Sonic hedgehog signaling pathway in vertebrate epithelial appendage morphogenesis: perspectives in development and evolution

Vertebrate epithelial appendages are elaborate topological transformations of flat epithelia into complex organs that either protrude out of external (integument) and internal (oral cavity, gut) epithelia, or invaginate into the surrounding mesenchyme. Although they have specific structures and diverse functions, most epithelial appendages share similar developmental stages, including induction, morphogenesis, differentiation and cycling. The roles of the SHH pathway are analyzed in exemplary organs including feather, hair, tooth, tongue papilla, lung and foregut. SHH is not essential for induction and differentiation, but is involved heavily in morphogenetic processes including cell proliferation (size regulation), branching morphogenesis, mesenchymal condensation, fate determination (segmentation), polarizing activities and so on. Through differential activation of these processes by SHH in a spatiotemporal-specific fashion, organs of different shape and size are laid down. During evolution, new links of developmental pathways may occur and novel forms of epithelial appendages may emerge, upon which evolutionary selections can act. Sites of major variations have progressed from the body plan to the limb plan to the epithelial appendage plan. With its powerful morphogenetic activities, the SHH pathway would likely continue to play a major role in the evolution of novel epithelial appendages.     

韩国、欧美学生汉语口语学习策略对比研究

对外汉语教学方兴未艾，其主要目标是培养学生的汉语交际能力，研究如何使汉语口语学习更有效便显得既迫切又必要。韩国、欧美学生基本代表东西文化圈汉语口语学习的特点，使用问卷调查、访谈与课堂观察结合的方式研究了他们的汉语口语学习策略（CSLS）使用情况，研究得出：韩国、欧美学生使用最多的是社会策略；使用较少的是记忆策略和情感策略；文化背景对韩国、欧美学生CSLS的使用总体影响不大，但明显影响记忆策略的使用。建议对外汉语口语教学考虑学生的学习特点，因势利导。     

图形处理器通用计算的研究综述

从2004年开始,图形处理器GPU的通用计算成为一个新研究热点,此后GPGPU(Gen-eral-Purpose Graphics Processing Unit)在最近几年中取得长足发展。从介绍GPGPU硬件体系结构的改变和软件技术的发展开始,阐述GPGPU主要应用领域中的研究成果及最新发展。针对各种应用领域中计算数据大规模增加的趋势,出现单个GPU计算节点无法克服的硬件限制问题,为解决该问题出现多GPU计算和GPU集群的解决方案。详细地讨论通用计算GPU集群的研究进展和应用技术,包括GPU集群硬件异构性的问题和软件框架的三个研究趋势,对几种典型的软件框架Glift、Zippy、CUDASA的特性和缺点进行较详细的分析。最后,总结GPU通用计算研究发展中存在的问题和未来的挑战。     

Human dorsal anterior cingulate cortex neurons mediate ongoing behavioural adaptation

The ability to optimize behavioural performance when confronted with continuously evolving environmental demands is a key element of human cognition. The dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), which lies on the medial surface of the frontal lobes, is important in regulating cognitive control. Hypotheses about its function include guiding reward-based decision making, monitoring for conflict between competing responses and predicting task difficulty. Precise mechanisms of dACC function remain unknown, however, because of the limited number of human neurophysiological studies. Here we use functional imaging and human single-neuron recordings to show that the firing of individual dACC neurons encodes current and recent cognitive load. We demonstrate that the modulation of current dACC activity by previous activity produces a behavioural adaptation that accelerates reactions to cues of similar difficulty to previous ones, and retards reactions to cues of different difficulty. Furthermore, this conflict adaptation, or Gratton effect, is abolished after surgically targeted ablation of the dACC. Our results demonstrate that the dACC provides a continuously updated prediction of expected cognitive demand to optimize future behavioural responses. In situations with stable cognitive demands, this signal promotes efficiency by hastening responses, but in situations with changing demands it engenders accuracy by delaying responses.     

攀枝花苏铁自然保护区野生居群遗传多样性ISSR分析

采用ISSR分子标记技术对四川省攀枝花苏铁自然保护区的攀枝花苏铁自然居群进行了遗传多样性分析.对采集的48个体的基因组DNA进行PCR扩增,筛选出13个扩增条带清晰的引物,共检测到104个清晰位点,其中多态位点94个,多态位点百分率为90.38%.平均每个引物扩增条带为8条.结果表明,攀枝花苏铁在居群内水平上仍保持较高的遗传多样性.对其居群遗传多样性和遗传结构进行分析,可为攀枝花苏铁的保护和利用提供理论基础.     

搜索策略及其技术实现

组卷策略是试题库系统的核心，关系到系统生存与发展，重点论述搜索策略以及搜索策略的技术实现，并为策略使用者建立数学模型，同时提供策略的数据流程图。     

蜕皮激素对双斑蟋后足胫节再生的影响

通过对双斑蟋(Gryllus bimaculatus)若虫施加不同剂量蜕皮激素(MH)并进行观察、记录、分析,探讨了蜕皮激素对其后足胫节再生的影响.实验结果表明,适量的蜕皮激素可以使双斑蟋若虫再生期间的蜕皮间隔缩短,胫节再生的长度加大.过量的蜕皮激素则抑制若虫胫节的再生甚至造成若虫死亡.     

Opposing effects on the cell cycle of T lymphocytes by Fbxo7 via Cdk6 and p27

G₁ phase cell cycle proteins, such as cyclin-dependent kinase 6 (Cdk6) and its activating partners, the D-type cyclins, are important regulators of T-cell development and function. An F-box protein, called F-box only protein 7 (Fbxo7), acts as a cell cycle regulator by enhancing cyclin D-Cdk6 complex formation and stabilising levels of p27, a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor. We generated a murine model of reduced Fbxo7 expression to test its physiological role in multiple tissues and found that these mice displayed a pronounced thymic hypoplasia. Further analysis revealed that Fbxo7 differentially affected proliferation and apoptosis of thymocytes at various stages of differentiation in the thymus and also mature T-cell function and proliferation in the periphery. Paradoxically, Fbxo7-deficient immature thymocytes failed to undergo expansion in the thymus due to a lack of Cdk6 activity, while mature T cells showed enhanced proliferative capacity upon T-cell receptor engagement due to reduced p27 levels. Our studies reveal differential cell cycle regulation by Fbxo7 at different stages in T-cell development.     

A simple system of multiple organ-baths

Summary A compact and easily assembled system of multiple organ-baths is described, in which use is made of readily available materials.Acknowledgment. G.E.R. was in receipt of the ruggles Gates Research Award.