Metallothionein expression by NG2 glial cells following CNS injury

Metallothionein (MT) expression is rapidly up-regulated following CNS injury, and there is a strong correlation between the presence or absence of MTand improved or impaired (respectively) recovery from such trauma.We now report that a distinct subset of NG2-positive, GFAP-negative glial cells bordering the injury tract express MT following focal injury to the adult rat neocortex. To confirm the ability of these NG2 glial cells to express MT, we have isolated and cultured them and identified that they can express MT following stimulation with zinc. To investigate the functional importance of MT expression by NG2 glial cells, we plated cortical neurons onto these cells and found that expression of MT enhanced the permissivity of NG2 glial cells to neurite outgrowth. Our data suggest that expression of MT by NG2 glial cells may contribute to the overall permissiveness of these cells to axon regeneration.     

Convergent evolution of defensin sequence,structure and function

Defensins are a well-characterised group of small, disulphide-rich, cationic peptides that are produced by essentially all eukaryotes and are highly diverse in their sequences and structures. Most display broad range antimicrobial activity at low micromolar concentrations, whereas others have other diverse roles, including cell signalling (e.g. immune cell recruitment, self/non-self-recognition), ion channel perturbation, toxic functions, and enzyme inhibition. The defensins consist of two superfamilies, each derived from an independent evolutionary origin, which have subsequently undergone extensive divergent evolution in their sequence, structure and function. Referred to as the cis- and trans-defensin superfamilies, they are classified based on their secondary structure orientation, cysteine motifs and disulphide bond connectivities, tertiary structure similarities and precursor gene sequence. The utility of displaying loops on a stable, compact, disulphide-rich core has been exploited by evolution on multiple occasions. The defensin superfamilies represent a case where the ensuing convergent evolution of sequence, structure and function has been particularly extreme. Here, we discuss the extent, causes and significance of these convergent features, drawing examples from across the eukaryotes.     

Te对高温超导陶瓷YBa4Cu6Oy超导电性的影响

对YBa_4Cu_6Oy陶瓷的研究表明,它具有与YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-δ)凸相近的超导电性。以CuTeO_3方式加入适量的Te使它的临界电流密度Jc增加近一个量级而Tc仍保持在90k附近。     

我国物流企业生产效率与规模效率

首先利用DEACCR/BCC模型对我国在沪深港证券市场上市的55家物流企业的生产效率和规模效率进行实证比较分析,然后通过相关性分析及多项回归分析研究了规模效率及固定资产规模与生产效率的关系.结果表明：1)大型物流企业相对中小型物流企业而言并不具备显著的效率优势.2)我国物流企业不存在显著的规模效率差异,不应盲目追求资产规模的扩张和重组.3)我国物流企业的纯技术效率大于规模效率对生产效率的影响,物流企业的技术改进比规模扩张更具重要性.4)物流企业生产成本是影响企业生产效率的主要因素,而资产规模和职工工资对生产效率没有显著影响.     

A simple interspike interval analyzer for study of neuronal spike trains

Summary A simple, low cost interspike interval analyzer for the analysis of trains of nerve impulses is described. The analyzer is built with readily available integrated circuits and has been used to analyze spike trains in the lateral vestibular nucleus of cats.Acknowledgment. This research is supported in part by Higher Degrees and Research Grant No. 158/363 to J.C.H. from the University of Hong Kong.     

Forecasting Hong Kong's container throughput: an error‐correction model

A three‐player oligopoly model is devised to capture the competitive interaction between operators of the Hong Kong container terminals, the Hong Kong midstream and the Singapore container terminals in providing container handling services. The oligopoly model is then estimated statistically and thereby the structural parameters can be identified. The results of the estimation confirm a substitutability between the services supplied by operators of different types (terminal versus midstream) and different locations (Hong Kong versus Singapore). Moreover, the model proposed in this article generates forecasts of demand for Hong Kong's container handling services that are more accurate than those reported by the government authority, and suggests an earlier construction of new terminals to meet future demand. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

深圳湾近30年主要景观类型之演变

将深圳特区城市化过程划分为城市化初期、发展期、加速期和后期4个阶段,借助不同时期的遥感图像,包括1979年的MSS,1989、1998、2003、2009的TM,采用景观分类、景观转移和景观指数分析等一系列技术方法,分析了深圳湾地区基围、红树林和滩涂3种湿地景观类型的动态特征变化。结果表明:①深圳湾景观类型丰富,有较高多样性,但不同类型所占面积差异较大。人为干扰是深圳湾景观格局和景观类型发生改变的主要因素,围垦填海和城市建设严重破坏了深圳湾滨海湿地,海岸线不断向浅海延伸。②从1979年至2009年的30年间,研究区的城市建成区面积从508.95 hm2增加到2 072.52 hm2,最大斑块面积指数从2.94%增加到17.55%;③基围景观受人为干扰最严重,其面积在城市化初期表现为增长的趋势,1989年在景观中所占的比例达到了最高峰时的7.72%,此后城市化速度的加快使得基围景观逐渐演变为建成区或其他景观类型,且斑块形状趋于规则,由非正方形的形状趋于偏向正方形。在城市化的后两个阶段,基围景观发生转入和转出的斑块数量都很少,主要分布在进行了几次大规模围海工程的南山区;④城市化的前两个阶段红树林总面积持续减少,1998年后开始恢复增长,面积由52.65 hm2增加到2009年的81 hm2。景观指数分析表明,红树林景观没有趋于破碎化,反而形成了较大的景观斑块,景观连通性增加,保护区的建立对红树林的保护起着重要作用;⑤滩涂景观在过去30年间呈现较大幅度的波动和反复性,总的来说,面积从1979年的634.5 hm2减少至2009年的377.28 hm2,景观趋于破碎化,稳定性下降。     

Towards robust regional estimates of CO2 sources and sinks using atmospheric transport models

Information about regional carbon sources and sinks can be derived from variations in observed atmospheric CO2 concentrations via inverse modelling with atmospheric tracer transport models. A consensus has not yet been reached regarding the size and distribution of regional carbon fluxes obtained using this approach, partly owing to the use of several different atmospheric transport models. Here we report estimates of surface-atmosphere CO2 fluxes from an intercomparison of atmospheric CO2 inversion models (the TransCom 3 project), which includes 16 transport models and model variants. We find an uptake of CO2 in the southern extratropical ocean less than that estimated from ocean measurements, a result that is not sensitive to transport models or methodological approaches. We also find a northern land carbon sink that is distributed relatively evenly among the continents of the Northern Hemisphere, but these results show some sensitivity to transport differences among models, especially in how they respond to seasonal terrestrial exchange of CO2. Overall, carbon fluxes integrated over latitudinal zones are strongly constrained by observations in the middle to high latitudes. Further significant constraints to our understanding of regional carbon fluxes will therefore require improvements in transport models and expansion of the CO2 observation network within the tropics.