SANTA CRUZ Research Articles

A Randomized, Open-Label, Parallel Group Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Proactive Management in Pediatric Subjects with Moderate to Severe Atopic Dermatitis

S U N D A Y 366 Allergen Specific Immunotherapy in Cases of Severe Atopic Dermatitis Inmaculada S anchez-Mach in, MD, Paloma Poza, Ruperto Gonz alez, Victor Matheu, MD; Hospital Ofra-T orax, Tenerife, Spain, Hospital Ofra-T orax, santa cruz de tenerife, Spain, Hospital Ofra-T orax, S/C de Tenerife, Spain, Hospital Ofra, Tenerife, Spain. RATIONALE: Allergen sensitization appears to be part of the etiology of Atopic Dermatitis (AD). The effectiveness of allergen specific immunotherapy (SIT) in AD remains controversial, even contraindicated in severe cases. METHODS: Total IgE (T-IgE) and Specific IgE (S-IgE) by CAPFarmacia. Patient 1 (P1): 43-year-old male. Patient 2 (P2): 31-year old woman. Patient 3 (P3): 9-year-old woman. All of them were nonresponders to usual therapeutics including corticosteroids oral (Last year daily for P1, P2, and 6 cycles for P3), cyclosporin (P1, P2) or methotrexate (P1with bloody diarrhea). They hadmild persistent rhinitis and intermitent asthma and positive S-IgE to Dermatophagoidesand storage mites, and P1 also to grass, ragweed pollen and foods without clinical relevance. RESULTS: In a first visit SCORAD and T-IgEwere: P1, 81 and 31,090UI/ ml. P2, 75 and 19,038UI/ml. P3, 36 and 14.897UI/ml.We started treatment with SIT, with cluster administration schedule of 4weeks in Hospital Immunotherapy Unit and subsequent monthly maintenance. The early months P1 and P2 showed improvement. The T-IgE was descending in improved patients to be in the 4 year of SIT: 5,560UI/ml for P1 and 2,500UI/ml for P2 with SCORAD of 11 and 5 respectively. However, since there was no clinical improvement for P3 over the first year and her T-IgE increase to 19,239UI/ml and SCORAD to 40, the SIT was stopped. CONCLUSIONS:Wehave observed a rapid onset of action after initiation of SIT in some cases of Severe AD. Clinical improvement was correlated with the decrease in T-IgE. The SIT may be a therapeutic alternative.

Palinología del Miembro Gran Bajo de la Formación San Julián (Oligoceno Tardío) en su Localidad Tipo, Santa Cruz, Argentina: Consideraciones Paleoambientales

PALYNOLOGY OF THE GRAN BAJO MEMBER, SAN JULIÁN FORMATION (LATE OLIGOCENE) IN ITS TYPE LOCALITY, SANTA CRUZ, ARGENTINA: PALEOENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS. The aim of this paper is to present the palynological results from the Gran Bajo Member of the San Julián Formation in its type area (Gran Bajo de San Julián). The studied section crops out in the eastern Santa Cruz Province and has been assigned to the late Oligocène based on 87Sr/86Sr data. The sedimentological analysis suggests a shallow marine environment close to the coast barely influenced by ocean waters at the lower part of the section, which evolved toward a foreshore-shoreface environment at the middle part of the section and to a shoreface-offshore towards the upper part of the section. The palynological assemblages from Gran Bajo section are primarily conformed by terrestrial elements with high preservation stage. A detailed palynological study allowed reconstructing the structure and composition of the forest in relation to depositional environments. Changes in the depositional environments correlate with the pollen zones determined by cluster analysis. Among the arboreal elements, the Podocarpaceae dominated the middle part of the section and Nothofagaceae (mainly Nothofagidites brassii type) dominates in the upper part, associated with Araucariaceae and Proteaceae in lower proportions. Myrtaceae, Arecaceae, Sapindaceae and Anacardiaceae were scarcely represented. The understory was composed by different species of monilophytes, mainly Cyatheaceae and Dicksoniaceae that decrease towards the top of the analyzed interval.

Estudio Palinológico de la Formación Punta del Barco (Aptiano) de la Provincia de Santa Cruz, Argentina: Granos de Polen de Gimnospermas y Caracterización de la Flora

Abstract. PALYNOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE PUNTA DEL BARCO FORMATION (APTIAN), SANTA CRUZ PROVINCE, ARGENTINA: GYMNOSPERM POLLEN GRAINS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF THE FLORA. This contribution completes the palynological investigation of the Punta del Barco Formation (Baquero Group) with gymnosperm pollen analysis, including a new species-Microcachryidites cesariae-, and provides a comprehensive analysis of the flora. This taphocenosis is an interesting example of the biota disturbances by volcanic events prevailing in Patagonia during the Aptian. Through the integration of megafloristic, lithological and palynological data an open forest is interpreted, which gradually lost its tree layer after successive episodes of volcanic ash fall, with the consequent progressive decrease in taxonomic diversity. The palynological assemblage allows recognizing the fern family Gleicheniaceae as a dominant component of this Aptian flora, being highly resistant to strong environmental stress. Primitive angiosperms and lycophytes a...

Morfología y Anatomía de un Helecho Creciendo Bajo Condiciones de Estrés en el Aptiano de Santa Cruz, Argentina

MORPHOLOGY AND ANATOMY OF A FERN GROWING UNDER STRESS CONDITIONS FROM THE APTIAN OF SANTA CRUZ, ARGENTINA. The morphology and anatomy of pteridophyte fronds attached to rhizomes with adventitious roots from the Aptian Anfiteatro de Ticó Formation, Santa Cruz province, Argentina are described. The fossils consist of impressions and compressions preserved in lithofacies dominated mainly by volcanic ash-fall. Observations made with scanning electron microscope on rhizomes and rachides revealed the presence of primary xylem tissues; protoxylem, metaxylem fibers and parenchyma. According to the general morphology, this fern is included in the morphogenus Cladophlebis Brongniart. Comparisons made with known Cladophlebis species of Argentina show that the material here studied has different morphological features. Furthermore, rachides in organic connection to rhizomes having a well preserved anatomy was not reported for Cladophlebis species from Argentina. Therefore, a new name, Cladophlebis cinerium, is assigned to this fern. Finally, it is suggested that this fern probably grew under humid conditions given by the fluvio-lacustrine environment of the Anfiteatro de Ticó Formation, but also with continuous stress caused by the abundant ash fall produced by the recurrent explosive andean vulcanism that took place during the Lower Cretaceous in Patagonia.

LA FLORA TRIÁSICA DEL GRUPO EL TRANQUILO, PROVINCIA DE SANTA CRUZ (PATAGONIA): LEÑOS FÓSILES

Abstract THE TRIASSIC FLORA FROM THE EL TRANQUILO GROUP, PROVINCE OF SANTA CRUZ (PATAGONIA): FOSSIL WOODS. Anatomical studies of gymnosperms from the Laguna Colorada Formation of El Tranquilo Group (Upper Triassic) from Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, are presented. The following taxa are described: Araucariaceae: Agathoxylon lamaibandianus sp. nov., Agathoxylon dallonii (Boureau) Crisafulli and Herbst comb. nov., Agathoxylon amraparense (Sah and Jain) Crisafulli and Herbst comb, nov.; Podocarpaceae: Podocarpoxylon indicum (Bardwaj) Bose and Maheshwari, Podocarpoxylon paralatifolium Vozenin-Serra and Grant-Mackie, Protophyllocladoxylon sp., and a new species of the ginkgoalean, Ginkgophytoxylon isychozianus Crisafulli and Herbst sp. nov., which is well diferentiated from the other two Permian species of the genus recorded from France, New Mexico (USA) and Uruguay. The validity of the latter genus is discussed and mantained. Some comments are made on the paleoclimatic conditions indicated by the characters...

Wnt pathway in the formation of ischemic brain injury*: Interventional pathway of basic fibroblast growth factor

Background Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) can reduce neuronal apoptosis following ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Mechanism of the phenomenon should be elucidated. Objective The goal of this study was to observe the effect of bFGF on the expressions of Dickkopf-1(DKK-1) and β-catenin in the Wnt pathway in hippocampal tissue of rats following brain I/R injury, in order to investigate the role of Wnt pathway in the formation of ischemic brain injury. Design Randomized controlled experiment. Setting Shenyang Medical College. Materials Thirty healthy 3 months old male Wistar rats, weighing 300–350 g, were provided by the Experimental Animal Center of Shenyang Medical College. Thirty rats were randomized into sham-operation group, model group and treatment group. Goat anti-rat monoclonal antibody β-catenin was purchased from SANTA CRUZ Company. BFGF was developed by Beijing SL Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. Methods This experiment was carried out in the Shenyang Medical College between November 2005 and May 2006. ▪ Focal brain I/R by suture-occluded method was modeled in rats in the treatment group and model group. Their middle cerebral artery was occluded 1 hour and reperfused for 24 hours. While in the sham-operation group, only the right common carotid artery and external carotid artery of rats were occluded for 90 minutes. ▪ The rats in the treatment group were intraperitoneally injected with 10 μ/kg bFGF, and those in the other groups were intraperitoneally injected with the same amount of saline. Main outcome measures Following I/R 48 hours, the expressions of β-catenin and Dickkopf-1 mRNA in the neurons of hippocampal CA1 region by immunohistochemical SABC and RT-PCR. Results Following I/R 48 hours, the expressions of β-catenin and Dickkopf-1 mRNA in the neurons of hippocampal CA1 region was evaluated by means of immunohistochemical SABC and RT-PCR. ▪ Expression of DKK-1 mRNA in the sham-operation group was at low level, it was significantly higher in the model group compared to the sham-operation group; Expression of DKK-1 mRNA in the treatment group was significantly lower than that in the model group. ▪ Expression of β-catenin in the cerebral cortex and hippocampal cytoplasm of rats: The mean gray scale of β-catenin of model group was significantly lower than that of sham-operation group (74.27±2.65 vs. 111.36±5.39, P < 0.05); The mean gray scale of β-catenin of treatment group was significantly higher than that of model group (86.18±7.41 vs. 74.27±2.65, P < 0.05). Conclusion bFGF may influence Wnt pathway by participating in the regulation of DKK-1 mRNA and β-catenin expressions, and thereby protect neurons.

The Galapagos Islands Kiss Their Goat Problem Goodbye

SANTA CRUZ, GALA�PAGOS ISLANDS-- The world9s largest eradication campaign has virtually rid an ecological wonderland of feral goats, a devastating invader. Next in the crosshairs: cats and rats. (Read more.)

Genetic structure of black abalone ( Haliotis cracherodii) populations in the California islands and central California coast: Impacts of larval dispersal and decimation from withering syndrome

The genetic structure of black abalone populations in the southern California Islands and central California coast was investigated by protein electrophoresis. Detailed sampling of San Nicolas Island (SN) permitted investigation of microgeographic genetic differentiation among local geomorphological features. In addition, temporal genetic differentiation was assessed by comparing juveniles and adults at three islands, San Miguel (SM), Santa Cruz (SC) and San Nicolas (SN). Mainland and island locations were genetically differentiated based on allele frequency differences and the presence of private alleles in some island populations. Although microgeographic genetic structure among sites on SN was weak and not statistically significant, heterozygosity varied among sites, with diversity decreasing from west to east. In addition, investigation among cohorts showed that adults were genetically differentiated among island locations, whereas no differences among juveniles were detected. Genetic differentiation between adult and juvenile abalones was detected at SC but not SM or SN. These data are generally consistent with local recruitment augmented by relatively more gene flow among island populations than among island and mainland populations, and possible selection acting on immigrant recruits.

New Genera, New Species, and New Combinations in Western Nearctic Phylini (Heteroptera: Miridae: Phylinae)

Six new genera and six new species of Phylinae are described from the western United States and Baja California, Mexico, and two new combinations are created. Most of the species are known to breed on oaks, Quercus spp. (Fagaceae). Galbinocoris caepa, new genus and species, is described from Arizona and Texas. Hamatophylus, new genus, is described to accommodate Plagiognathus guttulosus (Reuter), which breeds on several species of oaks, among them Quercus virginiana Mill. Insulaphylus, new genus, is restricted to the Channel Islands off the coast of southern California, and is described to accommodate Insulaphylus cruz, new species, from Santa Cruz Island and Insulaphylus meridianus, new species, from Santa Catalina and San Clemente Islands. Both species breed on Quercus spp. Maculamiris, new genus, is described with two species, Maculamiris baja, new species, from Baja California and southern California, and Maculamiris insulanus, new species, from the Channel Islands. Both species are associated with rosaceous plants. Quernocoris caliginosus, new genus and species, is described from mainland southern California and the Channel Islands where it breeds on a range of oak species. Vesperocoris, new genus, is described to accommodate the often oak-breeding Plagiognathus paddocki Knight from California.

Winning the War Against Island Invaders

SANTA CRUZ ISLAND, CALIFORNIA-- To make islands safe for rare native species, biologists are mounting increasingly complex--and successful--campaigns to shoot, trap, or poison exotics. (Read more.)

Validation of a selective serotonin 5-HT 2C receptor antibody for utilization in fluorescence immunohistochemistry studies

Although radioligand binding studies have shown that the serotonin 5-HT 2C receptor (5-HT 2CR) is widely expressed throughout the brain, more detailed knowledge of 5-HT 2CR distribution within different neuronal populations will aid in understanding the mechanisms through which this receptor acts. Double-label immunohistochemical procedures can be utilized to examine the localization of receptors within specific neuronal populations. In order to conduct such studies, however, it was first necessary to examine the utility and specificity of two commercially available anti-5-HT 2CR antibodies [from Santa Cruz (SC) and BD PharMingen (PH)]. In male Sprague–Dawley rats, both antibodies produced widespread immunoreactivity (IR) throughout the brain area chosen for study, the ventral tegmental area, which is the origin of the dopamine mesocorticoaccumbens “reward” pathway. Co-labeling with the SC and PH 5-HT 2CR antibodies demonstrated that IR for the two antibodies largely overlapped. However, SC 5-HT 2CR IR was more concentrated within IR cell bodies and was more consistent among assays than the PH 5-HT 2CR IR. Thus, the SC 5-HT 2CR antibody was chosen for subsequent studies. When examined in 5-HT 2CR knockout vs. wild-type mice, the SC 5-HT 2CR antibody produced widespread IR in wild-type, but not 5-HT 2CR knockout, mice. In addition, 5-HT 2CR-IR was not present in either native CHO cells, known to be devoid of 5-HT 2AR or 5-HT 2CR, or in CHO cells transfected with the 5-HT 2AR. Thus, these studies suggest that the SC 5-HT 2CR antibody produces reliable staining selective for 5-HT 2CR vs. 5-HT 2AR in rodent brains and is therefore suitable for use in future immunofluorescence 5-HT 2CR localization studies.

Tolerância de cultivares de soja aos herbicidas imazaquin, diclosulam e sulfentrazone, aplicados em solo de textura arenosa

With the objective to evaluate the genotypes of soybeans when using the herbicides Imazaquim, diclosulam and sulfentrazone, this research was conducted at “ Fazenda Tres Irmãos “ pertaining to Jatai county, Goias, during the growing season 2000/2001. After planting the genotypes of soybeans in arenaceous soil, containing 17,19% clay, 44 g/kg of organic material and CTC of 12,49 cmol/dm³, the herbicides, imazaquin, diclosulan, and sulfentrazone, were sprayed pre-emergence in the following doses – 140 and 280g. /ha, 35 and 70g/ha, 600 and 1200g/ha, respectively. After 15 and 30 days, after the spraying (DAT) of the herbicides, the plant intoxication of the herbicides was evaluated in the genotypes of soybeans. By random of harvest, the height of the plants and insertion of the first string bean, number of plants and yield were evaluated. The conclusions were: a) The herbicides imazaquin, diclosulam and sulfentrazone caused plant intoxication in the genotypes of soybeans planted in arenaceous texture. Especially when the double, of the recommended dose was used. b) In the doses tested, the herbicides didn’t significantly affect the plant density, nor the height of the insertion of the first string bean in the genotypes of soybeans. c) Sulfentrazone in dose equivalent to 1200g/ha, reduced significantly the height in the genotypes-GOBR 93-1283, EMGOPA-316 and CRIXÁS, compared with the untreated area. Diclosulan, in dose equivalent to 35g/ha caused reduction in height in the genotypes – GOIÂNIA, GOBR 93-122243 RNC and LUZIÂNIA. GOBR 93-122243 RCN, GOIÂNIA, LUZIÂNIA, EMGOPA 316, SANTA CRUZ and CRIXÁS already had their heights affected compared with the untreated area, in a dose equivalent to 70g/ha of diclosulan. Imazaquin, in a dose equivalent to 280g/ha, affected significantly the height in the plants of the sort, CRIXAS. d) Diclosulan in dose equivalent to 70g/ha caused significantly reductions in yield in the genotypes – GOBR93-1283, GOBR93-12243 RCN, EMGOPA-302, SANTA CRUZ and EMGOPA-313. Sulfentrazone, used in a dose equivalent to 1200g/ha, caused a reduction in the productivity in the genotypes – GOBR 93-1283, GOBR 93-122243 RNC, GOIATUBA, LUZIÂNIA, EMGOPA-316, EMGOPA-314, SAMBAÍBA, EMGOPA-302, EMGOPA-313 and CRIXÁS. The genotypes – GOIATUBA, EMGOPA-316 and SANTA CRUZ had already showed reductions in productivity, when using imazaquin in a dose equivalent to 280g/ha; e) The genotypes of soybeans showed different tolerance with the herbicides sulfentrazone, diclosulan and imazaquin, specially when there was used a doublet dose.

Worrying the Nation: Imagining a National Literature in English Canada by Jonathan Kertzer (review)

'Blackness'is neither timeless nor universalbut geographically,culturally,historically , and politicallyconstituted.In fact, Kanneh rightlyargues,whatWalker'snovel fails to analyse is the 'poeticisation and narrativisation of a history which has continuously reinvented Black Americans from the time of slavery onwards' (p. I 6). African Identities is a studyrichlydetailed and admirablysophisticatedin its use of cultural theory and its engagement with the large number of writers it treats. Kanneh weaves highly diverse threads (literature, history, and anthropology) together as he highlights the multivalent meanings that Africa registers on the literaryimagination. The work'sinterdisciplinarynaturewill make it an invaluable resource in African studies, African-American studies, and cultural studies in general. Importantly,African Identities is a decidedly readablework. Forany reader interestedin the politics of literature,without a doubt, thisis a book worth reading. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA CRUZ MARGO HENDRICKS Worrying theNation:Imagining a NationalLiterature in EnglishCanada. By JONATHAN KERTZER. (Theory/Culture) Toronto, Buffalo, NY, and London: University of Toronto Press. I998. xi + 243PP. $40;?30. Worrying theNation,or more accurately,worryingabout discoursesof nationhood in contemporary Canada, offers a vigorous contribution to the latest phase of the debate about Canadian identity. Propelled by the 1988 MulticulturalismAct with its officialemphasison diversityand racialdifferenceas fundamentalcharacteristics of Canadian society, cultural and literarytheorists(especially English-Canadians) have been anxiously engaged with questions of how Canadianness might be redefined to take into account these late-twentieth-century shifts of emphasis in traditional demography and ideology. As a literary critic and cultural historian, Kertzer focuses his attention on problems relating to English-Canadian literary traditions and Canadian history. His anxiety at times borders on the apocalyptic: 'Whathappens to a national literaturewhen the very idea of the nation has been set in doubt?' (p. 5) or, echoing the title of E. D. Blodgett's I993 essay, 'Is a History of the Literaturesof Canada Possible?'(p. II). One of the major strengthsof this book is what we might expect from someone interestedin literarytradition,the appeal to history.Kertzer'sresearchmakesplain that debates over the possibility of a Canadian nation and a national literaturego back to pre-Confederation days in fact, with E. H. Dewart's 1864 Selections from Canadian Poets.As he shows, the dominant anglophone literary tradition which defined itselfin relation to nineteenth-centuryEuropean Romantic historicismhas always encountered problems in its attempts to formulate a discourse centred on homeland and national destiny. In his study of two mid-twentieth-centurynationbuildingpoems , E.J. Pratt'sheroicepic about the buildingof Canada'stranscontinental railway(1952) and Dennis Lee's CivilElegies (1972), Kertzerdemonstratesthat they are at best ambiguously celebratory. Pratt's adventurers and politicians encounter the 'uncanny alienness' of the land (p. 76) while Lee's anguished quest for an authenticnation failsto discoverany historicalor contemporarygroundsfor such authenticity.MargaretAtwood's Survival: A Thematic Guide toCanadian Literature, also published in 1972, belongs to this English-Canadian tradition, though her wariness about the future now looks like a harbinger of the radical shifts that Canada's discourse of nationhood is currently undergoing. In a chapter entitled 'The Nation as Monster' Kertzer charts the revisioning of traditional Canadian themes and values in recent ethnic, feminist, and Native writing, showing that in 'Blackness'is neither timeless nor universalbut geographically,culturally,historically , and politicallyconstituted.In fact, Kanneh rightlyargues,whatWalker'snovel fails to analyse is the 'poeticisation and narrativisation of a history which has continuously reinvented Black Americans from the time of slavery onwards' (p. I 6). African Identities is a studyrichlydetailed and admirablysophisticatedin its use of cultural theory and its engagement with the large number of writers it treats. Kanneh weaves highly diverse threads (literature, history, and anthropology) together as he highlights the multivalent meanings that Africa registers on the literaryimagination. The work'sinterdisciplinarynaturewill make it an invaluable resource in African studies, African-American studies, and cultural studies in general. Importantly,African Identities is a decidedly readablework. Forany reader interestedin the politics of literature,without a doubt, thisis a book worth reading. UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SANTA CRUZ MARGO HENDRICKS Worrying theNation:Imagining a NationalLiterature in EnglishCanada. By JONATHAN KERTZER. (Theory/Culture) Toronto, Buffalo, NY, and London: University of Toronto Press. I998. xi + 243PP. $40;?30. Worrying theNation,or more accurately,worryingabout discoursesof nationhood in contemporary Canada, offers a vigorous contribution to the latest phase...

Urbanisation of yellow fever in Santa Cr uz, Bolivia

Reinvasion by Aedes aegypti of cities in the Americas poses a threat of urbanisation of yellow fever. After detection of yellow-fever infection in a resident of the city of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, in December, 1997, we investigated all subsequent suspected cases. We introduced active surveillance of yellow fever in the Santa Cruz area. Hospitals and selected urban and rural health centres reported all suspected cases. Patients were serologically screened for yellow fever, dengue, hepatitis A and B, and leptospirosis. We collected clinical and epidemiological information from patients' records and through interviews. We also carried out a population-based serosurvey in the neighbourhood of one case. Between December, 1997, and June, 1998, symptomatic yellow-fever infection was confirmed in six residents of Santa Cruz, five of whom died. Five lived in the southern sector of the city. Two had not left the city during the incubation period, and one had visited only an area in which sylvatic transmission was deemed impossible. Of the 281 people covered in the serosurvey 16 (6%) were positive for IgM antibody to yellow fever. Among five people for whom this result could not be explained by recent vaccination, there were two pairs of neighbours. Urban transmission of yellow fever in Santa Cruz was limited in space and time. Low yellow-fever immunisation coverage and high infestation with A. aegypti in the city, and the existence of endemic areas in the region present a risk for future urban outbreaks. We recommend immediate large-scale immunisation of the urban population, as well as tightened surveillance and appropriate vector control.

What is “hypertension”?

The starting point for all clinical decisions on a patient with hypertension—on the severity of the disorder, the prognosis, and the treatment—is the value obtained by measurement of a haemodynamic variable, the blood pressure. The recommendations produced jointly by the WHO and the International Society of Hypertension, 1 Guidelines Subcommittee, 1999 World Health Organisation-International Society of Hypertension Guidelines for the Management of Hypertension. J Hypertens. 1999; 17: 151-183 PubMed Google Scholar although generally welcome, are flawed because the stated level for blood-pressure normality is based on inadequate evidence, and there is ambivalence about how blood pressure should be measured Urbanisation of yellow fever in Santa Cr uz, BoliviaUrban transmission of yellow fever in Santa Cruz was limited in space and time. Low yellow-fever immunisation coverage and high infestation with A aegypti in the city, and the existence of endemic areas in the region present a risk for future urban outbreaks. We recommend immediate large-scale immunisation of the urban population, as well as tightened surveillance and appropriate vector control. Full-Text PDF

The evolutionary history of the amylase multigene family in Drosophila pseudoobscura.

In Drosophila pseudoobscura, the amylase (Amy) multigene family is contained within a series of inversions, or gene arrangements, on the third chromosome. The Standard (ST), Santa Cruz (SC), and Tree Line (TL) inversions are central to the phylogeny of arrangements, and have clusters of other arrangements derived from them. The gene arrangements belonging to each of these three clusters have a characteristic number of Amy genes, ranging from three in ST to two in SC to one in TL. This distribution pattern can reflect a history of either duplications or deletions, although the data available in the past did not permit a decision between these alternatives. We provide unambiguous evidence that three Amy genes were present before the divergence of the ST, SC, and TL arrangements. Thus, the current status of the Amy multigene family is the result of deletions in the TL and SC arrangements, which created three new pseudogenes: TL Amy2-psi, TL Amy3-psi, and SC Amy3-psi. Analysis of pseudogene sequences revealed that, in the SC and ST arrangements, pseudogene evolution has been retarded, most likely due to the homogenization effect of gene conversion. Finally, by determining the original copy number, we have reconstructed the evolutionary history of the Amy multigene family and linked it with the evolution of the central gene arrangements.

Review: SANTA CRUZ ISLAND: A History and Recollections of an Old California Rancho, by Helen Caire

Review: <i>SANTA CRUZ ISLAND: A History and Recollections of an Old California Rancho</i>, by Helen Caire

Evidence for gene conversion in the amylase multigene family of Drosophila pseudoobscura.

The alpha-amylase (Amy) multigene family in Drosophila pseudoobscura is located on the third chromosome, which is polymorphic for more than 40 inverted gene arrangements. The number of copies in this family ranges from one to three, depending on the arrangement in question. A previous study of the three Amy genes from the Standard (ST) arrangement suggested either that duplicated copies (Amy2 and Amy3) are functionally constrained or that they are undergoing gene conversion with Amy1. In order to elucidate further the pattern of molecular evolution in this family, we cloned and sequenced four additional Amy genes, two from the Santa Cruz (SC) and two from the Chiricahua (CH) gene arrangement. Of the two alternatives, only the hypothesis of gene conversion is supported by the sequence analysis. The homogenization effect of gene conversion has been strongest in SC, whose copies differ by only two nucleotides, less noticeable in ST, and negligible in the CH. Furthermore, the action of gene conversion is apparently localized, occurring only in the coding region. Interestingly, these results concur with the findings of other workers for the duplicated Amy genes in the Drosophila melanogaster group. Thus, the occurrence of gene conversion in the Amy multigene family seems to be a common feature in the Drosophila species studied so far.

A Taxonomic Note on Crassicosta hermannii

Crassicosta hermannii H. A. Crum & Sharp, a genus and species described from northeastern Mexico, is taxonomically synonymous with Haplocladium angustifolium (Hampe & Miill. Hal. in Miill. Hal.) Broth. SThe genus Crassicosta and its single species, C. hermannii, were described by Crum and Sharp (1984) from a collection made by Frederick J. Hermann in 1975 in Nuevo Le6n, Mexico. Crum and Sharp (1984) placed the genus in the Amblystegiaceae but Ochyra (1988) concluded it is congruent with the Leskeaceae. In connection with my studies of Helodium Warnst. I examined type specimens of C. hermannii and discovered that it is synonymous with Haplocladium angustifolium (Hampe & Miill. Hal. in Miill. Hal.) Broth. Since C. hermannii is the type species, the genus Crassicosta is synonymous with Haplocladium Miill. Hal. Authority names in this report follow Brummitt and Powell (1992). HAPLOCLADIUM Miill. Hal., Hedwigia 38: 149. 1899. TYPE: H. transvaaliense Miill. Hal. Bryohaplocladium R. Watan. & Z. Iwats., J. Jap. Bot. 56: 259. 1981. Crassicosta H. A. Crum & Sharp, THE BRYOLOGIST 87: 150. 1984, syn. nov. TYPE: C. hermannii H. A. Crum & Sharp. MEXICO. NUEVO LE6N. Sierra Madre Oriental ca. 9 mi. NW of Monterrey, Hermann 26063, (holotype, MICH!; isotypes, MICH!, NY!, TENN, MEXU). Haplocladium angustifolium (Hampe & Mill. Hal. in Mill. Hal.) Broth., Nat. Pfl. 1(3): 1007. 1908. Basionym: Hypnum angustifolium Hampe & Mill. Hal. in Miill. Hal., Bot. Zeitung (Berlin) 13: 788. 1855. Bryohaplocladium angustifolium (Hampe & Mill. Hal.) R. Watan. & Z. Iwats., J. Jap. Bot. 56: 259. 1981. Crassicosta hermannii H. A. Crum & Sharp, THE BRYOLOGIST 87: 150. 1984, syn. nov. Additional specimens examined (all in IA). -Haplocladium angustifolium (Hampe & Miill. Hal. in Mill. Hal.) Broth. JAPAN. WAKAYAMA PREF. Kodama, 16 Jan. 1963 [as H. schwetschkeoides (Cardot) Broth.]. U.S.A. ARIZONA. SANTA CRUZ CO.: Haskell & Haring 11486. PIMA CO.: Frye 3284. NEW MEXICO. Capitan Mtns., Ikenberry 535. In 1981, Watanabe and Iwatsuki pointed out that the algal name Haplocladium Niigeli has priority over the moss name Haplocladium Miill. Hal., and they made the new combination Bryohaplocladium R. Watan. & Z. Iwats. Anderson et al. (1990) similarly treat Haplocladium MUll. Hal. as Bryohaplocladium. However, after considering Ochyra's (1983) proposal that the moss name Haplocladium Mill. Hal. be conserved against the algal name Haplocladium Niigeli, the nomenclatural Committee for Bryophyta concluded that Haplocladium Miill. Hal. should be used instead of Bryohaplocladium because the description of Haplocladium Nfigeli was not validly published at the generic rank (Zijlstra 1990). Haplocladium angustifolium, including the type specimens of Crassicosta, typically has oblong or linear and prorulose upper leaf cells, a characteristic that belies its placement in Haplocladium, in which most species have short cells with papillae over the lumina. In North America H. angustifolium also includes an expression with short leaf cells that approaches H. microphyllum (Hedw.) Broth. However the leaf cells are prorulose, without a papilla over the lumen as in H. microphyllum. Reimers (1937) discussed the variation in both species and concluded that a specimen from Nuevo Le6n collected by C. G. Pringle is H. angustifolium with short leaf cells. Specimens from Arizona and New Mexico (cited above) also likely represent this form of H. angustifolium with short leaf cells. In 1954 and 1955, Crum determined two of these specimens as H. angustifolium, but Crum et al. (1965) later listed this taxon as synonymous with H. microphyllum. More recently Anderson et al. (1990) included H. angustifolium as occurring north of Mexico. Crum and Sharp (1984), Noguchi (1991), Reimers (1937), and Watanabe (1972) have provided descriptions and illustrations of H. angustifolium. Watanabe (1972) stated that H. angustifolium occurs in Mexico and Jamaica in North America, and Asia, Europe, and Africa. There are no other reports that document the general North American distribution. Reimers (1937) wrote that the only known collection from the Americas was one from Nuevo Le6n made by Pringle in 1908. Crum (1951) did not report H. angustifolium from Mexico, but Gier (1980) included it from Latin America, although he did not cite specimens. The only published reference to the occurrence of this moss in North America 0007-2745/94/174-175$0.35/0 This content downloaded from 207.46.13.92 on Wed, 30 Nov 2016 05:08:51 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 1994] O'BRIEN: CRASSICOSTA HERMANNII 175 north of Mexico is that in Anderson et al. (1990). According to William R. Buck (in litt.), and based on specimens in IA cited in this paper, the distribution includes the West Indies, Mexico, and the southwestern United States.

Narrative as Rhetoric in The Faerie Queene

Next article No AccessOriginal ArticleNarrative as Rhetoric in The Faerie QueeneHARRY BERGERHARRY BERGERuniversity of california, santa cruz Search for more articles by this author university of california, santa cruzPDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by English Literary Renaissance Volume 21, Number 1Winter 1991 Published in association with the Arthur F. Kinney Center for Interdisciplinary Renaissance Studies Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6757.1991.tb01017.x Views: 51Total views on this site Citations: 3Citations are reported from Crossref PDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Jamey E. Graham Character in The Faerie Queene: Spenser’s Phenomenology of Morals, Modern Philology 115, no.11 (Jul 2017): 31–52.https://doi.org/10.1086/691980Patricia Wareh Honorable Action Upstaged by Theatrical Wordplay in The Faerie Queene 2.4 and Much Ado about Nothing, Modern Philology 114, no.22 (Oct 2016): 264–285.https://doi.org/10.1086/687002Patricia Wareh Competitions in Nobility and Courtesy: Nennio and the Reader’s Judgment in Book VI of The Faerie Queene, Spenser Studies 27 (Dec 2017): 163–191.https://doi.org/10.7756/spst.027.008.163-191