Primary molecular basis of androgenic gland endocrine sex regulation revealed by transcriptome analysis in Eriocheir sinensis

In crustaceans, the male sexual dif ferentiation and maintenance are specially regulated by androgenic gland(AG). However, little is known about the genes involved in the regulation process.RNA-Seq was performed on AG with ejaculatory duct(AG_ED) and ejaculatory duct(ED) as control in Eriocheir sinensis, one of the most important economic and ?shery crabs with typically sex dimorphism. A total of 925 unigenes were identi?ed as dif ferentially expressed genes(DEGs) and the expression of nine genes randomly selected was con?rmed by qRT-PCR. 667 unigenes were up-regulated in AG_ED, being supposed to be AG preferential genes. Among them, the full length of i nsulin-like androgenic gland factor( IAG) cDNA named as Es-IAG was obtained as a logo gene of AG, which together with the genes i nsulin-like receptor( INR), and s ingle insulin binding domain protein( SIBD), might constitute the sex regulation pathway. Several sex related genes were identi?ed, and their function will have to be investigated. Also,the identi?cation of j uvenile hormone epoxide hydrolase 1( JHEH1), ecdysteroid 22-hydroxylase( DIB) and e cdysone receptor( ECR) preliminarily clari?ed the molecular regulation mechanism of eyestalk-AG-testis axis, which plays important roles in molting and reproduction. The results will enhance our understanding for the molecular basis of the AG involved in male sex regulation in crabs.     

Dynamic metabolite alterations of Portunus trituberculatus during larval development

A mass mortality often occurs from molting to the megalopa stage during the larval development of the swimming crab Portunus trituberculatus. Larvae with insuffcient nutrient accumulation during the zoeal stages are probably unable to develop into juvenile swimming crabs. However, the nutritional information such as the primary metabolites is scarce for P. trituberculatus larvae. The aim of this work is to obtain an insight into the metabolite traits of P. trituberculatus at early developmental stages. 1 H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy coupled with multivariate data analysis was used to determine how the metabolite pro?les shift during larval development in P. trituberculatus. Our results show that the trend of total metabolites exhibited a rise from zoea 1 to zoea 3, followed by a drop from zoea 4 to megalopa and recovery during the ?rst juvenile stage. A large-scale depletion of total metabolites in the zoea 4 and megalopa stages suggests a deep depression of metabolic activity, which may be linked to the mass mortality from molting to the megalopa stage. These ?ndings provided essential metabolic information about the larval development of P. trituberculatus and important clues for understanding the nutritional requirements of P. trituberculatus in early developmental stages.     

An integrated approach to assess the ecological and chemical status of lakes with HOD/AHOD: a case study of two lakes

The thermal strati?cation of the lakes impedes the transfer of atmospheric oxygen into the lower layers of the lake. In lakes which are af fected by diverse anthropogenic in?uences, the increasing organic matter amounts lead to a sharp decrease in hypolimnetic oxygen amounts, aided by thermal strati?cation,and anaerobic conditions arise. The determination of hypolimnetic oxygen demand(HOD) and areal hypolimnetic oxygen demand(AHOD) and their monitoring represent an integrated approach to investigate the oxygenation of lakes, the nutrient conditions, and the physicochemical dynamics. In this study, two lakes dif fering by size and af fected by dif ferent anthropogenic sources, are investigated in this respect. At?rst, bathymetric studies were conducted to determine the depth, surface area, and volume relationships.Then, based on monitoring studies conducted in 2013 and 2014, the thermal strati?cation dynamics and layer properties were established using the relative thermal resistance to mixing(RTRM) index based on temperature and density pro?les. Following this, the oxygen depletion rates were determined by oxygen and temperature pro?ling in the hypolimnion. For the years of 2013 and 2014, the AHOD values for the Borabey Pond which is far from anthropogenic in?uences, were found to be 0.848 and 0.569 g O 2/(m·d), respectively.The AHOD values for the Porsuk Reservoir which was overburdened for years by industrial and domestic pollution were found to be 4.263 and 5.099 g O 2/(m·d), larger than its counterpart by almost sevenfold. The HOD and AHOD monitoring can be considered to a valuable tool for assessing the ecological and chemical status of lakes within Annex 5 of the Water Framework Directive and as an integrated approach to assess and monitor the status of lakes.     

Verification and recalibration of HY-2A microwave radiometer brightness temperature

HY-2A is the first one of the Chinese HY-2 ocean satellite series carrying a microwave radiometer(RM)to measure sea surface temperature,sea surface wind speed,atmospheric water vapor,cloud liquid water content,and rain rate.We verified the RM level 1B brightness temperature(T B)to retrieve environmental parameters.In the verification,TB that simulated using the ocean-atmosphere radiative transfer model(RTM)was used as a reference.The total bias and total standard deviation(SD)of the RM level 1B TB,with reference to the RTM simulation,ranged-20.6-4.38 K and 0.7-2.93 K,respectively.We found that both the total bias and the total SD depend on the frequency and polarization,although the values for ascending and descending passes are different.In addition,substantial seasonal variation of the bias was found at all channels.The verification results indicate the RM has some problems regarding calibration,e.g.,correction of antenna spillover and antenna physical emission,especially for the 18.7-GHz channel.Based on error analyses,a statistical recalibration algorithm was designed and recalibration was performed for the RM level 1B TB.Validation of the recalibrated TB indicated that the quality of the recalibrated RM level 1B TB was improved significantly.The bias of the recalibrated T B at all channels was reduced to<0.4 K,seasonal variation was almost eradicated,and SD was diminished(i.e.,the SD of the 18.7-GHz channel was reduced by more than 0.5K).     

Growth inhibition and oxidative stress in two species of marine diatoms exposed to 1-phenylethanol

1-phenylethanol (1-PEA) is a flavor extensively used in the production of cosmetics, beverages, and food. The release of 1-PEA into coastal environments has aroused great concern. However, its potential effects on marine organisms are still unknown. In order to provide a better understanding of the ecological risks of 1-PEA in marine environments, this study determined the toxic effects of 1-PEA on two marine diatoms (Phaeodactylum tricornutum and Skeletonema costatum). The diatoms were grown in culture medium containing different concentrations of 1-PEA for 96 h. The contents of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll c, glutathione (GSH), malondialdehyde (MDA), and the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), were measured at the end of the exposure period. 1-PEA was shown to significantly inhibit the growth of diatoms, with 96-h EC50 values of 257.14 mg/Land 126.46 mg/L in P. tricornutum and S. costatum, respectively. In P. tricornutum, the levels of SOD, CAT, GPx, GSH, and MDA were stimulated only when 1-PEA concentrations were close to or greater than the 96-h EC50 value. However, in S. costatum, the activities of SOD and CAT, and the syntheses of two chlorophylls were inhibited even at an exposure concentration below the 96-h EC50 value. Taken together, these findings indicate a potential ecological risk by discharging 1-PEA into coastal areas and its species-specific toxic effects on marine organisms.     

Research on the Method of De-noising the Short-wave Time Signal at Low SNR

A voice enhancement algorithm based on the Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) and the improved spectral subtraction is proposed for the low-SNR (Signal Noise Ratio) shortwave time signal. This method is proposed to solve the problem that the shortwave time signal cannot be used for timing in complex noisy environments. The core idea of this method is to use the Hilbert-Huang Transform (HHT) algorithm to make the empirical mode decomposition on the noisy shortwave signal, and to select the intrinsic mode functions containing the shortwave signal information for the signal reconstruction by through the maximum correlation. Then, to make the spectral subtraction on the reconstructed signal to achieve the purpose of noise reduction. The experimental result shows that this method has a better noise reduction than the traditional methods.     

CCD astrometric observations of 2017 VR12, Camillo and Midas

We have observed three near-Earth objects(NEOs), 2017 VR12, Camillo and Midas, during 2018.The observations were made with the 1-m telescope, operated by Yunnan Observatories, over two nights.Their precise astrometric positions are derived from 989 CCD observations. The theoretical positions of asteroids are retrieved from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory(JPL) Horizons System and Institut de M′ecanique C′eleste et de Calcul des ′Eph′em′erides(IMCCE). The positions of three asteroids are measured with respect to stars in the Gaia DR2 star catalog. For 2017 VR12, the means(O-C) of right ascension and declination are -0.090′′and-0.623′′respectively based on the published JPL ephemeris, but the corresponding means(O-C) are 3.122′′and-0.636′′based on the published IMCCE ephemeris. The great difference in declination could be explained by several factors.(1) The degraded CCD images caused by the fast apparent motion of the objects lead to a reduction in positioning accuracy.(2) The poor timing system may introduce systematic errors, especially in the high speed direction.(3) The asteroid may be perturbed by Earth when it approaches the Earth too closely. These astrometric results demonstrate that the centroid centering method can reduce the dispersion of non-Gaussian images as compared with the PSF modeling method.For Camillo and Midas, the astrometric results are consistent based on the two ephemerides. Implementing a high-precision timing system, and analyzing some astronomical effects and geometric distortions in CCD images should be carefully considered in future works.     

Transition-region explosive events produced by plasmoid instability

Magnetic reconnection is thought to be a key process in most solar eruptions. Thanks to highresolution observations and simulations, the studied scale of the reconnection process has become smaller and smaller. Spectroscopic observations show that the reconnection site can be very small, which always exhibits a bright core and two extended wings with fast speeds, i.e., transition-region explosive events.In this paper, using the PLUTO code, we perform a 2-D magnetohydrodynamic simulation to investigate small-scale reconnection in double current sheets. Based on our simulation results, such as the line-of-sight velocity, number density and plasma temperature, we can synthesize the line profile of SiIV 1402.77? which is a well known emission line used to study transition-region explosive events on the Sun. The synthetic line profile of Si IV 1402.77? is complex with a bright core and two broad wings which can extend to nearly 200 km s^-1. Our simulation results suggest that the transition-region explosive events on the Sun are produced by plasmoid instability during small-scale magnetic reconnection.     

IU Cancri:a solar-type contact binary with mass transfer

We present new CCD photometry of the solar-type contact binary IU Cnc, which was observed from November 2017 to March 2018 with three small telescopes in China. BV light curves imply that IU Cnc is a W-type contact binary with total eclipses. The photometric solution indicates that the mass ratio and fill-out factor are q = 4.104 ± 0.004 and f = 30.2%± 0.3%, respectively. From all available light minimum times, the orbital period may increase at a rate of dP/dt =+6.93(4)× 10^-7 d yr^-1, which may result from mass transfer from the secondary component to the primary one. With mass transferring,IU Cnc may evolve from a contact configuration into a semi-detached configuration.     

ALMA observations of the circumstellar envelope around EP Aqr

Atacama Large Millimetre/sub-millimetre Array(ALMA) observations of CO(1–0) and CO(2–1) emissions from the circumstellar envelope of the asymptotic giant branch(AGB) star EP Aqr have been made with four times better spatial resolution than previously available. They are analysed with emphasis on the de-projection in space of the effective emissivity and flux of matter using as input a prescribed configuration of the velocity field, assumed to be radial. The data are found to display an intrinsic axisymmetry with respect to an axis making a small angle with respect to the line of sight. A broad range of wind configurations, from prolate(bipolar) to oblate(equatorial) has been studied and found to be accompanied by significant equatorial emission. Qualitatively, the effective emissivity is enhanced near the equator to produce the central narrow component observed in the Doppler velocity spectra and its dependence on star latitude generally follows that of the wind velocity with the exception of an omni-present depression near the poles. In particular, large equatorial expansion velocities produce a flared disc or a ring of effective emissivity and mass loss. The effect on the determination of the orientation of the star axis of radial velocity gradients, and possibly competing rotation and expansion in the equatorial disc, is discussed. In general,the flux of matter is found to reach a broad maximum at distances of the order of 500 AU from the star.Arguments are given that may be used to favour one wind velocity distribution over another. As a result of the improved quality of the data, a deeper understanding of the constraints imposed on morphology and kinematics has been obtained.