A new species, Castosyringophilus meropis sp. n., found in quills of feathers of the European bee-eater Merops apiaster Linnaeus (Coraciiformes: Meropidae) is described. This new species is close to C. claravis Skoracki et Glowska, 2008 and differs, in females, by the presence apunctate coxal fields (vs sparsely punctate in C. claravis) and by the lengths of setae d1 145-180 µm, f2 170-185 µm and ag3 190-215 µm (vs d1 200-220 µm, f2 230-250 µm and ag3 150-170 µm). We present a vast mite material collected from bee-eaters originated from different localities in Europe, Asia and Africa, both breeding and wintering grounds of this bird. It indicates that the whole world population of the European bee-eater is parasitised by this quill mite species., Maciej Skoracki, Martin Hromada, Bozena Sikora., and Obsahuje bibliografii
We investigated the variation in body colour and its thermoregulatory function in Meteorus pulchricornis (Wesmael) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a parasitoid wasp of Spodoptera and other free-living lepidopteran larvae. We show that the body colour of adult wasps darkens when cocoons are kept at low temperatures. The range in the variation in colour, however, differs for different parts of the body and among uniparental (thelytokous) strains. This melanism enables these wasps to attain a body temperature in sunshine up to 2°C. Moreover, this small gain in body temperature can markedly increase the flight activity of wasps at low ambient temperatures. We conclude that the variation in body colour that resulted from rearing the cocoons at different temperatures enable the wasps to adapt to changing thermal environments. The ecological significance of the difference in the degree of melanism of the different strains is discussed., Yosuke Abe, Takuma Nishimura, Kaoru Maeto., and Seznam literatury
The term cellular immune response refers to haemocyte-mediated responses, including phagocytosis, nodulation, and encapsulation. In the present study, we identified five types of circulating haemocytes in larvae of the haemolymph of the Asian corn borer, Ostrinia furnacalis (Guenée), including granulocytes, oenocytoids, plasmatocytes, prohaemocytes, and spherulocytes. The relative number of total free haemocytes per larva decreased significantly 0.5, 24, and 36 h after the injection of Beauveria bassiana conidia. Upon conidia challenge, both phagocytosis and nodulation were observed in the collected haemolymph from O. furnacalis larvae. In addition, plasma was found to be necessary for both phagocytosis and nodulation. Therefore, we here confirm that phagocytosis and nodulation are involved in O. funacalis larvae during their fight against infection by B. bassiana, and further, that the cellular immune response of O. furnacalis helps eliminate the invading organisms despite the fact that not all the fungal conidia are killed., Dongxu Shen, Miao Li, Yuan Chu, Minglin Lang, Chunju An., and Obsahuje bibliografii
V článku je zdůrazněn rozhodující význam školy moderní fyziologie rostlin založené Juliem Sachsem, který byl uveden do experimentálních metod fyziologie Janem Evangelistou Purkyněm jako jeho asistent v Praze. Dále jsou krátce charakterizováni nejdůležitější Sachsovi žáci z jeho rozhodujícího období působení na univerzitě ve Würzburgu a je zdůrazněno trvající působení Sachsových myšlenek až do současného období studia biologie rostlin., The decisive importance of the school of modern plant physiology established by Julius Sachs, who was introduced to the experimental methods of physiology by Jan Evangelista Purkyně as his assistant in Prague, is underscored in this article. The most important disciples of Julius Sachs as a professor in Würzburg are portrayed and the lasting influence of Sachs´s ideas on plant biology is described., Dieter Volkmann., and 5 il.
The research activities of this Centre are focused on the study of cyanobacteria, algae and symbiotic soil microorganisms (bacteria and algae), which are used for bioindicatoin and revitalization of toxic anthropogenic substrates and water resources. The targeted outcomes are methods for predicting cyanobacteria in drinking wter and water resources, technology of biogas production from algal biomass and the use of algal biomass for the pharmaceutical industry and biotechnology of microbial inoculations for more effective recultivation of brown-coal spoil banks. The research Centre is divided into three research groups each dealing with a portion of the research task: Group 1 - Cyanobacteria and their toxins in the waterworks industry; Group 2 - Use of algae for bioindication and revitalization of polluted water and biomass use; Group 3 - Use of microbial inoculations for soil revitalization. and Miroslav Vosátka, Jana Albrechtová.
V úterý 29. dubna 2015 se v reprezentačních prostorách Akademie věd České republiky, v pražské vile Lanna konalo slavnostní vyhlášení cen Živy za nejlepší články uplynulého ročníku, které uděluje redakční rada a redakce časopisu., The selected best contributions to Živa in 2014 and three eminent personalities of the journal were awarded special prizes., and Jana Šrotová, Andrej Funk, Lucie Krouzová.