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The selection of a nest site is crucial for successful reproduction of birds. Animals which re-use or occupy nest sites constructed by other species often have limited choice. Little is known about the criteria of nest-stealing species to choose suitable nesting sites and habitats. Here, we analyze breeding-site selection of an obligatory "nest-cleptoparasite", the Amur Falcon Falco amurensis. We collected data on nest sites at Muraviovka Park in the Russian Far East, where the species breeds exclusively in nests of the Eurasian Magpie Pica pica. We sampled 117 Eurasian Magpie nests, 38 of which were occupied by Amur Falcons. Nest-specific variables were assessed, and a recently developed habitat classification map was used to derive landscape metrics. We found that Amur Falcons chose a wide range of nesting sites, but significantly preferred nests with a domed roof. Breeding pairs of Eurasian Hobby Falco subbuteo and Eurasian Magpie were often found to breed near the nest in about the same distance as neighboring Amur Falcon pairs. Additionally, the occurrence of the species was positively associated with bare soil cover, forest cover, and shrub patches within their home range and negatively with the distance to wetlands. Areas of wetlands and fallow land might be used for foraging since Amur Falcons mostly depend on an insect diet. Additionally, we found that rarely burned habitats were preferred. Overall, the effect of landscape variables on the choice of actual nest sites appeared to be rather small. We used different classification methods to predict the probability of occurrence, of which the Random forest method showed the highest accuracy. The areas determined as suitable habitat showed a high concordance with the actual nest locations. We conclude that Amur Falcons prefer to occupy newly built (domed) nests to ensure high nest quality, as well as nests surrounded by available feeding habitats.
MADS-box transcription factors (TFs) are ubiquitous in eukaryotic organisms and play major roles during plant development. Nevertheless, their function in seed development remains largely unknown. Here, we show that the imprinted Arabidopsis thaliana MADS-box TF PHERES1 (PHE1) is a master regulator of paternally expressed imprinted genes, as well as of non-imprinted key regulators of endosperm development. PHE1 binding sites show distinct epigenetic modifications on maternal and paternal alleles, correlating with parental-specific transcriptional activity. Importantly, we show that the CArG-box-like DNA-binding motifs that are bound by PHE1 have been distributed by RC/Helitron transposable elements. Our data provide an example of the molecular domestication of these elements which, by distributing PHE1 binding sites throughout the genome, have facilitated the recruitment of crucial endosperm regulators into a single transcriptional network.
Formaldehyde is a highly reactive compound that participates in multiple spontaneous reactions, but these are mostly deleterious and damage cellular components. In contrast, the spontaneous condensation of formaldehyde with tetrahydrofolate (THF) has been proposed to contribute to the assimilation of this intermediate during growth on C1 carbon sources such as methanol. However, the in vivo rate of this condensation reaction is unknown and its possible contribution to growth remains elusive. Here, we used microbial platforms to assess the rate of this condensation in the cellular environment. We constructed Escherichia coli strains lacking the enzymes that naturally produce 5,10-methylene-THF. These strains were able to grow on minimal medium only when equipped with a sarcosine (N-methyl-glycine) oxidation pathway that sustained a high cellular concentration of formaldehyde, which spontaneously reacts with THF to produce 5,10-methylene-THF. We used flux balance analysis to derive the rate of the spontaneous condensation from the observed growth rate. According to this, we calculated that a microorganism obtaining its entire biomass via the spontaneous condensation of formaldehyde with THF would have a doubling time of more than three weeks. Hence, this spontaneous reaction is unlikely to serve as an effective route for formaldehyde assimilation.
Engineering biotechnological microorganisms to use methanol as a feedstock for bioproduction is a major goal for the synthetic metabolism community. Here, we aim to redesign the natural serine cycle for implementation in E. coli. We propose the homoserine cycle, relying on two promiscuous formaldehyde aldolase reactions, as a superior pathway design. The homoserine cycle is expected to outperform the serine cycle and its variants with respect to biomass yield, thermodynamic favorability, and integration with host endogenous metabolism. Even as compared to the RuMP cycle, the most efficient naturally occurring methanol assimilation route, the homoserine cycle is expected to support higher yields of a wide array of products. We test the in vivo feasibility of the homoserine cycle by constructing several E. coli gene deletion strains whose growth is coupled to the activity of different pathway segments. Using this approach, we demonstrate that all required promiscuous enzymes are active enough to enable growth of the auxotrophic strains. Our findings thus identify a novel metabolic solution that opens the way to an optimized methylotrophic platform.
Background
Parasitoid wasps have fascinating life cycles and play an important role in trophic networks, yet little is known about their genome content and function. Parasitoids that infect aphids are an important group with the potential for biological control. Their success depends on adapting to develop inside aphids and overcoming both host aphid defenses and their protective endosymbionts.
Results
We present the de novo genome assemblies, detailed annotation, and comparative analysis of two closely related parasitoid wasps that target pest aphids: Aphidius ervi and Lysiphlebus fabarum (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Aphidiinae). The genomes are small (139 and 141 Mbp) and the most AT-rich reported thus far for any arthropod (GC content: 25.8 and 23.8%). This nucleotide bias is accompanied by skewed codon usage and is stronger in genes with adult-biased expression. AT-richness may be the consequence of reduced genome size, a near absence of DNA methylation, and energy efficiency. We identify missing desaturase genes, whose absence may underlie mimicry in the cuticular hydrocarbon profile of L. fabarum. We highlight key gene groups including those underlying venom composition, chemosensory perception, and sex determination, as well as potential losses in immune pathway genes.
Conclusions
These findings are of fundamental interest for insect evolution and biological control applications. They provide a strong foundation for further functional studies into coevolution between parasitoids and their hosts. Both genomes are available at https://bipaa.genouest.org.
Germany and the United Kingdom have domestic shale gas reserves which they may exploit in the future to complement their national energy strategies. However gas production releases volatile organic compounds (VOC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), which through photochemical reaction form ground-level ozone, an air pollutant that can trigger adverse health effects e.g. on the respiratory system. This study explores the range of impacts of a potential shale gas industry in these two countries on local and regional ambient ozone. To this end, comprehensive emission scenarios are used as the basis for input to an online-coupled regional chemistry transport model (WRF-Chem). Here we simulate shale gas scenarios over summer (June, July, August) 2011, exploring the effects of varying VOC emissions, gas speciation, and concentration of NOx emissions over space and time, on ozone formation. An evaluation of the model setup is performed, which exhibited the model’s ability to predict surface meteorological and chemical variables well compared with observations, and consistent with other studies. When different shale gas scenarios were employed, the results show a peak increase in maximum daily 8-hour average ozone from 3.7 to 28.3 μg m–3. In addition, we find that shale gas emissions can force ozone exceedances at a considerable percentage of regulatory measurement stations locally (up to 21% in Germany and 35% in the United Kingdom) and in distant countries through long-range transport, and increase the cumulative health-related metric SOMO35 (maximum percent increase of ~28%) throughout the region. Findings indicate that VOC emissions are important for ozone enhancement, and to a lesser extent NOx, meaning that VOC regulation for a future European shale gas industry will be of especial importance to mitigate unfavorable health outcomes. Overall our findings demonstrate that shale gas production in Europe can worsen ozone air quality on both the local and regional scales.
Identification and Characterization of Three Epithiospecifier Protein Isoforms in Brassica oleracea
(2019)
Glucosinolates present in Brassicaceae play a major role in herbivory defense. Upon tissue disruption, glucosinolates come into contact with myrosinase, which initiates their breakdown to biologically active compounds. Among these, the formation of epithionitriles is triggered by the presence of epithiospecifier protein (ESP) and a terminal double bond in the glucosinolate side chain. One ESP gene is characterized in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana (AtESP; At1g54040.2). However, Brassica species underwent genome triplication since their divergence from the Arabidopsis lineage. This indicates the presence of multiple ESP isoforms in Brassica crops that are currently poorly characterized. We identified three B. oleracea ESPs, specifically BoESP1 (LOC106296341), BoESP2 (LOC106306810), and BoESP3 (LOC106325105) based on in silico genome analysis. Transcript and protein abundance were assessed in shoots and roots of four B. oleracea vegetables, namely broccoli, kohlrabi, white, and red cabbage, because these genotypes showed a differential pattern for the formation of glucosinolate hydrolysis products as well for their ESP activity. BoESP1 and BoESP2 were expressed mainly in shoots, while BoESP3 was abundant in roots. Biochemical characterization of heterologous expressed BoESP isoforms revealed different substrate specificities towards seven glucosinolates: all isoforms showed epithiospecifier activity on alkenyl glucosinolates, but not on non-alkenyl glucosinolates. The pH-value differently affected BoESP activity: while BoESP1 and BoESP2 activities were optimal at pH 6-7, BoESP3 activity remained relatively stable from pH 4 to 7. In order test their potential for the in vivo modification of glucosinolate breakdown, the three isoforms were expressed in A. thaliana Hi-0, which lacks AtESP expression, and analyzed for the effect on their respective hydrolysis products. The BoESPs altered the hydrolysis of allyl glucosinolate in the A. thaliana transformants to release 1-cyano-2,3-epithiopropane and reduced formation of the corresponding 3-butenenitrile and allyl isothiocyanate. Plants expressing BoESP2 showed the highest percentage of released epithionitriles. Given these results, we propose a model for isoform-specific roles of B. oleracea ESPs in glucosinolate breakdown.
Salt pans are highly dynamic environments that are difficult to study by in situ methods because of their harsh climatic conditions and large spatial areas. Remote sensing can help to elucidate their environmental dynamics and provide important constraints regarding their sedimentological, mineralogical, and hydrological evolution. This study utilizes spaceborne multitemporal multispectral optical data combined with spectral endmembers to document spatial distribution of surface crust types over time on the Omongwa pan located in the Namibian Kalahari. For this purpose, 49 surface samples were collected for spectral and mineralogical characterization during three field campaigns (2014–2016) reflecting different seasons and surface conditions of the salt pan. An approach was developed to allow the spatiotemporal analysis of the salt pan crust dynamics in a dense time-series consisting of 77 Landsat 8 cloud-free scenes between 2014 and 2017, covering at least three major wet–dry cycles. The established spectral analysis technique Sequential Maximum Angle Convex Cone (SMACC) extraction method was used to derive image endmembers from the Landsat time-series stack. Evaluation of the extracted endmember set revealed that the multispectral data allowed the differentiation of four endmembers associated with mineralogical mixtures of the crust’s composition in dry conditions and three endmembers associated with flooded or muddy pan conditions. The dry crust endmember spectra have been identified in relation to visible, near infrared, and short-wave infrared (VNIR–SWIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses of the collected surface samples. According these results, the spectral endmembers are interpreted as efflorescent halite crust, mixed halite–gypsum crust, mixed calcite quartz sepiolite crust, and gypsum crust. For each Landsat scene the spatial distribution of these crust types was mapped with the Spectral Angle Mapper (SAM) method and significant spatiotemporal dynamics of the major surface crust types were observed. Further, the surface crust dynamics were analyzed in comparison with the pan’s moisture regime and other climatic parameters. The results show that the crust dynamics are mainly driven by flooding events in the wet season, but are also influenced by temperature and aeolian activity in the dry season. The approach utilized in this study combines the advantages of multitemporal satellite data for temporal event characterization with advantages from hyperspectral methods for the image and ground data analyses that allow improved mineralogical differentiation and characterization.
This study combines spaceborne multitemporal and hyperspectral data to analyze the spatial distribution of surface evaporite minerals and changes in a semi-arid depositional environment associated with episodic flooding events, the Omongwa salt pan (Kalahari, Namibia). The dynamic of the surface crust is evaluated by a change-detection approach using the Iterative-reweighted Multivariate Alteration Detection (IR-MAD) based on the Landsat archive imagery from 1984 to 2015. The results show that the salt pan is a highly dynamic and heterogeneous landform. A change gradient is observed from very stable pan border to a highly dynamic central pan. On the basis of hyperspectral EO-1 Hyperion images, the current distribution of surface evaporite minerals is characterized using Spectral Mixture Analysis (SMA). Assessment of field and image endmembers revealed that the pan surface can be categorized into three major crust types based on diagnostic absorption features and mineralogical ground truth data. The mineralogical crust types are related to different zones of surface change as well as pan morphology that influences brine flow during the pan inundation and desiccation cycles. These combined information are used to spatially map depositional environments where the more dynamic halite crust concentrates in lower areas although stable gypsum and calcite/sepiolite crusts appear in higher elevated areas.
The decision to exercise is not only bound to rational considerations but also automatic affective processes. The affective–reflective theory of physical inactivity and exercise (ART) proposes a theoretical framework for explaining how the automatic affective process (type‑1 process) will influence exercise behavior, i.e., through the automatic activation of exercise-related associations and a subsequent affective valuation of exercise. This study aimed to empirically test this assumption of the ART with data from 69 study participants. A single-measurement study, including within-subject experimental variation, was conducted. Automatic associations with exercise were first measured with a single-target implicit association test. The somato-affective core of the participants’ automatic valuation of exercise-related pictures was then assessed via heart rate variability (HRV) analysis, and the affective valence of the valuation was tested with a facial expression (FE; smile and frown) task. Exercise behavior was assessed via self-report. Multiple regression (path) analysis revealed that automatic associations predicted HRV reactivity (β = −0.24, p = .044); the signs of the correlation between automatic associations and the smile FE score was in the expected direction but remained nonsignificant (β = −0.21, p = .078). HRV reactivity predicted self-reported exercise behavior (β = −0.28, p = .013) (the same pattern of results was achieved for the frown FE score). The HRV-related results illustrate the potential role of automatic negative affective reactions to the thought of exercise as a restraining force in exercise motivation. For better empirical distinction between the two ART type‑1 process components, automatic associations and the affective valuation should perhaps be measured separately in the future. The results support the notion that automatic and affective processes should be regarded as essential aspects of the motivation to exercise.
Solar wind observations show that geomagnetic storms are mainly driven by interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) and corotating or stream interaction regions (C/SIRs). We present a binary classifier that assigns one of these drivers to 7,546 storms between 1930 and 2015 using ground‐based geomagnetic field observations only. The input data consists of the long‐term stable Hourly Magnetospheric Currents index alongside the corresponding midlatitude geomagnetic observatory time series. This data set provides comprehensive information on the global storm time magnetic disturbance field, particularly its spatial variability, over eight solar cycles. For the first time, we use this information statistically with regard to an automated storm driver identification. Our supervised classification model significantly outperforms unskilled baseline models (78% accuracy with 26[19]% misidentified interplanetary coronal mass ejections [corotating or stream interaction regions]) and delivers plausible driver occurrences with regard to storm intensity and solar cycle phase. Our results can readily be used to advance related studies fundamental to space weather research, for example, studies connecting galactic cosmic ray modulation and geomagnetic disturbances. They are fully reproducible by means of the underlying open‐source software (Pick, 2019, http://doi.org/10.5880/GFZ.2.3.2019.003)
The Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process is a stationary and ergodic Gaussian process, that is fully determined by its covariance function and mean. We show here that the generic definitions of the ensemble- and time-averaged mean squared displacements fail to capture these properties consistently, leading to a spurious ergodicity breaking. We propose to remedy this failure by redefining the mean squared displacements such that they reflect unambiguously the statistical properties of any stochastic process. In particular we study the effect of the initial condition in the Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process and its fractional extension. For the fractional Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process representing typical experimental situations in crowded environments such as living biological cells, we show that the stationarity of the process delicately depends on the initial condition.
Climate change heavily impacts smallholder farming worldwide. Cross-scale vulnerability assessment has a high potential to identify nested measures for reducing vulnerability of smallholder farmers. Despite their high practical value, there are currently only limited examples of cross-scale assessments. The presented study aims at assessing the vulnerability of smallholder farmers in the Northeast of Brazil across three scales: regional, farm and field scale. In doing so, it builds on existing vulnerability indices and compares results between indices at the same scale and across scales. In total, six independent indices are tested, two at each scale. The calculated indices include social, economic and ecological indicators, based on municipal statistics, meteorological data, farm interviews and soil analyses. Subsequently, indices and overlapping indicators are normalized for intra- and cross-scale comparison. The results show considerable differences between indices across and within scales. They indicate different activities to reduce vulnerability of smallholder farmers. Major shortcomings arise from the conceptual differences between the indices. We therefore recommend the development of hierarchical indices, which are adapted to local conditions and contain more overlapping indicators for a better understanding of the nested vulnerabilities of smallholder farmers.
The existence of an intermediate transition between the glass and the Curie/melting temperatures in Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and some of its co- and ter-polymers has been reported by several authors. In spite (or because?) of various different explanations in the literature, the origins of the transition are still not clear. Here, we try to understand the extra transition in more detail and study it with thermal and dielectric methods on PVDF, on its co-polymers with trifluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE)) and tetrafluoroethylene (P(VDF-TFE)), and on its ter-polymer with trifluoroethylene and chlorofluoroethylene (P(VDF-TrFE-CFE). Based on interpretations from the literature and our experimental studies, we propose the new hypothesis that the intermediate transition should have several interrelated origins. Especially since the relevant range is not far above room temperature, better understanding and control of their properties may also have practical implications for the use of the respective polymer materials in devices.
Garnet of eclogite (formerly termed garnet clinopyroxenite) hosted in lenses of orogenic garnet peridotite from the Granulitgebirge, NW Bohemian Massif, contains unique inclusions of granitic melt, now either glassy or crystallized. Analysed glasses and re‐homogenized inclusions are hydrous, peraluminous, and enriched in highly incompatible elements characteristic of the continental crust such as Cs, Li, B, Pb, Rb, Th, and U. The original melt thus represents a pristine, chemically evolved metasomatic agent, which infiltrated the mantle via deep continental subduction during the Variscan orogeny. The bulk chemical composition of the studied eclogites is similar to that of Fe‐rich basalt and the enrichment in LILE and U suggest a subduction‐related component. All these geochemical features confirm metasomatism. In comparison with many other garnet+clinopyroxene‐bearing lenses in peridotites of the Bohemian Massif, the studied samples from Rubinberg and Klatschmühle are more akin to eclogite than pyroxenites, as reflected in high jadeite content in clinopyroxene, relatively low Mg, Cr, and Ni but relatively high Ti. However, trace elements of both bulk rock and individual mineral phases show also important differences making these samples rather unique. Metasomatism involving a melt requiring a trace element pattern very similar to the composition reported here has been suggested for the source region of rocks of the so‐called durbachite suite, that is, ultrapotassic melanosyenites, which are found throughout the high‐grade Variscan basement. Moreover, the Th, U, Pb, Nb, Ta, and Ti patterns of these newly studied melt inclusions (MI) strongly resemble those observed for peridotite and its enclosed pyroxenite from the T‐7 borehole (Staré, České Středhoři Mountains) in N Bohemia. This suggests that a similar kind of crustal‐derived melt also occurred here. This study of granitic MI in eclogites from peridotites has provided the first direct characterization of a preserved metasomatic melt, possibly responsible for the metasomatism of several parts of the mantle in the Variscides.
This work focuses on the dynamics of particles in a confined geometry with position-dependent diffusivity, where the confinement is modelled by a periodic channel consisting of unit cells connected by narrow passage ways. We consider three functional forms for the diffusivity, corresponding to the scenarios of a constant (D ₀), as well as a low (D ₘ) and a high (D d) mobility diffusion in cell centre of the longitudinally symmetric cells. Due to the interaction among the diffusivity, channel shape and external force, the system exhibits complex and interesting phenomena. By calculating the probability density function, mean velocity and mean first exit time with the Itô calculus form, we find that in the absence of external forces the diffusivity D d will redistribute particles near the channel wall, while the diffusivity D ₘ will trap them near the cell centre. The superposition of external forces will break their static distributions. Besides, our results demonstrate that for the diffusivity D d, a high dependence on the x coordinate (parallel with the central channel line) will improve the mean velocity of the particles. In contrast, for the diffusivity D ₘ, a weak dependence on the x coordinate will dramatically accelerate the moving speed. In addition, it shows that a large external force can weaken the influences of different diffusivities; inversely, for a small external force, the types of diffusivity affect significantly the particle dynamics. In practice, one can apply these results to achieve a prominent enhancement of the particle transport in two- or three-dimensional channels by modulating the local tracer diffusivity via an engineered gel of varying porosity or by adding a cold tube to cool down the diffusivity along the central line, which may be a relevant effect in engineering applications. Effects of different stochastic calculi in the evaluation of the underlying multiplicative stochastic equation for different physical scenarios are discussed.
Internalizing problems in children belong to the category of special educational needs called emotional and behavioral difficulties. Recent decades have witnessed a critical discussion about whether children and adolescents experiencing internalizing problems are at risk of being sociometrically neglected (neither liked nor disliked by their peers). Previous studies have shown evidence both for and against the association between internalizing problems and neglected sociometric status. These contradictory results may be due to the following methodological aspects: (1) shortcomings of sociometric status classification methods (arbitrariness of the sociometric classification rules) and (2) different operationalizations of internalizing problems (broadband and narrowband dimensions of behavior). The aim of the present study is to investigate empirically whether and to what extent these methodological aspects lead to contradictory results on the internalizing behavior of neglected students. This question is investigated using a sample of students (N = 2334) in German inclusive primary schools. The systematic investigation presented here provides initial indications that the various methodological approaches can lead to conflicting results. The contradictory results are not only due to the application of different sociometric classification methods, but also to different operationalizations of internalizing behavior (narrowband and broadband scales). Earlier contradictory evidence on the internalizing behavior of neglected students must therefore be seen in a different light: the reasons for previously conflicting results may actually be methodological. Based on the results, conclusions are drawn as to how methodological aspects can be given more consideration in sociometric research on internalizing behavior.