Evolutionary Distinctiveness,Threat Status,and Ecological Oddity in Primates

Abstract: The EDGE (evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered) conservation program ( http://www.edgeofexistence.org ) uses a composite measure of threat and phylogenetic isolation to rank species for conservation attention. Using primates as a test case, we examined how species that rank highly with this metric represent the collective from which they are drawn. We considered the ecological and morphological traits, including body mass, diet, terrestriality, and home range size, of all 233 species of primates. Overall, EDGE score and the level of deviance from the mean of 20 different ecological, reproductive, and morphological variables were correlated (mean correlation r =0.14, combined p =1.7 × 10^?14). Although primates with a high EDGE score had characteristics that made them seem odd, they did not seem to express more ancestral characteristics than expected. Sets of primate species with high EDGE scores will, therefore, collectively capture a broader than expected range of the biology of the clade. If similar patterns hold in other groups, the EDGE metric may be useful for prioritizing biodiversity for conservation.     

Genetic Bottlenecks Driven by Population Disconnection

Abstract: Connectivity among populations plays a crucial role in maintaining genetic variation at a local scale, especially in small populations affected strongly by genetic drift. The negative consequences of population disconnection on allelic richness and gene diversity (heterozygosity) are well recognized and empirically established. It is not well recognized, however, that a sudden drop in local effective population size induced by such disconnection produces a temporary disequilibrium in allelic frequency distributions that is akin to the genetic signature of a demographic bottleneck. To document this effect, we used individual‐based simulations and empirical data on allelic richness and gene diversity in six pairs of isolated versus well‐connected (core) populations of European tree frogs. In our simulations, population disconnection depressed allelic richness more than heterozygosity and thus resulted in a temporary excess in gene diversity relative to mutation drift equilibrium (i.e., signature of a genetic bottleneck). We observed a similar excess in gene diversity in isolated populations of tree frogs. Our results show that population disconnection can create a genetic bottleneck in the absence of demographic collapse.     

N-乙烯基吡咯烷酮降解菌的筛选、降解特性及其竹炭固定化

从活性污泥中分离筛选得到1株N-乙烯基吡咯烷酮（NVP）高效降解菌株ZF1,根据菌株ZF1的形态特征、生理生化特性和16S rRNA基因序列同源性分析,将其初步鉴定为产脲节杆菌（Arthrobacter ureafaciens）。菌株ZF1能以NVP为唯一碳、氮源进行生长,并在60 h内完全降解200 mg·L-1的NVP。菌株ZF1降解NVP的最适环境条件为温度30℃,初始pH 7.0,NaCl浓度7 g·L-1。为了更好地实现其在实际废水中的应用,将菌株ZF1固定到竹炭上,扫描电镜观察表明ZF1能很好的附着在竹炭表面,且固定菌对NVP的降解效率明显高于游离菌。游离菌和固定菌对NVP的降解均符合一级动力学模型。重复利用5次后,固定菌对NVP的降解率仍能达到98%。     

固相萃取-电感耦合等离子体质谱测定自然水体痕量钍和铀

自然水体中Th和U的浓度极低,尤其Th的浓度单位仅为ng/L,定量测试非常困难。该研究建立了一种NOBIAS PA1螯合树脂萃取结合电感耦合等离子体质谱(ICP-MS)同时测定自然水体中痕量Th和U的分析方法。该方法首先使用UV/H₂O₂法消解水样30 min,去除水体中的有机物,然后在pH=3.00±0.05条件下,将水样以2 mL/min流速通过树脂对Th和U进行富集,使用NH₄AC-HAC溶液去除树脂上吸附的盐类,最后用1 mol/L超纯硝酸对样品进行洗脱,用ICP-MS测试。分析结果显示：Th和U的流程空白值分别为0.47、0.22 ng/L,检出限分别为2.9、2.3 ng/L,测定下限分别为11.46、9.11 ng/L。将该方法应用于不同有机物浓度的咸水和淡水中,结果显示：Th和U的回收率分别为97%～104%和98%～103%,相对标准偏差分别为3%～6%和1%～3%。说明该方法具有较高的回收率、精密度和准确度,适用于自然界各种不同水体中Th和U的定量分析。     

Gradient analysis of the chrogenetic structure of lowland and highland scotch pine populations

Gradients of genetic distances (GGDs) between 26 adjacent cenopopulations of Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) along the transects through the distinct landscape-ecotopic isolation borders were analyzed graphically. The results made it possible to reveal and quantitatively estimate gradients and borders of gene-pool structural patterns in populations of this species in the central part of Northern Eurasia. In lowland areas, the most distinct borders were found between pine populations growing on dry lands and bogs (Pineta sphagnosa) in the forest zone of the Transural region, as well as between the Arakaragaiskii and Amankaragaiskii island pine forests in the steppe zone (Northern Turgai). In highland areas (the Urals and the Carpathians), the greatest GGDs were observed between low-mountain (about 600 m above sea level) and middle-mountain (850–900 m) populations. Analysis of GGDs is a promising gene-geographic method for determining population borders and studying the chorogenetic structure of species.     

隔震建筑概念设计的基本问题

在隔震建筑的设计过程中应首先进行概念设计,在总体上把握隔震结构设计的主要方面。本文论述了隔震建筑概念设计的基本问题。在概念设计阶段,首先应在目标设计概念指导下,综合隔震建筑安全性与投资水平的平衡,确定建筑是采用隔震结构还是抗震结构。在进行隔震设计时,应根据输入地震动的加速度幅值和主频,建筑的允许加速度等值确定隔震结构的固有频率;应根据隔震系数和隔震层的允许位移合理确定隔震层总体刚度的范围。对隔震建筑的上部结构,应选择有利房型,合理布置结构,减小结构的不利地震反应。     

PFOS前体物质(PreFOSs)降解菌的分离鉴定及其降解特性

从氟化工厂附近土壤中分离出1株能以全氟辛烷磺酸前体物质(Pre FOSs)为唯一碳源和能源生长的降解菌PF1,经形态观察及16S r DNA基因序列分析,初步鉴定该菌为生丝微菌属(Hyphomicrobium sp.).在温度为30℃、p H为7.0~7.2条件下,菌株PF1对全氟辛基磺酰胺(PFOSA)和N-乙基全氟辛基磺酰胺(N-Et FOSA)48 h降解率分别为14.6%和8.2%,对PFOS无降解能力.对降解产物进行检测和分析,结果表明PFOSA的降解产物为PFOS;N-Et FOSA能被降解生成PFOSA和PFOS,同时也产生少量的全氟辛基磺酰胺乙酸(FOSAA).由此推断Pre FOSs降解途径,在菌株PF1的作用下,PFOSA脱去氨基直接转化成PFOS.NEt FOSA主要有2种降解途径:(1)N-Et FOSA脱乙基产生PFOSA,PFOSA再进一步脱氨基生成PFOS,此为主要途径;(2)NEt FOSA中的N-乙基被氧化成乙酸基生成FOSAA,FOSAA进一步脱去乙酸基生成PFOSA,并最终脱氨基生成PFOS.     

Female sex pheromone of Ostrinia orientalis – throwing a light on the relationship between O. orientalis and the European corn borer, O. nubilalis

Summary. The sex pheromone of Ostrinia orientalis (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) was analyzed by gas chromatography–electroantennographic detection (GC–EAD), GC–mass spectrometry and a series of bioassays. Three EAD-active compounds were detected in the female sex pheromone gland extract, and identified as tetradecyl acetate (14:OAc), (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetate (Z11-14:OAc) and (E)-11-tetradecenyl acetate (E11-14:OAc). The titers (ratio) of 14:OAc, Z11-14:OAc and E11-14:OAc in 3-day-old virgin females were 0.49 ng (10), 4.86 ng (98) and 0.10 ng (2), respectively. In a wind-tunnel bioassay, the 98:2 blend of Z11- and E11-14:OAc, but not Z11-14:OAc alone, elicited the same male behavioral responses as virgin females and crude gland extracts. 14:OAc was inactive by itself, and did not show any synergistic effect on the binary blend. Field trapping experiments also confirmed the attractiveness of the binary blend to O. orientalis males. Based on these results, we concluded that the sex pheromone of O. orientalis is a 98:2 mixture of Z11-14:OAc and E11-14:OAc. This sex pheromone is very similar to that of the Z-type European corn borer, O. nubilalis. The present finding raises the question of whether O. orientalis , which is indistinguishable from O. nubilalis based on external morphology, is a biologically distinct species independent from O. nubilalis.     

Pipeline leakage detection and isolation: An integrated approach of statistical and wavelet feature extraction with multi-layer perceptron neural network (MLPNN)

Leakage diagnosis of hydrocarbon pipelines can prevent environmental and financial losses. This work proposes a novel method that not only detects the occurrence of a leakage fault, but also suggests its location and severity. The OLGA software is employed to provide the pipeline inlet pressure and outlet flow rates as the training data for the Fault Detection and Isolation (FDI) system. The FDI system is comprised of a Multi-Layer Perceptron Neural Network (MLPNN) classifier with various feature extraction methods including the statistical techniques, wavelet transform, and a fusion of both methods. Once different leakage scenarios are considered and the preprocessing methods are done, the proposed FDI system is applied to a 20-km pipeline in southern Iran (Goldkari-Binak pipeline) and a promising severity and location detectability (a correct classification rate of 92%) and a low False Alarm Rate (FAR) were achieved.     

Male approach and female avoidance as mechanisms of population discrimination in sagebrush lizards

Reproductive isolation and speciation can result from female choice for particular males. Isolation can also result, however, from male mating preferences or from aggressive encounters which then influence mating decisions. In this study, we use laboratory discrimination trials to study the behavioral mechanisms of population discrimination in sagebrush lizards (Sceloporus graciosus). We specifically ask three questions about population-level discrimination: (1) Does it vary in strength in relation to the geographic distance between the populations? (2) Is it more apparent in inter- or intra-sexual interactions? (3) Does it take the form of attraction or avoidance? We ran 890 trials that tested the ability of male and female sagebrush lizards from one population to discriminate their own population from four other populations. In addition, we utilized both sequential and simultaneous-choice designs, which enabled us to distinguish between attraction and avoidance. We found that most population-level discrimination was exhibited by male lizards preferring to associate with particular types of females, as well as female avoidance of particular types of males. The strength and direction of both discriminations depended on the populations compared and on whether the tests were conducted as sequential- or simultaneous-choice tests, producing a complex relationship between geographic distance and behavioral discrimination. Our results suggest that there are roles for male attraction and female avoidance in population discrimination, reproductive isolation, and speciation.