Orientální ústav AV ČR uspořádal od 30. března do 1. dubna 2016 již 13. výroční konferenci Evropské asociace taiwanských studií (European Association of Taiwan studies - EATS). Téma konference „Mocní a bezmocní“ koresponduje s výzkumným záměrem „Moc a strategie politického a společenského řádu“, který ústav řeší od začátku roku 2015. Úvodní přednášku „The Powerful and the Powerless: Re-Examining and Reframing Taiwan’s History“ přednesl prof. Bruce Jacobs z Monash University., The 13th Annual Conference of the European Association of Taiwan Studies (EATS) took place in Prague between March 30 and April 1, 2016. The main theme of the conference was Powerful and Powerless. The conference was a collaboration between the EATS Board and the Oriental Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences., and Táňa Dluhošová.
Numerous countermeasures have been proposed to minimize microgravity-induced physical deconditioning, but their benefits are limited. The present study aimed to investigate whether personalized aerobic exercise based on artificial gravity (AG) mitigates multisystem physical deconditioning. Fourteen men were assigned to the control group (n=6) and the countermeasure group (CM, n=8). Subjects in the CM group were exposed to AG (2 Gz at foot level) for 30 min twice daily, during which time cycling exercise of 80-95 % anaerobic threshold (AT) intensity was undertaken. Orthostatic tolerance (OT), exercise tests, and blood assays were determined before and after 4 days head-down bed rest (HDBR). Cardiac systolic function was measured every day. After HDBR, OT decreased to 50.9 % and 77.5 % of pre-HDBR values in control and CM groups, respectively. Exercise endurance, maximal oxygen consumption, and AT decreased to 96.5 %, 91.5 % and 91.8 % of pre-HDBR values, respectively, in the control group. Nevertheless, there were slight changes in the CM group. HDBR increased heart rate, sympathetic activity, and the pre-ejection period, but decreased plasma volume, parasympathetic activity and left-ventricular ejection time in the control group, whereas these effects were eliminated in the CM group. Aldosterone had no change in the control group but increased significantly in the CM group. Our study shows that 80-95 % AT aerobic exercise based on 2 Gz of AG preserves OT and exercise endurance, and affects body fluid regulation during short-term HDBR. The underlying mechanisms might involve maintained cardiac systolic function, preserved plasma volume, and improved sympathetic responses to orthostatic stress., X.-T. Li, C.-B. Yang, Y.-S. Zhu, J. Sun, F. Shi, Y.-C. Wang, Y. Gao, J.-D. Zhao, X.-Q. Sun., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Transient receptor potential A1 (TRPA1) is an excitatory ion channel that functions as a cellular sensor, detecting a wide range of proalgesic agents such as environmental irritants an d endogenous products of inflammation and oxidative stress. Topical application of TRPA1 agonists produces an acute nociceptive response through peripheral release of neuropeptides, purines and other transmitters from activated sensory nerve endings. This, in turn, further regulates TRPA1 activity downstream of G-protein and phospholipase C -coupled signaling cascades. Despite the important physiological relevance of such regulation leading to nociceptor sensitization and consequent pain hypersensitivity, th e specific domains through which TRPA1 undergoes post -translational modifications that affect its activation properties are yet to be determined at a molecular level. This review aims at providing an account of our current knowledge on molecular basis of r egulation by neuronal inflammatory signaling pathways that converge on the TRPA1 channel protein and through modification of its specific residues influence the extent to which this channel may contribute to pain., A. Kádková, V. Synytsya, J. Krusek, L. Zímová, V. Vlachová., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The ribosomal protein S6 kinase (S6K) plays a pivotal role in developmental processes and cell survival by participating in protein synthesis relevant signaling pathways. In the present study, an S6K gene (AccS6K-p70) was isolated and characterized from the Chinese honeybee, Apis cerana cerana (Fabricius) (Hymenoptera: Apidae), an important economic insect in the agricultural industry. The cDNA of AccS6K-p70 was 1683 bp in length and predicted to encode a protein of 467 amino acid residues. Sequence and structure analysis showed that there was a conserved catalytic domain in AccS6K-p70, whilst a phosphorylation site was found in the conserved part of the catalytic domain. Development relevant transcription factor binding sites found in the 5’-flanking region of AccS6K-p70 suggest that AccS6K-p70 might be involved in A. c. cerana development. Furthermore, quantitative PCR revealed that the expression levels of AccS6K-p70 were higher in head and thorax than in other tissues. The AccS6K-p70 was highly expressed in both larvae and adults compared with that in pupae, whilst expression of the gene was significantly down-regulated by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) (although initially and slightly increased by it) and pyriproxyfen (a juvenile hormone analogue insecticide) stresses. These results suggest that AccS6K-p70 may play critical roles in developmental processes and cell survival in A. c. cerana, whilst both oxidative stress and pyriproxyfen may impair S6K-p70 mediated developmental processes by down-regulation of AccS6K-p70 expression., Yingqi Cai ... [et al.]., and Obsahuje seznam literatury
Autosomal dominant hypercholesterolemia (ADH), more known as familial hypercholesterolemia (FH), is a lipid metabolism disorder characterized by an elevation in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and increased risk for cardiovascular disea se. In this study, we assessed a spectrum of mutations causing ADH in 3914 unrelated Czech patients with clinical diagnosis of hypercholesterolemia. Samples have been collected within the framework of the MedPed project running in the Czech Republic since 1998. So far we have found 432 patients (11.0 %) with the APOB gene mutation p.(Arg3527Gln) and 864 patients (22.1 %) with the LDLR gene mutation. In 864 probands carrying the LDLR gene mutation, 182 unique allelic variants were detected. We have identified 14 patients homozygous for mutations in the LDLR or APOB genes. We performed function analyses of p.(Leu15Pro) and p.(Gly20Arg) sequence variations., L. Tichý, L. Fajkusová, P. Zapletalová, L. Schwarzová, M. Vrablík, T. Freiberger., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The Sympetrum vulgatum (Linnaeus, 1758) complex is composed of the subspecies S. vulgatum vulgatum, S. vulgatum decoloratum (Selys, 1884) and S. vulgatum ibericum Ocharan, 1985 in the West Palaearctic. These taxa have parapatric distributions and noticeable morphological differences in colour and body size, and their taxonomic status is debated. Here we revise the systematics of this group using molecular taxonomy, including molecular analyses of mitochondrial (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, COI) and nuclear (internal transcribed spacer, ITS1) DNA taking into account known morphological differences. Each subspecies has a unique and differentiated COI haplotype, although divergences among them are low (0.4% maximum uncorrected p-distance). The subspecies are not differentiated by the nuclear marker ITS1. The genetic results for these taxa contrast with the deep divergence of the sister species S. striolatum (Charpentier, 1840). Given current evidence, we propose to maintain the subspecific status of the S. vulgatum complex and hypothesize their biogeographical history. It is likely that the three subspecies became isolated during one of the latest glacial periods, each in a different refugium: S. vulgatum ibericum possibly occupied the Iberian Peninsula, S. vulgatum vulgatum the Balkan Peninsula or territories further east and S. vulgatum decoloratum Anatolia., Joan C. Hinojosa, Ricard Martín, Xavier Maynou, Roger Vila., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Mor je zoonóza, jejíž epidemie sužují lidstvo od starověku. Od objevu bakteriálního původce moru A. Yersinem a S. Kitasatem uplynulo 120 let, během kterých byla tato choroba velmi dobře popsána jak z epidemiologického, tak z molekulárně mikrobiologického a evolučního hlediska. Studiem DNA izolované z ostatků obětí moru byl původce moru přímo prokázán u epidemií starých až 650 let. Vysoká mortalita při moru je dána neefektivním přenosem mezi hostiteli pomocí blechy jako vektoru., Plague is a zoonotic disease, the epidemics of which have troubled mankind since ancient times. During the last 120 years that have passed since the discovery of the plague bacillus Y. pestis by A. Yersin and S. Kitasato this infectious disease was described in detail, including its epidemiology, molecular microbiology and evolution. Ancient DNA isolated from the remains of plague victims have enabled us to establish Y. pestis as the causative agent in epidemics more than 650 years old. The high mortality of the plague is caused by an ineffective transfer by its flea vector., and Ivo Konopásek.
Infrastructure is one of the main causes of landscape fragmentation, which results in isolation and loss of populations. Although the negative effect of roads on insects is well documented, only a minority of studies has focused on roads in the context of barriers to dispersal. Flying species in particular have been neglected. We investigated the effect of a four-lane motorway as a barrier to the movement of an isolated population of the threatened dragonfly Sympetrum depressiusculum in an agricultural landscape in Central Europe. Generalized additive models were used to assess the motorway's effect on (i) the distribution of adult dragonflies in patches of terrestrial habitat surrounding their natal site, and (ii) individual flight behaviour (i.e. willingness or unwillingness to cross the motorway). Movement patterns of marked adults throughout the landscape were also investigated. During one season, significantly fewer adults were found at patches located on the far side of the motorway, indicating it has a barrier effect. Observations on flight behaviour revealed no apparent effect of the motorway. The possible barrier effect for the species studied was therefore presumed to be a consequence of road mortality. Our results indicate that the motorway may influence the dispersal of this threatened species of dragonfly, which is a habitat specialist with particular requirements for its terrestrial environment. Negative effects on other species with similar behaviour and strategy can be presumed. When establishing new habitats, carrying out reintroductions or translocations, it is necessary to consider that roadways may reduce population size and affect population dynamics by limiting dispersal., Hana Šigutová, Filip Harabiš, Michal Hykel, Aleš Dolný., and Obsahuje bibliografii
We studied the demography, movement, behaviour and choice of nectar plants by adults of Aporia crataegi. This study was done in a dense network of different types of habitats (total size of study area 16.26 ha) from open landscape to shrubland, the latter being a result of abandonment of traditional agricultural practices such as extensive mowing and grazing. Total population size was estimated to be approximately 1700 and 2700 for females and males, respectively. Median and maximum distances moved by males were 134 and 3493 m, and by females 138 and 3165 m, respectively. The average lifespan was ca. 7.1 and 7.5 days, with maximum recorded lifespans of 21 and 17 days for males and females, respectively. The greater capture probability recorded for males indicates their high activity, as they spend most of their time in flight patrolling and searching for mates. A parabolic recruitment curve and protandry were also recorded. Both sexes are highly mobile. The spatial distribution of both sexes was roughly similar. The adult behaviour differed in different habitats, with more time spent feeding and resting when nectar plants were plentiful and more time spent flying when they were rare. Although adults utilized nine nectar sources, only two were recorded in over 80% of all the feeding occasions. In order to re-establish open grassland with some shrubland, traditional and mosaic management of the landscape should be revived at least to some extent., Jure Jugovic, Mitja Črne, Martina Lužnik., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Evropa je celosvětově největším producentem vědeckých poznatků. Přitom však data, která generuje výzkum a průmysl v zemích Evropské unie, často zpracovávají a dále využívají vědci a podnikatelé jinde ve světě. Evropští výzkumní pracovníci a inovátoři proto mají tendenci odcházet do míst, kde je kvalitní datová a výpočetní kapacita pohotověji k dispozici. Evropská komise (EK) tudíž nyní vypracovává rozsáhlou iniciativu v oblasti datových infrastruktur, širokopásmových sítí a vysoce výkonné výpočetní techniky, pomocí nichž budou data postupně k dispozici nejen akademické obci, ale také uživatelům z orgánů veřejné správy a podniků. and Soňa Jarošová.