and observed distributions of attacks were similar except for five plots out of 18, using a Kolmogorov–Smirnov test. These exceptions may be explained by variation in predation of eggs and measurement error. An exhaustive sensitivity analysis using the Morris method showed that predation rate of eggs, demographic parameters of adults and mortality rate of larvae were the most influential parameters. COSMOS was therefore used to test different spatial arrangements of banana plants on the epidemiology of C. sordidus. Planting bananas in groups increased the time required to colonise plots but also the percentage of banana plants with severe attacks. Spatial heterogeneity of banana stages had no effect on time required to colonise plots but increased the mean level of attacks. Our model helps explain key factors of population dynamics and the epidemiology of this tropical pest.     

Intraguild predation and mesopredator release effect on long-lived prey

Complete extirpation of a species can generate cascading effects throughout an ecosystem, yet are precisely the goal of island eradications of pest species. “Mesopredator release effect”, an asymmetrical special case of intraguild predation, has been hypothesised as a possible indirect effect from eradications, where superpredator removal can generate a mesopredator increase which may increase the impact on their shared prey. Theoretically this suggests that for intraguild predators, the superpredator may protect the shared prey from mesopredation, and removal of superpredators alone is not recommended. We create a model of long-lived age-structured shared prey and explore the non-equilibrium dynamics of this system. The superpredator can impact all prey life-stages (adult survival and reproductive success) whereas the smaller mesopredator can only impact early life-stages (reproductive success). This model is independently tested with data from a closed oceanic island system where eradication of introduced intraguild predators is possible for conservation of threatened birds. Mesopredator release only occurs in strongly top-down moderated (resource-abundant) systems. Even when mesopredator release can occur, the negative impact of more mesopredators is outweighed by the benefit of superpredator removal, allowing recovery of the prey population. Results are robust to 10% variation in model parameters. The consideration of age-structured prey contradicts previous theoretical results for mesopredator release effect and intraguild predation. Superpredator eradication is vital for population recovery of long-lived insular species. Nonetheless island conservation must retain a whole-ecosystem perspective given the complex trophic relationships among multiple species on islands.     

Sterol production and phytosterol bioconversion in two species of heterotrophic protists, Oxyrrhis marina and Gyrodinium dominans

The kinetics and efficiency of sterol production and bioconversion of phytosterols in two heterotrophic protists Oxyrrhis marina and Gyrodinium dominans were examined by feeding them two different algal species (Rhodomonas salina and Dunaliella tertiolecta) differing in sterol profiles. R. salina contains predominantly brassicasterol (≅99%) and <2% cholesterol. The major sterols in D. tertiolecta are ergosterol (45–49%), 7-dehydroporiferasterol (29–31%) and fungisterol (21–26%). O. marina fed R. salina metabolized dietary brassicasterol to produce 22-dehydrocholesterol and cholesterol. O. marina fed D. tertiolecta metabolized dietary sterols to produce cholesterol, 22-dehydrocholesterol, brassicasterol and stigmasterol. G. dominans fed either R. salina or D. tertiolecta metabolized dietary sterols to make cholesterol, brassicasterol and a series of unknown sterols. When protists were fed R. salina, which contains cholesterol, the levels of cholesterol were increased to a magnitude of nearly 5- to 30-fold at the phytoplankton-heterotrophic protist interface, equivalent to a production of 172.5 ± 16.2 and 987.7 ± 377.7 ng cholesterol per mg R. salina carbon consumed by O. marina and G. dominans, respectively. When protists were fed D. tertiolecta, which contains no cholesterol, a net production of cholesterol by the protists ranged from 123.2 ± 30.6 to 871.8 ± 130.8 ng per mg algal C consumed. Cholesterol is not only the dominant sterol, but a critical precursor for many physiologically functional biochemicals in higher animal. As intermediates, these heterotrophic protists increase the amount of cholesterol at the phytoplankton–zooplankton interface available to higher trophic levels relative to zooplankton feeding on algae directly.     

Adsorption of microcystins by carbon nanotubes

The production of cyanobacterial toxins microcystins (MCs) by cyanobacterial bloom which may promote the growth of tumor in human liver is a growing environmental problem worldwide. In this paper, the adsorption of MC-RR and LR, which were extracted from cyanobacterial cells in Dianchi Lake in China, by carbon nanotubes (CNTs), wood-based activated carbon (ACs) and clays were investigated. Compared with ACs and clay materials of sepiolite, kaolinite and talc tested, CNTs were found to have a strong ability in the adsorption of MCs. At the concentrations of 21.5 mg l(-1) MC-RR and 9.6 mg l(-1) MC-LR in 50 mmol phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.0), the adsorption amounts of MCs by CNTs with the range of outside diameter from 2 to 10nm were 14.8 and 5.9 mg g(-1), which were about four times higher than those by other adsorbents tested. It was shown that with the decrease of CNTs outside diameters from 60 to 2 nm, the adsorption amount of MCs was apparently increased, however the size of CNTs particles formed in solution declined. This result implies that the size of CNTs tube pore that is fit for the molecular dimension of MCs plays a dominant role. Furthermore the specific surface area of CNTs was also found to be a factor in the adsorption of MCs. The results suggested that the selection of suitable size of CNTs as a kind of adsorbent is very important in the efficient eliminating MCs from drinking water in future.     

Consequences of resource competition for sex allocation and discriminative behaviors in a hyperparasitoid wasp

Population-wide mating patterns can select for equal parental investment in both sexes, but limiting resources, such as mates or developmental substrates, can increase competition leading to biased sex ratios in favor of either sex. Such competition for resources typically occurs in spatially structured populations, where dispersal is limited. In this laboratory study, we investigate if and how resource competition affects sex allocation, discriminative behaviors and competitive interactions of the wingless hyperparasitoid Gelis acororum, which exploits patchily distributed hosts. We show that G. acororum sex ratios are male-biased and that this is not a consequence of constrained reproduction by virgin females. Our results suggest that this pattern of reproductive investment, which is only rarely observed in parasitoids, is a consequence of resource limitation, in terms of hosts rather than mates. Further, G. acororum appears not to respond to intrinsic host quality or to prior oviposition in its host. When competing inter-specifically for host resources, G. acororum outcompetes its congener Gelis agilis, but does so mainly when ovipositing on the host first. Overall, our results suggest that host resource limitation could be an important environmental factor shaping sex allocation in G. acororum, with competition taking place both intra- and inter-specifically.     

Faecal elimination of cypermethrin by cows after pour-on administration: Determining concentrations and measuring the impact on dung beetles

Cattle treatment with antiparasitic drugs is associated with an important risk exposure for dung beetles. Previous studies demonstrated the impact of some avermectin and pyrethroid compounds on several species such as Onthophagus gazella and Neomyia cornicina. However, little information is available regarding the elimination of these compounds in faeces 8 days after a pour-on administration in dairy cows. The present study, utilising a dairy cow model with cypermethrin treatment, demonstrated that concentrations in dry faeces can reach levels of 5?mg?kg^?1 between the first and fourth day after treatment and were present up to 3 months after a single dose of administration at a concentration around 10?µg?kg^?1. Faecal samples were purified with three successive columns (silica gel, anion exchange phase, and basic alumina) and analysed by GC-MS. The limit of quantification of this method was 0.5?µg?kg^?1. The high sensitivity of the method permitted one to see that the risk exposure of cypermethrin to dung beetles is longer than what was noted in the literature. According to other studies, repeated treatment with such agents may lead to the local extinction of dung beetles. Even if the impact of pyrethroid largely depends on the conditions of the ecosystem where the treated cattle are living, adverse effects of these agents may still occur.     

Dioxin levels in the breast milk and estradiol and androgen levels in the saliva of Vietnamese primiparae

Human exposure to polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDD) and dibenzofurans (PCDF), especially 2,3,7,8 tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), was investigated in Vietnam since initial severe adverse health effects were reported in the late 1970s. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of dioxin exposure on steroid hormones of primiparae in an Agent Orange/dioxin hot-spot and a non-exposed area in Vietnam. Sixteen primiparae (8 at each site), all of whom were aged between 20 and 30 years with infants aged between 4 and 16 weeks, agreed to participate in this study. The mean dioxin levels in breast milk of primiparae from the hot-spot area, in terms of PCDD, PCDF, and PCDD?+?PCDF toxic equivalents (TEQ), were significantly higher than those for the non-exposed area. PCDD TEQ, PCDF TEQ, and PCDD?+?PCDF TEQ levels showed a significant correlation with dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), androstenedione (A-dione), and estradiol (E2) in the saliva of primiparae in a combination of hot-spot and non-exposed areas in Vietnam. The dose–response curve between salivary E2 or A-dione levels and dioxin levels was U-shaped in humans. This study provides an overview of studies regarding dioxin hot-spots and effects on human health and steroid hormone levels in particular, with a focus on the toxicity attributed to dioxins and furans. Furthermore, causal evidence regarding the effects of dioxins on endocrine disruption in humans is provided.