Silk production quantity is the most economically important characteristic of the domesticated silkworm moth, Bombyx mori. It is controlled by multiple loci. The cocoon and silk production quantity of silkworm strains Jingsong and Lan10 have significantly diverged. A backcross population (BC1) was bred using Jingsong and Lan10 as parents to identify quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for silk quality. In this research, a genetic linkage map of the silkworm was constructed using the BC1 mapping population. The map contained 85 sequence-tagged site markers, 80 simple sequence repeat markers, and 16 single nucleotide polymorphisms. A linkage map was constructed from the data, which consisted of 181 markers distributed over 28 expected linkage groups and spans 2147.1 cM in total length. Fourteen QTLs were detected for cocoon filament length, whole cocoon weight, pupae weight, filament weight, and cocoon shell weight. The 14 QTLs were distributed in 5 linkage groups (linkage groups 1, 14, 18, 23 and 25) based on the constructed linkage map. In addition, five QTLs, which had the highest logarithm (base 10) of odds (LOD) values, were located on the first chromosome, three of which located at the same region in linkage group 1. These results represent an important foundation for the map-based cloning of QTLs and marker-assisted selection for improving the silk quality of economically important silkworm strains., Bing Li ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Four species of Anagrus (A. breviphragma Soyka, A. incarnatus Haliday, A. fennicus Soyka and A. obscurus Foerster sensu Soyka), that live on Carex riparia Curtis (Cyperaceae) in uncultivated areas along the Po river in the Piacenza province in Italy were analysed using RAPD markers in order to investigate their genetic relationships. High levels of RAPD polymorphism were found in the genus Anagrus, which permitted the fingerprinting of the four species. Analysis of average genetic similarities within species and comparison with average values between species confirms that A. breviphragma, A. incarnatus, A. fennicus and A. obscurus represent four genetically distinct species. A dendrogram constructed from molecular data of single families clearly clustered the four species in different groups, their mutual position reflecting morphological and biological observations., Elisabetta Chiappini, Lucia Soressi, Corrado Fogher, Marco Zanirato, and Lit
The Ojców National Park is situated in southern Poland in an area of Jurassic limestone, which determines the hydrochemistry of the water in the River Prądnik. The geochemical index of the sediment in the River Prądnik indicated it is moderately polluted with Pb and Zn, and heavily polluted with Cd compared to unpolluted sediment. The effect of natural and anthropogenic sources on the sediment in the River Prądnik and in appearing of structural and functional alterations in the salivary gland chromosomes of two species of Chironomidae, Micropsectra pallidula and Polypedilum convictum, was investigated. Two types of chromosomal rearrangements (inherited and somatic) were identified in the species studied. Inherited heterozygous inversions occurred at a higher frequency (between 5.55%–57.81%) and may have local adaptive value. In M. pallidula a karyotype divergence consisting of fixed chromosome inversions on arms B and E was recorded. As somatic chromosome rearrangements can be caused by stress agents, we suggest that the somatic aberrations in both of the species studied indicate the existence of pollution, i.e. induced stress. On the basis of these somatic rearrangements the somatic index of both species was defined: M. pallidula – 0.346, P. convictum – 0.555. In addition to these rearrangements functional alterations in key structures, Balbiani rings (BRs) and the nucleolar organizer region (NOR) located on chromosome EF, which significantly decreased their transcriptional activity, were recorded in M. pallidula. Changes in the appearance of the telomere region on chromosome G in P. convictum was considered to be a response to the environmental conditions in the River Prądnik. It was shown that polytene chromosomes are very sensitive to environmental changes and can be used to detect pollutants in aquatic ecosystems., Paraskeva Michailova ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Despite the importance of saprophagous macroarthropods as key facilitators of plant litter decomposition within ecosystems and their likely sensitivity to global climate change and land-use change, a lack of ecological data has precluded attempts to explain their distribution patterns in terms of traits. Using an extensive set of large-scale and long-term biological records, the distribution patterns of 33 woodlice (Crustacea: Oniscidea) species in Britain were characterised by their range size (area of occupancy) and aggregation (degree to which occupied squares are clustered across the range). Body size and seven ecological traits were examined as correlates of range size and fill, while controlling for phylogeny and recording intensity, and comparing fine and broad-scale measures of habitat heterogeneity. Species that used a greater diversity of habitats had larger range sizes. Broad categorisation of habitats (by dominant vegetation) alongside other traits was less accurate in predicting range size than fine-scale habitat (microsites where individuals were discovered) data. The latter explained 25% more variance than broad-scale habitat data, highlighting the value of coupling biological recording of species with data on micro-habitat. Habitat use is an important trait in explaining distribution patterns and we conclude that ensuring land cover heterogeneity will favour conservation of saprophagous macro-arthropod diversity., Bethan V. Purse ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam lileratury
Tento článek přináší pohled na diverzitu herpetofauny na ostrově Borneo. Autor pobýval tři týdny na výzkumné stanici Brunejské univerzity a během denních a nočních odchytů zaznamenával obojživelníky a plazy v nížinném smíšeném dvojkřídláčovém pralese. Článek se zaměřuje na zajímavé a významné druhy herpetofauny, a tak není jen výčtem druhů tropického lesa., This paper presents species diversity of amphibians and reptiles from lowland mixed dipterocarp rainforest in the Ulu Temburong National Park, Brunei Darussalam in Borneo. A three-week herpetological survey at Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre is described, and several endangered and ecologically important species are mentioned., and Zdeněk Mačát.
Heteroptera caught during day and night sampling at a height of 200 m above ground at Cardington, Bedfordshire, UK, during eight summers (1999, 2000, and 2002–2007) were compared to high-altitude catches made over the UK and North Sea from the 1930s to the 1950s. The height of these captures indicates that individuals were engaged in windborne migration over distances of at least several kilometres and probably tens of kilometres. This conclusion is generally supported by what is known of the species’ ecologies, which reflect the view that the level of dispersiveness is associated with the exploitation of temporary habitats or resources. The seasonal timing of the heteropteran migrations is interpreted in terms of the breeding/overwintering cycles of the species concerned., Don R. Reynolds, Bernard S. Nau, Jason W. Chapman., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Mezi hlemýždě (Helix) patří některé z největších druhů suchozemských plžů v západní části palearktické oblasti. Článek představuje vybrané druhy hlemýžďů a pestrost prostředí, která obývají. Mnoho druhů lze snadno spatřit, protože se vyskytují na turisticky atraktivních lokalitách, přesto jsou tyto druhy jen povrchně prozkoumané a neví se ani, kolik druhů žije v Evropě. Mimo pravé hlemýždě ještě existují ve Středomoří a subtropické oblasti Severní Ameriky ještě tři další skupiny s podobným tvarem ulity, které se vyvinuly nezávisle na hlemýždích., The genus Helix, comprising some of the largest snails of the western Palaearctic, is introduced along with some of its representatives and the variety of their habitats. Many of the species are easy to spot, because they can be found at frequently visited sites in the Mediterranean. However, our knowledge of many of these species is superficial, and we don’t even know how many species occur in Europe. There are also three other groups, which resemble the genus Helix by their shell, but have evolved independently in the subtropics of the Mediterranean and Northern America., and Ondřej Korábek.
Hořavky (rod Rhodeus) jsou drobné kaprovité ryby, které kladou jikry do žaberního aparátu sladkovodních velevrubovitých mlžů (Unionidae). Rod má hlavní centrum rozšíření ve východní Asii, kde žijí asi dvě desítky druhů, ale jeden druh - hořavka duhová (R. amarus) - se vyskytuje také na našem území. Hořavky jsou vzhledem ke své reprodukční strategii vděčným modelem pro studium pohlavního výběru a vztahů mezi parazity a jejich hostiteli. Díky výzkumu v uplynulých letech došlo ke znatelnému posunu v našem porozumění toho, jak si samci a samice vybírají své partnery, jaké má tento výběr dopady na intenzitu pohlavního výběru a demografické parametry, nebo jak hořavky kolonizovaly Evropu. Asi nejzajímavější novinky se týkají výzkumu koevolučního vztahu mezi hořavkami a jejich hostitelskými mlži a vlivu nepůvodního druhu hořavky očkaté (Rhodeus ocellatus) a mlžů (škeble asijská - Sinanodonta woodiana a slávička mnohotvárná - Dreissena polymorpha) na tento vztah., Bitterlings (Rhodeus) are small cyprinid fishes of East Asian origin, remarkable for their reciprocal association with unionid mussels. Updated knowledge on the presence of European Bitterling (R. amarus) in Europe throughout the Holocene, based on data from bibliographical sources and genetic methods, is presented. The current state of the coevolutionary arms race between bitterling and mussels in areas of ancient and recent sympatry is reviewed. New challenges faced by the European Bitterling are addressed that come from the occurrence of non-native species such as the Asian unionid mussel Sinanodonta woodiana, Zebra Mussels (Dreissena polymorpha) and Asian Rosy Bitterling (R. ocellatus)., and Martin Reichard.