Cone monochromacy and a reversed Purkinje shift in the gerbil

Summary Retinal spectral sensitivity of the gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) shows that this animal has a unique photoreceptor complement: there is only a single class of cone and the spectrum for these receptors is peak shifted toward the short wavelengths relative to the spectra obtained from rods.     

Mammal teeth from the Cretaceous of Africa

We report here the discovery of two mammal teeth from the early Cretaceous of Cameroon. These, and some jaw fragments, all from Cameroon, are the only fossil evidence of mammalian evolution from Africa between late Jurassic and Paleocene, a span of at least 85 million years. A triangular upper tooth lacks the principal internal cusp of marsupials and placentals and is therefore of a similar evolutionary grade to most Jurassic and early Cretaceous therian mammals, but more primitive than the metatherian-eutherian grade. Early Cretaceous, or older, therian mammals are now known from all southern continents except Antarctica. The new find from Cameroon is consistent with the hypothesis that marsupials, the dominant living mammals of South America and Australia, were not present on any Gondwana continents until after the early Cretaceous separation of Africa by the opening of the South Atlantic.     

Function of the mandibular tooth comb in living and extinct mammals

Among the most interesting mammalian dental specialization is the mandibular 'tooth comb' or 'tooth scraper' that evolved independently in certain primates and other mammals. Its occurrence is most widely known in lemurs and lorises, where it is comprised of the long, slender, procumbent incisors (one or two pairs) and incisiform canines (Fig. 1). In non-primates to canines are not incorporated into the comb. Some tree shrews (Tupaiidae) possess a tooth comb consisting of the four central incisors, and some early Tertiary arctocyonid condylarths had a similar structure composed of all six lower incisors. The extant flying lemurs (Dermoptera: Cynocephalus) also have a dental 'comb' but it is very different from the ones already mentioned, consisting of two pairs of pectinate incisors, each tooth modified into a comb with as many as 15 tines. This condition, although sometimes said to be similar to that in lemurs, is unique to Cynocephalus. One of the principal functions of the tooth comb in primates is to comb the fur, and we present here indirect evidence that condylarths used this structure in the same way, millions of years before tooth combs evolved in prosimians. We also show that the comb-like incisors of Cynocephalus, contrary to popular belief, probably do not function to comb the fur.     

Einige Probleme der Verhaltensforschung bei Insekten,insbesondere Orthopteren

Summary The insects, as animals of purely instinctive behaviour, are prefectly suited for studies in the sense of modern ethology. In a series of examples, especially on the singing orthoptera, several new findings are discussed. But many important problems still remain to be worked out; the insects should be very good objects for further successful studies.

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Herrn Prof.K. v. Frisch zum 70. Geburtstag gewidmet.     

Genome-wide association study of prostate cancer identifies a second risk locus at 8q24

Recently, common variants on human chromosome 8q24 were found to be associated with prostate cancer risk. While conducting a genome-wide association study in the Cancer Genetic Markers of Susceptibility project with 550,000 SNPs in a nested case-control study (1,172 cases and 1,157 controls of European origin), we identified a new association at 8q24 with an independent effect on prostate cancer susceptibility. The most significant signal is 70 kb centromeric to the previously reported SNP, rs1447295, but shows little evidence of linkage disequilibrium with it. A combined analysis with four additional studies (total: 4,296 cases and 4,299 controls) confirms association with prostate cancer for rs6983267 in the centromeric locus (P = 9.42 x 10(-13); heterozygote odds ratio (OR): 1.26, 95% confidence interval (c.i.): 1.13-1.41; homozygote OR: 1.58, 95% c.i.: 1.40-1.78). Each SNP remained significant in a joint analysis after adjusting for the other (rs1447295 P = 1.41 x 10(-11); rs6983267 P = 6.62 x 10(-10)). These observations, combined with compelling evidence for a recombination hotspot between the two markers, indicate the presence of at least two independent loci within 8q24 that contribute to prostate cancer in men of European ancestry. We estimate that the population attributable risk of the new locus, marked by rs6983267, is higher than the locus marked by rs1447295 (21% versus 9%).     

A genome-wide association study identifies alleles in FGFR2 associated with risk of sporadic postmenopausal breast cancer

We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of breast cancer by genotyping 528,173 SNPs in 1,145 postmenopausal women of European ancestry with invasive breast cancer and 1,142 controls. We identified four SNPs in intron 2 of FGFR2 (which encodes a receptor tyrosine kinase and is amplified or overexpressed in some breast cancers) that were highly associated with breast cancer and confirmed this association in 1,776 affected individuals and 2,072 controls from three additional studies. Across the four studies, the association with all four SNPs was highly statistically significant (P(trend) for the most strongly associated SNP (rs1219648) = 1.1 x 10(-10); population attributable risk = 16%). Four SNPs at other loci most strongly associated with breast cancer in the initial GWAS were not associated in the replication studies. Our summary results from the GWAS are available online in a form that should speed the identification of additional risk loci.     

Epigenetic stem cell signature in cancer

Embryonic stem cells rely on Polycomb group proteins to reversibly repress genes required for differentiation. We report that stem cell Polycomb group targets are up to 12-fold more likely to have cancer-specific promoter DNA hypermethylation than non-targets, supporting a stem cell origin of cancer in which reversible gene repression is replaced by permanent silencing, locking the cell into a perpetual state of self-renewal and thereby predisposing to subsequent malignant transformation.     

Persistence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in macrophages and mice requires the glyoxylate shunt enzyme isocitrate lyase

Mycobacterium tuberculosis claims more human lives each year than any other bacterial pathogen. Infection is maintained in spite of acquired immunity and resists eradication by antimicrobials. Despite an urgent need for new therapies targeting persistent bacteria, our knowledge of bacterial metabolism throughout the course of infection remains rudimentary. Here we report that persistence of M. tuberculosis in mice is facilitated by isocitrate lyase (ICL), an enzyme essential for the metabolism of fatty acids. Disruption of the icl gene attenuated bacterial persistence and virulence in immune-competent mice without affecting bacterial growth during the acute phase of infection. A link between the requirement for ICL and the immune status of the host was established by the restored virulence of delta icl bacteria in interferon-gamma knockout mice. This link was apparent at the level of the infected macrophage: Activation of infected macrophages increased expression of ICL, and the delta icl mutant was markedly attenuated for survival in activated but not resting macrophages. These data suggest that the metabolism of M. tuberculosis in vivo is profoundly influenced by the host response to infection, an observation with important implications for the treatment of chronic tuberculosis.