Probing met repressor-operator recognition in solution.

The three-dimensional crystal structure of the Escherichia coli methionine repressor, MetJ, complexed with a DNA operator fragment is described in an accompanying article. The complex exhibits several novel features of DNA-protein interaction. DNA sequence recognition is achieved largely by hydrogen-bond contacts between the bases and amino-acid side chains located on a beta-ribbon, a mode of recognition previously hypothesized on the basis of modelling of idealized beta-strands and DNA, and mutagenesis of the Salmonella phage P22 repressors Arc and Mnt. The complex comprises a pair of MetJ repressor dimers which bind to adjacent met-box sites on the DNA, and contact each other by means of a pair of antiparallel alpha-helices. Here we assess the importance of these contacts, and also of contacts that would be made between the C-helices of the protein and DNA in a previous model of the complex, by studying mutations aimed at disrupting them. The role of the carboxy-terminal helix face in operator binding was unclear, but we demonstrate that recognition of operator sequences occurs through side chains in the beta-strand motif and that dimer-dimer interactions are required for effective repression.     

Overcompensation and population cycles in an ungulate.

Although theoretical studies show that overcompensatory density-dependent mechanisms can potentially generate regular or chaotic fluctuations in animal numbers, the majority of realistic single-species models of invertebrate populations are not overcompensatory enough to cause sustained population cycles. The possibility that overcompensation may generate cycles or chaos in vertebrate populations has seldom been considered. Here we show that highly overcompensatng density-dependent mortality can generate recurrent population crashes consistent with those observed in a naturally limited population of Soay sheep. The observed interval of three or more years between crashes points to sharp 'focusing' of mortality over a narrow range of population density.     

Phenological studies of selected savanna mosses of south-western Nigeria

It was established that there is little diversity of bryophytes in the derived savanna. Mosses were found in the sampling sites, whereas liverworts were rarely observed. The reproductive methods of four dominant sexually reproducing savanna mosses —Archidium ohioense, Bryum coronatum, Fissidens minutifolius andTrachycarpidium tisserantii were monitored over two consecutive rainy seasons. Protonemal and gametophyte production were noticed in the field in March/April, and capsule dehiscence and spore dispersal occurred in September/October. The sequential stages of development, starting with gametangial production and ending with the falling of the dehisced capsules, occurred within the rainy season. However,A. ohioense andT. tisserantii did not discharge their spores easily (cleistocarpous), unlike the stegocarpous speciesB. coronatum andF. minutifolius. Water availability and possibly high humidity may have contributed to growth. The short period between sex organ formation and dehiscence of capsule seen in these studies, compared with the longer period in some temperate mosses, may be an advantage for bryophytes in a savanna environment.