Molecular cloning and expression analysis of interleukin-1β from Japanese sea perch (Lateolabrax japonicus)

1 Introduction IL-1βis a pleiotropic proinlammatory cytokine with a wide spectrum of inflammatory, metabolic, hematopoietic and immunological activities and is re- sponsible for the symptoms of sickness during the host response to infection (Dinarello, 1…     

cDNA cloning and mRNA expression of the translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) gene from Japanese sea perch (Lateolabrax japonicus)

1 Introduction T he translationally controlled tum or protein(TC TP) w as firstdescribed as a grow th-related proteinin m ouse E hrilisch ascites tum or cells and ery-throleukem ia cells (Y enofsky etal., 1983). Subse-quently, TC TP w as founded to be present in m anycells (Sanchez etal., 1997; G ross etal., 1989; C hunget al., 2000; V ercoutter-Edouart et al., 2001) exceptthe hum an kidney cell(Sanchez etal.,1997;G achetetal., 1999). H om ologues of TC TP have been reportedfrom sever…     

Numerical analysis of the sea (lake) breeze dynamics and initialization of the model

In this paper, analysed are the effects of synoptic wind, earth-rotation inertia and land surface roughness on sea (lake) breeze process, on the basis of the calculated results of a 2-D primitive equation model with turbulent energy closure. The results show that a moderate background wind field acts as a trigger for sea (lake) breeze onset, and presents prominent effect on the breeze intensity, inland advance rate and structure feature. The effects of Coriolis force not only make the breeze veering round, but also damp the development of the breeze component normal to shore.The paper also discussed the dynamic method of wind field initialization based on one-site radiosonde. Three approaches of initialization have been tested. In comparison, it was found that the approach of one-dimensional dynamic initialization with nudging term was preferable to the others.     

Characteristics of the Japanese sea cucumber <Emphasis Type="Italic">Apostichopus japonicus’s</Emphasis> population in the Sea of Japan (Kievka Bay)

In Kievka Bay of the Sea of Japan, the population of the Japanese sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus inhabits the areas of coarse sediments and complex bottom topography. These distributional patterns are closely related to the species’ ecology, i.e., to the demand for protection against the wave turbulence. The aggregationing coverage of the sea cucumber population is about 80 hectares, where ∼200 thousand animals were accounted for in the last years. The aggregation’s area varies during the year, which is closely related to the species’ biological peculiarities, such as their behavioral patterns and the redistribution of their food resources. A significant increase of the juvenile population occurred after the farm-reared sea cucumber spat were released in 2003.     

Neutron activation analysis(NAA) and geochemical studies of 38 elements in surface sediments from lower reach and estuary of Huanghe(Yellow) River

Using a neutron activation analysis technique, which involves gamma-spectrometry with a Ge(Li) detector coupled to a S40 multichannel analyzer and interfaced to a PDP-11 computer, we determined thirty-eight elements in sediments from the lower reach (downstream from Jinan) and estuary of Huanghe. The results are discussed in this paper.From inter-elemental correlations, it ts found that a large number of metals (Mn.As, Co, Cr.Cs, Rb, Sc, Ti, Ta, V and Zn) correlate positively with Fe. Ba and Ca correlate positively with Al. Whereas some elements (e. g. , Ti and lanthanides) show no correlation with either Fe or Al. On the other hand, Hf and Zr show a negative correlation with Fe. Elements which tend to be scavenged by Fe and Al colloids or suspended particles are enriched in sediments at the Huanghe Estuary relative to its lower reach. On the other hand, the contents of some elements (e. g. , Zr,Hf,U, Ba, etc. )are higher in sediments from the lower reach of Huanghe than in the estuarine sediments,which     

Molecular identification of bloom-forming species Phaeocystis globosa(Prymnesiophyta)and its dispersal based on rDNA ITS sequence analysis

Abstract-The colony-forming Phaeocystis species are causative agents of dense bloom occurrences incoastal waters worldwide. It is difficult to separate them because of the different morphologies associatedwith their colonial stages. In this study we applied molecular approaches to analyze the genetic variationof Phaeocystis globosa and Phaeocystis pouchetii from several geogrtaphic regions, and to assist in tracingthe dispersal of bloom-forming Phaeocystis species in coastal waters of China. The Sequences of the inter-nal transcribed sacers (ITS1 and ITS2) of rDNA and the 5.8S ribosomal RNA gene of Phaeocystisstrains were determined. Sequence comparison shows that P.globosa was the most divergent toP. pouchetii, exhibiting sequence divergence higher than 0.08. However, lower genetic divergences ex-isted between strains of P.globosa. The sequence comparison of the Phaeocystis rDNA ITS clearlyshows that the species isolated from the southeast coast of China is identified as P. globosa rather thanP. cf. po     

Molecular identification of bloom-forming species Phaeocystis globosa (Pryninesiophyta) and its dispersal based on rDNA ITS sequence analysis

The colony-forming Phaeocystis species are causative agents of dense bloom occurrences in coastal waters worldwide. It is difficult to separate them because of the different morphologies associated with their colonial stages. In this study we applied molecular approaches to analyze the genetic variation of Phaeocystis globosa and Phaeocystis pouchetii from several geographic regions, and to assist in tracing the dispersal of bloom-forming Phaeocystis species in coastal waters of China. The sequences of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS1 and ITS2) of rDNA and the 5.8S ribosomal RNA gene of Phaeocystis strains were determined. Sequence comparison shows that P.globosa was the most divergent to P. pouchetii, exhibiting sequence divergence higher than 0.08. However, lower genetic divergences existed between strains of P.globosa. The sequence comparison of the Phaeocystis rDNA ITS clearly shows that the species isolated from the southeast coast of China is identified as P.globosa rather than P. cf. pouchetii or other species. Furthermore, the significance of rDNA variation in distinct global populations of P.globosa suggested it might have had sufficient time to accumulate detectable mutations at the rDNA locus, supporting the hypothesis of ancient dispersal of P.globosa to many areas, meaning that P.globosa blooms in the coastal waters of China are endemic rather than a newly introduced species or a foreign source. Finally, based on the high divergent region of rDNA ITS, a pair of species-specific primers for P.globosa were designed, they could be useful to detect the presence of this species in mixed plankton assemblages or flagellate stages that are recognized with diffculties by means of conventional microscopy.     

Food web structure of the epibenthic and infaunal invertebrates on the Catalan slope (NW Mediterranean): Evidence from ��C and ��N analysis

The food-web structure of the epibenthic and infaunal invertebrates on the continental slope of the Catalan Sea (Balearic basin, NW Mediterranean) was investigated using carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes on a total of 34 species, and HPLC pigment analyses for three key species. Samples were collected close to Barcelona (NE Iberian Peninsula), between 650 and 800 m depth and between February 2007 and February 2008. Mean ??¹³C values ranged from −21.0‰ (small Calocaris macandreae and Amphipholis squamata) to −14.5‰ (Sipunculus norvegicus). Values of ??¹⁵N ranged from 4.0‰ (A. squamata) to 12.1‰ (Molpadia musculus). The stable isotope ratios of benthic fauna displayed a continuum of values (e.g. ??¹⁵N range of 8‰), confirming a wide spectrum of feeding strategies (from active suspension feeders to predators) and complex food webs. According to the available information on diets of benthic fauna, the lowest values were found for surface deposit feeders (small C. macandrae and the two ophiuroids A. squamata and Amphiura chiajei) and active suspension feeders (Abra longicallus and Scalpellum scalpellum) feeding on different sizes of particulate organic matter (POM), among which small particles may exhibit lower ??¹⁵N. High annual mean ??¹⁵N values were found among sub-surface deposit feeders, exploiting refractory or frequently recycled organic matter that is enriched in ??¹⁵N. Carnivorous polychaetes (Nephtys spp., Oenonidae and Polynoidae) and large decapods (Geryon longipes and Paromola cuvieri) also displayed high ??¹⁵N values. ??¹³C ranges were particularly wide among surface deposit feeders (ranging from −21.0‰ to −16.4‰), suggesting exploitation of POM of both terrigenous and oceanic origins. Correlation between ??¹³C and ??¹⁵N was generally weak, indicating multiple carbon sources, likely due to the consumption of different kinds of sinking particles (e.g. marine snow, phytodetritus, etc.), sedimented and frequently recycled POM, together with macrophyte remains. The stronger ??¹³C-??¹⁵N correlations found in February and April suggest that during the period of water column homogeneization (winter-spring), the benthic community was sustained by phytodetritus inputs originating from the peak of surface primary production in February. Conversely, weaker ??¹³C-??¹⁵N correlations were observed during the period of water column stratification (beginning in June-July), suggesting that the benthic community in this period was sustained, with a delay of ca. 2/3 months, by multiple carbon sources including continental inputs from river discharge (with the maxima in April-May). Thus both advective and vertical fluxes seem to be food sources for benthos on the Catalonian slope. Pigments in the guts of key species were generally degraded, and only the active suspension feeder A. longicallus ingested fresh chlorophyll during periods of high primary production at the surface (February and April 2007).     

Molecular constants of LiCl(X1Σ+) and elastic collisions of two ground-state Cl and Li atoms at low and ultralow temperatures

Interaction potentials for LiCl(X¹Σ⁺) are constructed by the highly accurate valence internally contracted multireference configuration interaction in combination with a number of large correlation-consistent basis sets, which are used to determine the spectroscopic parameters (D₀, D_e, R_e, ω_e, _eχ_e, B_e and α_e. The potentials obtained at the basis sets, i.e., aug-cc-pV5Z-JKFI for Cl and cc-pV5Z for Li, are selected to study the elastic collision properties of Li and Cl atoms at the impact energies from 1.0×10^-12 to 1.0×10^-4 a.u. The derived total elastic cross sections are very large and almost constant at ultralow temperatures, and their shapes are mainly dominated by the s-partial wave at very low impact energies. Only one shape resonance can be found in the total elastic cross sections over the present collision energy regime, which is rather strong and obviously broadened by the overlap contributions of the abundant resonances coming from various partial waves. Abundant resonances exist for the elastic partial-wave cross sections until l = 22 partial waves. The vibrational manifolds of the LiCl(X¹Σ⁺) molecule, which are predicted at the present level of theory and the basis sets cc-pV5Z for Li and the aug-cc-pV5Z-JKFI for Cl, should achieve much high accuracy due to the employment of the large correlation-consistent basis sets.     

Application of the first internal transcribed spacer (ITS-1) of ribosomal DNA as a molecular marker to population analysis in farrer’s scallop Chlamys farreri

1 IntroductionFarrer’s scallopChlamys farreriis a nativescallop species occurring along the northern coast ofChina, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea(DPRK), Korea and Japan (Wang et al., 1993).It has been one of the major species in scallop aqua…     

Sedimentary balances (land and sea) with special reference to the Icelandic South Coast from Torlakshöfn to Dyrholaey. River nourishment of shores — Practical analogies on artificial nourishment

The sedimentary balances between land and sea are discussed with particular reference to the 140 km long pocket beach between two major headlands on the sandy Icelandic South Coast. Rivers supply large quantities of material to the coast. Comparing the known transport of material by the rivers to the area of the continental shelf, and using the recorded sea level rise at the Port of Reykjavik a balance was found. The development of equilibrium profiles in relation to profile geometry, grain sizes and outer boundaries for material movement by wave action is discussed, and practical suggestions on future nourishment procedures are presented. “Profile nourishment” will be more practical and economical than “beach nourishment”.