冬小麦对盐分与臭氧胁迫的生理生态响应机理研究

本研究选用抗盐冬小麦品种—德抗961（DK961）和盐敏感品种—济南17（JN17）为试验材料。一方面，研究了冬小麦对盐分及臭氧胁迫的生理生态响应机制；另一方面，探讨了外源硝酸钾对小麦盐伤害的缓解机理，提出了盐胁迫下小麦优质高产的栽培技术规程。主要结论如下： 1 冬小麦产量与品质对不同浓度盐胁迫的响应 同一小麦品种在不同盐浓度胁迫下产量和品质存在显著差异，不同小麦品种在同一盐分浓度胁迫下产量和品质也有显著差异，说明盐胁迫下小麦产量和品质与小麦品种特性和耐盐性关系密切。在对照栽培条件下，两小麦品种的产量次序为JN17＞DK961；在轻度（0.3%）盐胁迫下，耐盐品种仍获得了较高的产量（仅下降5.8%），而盐敏感品种下降幅度较大（为22.9%），此时的产量次序为DK961＞JN17；DK961在0.5%盐胁迫下，产量较对照处理下降9.7%，而JN17下降了54.3%；在0.7％盐浓度环境中，DK961和JN17产量均出现了大幅降低，但DK961的产量仍显著高于JN17。 盐胁迫下的小麦品质指标表现为：在0.3％和0.5%盐浓度下，随着盐浓度的升高，蛋白质含量升高，淀粉含量下降；当盐浓度达到0.7%时，两者都快速下降。 2 不同耐盐性冬小麦品种对盐胁迫的生理生态响应 2.1品种与盐浓度对小麦生长特性的影响 盐胁迫造成了小麦的后期衰老加快，光合速率降低，生育期缩短。但这种影响会因小麦的耐盐性不同而有很大的差异：DK961在轻、中度盐浓度（0.3％、0.5％）下，生育期与无盐处理时无显著差异，但当盐浓度达到0.7%时，生育期出现了明显的缩短；相反，JN17生育期在各个盐浓度下都出现了显著变化。对盐敏感品种，盐胁迫导致小麦出苗期、拔节期推迟3-5 d，抽穗期和开花期提前6-7 d，成熟期提前10-15 d。盐胁迫对小麦生育期的影响主要是缩短生殖生长期。 2.2品种与盐浓度对小麦生理代谢的影响 不同冬小麦品种对盐胁迫产生的生理反应程度不同，耐盐小麦品种在一定的盐浓度范围内，盐胁迫症状不明显，生理反应比较迟钝，光合速率、气孔导度、光饱和点等基本维持在无盐处理的水平，丙二醛和活性氧清除酶活性增加不显著；盐敏感品种在各种盐浓度胁迫下或耐盐品种在过重的盐分浓度胁迫下，盐胁迫症状极为显著，小麦植株生长矮小，光合速率、气孔导度、光饱和点等大幅下降，丙二醛和活性氧自由基含量大幅上升，严重的情况下，小麦植株不能正常生长，甚至出现“干死”现象。 3 盐胁迫下冬小麦生理生态特征对臭氧浓度升高的响应 3.1 臭氧污染对小麦生理代谢的影响 3.1.1对小麦叶片气体交换的影响 气孔是小麦叶片与外界气体交换的“大门”，是臭氧进入叶片的主要通道，控制着蒸腾、光合、呼吸等重要生理过程。通常，高浓度臭氧环境中，小麦表现出较低的气孔导度。气孔的这种反应是植物限制臭氧进入叶片中的一种避害机制。 臭氧的强氧化性导致高浓度臭氧环境中小麦的光合速率下降。臭氧通过气孔进入叶片后，对植物叶片光合作用的抑制主要是由Rubiso酶含量/活性的降低引起的。研究发现，臭氧低于某一临界值时，产生的氧化伤害可以被植物体的抗氧化系统清除而不会对光合作用产生抑制，而高于该临界值时由Rubsico限制引起的光合速率降低将与臭氧吸收量呈线性关系。高浓度臭氧环境下，植物光合作用降低的生理原因，主要是臭氧导致叶绿素和可溶性蛋白分解，叶片衰老加快、叶绿体结构发生改变、活性氧清除酶活性升高，而与碳素固定有关的酶活性降低、光合产物向外运输受阻而导致的反馈抑制。 3.1.2对小麦生长特性的影响 研究表明，环境中臭氧浓度升高可引起小麦生长特性发生巨大改变。臭氧污染首先加快老叶的衰老，而对新叶的影响很小。然而老叶衰老能够将其中的营养转移到新生长叶片中，有利于维持植株的生长。臭氧环境下，老叶迅速衰老的同时，同一植株中的新生组织具有较高的Rubisco合成速率和总量，同化速率加强。这一现象被认为是植株在臭氧环境下的一种补偿机制。臭氧显著降低植株同化物向根系的分配，而同化物向根系分配的改变将导致根系与整株植物功能关系的改变。在水分亏缺环境下，植物根系的生长受到抑制，导致根系对土壤营养吸收能力的降低，从而间接降低叶片的光合速率。 3.2 盐胁迫引起的生理响应提高了小麦抵御臭氧伤害的能力 试验结果表明，盐胁迫引起的小麦生理响应（如，气孔导度降低、抗氧化酶活性升高等），显著增强了小麦抵抗臭氧伤害的能力。但这种保护作用是相对的，因为盐胁迫本身已对小麦生长产生显著的抑制作用。 3.2.1 气孔导度下降减少了臭氧的进入 研究发现，臭氧是通过气孔进入植物体内的，而盐胁迫引起的小麦气孔导度下降，显著减少了臭氧进入小麦体内的量，大大减轻了臭氧对小麦的伤害。本实验中，无盐栽培条件下，臭氧引起的小麦光合速率降低，达到了显著水平；而盐胁迫下，由臭氧引起的小麦光合速率降低，未达到显著水平。这说明盐胁迫引起的气孔导度降低，起到了减轻臭氧对小麦生长抑制的作用。 3.2.2 渗透调节能力的增强弱化了臭氧的伤害 盐胁迫引起的可溶性糖、可溶性蛋白、脯氨酸等渗透调节物质含量的升高，大大增强了小麦抵御臭氧伤害的能力。如，臭氧往往造成植物蛋白质的分解，降低蛋白质含量；但盐胁迫下，可溶性蛋白含量是上升的，两方面协调，维持了植株蛋白质水平，促进了小麦生长。另一方面，渗透调节物质的积累，有利于小麦同化物的合成、转化和运输，加快了循环的节奏，这也是盐胁迫降低臭氧对小麦伤害的重要原因之一。 3.2.3 抗氧化能力增强降低了臭氧的氧化伤害 盐胁迫引起的小麦酶促保护系统抗氧化酶（SOD、POD等）活性升高，提高了小麦体内活性氧清除能力。臭氧污染可产生大量的活性氧自由基，对小麦产生强氧化伤害，抑制小麦生长。通常情况下，臭氧胁迫也可引起小麦抗氧化酶活性的提高，来适应这种污染环境。本实验表明，在盐和臭氧的交互作用下，小麦抗氧化酶活性的升高呈现了叠加效应，小麦的活性氧清除能力大大加强，减缓了小麦衰老进程，有利于小麦生长。 4 外源硝酸钾对冬小麦盐胁迫伤害的缓解机理及高产栽培技术规程 4.1 不同浓度硝酸钾处理对盐胁迫下小麦幼苗生理代谢的影响 植株体内K+/Na+比值是衡量小麦抗盐性的一项重要指标。盐胁迫下，小麦体内Na+含量快速上升，而K+含量相对下降，K+/Na+比值快速降低，打破了植株体内离子平衡，对小麦造成Na+“单盐毒害”，严重抑制小麦生长。可溶性糖、脯氨酸等低分子量渗透调节物质含量升高；膜质过氧化程度加重，电解质外渗量及丙二醛含量升高；活性氧自由基增多，抗氧化酶活性升高。 外源KNO3显著提高了小麦植株组织内K+/Na+比值，盐胁迫症状减轻，可溶性糖、脯氨酸等低分子量渗透调节物质含量比单独NaCl胁迫时降低；膜质过氧化程度减轻，电解质外渗量及丙二醛含量降低；活性氧自由基减少，抗氧化酶活性恢复到接近正常水平。但过量施用硝酸钾同样不利于小麦的生长。实验结果表明，小麦生长环境中最佳的K+/Na+ = 16:100。 4.2 抽穗期叶面喷施硝酸钾对盐胁迫下小麦花后生长及籽粒产量的影响 根据小麦生长环境中最佳的钾/钠 = 16:100的实验结果，设计了对100 mM NaCl生长环境中小麦抽穗期叶面喷施10 mM KNO3溶液试验（Hoagland 营养液中已含6 mM KNO3），得出外源硝酸钾有利于盐胁迫下小麦生长的恢复及籽粒产量的提高，DK961和JN17的穗粒数分别比单纯盐胁迫时提高了1.9%和7.1%；千粒重分别提高了2.3%和2.8 %；产量分别提高了4.5%和12.3%；叶面喷施钾肥后，盐胁迫对耐盐小麦产量指标影响变小，小麦各项指标恢复到接近于对照水平。盐敏感小麦品种受到盐胁迫的伤害较重，产量下降幅度较大，施钾肥后小麦盐胁迫症状虽有改善，但仍与对照相差较远。所以，盐胁迫下小麦高产优质栽培中，耐盐品种的选用是首要的。 4.3外源硝酸钾对盐胁迫下花后小麦旗叶气体交换的影响 盐胁迫下小麦叶面喷施钾肥，旗叶光合速率在灌浆期比不施钾处理显著升高，且维持高光合速率时间延长，小麦后期衰老速率减缓。由于施钾处理使旗叶光合速率提高，功能期延长，使籽粒可溶性总糖含量和蔗糖含量高于不施钾的处理，促进了淀粉合成底物的供应，由此促进了淀粉的合成。盐胁迫下小麦抽穗期施钾，可促进小麦旗叶、籽粒的碳、氮代谢，淀粉合成速率加快。同时游离氨基酸含量增加，籽粒中蛋白质合成底物的供应增加，蛋白质产量提高。适宜的钾肥处理能够显著促进小麦植株碳、氮代谢过程，加速碳水化合物和蛋白质的合成，使籽粒蛋白质、淀粉产量提高。 4.4外源硝酸钾对盐胁迫下小麦花后旗叶抗衰老酶活性的影响 盐胁迫可使小麦代谢过程中产生的活性氧自由基增多，刺激酶促防御系统的保护酶（如，SOD、POD、CAT等）活性提高，但当盐浓度超过其上限时，酶活性达到一定的极限，活性氧自由基不能及时的清除，代谢发生紊乱，植株加速衰老或不能正常生长，出现“早死”现象。外源硝酸钾可有效缓解这一抑制作用，提高小麦在盐胁迫下的代谢能力，减少活性氧自由基的产生，减轻活性氧清除系统的压力，能较长时间维持叶片细胞结构的完整性，提高小麦抵抗盐胁迫的能力。 4.5 盐胁迫下小麦优质高产栽培技术规程 研究结果表明：选用高产优质抗盐小麦新品种，并合理配合施用钾肥是获得小麦优质高产的一项有效措施： 1） 选用高产优质抗盐小麦新品种 在品种选用上，首先要考虑苗期耐盐力好、个体分蘖强、成穗率高三大因素，在此基础上选择多穗、粒大、粒多的性状。 2）配合施用钾肥 钾肥基施和抽穗期叶面喷施皆对盐胁迫下小麦生长有促进作用。钾肥的施用量应根据土壤盐浓度而定，小麦生长环境中最佳的K+/Na+比值为16:100。

The unexpected discovery of a novel low-oxygen-activated locus for the anoxic persistence of Burkholderia cenocepacia

Burkholderia cenocepacia is a Gram-negative aerobic bacterium that belongs to a group of opportunistic pathogens displaying diverse environmental and pathogenic lifestyles. B. cenocepacia is known for its ability to cause lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis and it possesses a large 8?Mb multireplicon genome encoding a wide array of pathogenicity and fitness genes. Transcriptomic profiling across nine growth conditions was performed to identify the global gene expression changes made when B. cenocepacia changes niches from an environmental lifestyle to infection. In comparison to exponential growth, the results demonstrated that B. cenocepacia changes expression of over one-quarter of its genome during conditions of growth arrest, stationary phase and surprisingly, under reduced oxygen concentrations (6% instead of 20.9% normal atmospheric conditions). Multiple virulence factors are upregulated during these growth arrest conditions. A unique discovery from the comparative expression analysis was the identification of a distinct, co-regulated 50-gene cluster that was significantly upregulated during growth under low oxygen conditions. This gene cluster was designated the low-oxygen-activated (lxa) locus and encodes six universal stress proteins and proteins predicted to be involved in metabolism, transport, electron transfer and regulation. Deletion of the lxa locus resulted in B. cenocepacia mutants with aerobic growth deficiencies in minimal medium and compromised viability after prolonged incubation in the absence of oxygen. In summary, transcriptomic profiling of B. cenocepacia revealed an unexpected ability of aerobic Burkholderia to persist in the absence of oxygen and identified the novel lxa locus as key determinant of this important ecophysiological trait.

Ecophysiological and bioclimatic foundations for a global plant functional classification

Question: What plant properties might define plant functional types (PFTs) for the analysis of global vegetation responses to climate change, and what aspects of the physical environment might be expected to predict the distributions of PFTs? Methods: We review principles to explain the distribution of key plant traits as a function of bioclimatic variables. We focus on those whole-plant and leaf traits that are commonly used to define biomes and PFTs in global maps and models. Results: Raunkiær's plant life forms (underlying most later classifications) describe different adaptive strategies for surviving low temperature or drought, while satisfying requirements for reproduction and growth. Simple conceptual models and published observations are used to quantify the adaptive significance of leaf size for temperature regulation, leaf consistency for maintaining transpiration under drought, and phenology for the optimization of annual carbon balance. A new compilation of experimental data supports the functional definition of tropical, warm-temperate, temperate and boreal phanerophytes based on mechanisms for withstanding low temperature extremes. Chilling requirements are less well quantified, but are a necessary adjunct to cold tolerance. Functional traits generally confer both advantages and restrictions; the existence of trade-offs contributes to the diversity of plants along bioclimatic gradients. Conclusions: Quantitative analysis of plant trait distributions against bioclimatic variables is becoming possible; this opens up new opportunities for PFT classification. A PFT classification based on bioclimatic responses will need to be enhanced by information on traits related to competition, successional dynamics and disturbance.

Trait physiology and crop modelling as a framework to link phenotypic complexity to underlying genetic systems

New tools derived from advances in molecular biology have not been widely adopted in plant breeding for complex traits because of the inability to connect information at gene level to the phenotype in a manner that is useful for selection. In this study, we explored whether physiological dissection and integrative modelling of complex traits could link phenotype complexity to underlying genetic systems in a way that enhanced the power of molecular breeding strategies. A crop and breeding system simulation study on sorghum, which involved variation in 4 key adaptive traits-phenology, osmotic adjustment, transpiration efficiency, stay-green-and a broad range of production environments in north-eastern Australia, was used. The full matrix of simulated phenotypes, which consisted of 547 location-season combinations and 4235 genotypic expression states, was analysed for genetic and environmental effects. The analysis was conducted in stages assuming gradually increased understanding of gene-to-phenotype relationships, which would arise from physiological dissection and modelling. It was found that environmental characterisation and physiological knowledge helped to explain and unravel gene and environment context dependencies in the data. Based on the analyses of gene effects, a range of marker-assisted selection breeding strategies was simulated. It was shown that the inclusion of knowledge resulting from trait physiology and modelling generated an enhanced rate of yield advance over cycles of selection. This occurred because the knowledge associated with component trait physiology and extrapolation to the target population of environments by modelling removed confounding effects associated with environment and gene context dependencies for the markers used. Developing and implementing this gene-to-phenotype capability in crop improvement requires enhanced attention to phenotyping, ecophysiological modelling, and validation studies to test the stability of candidate genetic regions.

Trait physiology and crop modelling to link phenotypic complexity to underlying genetic systems

New tools derived from advances in molecular biology have not been widely adopted in plant breeding because of the inability to connect information at gene level to the phenotype in a manner that is useful for selection. We explore whether a crop growth and development modelling framework can link phenotype complexity to underlying genetic systems in a way that strengthens molecular breeding strategies. We use gene-to-phenotype simulation studies on sorghum to consider the value to marker-assisted selection of intrinsically stable QTLs that might be generated by physiological dissection of complex traits. The consequences on grain yield of genetic variation in four key adaptive traits – phenology, osmotic adjustment, transpiration efficiency, and staygreen – were simulated for a diverse set of environments by placing the known extent of genetic variation in the context of the physiological determinants framework of a crop growth and development model. It was assumed that the three to five genes associated with each trait, had two alleles per locus acting in an additive manner. The effects on average simulated yield, generated by differing combinations of positive alleles for the traits incorporated, varied with environment type. The full matrix of simulated phenotypes, which consisted of 547 location-season combinations and 4235 genotypic expression states, was analysed for genetic and environmental effects. The analysis was conducted in stages with gradually increased understanding of gene-to-phenotype relationships, which would arise from physiological dissection and modelling. It was found that environmental characterisation and physiological knowledge helped to explain and unravel gene and environment context dependencies. We simulated a marker-assisted selection (MAS) breeding strategy based on the analyses of gene effects. When marker scores were allocated based on the contribution of gene effects to yield in a single environment, there was a wide divergence in rate of yield gain over all environments with breeding cycle depending on the environment chosen for the QTL analysis. It was suggested that knowledge resulting from trait physiology and modelling would overcome this dependency by identifying stable QTLs. The improved predictive power would increase the utility of the QTLs in MAS. Developing and implementing this gene-to-phenotype capability in crop improvement requires enhanced attention to phenotyping, ecophysiological modelling, and validation studies to test the stability of candidate QTLs.

Bayesian latent trait modeling of migraine symptom data

Definition of disease phenotype is a necessary preliminary to research into genetic causes of a complex disease. Clinical diagnosis of migraine is currently based on diagnostic criteria developed by the International Headache Society. Previously, we examined the natural clustering of these diagnostic symptoms using latent class analysis (LCA) and found that a four-class model was preferred. However, the classes can be ordered such that all symptoms progressively intensify, suggesting that a single continuous variable representing disease severity may provide a better model. Here, we compare two models: item response theory and LCA, each constructed within a Bayesian context. A deviance information criterion is used to assess model fit. We phenotyped our population sample using these models, estimated heritability and conducted genome-wide linkage analysis using Merlin-qtl. LCA with four classes was again preferred. After transformation, phenotypic trait values derived from both models are highly correlated (correlation = 0.99) and consequently results from subsequent genetic analyses were similar. Heritability was estimated at 0.37, while multipoint linkage analysis produced genome-wide significant linkage to chromosome 7q31-q33 and suggestive linkage to chromosomes 1 and 2. We argue that such continuous measures are a powerful tool for identifying genes contributing to migraine susceptibility.

Effects of an acute α-lactalbumin manipulation on mood and food hedonics in high- and low-trait anxiety individuals

Serotonergic hypofunction is associated with a depressive mood state, an increased drive to eat and preference for sweet (SW) foods. High-trait anxiety individuals are characterised by a functional shortage of serotonin during stress, which in turn increases their susceptibility to experience a negative mood and an increased drive for SW foods. The present study examined whether an acute dietary manipulation, intended to increase circulating serotonin levels, alleviated the detrimental effects of a stress-inducing task on subjective appetite and mood sensations, and preference for SW foods in high-trait anxiety individuals. Thirteen high- (eleven females and two males; anxiety scores 45·5 (sd 5·9); BMI 22·9 (sd 3·0)kg/m2) and twelve low- (ten females and two males; anxiety scores 30·4 (sd 4·8); BMI 23·4 (sd 2·5) kg/m2) trait anxiety individuals participated in a placebo-controlled, two-way crossover design. Participants were provided with 40 g α-lactalbumin (LAC; l-tryptophan (Trp):large neutral amino acids (LNAA) ratio of 7·6) and 40 g casein (placebo) (Trp:LNAA ratio of 4·0) in the form of a snack and lunch on two test days. On both the test days, participants completed a stress-inducing task 2 h after the lunch. Mood and appetite were assessed using visual analogue scales. Changes in food hedonics for different taste and nutrient combinations were assessed using a computer task. The results demonstrated that the LAC manipulation did not exert any immediate effects on mood or appetite. However, LAC did have an effect on food hedonics in individuals with high-trait anxiety after acute stress. These individuals expressed a lower liking (P = 0·012) and SW food preference (P = 0·014) after the stressful task when supplemented with LAC.

Trait anxiety and coping strategies among ballet dancers

This study examined relationships between competitive trait anxiety and coping strategies among ballet dancers. Participants were 104 classical dancers (81 females and 23 males) ranging in age from 15 to 35 years (mean 19.4 years; SD 3.8 years) from three professional ballet companies, two private dance schools, and two university dance courses in Australia. Participants completed the Modified COPE scale and the Sport Anxiety Scale. Trait anxiety scores, in particular for somatic anxiety and worry, were significant predictors of 7 of the 12 coping strategies (wishful thinking, r2 = 42.3%; selfblame, r2 = 35.7%; suppression of competing activities, r2 = 27.1%; venting of emotions, r2 = 23.2%; denial, r2 = 17.7%; effort, r2 = 16.6%; active coping, r2 = 14.3%). Approximately 96% of dancers could be classified correctly as high or low trait-anxious from their reported coping style. No significant effects of gender or status (professional versus students) were found. Findings showed that high trait-anxious athletes tend to use more maladaptive, emotion-focused coping strategies compared with low trait-anxious athletes; a tendency that has been proposed to lead to negative performance effects. Dancers who are by nature anxious about performance may need special attention to help them to learn to cope with performance-related stress. Med Probl Perform Art 18:59–64, 2003.

A strong quantitative trait locus for wing length on chromosome 2 in a wild population of great reed warblers

Wing length is a key character for essential behaviours related to bird flight such as migration and foraging. In the present study, we initiate the search for the genes underlying wing length in birds by studying a long-distance migrant, the great reed warbler (Acrocephalus arundinaceus). In this species wing length is an evolutionary interesting trait with pronounced latitudinal gradient and sex-specific selection regimes in local populations. We performed a quantitative trait locus (QTL) scan for wing length in great reed warblers using phenotypic, genotypic, pedigree and linkage map data from our long-term study population in Sweden. We applied the linkage analysis mapping method implemented in GRIDQTL (a new web-based software) and detected a genome-wide significant QTL for wing length on chromosome 2, to our knowledge, the first detected QTL in wild birds. The QTL extended over 25 cM and accounted for a substantial part (37%) of the phenotypic variance of the trait. A genome scan for tarsus length (a bodysize-related trait) did not show any signal, implying that the wing-length QTL on chromosome 2 was not associated with body size. Our results provide a first important step into understanding the genetic architecture of avian wing length, and give opportunities to study the evolutionary dynamics of wing length at the locus level. This journal is© 2010 The Royal Society.

Mapping quantitative trait loci in a wild population using linkage and linkage disequilibrium analyses

Historical information can be used, in addition to pedigree, traits and genotypes, to map quantitative trait locus (QTL) in general populations via maximum likelihood estimation of variance components. This analysis is known as linkage disequilibrium (LD) and linkage mapping, because it exploits both linkage in families and LD at the population level. The search for QTL in the wild population of Soay sheep on St. Kilda is a proof of principle. We analysed the data from a previous study and confirmed some of the QTLs reported. The most striking result was the confirmation of a QTL affecting birth weight that had been reported using association tests but not when using linkage-based analyses. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010.

Mapping of multiple quantitative trait loci affecting bovine spongiform encephalopathy

A whole-genome scan was conducted to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) for BSE resistance or susceptibility. Cows from four half-sib families were included and 173 microsatellite markers were used to construct a 2835-cM (Kosambi) linkage map covering 29 autosomes and the pseudoautosomal region of the sex chromosome. Interval mapping by linear regression was applied and extended to a multiple-QTL analysis approach that used identified QTL on other chromosomes as cofactors to increase mapping power. In the multiple-QTL analysis, two genome-wide significant QTL (BTA17 and X/Y ps) and four genome-wide suggestive QTL (BTA1, 6, 13, and 19) were revealed. The QTL identified here using linkage analysis do not overlap with regions previously identified using TDT analysis. One factor that may explain the disparity between the results is that a more extensive data set was used in the present study. Furthermore, methodological differences between TDT and linkage analyses may affect the power of these approaches.

The intervening role of Agreeableness in the relationship between trait emotional intelligence and Machiavellianism : reassessing the potential dark side of EI

Previous research into the potential ‘dark’ side of trait emotional intelligence (EI) has repeatedly demonstrated that trait EI is negatively associated with Machiavellianism. In this study, we reassess the potential dark side of trait EI, by testing whether Agreeableness mediates and/or moderates the relationship between trait EI and Machiavellianism. Hypothesized mediation and moderation effects were tested using a large sample of 884 workers who completed several self-report questionnaires. Results provide support for both hypotheses; Agreeableness was found to mediate and moderate the relationship between trait EI and Machiavellianism. Overall, results indicate that individuals high in trait EI tend to have low levels of Machiavellianism because they generally have a positive nature (i.e. are agreeable) and not because they are emotionally competent per se. Results also indicate that individuals high in ‘perceived emotional competence’ have the potential to be high in Machiavellianism, particularly when they are low in Agreeableness.

How approach and avoidance constructs of personality and trait emotional intelligence predict core human values

In this paper we focus specifically on explaining variation in core human values, and suggest that individual differences in values can be partially explained by personality traits and the perceived ability to manage emotions in the self and others (i.e. trait emotional intelligence). A sample of 209 university students was used to test hypotheses regarding several proposed direct and indirect relationships between personality traits, trait emotional intelligence and values. Consistent with the hypotheses, Harm Avoidance and Novelty Seeking were found to directly predict Hedonism, Conformity, and Stimulation. Harm Avoidance was also found to indirectly predict these values through the mediating effects of key subscales of trait emotional intelligence. Novelty Seeking was not found to be an indirect predictor of values. Results have implications for our understanding of the relationship between personality, trait emotional intelligence and values, and suggest a common basis in terms of approach and avoidance pathways.