Karyological studies on the Sino-Himalayan genus, Cremanthodium (Asteraceae : Senecioneae)

Twenty-two populations of seven species of Cremanthodium from high altitude regions of western China were observed karyologically. C. ellisii, C. microglossum, C. brunneo-pilosum, C. stenoglossum, C. discoideum and C. lineare all had the same chromosome number of 2n=58 whereas C. humile had 2n=60. All chromosome numbers of these species are documented here for the first time. The basic number of x=30 is new for this genus. The karyotypes of all species belong to 2A type according to Stebbins' asymmetry classification of karyotypes. Two basic chromosome numbers, x=30 and x=29 in Cremanthodium, correspond exactly to two branching patterns in this genus, sympodial versus monopodial. The systematic and taxonomic statuses of the sympodial species need further study. The karyomorphological data provide no support to the sectional subdivision in Cremanthodium. (C) 2001 The Linnean Society of London.

绵枣（Scilla sinensis Merr.）多倍体复合体（广义百合科）的物种生物学研究

本文采用物种生物学的方法分析了绵枣[Scilla sinensis (Lour.) Merr.]多倍体复合体细胞地理、形态、生态适应和发育节律的变异。此外，还对AA细胞型居群进行了等位酶分析和杂交实验。结果如下： 1. 细胞学检查秀自中国境内45个居群，检出AA、AB、BB、AAA、BBB和AABB 6个细胞型。多数居群由1种细胞型组成。AA几乎占据着该复合体在中国的整个分布区。BB仅局限于华中和华东地区。AABB分布于华中和华东地区的北侧、东北地区的东南部及台湾岛。45个居的细胞型组成以细胞地理分布图表示。总结前人与我们的工作，该复合体中已发现12个整倍体细胞型（AA、AB、BB、AAA、ABB、BBB、AAAA、AABB、ABBB、BBBB、AABBB和AAABBB）和各种基于多倍体的非整倍体。其基本细胞型为AA、BB和AABB。AA分布于除日本和大陆上BB分布区中心外该复合体的整个分布区。BB分布中国华东和华中地区、朝鲜的济州岛和日本。AABB分布日本、朝鲜和中国东北地区的东南部及华中、华东地区的东侧。另外，BB居群染色体数量最多，AABB次之，而AA最低。 2. 野外调查和栽培实验表明AA细胞型在中国东部和西部地区间存在形态和生态分化，东部居群形态变异较小，其共同特征是纺锤形鳞茎，红褐色;根茎短柱状;叶多灰绿色，蜡质明显，斜升;花葶较强壮而直立;花紫红色;子房每室1胚珠。西部为AA细胞型的现代变异中心，居群间形态变异大，区别于东部居群的特点是鳞茎纺锤形或近球形，根茎短柱状或盘状，叶鲜绿色，蜡质不明显，平卧地面;花葶1－4枝，直立，多花葶时斜升;花白色或淡红色，子房每室胚珠1 ～ 2枚。AA和BB细胞型是向着适于不同地理区的环境发展，因而具有不同的形态和生物学特性的两个类型。BB鳞茎近球形，黄褐色，根茎不明显，为盘状;叶墨绿色，柔软而平卧地面，是适于阴湿的林下环境的结果。春季萌发较早，约在3月初，其夏季休眠特性刚好可渡过华中地区东部夏季的高温多雨，待秋季温度下降时开花结实。而AA划适应了光照较强而干旱的山坡草地灌丛的类型。其发育节律变异较大，但萌动较BB晚，无夏季休眠。AABB细胞型的形态介于两祖先二倍体之间，没有形成独特的生态适应和发育节律。 3. 对AA细胞型的等位酶分析表明，该种的居群表现出较高的遗传变异（A = 2.0, P = 58.6%, H_o = 0.172 和 H_e = 0.185）。居群间存在较明显的分化(F_(ST) = 0.314)。东西两地区间也存在遗传分化。 4. AA居群间多数组合的F_1都低于对照的花粉育性和结实率。尤其是东部和西部居群间组合的F_1花粉育性和结实率极低，几近不育。如果仅仅考虑该复合体的形态变异，它只能作为一个形态复杂多变的种，Scilla sinensis (Lour) Merr.。可是如此处理就掩盖了其细胞型间清晰的进化关系。为弥补这一缺陷，当研究细胞型间的进化关系时，可采用生物学和概念。AA细胞型为S. sinensis (Lour.) Merr.， 可分两亚种：subsp. sinensis 和 subsp. alboviridis (Hand.-Mazz.) K. Y. Ding。BB细胞型为S. thunbergii Miyabe et Kudo。而ABB及含有A和B染色体组的多倍体作为杂交种S. x sino-japonica K.Y.Ding。两个二倍体种形态界限很清楚，但AABB的存在湮灭了两者的间断。

Y chromosome haplotypes reveal prehistorical migrations to the Himalayas

By using 19 Y chromosome biallelic markers and 3 Y chromosome microsatellite markers, we analyzed the genetic structure of 31 indigenous Sino-Tibetan speaking populations (607 individuals) currently residing in East, Southeast, and South Asia. Our results showed that a T to C mutation at locus M122 is highly prevalent in almost all of the Sino-Tibetan populations, implying a strong genetic affinity among populations in the same language family. Furthermore, the extremely high frequency of H8, a haplotype derived from M122C, in the Sino-Tibetan speaking populations in the Himalayas including Tibet and northeast India indicated a strong bottleneck effect that occurred during a westward and then southward migration of the founding population of Tibeto-Burmans. We, therefore, postulate that the ancient people, who lived in the upper-middle Yellow River basin about 10,000 years ago and developed one of the earliest Neolithic cultures in East Asia, were the ancestors of modem Sino-Tibetan populations.

Extracellular phosphatases produced by phytoplankton and other sources in shallow eutrophic lakes (Wuhan, China): taxon-specific versus bulk activity

Extracellular phosphatases are an important part of the phosphorus cycle in aquatic environments. Phosphatase activity (PA) in plankton was studied in seven subtropical shallow lakes of different exploitation management and trophic status in the urban area of Wuhan City. Bulk PA was rather high (range 1.1-11 mu mol l(-1) h(-1)), although concentrations of soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) were also high (range 27 mu g P l(-1) to similar to 1.5 mg P l(-1)) in all lakes. Cell-associated extracellular PA in phytoplankton was detected using the fluorescence-labelled enzyme activity technique. Phytoplankton species partly contributed to the bulk PA. We found explicit differences in the presence of cell-associated phosphatase within the main phytoplankton groups; species belonging to Chlorophyta and Dinophyta were regularly phosphatase-positive, while Cyanophyta and Bacillariophyceae were phosphatase-negative in all but one case. Furthermore, there is a certain potential of extracellular phosphatases produced by heterotrophic nanoflagellates in most of the lakes. This new finding compromises the 'traditional' interpretation of bulk phosphatase data as being due to overall phytoplankton or bacterial P regeneration.

Si based quantum cascade structure: from energy band structures design to materials growth

In this paper, we propose an n-type vertical transition bound-to-continuum Ge/SiGe quantum cascade structure utilizing electronic quantum wells in the L and Gamma valleys of the Ge layers. The optical transition levels are located in the quantum wells in the L valley. The Gamma-L intervalley scattering is used to depopulate the lower level and inject the electrons into the upper level. We also show that high quality Si1-yGey pseudosubstrate is obtained by thermal annealing of Si1-xGex/Ge/Si structure. (C) 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim