Fosiliferní uloženiny chadronského souvrství z oblasti Badlands v jižní Dakotě obsahují velmi diverzifikované společenství obratlovců. Podstatnou část z nich představují savčí pozůstatky, i když časté jsou i nálezy krokodýlů, želv a ještěrů. Obrovští lichokopytníci brontotéria, náležející mezi nejpůsobivější tvory té doby, tvořili spolu s vyhynulými sudokopytníky oreodonty dominantní komponentu tohoto svrchnoeocenního terestrického ekosystému. Kromě nich zahrnovala chadronská fauna ještě celou řadu dalších skupin licho- a sudokopytníků, například bezrohé nosorožce hyrakodonty a amynodonty, malé tříprsté koně, tapíry, entelodonty, antrakotéria, velbloudy, pekari a leptomerycidy. Početní byli i představitelé dvou řádů masožravých savců, kreodontů a šelem, zastoupení hyenodonty, nimravidy, psovitými a amfikýonidy. Nacházejí se zde i pozůstatky malých savců, především hlodavců, hmyzožravců a vačnatců. Pozoruhodný relikt představují multituberkuláti, jejichž největší rozvoj spadá do období druhohor. Výzkum této lokality tak nabízí jedinečnou příležitost k získání cenných poznatků, týkajících se nejen evoluce jednotlivých čeledí a řádů, ale rovněž i trendů změn životního prostředí v minulosti., The fossiliferous layers called Chadron formation of Badlands area in South Dakota contain a highly diverse assemblage of vertebrates. Numerous species of mammals represent a substantial part of revealed findings. The research of these ancient fossils offers a unique opportunity to obtain valuable information on the evolution of individual orders and families, and also about environmental changes in the past., and Stanislav Knor.
Většina krevet čeledi Palaemonidae obývajících tropická a subtropická moře Atlantského, Indického a Tichého oceánu se adaptovala k symbiózám se zástupci řady kmenů bezobratlých živočichů. Nejširší zastoupení symbiotických krevet je mezi těmi, které jsou ektosymbioticky vázány na těla žahavců, je mezi nimi i řada čističů ryb. Známa jsou i podobná soužití s ostnokožci, ale najdeme je i jako endosymbionty v mořských houbách, mlžích a v sumkách. Evoluce těchto korýšů byla zjevně úzce spojena se změnou hostitelských organizmů. Systematikou, ekologií a fylogenezí symbiotických krevet se zabývá tým Katedry biologie a ekologie PřF Ostravské univerzity., The majority of shrimp that belong to the Palaemonidae family (found in tropical and subtropical seas of the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans) live in symbioses with various invertebrate hosts. Most frequent are ecto-symbioses with cnidarians, including several cases of fish-cleaners. Similar associations are known with echinoderms, and other remarkable examples include endo-symbioses of shrimp with sponges, shrimp with bivalve molluscs, and shrimp with ascidians. Evolution of those shrimp was, evidently, closely related to multiple host-switching events. The systematics, ecology, and phylogeny of symbiotic shrimp are studied by a team from the University of Ostrava., and Zdeněk Ďuriš.
Mravenci jsou jednou z nejpočetnějších skupin bezobratlých živočichů žíjících v korunách tropických stromů. Tým vědců z Českých Budějovic objasnil otázky ohledně biodiverzity a ekologických nároků stromových společenstev mravenců za pomoci nejrůznějších metod od vykácení a rozebrání celých kusů pralesa, sestrojení experimentálních pastí až po počítačové simulace. Výzkum pomohl získat klíčové poznatky nejen o tropických lesích pro vědu, ale přispět i k jejich ochraně a vzdělání domorodých obyvatel, kteří v nich žijí., Ants are one of the most abundant groups of invertebrates living in the canopies of tropical trees. In their research a team of scientists from České Budějovice clarified the drivers of high diversity and the ecological preferences of ant arboreal communities using a variety of techniques from felling and dissecting trees in entire forest plots and the construction of special experimental traps to computer simulations. This research helped to advance not only our knowledge about tropical rainforests, but it was also significant for tropical forest conservation and the education of the native people depending on them., and Petr Klimeš, Ondřej Mottl.
The Algatech Centre, which is a scientific division of the Institute of Microbiology of the CAS located in the Opatovický mlýn (mill) near Třeboň in South Bohemia, focuses on the research of photosynthetic microorganisms, including algae, cyanobacteria and photosynthetic bacteria. The Laboratory of algal biotechnology studies processes and technology involved in the efficient production of algae and the use of algal biomass. It seeks new bio-active compounds in algae to be used as dietary supplements, in pharmacology and biomedicine. Scientists also carry our research into various metabolites of cyanobacteria and their effects on human cells. Special interest is paid to substances inhibiting the division of cancer cells and/or selectively inducing their apoptosis. The Laboratory of anoxygenic phototrophs is engaged in the basic research of evolutionary very old prokaryotes containing photosynthetic reaction centres composed of bacteriochlorophyll and its researchers have recently discovered an entirely new photosynthetic species - a new family of phototrophic bacteria, i.e. bacteria capable of producing energy through photosynthesis. Only three new families of phototrophic bacteria were discovered over the past 100 years.The Laboratory of cell cycles of algae aims at gaining a deeper insight into molecular mechanisms regulating the specific cells cycle in green algae hat divide by multiple fission - that is divide into more than two daughter cells. Scientists´ objective is to leam more about the regulation of cell size and division, the activity of cyclin dependant kinase and cyclin dependant kinase complexes throughout the normal cell cycle as well as their role in the cell cycle interruption in case of DNA damage. The pattern of cell cycle progression in algae can also tell us more about animal embryos, since the early phases of their growth and development are controlled by similar principles as those in green algae., The Laboratory of photosynthesis studies fundamental biochemical and molecular mechanisms regarding photosynthesis, the ways of its regulation during the day or under specific stress conditions. Special attention is paid particularly to photosystem II and researchers in the laboratory have recently made a significant step towards understanding its biogenesis. Photosystem II is a complicated protein complex present in the cells of plants, algae and cyanobacteria, the proper functioning of which is essential for photosynthesis. Research teams from the Algatech centre, together with colleagues from British universities have described the first phases of photosystem II synthesis, namely the mechanism by which chlorophyll molecules are inserted into core proteins of photosystem IIand how the functional core of this complex is assembled. Moreover, they have recently presented a substantially new view of repair mechanisms of photosystem II and the ways of recognition of its damaged protein subunits that have to be degraded and replaced. Deepening the understanding of fundamental processes in algae, cyanobacteria and photosynthetic bacteria can help use their potential in many practical applications, from biomass and biofuels to medicine., and Jana Olivová.
Tasemnice (Cestoda) jsou jednou z unikátních čistě parazitických skupin organismů napadající všechny skupiny obratlovců, včetně člověka. V mezinárodní spolupráci se je snažíme lépe poznat a popsat jejich diverzitu, biologii a vzájemné vztahy., The tapeworms (Cestoda) are one of the unique parasitic groups of organisms infecting all groups of vertebrates, including humans. This study aims to better understand their diversity, biology, and relationships with the help of international collaboration., and Roman Kuchta.
Příspěvek Jana Bati je zprávou o mezinárodní muzikologické konferenci, která se uskutečnila v chorvatském Dubrovníku ve dnech 26. až 28. března 2012., Jan Baťa., Rubrika: Konference, and Cizojazyčné resumé není.
The case study of a ground steps creation due to underground mining in Upper Silesia Basin, where for many years was conducted intensive hard coal extraction has been presented in this paper. This type of linear discontinuous deformations is considered as an important threat to the surface building constructions and elements of underground technical infrastructure. This threat is even more important, that presently still we do not have methods for predictions of such phenomena, and protection of building constructions against such damages is difficult, if not impossible. On the basis of the analyzes results shown in the paper, the following factors were pointed, that favor the formation of mining-induced ground steps: the presence of fault outcrops in the vicinity of extraction fields, multiple extraction in several coal seams led to the same border and large values of tensile horizontal strain., Piotr Strzałkowski and Roman Ścigała., and Obsahuje bibliografické odkazy
Drugs interfering with the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) improved the prognosis in patients with hypertension, heart failure, diabetes and chronic kidney disease. However, combining different drugs brought no further benefit while increasing the risk of hyperkalemia, hypotension and acute renal failure. This was so with combining angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and angiotensin II receptors type 1 antagonists (ARB). Dissimilarly, in animal disease models this dual therapy proved clearly superior to single drug treatment and became the optimal standard regime for comparison with other treatments. This review analyzes the causes of the discrepancy of effects of the dual therapy between animal experiments versus clinical studies, and is focused on the outcomes in chronic kidney disease. Discussed is the role of species differences in RAAS, of the variability of the disease features in humans versus relative stability in animals, of the genetic uniformity in the animals but not in humans, and of the biased publication habits of experimental versus clinical studies. We attempt to understand the causes and reconcile the discordant findings and suggest to what extent dual RAAS inhibition should be continued in animal experiments and why its application in the clinics should be limited to strictly selected groups of patients., V. Čertíková Chábová, L. Červenka., and Obsahuje bibliografii