Additive threats from pathogens, climate and land-use change for global amphibian diversity

Amphibian population declines far exceed those of other vertebrate groups, with 30% of all species listed as threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The causes of these declines are a matter of continued research, but probably include climate change, land-use change and spread of the pathogenic fungal disease chytridiomycosis. Here we assess the spatial distribution and interactions of these primary threats in relation to the global distribution of amphibian species. We show that the greatest proportions of species negatively affected by climate change are projected to be found in Africa, parts of northern South America and the Andes. Regions with the highest projected impact of land-use and climate change coincide, but there is little spatial overlap with regions highly threatened by the fungal disease. Overall, the areas harbouring the richest amphibian faunas are disproportionately more affected by one or multiple threat factors than areas with low richness. Amphibian declines are likely to accelerate in the twenty-first century, because multiple drivers of extinction could jeopardize their populations more than previous, mono-causal, assessments have suggested.     

Functional genomic screen reveals genes involved in lipid-droplet formation and utilization

Eukaryotic cells store neutral lipids in cytoplasmic lipid droplets enclosed in a monolayer of phospholipids and associated proteins. These dynamic organelles serve as the principal reservoirs for storing cellular energy and for the building blocks for membrane lipids. Excessive lipid accumulation in cells is a central feature of obesity, diabetes and atherosclerosis, yet remarkably little is known about lipid-droplet cell biology. Here we show, by means of a genome-wide RNA interference (RNAi) screen in Drosophila S2 cells that about 1.5% of all genes function in lipid-droplet formation and regulation. The phenotypes of the gene knockdowns sorted into five distinct phenotypic classes. Genes encoding enzymes of phospholipid biosynthesis proved to be determinants of lipid-droplet size and number, suggesting that the phospholipid composition of the monolayer profoundly affects droplet morphology and lipid utilization. A subset of the Arf1-COPI vesicular transport proteins also regulated droplet morphology and lipid utilization, thereby identifying a previously unrecognized function for this machinery. These phenotypes are conserved in mammalian cells, suggesting that insights from these studies are likely to be central to our understanding of human diseases involving excessive lipid storage.     

Sympatric speciation in Nicaraguan crater lake cichlid fish

Sympatric speciation, the formation of species in the absence of geographical barriers, remains one of the most contentious concepts in evolutionary biology. Although speciation under sympatric conditions seems theoretically possible, empirical studies are scarce and only a few credible examples of sympatric speciation exist. Here we present a convincing case of sympatric speciation in the Midas cichlid species complex (Amphilophus sp.) in a young and small volcanic crater lake in Nicaragua. Our study includes phylogeographic, population-genetic (based on mitochondrial DNA, microsatellites and amplified fragment length polymorphisms), morphometric and ecological analyses. We find, first, that crater Lake Apoyo was seeded only once by the ancestral high-bodied benthic species Amphilophus citrinellus, the most common cichlid species in the area; second, that a new elongated limnetic species (Amphilophus zaliosus) evolved in Lake Apoyo from the ancestral species (A. citrinellus) within less than approximately 10,000 yr; third, that the two species in Lake Apoyo are reproductively isolated; and fourth, that the two species are eco-morphologically distinct.     

Stream denitrification across biomes and its response to anthropogenic nitrate loading

Anthropogenic addition of bioavailable nitrogen to the biosphere is increasing and terrestrial ecosystems are becoming increasingly nitrogen-saturated, causing more bioavailable nitrogen to enter groundwater and surface waters. Large-scale nitrogen budgets show that an average of about 20-25 per cent of the nitrogen added to the biosphere is exported from rivers to the ocean or inland basins, indicating that substantial sinks for nitrogen must exist in the landscape. Streams and rivers may themselves be important sinks for bioavailable nitrogen owing to their hydrological connections with terrestrial systems, high rates of biological activity, and streambed sediment environments that favour microbial denitrification. Here we present data from nitrogen stable isotope tracer experiments across 72 streams and 8 regions representing several biomes. We show that total biotic uptake and denitrification of nitrate increase with stream nitrate concentration, but that the efficiency of biotic uptake and denitrification declines as concentration increases, reducing the proportion of in-stream nitrate that is removed from transport. Our data suggest that the total uptake of nitrate is related to ecosystem photosynthesis and that denitrification is related to ecosystem respiration. In addition, we use a stream network model to demonstrate that excess nitrate in streams elicits a disproportionate increase in the fraction of nitrate that is exported to receiving waters and reduces the relative role of small versus large streams as nitrate sinks.     

Sequence- and target-independent angiogenesis suppression by siRNA via TLR3

Clinical trials of small interfering RNA (siRNA) targeting vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGFA) or its receptor VEGFR1 (also called FLT1), in patients with blinding choroidal neovascularization (CNV) from age-related macular degeneration, are premised on gene silencing by means of intracellular RNA interference (RNAi). We show instead that CNV inhibition is a siRNA-class effect: 21-nucleotide or longer siRNAs targeting non-mammalian genes, non-expressed genes, non-genomic sequences, pro- and anti-angiogenic genes, and RNAi-incompetent siRNAs all suppressed CNV in mice comparably to siRNAs targeting Vegfa or Vegfr1 without off-target RNAi or interferon-alpha/beta activation. Non-targeted (against non-mammalian genes) and targeted (against Vegfa or Vegfr1) siRNA suppressed CNV via cell-surface toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3), its adaptor TRIF, and induction of interferon-gamma and interleukin-12. Non-targeted siRNA suppressed dermal neovascularization in mice as effectively as Vegfa siRNA. siRNA-induced inhibition of neovascularization required a minimum length of 21 nucleotides, a bridging necessity in a modelled 2:1 TLR3-RNA complex. Choroidal endothelial cells from people expressing the TLR3 coding variant 412FF were refractory to extracellular siRNA-induced cytotoxicity, facilitating individualized pharmacogenetic therapy. Multiple human endothelial cell types expressed surface TLR3, indicating that generic siRNAs might treat angiogenic disorders that affect 8% of the world's population, and that siRNAs might induce unanticipated vascular or immune effects.     

竹类研究进展

自古以来竹子一种重要的自然资源,在人们的日常生活中得到了广泛的应用,随着竹材加工工艺的不断改进,以竹子为原料的新产品层出不穷,竹材的工业化利用,使竹子已经不再是“穷人的木材”,竹制精品已称豪华,而竹子的化学利用将成为开拓高附加值竹产品的有效途径,在基础理论研究方面,竹子生物多样性的研究成为新的热点。竹林的生太民功能及其在可持续发展中的重要性愈来愈受到国际社会的广泛关注。在拉丁美洲和非洲,以及在没有天然竹林分布的欧洲和北美洲都日趋注重对竹类的研究与开发利用,现代生物学技术为分子水平揭示竹类植物系统发育和个体发育的机制提供了更有效的手段。     

载畜率对短花针茅荒漠草原土壤物理特性的影响

放牧对土壤物理特性的影响至关重要.为了研究放牧对土壤物理特性的影响,在内蒙古荒漠草原上开展了不同绵羊载畜率放牧试验.试验采取完全随机区组设计,设置4个不同载畜率处理,3次重复.4个处理分别是对照(CK)、轻度放牧(LG)、中度放牧(MG)和重度放牧(HG),相应的载畜率分别是0,0.15,0.30和0.45只羊/(公顷·月).放牧时间为每年6月-11月.从2004年到2006年的放牧期间,每月测定一次土壤含水量和土壤容重,土壤紧实度和机械组成每年秋季测定一次.通过对测定数据的分析表明,土壤表层(0-10cm)的含水量从对照到轻度放牧显著(p＜0.05)增加,然后随着载畜率的增大明显(p＜0.05)降低.土壤容重在不同载畜率条件下没有明显变化(p＞0.05),但土壤紧实度随载畜率的增加显著(p＜0.05)增大.中度和重度放牧显著降低了土壤黏粒的含量(p＜0.05).重度放牧加快了草地土壤水分的损失,进而增加了土壤的紧实度,使草地土壤发生退化.载畜率和土壤水分是影响荒漠草原可持续管理的关键因子,轻度载畜率是实现草地的可持续发展的最适宜载畜率.