Practicing coastal seascape ecology

Landscape ecology concepts developed from terrestrial systems have recently emerged as theoretical and analytical frameworks that are equally useful for evaluating the ecological consequences of spatial patterns and structural changes in the submerged landscapes of coastal ecosystems. The benefits of applying a spatially-explicit perspective to resource management and restoration planning in the coastal zone are rapidly becoming apparent. This Theme Section on the application of landscape ecology to the estuarine and coastal environment emerged from a special symposium at the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) 20th Biennial Conference (Estuaries and Coasts in a Changing World) held in Portland, Oregon, USA, in November 2009. The 7 contributions in this Theme Section collectively provide substantial insights into the current status and application of the landscape approach in shallow marine environments, and identify significant knowledge gaps, as well as potential directions for the future advancement of ‘seascape ecology’.

组织培养产生小麦族属间易位和其它染色体变异的分子细胞遗传学分析

组织培养能够诱导染色体断裂和重接进而产生染色体易位的观点已被广泛认识。大量的研究注意到了组织培养产生的核型不稳定性，其中大多数研究的对象是栽培作物及其属间或种间杂种幼胚和幼穗再生植株。借助于减数分裂分析、染色体分带和其它检测技术，在再生植株中发现了包括易位在内的许多染色体变异。可以相信，除了传统的同源和部分同源染色体配对时的自发易位和辐射诱变等方法以外，远缘杂种组织培养有可能作为产生染色体易位的又一种选择。尽管如此，至今还没有取得培养细胞中染色体易位的直接证据。本研究以普通小麦×硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体杂种为材料，研究了组织培养过程中离体细胞的染色体变异，用基因组原位杂交技术（GISH）证实组织培养诱导小麦染色体与簇毛麦染色体发生易位。同时，研究了小麦×黑麦杂种培养细胞中的染色体变异和黑麦B-染色体的变化。利用组织培养技术获得了小麦-黑麦和小麦-长穗偃麦草代换系和附加系。 1 普通小麦比较容易与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体TH_1和TH_1W杂交，所选的9个普通小麦品种或品系与TH_1和TH_1W配制的19个杂交组合，平均结实率为46.7%，共计获得19个杂交组合2316粒杂种种子。正反交结果表明，以普通小麦为母本的杂交结实率高于反交结实率。在继代培养过程中，杂种幼胚愈伤组织生长迅速，甚至直接诱导出绿苗，共获得不同杂交组合2005株再生植株。 2 普通小麦与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体杂种愈伤组织发生了比较大范围的染色体数目和结构变异。在检查的中国春×TH_1W、TH_1W×84加7911515、TH_1×84加7911515、TH_1W×91E27、鲁资357×TH_1W等5个杂种组合的1730个愈伤组织细胞中，平均有19.1%的细胞发生了染色体数目变异，不同杂交组合变化在12.7%（中国春×TH_1W）至30.7%（TH_1×84加7911515），其中，以染色体数目减少的变异为主，数目增加的变异比较少。杂种愈伤组织平均有6.3%的细胞发生了染色体断裂，产生染色体断片、环状染色体、端着丝点染色体和缺失染色体。断裂的染色体可能重新融合在一起，形成双着丝点染色体。 3 培养时间影响普通小麦×硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体和普通小麦×黑麦杂种愈伤组织细胞中的染色体数目和结构变异。在一定时间里，随着培养时间的延长，未发生核型变异的细胞逐渐减少，发生变异的细胞逐渐增多，主要表现在染色体数目减少的细胞增多，而染色体数目增加的细胞有减少的趋势。在长时间培养（190日龄）的愈伤组织中染色体加倍的细胞消失了，表明长时间培养对高倍性的细胞具有不利的选择，使这类细胞难以在长期继代培养中生存下去。愈伤组织在第一次继代培养时就发现有核型变异，说明染色体变异在愈伤组织培养初期就可以发生。 4 以簇毛麦总基因组DNA为探针，采用荧光原位杂交技术在普通小麦×硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体杂种愈伤组织细胞中发现小麦染色体与簇毛麦染色体发性易位，这一结果是组织培养诱导培养细胞中属间染色体易位的第一个直观的证据。易位的染色体既有臂间易位，也有小片段易位。易位的染色体不仅可以在愈伤组织细胞中存在，也能够在再生植株中表达。在64株中国春×TH_1W和NPFP×TH_1再生植株中，观察到了3个易位株，其中1个易位株是一个小麦染色体与一个簇毛麦染色体发生了相互易位，易位的簇毛麦染色体片段比较小，大约为簇毛麦染色体臂的1/2，而易位的小麦染色体大约是臂长的1/3，另外2个易位株染色体断点位于或靠近着丝点。本研究的结果再次证实了利用组织培养能够创造小麦与外源染色体之间发生易位。 5 ~(60)Co γ-射线辐射处理对于普通小麦中国春与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体TH_1W杂种愈伤组织细胞的染色体变异有很大的影响。表现在未发生变异的细胞大大减少，发生染色体数目变异的细胞急剧增加，主要是染色体数目减少的变异提高了21.3%，相反染色体增加的变异不但没有增加，而且还有所减少。经过辐射处理的愈伤组织细胞染色体结构变异也有大幅度增加，变异频率提高，变异类型增加。发生染色体断裂和重接形成双着丝点染色体的细胞频率达到22.3%，比对照提高13.9%。辐射诱变对培养细胞中簇毛麦染色体变异发生明显的影响。与此同时，簇毛麦染色体与小麦染色体易位频率比对照提高了近2倍。观察结果还表明愈伤组织辐射处理比延长培养时间诱导染色体变异的效果更好。 6 尽管愈伤组织中发生的染色体变异在再生植株中多有发现，但是，只有比较小范围染色体变异的愈伤组织细胞具有再生能力形成再生植株，那些发生剧烈变异的细胞通常不具有再生能力，因而不能在再生植株中得到表达。普通小麦与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体杂种大多数再生植株染色体数目与供体杂种保持一致，只有少数植株发生染色体数目变异。显然，发生较大染色体变异的愈伤组织细胞在增殖和分化过程中处于不利的地位，逐渐被淘汰。 7 在普通小麦与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦与黑麦杂种愈伤组织中，观察到相当高频率的染色体加倍细胞，为利用组织培养创造双二倍体提供了一种可能。但是，加倍的细胞只是培养初期的愈伤组织中出现，经过一段时间的培养，这种细胞大多消失了。而且，大多数再生植株染色体数目未发生加倍，其中并没有出现期望的双二倍体植株。表明加倍了的细胞在愈伤组织生长和分化过程中大范围变异的细胞一样受到不利的选择，再生能力比较差。因此，利用组织培养创造双二倍体需要更大的努力。 8 一些黑麦品种含有数目不等的B-染色体。B-染色体的多少对普通小麦与黑麦的杂交结实率有比较大的影响，数目越多，杂交结实率越低。在培养初期的愈伤组织细胞中，B-染色体的频率很高，例如69%的中国春×芬7416杂种的40日龄愈伤组织细胞中含有数目不等的B-染色体。常染色体的倍性影响B-染色体的分布，染色体数目加倍的双二倍体细胞中含多数B-染色体的细胞频率大大高于单倍体细胞。经过一段时间的培养之后，绝大多数B-染色体都不存在了，只有极少数细胞含有1个B-染色体。可能的原因是离体培养过程对B-染色体产生了不利的选择。 9 利用组织培养技术，从普通小麦与八倍体小黑麦杂种幼胚再生植株自交后代中选育出2个异代换系，从4D缺体小麦×八倍体小黑麦再生植株回交后代中选育出1个附加系。荧光原位杂交、C-分带和种子贮藏蛋白分析证明这两个代换系1D/1R代换，附加的也是1R染色体。从4D缺体小麦与八倍体小偃麦杂种再生植株自交和回交后代中选育出5个代换系和2个附加系。染色体配对和RAPD分析证实了长穗偃麦草染色质的存在。其中一些小麦-长穗偃麦草代换系和附加系对叶锈病免疫或高抗，对条锈病的一些生理小种和白粉病具有比较高的抗性。而且，附加系924和代换系807蛋白质含量分别达到19.32%和18.83%。 10 当普通小麦鲁资357与硬粒小麦-簇毛麦双二倍体杂交时，无论是实生苗还是再生植株都发生杂种致死现象。细胞学观察没有发现植株染色体发生变异，荧光原位杂交表明簇毛麦染色也没有发生可见的变异。推测这种杂种致死现象是由于鲁资357和硬粒小麦81086A（TH_1和TH_1W的硬粒小麦亲本）中可能分别带有互补的杂种致死基因所致。

Sex-specific growth and mortality, spawning season, and female maturation of the stripey bass (Lutjanus carponotatus) on the Great Barrrier Reef

Sex-specific demography and reproductive biology of stripey bass (Lutjanus carponotatus) (also known as Spanish flag snapper, FAO) were examined at the Palm and Lizard island groups, Great Barrier Reef (GBR).Total mortality rates were similar between the sexes. Males had larger L∞ at both island groups and Lizard Island group fish had larger overall L∞. Female:male sex ratios were 1.3 and 1.1 at the Palm and Lizard island groups, respectively. The former is statistically different from 1, but is unlikely significantly different in a biological sense. Females matured on average at 2 years of age and 190 mm fork length at both locations. Female gonadal lipid body indices peaked from August through October, preceding peak gonadosomatic indices in October, November, and December that were twice as great as in any other month. However, ovarian staging revealed 50% or more ovaries were ripe from September through February, suggesting a more protracted spawning season and highlighting the different interpretations that can arise between gonad weight and gonad staging methods. Gonadosomatic index increases slightly with body size and larger fish have a longer average spawning season, which suggests that larger fish produce greater relative reproductive output. Lizard Island group females had ovaries nearly twice as large as Palm Island group females at a given body size. However, it is unclear whether this reflects spatial differences akin to those observed in growth or effects of sampling Lizard Island group fish closer to their date of spawning. These results support an existing 250 mm minimum size limit for L. carponotatus on the GBR, as well as the timing of a proposed October through December spawning closure for the fishery. The results also caution against assessing reef-fish stocks without reference to sex-, size-, and location-specific biological traits.

Biology and feeding behavior of Orbinia johnsoni

Orbinia johnsoni were studied from a small sandy beach near Mussel Pt., Pacific Grove, California, where they are most abundant at low tide levels in fine sand. They were found to have a mean length of 190 mm. The orbiniids were found with their guts the fullest during incoming to high tides. It is plausible that this is when they are feeding. It takes about 3 to 3.5 hours for food to travel through the length fo the gut. The orbiniids eat 93 percent sand and seven percent organic detritus. Special note should be taken that some food selectivity appears to be involved and that high percentages of organic matter in the feces are found in worms collected during low, outgoing tides. Evidence suggests that the worms are bottom feeders, not coming to the surface to feed.