Abundance and biomass of zooplankton from the Romanian littoral collected in April, June and September 1999

The SHELF 1999 dataset contains zooplankton data collected in April, June and September 1999 allong 5 transect in front of the Romanian littoral. Zooplankton sampling was undertaken using a Juday closing net in the 0-10, 10-25, and 25-50m layer (depending also on the water masses). The dataset includes samples analysed for mesozooplankton species composition and abundance. Sampling volume was estimated by multiplying the mouth area with the wire length. Taxon-specific mesozooplankton abundance was count under microscope. Total abundance is the sum of the counted individuals. Total biomass Fodder, Rotifera , Ctenophora and Noctiluca was estimated using a tabel with wet weight for each species an stage.

In festo B.M.V. de Guadalupe Mexicanae, siue regni nouae hispaniae : Duplex Maius

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Regulation of c-maf gene expression by Pax6 in cultured cells

c-Maf is a bZip transcription factor expressed in developmental and cellular differentiation processes. Recently, a c-maf knockout mouse model, showing abnormal lens development, has been reported. In order to study the regulation mechanisms of c-maf gene expression during the differentiation process we have cloned and functionally characterized the rat c-maf (maf-2) gene. The rat c-maf gene is an intronless gene, covering a length of 3.5 kb. Transient transfection analysis of the 5′-flanking region of the c-maf gene using luciferase as the reporter gene shows that Pax6, a master transcription factor for lens development, strongly activates the c-maf promoter construct. Endogenous c-maf is also activated by the Pax6 expression vector. Electrophoresis mobility shift assay and DNase I footprinting analysis show that at least three Pax6-binding sites are located in the 5′-flanking and 5′-non-coding regions of the rat c-maf gene. The c-maf gene was also markedly activated by its own product, c-Maf, through the MARE (Maf recognition element), suggesting that a positive autoregulatory mechanism controls this gene. In situ hybridization histochemical detection of Pax6 and c-Maf in the E14 lens showed that both mRNAs are expressed in the lens equator where lens epithelial cells are differentiating to lens fiber cells. These results suggest that a Pax6/c-Maf transcription factor cascade is working in lens development.

How amoeboids self-organize into a fruiting body: Multicellular coordination in Dictyostelium discoideum

When individual amoebae of the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum are starving, they aggregate to form a multicellular migrating slug, which moves toward a region suitable for culmination. The culmination of the morphogenesis involves complex cell movements that transform a mound of cells into a globule of spores on a slender stalk. The movement has been likened to a “reverse fountain,” whereby prestalk cells in the upper part form a stalk that moves downwards and anchors to the substratum, while prespore cells in the lower part move upwards to form the spore head. So far, however, no satisfactory explanation has been produced for this process. Using a computer simulation that we developed, we now demonstrate that the processes that are essential during the earlier stages of the morphogenesis are in fact sufficient to produce the dynamics of the culmination stage. These processes are cAMP signaling, differential adhesion, cell differentiation, and production of extracellular matrix. Our model clarifies the processes that generate the observed cell movements. More specifically, we show that periodic upward movements, caused by chemotactic motion, are essential for successful culmination, because the pressure waves they induce squeeze the stalk downwards through the cell mass. The mechanisms revealed by our model have a number of self-organizing and self-correcting properties and can account for many previously unconnected and unexplained experimental observations.

Facilitating Mobility and Fostering Diversity: Getting EU Migration Governance to Respect the Human Rights of Migrants. CEPS Paper in Liberty and Security in Europe No. 92/May 2016

Migration towards Europe has surged over the past few years, overwhelming government authorities at the national and EU levels, and fuelling a xenophobic, nationalist, populist discourse linking migrants to security threats. Despite positive advances in the courts and worthy national initiatives (such as Italy’s Operation Mare Nostrum), the EU’s governance of migration and borders has had disastrous effects on the human rights of migrants. These effects stem from the criminalisation of migrants, which pushes them towards more precarious migration routes, the widespread use of administrative detention and the processing of asylum claims under the Dublin system, and now the EU–Turkey agreement. Yet, this paper finds that with the right political leadership, the EU could adopt different policies in order to develop and implement a human rights-based approach to migration that would seek to reconcile security concerns with the human rights of migrants. Such an approach would enable member states to fully reap the rewards of a stable, cohesive, long-term migration plan that facilitates and governs mobility rather than restricts it at immense cost to the EU, the member states and individual migrants.