B itte r an d Sw e e t /Um am i Ta s te Re c ep to rs w ith D iffe ren tly Evo lu tio n a ry Pa thw ays

通过生物信息学和系统发育学分析,研究了苦味受体和甜味/鲜味受体的进化途径。结果显示,苦味受体 和甜味/鲜味受体在进化上具有远相关,并且具有不同的进化途径,提示这可能是导致这些受体具有不同功能,传 导不同味觉的原因。

Mitochondrial genomes of two luminous beetles, Rhagophthalmus lufengensis and R-ohbai (Arthropoda, Insecta, Coleoptera)

We determined the mitochondrial MA (mtDNA) sequences of two luminous beetles (Arthropoda, Insecta, Coleoptera), Rhagophthalmus lufengensis from Yunnan, China and Rhagophthalmus ohbai from Yaeyama Island, Japan. We identified all the 37 mtDNA genes of R. l

COMPARISON OF MASTICATORY MORPHOLOGY BETWEEN RHINOPITHECUS-BIETI AND R-ROXELLANA

The masticatory apparatus for two endemic species of golden monkey in China, Rhinopithecus bieti and Rhinopithecus roxellana, were compared with those of macaques, Macaca and leaf monkeys, Presbytis. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that the two golden monkey species are distinct. Interspecies allometric analyses revealed that golden monkeys differ in their masticatory apparatus from both macaques and leaf monkeys. The prominent symphysial fusion, corpus, and sagittal condylar dimension of R. roxellana may produce efficient biting force on the incisal and posterior canine teeth, with the heavy reaction force barn on the temporomandibular joint. However, the well-developed bizygamatic width and mandibular height in R. bieti suggest that posterior canine function is similarly prominent in R. roxellana, while incisal function is not. (C) 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

鱼类病原菌中R~+质粒的检出及其特性

本文研究了5个属的15株鱼类病原菌对17种抗菌药物的耐药性。其中，对β-内酰胺类和红霉素的耐药率最高，对妥布霉素最敏感。以E．coliK-12RC85为受体菌，鱼类病原菌为供体菌，采用细菌接合试验，从耐氨苄青霉素、四环素和磺胺的嗜水气单胞菌CJ26株中检测到一株耐四环素和磺胺的可自身传递的R质粒pWH9601。它对四环素的抗性可被四环素类药物所诱导。pWH9601上的耐药基因在供体菌和受体菌中的表达水平有所不同。该质粒可在37℃下，15min内通过接合方式，转移到E．coliK－12RC85中，而且这种转

Methylmercury, total mercury and total selenium in four common freshwater fish species from Ya-Er Lake, China

Snakehead fish (Ophiocephalus argus cantor), silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrtix), crucian carp (Carassius carassius), and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) are four common freshwater fish species in China. In this study, the level of methylmercury (MeHg), total mercury (T-Hg), and total selenium (T-Se) in muscle samples of these four fish species from Ya-Er Lake, China, were analyzed using atomic fluorescence spectrometry coupled with high-performance liquid chromatography, and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The concentrations of MeHg in all the fish species were significantly correlated with those of T-Hg. Higher T-Hg and MeHg concentrations had accumulated in the snakehead fish, which is a strongly predatory fish, than in the other three species. The concentration ratios of MeHg and T-Hg in the muscles of these four fish species were almost equal. Conversely, there was negative correlation between the concentrations of T-Hg and T-Se, which implies that there is a competition between these two elements with respect to bioaccumulation. It is noteworthy that of all the muscle samples tested, the level of T-Hg exceeded the maximum allowable limit in fish [0.4 mg kg(-1) (w/w) recommended by the World Health Organization] in 38.46% of those of the silver carp, 18.18% of those of the crucian carp, and 100% of those of snakehead fish. These results show that the consumption of contaminated fish is a potential threat to human health and that necessary preventive measures to safeguard public health should be emphasized.

Environmental signals: Synthetic humic substances act as xeno-estrogen and affect the thyroid system of Xenopus laevis

According to outdated paradigms humic substances (HS) are considered to be refractory or inert that do not directly interact with aquatic organisms. However, they are taken up and induce biotransformation activities and may act as hormone-like substances. In the present study, we tested whether HS can interfere with endocrine regulation in the amphibian Xenopus laevis. In order to exclude contamination with phyto-hormones, which may occur in environmental isolates, the artificial HS 1500 was applied. The in vivo results showed that HS 1500 causes significant estrogenic effects on X. laevis during its larval development and results of semi-quantitative RT-PCR revealed a marked increase of the estrogenic biomarker estrogen receptor mRNA (ER-mRNA). Furthermore, preliminary RT-PCR results showed that the thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH beta-mRNA) is enhanced after exposure to HS1500, indicating a weak adverse effect on T3/T4 availability. Hence, HS may have estrogenic and anti-thyroidal effects on aquatic animals, and therefore may influence the structure of aquatic communities and they may be considered environmental signaling chemicals. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mobility and profiles of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in sediment of Ya-Er Lake, China

The sediment of Ya-Er Lake had been heavily polluted by polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) from the former chloralkali industry. The total amounts of PCDD/Fs and I-TEQ decreased along the water flow direction and also decreased from top to bottom layers of sediment cores. Sediment of Pond 1 was dominated by PCDF, especially TCDF. In contrast, in the other four ponds, PCDD dominated in all layers and octachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (OCDD) predominated in all of the homologues. When homologue profiles from sediments and water samples were compared using principal component analysis (PCA), the first two principal components represented 95.2% of the variance in the data. The first component explained 75.9% of the variance and the second one 19.3%. Two clusters were most distinct, presenting a shift in PCDD/Fs composition from PCDF to heptachlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (HpCDD) and OCDD in sediments and water from Pond I to Ponds 2-5. The pattern variation between Pond 1 and Ponds 2-5 in Ya-Er Lake was most likely due to the change of process in the chemical plant after the dams between the ponds were built. The results of the present study also showed that log K-oc of PCDD/Fs calculated from data of sediment and water in the field were comparable with theoretical log K-oc. The results also implied that the concentrations of PCDD/Fs in water and sediments could be predicted from each other by log K-oc. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Persistence of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/F) in Ya-Er Lake area, China

The concentrations of polychlorinayed dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/F) in surface sediment, soil, human hair, acid fish muscle from Ya-Er Lake area, China, were analyzed. The results showed that there were very high concentrations of PCDD/F existing in these samples. The results also indicated that Ya-Er Lake, which received a large amount of waste water from a nearby chloroalkali plant, was heavily polluted by PCDD:F. The present study demonstrated that those congeners, which possess at least three chlorine atoms in the lateral position with a fourth chlorine atom in the neighborhood bond of the third single chlorine atom, such as 1,2,7,8-TCDF and 2,3.6,7-TCDF, were very resistant to biodegradation due to the "neighbor effect" of every two chlorine atoms. The present study suggested that human hair may be a suitable alternative bioindicator for detecting PCDD/F exposure. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.