Estimating abundance and spatial distribution patterns of the bubble crab Dotilla fenestrata (Crustacea : Brachyura)

The bubble crab Dotilla fenestrata forms very dense populations on the sand flats of the eastern coast of Inhaca Island, Mozambique, making it an interesting biological model to examine spatial distribution patterns and test the relative efficiency of common sampling methods. Due to its apparent ecological importance within the sandy intertidal community, understanding the factors ruling the dynamics of Dotilla populations is also a key issue. In this study, different techniques of estimating crab density are described, and the trends of spatial distribution of the different population categories are shown. The studied populations are arranged in discrete patches located at the well-drained crests of nearly parallel mega sand ripples. For a given sample size, there was an obvious gain in precision by using a stratified random sampling technique, considering discrete patches as strata, compared to the simple random design. Density average and variance differed considerably among patches since juveniles and ovigerous females were found clumped, with higher densities at the lower and upper shore levels, respectively. Burrow counting was found to be an adequate method for large-scale sampling, although consistently underestimating actual crab density by nearly half. Regression analyses suggested that crabs smaller than 2.9 mm carapace width tend to be undetected in visual burrow counts. A visual survey of sampling plots over several patches of a large Dotilla population showed that crab density varied in an interesting oscillating pattern, apparently following the topography of the sand flat. Patches extending to the lower shore contained higher densities than those mostly covering the higher shore. Within-patch density variability also pointed to the same trend, but the density increment towards the lowest shore level varied greatly among the patches compared.

Genetic variation along time in a brazilian population of Aedes aegypti (Diptera : Culicidae), detected by changes in the esterase patterns

Aedes aegypti from the Brazilian cities of Sao Jose do Rio Preto (SJ) and Goiania (GO) were analyzed as to their esterase patterns and the results were compared with data obtained about 5 years before for SJ population. Esterase bands not detected in the previous study were now observed in mosquitoes from both SJ and GO populations, being the last considered a population resistant to insecticides. Other similarities between SJ and GO populations in this study, and some differences in comparison with the previous data on SJ were observed, involving, in addition to changes in band type, changes in frequency of mosquitoes expressing them and differential gene activation during development. As it is generally true for genetic features, changes in the esterase patterns are expected to be the result of factors such as selection by environmental conditions and genetic drift. In the present case, continuous use of insecticides aiming mosquito population size control in SJ by sanitary authorities could be involved in the observed changes. Changed esterases were classified as carboxylesterases and cholinesterases, which are enzymes already shown to take part in the development of resistance in several organisms. In addition, data obtained in the elapsed time by authorities responsible for the mosquito control has shown increasing insecticide resistance of SJ population mosquitoes parallel to increase in the total amount of esterases, reinforcing the mentioned possibility.

Hyolith-dominated shell beds from the Lampazar Formation in NW Argentina: patterns and processes of origin in the Late Cambrian (Furongian) seas of western Gondwana.

Late Cambrian (Furongian) shell beds in the Salta Province of NW Argentina are unique because of the presence of abundant hyolith skeletal remains within them. Hyolith shell beds are located in the mid-upper part of the Lampazar Formation at the Angosto de La Quesera locality, and are the first recorded accumulations of this type in the lower Palaeozoic of the South American Andean Basin. The shell beds are of the order of several mm thick, and are laterally persistent within outcrop scale, with a few metres of lateral development. Two types of hyolith shell beds are recognised: Type 1 is a storm-dominated, event concentration, represented by dispersed to densely packed accumulations of well preserved hyolith and gastropod shells (Strepsodiscus austrinus). Hyolith conchs are current oriented with the long axes parallel to unidirectional flow on the sandstones surfaces. Type 2 shell beds are background, composite concentrations, of poorly preserved, comminuted debris of hyolith shells with associated gastropod and trilobite sclerites (dominated by Parabolina, Beltella and Leiostegium). The genesis of both shell beds was controlled primarily by physical processes, such as storms and current and/or wave agitation. The thickness, simple internal fabric and geometry shown by both accumulations are typical of Cambrian-style shell-beds.

Metabolic profiling by ultra-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and parallel factor analysis for the determination of disease biomarkers in Eucalyptus

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Complex, 3D strain patterns in a synkinematic tonalite batholith from the Aracuai Neoproterozoic orogen (Eastern Brazil): Evidence from combined magnetic and isotopic chronology studies

This work combines structural and geochronological data to improve our understanding of the mechanical behaviour of continental crust involving large amount of magma or partially melted material in an abnormally hot collisional belt. We performed a magnetic and geochronological (U/Pb) study on a huge tonalitic batholith from the Neoproterozoic Aracual belt of East Brazil to determine the strain distribution through space and time. Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility, combined with rock magnetism investigations, supports that the magnetic fabric is a good proxy of the structural fabric. Field measurements together with the magnetic fabrics highlight the presence in the batholith of four domains characterized by contrasted magmatic flow patterns. The western part is characterized by a gently dipping, orogen-parallel (similar to NS) magmatic foliation that bears down-dip lineations, in agreement with westward thrusting onto the Sao Francisco craton. Eastward, the magmatic foliation progressively turns sub-vertical with a lineation that flips from sub-horizontal to sub-vertical over short distances. This latter domain involves an elongated corridor in which the magmatic foliation is sub-horizontal and bears an orogen-parallel lineation. Finally the fourth, narrow domain displays sub-horizontal lineations on a sub-vertical magmatic foliation oblique (similar to N150 degrees E) to the trend of the belt. U/Pb dating of zircons from the various domains revealed homogeneity in age for all samples. This, together with the lack of solid-state deformation suggests that: 1) the whole batholith emplaced during a magmatic event at similar to 580 Ma, 2) the deformation occurred before complete solidification. and 3) the various fabrics are roughly contemporaneous. The complex structural pattern mapped in the studied tonalitic batholith suggests a 3D deformation of a slowly cooling, large magmatic body and its country rock. We suggest that the development of the observed 3D flow field was promoted by the low viscosity of the middle crust that turned gravitational force as an active tectonic force combining with the East-West convergence between the Sao Francisco and Congo cratons. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Efficient parallel proximity queries and an application to highly complex motion planning problems with many narrow passages

In vielen Bereichen der industriellen Fertigung, wie zum Beispiel in der Automobilindustrie, wer- den digitale Versuchsmodelle (sog. digital mock-ups) eingesetzt, um die Entwicklung komplexer Maschinen m ̈oglichst gut durch Computersysteme unterstu ̈tzen zu k ̈onnen. Hierbei spielen Be- wegungsplanungsalgorithmen eine wichtige Rolle, um zu gew ̈ahrleisten, dass diese digitalen Pro- totypen auch kollisionsfrei zusammengesetzt werden k ̈onnen. In den letzten Jahrzehnten haben sich hier sampling-basierte Verfahren besonders bew ̈ahrt. Diese erzeugen eine große Anzahl von zuf ̈alligen Lagen fu ̈r das ein-/auszubauende Objekt und verwenden einen Kollisionserken- nungsmechanismus, um die einzelnen Lagen auf Gu ̈ltigkeit zu u ̈berpru ̈fen. Daher spielt die Kollisionserkennung eine wesentliche Rolle beim Design effizienter Bewegungsplanungsalgorith- men. Eine Schwierigkeit fu ̈r diese Klasse von Planern stellen sogenannte “narrow passages” dar, schmale Passagen also, die immer dort auftreten, wo die Bewegungsfreiheit der zu planenden Objekte stark eingeschr ̈ankt ist. An solchen Stellen kann es schwierig sein, eine ausreichende Anzahl von kollisionsfreien Samples zu finden. Es ist dann m ̈oglicherweise n ̈otig, ausgeklu ̈geltere Techniken einzusetzen, um eine gute Performance der Algorithmen zu erreichen.rnDie vorliegende Arbeit gliedert sich in zwei Teile: Im ersten Teil untersuchen wir parallele Kollisionserkennungsalgorithmen. Da wir auf eine Anwendung bei sampling-basierten Bewe- gungsplanern abzielen, w ̈ahlen wir hier eine Problemstellung, bei der wir stets die selben zwei Objekte, aber in einer großen Anzahl von unterschiedlichen Lagen auf Kollision testen. Wir im- plementieren und vergleichen verschiedene Verfahren, die auf Hu ̈llk ̈operhierarchien (BVHs) und hierarchische Grids als Beschleunigungsstrukturen zuru ̈ckgreifen. Alle beschriebenen Verfahren wurden auf mehreren CPU-Kernen parallelisiert. Daru ̈ber hinaus vergleichen wir verschiedene CUDA Kernels zur Durchfu ̈hrung BVH-basierter Kollisionstests auf der GPU. Neben einer un- terschiedlichen Verteilung der Arbeit auf die parallelen GPU Threads untersuchen wir hier die Auswirkung verschiedener Speicherzugriffsmuster auf die Performance der resultierenden Algo- rithmen. Weiter stellen wir eine Reihe von approximativen Kollisionstests vor, die auf den beschriebenen Verfahren basieren. Wenn eine geringere Genauigkeit der Tests tolerierbar ist, kann so eine weitere Verbesserung der Performance erzielt werden.rnIm zweiten Teil der Arbeit beschreiben wir einen von uns entworfenen parallelen, sampling- basierten Bewegungsplaner zur Behandlung hochkomplexer Probleme mit mehreren “narrow passages”. Das Verfahren arbeitet in zwei Phasen. Die grundlegende Idee ist hierbei, in der er- sten Planungsphase konzeptionell kleinere Fehler zuzulassen, um die Planungseffizienz zu erh ̈ohen und den resultierenden Pfad dann in einer zweiten Phase zu reparieren. Der hierzu in Phase I eingesetzte Planer basiert auf sogenannten Expansive Space Trees. Zus ̈atzlich haben wir den Planer mit einer Freidru ̈ckoperation ausgestattet, die es erlaubt, kleinere Kollisionen aufzul ̈osen und so die Effizienz in Bereichen mit eingeschr ̈ankter Bewegungsfreiheit zu erh ̈ohen. Optional erlaubt unsere Implementierung den Einsatz von approximativen Kollisionstests. Dies setzt die Genauigkeit der ersten Planungsphase weiter herab, fu ̈hrt aber auch zu einer weiteren Perfor- mancesteigerung. Die aus Phase I resultierenden Bewegungspfade sind dann unter Umst ̈anden nicht komplett kollisionsfrei. Um diese Pfade zu reparieren, haben wir einen neuartigen Pla- nungsalgorithmus entworfen, der lokal beschr ̈ankt auf eine kleine Umgebung um den bestehenden Pfad einen neuen, kollisionsfreien Bewegungspfad plant.rnWir haben den beschriebenen Algorithmus mit einer Klasse von neuen, schwierigen Metall- Puzzlen getestet, die zum Teil mehrere “narrow passages” aufweisen. Unseres Wissens nach ist eine Sammlung vergleichbar komplexer Benchmarks nicht ̈offentlich zug ̈anglich und wir fan- den auch keine Beschreibung von vergleichbar komplexen Benchmarks in der Motion-Planning Literatur.

Dynamic patterns of ventricular remodeling and apoptosis in hearts unloaded by heterotopic transplantation

BACKGROUND Mechanical unloading of failing hearts can trigger functional recovery but results in progressive atrophy and possibly detrimental adaptation. In an unbiased approach, we examined the dynamic effects of unloading duration on molecular markers indicative of myocardial damage, hypothesizing that potential recovery may be improved by optimized unloading time. METHODS Heterotopically transplanted normal rat hearts were harvested at 3, 8, 15, 30, and 60 days. Forty-seven genes were analyzed using TaqMan-based microarray, Western blot, and immunohistochemistry. RESULTS In parallel with marked atrophy (22% to 64% volume loss at 3 respectively 60 days), expression of myosin heavy-chain isoforms (MHC-α/-β) was characteristically switched in a time-dependent manner. Genes involved in tissue remodeling (FGF-2, CTGF, TGFb, IGF-1) were increasingly upregulated with duration of unloading. A distinct pattern was observed for genes involved in generation of contractile force; an indiscriminate early downregulation was followed by a new steady-state below normal. For pro-apoptotic transcripts bax, bnip-3, and cCasp-6 and -9 mRNA levels demonstrated a slight increase up to 30 days unloading with pronunciation at 60 days. Findings regarding cell death were confirmed on the protein level. Proteasome activity indicated early increase of protein degradation but decreased below baseline in unloaded hearts at 60 days. CONCLUSIONS We identified incrementally increased apoptosis after myocardial unloading of the normal rat heart, which is exacerbated at late time points (60 days) and inversely related to loss of myocardial mass. Our findings suggest an irreversible detrimental effect of long-term unloading on myocardium that may be precluded by partial reloading and amenable to molecular therapeutic intervention.

Primary lowland dipterocarp forest at Danum Valley, Sabah, Malaysia. Species composition and patterns in the understorey

The spatial distributions of species of tree ≥10 cm gbh were examined in two 4 ha plots and related to the local variation in topography and soil chemistry. The plots were similar in their species composition, particularly in terms of the densities of small trees, and they showed very similar edaphic characteristics. Size class distributions varied little within and between plots. Ordination of 0.25 ha subplots highlighted parallel gradients in the vegetation of both plots when the densities of trees ≥10 cm gbh were considered. Focusing on understorey trees in the 10-<50 cm gbh class at the 0.04 ha subplot scale showed a similar vegetation gradient in both plots closely associated with change from lower slope to ridge. No relationship with soil chemistry was found. On the ridges a special group of understorey species formed clumps and these species contributed importantly to the ordinations. Borneo has a regional history of occasionally severe droughts. It is suggested here that the observed patterns in the understorey are due to differential responses to low soil water supply, the ridges probably tending to dryness more than the lower slopes. Within the large and diverse family Euphorbiaceae, which dominates the understorey at Danum, there may be ecophysiological groupings of species. The long-term effects of disturbance interacting with local edaphic factors on forest structure and composition are discussed.

Comparative theoretical analysis between parallel and perpendicular geometries for 2D particle patterning in photovoltaic ferroelectric substrates

This paper describes the dielectrophoretic potential created by the evanescent electric field acting on a particle near a photovoltaic crystal surface depending on the crystal cut. This electric field is obtained from the steady state solution of the Kukhtarev equations for the photovoltaic effect, where the diffusion term has been disregarded. First, the space charge field generated by a small, square, light spot where d _ l (being d a side of the square and l the crystal thickness) is studied. The surface charge density generated in both geometries is calculated and compared as their relation determines the different properties of the dielectrophoretic potential for both cuts. The shape of the dielectrophoretic potential is obtained and compared for several distances to the sample. Afterwards other light patterns are studied by the superposition of square spots, and the resulting trapping profiles are analysed. Finally the surface charge densities and trapping profiles for different d/l relations are studied.

Expression Patterns Conferred by Tyrosine/Dihydroxyphenylalanine Decarboxylase Promoters from Opium Poppy Are Conserved in Transgenic Tobacco1

Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) contains a large family of tyrosine/dihydroxyphenylalanine decarboxylase (tydc) genes involved in the biosynthesis of benzylisoquinoline alkaloids and cell wall-bound hydroxycinnamic acid amides. Eight members from two distinct gene subfamilies have been isolated, tydc1, tydc4, tydc6, tydc8, and tydc9 in one group and tydc2, tydc3, and tydc7 in the other. The tydc8 and tydc9 genes were located 3.2 kb apart on one genomic clone, suggesting that the family is clustered. Transcripts for most tydc genes were detected only in roots. Only tydc2 and tydc7 revealed expression in both roots and shoots, and TYDC3 mRNAs were the only specific transcripts detected in seedlings. TYDC1, TYDC8, and TYDC9 mRNAs, which occurred in roots, were not detected in elicitor-treated opium poppy cultures. Expression of tydc4, which contains a premature termination codon, was not detected under any conditions. Five tydc promoters were fused to the β-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene in a binary vector. All constructs produced transient GUS activity in microprojectile-bombarded opium poppy and tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) cell cultures. The organ- and tissue-specific expression pattern of tydc promoter-GUS fusions in transgenic tobacco was generally parallel to that of corresponding tydc genes in opium poppy. GUS expression was most abundant in the internal phloem of shoot organs and in the stele of roots. Select tydc promoter-GUS fusions were also wound induced in transgenic tobacco, suggesting that the basic mechanisms of developmental and inducible tydc regulation are conserved across plant species.

Parallel human genome analysis: microarray-based expression monitoring of 1000 genes.

Microarrays containing 1046 human cDNAs of unknown sequence were printed on glass with high-speed robotics. These 1.0-cm2 DNA "chips" were used to quantitatively monitor differential expression of the cognate human genes using a highly sensitive two-color hybridization assay. Array elements that displayed differential expression patterns under given experimental conditions were characterized by sequencing. The identification of known and novel heat shock and phorbol ester-regulated genes in human T cells demonstrates the sensitivity of the assay. Parallel gene analysis with microarrays provides a rapid and efficient method for large-scale human gene discovery.

Adenylyl cyclase inhibition and altered G protein subunit expression and ADP-ribosylation patterns in tissues and cells from Gi2 alpha-/-mice.

The inhibition of alpha i2-/- mouse cardiac isoproterenol-stimulated adenylyl cyclase (AC; EC 4.6.1.1) activity by carbachol and that of alpha i2-/- adipocyte AC by phenylisopropyladenosine (PIA), prostaglandin E2, and nicotinic acid were partially, but not completely, inhibited. While the inhibition of cardiac AC was affected in all alpha i2-/- animals tested, only 50% of the alpha i2-/- animals showed an impaired inhibition of adipocyte AC, indicative of a partial penetrance of this phenotype. In agreement with previous results, the data show that Gi2 mediates hormonal inhibition of AC and that Gi3 and/or Gi1 is capable of doing the same but with a lower efficacy. Disruption of the alpha i2 gene affected about equally the actions of all the receptors studied, indicating that none of them exhibits a striking specificity for one type of Gi over another and that receptors are likely to he selective rather than specific in their interaction with functionally homologous G proteins (e.g., Gi1, Gi2, Gi3). Western analysis of G protein subunit levels in simian virus 40-transformed primary embryonic fibroblasts from alpha i2+/+ and alpha i2-/- animals showed that alpha i2 accounts for about 50% of the immunopositive G protein alpha subunits and that loss of the alpha i2 is accompanied by a parallel reduction in G beta 35 and G beta 36 subunits and by a 30-50% increase in alpha i3. This suggests that G beta-gamma levels may be regulated passively through differential rates of turnover in their free vs. trimeric states. The existence of compensatory increase(s) in alpha i subunit expression raises the possibility that the lack of effect of a missing alpha i2 on AC inhibition in adipocytes of some alpha i2-/- animals may be the reflection of a more pronounced compensatory expression of alpha i3 and/or alpha i1.

Parallel evolution of sexual isolation in sticklebacks

Mechanisms of speciation are not well understood, despite decades of study. Recent work has focused on how natural and sexual selection cause sexual isolation. Here, we investigate the roles of divergent natural and sexual selection in the evolution of sexual isolation between sympatric species of threespine sticklebacks. We test the importance of morphological and behavioral traits in conferring sexual isolation and examine to what extent these traits have diverged in parallel between multiple, independently evolved species pairs. We use the patterns of evolution in ecological and mating traits to infer the likely nature of selection on sexual isolation. Strong parallel evolution implicates ecologically based divergent natural and/or sexual selection, whereas arbitrary directionality implicates nonecological sexual selection or drift. In multiple pairs we find that sexual isolation arises in the same way: assortative mating on body size and asymmetric isolation due to male nuptial color. Body size and color have diverged in a strongly parallel manner, similar to ecological traits. The data implicate ecologically based divergent natural and sexual selection as engines of speciation in this group.

The spatial patterns of beta-amyloid (Abeta) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) in late-onset sporadic Alzheimer's disease

The spatial patterns of beta-amyloid (Abeta) deposits and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT) were studied in areas of the cerebral cortex in 16 patients with the late-onset, sporadic form of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Diffuse, primitive, and classic Abeta deposits and NFT were aggregated into clusters; the clusters being regularly distributed parallel to the pia mater in many areas. In a significant proportion of regions, the sizes of the regularly distributed clusters approximated to those of the cells of origin of the cortico-cortical projections. The diffuse and primitive Abeta deposits exhibited a similar range of spatial patterns but the classic Abeta deposits occurred less frequently in large clusters >6400microm. In addition, the NFT often occurred in larger regularly distributed clusters than the Abeta deposits. The location, size, and distribution of the clusters of Abeta deposits and NFT supports the hypothesis that AD is a 'disconnection syndrome' in which degeneration of specific cortico-cortical and cortico-hippocampal pathways results in synaptic disconnection and the formation of clusters of NFT and Abeta deposits.

The spatial patterns of pathological brain lesions in 12 patients with corticobasal degeneration

Corticobasal degeneration (CBD) is a rare and progressive neurological disorder characterised by the presence of ballooned neurons (BN) and tau positive inclusions in neurons and glial cells. We studied the spatial patterns of the BN, tau positive neurons with inclusions (tau + neurons), and tau positive plaques in the neocortex and hippocampus in 12 cases of CBD. All lesions were aggregated into clusters and in many brain areas, the clusters were distributed in a regular pattern parallel to the tissue boundary. In the majority of cortical areas, the clusters of BN were larger in the lower compared with the upper laminae while the clusters of tau + neurons were larger in the upper laminae. Clusters of BN and tau + neurons were either negatively correlated or not significantly correlated in the upper and lower cortical laminae. Hence, BN and tau + lesions in CBD exhibit similar spatial patterns as lesions in Alzheimer's disease (AD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Pick's disease (PD). The location, sizes and distribution of the clusters in the neocortex suggest that the tau + lesions may be associated with the degeneration of the feedforward and the BN the feedback cortico-cortical and/or the efferent cortical pathways. © 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.