Association Of Different Species Research Articles

Which Plant Species for Green Roofs in the Mediterranean Environment?

In recent years, owing to intense urbanization and global change with the consequent extreme climate effects, interest in green roofs, even extensive ones, in the Mediterranean environment has increased. To this end, the choice of plant species is crucial because, owing to the identification of the most suitable plants, it will be possible to expand this type of green infrastructure and increase its ecosystem services in the urban environment. In this context, the objective of the review, through a critical analysis of some of the references on the topic, is to identify suitable criteria for plant species selection that are simple to apply and able to respond to the need to have plants capable of surviving, ensuring a suitable aesthetic effect, and providing essential ecosystem services. We also investigated whether, and to what extent, associations of different species can better adapt to the difficult environmental conditions of Mediterranean green roofs. Two possible strategies to identify the plant idiotype were analyzed: the analysis of plants present in habitat analogues or the identification of morpho-functional characters capable of discriminating the response to abiotic stress, and in particular to drought stress. The use of plant communities, rather than a single species, seems capable of improving aesthetic effects, plant survival, and ecosystem services.

Growth and mineral nutrition of banana seedlings cv. Grand Naine inoculated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

This study aimed to verify the influence of FMAs on the levels of macro and micronutrients, and growth of micropropagated banana seedlings submitted to doses of P. The experimental design adopted was randomized blocks, in a 5 x 5 factorial arrangement, with factors inoculation with AMFs (G. clarum, G. margarita, G. albida and C. etunicatum and the control without AMF) and P doses (0, 50, 100, 200 and 400 mg kg-1). The association of different species of FMAs can favor the growth of banana seedlings, with greater nutrition. The application of P doses provided greater growth of the micropropagated banana seedlings, regardless of inoculation with AMF. Seedling production associated with G. margarita can favor the growth of plants submitted to low doses of P applied to the soil. The interaction of G. clarum with Musa spp. seedling production does not seem to favor plant growth. Mycorrhizal colonization together with phosphate fertilization contributed to the quality of banana seedlings. The inoculation with C. etunicatum favored the increase of K contents in the aerial part of the plants. The increase in P doses decreased the levels of N and S in all treatments. It caused a reduction in the leaf contents of Mn, B and Fe. The doses of P did not interfere in the leaf contents of Cu and Zn. The FMAs favored the levels of Cu, Zn, Mn and B in banana leaves; favored the increments of Cu, Fe, Zn and Mn contents in banana seedlings, varying with the doses of P.

Acclimatization of Musa spp. seedlings using endophytic Bacillus spp. and Buttiauxella agrestis strains

The association of different species of endophytic bacteria with the rhizosphere of the host plants can stimulate growth, development and acclimatization, offering a greater quantity of seedlings, in addition to reducing the cycle, providing economic return to the producer. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of introduction four bacterial isolates through inoculation into the root system in three banana cultivars (Prata Anã, Grande Naine and BRS Princesa) in the acclimatization phase. The evaluated treatments were: control (nutrient broth without bacteria); Bacillus cereus strain 1 (BC1); Bacillus cereus strain 2 (BC2); Bacillus thuringiensis (BT); Buttiauxella agrestis (BA). The morphological characteristics related to the development of the plants (total height and pseudostem diameter) were evaluated throughout the acclimatization period. After 90 days of transplanting and acclimatization, root length, leaf number, dry root weight, pseudostem and leaf, leaf area, internal carbon concentration, stomatal conductance, photosynthesis rate, transpiration rate, leaf temperature and chlorophyll were evaluated.The bacteria showed different results in relation to the studied cultivars. Considering the morphological and physiological characteristics observed in this study, B. thuringiensis for the cultivars Prata Anã and Grande Naine and the B. agrestis for the cultivar BRS Princesa are recommended for the process of acclimatization of banana seedlings, as they stimulated growth of the plant, increasing the dry mass, besides promoting the growth of roots. In this way, they improved the physiological aspects of the plants and reduced the period of acclimatization of the banana.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VAGINAL MICROBIOTA, CERVICAL AND UTERINE FLORA IN WOMEN WITH THE PAST HISTORY OF SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED INFECTIONS

The aim: To identify the characteristics of the vaginal microbiota, cervical and uterine flora in women with the past history of sexually transmitted infections. Materials and methods: A prospective study and the analysis of the vaginal microbiota, cervical and uterine flora were conducted in 96 women of reproductive age with infertility after the past history of STIs, who planned to get pregnant using ART. Together they made up the group I (main group) and the CG included 30 women of reproductive age, who planned pregnancy without a compromised reproductive history. Results: Nonspecific vulvovaginitis (χ2 = 31.6; p <0.001) was diagnosed in 63 (63.6%) patients of the group I, vulvovaginal candidiasis - in 17 (17.7%). Lactobacilli in a vaginal discharge in representatives of the CG and group I - 96.7% and 29.1%, respectively (χ2 = 20.3; p <0.001). Opportunistic pathogens, BV-associated microorganisms and obligate anaerobes in the next titers: 10x5 CFU/ml and higher, CG < 10x3 CFU/ml were found in 68 (70.8%) women of the group I. N. gonorrhoeae was detected in 2 (2.1%) patients of the group I. An intense leukemoid reaction - in 59 (61.5%) women of the group I. The rate of cervical contamination with these pathogens ranged from 10x3 to 10x4 CFU/ml in 35 (36.5%) women of the group I, in 61 (63.5%) - titers of opportunistic pathogens were > 10x4 CFU/ml. Pathogenic bacteria of the cervical canal, represented by obligate anaerobes, was detected in 70 (72.9%) cases, where 11 (11.4%) patients were diagnosed with Chlamydia trachomatis, 2 (2.1%) - N.gonorrhoeae. Chlamydia trachomatis and Mycoplasma genitalium were registered in 11 (11.5%) and 19 (19.8%) cases, respectively, and were not detected in controls. Ureaplasma urealyticum in the cervical canal outnumbered the diagnostic level in women: 17.7% - group I and 6.7% - CG, respectively (χ2 = 7.9; p <0.01). N.gonorrhoeae and Trich. vaginalis were detected in 2.1% and 6.25% of women in the group I, respectively. Persistent urogenital infection - the combination of opportunistic and common pathogens - prevailed in 59 (60.2%). Associations of obligate anaerobes and Chlamydia trachomatis were found in 69 (71.8%) of them, microaerophiles - in 29 (30.2%), the combination of various species of opportunistic pathogens - in 14 (14.6%); the growth of monocultures of opportunistic pathogens, in titers coming to 106-108, was recognized in 19 (19.8%). The growth of monoculture, represented by group B Streptococcus was detected in 8 (8.3%) cases, Enterococcus faecalis - in 12 (12.5%), Mycoplasma genitalium - in 17 (17.7%). The analysis of PCR test results enabled to detect associations of different species of viruses with Myco- and Ureaplasma, Chlamydia in 23 (23.9%) patients of the group I. What should be noted is the predominance of Herpes simplex over CMV infection: 7 (7.3%) and 2 (2.1%), respectively (p <0.05). Conclusions: The predominance of the mixed microbiota, represented by various associations of opportunistic and common pathogens, was identified in infertile women with the past history of STIs as a result of microbial culturing of the samples from the uterine cavity. Chronic inflammation in endometrium is caused by a persistent viral-bacterial infection in the uterine cavity, which differs in the species composition from the microbiota of the lower genital tract.

Functional Integration and Individuality in Prokaryotic Collective Organisations.

Both physiological and evolutionary criteria of biological individuality are underpinned by the idea that an individual is a functionally integrated whole. However, a precise account of functional integration has not been provided so far, and current notions are not developed in the details, especially in the case of composite systems. To address this issue, this paper focuses on the organisational dimension of two representative associations of prokaryotes: biofilms and theendosymbiosis between prokaryotes. Some critical voices have been raised against the thesis that biofilms are biological individuals. Nevertheless, it has not been investigated which structural and functional obstacles may prevent them from being fully integrated physiological or evolutionary units. By contrast, the endosymbiotic association of different species of prokaryotes has the potential for achieving a different type of physiological integration based on a common boundary and interlocked functions. This type of association had made it possible, under specific conditions, to evolve endosymbionts into fully integrated organelles. This paper therefore has three aims: first, to analyse the organisational conditions and the physiological mechanisms that enable integration in prokaryotic associations; second, to discuss the organisational differences between biofilms and prokaryotic endosymbiosis and the types of integration they achieve; finally, to provide a more precise account of functional integration based on these case studies.

Review of the Synergus Hartig Species (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae: Synergini) Associated with Woolly Galls on Oaks from the New World, with the Description of a New Species from Mexico

A review of the inquiline oak gall wasp species of the genus Synergus Hartig that are known to be associated with Cynipini woolly galls on oaks (Quercus L.) from the New World is conducted for the first time. Redescriptions, remarks, pictures and/or new location and biological data for the species previously known from the New World are given. Comments on morphological variability and host associations of different species, and especially that of S. pseudofilicornisLobato-Vila and Pujade-Villar, 2018, are also provided. A new species that emerged from galls collected in Mexico is formally described and illustrated: Synergus forcadellae Lobato-Vila and Pujade-Villar, new species. An identification key to all the species addressed in this work is provided. Synergus nigerFullaway, 1911 is considered a new synonym of S. citriformis (Ashmead, 1885), and S. similisGillette, 1896 a new synonym of S. filicornisCameron, 1883.

Species Classification for Neuroscience Literature Based on Span of Interest Using Sequence-to-Sequence Learning Model.

Large-scale neuroscience literature call for effective methods to mine the knowledge from species perspective to link the brain and neuroscience communities, neurorobotics, computing devices, and AI research communities. Structured knowledge can motivate researchers to better understand the functionality and structure of the brain and link the related resources and components. However, the abstracts of massive scientific works do not explicitly mention the species. Therefore, in addition to dictionary-based methods, we need to mine species using cognitive computing models that are more like the human reading process, and these methods can take advantage of the rich information in the literature. We also enable the model to automatically distinguish whether the mentioned species is the main research subject. Distinguishing the two situations can generate value at different levels of knowledge management. We propose SpecExplorer project which is used to explore the knowledge associations of different species for brain and neuroscience. This project frees humans from the tedious task of classifying neuroscience literature by species. Species classification task belongs to the multi-label classification which is more complex than the single-label classification due to the correlation between labels. To resolve this problem, we present the sequence-to-sequence classification framework to adaptively assign multiple species to the literature. To model the structure information of documents, we propose the hierarchical attentive decoding (HAD) to extract span of interest (SOI) for predicting each species. We create three datasets from PubMed and PMC corpora. We present two versions of annotation criteria (mention-based annotation and semantic-based annotation) for species research. Experiments demonstrate that our approach achieves improvements in the final results. Finally, we perform species-based analysis of brain diseases, brain cognitive functions, and proteins related to the hippocampus and provide potential research directions for certain species.

Species\u2013habitat associations in an old-growth temperate forest in northeastern China

BackgroundSpecies coexistence mechanisms and maintenance of biodiversity have long been considered important components of community ecology research. As one of the important mechanisms, species coexistence theory based on niche differentiation has received attention in past years. Thus, topography, through the formation of habitat heterogeneity, affects species distributions and coexistence. A 30-ha dynamic plot of mixed broadleaved-Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis) forest is located in the Heilongjiang Fenglin National Nature Reserve. We examined species–habitat associations using the torus-translation method. We aim to understand the habitat associations of different species, life forms (shrubs, trees), and shade tolerance (light-demanding, midtolerant, shade-tolerant) across life stages (sapling, juvenile and mature), providing further evidence for the role of niche theory in temperate forests.ResultsOf the 33 species we tested, 28 species (84.8%) were at least significantly associated with one habitat type. Positive associations were more frequent in the valley and slope (shady and sunny) and less frequent on the ridge. Thirty-four significant positive associations with the five habitats were detected at three life stages (11, 11 and 12 at the sapling stage, juvenile stage, and mature stage, respectively). The trees were positively associated with the valley, and the shrubs were positively associated with sunny and ridge. The majority of species’ habitat preferences shifted among different life stages; the exceptions were Corylus mandshurica, Maackia amurensis, Quercus mongolica, Picea jezoensis and Acer ukurunduense, which had consistent associations with the same habitat at all stages. The midtolerant trees and midtolerant shrubs were positively correlated with sunny across the three life stages.ConclusionsMost species show habitat preferences in the plot. These results indicate that niche theory plays an important role in species coexistence. Most species have no consistent association with habitat at different life stages.

Mixed biofilms formed by C. albicans and non-albicans species: a study of microbial interactions.

Most Candida infections are related to microbial biofilms often formed by the association of different species. The objective of this study was to evaluate the interactions between Candida albicans and non-albicans species in biofilms formed in vitro. The non-albicans species studied were:Candida tropicalis, Candida glabrata and Candida krusei. Single and mixed biofilms (formed by clinical isolates of C. albicans and non-albicans species) were developed from standardized suspensions of each strain (10(7) cells/mL), on flat-bottom 96-well microtiter plates for 48 hour. These biofilms were analyzed by counting colony-forming units (CFU/mL) in Candida HiChrome agar and by determining cell viability, using the XTT 2,3-bis (2-methoxy-4-nitro-5-sulphophenyl)-5-[(phenylamino) carbonyl]-2H-tetrazolium hydroxide colorimetric assay. The results for both the CFU/mL count and the XTT colorimetric assay showed that all the species studied were capable of forming high levels of in vitro biofilm. The number of CFU/mL and the metabolic activity of C. albicans were reduced in mixed biofilms with non-albicans species, as compared with a single C. albicans biofilm. Among the species tested, C. krusei exerted the highest inhibitory action against C. albicans. In conclusion, C. albicans established antagonistic interactions with non-albicans Candida species in mixed biofilms.

Extensive recombination detected among beak and feather disease virus isolates from breeding facilities in Poland

Beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) causes the highly contagious, in some cases fatal, psittacine beak and feather disease in parrots. The European continent has no native parrots, yet in the past has been one of the world's biggest importers of wild-caught exotic parrot species. Following the banning of this practice in 2007, the demand for exotic pet parrots has largely been met by established European breeding facilities, which can also supply buyers outside Europe. However, the years of unregulated importation have provided numerous opportunities for BFDV to enter Europe, meaning the likelihood of birds within captive breeding facilities being BFDV positive is high. This study examined the BFDV status of such facilities in Poland, a country previously shown to have BFDV among captive birds. A total of 209 birds from over 50 captive breeding facilities across Poland were tested, and 43 birds from 18 different facilities tested positive for BFDV. The full BFDV genomes from these 43 positive birds were determined, and phylogenetic analysis revealed that these samples harboured a relatively high degree of diversity and that they were highly recombinant. It is evident that there have been multiple introductions of BFDV into Poland over a long period of time, and the close association of different species of birds in the captive environment has probably facilitated the evolution of new BFDV strains through recombination.

Oral colonization by yeasts in HIV-positive patients in Brazil

In HIV-infected patients, colonization of the oral cavity by potential pathogenic yeast may lead to development of systemic fungemia. We evaluated the prevalence of yeast in the oral cavity of Brazilian HIV-positive patients and verified whether or not the species characterized were enzymatically active. Furthermore, the species identified were tested for their susceptibility to antifungal treatment. Patient saliva and oropharyngeal candidiasis samples were collected from 60 seropositive HIV patients and identified by the API20C system. Enzymatic activity was evaluated by the production of proteinase and phospholipase. Susceptibility to antifungal treatments were determined using the broth microdilution method. the most commonly isolated species were C. albicans (51.56%) followed by non-albicans Candida species (43.73%), Trichosporon mucoides (3.12%) and Kodamaea ohmeri (1.56%). Oral colonization by association of different species was observed in 42% of the patients. Enzymatic activity was verified in most of species isolated, except for C. glabrata, C. lusitaniae and C. guilliermondii. Resistance to Fluconazole and Amphotericin B was observed in isolates of C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, C. krusei, and K. ohmeri. HIV-positive patients are orally colonized by single or multiple species of yeast that are occasionally resistant to Fluconazole or Amphotericin B.

New examples of holococcolith–heterococcolith combination coccospheres and their implications for coccolithophorid biology

Recently discovered coccospheres with combinations of coccoliths normally considered to belong to different taxa are presented here. By analogy with other coccolithophorids especially Coccolithus pelagicus we can hypothesize that these associations probably represent moments of phase change in a complex, possibly haplo-diplontic, life-cycle. Seven of these associations are composed of heterococcoliths with holococcoliths; five of them are presented here for the first time: Helicosphaera carteri with Syracolithus catilliferus, Syracosphaera pulchra with Calyptrosphaera oblonga, Syracosphaera anthos with Periphyllophora mirabilis, Acanthoica quattrospina with holococcolithophorid sp. and Syracosphaera sp. with Corisphaera sp. type A (see Kleijne, A., 1991. Holococcolithophorids from the Indian Ocean, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea and North Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Micropaleontol. 17, 1–76); the other two are Coronosphaera mediterranea with Calyptrolithina wettsteinii, found previously by Kamptner (Kamptner, E., 1941. Die Coccolithineen der Südwestküste von Istrien. Naturhistorischen Museum in Wien. Annalen 51, 54–149), and Syracosphaera nana with undescribed holococcoliths, figured previously by Kleijne (1991) as Syracosphaera sp. type A. In addition the association of Neosphaera coccolithomorpha and Ceratolithus cristatus, recently presented by Alcober and Jordan (Alcober, J., Jordan, R.W., 1997. An interesting association between Neosphaera coccolithomorpha and Ceratolithus cristatus (Haptophyta). Eur. J. Phycol. 32, 91–93) is verified by discovery of a further example. A further five combinations of heterococcoliths and holococcoliths are shown, these probably mostly represent life-cycle combinations but the evidence in each case is insufficient to consider these as definite associations although in these collapsed coccospheres the association of different species is less certain. Two examples of holococcolith–holococcolith associations are presented: S. catilliferus with Syracolithus confusus, and Zygosphaera bannockii with Corisphaera sp. type A. These are probably examples of intra-specific variation.A new species, Syracosphaera delicata sp. nov., is described.

Agroforestry systems in the Garhwal Himalayas of India

Agroforestry systems, though at subsistence level are well established in Garhwal Himalayas. The farmers undertake cultivation of various crops, seasonal and biennials crops with trees all in mixtures on the same piece of land. Farm animals and poultry form an essential component of the systems. The intimate association of different species provides both subsistence and commercial products which give additional income to the farmer. The paper describes the general scenario of socio-economic condition and existing agroforestry practices and some suggestions for their improvement in the Garhwal Himalayas.

Multistoried agroforestry garden system in West Sumatra, Indonesia

The agroforestry garden system in Maninjau in West Sumatra is characterized by an intensive integration of forest species and commercial crops, forming a forest-like system. The intimate association of different species provides both subsistence and commercial products which supplement rice production. This complex agroforest is managed by the combination between cultural practices and respect of natural processes of vegetation production and reproduction. It represents a profitable production system and constitutes an efficient buffer between villages and protected forest. It is a good model of association between integration of forest resources and cultivation of cash crops in the form of a sustainable and flexible system.

Altered pharmacologic properties of liposome-associated human interferon-alpha. II.

Association of human interferon-alpha with multilamellar vesicles and reverse-phase evaporation vesicles resulted in altered retention and distribution of the interferon after injection into mice. Intramuscular injection of liposomal-interferon, after extrusion through 0.2 mu filters, resulted in significantly increased localized retention of interferon. Liposomal-interferon was retained locally from one to three days, depending on liposome composition, whereas an equivalent injection of free interferon was undetectable after 24 hrs. Intravenous injection of the liposomal-interferon preparations resulted in increased interferon levels in lung, spleen, and liver as compared to injection of free interferon. Preparation of small unilamellar vesicles in the presence of interferon revealed differences in modes of association of different species with the liposomes, based on differential titers on human vs. bovine cells.

GLOGER'S RULE AND PIGMENTATION OF COLLEMBOLA.

Pigmentation in warm-blooded animals has been related to latitude, temperature, humidity, rainfall, and solar radiation. The original observations by Gloger (1833) on the coloration of birds in relation to their geographical position have been confirmed for different species belonging to several taxa, though some important exceptions were pointed out by Burt (1954) and Croizat (1964). The decrease of pigmentation at higher latitudes, however, does not seem to be valid for invertebrates. Moreover, in many instances a negative or inverse Gloger's rule has been reported. Dobzhansky (1933) speaks of centers of light and dark forms in coccinellid Coleoptera; the former lie in Iran, southern Turkestan, southern United States and Mexico, and the latter lie in Siberia and Kamchatka. Low temperatures (and higher latitudes) favor melanin formation in insects (Vernberg, 1962) resulting in more obscure populations (Ehrlich and Holm, 1963; Gillham, 1956; Hovanitz, 1941; Kalmus, 1941; Timofeeff-Ressovsky, 1940). The same phenomenon has been also reported for the marine snail Thais lapillus (Clench, 1954), and for land snails. The latter show darker brown coloration at higher latitudes. An analysis is made here of the amount of pigmentation observed in entire associations of different species, taking the collembolan insects as the main example, and trying to quantify in some way the phenomenon as Amtmann (1965) did with the mammal Protoxerus stangeri. Yosii (1938) provided some early observations on this group of apterygotan insects: referring to Agrenia bidenticulata he mentions their ability to show color variations according to the habitat. Specimens collected from riversides and other hygropetric habitats show dull yellowish coloration, while those collected on snow in spring are always pigmented deep purple.

The productivity of grasslands in England for Oscinella frit (L.) (Chloropidae) and other stem-boring Diptera

Dissections of over 93,000 grass stems obtained by random core-sampling of natural grasslands at a site in Berkshire largely confirm earlier conclusions regarding the associations of different species of dipterous stem borers and grasses. Allowing for the number of stems of each grass species per unit area, the densities of larvae were greatest in Anthoxanum odoratum, Poa and Lolium and lowest in Dactylis glomerata. Oscinella frit (L.) was less abundant than Cetema spp. and Opomyza germinationis (L.); it was not found in D. glomerata but was most abundant in Lolium and Festuca. Sampling showed that overwintering larvae of O. frit suffer at least 50 per cent, mortality between September–December and January–March.Previous studies have largely concentrated on populations in different species of grasses, but it is advantageous to consider the production of O. frit in terms of short (grazed or regularly mown) grasslands and long grasslands (hay fields, uncut commons and rough grazing); comparisons of figures obtained by core-sampling for larvae and emergence traps for adults indicate a production from short grassland and long grassland of about 11 and under 1 overwintered adult per sq. yd., respectively. Having regard to the greater productivity of common leys, dominated by Lolium and Poa, a national average for the first figure would be 15. There is little increase from generation to generation in grassland populations during the year, in contrast with the situation in oats.From tentative estimates of the acreages and productivities of the different sources of O. frit in England and Wales as a whole, it is clear that the majority of the adults of O. frit are produced by grasslands in the spring and summer and by the oat panicles in the autumn, the latter population being much the greater. As O. frit is a migratory insect, such a conclusion is especially significant and indicates that during the autumn the ‘ population pressure ’ in the grasslands will be very different to that during other seasons.

Methods for Expressing the Associations of Different Species

Methods for Expressing the Associations of Different Species