Endangered species and the law.

Taxonomy does not deserve its reputation as an arcane science. As the following examples from ungulate taxonomy show, classification has important implications for conservation legislation.     

Cloning of a representative genomic library of the human X chromosome after sorting by flow cytometry

A library of 50,000 recombinants representative of the human X chromosome has been constructed. Human X chromosomes were physically separated using a fluorescence-activated cell sorter. The DNA was purified from the chromosomes, digested to completion with the restriction enzyme EcoRI and cloned into the phage lambda gtWES.lambda B. The X-derived nature of the recombinants was confirmed by hybridization to rodent/human cell line DNA containing only the human X chromosome. Such libraries will be particularly useful for the investigation of genetic diseases such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy, where the basic defect has not been elucidated, and of neoplasia, where several specific chromosomal anomalies, particularly for the leukaemias, have been identified.     

Direct splitting of water under visible light irradiation with an oxide semiconductor photocatalyst.

The photocatalytic splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen using solar energy is a potentially clean and renewable source for hydrogen fuel. The first photocatalysts suitable for water splitting, or for activating hydrogen production from carbohydrate compounds made by plants from water and carbon dioxide, were developed several decades ago. But these catalysts operate with ultraviolet light, which accounts for only 4% of the incoming solar energy and thus renders the overall process impractical. For this reason, considerable efforts have been invested in developing photocatalysts capable of using the less energetic but more abundant visible light, which accounts for about 43% of the incoming solar energy. However, systems that are sufficiently stable and efficient for practical use have not yet been realized. Here we show that doping of indium-tantalum-oxide with nickel yields a series of photocatalysts, In(1-x)Ni(x)TaO(4) (x = 0-0.2), which induces direct splitting of water into stoichiometric amounts of oxygen and hydrogen under visible light irradiation with a quantum yield of about 0.66%. Our findings suggest that the use of solar energy for photocatalytic water splitting might provide a viable source for 'clean' hydrogen fuel, once the catalytic efficiency of the semiconductor system has been improved by increasing its surface area and suitable modifications of the surface sites.     

Depositional history of the early part of the Jurassic succession on the Rajasthan Shelf, western India

Part of the lowermost deposits of the Triassic to Earlymid Jurassic (up to Bajocian) sedimentary succession spread across the Rajasthan shelf on the western part of the Indian craton is found in the Jaisalmer Basin east of Jaisalmer with the best exposed sections along the Jodhpur-Jaisalmer Highway. Based on lithostratigraphic characteristics, the succession is divided into four: Odania and Thaiat members, Lathi Formation; and Hamira and Joyan members, Jaisalmer Formation. Six facies are defined from microfacies, sedimentary structures, biotic components and depositional environments: (1) ferruginous, pebbly, cross-bedded sandstone—high-energy, fluvial; (2) cross-bedded, poorly sorted, fossil wood-bearing sandstone—highenergy, terrestrial, with high influx of sediment and warm and humid climate; (3) cross-bedded to rarely bioturbated, alternating silt to fine-grained sandstone—fluctuating sedimentation rates and energy—nearshore, mesohaline embayment to lagoonal; (4) partly bioturbated, storm-dominated, mixed siliciclastic-carbonate facies—fully marine; (5) low angle cross-laminated, silt to fine-grained sandstone—nearshore shallow water, above fair weather wave base; and (6) thick rudstones with mega-ripples and reworked coral heads-storm deposits representing the peak of first major marine transgression across the basin.     

A ribonucleotide reductase gene involved in a p53-dependent cell-cycle checkpoint for DNA damage

The p53 gene is frequently inactivated in human cancers. Here we have isolated a p53-inducible gene, p53R2, by using differential display to examine messenger RNAs in a cancer-derived human cell line carrying a highly regulated wild-type p53 expression system. p53R2 contains a p53-binding sequence in intron 1 and encodes a 351-amino-acid peptide with striking similarity to the ribonucleotide reductase small subunit (R2), which is important in DNA synthesis during cell division. Expression of p53R2, but not R2, was induced by ultraviolet and gamma-irradiation and adriamycin treatment in a wild-type p53-dependent manner. Induction of p53R2 in p53-deficient cells caused G2/M arrest and prevented cells from death in response to adriamycin. Inhibition of endogenous p53R2 expression in cells that have an intact p53-dependent DNA damage checkpoint reduced ribonucleotide reductase activity, DNA repair and cell survival after exposure to various genotoxins. Our results indicate that p53R2 encodes a ribonucleotide reductase that is directly involved in the p53 checkpoint for repair of damaged DNA. The discovery of p53R2 clarifies a relationship between a ribonucleotide reductase activity involved in repair of damaged DNA and tumour suppression by p53.     

Application of Method-of-Lines to Charging-Up Process in Pipelines with Entrapped Air

Introduction The initial charging-up process is an important opera-tion in an intermittent,undulating pipeline system.Re-cently,the charging-up process has received attention with the aim of predicting the effective duration of supply in different regions…     

T形线散射电流的麦克斯韦电路

运用最新提出的麦克斯韦电路理论,分析T形线的散射电流,将该结构等效为LC电路,求解与之对应的微分方程,得到该结构的散射电流,数值实验分别计算了T形线的等效电路参数L,C,α,β,以及相应的散射电流,分析结果表明,所得电路参数和散射电流符合物理现象,并且与矩量法的结果以及相关文献中的结果均吻合,从而证明了该方法的正确性和...     

Human gamma-chain genes are rearranged in leukaemic T cells and map to the short arm of chromosome 7

Three gene families that rearrange during the somatic development of T cells have been identified in the murine genome. Two of these gene families (alpha and beta) encode subunits of the antigen-specific T-cell receptor and are also present in the human genome. The third gene family, designated here as the gamma-chain gene family, is rearranged in murine cytolytic T cells but not in most helper T cells. Here we present evidence that the human genome also contains gamma-chain genes that undergo somatic rearrangement in leukaemia-derived T cells. Murine gamma-chain genes appear to be encoded in gene segments that are analogous to the immunoglobulin gene variable, constant and joining segments. There are two closely related constant-region gene segments in the human genome. One of the constant-region genes is deleted in all three T-cell leukaemias that we have studied. The two constant-region gamma-chain genes reside on the short arm of chromosome 7 (7p15); this region is involved in chromosomal rearrangements identified in T cells from individuals with the immunodeficiency syndrome ataxia telangiectasia and observed only rarely in routine cytogenetic analyses of normal individuals. This region is also a secondary site of beta-chain gene hybridization.     

The genome sequence of the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe grisea

Magnaporthe grisea is the most destructive pathogen of rice worldwide and the principal model organism for elucidating the molecular basis of fungal disease of plants. Here, we report the draft sequence of the M. grisea genome. Analysis of the gene set provides an insight into the adaptations required by a fungus to cause disease. The genome encodes a large and diverse set of secreted proteins, including those defined by unusual carbohydrate-binding domains. This fungus also possesses an expanded family of G-protein-coupled receptors, several new virulence-associated genes and large suites of enzymes involved in secondary metabolism. Consistent with a role in fungal pathogenesis, the expression of several of these genes is upregulated during the early stages of infection-related development. The M. grisea genome has been subject to invasion and proliferation of active transposable elements, reflecting the clonal nature of this fungus imposed by widespread rice cultivation.