Tracing the Origins of Hakka and Chaoshanese by Mitochondrial DNA Analysis

Hakka and Chaoshanese are two unique Han populations residing in southern China but with northern Han (NH) cultural traditions and linguistic influences. Although most of historical records indicate that both populations migrated from northern China in the last two thousand years, no consensus on their origins has been reached so far. To shed more light on the origins of Hakka and Chaoshanese, mitochondrial DNAs (mtDNAs) of 170 Hakka from Meizhou and 102 Chaoshanese from Chaoshan area, Guangdong Province, were analyzed. Our results show that some southern Chinese predominant haplogroups, e.g. B, F, and M7, have relatively high frequencies in both populations. Although median network analyses show that Hakka/Chaoshanese share some haplotypes with NH, interpopulation comparison reveals that both populations show closer affinity with southern Han (SH) populations than with NH. In consideration of previous results from nuclear gene (including Y chromosome) research, it is likely that matrilineal landscapes of both Hakka and Chaoshanese have largely been shaped by the local people during their migration southward and/or later colonization in southern China, and factors such as cultural assimilation, patrilocality, and even sex-bias in the immigrants might have played important roles during the process. Am J Phys Anthropol 141:124-130, 2010. (C) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Age-related effects of bilateral frontal eye fields lesions on rapid eye movements during REM sleep in rhesus monkeys

Rapid eye movement (REM) is one of the most characteristic features of REM sleep, but the mechanisms underlying its regulation remain unclear. The present study aims to investigate whether the frontal eye field (FEF) is involved in the regulation of the r

Telemetric recordings of single neuron activity and visual scenes in monkeys walking in an open field

This paper describes a portable recording system and methods for obtaining chronic recordings of single units and tracking rhesus monkey behavior in an open field. The integrated system consists of four major components: (1) microelectrode assembly; (2) h

Neuronal activity in dorsomedial frontal cortex and prefrontal cortex reflecting irrelevant stimulus dimensions

Previous studies of the dorsomedial frontal cortex (DMF) and the prefrontal cortex (PF) have shown that, when monkeys respond to nonspatial features of a discriminative stimulus (e.g., color) and the stimulus appears at a place unrelated to the movement t

Stress-facilitated LTD induces output plasticity through a synchronized-spikes and spontaneous unitary discharges the CA1 region of the hippocampus

Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) of the excitatory synaptic inputs plasticity in the hippocampus is believed to underlie certain types of learning and memory. Especially, stressful experiences, well known to produce long-lasting strong memories of the event themselves, enable LTD by low frequency stimulation (LFS, 3 Hz) but block LTP induction by high frequency stimulation (HFS, 200 Hz). However, it is unknown whether stress-affected synaptic plasticity has an impact on the output plasticity. Thus, we have simultaneously studied the effects of stress on synaptic plasticity and neuronal output in the hippocampal CA1 region of anesthetized Wistar rats. Our results revealed that stress increased basal power spectrum of the evoked synchronized-spikes and enabled LTD induction by LFS. The induction of stress-facilitated LTD but not LFS induced persistent decreases of the power spectrum of the synchronized-spikes and the frequency of the spontaneous unitary discharges; However, HFS induced UP in non-stressed animals and increased the power spectrum of the synchronized-spikes, without affecting the frequency of the spontaneous unitary discharges, but HFS failed to induce UP in stressed animals without affecting the power spectrum of the synchronized-spikes and the frequency of the spontaneous unitary discharges. These observations that stress-facilitated LTD induces the output plasticity through the synchronized-spikes and spontaneous unitary discharges suggest that these types of stress-related plasticity may play significant roles in distribution, amplification and integration of encoded information to other brain structures under stressful conditions. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd and The Japan Neuroscience Society. All rights reserved.

藻-菌生物膜法改善富营养化水体水质的效果

将一种由改性高分子材料制成的人工水草作藻 菌生物膜的载体 ,来改善富营养化水体水质 .2次实验结果表明 :人工水草的布设可以明显抑制藻类的生长 ,在第 11d将水体透明度由 6cm提高到 6 2cm ;对CODMn、TP、TN和NH+ 4 N的削减率依次为 92 89%、4 9 2 5 %、94 97%和 70 15 % ;人工水草的布设对DO也能维持在一定水平 ;当人工水草高度与水深比为 0 7时 ,布设人工水草最经济、适宜的密度范围为 8～ 16株 /m2 .

人工湿地-氧化塘工艺组合对氮和磷去除效果研究

本文在小试规模上,研究了下行流湿地、推流床湿地、氧化塘和兼性塘四种处理单元的四种工艺组合对氮、磷的去除效果,研究结果表明:下行流湿地+氧化塘工艺组合具有较好的充氧效果,推流床湿地后置也可以提高出水的溶解氧。四种工艺组合对离子和TP、IP的去除无显著差异。人工湿地中硝化作用的发生有利于NH+4 N的去除,增加氧化塘可以提高系统的硝化能力,但同时也会增加出水中的NO-3 N浓度。

复合垂直流人工湿地对氮的净化效果

采用复合垂直流人工湿地处理武汉东湖污染水的中试结果表明 ,出水中NH+ 4-N、NO- 2 -N和凯氏氮 (KN)浓度均显著降低 ,而NO- 3-N含量有所上升 ;系统最佳运行水力负荷为 80 0mm/d ,超过此负荷后系统净化效果随负荷增加而下降 ;在东湖现有的污染负荷下 ,处理系统仍呈现出继续承载污染量的潜力 ;就基质中KN的分布而言 ,水平方向为下行流池含量高于上行流池 ,垂直方向为上层 >中层 >下层 ,而在植物体内的分布则为叶片中含量最高。

不同湿地组合工艺净化污水效果的比较

　比较研究了推流床湿地、下行流湿地、上行流湿地、好氧塘和兼性塘的不同组合工艺对污水的净化效果。结果表明:下行流湿地+上行流湿地+推流床湿地对TSS、COD、BOD5的去除效果最好;下行流湿地+氧化塘对NH+4-N的去除效果最好,但氧化塘中的藻类容易导致出水中的TSS增加;上行流湿地有利于对NO-3-N的去除;推流床湿地对各项指标的去除效果均比其他组合工艺差,但将其后置可以增加出水的DO含量。

复合构建湿地运行初期理化性质及氮的变化

研究了在间歇式进水条件下 ,复合构建湿地系统对氮的去除效果 ,阐述了温度、溶氧、pH等理化因子变化的原因。实验初期 ,系统尚处于不稳定时期 ,对N的去除不够理想。随着系统运转逐步步入稳定状态 ,对KN、NH+ 4 N、NO-2 N有明显的去除效果 ,平均去除率分别为 5 0 %、6 6 %和 71%。硝化 -反硝化作用是氨氮去除的主要途径。从总体上看 ,有植物系统中硝态氮的出水含量较对照系统高 ,说明间歇式进水以及植物的存在都有利于硝化作用的发生。实验发现 ,复合构建湿地在冬季仍能较好地改善水质 ,是一种

垂直流人工湿地的设计及净化功能初探

阐述了垂直流人工湿地小试系统的设计 ,并测试其冬季污水净化效果 .垂直流人工湿地由下行流和上行流方式的两池组成 .对受污染地面水体中的CODCr、BOD5和TSS的去除率分别为 5 3.6 %、78.7%和 80 .2 % .对细菌、总大肠菌、粪大肠菌和藻类的平均去除率分别达 99.4%、85 .9%、89.7%和 97.7% .对KN、NH+ 4 N和TP的平均去除率分别为 39.2 %、16 .5 %和 2 5 .8% .各系统对污染物的去除作用无明显差异 .系统出水NO-3 N浓度高于进水 ,而有植

Forecasting Daily Chlorophyll a Concentration during the Spring Phytoplankton Bloom Period in Xiangxi Bay of the Three-Gorges Reservoir by Means of a Recurrent Artificial Neural Network

A recurrent artificial neural network was used for 0-and 7-days-ahead forecasting of daily spring phytoplankton bloom dynamics in Xiangxi Bay of Three-Gorges Reservoir with meteorological, hydrological, and limnological parameters as input variables. Daily data from the depth of 0.5 m was used to train the model, and data from the depth of 2.0 m was used to validate the calibrated model. The trained model achieved reasonable accuracy in predicting the daily dynamics of chlorophyll a both in 0-and 7-days-ahead forecasting. In 0-day-ahead forecasting, the R-2 values of observed and predicted data were 0.85 for training and 0.89 for validating. In 7-days-ahead forecasting, the R-2 values of training and validating were 0.68 and 0.66, respectively. Sensitivity analysis indicated that most ecological relationships between chlorophyll a and input environmental variables in 0-and 7-days-ahead models were reasonable. In the 0-day model, Secchi depth, water temperature, and dissolved silicate were the most important factors influencing the daily dynamics of chlorophyll a. And in 7-days-ahead predicting model, chlorophyll a was sensitive to most environmental variables except water level, DO, and NH3N.

Phosphorus in suspended matter and sediments of a hypertrophic lake. A case study: Lake Dianchi, China

From June 2004 to December 2004, Lake Dianchi, which had large scale of cyanobacterial blooms was investigated in order to study P-fractionation in the suspended matter and the sediment. The investigation improves our understanding of phosphorus in Lake Dianchi and the relationship between phosphorus and cyanobacterial blooms. It contributes to the available literature on the behavior of P in hypertrophic lakes. The distribution of P-fractions in Lake Dianchi was not uniform from northwest to south, but was closely related to the trophic status of the whole lake. The concentrations of total phosphorus, labile P (NH4Cl-P), Organic P (NaOH-NRP) and loss on ignition in suspended matter were positively correlated with the strength of cyanobacterial blooms. Total phosphorus in suspended matter was relatively stable for almost half an year and closely related to Chl. a concentration. The main content of organic phosphorus is in the cyanobacterial blooms. The concentrations of phosphorus bound to metal oxides and carbonates (NaOH-SRP and HCl-P) in sediment were similar to NaOH-SRP and HCl-P in the corresponding suspended matter. The latter two forms of P in suspended matter were not affected by cyanobacterial blooms, indicating that the inorganic phosphorus is derived from the sediment after resuspension from the sediment due to wind and wave action. The contribution of the different P-fractions to TP in sediment and in suspended matter indicates that NH4Cl-P in the suspended matter is an important buffer for maintaining dissolved phosphorus in water.

Diversity and abundance of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria in eutrophic and oligotrophic basins of a shallow Chinese lake (Lake Donghu)

Classical cultivation and molecular methods based on the ammonia monooxygenase gene (amoA) were used to study the abundance and diversity of beta-proteobacterial ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) in lake sediments. The eutrophic and oligotrophic basins of a Chinese shallow lake (Lake Donghu), in terms of ammonium (NH4+) concentrations, were sampled. The AOB number was significantly lower in the oligotrophic basin, but significantly higher in the eutrophic basin. In addition, using restriction fragment length polymorphism targeting the amoA, ten restriction patterns including six unique ones were found in the eutrophic basin, while five patterns were observed in the oligotrophic basin with only one unique restriction group. Phylogenetic analysis for AOB revealed that Nitrosomonas oligotropha- and Nitrosomonas ureae-related AOB and Nitrosospira-affiliated AOB were ubiquitous; the former dominated in the eutrophic basin (87.2%), while the latter dominated in the oligotrophic basin (65.5%). Furthermore, Nitrosomonas communis-related AOB was only detected in the eutrophic basin, at a small proportion (3.2%). These results indicate significant selection and adaptation of sediment AOB in lakes with differing trophic status. (C) 2009 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Changes in benthic algal communities following construction of a run-of-river dam

Ecological responses to dam construction are poorly understood, especially for downstream benthic algal communities. We examined the responses of benthic algal communities in downstream reaches of a tributary of the Xiangxi River, China, to the construction of a small run-of-river dam. From February 2003 to August 2006, benthic algae, chemical factors, and habitat characteristics were monitored upstream and downstream of the dam site. This period spanned 6 mo before dam construction and 37 mo after dam construction. Benthic algal sampling yielded 199 taxa in 59 genera that belonged to Bacillariophyta, Chlorophyta, and Cyanophyta. Some physical factors (flow velocity, water depth, and channel width) and 3 algal metrics (diatom species richness, Margalef diversity, and % erect individuals) were significantly affected by the dam construction, whereas chemical factors (e.g., NH4-N, total N, SiO2) were not. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMS) ordinations showed that overall algal assemblage structure downstream of the dam sites was similar to that of upstream control sites before dam construction and for 1 year after dam construction (p > 0.05). However, sites belonging to upstream and downstream reaches were well separated on NMS axis 1 during the 2(nd) and 3(rd) years after dam construction. Our results suggest that impacts of dam construction on benthic algal communities took 2 to 3 y to emerge. Further development of a complete set of indicators is needed to address the impact of small-dam construction. Our observations underscore the need for additional studies that quantify ecological responses to dam construction over longer time spans.