Welcome to the 31st IUBS General Assembly and Conference on ...

<strong>Welcome</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> 31 st <strong>IUBS</strong> <strong>General</strong> <strong>Assembly</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on
Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
<strong>Welcome</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> 31 st <strong>IUBS</strong> <strong>General</strong> <strong>Assembly</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry at <strong>the</strong> Taihu
Lake International <strong>Conference</strong> Center in Wuzhong, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
With <strong>the</strong> accelerated impact of global climate change <strong>and</strong> human disturbance, our Earth is facing many challenges such
as food security, energy crisis, infectious diseases, biodiversity loss, environmental pollution <strong>and</strong> many o<strong>the</strong>r things.
Biology <strong>and</strong> biotechnology give us hope <strong>to</strong> tackle <strong>the</strong>se problems. In <strong>the</strong> new century, we have witnessed <strong>the</strong> progress of
biology <strong>and</strong> biotechnology in many directions, such as genomics, stem cell research, neuroscience, climate change
biology, paleon<strong>to</strong>logy, evolutional ecology, etc. There is still need <strong>to</strong> move in a third direction: promoting <strong>the</strong> development
of integrative biology – focusing integration between micro‐ <strong>and</strong> macro‐ biology. Great breakthroughs often occur at <strong>the</strong>
cutting edge of different disciplines, due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> crosspollination with o<strong>the</strong>r disciplines.
<strong>IUBS</strong> is currently <strong>the</strong> only international body that covers all disciplines of <strong>the</strong> biological sciences, <strong>and</strong> is devoted <strong>to</strong>
promote integrative biology. <strong>IUBS</strong> will host <strong>and</strong> organize international symposia in t<strong>and</strong>em with <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>,
so as <strong>to</strong> provide an opportunity for <strong>the</strong> international biological community <strong>to</strong> exchange information, discuss
interdisciplinary studies <strong>and</strong> promote international collaborations. <strong>IUBS</strong> has successfully launched many scientific
programs that have promoted development of interdisciplinary <strong>and</strong> international cooperations in order <strong>to</strong> deal with <strong>the</strong>
challenges our Earth faces. We hope that through your participation <strong>to</strong> this 31th <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on Biological
Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry, we can work <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r <strong>to</strong> realize <strong>the</strong> goals of <strong>IUBS</strong>, <strong>to</strong> set up <strong>and</strong> deepen our friendships <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>
promote fur<strong>the</strong>r cooperations in protecting our Earth.
We are grateful <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> following organizations for <strong>the</strong>ir support in organizing <strong>the</strong> 31th <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>: <strong>IUBS</strong>;
Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), China; <strong>the</strong> Bureau of International
Cooperation, CAS, China; <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Department of International Affairs, China Association for Science <strong>and</strong> Technology,
China; China National Committee for International Union of Biological Sciences (CC<strong>IUBS</strong>); <strong>the</strong> International Society of
Zoological Sciences (ISZS), Institute of Zoology, CAS, China; <strong>the</strong> Institute of Genetics <strong>and</strong> Developmental Biology, CAS,
China; <strong>the</strong> Institute of Botany, CAS, China; <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> People's Government of Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Zhibin Zhang
Chair, Local Coordinating Committee
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Table of Contents
<strong>Welcome</strong> <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> 31 st <strong>IUBS</strong> GA & <strong>Conference</strong> ………………………………………………………………………. 1
Hosts, Organizers & Supporters ………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Organizing Committee ……………………………………………………………………………………………………….4
Scientific Committee ………………………………………………………………………………………………………….5
Coordinating Committee …………………………………………………………………………………………………….6
Program Overview …………………………………………...………………………………...…………………………….7
Program Schedule ……………………………………………….…………………………………...…………………………8
Maps of Meeting Room Locations………………………………………………………………… ……………………24
Participants Instruction ………………………………………………………………………………………………….…26
Abstracts ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…34
Speeches………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…34
Posters & Exhibi<strong>to</strong>rs ………………………………………………………………………………………………….…91
List of Participants …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….121
2

Hosts
The <strong>IUBS</strong>
The Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)
The Bureau of International Cooperation, CAS
The Department of International Affairs, China Association for Science <strong>and</strong> Technology (CAST)
Department of Life Science, National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC)
Organizers
The <strong>IUBS</strong>
The China National Committee for International Union of Biological Sciences (CC<strong>IUBS</strong>)
The International Society of Zoological Sciences (ISZS)
The Institute of Zoology, CAS
The Institute of Botany, CAS
The Institute of Genetics <strong>and</strong> Developmental Biology, CAS, China
The People's Government of Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Sponsors <strong>and</strong> Supporters
Department of Medicine, NSFC
Department of High‐Tech Industry, National Development <strong>and</strong> Reform Commission (NDRC), China
Department of Basic Research, Ministry of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology (MOST), China
National Center for Nanoscience <strong>and</strong> Technology, CAS, China
The Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Paleoanthropology, CAS, China
United Nations Education, Science <strong>and</strong> Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
3

Organizing Committee
Co­Chairs
Li, Jiayang, Vice Minister, Ministry of Agriculture, China
Zhang, Yaping, Vice President, CAS, China
Bernardi, Giorgio, President, <strong>IUBS</strong>
Vice Chairs
Zhang, Zhibin, Vice President, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Vice President, ISZS
Jungck, John, Vice President, <strong>IUBS</strong>
Ronggao Pu, Vice Mayer, <strong>the</strong> People’s Govenment, Jiangsu, China
Members (In alphabetic order by surname]
Cao, Jinghua, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of International Cooperation, CAS
Du, Shengming, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Department of Life Science, NSFC
Duan, Ziyuan, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, CAS
Fang, Jingyun, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Botany, CAS
Fomproix, Nathalie, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>
Ge, Song, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Botany, CAS
Jallon, Jean­Marc, Secretary <strong>General</strong>, <strong>IUBS</strong>; President, ISZS
Jayakumar, Ramasamy, Programme Specialist – Natural Sciences, UNESCO Office in Beijing
Jin, Jie, Governor, <strong>the</strong> People's Government of Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Liang, Yingnan, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Department of International Affairs, CAST
Lu, Yunlong, Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of International Cooperation, CAS
Ma, Keping, Vice President, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
Meng, Anming, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Zoology, CAS
Ren, Zhiwu, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Department of High‐Tech Industry, NDRC, China
Su, Ronghui, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, CAS
Wei, Fuwen, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Zoology, CAS
Xue, Yongbiao, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Genetics <strong>and</strong> Developmental Biology, CAS
Zhang, Xian’en, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Department of Basic Research, MOST, China
Zhang, Zhibin, Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, CAS
4

Scientific Committee
Co­Chairs
Chen, Yiyu, President, NSFC
Buckeridge, John, Past President, <strong>IUBS</strong>
Vice Chairs
Jallon, Jean­Marc, President, ISZS
Xue, Yongbiao, President, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
Members (In alphabetic order by surname)
Birò, Peter, Professor, Bala<strong>to</strong>n Limnological Research Institute, Hungarian Academy of Sciences
Chang, Meemann, Professor, Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Paleoanthropology, CAS;
Academician, CAS
Chen, Xiaoya, Professor, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, CAS; Academician, CAS
Degbuadze, Yury, Professor, A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology <strong>and</strong> Evolution,Russian Academy of
Sciences
Ding, Jian, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, CAS; Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE)
Gadakar, Raghavendra, Professor, Center for Ecological Science, India
Holtman, Lorna, Deputy Dean, Zoology Department, University of <strong>the</strong> Western Cape (UWC), Republic of
South Africa
Kevan, Peter G., Professor, <strong>the</strong> School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Canada
Le, Kang, Professor, <strong>the</strong> Institute of Zoology, CAS; Academician, CAS
Li, Lin, Deputy President, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences CAS; Academician, CAS
Pei, Gang, Professor, President, Tongji University, China; Academician, CAS
Rao, Zihe, Professor, <strong>the</strong> Institute of Biophysics, CAS; Academician, CAS
Ren, Qinan, Vice President, Harbin Institute of Technology; Academician, CAE
Reski, Ralf, Head, Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Germany
Rodriguez, Lily, Sede Servicio Nacional de Areas Naturales Protegidas, Ministerio del Ambiente, Peru
Salama, Hussein Samir, Professor, National Research Centre Plant Protection Department, Egypt
Stenseth, Nils Chr., Professor, Centre for Ecological & Evolutionary Syn<strong>the</strong>sis (CEES), Department of
Biology, University of Oslo, Norway
Takeda, Hiroyuki, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, University
of Tokyo, Japan
Taylor, Nicholas Mascie, Professor, Department of Biological Anthropology, University of Cambridge,
UK
Wu, Jen­Leih, Professor, Academia Sinica, Taiwan, China
Yang, Huanming, Professor, Beijing Institute of Genomics, CAS; Academician, CAS
Yang, Shengli, Professor, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, CAS; Academician, CAS
Zhang, Gaiping, Vice President, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China; Academician, CAE
Zhang, Yaping, Vice President, CAS; Professor, <strong>the</strong> Kunming Institute of Zoology, CAS; Academician, CAS
Zhao, Guoping, Professor, <strong>the</strong> Institute of Plant Physiology <strong>and</strong> Ecology, CAS; Academician, CAS
Zhao, Jindong, Professor, Wuhan Instituteof Hydrobiology, CAS; Academician, CAS
Zhou, Zhonghe, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Paleoanthropology, CAS;
Academician, CAS
Zhu, Zuoyan, Professor, Institute of Hydrobiology, CAS; Academician, CAS
Zhuang, Wenying, Professor, <strong>the</strong> Institute of Microbiology, CAS; Academician, CAS
5

Coordinating Committee
Co­Chairs
Zhang, Zhibin, Vice President, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Vice President, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
Fomproix, Nathalie, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>
Jin, Jie, Governor, <strong>the</strong> People's Government of Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Secretary <strong>General</strong>
Wang, Sung, Secretary <strong>General</strong>, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
Members (In alphabetic order by surname)
Ge, Song, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Botany, CAS
Guo, Hongjie, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Division of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Institute of Zoology, CAS
Han, Chunxu, Deputy Secretary <strong>General</strong>, CC<strong>IUBS</strong> & ISZS
Jiao, Yafei, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Management Committee, Suzhou Taihu National Tourism Vacation Zone,
Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Liu, Bin, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Division of Bioindustry <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology, Bureau of Life Sciences <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
CAS
Shen, Zhidong, Deputy Governor, <strong>the</strong> People's Government of Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Sun, Jianghua, Assistant Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Zoology, CAS
Wang, Zhenyu, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Division of International Organizations, Bureau of International Cooperation,
CAS
Wei, Fuwen, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Institute of Zoology, CAS
Xiao, Mingjie, Secretary, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
Xiong, Wenhua, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, ISZS
Zhang, Wei, Secretary, ISZS
Zhang, Xuan, Assistant Governor & Direc<strong>to</strong>r <strong>General</strong>, Bureau of Public Security, Wuzhong District,
Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Zhang, Yongwen, Deputy Secretary <strong>General</strong>, China Zoological Society
Zheng, Gang, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Management Committee, Suzhou Taihu National Tourism Vacation Zone,
Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Zhou, Yunxiang, Deputy CPC Party Executive Secretary, Wuzhong District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
Zhu, Fengquan, Deputy Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Wuzhong Economic Development Zone, Wuzhong District, Suzhou,
Jiangsu, China
Zhu, Jiang, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, Division of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Institute of Zoology, CAS
O<strong>the</strong>r Local Members: (In alphabetic order by surname)
Ba, Shen; Bo, Jianxin; Boyd‐Zhang, Terry; Cai, Xuexing; Cao, Jianrong; Cao, Yu; Chen, Jing; Chen, Juming;
Cheng, Fei; Cheng, Jia; Dai, Xiaodong; Ding, Huaqing; Dong, Sujing; Du, Weihong; Fan, Qinhua; Feng, Da;
Ge, Weirong; Gong, Jiansong; Gong, Yan; Gong, Yuanyuan; Gu, Song; Gu, Yijian; Gu, Zhinan; He, Yue; Hui,
Jianming; Jiao, Wenzhong; Li, Fulin; Li, Jingen; Li, Ping; Li, Weiming; Li, Yuliang; Li, Zhen; Li,Jianmin; Lu,
Caixia; Lu, Jianjun; Lu, Jifu; Lu, Wuwei; Lu, Yuegen; Lu, Zhiping; Lu, Zhiwei; Ma, Liheng; Ma, Wenqing;
Mao, Gang; Ni, Yingming; Niu, Le; Ouyang, Yuan; Pan, Yanyan; Qian, Weiqiu; Ren, Jinde; Shen, Bin; Shen,
Qinghua; Shen, Quanwen; Shen, Rao; Shen, Wei; Shi, Guanliang; Shi, Xizheng; Shi, Yanhua; Shi,Yongjun;
Shuai, Zhimin; Song, Yu; Sun, Chungen; Tang, Guowei; Tang, Shun; Tang, Zhengrong; Tao, Junyu; Wan,
Fang; Wang, Genyou; Wang, Guangli; Wang, Hua; Wang, Hualin; Wang, Hui; Wang, Jiali; Wang, Jinhai;
Wang, Shougen; Wang, Zeming; Weng, Xiaolei; Xi, Yuchong; Xia, Jian; Xia, Peiming; Xu, Bingliang; Xu,
Gang; Xu, Juqiu; Xu, Yun; Yan, Funjin; Yang, Bin; Yang, Feiyong; Yang, Hefang; Yang, Wenzhong; Yao,
Dong; Yao, Ruiyuan; Yin, Guohui; Yin, Peigen; Yuan, Yuan; Zhang, Guoying; Zhang, Huan; Zhang, Jiliang;
Zhang, Xiaoyi; Zhang, Xiong; Zhang, Yusong; Zhou, Weijian; Zhou, Zhijun; Zhu, Binbin; Zhu, Tianzhu; Zhu,
Youqing; Zhu, Zhenchong
6

Program Overview
Date
Activities
4 July 2012 800-2200
GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Registration: Suzhou Taihu International <strong>Conference</strong> Center
900-1200
CC<strong>IUBS</strong> Meeting: Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
1400-1800
Officers <strong>and</strong> EC Meetings: Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
5 July 2012
Suzhou Taihu
International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
6 July 2012
Suzhou Xiangshan
International Hotel
7 July 2012
Suzhou Xiangshan
International Hotel
8 July 2012
Dongshan Hotel
9 July 2012
900-1000
Opening Ceremony
1000-1030
Tea Break
1030-1230
Plenary Lectures
1230-1400
Lunch
1330-1830 <strong>IUBS</strong> GA
• <strong>IUBS</strong> Business Reports
• <strong>IUBS</strong> Ad Hoc Committee Meetings
1400-1830
• Symposia
S-1. Bio-industry
S-2. Bio-energy
S-3. Nanobiology
S-4. Gasotransmitters in Biology
S-5. Mutualism <strong>and</strong> Bio-Security
• Exhibition
1830-2030 Reception
830-1800
• Symposia
S-6. Biological Consequences of Global Change (BCGC) + Integrative Climate Change
Biology (iCCB)
S-7. Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Evolution
S-8. Biocomputation
S-9. Wildlife Diseases
S-10. Systems <strong>and</strong> Syn<strong>the</strong>tic Biology of Industrial Microorganisms
S-11. BioEthics & <strong>IUBS</strong> BioEd 2012
• Exhibition
830-1800
• Symposia
S-12. Genomics <strong>and</strong> Evolution
S-13. Protected Areas <strong>and</strong> Conservation
S-14. Access <strong>and</strong> Benefit Sharing of Genetic Resources <strong>and</strong> Associated Traditional
Knowledge
S-15. Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Conservation Biology
S-16. <strong>General</strong> Biology
S-11. BioEthics & <strong>IUBS</strong> BioEd 2012 (Continued)
• Exhibition Close
900-1200
1330-1800
<strong>IUBS</strong> GA (Continued)
Local Tour (Individual Choice)
1400-1800
1330
New <strong>IUBS</strong> EC Meeting
Bus <strong>to</strong> Hotels
• Local Tour (Individual Choice)
• Departure (Buses <strong>to</strong> Airports)
7

Program Schedule
4 July 2012 GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Registration
800-2200 Registration
Lobby, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Gate, International <strong>Conference</strong> Centre, Taihu Culture Forum,
Suzhou, Jiangsu, China.
Address: 128 Huanhu Dadao, Suzhou Taihu National Resort Area, 215164, Suzhou, China;
Tel:+86-512-68790999; Fax: +86-512-68790111
900-1200 CC<strong>IUBS</strong> Meeting
Meeting Room Lotus 1, Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
Organizer: Sung Wang, Secretary <strong>General</strong>, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>; Email: wangs@ioz.ac.cn
1400-1800 <strong>IUBS</strong> Officers <strong>and</strong> EC Meetings
Meeting Room Lotus 1, Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
Organizer: Dr. Nathalie Fomproix, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Email: nfomproix@iubs.org
5 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Taihu International <strong>Conference</strong> Center
800 Bus 1: Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 2: Green Vally Resort
800 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel
810 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
900-1000 Opening Ceremony
Meeting Room Gusu
Ting, Suzhou Taihu
International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
1000-1030 Break
1030-1230 Plenary Lectures
Chair: John Buckeridge
1030-1100 Giorgio Bernardi: Evolution in <strong>the</strong> genomic era
1100-1130 Zhonghe Zhou: Evolution as a scientific <strong>the</strong>ory: evidence from remarkable Chinese fossils
1130-1200 Deliang Chen: Gr<strong>and</strong> challenge in Earth System with a focus on climate
1200-1230 Nils Chr. Stenseth: Ecological effect of climate change
1215-1330 Lunch (Hehe Ting, Suzhou Taihu International <strong>Conference</strong> Center)
8

1330-1830 <strong>IUBS</strong> GA
Meeting Room Gusu
Ting, Suzhou Taihu
International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Organizer: Dr. Nathalie Fomproix, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Email: nfomproix@iubs.org
Chair: Giorgio Bernardi
1330-1345 Giorgio Bernardi: President
1345-1400 Jean-Marc Jallon: Secretary <strong>General</strong>
1400-1415 Annelies, Pierrot-Bults: Treasurer
1415-1430 Nathalie Fomproix: Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r
1430-1530 Appointment of <strong>the</strong> ad hoc committees
1530-1600 Break
Chair: Nathalie Fomproix
1600-1615 Annelies Pierrot-Bults: Chair of <strong>the</strong> working group on management
1615-1625 Santiago Merino Rodriguez: Chair of <strong>the</strong> working group on finance
1625-1635 Hiroyuki Takeda: Chair of <strong>the</strong> working group on scientific programmes
1635-1830 10 min presentation for each scientific programme proposal
1400-1820 S-1. Bio-industry
Meeting Room
Wuxing Ting,
Suzhou Taihu
International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Organizers
1) Yoshiaki Tsukamo<strong>to</strong>, Professor, Japan Bioindustry Association, Japan; Email:
tsukamo<strong>to</strong>@jba.or.jp
2) Shengli Yang, Professor, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of
Science, China; Email: slyang@srcb.ac.cn
Section 1 Chair: Shengli Yang
1400-1430 Yoshiaki Tsukamo<strong>to</strong>: Current Situation of Japanese Bio-industry <strong>and</strong> Future cooperation
1430-1500 Kazu<strong>to</strong>h Takesako: Clinical development of gene <strong>and</strong> cell <strong>the</strong>rapy of Takara Bio
1500-1530 Xiaokun Li: Translational Medicine <strong>and</strong> drug development of fibroblast growth fac<strong>to</strong>rs in diseases
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>rapy
1530-1600 Freddy Fang: Regula<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>to</strong>xicology <strong>and</strong> risk assessment
1600-1620 Break
Section 2 Chair: Yoshiaki Tsukamo<strong>to</strong>
1620-1650 Jianqun Ling: Integration Operating System (IOS) -- a cutting-edge DNA recombination technology
1650-1720 Jeffrey Su: Bio-manufacturing in Biological Product Development: Value Creation or Necessary Devil
1720-1750 Lingyun Xu: IP management <strong>and</strong> commercialization for promoting bioindustry development
1750-1820 Juncai Ma: The information platform frommicrobial resources <strong>to</strong> bioindustry
1400-1740 S-2. Bio-energy
Meeting Room Wuyi
Ting 1, Suzhou
Taihu International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Organizer
1) Jian Xu, Professor, Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy <strong>and</strong> Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy
of Sciences, China
Email: xujian@qibebt.ac.cn
2) Ed Bayer, Professor, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
Email: ed.bayer@weizmann.ac.il
9

Section 1 Chair: Ed Bayer
1400-1420 Nanqi Ren: Perspective of fermentative hydrogen production for commercialization
1420-1440 Edward Bayer: Bacterial cellulosome for efficient degradation of lignocelluloses
1440-1500 Zhong Wang: Deep metagenome data mining for bioenergy <strong>and</strong> climate changes
1500-1520 Quanyu Zhao: Metabolic flux analysis of hydrogen production by Clostridium butyricum: growth on
glucose-glycerol <strong>and</strong> coculture with Escherichia coli
1520-1540 Zongbao Zhao: Microbial lipids production by oleaginous yeasts
1540-1600 Break
Section 2 Chair: Jian Xu
1600-1620 Jose Olivares: Microalgal biofuels: progress <strong>and</strong> opportunities
1620-1640 Greg Mitchell: Modeling growth of pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>tic microalgae <strong>and</strong> carbon partitioning between lipid,
protein <strong>and</strong> carbohydrate
1640-1700 Jian Xu: Functional genomics of microalgal oil production
1700-1720 Xinqing Zhao: Harvesting microalgae using bioflocculating agents produced by Solibacillussilvestris
for efficient bioenergy production
1720-1740 Wensheng Qin: Clostridium <strong>the</strong>rmocellum 27405 harbouring increased copy numbers of
β-glucosidase A significantly increases cellulase expression
1400-1750 S-3. Nanobiology
Meeting Room Wuyi
Ting 2, Suzhou
Taihu International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Organizer
Xingyu Jiang, Professor, <strong>the</strong> National Center for Nanoscience <strong>and</strong> Technology of China; Email:
xingyujiang@nanoctr.cn
Section 1 Chair: Shutao Wang
1400-1430 Paresh Ch<strong>and</strong>ra Ray: Gold Nanotechnology for Biology
1430-1500 Lianbing Zhang: Biological Uptake Pathway for Cellular Delivery of Nanoma<strong>the</strong>rials
1500-1530 Michael Wilson: Enhancement of <strong>the</strong> effectiveness of light-activated antimicrobial agents by gold
nanoparticles
1530-1600 Xingyu Jiang: Gold nanoparticles activates prodrugs as effective antibiotics against multidrug
-resistant bacteria
1600-1620 Break
Section 2 Chair: Michael Wilson
1620-1650 Huan-Tsung Chang:DNA Functional Gold Nanoparticles for <strong>the</strong> Control of Enzyme Activity
1650-1720 Shutao Wang: Bio-Inspired Adhesive Surface for Cell-Based Cancer Diagnostics
1720-1750 Fu Jiquan: Preparation of Palladium Nanoparticles by Biological Reduction of Cinnamomum
Camphora Leaves
1400-1750 S-4. Gasotransmitters in Biology
Meeting Room Organizers
Wuge Ting, Suzhou 1) Guangdong Yang, Research Assistant Professor, <strong>the</strong> School of Kinesiology, Lakehead University,
Taihu International Canada; Email: gyang@lakeheadu.ca
<strong>Conference</strong> Center 2) Yanxi Pei, Professor, Vice Dean of College of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi,
China; Email: peiyanxi@sxu.edu.cn
Section 1 Chair: Guangdong Yang:
1400-1430 8) Yanxi Pei: Hydrogen sulfide alleviates cadmium <strong>to</strong>xicity in Arabidopsis thaliana
1430-1500 1) Hongzhu Li: Interaction of hydrogen sulfide <strong>and</strong> estrogen on smooth muscle cell proliferation
1500-1530 3) Shaowu Xue: CO2 signaling in Arabidopsis guard cells
10

1530-1550 Break
Section 2 Chair: Yanxi Pei:
1550-1620 6) Wenhao Zhang: Gas molecules <strong>and</strong> plant response <strong>to</strong> abi<strong>to</strong>c stress
1620-1650 5) Weihua Zhang: Calcium sensing recep<strong>to</strong>r regulates endogenous H2S <strong>to</strong> inhibit smooth muscle
cell proliferation in diabetic rat
1650-1720 4) Hua Zhang: H2S in plants, <strong>the</strong> his<strong>to</strong>ry is just beginning
1720-1750 7) Guangdong Yang: How <strong>to</strong> promote longevity: let H2S count <strong>the</strong> way
1400-1830 S-5. Mutualism <strong>and</strong> Bio-Security
Meeting Room Wuqi
Ting, Suzhou Taihu
International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Organizers
1) Jianghua Sun, Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
sunjh@ioz.ac.cn
2)Alain Roques, Professor, French National Institute for Agricultural Research, France; Email:
alain.roques@orleans.inra.fr
3) Zhishu Xiao, Associate Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
xiaozs@ioz.ac.cn
1400-1410 Remarks by Organizer: Jianghua Sun
Section 1 Chair: Zhishu Xiao
1410-1430 Massimo Faccoli: New au<strong>to</strong>matic methods for detecting quarantine pests <strong>and</strong> diseases
1430-1450 Alain Roques: Insect invasions in Europe <strong>and</strong> vulnerability of European tree species
1450-1510 Jianqing Ding: Evolved defense <strong>to</strong> herbivory in invasive plants
1510-1530 Jianghua Sun: Mutulastic invasion - a case study
1530-1610 Provorov Nikolay A: Application of symbiotic models <strong>to</strong> resolve <strong>the</strong> urgent problems of evolutionary
biology
1610-1630 Break
Section 2 Chair: Alain Roques
1630-1650 Michael Steele: Squirrels <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> oaks: The biogeography of a plant-animal mutualism
1650-1710 Bo Wang: Foraging preferences of scatter-hoarding rodents on tannin content in seeds
1710-1730 Rhett Harrison: Evolution of fruit traits in Ficus subgenus Sycomorus (Moraceae): Do frugivores
determine seed dispersal mode?
1730-1810 Zhishu Xiao: Squirrel-Oak Interactions: A Case of Diffuse Coevolution
1810-1830 Lin Cao: The effect of seed size on <strong>the</strong> seed fates <strong>and</strong> hording behavior of rodents in <strong>the</strong>
Xishuangbanna tropical region, China
1830-2030 Reception
Hehe Ting, Suzhou
Taihu International
<strong>Conference</strong> Center
Chair: Yongbiao Xue, President, CC<strong>IUBS</strong>
1) Host remarks
2) <strong>IUBS</strong> Award <strong>to</strong> Marvalee H. Wake
3) Performance
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
2030 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
2030 Bus 2: To Green Vally Resort
2030 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
2030 Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
11

6 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
750 Bus 1: Tianping Hotel
750 Bus 2: Green Vally Resort
750 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
830-1650 S-6. Biological Consequences of Global Change (BCGC) + Integrative Climate
Change Biology (iCCB)
Meeting Room Organizers
Lotus 1, Suzhou 1) Zhibin Zhang, Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China; Email:
zhangzb@ioz.ac.cn
Xiangshan
2) Nils Chr. Stenseth, Professor, Centre for Ecological <strong>and</strong> Evolutionary Syn<strong>the</strong>sis, Norway; Email:
International Hotel n.c.stenseth@bio.uio.no
Section 1 Chair: Chris<strong>to</strong>ph Scheidegger
830-855 John Buckeridge: Barnacles (Cirripedia: Thoracica) - tenacious opportunists who have demonstrated
extraordinary adaptive resilience <strong>to</strong> environmental change
855-920 David B. Wake: Direct <strong>and</strong> Indirect Effects of Anticipated Climate Change on Amphibians
920-945 Thomas E Martin: Climate change influences on trophic interactions that affect breeding bird <strong>and</strong>
plant communities
945-1010 Jussi Eronen: Mammal traits <strong>and</strong> environment: Molar <strong>to</strong>oth crown height <strong>and</strong> precipitation
1010-1030 Break
Section 2 Chair: David B. Wake
1030-1055 David Nogués-Bravo: Why we do not have mammoths in our backyard? Species extinctions under
climate change
1055-1120 Chuan Yan: Climate <strong>and</strong> irrigation affect <strong>the</strong> population dynamics of Chinese striped hamster in
North China Plain
1120-1145 Hari Sharma: Biological consequences of climate change on arthropod diversity, pest management,
<strong>and</strong> food security
1145-1210 Klara Lokos Toth: The climate as a natural resource on <strong>the</strong> yield stability of wheat
1210-1400 Lunch
Section 3 Chair: Xinhai Li:
1400-1425 David Polly: Traits, habitats, <strong>and</strong> changing climates: ecometrics <strong>and</strong> vertebrate locomotion
1425-1450 Simon Morley: Using regions where biodiversity <strong>and</strong> ocean warming hotspots overlap <strong>to</strong> predict
physiological responses <strong>to</strong> climate change
1450-1515 Brian Helmuth <strong>and</strong> Mackenzie Zippay: Forecasting sublethal impacts of climate change in marine
ecosystems: sometimes <strong>the</strong> details make all <strong>the</strong> difference
1515-1535 Break
12

Section 4 Chair: Hari Sharma
1535-1600 Mikael Forteilus: Retrospective on <strong>the</strong> iCCB Programme: how it came <strong>to</strong> be <strong>and</strong> why
1600-1625 Raimundo Real: The pure effect of climate on species distribution
Xinhai Li: Applying species distribution models in climate change studies
1625-1650 Tom Oliver: Promoting resilience or accommodating change? Aims for site <strong>and</strong>
l<strong>and</strong>scape management under a changing climate
830-1715 S-7. Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Evolution
Meeting Room
Lotus 2, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers
1) Zhonghe Zhou, Professor, Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Paleoanthropology, Chinese
Academy of Sciences; Email: Zhonghe@yeah.net; zhouzhonghe@ivpp.ac.cn
2) Else Marie Friis,Professor,Swedish Museum of Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry, S<strong>to</strong>ckholm, Sweden; Email:
ElseMarie.Friis@nrm.se
Section 1 Chair: Zhonghe Zhou
830-355 Guido Grimm: Phylogenetic <strong>to</strong>ols in reconstructing past evolutionary patterns
855-920 Jun Wang: A 300 Ma vegetational Pompeii: Forest reconstruction, palaeoecology <strong>and</strong>
palaeobiogeography---An Early Permian peat forming flora from Inner Mongolia
920-945 Renbin Zhan <strong>and</strong> JiayuRong: Major macroevolutionary events <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir dynamics between 480 Ma
<strong>and</strong> 400 Ma of Earth his<strong>to</strong>ry: Evidences from South China
945-1015 Shunping He: Diversification <strong>and</strong> dispersal of catfish along with <strong>the</strong> Himalayan orogeny
1015-1035 Break
Section 2 Chair: Meemann Chang
1035-1100 Jason Hil<strong>to</strong>n: Phylogenetic <strong>and</strong> environmental aspects of early seed plant radiation
1100-1125 Min Zhu: Origin <strong>and</strong> early radiation of jawed vertebrates
1125-1150 Christian Pott & Stephen McLoughlin: What is a cycadophyte? – The use of morphotaxa in
Palaeobotany
1200-1400 Lunch
Section 3 Chair: Wang Jun
1400-1425 Shuzhong Shen: How rapid was <strong>the</strong> biggest biological mass extinction during <strong>the</strong> Phanerozoic?
1425-1450 Jin Meng: Developmental <strong>and</strong> paleon<strong>to</strong>logical evidence converges on evolution of <strong>the</strong> mammalian
middle ear
1450-1515 Xing Xu: Origin <strong>and</strong> evolution of birds: combining paleon<strong>to</strong>logical <strong>and</strong> developmental evidence
1515-1540 Else Marie Friis <strong>and</strong> Kaj Raunsgaard Pedersen: The enigma of angiosperm origin
1540-1600 Break
Section 4 Chair: Else Marie Friis
1600-1625 Greg Wilson <strong>and</strong> Casey J. Self (Presented by Meng Chen): The adaptive radiation of
multituberculate mammals before <strong>the</strong> extinction of non-avian dinosaurs <strong>and</strong> tracking <strong>the</strong> rise of
angiosperms
1625-1650 Meemann Chang: Ascent with modification: fossil fishes show adaptation <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> uplift of <strong>the</strong> Chinese
Tibetan Plateau
1650-1715 Pavel Yu Parkhaev: Early Radiation of Mollusca
13

830-1230 S-8. Biocomputation
Meeting Room
Lotus 3 , Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers
1) Jingdong Han, Professor, CAS-MPG Partner institute for Computational Biology, Shanghai
Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email: jdhan@picb.ac.cn
2) John Jungck, Professor, Department of Biology, Beloit College, USA; Email: jungck@beloit.edu
Section 1 Chair: Jingdong Han
830-850 Peter Lockhart: How it is possible <strong>to</strong> better underst<strong>and</strong> systematic error in phylogeneomic data
850-910 Rubem Mondaini: The ma<strong>the</strong>matical programming approach <strong>to</strong> protein structures <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir stability
910-930 Chris<strong>to</strong>pher Welsh: Fostering interdisciplinarity at <strong>the</strong> interface of biology <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matics: lessons
from a national institute
930-950 John R. Jungck: Computational Geometric, Topological, <strong>and</strong> Spatial Statistical Analyses of Dividing
Epi<strong>the</strong>lia
950-1010 Michael Zhang: Novel Markov model of induced pluripotency predicts gene expression changes in
reprogramming
1010-1030 Break
Section 2 Chair: John R. Jungck
1030-1050 Philipp Khai<strong>to</strong>vich: Metabolome evolution of human tissues
1050-1110 Yixue Li: Association network <strong>and</strong> related regula<strong>to</strong>ry mechanism resulted from protein translational
modification data
1110-1130 Yong Zhang: Global Nucleosome Repositioning During Genome Activation
1130-1150 Jingdong Han: Inferring regula<strong>to</strong>ry networks from high-throughput data
1150-1210 Yu Xue: Systematic analysis of <strong>the</strong> crosstalk of protein post-translational modifications
1210-1230 Gabriella Rustici: Free bioinformatics resources at <strong>the</strong> EMBL-EBI
830-1800 S-9. Wildlife Diseases
Meeting Room
Jasmine, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers
1) Hongxuan He, Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
hehx@ioz.ac.cn
2)Dale Nolte, Assistant Coordina<strong>to</strong>r, National Wildlife Disease Program, Wildlife Services, Animal
<strong>and</strong> Plant Health Inspection Service, United States Department of Agriculture, USA; Email:
Dale.L.Nolte@aphis.usda.gov
830-840 Sign-in
Opening remarks
830-840 Chair: Hongxuan He
830-835 Remarks by Jiansheng Jia
835-840 Remarks by Dale Nolte
Section 1 Chair: Dale Nolte
840-900 Hong Zhang: Distribution <strong>and</strong> expression of two types of sialic acid recep<strong>to</strong>rs in trachea <strong>and</strong> lung
tissues of human, mouse, chicken <strong>and</strong> duck
900-920 Yasuko Neagari: Disease surveillance in Japan
920-940 Xinwei Wang: Molecular properties study of HA of H5 <strong>and</strong> H9 subtype avian influenza viruses from
part areas in China
940-1000 Nyambayar Batbarya: Wild bird surveillance for avian influenza in Mongolia
1000-1020 Break
14

Section 2 Chair: Gang Li
1020-1040 Jun Lu: The Introduction on bird migration in China
1040-1100 Santiago Merino Rodríguez: Interactions between hemoparasites-vec<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>and</strong> wild birds
1100-1120 Chengmin Wang: Surveillance of avian cholera in wild birds
1120-1140 Richard Bowen: Emerging vec<strong>to</strong>r-borne diseases
1140-1200 Jing Luo: Rapid detection for avian influenza virus by polydiacetylene vesicles
1200-1400 Lunch
Section 3 Chair: Richard Bowen
1400-1420 Dale Nolte: Disease surveillance in feral swine
1420-1440 Songtao Yang: Parvovirus, a threat <strong>to</strong> wildlife animals
1440-1500 Shelan Liu: A review of novel bunyavirus in China: emergence, virology, epidemiology <strong>and</strong> clinical
characteristics
1500-1520 Gang Li: Development of methods for detecting serum antibodies of rabies virus
1520-1540 Break
Section 4 Chair: Hongxuan He
1540-1600 Sarah Bevins: Plague in wildlife: a review of surveillance strategies in USA <strong>and</strong> China
1600-1620 Jinping Chen: Hantavirus carried by rat <strong>and</strong> bat in Guangdong, China
1620-1640 Jing Wang: Epizootiological <strong>and</strong> epidemiological study on rodents in <strong>the</strong> frontier terri<strong>to</strong>ries between
China <strong>and</strong> Russia
1640-1700 Discussion <strong>and</strong> wrap-up
Chair: Hongxuan He
830-1800 S-10. Systems <strong>and</strong> Syn<strong>the</strong>tic Biology of Industrial Microorganisms
Meeting Room Organizers
Rose 1&2,
1) Yin Li, Professor, Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email: yli@im.ac.cn
Suzhou
2) Han de Winde, Professor, Delft University of Technology, Kluyver Centre for Genomics of
Xiangshan
Industrial Fermentation, <strong>the</strong> Ne<strong>the</strong>rl<strong>and</strong>s; Email: J.H.deWinde@tudelft.nl
International
Hotel
830-840 Opening Remarks by Organizers
Yin Li & Han de Winde
Section 1 Co-chairs: Prof. Wen Liu & Dr. Aljoscha Wahl
840-910 Robin Pierce: Bridging Current Issues in Science <strong>and</strong> Society, in Europe <strong>and</strong> China
910-940 George Guo-Qiang Chen: Syn<strong>the</strong>tic <strong>and</strong> Systems Biology Approaches for Making Novel
Biopolymers
940-1010 Han de Winde: Systems Engineering of Solvent Tolerant Pseudomonas for Aromatics Production
1010-1030 Break
Section 2 Co-chairs: Dr. Ronald de Vries <strong>and</strong> Prof. George Guo-Qiang Chen
1030-1100 Lianhong Sun: Engineered Quorum Sensing Systems for Applications in Syn<strong>the</strong>tic Biology
1100-1130 Aljoscha Wahl: Novel Developments in Microbial Systems Biology Approaches
1130-1200 Wen Liu: Biological Syn<strong>the</strong>sis of Pharmaceutically Important Agents in Microorganisms
1200-1230 Lixin Zhang: Improving Avermectin Production by Syn<strong>the</strong>tic Biology
1230-1330 Lunch
15

Section 3 Co-chairs: Prof. Lianhong Sun & Dr. Vera Meyer
1330-1400 Peter Bron: Lactic Acid Bacteria for Food <strong>and</strong> Fuel
1400-1430 Yin Li: Systems Biotechnology for <strong>the</strong> Production of Bio-based Solvents
1430-1500 Han de Winde: Yeast as a Modern Platform for Biofuels <strong>and</strong> Biochemicals Production
1500-1530 Jibin Sun: System Biology of Aspergillus niger – a Versatile Cell Fac<strong>to</strong>ry for Enzyme <strong>and</strong> Organic
Acid Production
1530-1550 Break
Section 4 Co-chairs: Prof. Jibin Sun & Dr. Peter Bron
1550-1620 Ronald de Vries: Physiological <strong>and</strong> Molecular Aspects of <strong>the</strong> Utilisation of Complex Substrates by
Fungi
1620-1650 Chen Yang: Reconstruction <strong>and</strong> Quantification of Pen<strong>to</strong>se Metabolism in Solven<strong>to</strong>genic Clostridia
1650-1720 Vera Meyer: Aspergillus niger as a Modern Platform for Protein Production
1720-1750 Chaoguang Tian: Neurospora crassa as a Golden Model of Filamen<strong>to</strong>us Fungi for Industrial
Biotechnology
1750-1800 Concluding remarks
830-1800 S-11. BioEthics & <strong>IUBS</strong> BioEd 2012
Meeting Room
Camellia, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
8:30-12:00 Bioethics
Organizers:
1) John Buckeridge, Professor, School of Civil Engineering & Chemical Engineer RMIT University,
Australia; Email: john.buckeridge@rmit.edu.au
2) Lorna Holtman, Deputy Dean, Zoology Department, University of <strong>the</strong> Western Cape (UWC),
Republic of South Africa; Email: lholtman@uwc.ac.
Section 1 Chair: Aster L. Zhang(<strong>to</strong> Inform him)
830-900 Hussein Salama: Environmental Awareness <strong>and</strong> Conservation of Biological Resources in Egypt: a
review of moves <strong>to</strong> improve <strong>the</strong> ethical management of our ecosystems
900-930 Raymond Katebaka: Effective biodiversity conservation challenges in Africa: A case of East Africa
930-1000 Lorna Holtman: Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Indigenous Knowledge in South <strong>and</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Africa:
Developments <strong>and</strong> Ethical Challenges
1000-1020 Break
Section 2 Chair: Lorna Holtman
1020-1050 Darryl Macer: Asia-Pacific Perspectives of Bioethics <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>wards a Reposi<strong>to</strong>ry of World-Views of
Nature
1050-1120 Aster L. Zhang: Environmental ethics- China perspective, from ancient poem <strong>to</strong> current legislations
1120-1150 John Buckeridge: Environmental ethics - global issues <strong>and</strong> an Australian perspective
12:00-14:00 Lunch
14:00-16:00 <strong>IUBS</strong> BioEd 2012:Conservation Education <strong>and</strong> Climate Change
Organizer:
Lily Rodriguez, Professor, Proyec<strong>to</strong>Biodiversidady CambioClimático en la ReservaComunal El Sira
SERNANP/GIZ; Email: lilyrodriguez2@terra.com.pe
16

Chair: Lily O. Rodriguez
1400-1430 Lily O. Rodriguez: Global Conservation Education
1430-1500 Marie Studer: The Encyclopedia of Life: An International, Open Educational Resource for
Biodiversity Learning
1500-1530 Marvalee H. Wake: Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Science: The Basis for Approaching Conservation, Evolution, <strong>and</strong>
Climate Change
1530-1600 Xiaoying Cheng, He Liu & Jacqueline S. McLaughlin: Take a CHANCE <strong>to</strong> empower science
education by blending scientific research with teaching-----taking Jiangnan-Penn State University
“global environmental sustainability” course as an example
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
1930 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
1930 Bus 2: To Green Vally Resort
1815 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
1930 Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
7 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
750 Bus 1: Tianping Hotel
750 Bus 2: Green Vally Resort
750 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
830-1800 S-12. Genomics <strong>and</strong> Evolution
Meeting Room
Lotus 1, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International
Hotel
Organizers
1) Song Ge, Professor, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
gesong@ibcas.ac.cn
2) Hiroyuki Takeda, Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, <strong>the</strong>
University of Tokyo, Japan; Email: htakeda@biol.s.u-<strong>to</strong>kyo.ac.jp
3) Giorgio Bernardi, Professor, Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Theoretical Biology <strong>and</strong> Bioinformatics, Biology
Department, Rome 3University, Italy; Email: gbernardi@uniroma3.it
830-840 Opening remarks by organizer
Giorgio Bernardi, Professor, Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Theoretical Biology <strong>and</strong> Bioinformatics, Biology
Department, Rome 3University, Italy
Section 1 Chair: Wen Wang
840-910 Daniel Hartl: Evolvability in Sequence Space
910-940 Wen-Hsiung Li: Avian Evolutionary Genetics <strong>and</strong> Genomics
940-1010 Hiroyuki Takeda: Epigenetic regulation of key developmental genes- A genome-wide approach in <strong>the</strong>
medaka gish
1010-1030 Break
Section 2 Chair: Hiroyuki Takeda
1030-1100 Wen Wang: Genome evolution under natural or artificial selection
1100-1130 Song Ge: Genome-wide pattern of divergence during sympatic speciation: A case study in two wild
rice species
1130-1200 Ralf Reski: Shedding light on 500 million years of plant evolution: a tribute <strong>to</strong> Dobzhansky
1200-1330 Lunch
17

Section 3 Chair: Dan Hartl
1330-1400 Rod Wing: The International - Oryza Map Alignment Project: Development <strong>and</strong> analysis of a
genus-wide comparative genomics platform <strong>to</strong> help solve <strong>the</strong> 9-billion people question
1400-1430 Giorgio Bernardi: Natural Selection in Genome Evolution
1430-1500 Dacheng Tian: Genome-wide analysis revealed abundant gene conversion in <strong>the</strong> recombination
profile of Arabidopsis
1500-1530 Angelo Azzi: The genetics of Ageing
1530-1550 Break
Section 4 Chair: Song Ge
1550-1620 Guang Yang: Genome-wide SNP polymorphism <strong>and</strong> signature of natural selection in finless
porpoises: adaptive population divergence, taxonomic implications, <strong>and</strong> conservation
recommendations.
1620-1650 Jian-Dong Li: Regulation of Inflammation <strong>and</strong> Host Defense-from Genomics <strong>to</strong> Therapeutics
1650-1720 Youming Zhang: Direct Cloning of large size gene or gene clusters from genomic DNA without library
construction <strong>and</strong> screening
1720-1750 Huanming Yang: Genomics <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Century of Biology
1750-1800 Wrap-up
830-1800 S-13. Protected Areas (PA) <strong>and</strong> Conservation
Meeting Room Rose
1&2, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers <strong>and</strong> Chairs
1) Yan Xie, Research Associate Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences;
Email: xieyan@ioz.ac.cn
2) John MacKinnon, Head, Visibility <strong>and</strong> Awareness, EU-China Biodiversity Program (ECBP); Email:
arcbc_jrm@hotmail.com
3) Sung Wang, Research Professor, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
wangs@ioz.ac.cn
830-840 Yan Xie: Introduction of PA <strong>and</strong> relevant legislations in China
840-920 Defining conservation objectives, outcome moni<strong>to</strong>ring <strong>and</strong> evaluation at site level, regional <strong>and</strong>
national levels - Jeff McNeely, John McKinnon, Zhi Fang, Yan Xie
910-950 PA management supervision by government agencies <strong>and</strong> multiple stakeholders - Ernes<strong>to</strong> C.
Enkerlin Hoeflich, Wang Yamin, Su Liu
950-1010 Break
1010-1140 Group Discussion (two groups)
1140-1200 Group Report <strong>and</strong> Conclusion
1200-1400 Lunch
1400-1440 PA categories <strong>and</strong> functional zones, <strong>and</strong> corridors - Ben Boer, Yan Xie, Nigel Dudley, Charles
Besancon, Siobhan Kenney, Scott Perkin
1440-1520 Ensure PA funding for management operation - Ernes<strong>to</strong> C. Enkerlin Hoeflich, Aster Zhang
1520-1600 Public involvement <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing mechanisms - Phillip Tabas, Megan Kram, Shengzhi Li
1600-1620 Break
1620-1740 Group Discussion (three groups)
1740-1800 Group Reports <strong>and</strong> Conclusions
18

830-1720 S-14. Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Conservation Biology
Meeting Room
Jasmine, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers
1)Keping Ma, Professor, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Email:
kpma@ns.ibcas.ac.cn
2)Mark J. Costello, Associate Professor, Leigh Marine Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, University of Auckl<strong>and</strong>, New
Zeal<strong>and</strong>; Email: m.costello@auckl<strong>and</strong>.ac.nz
Section 1 Chair: Keping Ma
830-900 Keynote speech
Jeffrey McNeely: The Biological Basis of Sustainability
900-920 C. S. Chen: A promising union of biological sciences <strong>and</strong> biomimetics for sustainable development
920-940 Aishwarya Maheshwari: Conservation of high altitude biodiversity at <strong>the</strong> battlefield of India
940-1000 Yu-yuan Huang: Studies on distribution <strong>and</strong> habitat situation of some wild cycads in China
1000-1020 Harald Schneider: Exploring <strong>the</strong> impact of <strong>the</strong> “roof-of-<strong>the</strong>-world” on <strong>the</strong> diversification of SE Asian
l<strong>and</strong> plants
1020-1040 Break
Section 2 Chair: Mark J. Costello
1040-1100 Zahoor pir: Molluscs can decide <strong>the</strong> water quality of rivers
1100-1120 Simon Morley: Using regions where biodiversity <strong>and</strong> ocean warming hotspots overlap <strong>to</strong> predict
physiological responses <strong>to</strong> climate change
1120-1140 Mohammad Aziz: Human-otter symbiosis: an age-old traditional conservation practice in Bangladesh
1200-1400 Lunch
Section 3 Chair: David Patterson
1400-1420 Sivasakthivel: Aerial dispersion of fungal pollution with changes of seasonal variations of Bangalore,
Karnataka, India
1420-1440 Shasha Liu: Advances in studies on <strong>the</strong> res<strong>to</strong>ration of salt lake ecosystem by introducing Artemia in
Tibet, China
1440-1500 Nancai Pei: DNA barcoding technology: an ongoing molecular <strong>to</strong>ol for biological studies
1500-1520 Chuck Miller: Biodiversity Information St<strong>and</strong>ards, Update from TDWG
1520-1540 Break
Section 4 Chair: Chuck Miller
1540-1600 Zhiduan Chen: The tree of life <strong>and</strong> its uses for biodiversity studies
1400-1620 Mark J. Costello: Global databases reveal progress in discovering all species on Earth: will most
species be discovered before <strong>the</strong>y go extinct?
1620-1640 Regine Jahn: Nomenclature for <strong>the</strong> future: <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> Programme BioCode
1640-1700 Keping Ma: Biodiversity Information Infrastructure for research, education <strong>and</strong> conservation in China
1700-1720 David Patterson: Internationalizing <strong>the</strong> biodiversity informatics agenda
19

830-1210 S-15. Access <strong>and</strong> Benefit Sharing of Genetic Resources <strong>and</strong> Associated Traditional
Knowledge
Meeting Room
Lotus 3, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizers
1) Dayuan Xue, Professor, College of Life <strong>and</strong> Environmental Science, Minzu University of China;
Chief Scientist on Biodiversity, Nanjing Institute of Environmental Science, Ministry of Environment
Protection of China; Email: xuedayuan@hotmail.com
2) Karen Chen Xiping, Consultant, Third World Network; Email: karen_twn@yahoo.com.cn
3) Lily Rodriguez, Professor, Proyec<strong>to</strong>Biodiversidady CambioClimático en la ReservaComunal El
Sira SERNANP/GIZ; Email: lilyrodriguez2@terra.com.pe
Co-Chairs: Dayuan Xue & Chunlin Long
830-850 Gong Cheng: Plotting <strong>the</strong> road map beyond <strong>the</strong> access <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing blueprint
850-910 Sylvia Martinez: Experiences in accessing biological resources for non-commercial research:
Results of an informal survey
910-930 Chunlin Long: Investigation of Traditional Knowledge of Medicinal Plant Resources in Jingxi,
Guangxi Au<strong>to</strong>mnous Region
930-950 Junnian Li: The investigation on genetic resources of domestic animals <strong>and</strong> poultry <strong>and</strong> traditional
knowledge in Miao <strong>and</strong> tujia ethnic areas of West Hunan Province
950-1010 Fayao Li: The case study on benefit sharing for <strong>the</strong> local fragrant rice in Liping Dong Ethnic County,
Quizhou Province
1010-1030 Break
Chair: Lily Rodriguez
1030-105 Jiuxuan Zhou: A Case Study on Change <strong>and</strong> Its Causes of Agricultural Seed Resource Diversity in
Heier Village, Yunnan Province
1050-1110 Rong Dai: A case study on access <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing of a local pig variety (Black pig) in <strong>the</strong> West
Hunan Province
1110-1130 Jingbiao Yang: A case study on benefit sharing for traditional ethnic medicine in Libo County,
Guizhou Province
1130-1150 Susette Biber-Klemm: The Swiss awareness-raising <strong>and</strong> capacity-building programme for academia
1150-1210 Hira Parsomal: Biopiracy continues: Some case studies <strong>and</strong> lessons
1400-1800 S-16. <strong>General</strong> Biology
Meeting Room
Lotus 3, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
Organizer
LS Shashidhara, Professor, Indian Institute of Science Education <strong>and</strong> Research (IISER), India;
E-mail: ls.shashidhara@iiserpune.ac.in
Chair: Jianchang Du
1400-1420 Pan Da: De novo transcrip<strong>to</strong>me sequencing <strong>and</strong> characterization of Chinomantes dehaani
1420-1440 Meng Chen: Locomo<strong>to</strong>r Inference of Fossil Mammals Based on Quantitative Morphometric Analysis
of <strong>the</strong> Postcranial Skele<strong>to</strong>n of Small-bodied Extant Taxa
1440-1500 LS Shashidhara: Making of a flight appendage: an evolutionary perspective
1500-1520 Yan Dong: Two new progoneatan complete mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial genomes: phylogenetics <strong>and</strong> evolutionary
implications
1520-1540 Juanjuan Xu: Population genetic structure <strong>and</strong> his<strong>to</strong>rical demography of an endemic true freshwater
1540-1600 Tea break
20

Chair: LS Shashidhara
1600-1620 Jianchang Du: The Evolutionary Fate of Duplicated Genes in Soybean
1620-1640 Weidong Peng: Ascaris: Development of selected genotypes in mice
1640-1700 Jingdong Qin: Ceramide Regulation of HA Synthase
1700-1720 Xiangyu Ding: Research on <strong>the</strong> Inverse Problem of Ma<strong>the</strong>matical Physics between Product Quality
<strong>and</strong> Pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis Process Control Efficiency of D. huoshanense
1720-1740 Javed Ujan: Association between polymorphism of Myogenic fac<strong>to</strong>r 6 with meat quality traits in
Chinese Indigenous cattle
1740-1800 Lijun He: Population dynamics <strong>and</strong> invasive his<strong>to</strong>ry of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus Clarkii)
830-1755 S-11. BioEthics & <strong>IUBS</strong> BioEd 2012 (Continued)
Meeting Room
Lotus 2, Suzhou
Xiangshan
International Hotel
830-1140 Quantitative Biology Education
Organizer
John Jungck, Professor, Department of Biology, Beloit College, USA; Email: jungck@beloit.edu
Section 1 Chair: John Jungck
830-900 2) Gabriella Rustici: Bioinformatics Training for Life scientists: EBI's User Training Programme
900-930 3) Enshan Liu: Models Used for Professional Development of In-service Biology Teachers in China
930-1000 4) Lorna Holtman & Samuel Kojo Kwofie: Developing undergraduate Quantitative Biology courses <strong>to</strong>
augment postgraduate enrollment in Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> Computational Biology: Efforts <strong>to</strong>wards a
plausible model for Africa
1000-1020 Break
Section 2 Chair: Lorna Holtman
1020-1050 5) Klara Lokos Toth: Let him play as well …
1050-1120 6) Xianlin Zhou: Training <strong>to</strong> Science Teachers Applying Science Inquiry Teaching Methodology
1120-1140 7) John R. Jungck: Ma<strong>the</strong>matical Biology Education: Recent Developments <strong>and</strong> Future Challenges
12:00-13:30 Lunch
13:30-15:30 Workshop on Investigative Case-Based Learning
Organizers & Speakers
1) Margaret Waterman, Professor, Biology Department, Sou<strong>the</strong>ast Missouri State University, USA;
Email: mwaterman@semo.edu
2) E<strong>the</strong>l Stanley, Direc<strong>to</strong>r, BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium, Beloit College, USA; Email:
stanleye@beloit.edu
Workshop Description by <strong>the</strong> Organizers & Speakers
Exploring Sustainability Issues while Addressing 21st Century Skills in <strong>the</strong> Classroom: We will focus
on introducing 21st century skills (UNESCO, 2011) as we explore contemporary problems including
sustainability <strong>and</strong> global health. Join us as we introduce cases <strong>to</strong> scaffold investigations as well as
global resources on sustainability data <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ols.
1530-1800 Workshop on Writing Scientific Papers
Organizers
1) Carol Bacchus, VP & Publishing Direc<strong>to</strong>r, John Wiley & Sons, Inc; Email: cbacchus@wiley.com
2) Wenhua Xiong, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r & Edi<strong>to</strong>r, ISZS & INZ; Email: xiongwh@ioz.ac.cn
21

Chair: Wenhua Xiong
1530 - 1600 Carol Bacchus: How <strong>to</strong> get published in an international journal <strong>and</strong> improve your global visibility
1600 - 1645 Judy Peng: Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Peer Review & Practical writing tips
1645 - 1715 John Buckeridge: On ethics, <strong>the</strong> pursuit of knowledge, truth <strong>and</strong> status in <strong>the</strong> hallowed halls of
academe
1715-1755 <strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award & Integrative Zoology Exceptional Speaker Prize
Chair: Carol Bacchus
1715 - 1730 Terry Boyd-Zhang: Introduction of Integrative Zoology
1730 - 1740 Wei Zhang: Guideline <strong>to</strong> publish paper in INZ
1740 - 1750 Nathalie Fomproix: <strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award
1750 - 1755 Yan Xie/John Buckeridge: Integrative Zoology Exceptional Speaker Prize
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
1930 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
1930 Bus 2: To Green Vally Resort
1815 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
1930 Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
2015 Bus 5: Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
Note
1) Those who will not attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012 can depart or go
on local <strong>to</strong>urs after dinner in <strong>the</strong> evening.
2) Due <strong>to</strong> an overlap with <strong>the</strong> Sino-Africa Forum, those who are going <strong>to</strong> attend <strong>the</strong> GA
<strong>and</strong> living in <strong>the</strong> Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out after dinner at 1930 <strong>and</strong> move <strong>to</strong>
Dongshan Hotel at 2015.
3) Free transportation <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel will be organized at 20:15 in front of <strong>the</strong> Gate
of Xiangshan Hotel <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> room price at Dongshan Hotel will <strong>the</strong> same as that in
Xiangshan Hotel.
4) Those who are not going <strong>to</strong> attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong>
continue <strong>to</strong> stay at Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out before 12:00 on 8 July 2012
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>re will be no transportation organized at Xiangshan Hotel from 8 July 2012.
5) As a compensation <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ken of appreciation of cooperation, <strong>the</strong> Wuzhong District
will offer a free local trip on <strong>the</strong> afternoon 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> morning 9 July 2012. The
trip is also open <strong>to</strong> all <strong>the</strong> attendees at both <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>.
6) Please inform <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat at <strong>the</strong> Registration Desk if you are going <strong>to</strong>
take <strong>the</strong> free <strong>to</strong>urs.
8 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
750 Bus 1: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
750 Bus 2: Green Vally Resort <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
750 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
800 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
900-1200 <strong>IUBS</strong> GA (Continued)
Meeting Room Tai
Hu Wan, Yuxia Lou
Building, Dongshan
Hotel
Organizer: Dr. Nathalie Fomproix, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Email: nfomproix@iubs.org
• Reports of <strong>the</strong> ad hoc committees
• Elections
• Vote on <strong>the</strong> statutes <strong>and</strong> bylaws
22

1200-1400 Lunch
1330-1800 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur offered by Wuzhong District
Tour Bus starts at Dongshan Hotel <strong>and</strong> s<strong>to</strong>ps at Green Vally Resort, Suzhou Taihu Golf, San Teh,
<strong>and</strong> Tianping Hotels after <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>ur.
1330 Bus 1: To San Teh Hotel, Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel, Green Vally Resort <strong>and</strong>
Tianping Hotel
1400-1800 New <strong>IUBS</strong> EC Meeting
Meeting Room 1,
Yuxia Lou Building,
Dongshan Hotel
Organizer: Dr. Nathalie Fomproix, Executive Direc<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>IUBS</strong>; Email: nfomproix@iubs.org
9 July 2012 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur/Departure
730-1245 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur offered by Wuzhong District
Tour Bus starts at <strong>and</strong> returns <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel before <strong>and</strong> after <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>ur
800-1300 Departure Transportation
AM
To Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 1: Dongshan Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 2: Green Vally Resort <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
To Airports
900 Bus 5: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Pudong International Airport
900 Bus 6: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport
900 Bus 7: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Wuyi Shuofang Airport
PM
To Tianping Hotel
1200 Bus 8: Dongshan Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
1200 Bus 9: Green Vally Resort <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
1200 Bus 10: San Teh Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
1200 Bus 11: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel <strong>to</strong> Tianping Hotel
To Airports
1300 Bus 12: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Pudong International Airport
1300 Bus 13: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport
23

1300 Bus 14: Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Wuyi Shuofang Airport
Maps of Meeting Room Location
Taihu International <strong>Conference</strong> Center
Suzhou Taihu Culture Forum
24

Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
25
Map of Surrounding Area
The International <strong>Conference</strong> Centre, Taihu
Culture Forum, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China is located in
<strong>the</strong> Wuzhong District of Suzhou, backing against <strong>the</strong>
Qionglong Mountain, <strong>the</strong> highest peak in <strong>the</strong> district
<strong>and</strong> situated on <strong>the</strong> bank facing <strong>the</strong> Taihu Lake.
Address: 128 Huanhu Dadao, Suzhou Taihu
National Resort Area, 215164, Suzhou, China; Tel:
+86‐512‐6879‐0999; Fax: +86‐512‐6879‐0111.
For detailed information on <strong>the</strong> Centre, please visit:
http://www.thicc.com.cn/index1.asp

Participants Instructions
Registration
The on‐site Registration Desk on 4 July 2012 is located in <strong>the</strong> Lobby, Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Gate, International
<strong>Conference</strong> Centre, Taihu Culture Forum, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China, 128 Huanhu Dadao, Suzhou Taihu National
Resort Area, 215164, Suzhou, China; Tel: +86‐512‐6879‐0999; Fax: +86‐512‐6879‐0111.
Registration Fee
The registration fee for <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> before 15 June 2012 is US$350 for ordinary attendees <strong>and</strong>
US$200 for <strong>IUBS</strong> individual members, students, middle school teachers <strong>and</strong> accompanying guests. After this,
<strong>the</strong> registration will be US$400 <strong>and</strong> US$300 respectively. The registration fee does not cover local
accommodation or insurance. Your registration becomes valid only after your payment.
Date
Ordinary Attendee
<strong>IUBS</strong> Individual Members, Students, middle school
teachers <strong>and</strong> accompanying guests
Before 15 Jun 2012 US$350 US$200
After 15 Jun 2012
or on Site
US$400
US$300
Information on Funds Transfer
The information on bank transfer is below:
Bank name: BANK OF CHINA BEIJING XI’AO CENTER SUB‐BRANCH
Bank address: 18‐B‐1, Beichen West Road Fenglinlvzhou Kexueyuannanli Datun Road,
Beijing 100101, China
Name of <strong>the</strong> bank account: International Society of Zoological Sciences
Bank account number: 324656829425
Swift code: BKCH CN BJ 110
Bank telephone number: +86‐10‐6484‐4650 or +86‐10‐6484‐4596
Bank fax number: +86‐10‐6484‐4651
Note:
1) Please notify <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat after your fund transfer at: iszs@ioz.ac.cn or Fax:
+86‐10‐6480‐7295;
2) If you are a student, please show your student ID when doing your registration.
Refund Policy
The <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat incurs costs immediately upon <strong>the</strong> registration of a participant. If no o<strong>the</strong>r costs
are incurred, <strong>the</strong>re will be a 20% processing fee of your registration fee for a refund. There will be no refunds
after 15 June 2012. Questions regarding refunds may be sent <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat at: iszs@ioz.ac.cn;
fax: +86‐10‐6480‐7295.
Currency Exchange, Credit Cards <strong>and</strong> ATM
The Chinese currency is <strong>the</strong> Chinese yuan, known as CNY or RMB. One CNY consists of 10 jiao (‘dimes’, or
100 fen, ‘cents’). Bank note denominations available are 1, 5, 10, 50 <strong>and</strong> 100 CNY. Participants can exchange
currency at airports, major hotels <strong>and</strong> banks. Note that <strong>the</strong>re is often a fee for this service. You must have
your passport when exchanging money, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> daily exchange rate is provided by <strong>the</strong> Bank of China.
Currently, $1US is equivalent <strong>to</strong> approximately 6.28 CNY. All currency exchange receipts must be saved, in
order <strong>to</strong> change RMB back <strong>to</strong> your own currency.
Insurance
All insurance during <strong>the</strong> meeting <strong>and</strong> while traveling in China must be self‐arranged.
26

Working Language
The working language for <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> is English.
Participant's Badge
The participant's badge may be collected from <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Registration Desk <strong>and</strong> is only available <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
voting representative for each <strong>IUBS</strong> member, <strong>IUBS</strong> EC Members/Officers <strong>and</strong> those who have paid <strong>the</strong>
registration fee (or had it waived).
Presentation Downloads
Presenters can upload <strong>the</strong>ir presentations at <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Registration Desk or with <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>
Secretariat Desk. Files should be uploaded at least one day before <strong>the</strong> presentation.
Award <strong>and</strong> Prizes
In order <strong>to</strong> encourage participation, especially from young scientists, an <strong>IUBS</strong> award <strong>and</strong> an INZ academic
journal prize have been set up.
The <strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award: The <strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award has been set up <strong>to</strong> encourage students <strong>to</strong>
attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> in Suzhou. The aim is that Young Scientists will have <strong>the</strong>
opportunity <strong>to</strong> become more involved in <strong>the</strong> international scientific community. The award will be used as
financial aid for outst<strong>and</strong>ing Young Scientists, <strong>and</strong> allow <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> apply for fur<strong>the</strong>r grants in <strong>the</strong>ir home
country, <strong>and</strong> make attending <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> less of a financial burden.
Integrative Zoology Exceptional Speaker Prize: Integrative Zoology (INZ) is <strong>the</strong> official journal of ISZS <strong>and</strong> is
published online by Wiley‐Blackwell. It is an SCI‐indexed journal with an Impact Fac<strong>to</strong>r of 1.000 in 2010. The
3 winners of <strong>the</strong> prize will be awarded a one‐year free online subscription <strong>to</strong> Integrative Zoology <strong>and</strong> all <strong>the</strong>
applicants will become <strong>the</strong> ISZS members, enjoying <strong>the</strong> related membership benefits.
Virtual Issue for <strong>the</strong> 31 st <strong>IUBS</strong> GA & <strong>Conference</strong>
Wiley‐Blackwell journal edi<strong>to</strong>rs are pleased <strong>to</strong> bring you an <strong>IUBS</strong> ‐ Joint Virtual Issue from prestigious
journals! See: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subject/code/000061/homepage/iubs_virtual_issue.htm
<strong>Conference</strong> Official Website
The official website for <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> is http://iubs.csp.escience.cn, updated regularly.
Help Us <strong>to</strong> Minimize Our Footprint
• The cooling of all venues will be set at 26 °C. You are encouraged <strong>to</strong> dress comfortably <strong>and</strong> casually.
• Feel free <strong>to</strong> return any of <strong>the</strong> material in your conference bag, if you feel it is not relevant <strong>to</strong> you.
• We have endeavored <strong>to</strong> organize non‐disposable plates <strong>and</strong> cups during breaks <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> banquet. Please
help by using only what you need.
Information on Suzhou
• Location in China
Suzhou ( 苏 州 ) is a major city located in <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>ast of
Jiangsu province in eastern China, located about 100
kilometers (62 miles) west of Shanghai <strong>and</strong> 219 kilometers
(137 miles) east of Nanjing. Administratively, it is a
prefecture‐level city.
• His<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> Geography
Founded in 514 BC, Suzhou has over 2,500 years of rich
his<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> relics of <strong>the</strong> past are maintained <strong>to</strong> this day.
27

The city's s<strong>to</strong>ne bridges, pagodas <strong>and</strong> meticulously
designed gardens have contributed <strong>to</strong> its status as one of
<strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>p <strong>to</strong>urist destinations in China. Since <strong>the</strong> Song
Dynasty (960‐1279), Suzhou has also been an important
centre for China's silk industry. It is occasionally dubbed
‘Paradise on Earth’.
Covering an area of 8448 square kilometers, Suzhou is
situated in <strong>the</strong> center of <strong>the</strong> lower reaches of <strong>the</strong> Yangtze
River <strong>and</strong> is located on <strong>the</strong> shores of Taihu Lake, which is
part of <strong>the</strong> Yangtze River Delta region. About 10% of <strong>the</strong>
city is covered by fertile farml<strong>and</strong>, 30% is hilly l<strong>and</strong> with
<strong>the</strong> most famous attraction Tiger Hill <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> rest is
occupied by water <strong>and</strong> low terrain.
The city is famous as ‘Venice of <strong>the</strong> East’ because it is a
water city with many ponds <strong>and</strong> streams. The Gr<strong>and</strong>
Canal winds from north <strong>to</strong> south <strong>and</strong> 90% of <strong>the</strong> Taihu Lake is within <strong>the</strong> city. The fertile l<strong>and</strong> of <strong>the</strong> city is
abundant in rice, wheat, cot<strong>to</strong>n, mulberry trees (for silkworms) <strong>and</strong> fruits. Special local products include
whitebaits from Taihu Lake, saurys from Yangtze River, crabs from Yangcheng Lake <strong>and</strong> more. So, Suzhou is
also regarded as <strong>the</strong> ‘L<strong>and</strong> of Fish <strong>and</strong> Rice’.
• Climate
Suzhou has a four‐season, monsoon‐influenced subtropical climate with hot, humid summers, <strong>and</strong> cool,
cloudy, damp winters with an occasional snowfall. Sou<strong>the</strong>rly or southwesterly winds during <strong>the</strong> summer can
push temperatures above 35 °C (95 °F).
Information on Tours
All <strong>to</strong>urs, including local <strong>to</strong>urs <strong>and</strong> pre‐ or post‐<strong>Conference</strong> <strong>to</strong>urs, have been contracted <strong>to</strong> Dynasty
International Travel CO., Ltd., China (Tel: +86‐10‐65660911; Fax: +86‐10‐65666911; Email:
z_ty728@yahoo.com.cn). Their hotlines are below:
Local Tours
• LT1: TongliWaterTown‐Lunch‐Embroidery Museum‐ ZhouzhuangWaterTown
• LT2: Lingering Garden‐Hanshan Temple‐Lunch‐The Master of Nets Garden‐Silk Fac<strong>to</strong>ry
• EP1: Evening Entertainment at Suzhou Garden
• LT3 Shanghai Museum‐Pearl Museum‐Jade Buddha Temple
Pre­<strong>Conference</strong> Tours
• PR1: Guangzhou‐Guilin‐Xi'an‐Shanghai
• PR2: Beijing‐Xi’an‐Shanghai
Post­<strong>Conference</strong> Tours
• PT1 Shanghai‐Tibet‐Beijing
• PT2 Suzhou‐Shanghai‐Beijing
Free Local Tours
The Wuzhong District Government will offer free local <strong>to</strong>urs on <strong>the</strong> afternoon 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> morning 9 July
2012. If you take those <strong>to</strong>urs, please register at <strong>the</strong> on-site Registration Desk or <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat at
Tour on afternoon 8 July 2012
• Dongshan Natural Resort – Diaohua Building – Luxiang Ancient Village
Tour on Morning 9 July 2012
• Xishan Natural Resort – Linwu Cave – Mingyue Wan Harbor
28

Transportation
International: Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport or <strong>the</strong> Shanghai Pudong International Airport. A
subway connects <strong>the</strong> two international airports <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> railway station. Take a G‐series high‐speed train from
<strong>the</strong> Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station <strong>to</strong> Suzhou (train travel time about 25 minutes).
Domestic: Suzhou or Wuxi Airport, <strong>the</strong>n take a local train (see above) or bus <strong>to</strong> Suzhou.
Once <strong>the</strong> registration fee has been paid, <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> will organize local transportation for arrival on 4 July 2012
<strong>and</strong> departure on 9 July 2012. (Please see <strong>the</strong> timetable in <strong>the</strong> Shuttle Buse Timetable During <strong>the</strong> GA & <strong>Conference</strong>
below)
You are welcome <strong>to</strong> organize your own transportation but <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> will not reimburse this.
Taxi: A taxi from <strong>the</strong> Suzhou Railway Station <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> venue costs around $20 (approximately 150 RMB). You
must pay in RMB. Please show <strong>the</strong> following information <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> driver:
请 送 我 到 苏 州 太 湖 论 坛 国 际 会 议 中 心
(Pronunciation: Qǐng song wǒ dào Sūzhōu Tàihú Lùntán Guójì Huìyì Zhōngxīn)
Accommodation
There are several hotels near <strong>the</strong> venue. <strong>Conference</strong> participants enjoy a special <strong>Conference</strong> rate at <strong>the</strong>
recommend hotels listed below:
• Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel ★★★★★
Address: No. 1 Yanbo Road, Circum‐Lake Avenue, Suzhou Taihu National Tourism Vacation Zone,
Jiangsu, China; Tel: +86‐512‐6879‐6666; Fax: +86‐512‐6879‐0028
Note:
1. Those who will not attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012 can depart or go on local <strong>to</strong>urs in
<strong>the</strong> evening on 7 July 2012.
2. Due <strong>to</strong> an overlap with <strong>the</strong> Sino‐Africa Forum, those who are going <strong>to</strong> attend <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> living in <strong>the</strong>
Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out after dinner at 1930 <strong>and</strong> move <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel at 2015.
3. Free transportation <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel will be organized at 20:15 in front of <strong>the</strong> Gate of Xiangshan
Hotel <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> room price at Dongshan Hotel will <strong>the</strong> same as that in Xiangshan Hotel.
4. Those who are not going <strong>to</strong> attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> continue <strong>to</strong> stay at
Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out before 12:00 on 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>re will be no transportation
organized at Xiangshan Hotel from 8 July 2012.
5. As a compensation <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ken of appreciation of cooperation, <strong>the</strong> Wuzhong District will offer a free
local trip on <strong>the</strong> afternoon 8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> morning 9 July 2012. The trip is also open <strong>to</strong> all <strong>the</strong>
attendees at both <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>.
6. Please inform <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat at <strong>the</strong> Registration Desk if you are going <strong>to</strong> take <strong>the</strong> free
<strong>to</strong>urs.
• Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel ★★★★★
Address: 2 Shu Li Road, Suzhou Taihu, National Tourism & Vacation Zone, Jiangsu, China; Tel:
+86‐512‐6621‐7777; Fax: +86‐512‐6598‐3598
• San Teh Hotel ★★★★
Address: No. 88 Huantaihu Road, Xukou Town, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China; Tel: +86‐512‐6598‐8188; Fax:
+86‐512‐6598‐8099
• Green Valley Resort ★★★
Address: No. 18 Hubin Road, Taihu National Tourism Resort District, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China; Tel:
+86‐512‐6651‐8838; Fax: +86‐512‐6656‐7011
29

Shuttle Bus Timetable during <strong>the</strong> GA & <strong>Conference</strong>
5 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Taihu International <strong>Conference</strong> Center
800 Bus 1: Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 2: Green Valley Resort
800 Bus 3: San Teh Hotel
810 Bus 4: Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
2030 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
2030 Bus 2: To Green Valley Resort
2030 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
2030 Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
6 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
750 Bus 1: From Tianping Hotel
750 Bus 2: From Green Valley Resort
750 Bus 3: From San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: From Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
1930 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
1930 Bus 2: To Green Valley Resort
1815 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
1930 Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
7 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel
750 Bus 1: From Tianping Hotel
750 Bus 2: From Green Valley Resort
750 Bus 3: From San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: From Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Hotels
1930 Bus 1: To Tianping Hotel
1930 Bus 2: To Green Valley Resort
1815 Bus 3: To San Teh Hotel
1930
2015
Bus 4: To Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
Bus 5: From Suzhou Xiangshan International Hotel <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
30

Note
1. Those who will not attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012 can
depart or go on local <strong>to</strong>urs in <strong>the</strong> evening on 7 July 2012.
2. Due <strong>to</strong> an overlap with <strong>the</strong> Sino‐Africa Forum, those who are going <strong>to</strong>
attend <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> living in <strong>the</strong> Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out after
dinner at 1930 <strong>and</strong> move <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel at 2015.
3. Free transportation <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel will be organized at 20:15 in front
of <strong>the</strong> Gate of Xiangshan Hotel <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> room price at Dongshan Hotel will
<strong>the</strong> same as that in Xiangshan Hotel.
4. Those who are not going <strong>to</strong> attend <strong>the</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA scheduled on 8 July 2012
<strong>and</strong> continue <strong>to</strong> stay at Xiangshan Hotel have <strong>to</strong> check out before 12:00 on
8 July 2012 <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>re will be no transportation organized at Xiangshan
Hotel from 8 July 2012.
5. As a compensation <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ken of appreciation of cooperation, <strong>the</strong>
Wuzhong District will offer a free local trip on <strong>the</strong> afternoon 8 July 2012
<strong>and</strong> morning 9 July 2012. The trip is also open <strong>to</strong> all <strong>the</strong> attendees at both
<strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>.
6. Please inform <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Secretariat at <strong>the</strong> Registration Desk if you
are going <strong>to</strong> take <strong>the</strong> free <strong>to</strong>urs.
8 July 2012 <strong>31st</strong> <strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> of Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong> Bioindustry
Transportation <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel
750 Bus 1: From Tianping Hotel
750 Bus 2: From Green Valley Resort
750 Bus 3: From San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: From Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
1330-1800 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur offered by Wuzhong District
Tour Bus starts at Dongshan Hotel <strong>and</strong> s<strong>to</strong>ps at Green Valley Resort, Suzhou Taihu Golf, San Teh,
<strong>and</strong> Tianping Hotels after <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>ur.
1330 Bus 1: To San Teh Hotel, Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel, Green Valley Resort <strong>and</strong>
Tianping Hotel
9 July 2012 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur/Departure
730-1245 Free local <strong>to</strong>ur offered by Wuzhong District
Tour Bus starts at <strong>and</strong> returns <strong>to</strong> Dongshan Hotel before <strong>and</strong> after <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>ur
800-1300 Departure Transportation
31

AM
To Tianping Hotel
800 Bus 1: From Dongshan Hotel
800 Bus 2: From Green Valley Resort
800 Bus 3: From San Teh Hotel
800 Bus 4: From Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
To Airports
900 Bus 5: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Pudong International Airport
900 Bus 6: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport
900 Bus 7: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Wuxi Shuofang Airport
PM
To Tianping Hotel
1200 Bus 8: From Dongshan Hotel
1200 Bus 9: From Green Valley Resort
1200 Bus 10: From San Teh Hotel
1200 Bus 11: From Suzhou Taihu Golf Hotel
To Airports
1300 Bus 12: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Pudong International Airport
1300 Bus 13: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport
1300 Bus 14: From Tianping Hotel <strong>to</strong> Wuxi Shuofang Airport
Internet Access
Internet service should be available in your hotel room <strong>and</strong> in meeting rooms.
Water
It is not recommended <strong>to</strong> drink water directly from <strong>the</strong> tap. Moreover, it is recommended that you avoid ice
cubes. You can purchase cold bottled water <strong>and</strong> hotels usually provide an electric kettle <strong>to</strong> boil tap water in
your room. Boiled water for drinking can be s<strong>to</strong>red in a <strong>the</strong>rmos.
Dining during <strong>the</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong>
Breakfast should be included with your accommodation. Morning <strong>and</strong> afternoon tea will be provided on 5 <strong>to</strong> 8
July <strong>and</strong> will be available between sessions outside each symposium venue.
Meal time 5 July 6 July 7 July 8 July
Breakfast Hotel Hotel Hotel Hotel
Morning tea Symposium Symposium Symposium GA
Lunch Coupon Coupon Coupon Coupon
Afternoon tea Symposium Symposium Symposium <strong>IUBS</strong> EC Meeting
Dinner Coupon <strong>Welcome</strong> Dinner Coupon Coupon
For participants who have paid registration fee (or had <strong>the</strong> fee partially/waived), from 4 <strong>to</strong> 8 July, <strong>the</strong>
<strong>Conference</strong> will provide lunch at <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> venue <strong>and</strong> dinner coupons for use at your hotel, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
<strong>Welcome</strong> Banquet on 5 July 2012. Coupons for lunch, dinner <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Banquet can be collected at <strong>the</strong>
32

<strong>Conference</strong> Registration Desk.
If you have any religious dietary requirements, please let <strong>the</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> Organizers know
beforeh<strong>and</strong>!
Voltage, Socket <strong>and</strong> Plugs
The electrical current in China is 220‐volts, 50Hz A/C. Hotels generally provide wall sockets in every room,
accommodating both <strong>the</strong> st<strong>and</strong>ard ‘Flat blade attachment plug (Type A)’ <strong>and</strong> common ‘Oblique flat blades with
ground (inverted V) plug (Type I)’, as well as <strong>the</strong> not‐so‐common ‘Round pin attachment plug (Type C)’ as
shown in following pho<strong>to</strong>graphs.
Wall socket Type A plug Type I plug Type C plug
Duplication <strong>and</strong> Recording
Taking pho<strong>to</strong>graphs, audio recording, video recording, digital taping or any o<strong>the</strong>r forms of duplication are
strictly prohibited in symposia rooms <strong>and</strong> poster areas without first obtaining permission from <strong>the</strong>
appropriate authors.
Cell Phones
Participants are requested <strong>to</strong> turn off cell phones in meeting rooms <strong>and</strong> in poster areas.
Telephone Hotlines
110 Police
114 Local Telephone Number Inquiry
116 Domestic Long Distance Inquiry
117 Time Inquiry
119 Fire
120 Ambulance
121 Wea<strong>the</strong>r Forecast
122 Traffic Police
Contacts
1) <strong>IUBS</strong> Paris Office
Address: Bat 442, Université Paris‐Sud 11, 91 405 Orsay Cedex, France
Tel +33‐(0)1‐69‐15‐50‐27; For GA: nfomproix@iubs.org;www.iubs.org
2) CC<strong>IUBS</strong> / ISZS Beijing Office
Address: Room C‐506, Institute of Zoology, CAS, 1 Beichen West Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100101,
China; Tel: +86‐010‐6480‐7295; Fax: +86‐010‐6480‐7295; www.globalzoology.org; iszs@ioz.ac.cn
For GA: Nathalie Fomproix (English <strong>and</strong> French; nfomproix@iubs.org)
For Symposia: Wenhua Xiong (English <strong>and</strong> Chinese; iszs@ioz.ac.cn)
For Bioindustry Sessions: Chunxu Han (English <strong>and</strong> Chinese; iszs2@ioz.ac.cn)
For Sponsorship: Chunxu Han (English <strong>and</strong> Chinese; iszs2@ioz.ac.cn)
33

Please note that abstracts have been listed in alphabetical order according <strong>to</strong> title.
Abstracts for Speeches
A 300 Ma vegetational Pompeii: forest
reconstruction, palaeoecology <strong>and</strong>
palaeobiogeography – an Early Permian
peat­forming flora from Inner Mongolia
Jun WANG
Nanjing Institute of Geology <strong>and</strong> Palaeon<strong>to</strong>logy, CAS, Nanjing
210008, China. Email: jun.wang@nigpas.ac.cn
Plant communities of <strong>the</strong> geologic past can be
reconstructed with high fidelity only if <strong>the</strong>y were
preserved in place in an instant in time, which are
extremely rare but are essential <strong>to</strong> gain insights in<strong>to</strong>
paleoecology, paleobiogeography <strong>and</strong> paleoclimate. An
earliest Permian volcanic air‐fall tuff from Inner Mongolia,
China, preserved an in situ forest that grew on an
extensive peat deposit that exists <strong>to</strong>day as a mineable coal
seam. Our research has realized <strong>the</strong> first reconstruction
of an actual site of a peat‐forming swamp forest of
Permian age which represents also <strong>the</strong> first such
reconstruction for <strong>the</strong> late Paleozoic of East Asia. The
flora was dominated by Marattialean tree ferns, tree
lycopsids <strong>and</strong> Noeggerathiales, a generally rare group of
extinct spore‐bearing plants of uncertain systematic
position. This composition is both similar <strong>and</strong> distinctly
different from that recognized in floras of <strong>the</strong> same time
interval in Europe or North America. Plant remains
were quantitatively recorded in three plots of <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r
more than 1000 m 2 . The plots show forest
heterogeneity including <strong>the</strong> first site ever recorded that
was dominated by Noeggerathiales.
A case study on benefit sharing for
traditional ethnic medicine in Libo County,
Guizhou Province
Jingbiao YANG
Beijing Forestry University, 35 Qinghuadonglu Road, Haidian,
Beijing, China. Email: yangjingbiao@gmail.com
Traditional ethnic medicine is currently facing <strong>the</strong>
threat of biopiracy, <strong>the</strong>n it is necessary <strong>and</strong> urgent <strong>to</strong>
establish <strong>the</strong> access <strong>and</strong> benefit‐sharing regime on
traditional ethnic medicine.
A case study on access <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing
of a local pig variety (Xiangxi black pig) in
western Hunan Province of China
Rong DAI, 1 Dayuan XUE, 1,2 Luo GUO 1 <strong>and</strong>
Fangmao LI 3
1Karlis Rege of Life <strong>and</strong> Environmental Sciences, Minzu
University of China, Beijing 10008, 2 Nanjing Institute of
Environmental Science, Ministry of Environmental Protection
of China, Nanjing 210000 <strong>and</strong> 3 Bureau of Lives<strong>to</strong>ck <strong>and</strong>
Aquatic Products in Guzhang of Hunan Province, Guzhang
416300. Email: annadai_2008@hotmail.com
China is one of <strong>the</strong> contracting Parties <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Convention
on Biological Diversity <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> future contracting Party
<strong>to</strong> Nagoya Pro<strong>to</strong>col. China is currently developing <strong>the</strong>
legislative framework for access <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing
activities. We conducted a participa<strong>to</strong>ry farmer survey
of <strong>the</strong> conditions of Prior Informed Consent (PIC) <strong>and</strong>
Mutually Agreed Terms (MAT) in Xiangxi Tujia <strong>and</strong>
Miao Au<strong>to</strong>nomous Prefecture, Hunan, China, assessing
how benefits gained by <strong>the</strong> development of Xiangxi pig
are shared, <strong>and</strong> what <strong>the</strong> awareness <strong>and</strong> attitude <strong>to</strong>
access <strong>and</strong> benefit‐sharing is. The study showed that: (1)
when Xiangxi black pig resources in local communities
are developed <strong>and</strong> utilized, PIC are communicated orally.
91.2% of <strong>the</strong> households were not informed in writing.
Certification <strong>and</strong> registration system of genetic resource
property rights has not been established; (2) mutually
agreed terms of black pig was achieved by converting
oral agreements <strong>to</strong> written agreements; (3) <strong>the</strong> farmers
make profits by <strong>the</strong> weight increase of pigs <strong>and</strong> at a
higher price than <strong>the</strong> normal market; (4) farmers
resource views remain in <strong>the</strong> stage of exchangeof
money for resources, only <strong>the</strong> use value of <strong>the</strong> goods
34

value; (5) community farmers generally believe that
resources simultaneously belong <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> nation, local
communities, <strong>and</strong> individual farmers; (6) <strong>the</strong>re is no
consciousness about <strong>the</strong> need <strong>to</strong> protect genetic
resources of <strong>the</strong> local varieties from biopiracy. The above
findings can be used as reference <strong>to</strong> develop relevant
legislation.
A case study on change <strong>and</strong> its causes of
agricultural seed resource diversity in Hei’er
Village, Yunnan Province
Jiuxuan ZHOU <strong>and</strong> Siming WANG
Pesticide Eco‐Alternatives Center, Yunnan Yingxiang Quarter,
Kunming, Yunnan, China. Email: zhou.jiuxuan@gmail.com
This case study dealt with change <strong>and</strong> its causes of
agricultural seed resource diversity in Hei’er village of
Yunnan through participa<strong>to</strong>ry rural appraisal,
semi‐structured interviews <strong>and</strong> questionnaires. Based on
analysis of 66 local varieties collected, it was found that
<strong>the</strong> diversity of Hei’er Zhuang community was abundant
in 1980, but due <strong>to</strong> many fac<strong>to</strong>rs, such as modern farming
<strong>and</strong> rural economic development, accounted for <strong>the</strong> loss
of indigenous varieties. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r h<strong>and</strong>, <strong>the</strong> study also
showed that <strong>the</strong> traditional lifestyle <strong>and</strong> indigenous
culture made a contribution <strong>to</strong> some indigenous varieties.
Hei’er sticky rice is a good example of well‐protected
agricultural seed resources in <strong>the</strong> village. Because it is a
local favorite food for traditional festivals, so it
producesexcellent economic benefits. Similarly, o<strong>the</strong>r
indigenous varieties, like rape, ginger, peanuts <strong>and</strong> so on,
are also good agricultural seed resources which remained
in <strong>the</strong> village. These findings suggest that
community‐based protective action <strong>and</strong> strategies be
taken in<strong>to</strong> account for <strong>the</strong> purpose of valuable indigenous
varieties conservation <strong>and</strong> sustainable utilization through
a mechanism for ecological compensation.
Advances of CO 2 signal transduction in
Arabidopsis guard cells: functions of
bicarbonate in slow anion channel activation
<strong>and</strong> OST1 protein kinase
Shaowu XUE
Institute of Molecular Science, Shanxi University, 92 Wucheng
Road, Taiyuan 030006, China. Email:
xsw92@yahoo.com.cnSupported by Shanxi Scholarship
Council of China <strong>and</strong> Department of Human Resources <strong>and</strong>
Social Security of Shanxi Province. See: H Hu et al. (2010).
Carbonic Anhydrases are Upstream Regula<strong>to</strong>rs of
CO2‐controlled S<strong>to</strong>matal Movements in Guard Cells. Nat. Cell
Biol.12, 87‐93.
The continuing rise in atmospheric CO 2 causes <strong>the</strong>
closing of s<strong>to</strong>matal pores <strong>and</strong> regulates s<strong>to</strong>matal
development, thus globally regulating plant water loss,
CO 2 influx <strong>and</strong> water‐use efficiency. But this CO 2
response <strong>and</strong> early signal transduction mechanisms
that trigger CO 2 ‐induced s<strong>to</strong>matal movements <strong>and</strong> CO 2
sensing have remained unexplored. Our previous study
showed that carbonic‐anhydrases, βCA1 <strong>and</strong> βCA4,
function early in <strong>the</strong> CO 2 signaling pathway that
controls gas exchange between plants <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
atmosphere, but little is known about <strong>the</strong> early signaling
mechanisms following <strong>the</strong> initial CO 2 response. It
remains unclear whe<strong>the</strong>r CO 2 , HCO 3‐ or a combination
activates downstream signaling. Here we demonstrate
that bicarbonate functions as a small‐molecule activa<strong>to</strong>r
of SLAC1 anion channels in guard cells. Elevated
intracellular [HCO 3‐ ]i with low [CO 2 ] <strong>and</strong> [H+] activated
S‐type anion currents, whereas low [HCO 3‐ ]i at high [CO 2 ]
<strong>and</strong> [H + ] did not. Bicarbonate enhanced <strong>the</strong> intracellular
Ca 2+ sensitivity of S‐type anion channel activation in
wild type <strong>and</strong> ht1‐2 mutant guard cells. ht1‐2 mutant
guard cells exhibited enhanced bicarbonate sensitivity
of S‐type anion channel activation. The OST1 protein
kinase has been reported not <strong>to</strong> affect CO 2 signaling,
unexpectedly, OST1 loss‐of‐function alleles showed
strongly impaired CO 2 ‐induced s<strong>to</strong>matal closing <strong>and</strong>
HCO 3‐ activation of anion channels. Moreover,
PYR/RCAR ABA recep<strong>to</strong>r mutant slowed but did not
abolish CO 2 /HCO 3‐ signaling, redefining <strong>the</strong>
convergence point of CO 2 <strong>and</strong> ABA signaling. A new
working model of <strong>the</strong> sequence of CO 2 signaling events
in gas exchange regulation will be presented.
Aerial dispersion of fungal pollution with
changes of seasonal variations of
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
S SIVASAKTHIVEL
35

Department of Environmental Science, Bangalore University, JB
Campus, Bangalore‐56, Karnataka, India. Email:
sakthisiva1982@yahoo.com
Ambient fungal air pollution is now recognized as an
important problem worldwide. Inhalation of bioaerosol
can cause a variety of inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry, hypersensitivity, <strong>and</strong>
allergic response in <strong>the</strong> lungs. Airborne fungi were
collected by impaction on<strong>to</strong> an agar medium, using a
portable Mini‐Patrisol Air Sampler PM10 with a frequency
of about once in a week during all seasons placed at
about 1.5 m above <strong>the</strong> surface, <strong>to</strong> simulate <strong>the</strong> human
breathing zone between seasons January 2010 <strong>to</strong>
December 2010. An investigation of airborne fungi
revealed that <strong>the</strong> microorganisms were present
throughout <strong>the</strong> year with different mean values in
different seasons. Aerosol particulate matter PM10 was
found <strong>to</strong> be an average of 19 <strong>to</strong> 23 μgm/m 3 <strong>and</strong> positively
correlated with population of viable pathogens in air. The
meteorological parameters like wind speed <strong>and</strong> ambient
temperature <strong>and</strong> humidity significantly correlated with
population of fungal population in different seasons.
Normally fungi were recorded more in summer than in
winter season. During <strong>the</strong> study, different types of fungal
spores of air Alternaria spp., Aspergillus spp., Curvularia
spp. <strong>and</strong> Penicillium spp. were found in ambient air.
Fungal population in ambient air altered by changes of
meteorological parameters. A consequence climate
change of Bangalore triggers fungal population in
ambient levels, which may cause serious allergic disease
for o<strong>the</strong> living things.
Applying econometrics <strong>to</strong> highlight <strong>the</strong>
importance of ethnicity in China’s protected
areas system
Karlis ROKPELNIS
College of Life <strong>and</strong> Environmental Science, Minzu University of
China, Beijing 100081, China. Email: karlisr@yahoo.com
This presentation applies correlation <strong>and</strong> regression
analysis <strong>to</strong> analyse <strong>the</strong> location <strong>and</strong> size of China’s
protected areas (PAs) between 2002 <strong>and</strong> 2008. In 2008,
62% of all national PAs were located in 4 northwestern
provinces, <strong>and</strong> au<strong>to</strong>nomous regions <strong>and</strong> provinces with
at least 1 au<strong>to</strong>nomous sub‐provincial are accounted for
95.2% of China’s PAs. Overall, <strong>the</strong> nation‐wide results
confirm a commonly held view that PAs tend <strong>to</strong> be
located in poorer <strong>and</strong> more remote areas. However,
when regression analysis is applied particularly <strong>to</strong>
areas with varying degrees of au<strong>to</strong>nomy, it can be seen
that increased size of protected areas in au<strong>to</strong>nomous
regions correlates with higher economic development.
This suggests that ethnic au<strong>to</strong>nomy <strong>and</strong> ethnicity per se
should be included in socio‐economic analysis of PA
siting in China. The exact mechanisms of how ethnicity,
ethnic au<strong>to</strong>nomy, PA siting <strong>and</strong> economic development
interact remain <strong>to</strong> be determined by fur<strong>the</strong>r research.
Applying species distribution models in
climate change studies
Xinhai LI
Institute of Biology, CAS, Beijing, China. Email: lixh@ioz.ac.cn
Species distribution models (SDMs) have been
extensively used in <strong>the</strong> studies of climate change
biology. In recent decades, a number of new modes
were proposed, yet researchers usually feel difficult <strong>to</strong>
select appropriate models for <strong>the</strong>ir data types <strong>and</strong>
objectives. In this review, we aim <strong>to</strong> provide intuitive
insight in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> prevailing SDMs for newcomers in <strong>the</strong>
field of modeling. We compared 11 most popular models,
including regression models (i.e. generalized linear
model (GLM), generalized additive model (GAM),
multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), <strong>and</strong>
hierarchical modeling), classification models (i.e.
mixture discriminant analysis (MDA), generalized
boosting models (GBM), <strong>and</strong> classification <strong>and</strong>
regression tree (CART)), <strong>and</strong> complex models (i.e.
artificial neural networks (ANN), R<strong>and</strong>om Forest,
genetic algorithm for rule set production (GARP), <strong>and</strong>
maximum entropy method (Maxent)). Our objectives
are: 1. To clarify <strong>the</strong> characteristics of <strong>the</strong> models <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong>ir suitable situations (data types <strong>and</strong>
species‐environment relationships), <strong>and</strong> 2. To provide a
guideline for model application, including 3 steps: model
selection, model formulation <strong>and</strong> parameter estimation.
36

A promising union of biological sciences <strong>and</strong>
biomimetics for sustainable development
CS CHEN <strong>and</strong>Ka<strong>the</strong>rine CHEN
National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu <strong>and</strong> National Dong Hwa
University, Hualien.Email: cschen@mx.nthu.edu.tw
The ever‐pressing sustainable development has
challenged us on many fronts particularly <strong>the</strong> natural
resources, energy, environment <strong>and</strong> some social issues.
Many biological systems have been impressively
successful <strong>and</strong> have long been recognized as <strong>the</strong>
remarkable winners in meeting all <strong>the</strong> challenges. It is
wise <strong>to</strong> apply <strong>the</strong> biomimetics <strong>to</strong> learn <strong>the</strong> good lessons
<strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> get valuable inspiration from those biological
systems in achieving <strong>the</strong> sustainable development.
In doing proper biomimetics, it is crucial <strong>to</strong> have
necessary <strong>and</strong> sufficient knowledge of relevant biological
sciences. Unfortunately, biomimetics has often <strong>to</strong> struggle
alone with inadequate biological support <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
biological sciences have also missed <strong>the</strong> valuable role in
making an important contribution.
We have pursued a proper <strong>and</strong> more efficient union of
<strong>the</strong> biological sciences <strong>and</strong> biomimetics for sustainable
development. We have applied a <strong>to</strong>p‐down approach for
biomimetics <strong>to</strong> connect with <strong>the</strong> bot<strong>to</strong>m‐up approach for
biological sciences in closing <strong>the</strong> current gap between
biomimetics <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> biological sciences. We have
examined <strong>the</strong> critical needs of biological knowledge in
doing appropriate biomimetics. Specifics for what, why,
how <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> alternatives were determined. The possible
routes <strong>and</strong> action plans were mapped out. We have also
assisted <strong>the</strong> biological scientists in examining <strong>the</strong>
unexplored but relevant terri<strong>to</strong>ry with helpful deduction,
modeling, simulation <strong>and</strong> advanced ma<strong>the</strong>matics.
A rapid method for ramie bio­degumming
Zhengchu LIU
IBFC, CAAS, Changsha, China. Email: hun<strong>and</strong>sw@163.com
An industrial experiment of a rapid method for ramie
bio‐degumming by Pec<strong>to</strong>bacterium sp. CXJZU‐120 was
conducted under <strong>the</strong> same conditions compared with <strong>the</strong>
chemical degumming method <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> bio‐chemical
degumming method. Results displayed that <strong>the</strong>
bio‐degumming method was very efficient, <strong>the</strong> whole
ramie degumming process could be finished within 6h
by using <strong>the</strong> Pec<strong>to</strong>bacterium sp. CXJZU‐120
fermentation independently; this rapid method was not
only suitable for extraction of different raw ramie fibers,
but also could retain <strong>the</strong>ir inherent morphological
structure <strong>and</strong> textile properties; fur<strong>the</strong>r more,
compared with chemical degumming method, this was a
resource‐conserving <strong>and</strong> environmentally‐friendly new
method: it could reduce up <strong>to</strong> 20.5% of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal
production cost of refined ramie fiber (for example,
76.4% of coal consumption <strong>and</strong> 62.6% of water
consumption), <strong>the</strong> resource utilization ratio could be
raised by more than 50% <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal disposal charges
of industrial pollution could be reduced by at least 80%.
This study proved a huge improvement in industrial
ramie degumming process from traditional chemical
method <strong>to</strong> biological method. It indicated that <strong>the</strong>
biological technology could be widely employed in <strong>the</strong>
field of herbaceous fiber extraction.
A review of novel bunyavirus in China:
emergence, virology, epidemiology <strong>and</strong>
clinical characteristics
Shelan LIU
Department of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang Center for
Disease Control <strong>and</strong> Prevention, 630 Xincheng Road, Binjiang,
Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310051, China. Email:
liushelan@126.com
The English literature of severe fever with
thrombocy<strong>to</strong>penia syndrome (SFTS) infection caused
by novel Bunyavirus in China is sparse. Based on a <strong>to</strong>tal
literarure search of 55 sources (both in English <strong>and</strong> in
Chinese) about SFTS, 43 L, M, S segments isolated in
China downloaded from GenBank <strong>and</strong> 571 cases from
Chinese SFTS surveillance reporting systems in 2011,
we analyzed <strong>the</strong> novel SFTS virus emergence, virology,
epidemiology, clinical characteristics except lab testing,
diagnosis, treatment <strong>and</strong> control. This review showed
that <strong>the</strong> structure, genomics <strong>and</strong> L, M, S evolutionary
relationship between those novel virus from different
regions, different years, different genus by Mega5.05,
DnaSP 5.0, Simplot <strong>and</strong> Network4.6.0 software.
37

Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, we analyzed <strong>the</strong>ir epidemic features,
including time, population <strong>and</strong> areas distribution,
transmission model, host <strong>and</strong> vec<strong>to</strong>r, <strong>and</strong> serum
epidemiology in healthy population <strong>and</strong> animals <strong>and</strong>
patients. Moreover, we counted <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal number of
confirmed cases from different reports <strong>and</strong> analyzed
clinical symp<strong>to</strong>ms, biochemical markers, complication
<strong>and</strong> deaths. In conclusion, SFTS was sporadic in <strong>the</strong> rural
areas of central, nor<strong>the</strong>ast <strong>and</strong> east China <strong>and</strong> was caused
by <strong>the</strong> same novel Bunyavirus including 4 subgroups.
Most of cases occurred in May–September ranged from
20–25 °C with female farmers <strong>the</strong> as high‐risk population.
A majority of patients presented with fever,
thrombocy<strong>to</strong>penia, leukocy<strong>to</strong>penia, <strong>and</strong> multiorgan
dysfunction, with a 10–15% mortality. But as a kind of
new infectious disease, <strong>the</strong>re are many important issues
such as vec<strong>to</strong>rs, <strong>the</strong> infectious period, incubation period,
animal‐tick‐mode of transmission, infection immunity,
intensive mechanisms <strong>and</strong> so on which require more
extensive study.
uplifted <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> present elevation later, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> presence
of fossil fishes of <strong>the</strong> highlyspecialized grade in areas
with high elevation implies that <strong>the</strong>se areas were
already raised high when <strong>the</strong> fishes were alive. Thus,
<strong>the</strong> temporal distribution pattern of <strong>the</strong> fossil
schizothoracines approximately mirrors <strong>the</strong> spatial
distribution pattern of <strong>the</strong>ir living counterparts,
reflecting <strong>the</strong> biological responses <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> stepwise uplift
of <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau. Integrative evidence from both
extant <strong>and</strong> extinct fishes illustrates that through ascent
with modification, <strong>the</strong> fossil schizothoracine fishes have
constantly adapted <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> ever‐changing environment
resulting from geological, biological <strong>and</strong> climatic
interactions.
Association between polymorphism of
Myogenic fac<strong>to</strong>r 6 with meat quality traits
in Chinese Indigenous cattle
Javed Ahmed Ujan
Ascent with modification: fossil fishes show
adaptations <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> uplift of <strong>the</strong> Tibetan
Plateau
Meemann CHANG
Email: zhangmiman@ivpp.ac.cn
During <strong>the</strong> late Cenozoic, <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau underwent
rapid uplift <strong>and</strong> turned in<strong>to</strong> a habitat isl<strong>and</strong>, separated
from less elevated surrounding environments. This
tec<strong>to</strong>nic evolution has been <strong>the</strong> driving force for climatic
<strong>and</strong> biological evolution. Based on previous studies on
phylogeny <strong>and</strong> spatial distribution of recent
schizothoracine fishes on <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau, we studied
<strong>the</strong> evolution of Cenozoic fossil schizothoracines,
postulated <strong>the</strong> paleoenvironment <strong>the</strong>y lived in <strong>and</strong>
deduced paleoaltimetery of <strong>the</strong> region. Our results show
that earlier fossil schizothoracines belong <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> primitive
grade, whose living representatives now live in <strong>the</strong>
peripheral area at relatively low altitudes <strong>and</strong> under milder
climatic conditions, whereas <strong>the</strong> later ones belong <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
highly‐specialized grade, whose living representatives
now live in <strong>the</strong> central area at high altitudes <strong>and</strong> under
severe climatic conditions. In o<strong>the</strong>r words, those earlier
schizothoracines lived at lower altitudes <strong>and</strong> were
Animal Genetics <strong>and</strong> Breeding (AGB), Department of Zoology,
Faculty of Natural Sciences, Shah Abdul Latif University,
Khairpur Mir’s 66020, Sindh, Pakistan. Email:
javed.asrl_nwsuaf@live.com
Myogenic fac<strong>to</strong>r 6(MyF‐6) is <strong>the</strong> member of Myogenic
determination gene family <strong>and</strong> encodes for straight
musle‐specific transcription fac<strong>to</strong>rs with conserved
basic helix‐loop helix domain. The objective of present
research was <strong>to</strong> investigate single nucleotide
polymorphisms (SNP) in MyF‐6<strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong>
effect of this mutation on meat quality traits <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>
estimate <strong>the</strong> Allelic frequencies from five Chinese
indigenous cattle breeds, namely Jia‐xian red (JX), Luxi
(LX), Nan‐yang (NY), Qinchuan (QC), Xia‐Nan (XN).
Primarily, <strong>the</strong> mutation was detected by PCR <strong>and</strong>
sequencing, <strong>the</strong>reafter, confirmed by single str<strong>and</strong>ed
confirmation polymorphism (SSCP) method. Least
square analysis reveals a T → G synonymous mutation
at position 141bp was detected in exon2 of MyF6 gene
in cattle <strong>and</strong> showed two types of genotypes named JJ
<strong>and</strong> JK. χ 2 test showed that, genotypic distributions in
all <strong>the</strong> population involved were in Hardy‐Weinberg
equilibrium (P>0.05) except Xianan. Association
analysis of this mutation showed a significant
relationship with Loin eye area (LEA) <strong>and</strong> Meat
38

tenderness (P

overexpressing mutated KRT75 in <strong>the</strong> fea<strong>the</strong>r follicles
indeed affects <strong>the</strong> fea<strong>the</strong>r structure.
demonstrated extraordinary adaptive
resilience <strong>to</strong> environmental change
Bacterial cellulosomes for efficient
degradation of lignocelluloses
Edward BAYER
Biological Chemistry, Weizmann Institute, 26 Herzl St. Rehovot,
Israel. Email: ed.bayer@weizmann.ac.il
Cellulose is <strong>the</strong> most abundant component of <strong>the</strong> plant
cell wall <strong>and</strong> thus <strong>the</strong> most abundant renewable organic
material on our planet. Its long rod‐like microfibrils are
embedded in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> colloidal hemicellulose matrix, which
contains o<strong>the</strong>r types of plant cell wall polysaccharides. In
nature, cellulose assumes a structural, ra<strong>the</strong>r than a
s<strong>to</strong>rage role, <strong>and</strong> its glucose residues are ‘locked’ in place,
virtually inaccessible <strong>to</strong> organisms that would avail
<strong>the</strong>mselves of its use as an excellent food source.
Although plants aspire <strong>to</strong> protect <strong>the</strong> cellulose, nature has
provided ample corps of microorganisms (bacteria <strong>and</strong>
fungi) that can cope with decaying cellulosic matter. They
do so by virtue of <strong>the</strong>ir cellulolytic enzymes, <strong>the</strong> cellulases
that <strong>the</strong>y produce. Aerobic fungi <strong>and</strong> bacteria tend <strong>to</strong>
produce large amounts of cellulases <strong>and</strong> hemicellulases
that <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r act synergistically in decomposition of plant
polysaccharides <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir component soluble sugars. In
contrast, some prominent anaerobic bacteria achieve
<strong>the</strong>ir renowned potent cellulolytic properties by
fabricating multi‐enzyme cellulosome complexes, which
contain numerous cellulases, hemicellulases <strong>and</strong>
associated enzymes, attached <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> bacterial cell surface,
thus enabling efficient degradation of cellulosic substrates.
Recent work has centered on dismantling <strong>the</strong> cellulosome
in<strong>to</strong> its component parts <strong>and</strong> reassembling <strong>the</strong>m in<strong>to</strong>
‘designer cellulosomes’ of precise content <strong>and</strong>
configuration. The designer cellulosome approach shows
promise for underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> rationale behind its
catalytic efficiency, <strong>and</strong> knowledge gained from <strong>the</strong>se
studies may provide <strong>the</strong> basis for creating improved
designer cellulosomes for conversion of plant‐derived
biomass in<strong>to</strong> liquid biofuels – a goal of major global
importance in <strong>the</strong> 21st century.
Barnacles (Cirripedia: Thoracica):
tenacious opportunists who have
John BUCKERIDGE
School of Civil Engineering <strong>and</strong> Chemical Engineer RMIT
University, Australia. Email: john.buckeridge@rmit.edu.au
Cirripede‐like organisms have <strong>the</strong>ir origins in <strong>the</strong>
Palaeozoic, but until <strong>the</strong> Cainozoic, were represented
primarily by pedunculated forms such as <strong>the</strong>
Scalpelliformes. Acorn barnacles (Balanomorpha) are
first recorded after <strong>the</strong> Cretaceous - Tertiary
extinction event. During <strong>the</strong> late Palaeogene, rapid
radiation of cirripedes resulted in sufficient
diversification for <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> occupy most marine
environments. That <strong>the</strong>y survived both <strong>the</strong>
Palaeocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Pleis<strong>to</strong>cene glaciation is testament <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir ability <strong>to</strong>
rapidly adapt <strong>to</strong> opportunities. The distribution of
balanomorphs in particular is unparalleled; <strong>the</strong>y are
known from <strong>the</strong> upper lit<strong>to</strong>ral (Chthamalus) <strong>to</strong>
depths of 3600 m (Tetrachaelasma) <strong>and</strong> within this
attached <strong>to</strong> rock, wood <strong>and</strong> miscellaneous flotsam,
plus in symbiosis or commensalism with larger
marine organisms. Darwin’s (1854) view of <strong>the</strong>
Tertiary as <strong>the</strong> age of barnacles is reflected in this
diversity, distribution <strong>and</strong> biomass. All cirripedes are
none<strong>the</strong>less at risk, from rapid habitat change,
competition, pollution <strong>and</strong>, especially in light of <strong>the</strong>ir
sessile habit, from predation. This paper assesses <strong>the</strong>
viability of a number of cirripedes <strong>and</strong> determines
which are most likely <strong>to</strong> survive following rapid
environmental change.
Biodiversity information infrastructure for
research, education <strong>and</strong> conservation in
China
Keping MA
Institute of Botany, CAS, Beijing, China 100093. Email:
kpma@ibcas.ac.cn
Capacity‐building Strategy for <strong>the</strong> Global Taxonomy
Initiative is <strong>to</strong> develop <strong>the</strong> human resources <strong>and</strong>
infrastructure necessary <strong>to</strong> generate, disseminate <strong>and</strong>
40

use taxonomic knowledge <strong>and</strong> information in a manner
that assists Parties, o<strong>the</strong>r Governments, organizations
<strong>and</strong> stakeholders in effectively implementing <strong>the</strong>
Convention <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Strategic Plan for Biodiversity
2011‐2020 <strong>and</strong> achieving <strong>the</strong> Aichi Biodiversity Targets.
Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) 2011‐2020,
with sixteen updated global targets for plant conservation,
including Target 1 of developing, by 2020, an online Flora
of all known plants.
In order <strong>to</strong> provide sound basis for plant conservation
<strong>and</strong> sustainable use in China, we set up <strong>the</strong> Chinese
Virtual Herbarium (CVH, http://www.cvh.org.cn). The
present CVH (www.cvh.org.cn ) is consisted of four core
functional parts. 1) Chinese Plant Name Catalogue. 2)
Chinese Digital Herbaria. Specimen data set includes type
specimens <strong>and</strong> regular collection data. Presently, <strong>the</strong>re are
about 3.31 million specimen data could be retrieved
through CVH website. 3) Chinese Electronic Flora.
Electronic flora is an online version of all published FRPS
<strong>and</strong> 12 local Chinese Flora; <strong>and</strong> 4) Chinese Plant Pho<strong>to</strong>
Gallery. Chinese plant pho<strong>to</strong> gallery includes more than
900,000 field color pho<strong>to</strong>s, belonging <strong>to</strong> 9800 species
native <strong>to</strong> China. In addition, we also established Chinese
Field Herbarium which includes over 2.3 millions plant
color pho<strong>to</strong>s <strong>and</strong> associated materials. From late 2006,
we started <strong>to</strong> prepare a CD ROM for Catalogue of Life
China. The Catalogue of Life China was planned <strong>to</strong> collect
<strong>the</strong> basic information of all species (plants, animals <strong>and</strong>
microorganisms) distributed in China. All information in
<strong>the</strong> Catalogue of Life China is available <strong>to</strong> all users in <strong>the</strong>
world freely. It serves users in two ways: a website <strong>and</strong> a
CD. The website provides an annual checklist <strong>and</strong> a
dynamic checklist with online query interface, while <strong>the</strong>
CD provides <strong>the</strong> annual checklist only. The current
edition for 2011 contains 65674 species of animals,
plants <strong>and</strong> microbes, including 29947 species of seed
plants, 2273 ferns <strong>and</strong> 2572 bryophytes. Animals are
made up of amphibian (346 species), reptile (403), fish
(3347), bird (1269), mammal (562), spiders (3605) <strong>and</strong>
insects. The National Specimen Information
Infrastructure (NSII) with much broader coverage of
biodiversity information is being established <strong>and</strong> will be
on‐line soon.
Bioinformatics training for life scientists:
EBI's user training programme
Gabriella RUSTICI
EMBL‐EBI, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinx<strong>to</strong>n CB10
1SD, UK.Email: gabry@ebi.ac.uk
The EMBL European Bioinformatics Institute
(EMBL‐EBI) has a deep <strong>and</strong> ongoing commitment <strong>to</strong>
bioinformatics training <strong>and</strong> offers support <strong>to</strong> life
science researchers in <strong>the</strong> use of bioinformatics
resources <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ols. Here I will present <strong>the</strong> EMBL‐EBI
extremely successful tripartite user‐training
programme, which is comprised of <strong>the</strong> following:
1. The H<strong>and</strong>s on User Training Programme, which
consists of h<strong>and</strong>s‐on courses held at <strong>the</strong> EBI,
providing expert tuition in <strong>the</strong> EBI’s core data
resources. These training events range from courses
aimed at experimental biologists, <strong>to</strong> more specialized
workshops for industrial <strong>and</strong> academic
bioinformaticians.
2. The Bioinformatics Roadshow, which consists of
h<strong>and</strong>s‐on training events around <strong>the</strong> world, where EBI
trainers teach researchers how <strong>to</strong> use <strong>the</strong> EBI’s core
databases most relevant <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir research.
3. Train Online, <strong>the</strong> EMBL‐EBI eLearning platform,
which provides free courses on <strong>the</strong> EMBL‐EBI's most
widely used data resources.
I will also present <strong>the</strong> Bioinformatics Training Network,
a community lead initiative relevant <strong>to</strong> any one involved
in Bioinformatics Training. Ideally this talk will illustrate
<strong>the</strong> project we are currently involved with, <strong>and</strong> provide
an opportunity for discussing community needs <strong>and</strong>
future directions.
Biological consequences of climate change:
arthropod diversity, pest management <strong>and</strong>
food security
Hari SHARMA
International Crops Research Institute for <strong>the</strong> Semi‐Arid
Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru 502324, Andhra Pradesh, India.
Email: H.Sharma@cgiar.org
Global warming <strong>and</strong> climate change trigger major
changes in diversity <strong>and</strong> abundance of arthropods,
geographical distribution <strong>and</strong> population dynamics,
herbivore plant interactions, activity <strong>and</strong> abundance of
41

natural enemies <strong>and</strong> efficacy of crop protection
technologies for pest management. Changes in
geographical distribution <strong>and</strong> population dynamics affect
both crop production <strong>and</strong> food security. Insect pests
presently confined <strong>to</strong> tropical <strong>and</strong> subtropical regions
will move <strong>to</strong> temperate regions along with a shift in <strong>the</strong>
areas of production of <strong>the</strong>ir host plants, while distribution
<strong>and</strong> relative abundance of some insect species vulnerable
<strong>to</strong> high temperatures in <strong>the</strong> temperate regions may
decrease as a result of global warming. These species may
find suitable alternative habitats at greater latitudes.
Many species may have <strong>the</strong>ir diapause strategies
disrupted as <strong>the</strong> linkages between temperature, moisture
regimes <strong>and</strong> day length will be altered. Genetic variation
<strong>and</strong> multi‐fac<strong>to</strong>r inheritance of innate recognition of
environmental signals may mean that many insect
species will have <strong>to</strong> adapt readily <strong>to</strong> such disruption.
Long‐term moni<strong>to</strong>ring of population levels <strong>and</strong> insect
behavior, particularly in identifiably sensitive regions,
may provide some of <strong>the</strong> first indications of a biological
response <strong>to</strong> climate change. The relationship between
crop protection costs <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> resulting benefits will also
change as a result of global warming <strong>and</strong> climate change.
This will have a major bearing on economic thresholds, as
greater variability in climate will result in variable impact
of pest damage on crop yields. Host‐plant resistance,
bio‐pesticides, natural enemies <strong>and</strong> syn<strong>the</strong>tic chemicals are
some of <strong>the</strong> potential options for integrated pest
management. However, <strong>the</strong> relative efficacy of many of
<strong>the</strong>se pest control measures is likely <strong>to</strong> change as a result
of global warming. These changes will have major
implications for crop protection <strong>and</strong> food security,
particularly in developing countries, where <strong>the</strong> need <strong>to</strong>
increase <strong>and</strong> sustain food production is most urgent.
Therefore, <strong>the</strong>re is a need <strong>to</strong> assess <strong>the</strong> efficacy of various
pest management technologies under diverse
environmental conditions, <strong>and</strong> develop appropriate
strategies for pest management <strong>to</strong> mitigate <strong>the</strong> adverse
effects of climate change.
Calcium sensing recep<strong>to</strong>r regulates
endogenous H 2 S <strong>to</strong> inhibit smooth muscle
cell proliferation in diabetic rats
Weihua ZHANG
Harbin Medical University, Harbin 150081, China. Email:
zhangwh116@hotmail.com
Aim: The calcium sensing recep<strong>to</strong>r (CaR) belongs <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
G‐protein coupled recep<strong>to</strong>r, which activates <strong>the</strong> PLC
pathway, leading <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> increase of intracellular calcium
concentration. Hydrogen sulphide (H 2 S) is generated
from L‐cysteine in reactions catalyzed by
cystathionine‐γ‐lyase (CSE), which is responsible for <strong>the</strong>
H 2 S production in <strong>the</strong> cardiovascular system. CSE is <strong>the</strong>
calcium‐dependent regulation enzyme. Diabetic <strong>and</strong> its
associated complications are major known health
disorders, <strong>and</strong> diabetes mellitus promotes smooth
muscle cells proliferation in arteries. However, its
mechanisms are unclear. The goal of <strong>the</strong> current study
was <strong>to</strong> investigate CaR regulating <strong>the</strong> expression of CSE
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> interaction with CaR <strong>and</strong> CSE on smooth muscle
cells proliferation in diabetic rat mesenteric artery.
Method: Diabetic rats were induced by STZ
(strep<strong>to</strong>zocin, 50 mg/kg, blood glucose >16.7 µM/L
after 72 h classified model rats) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> daily
administration of 60 µM NaHS (sodium hydrosulfide, an
H 2 S donor) in <strong>the</strong> diabetic + NaHS treatment group. At
<strong>the</strong> end of 4, 8 <strong>and</strong> 12 weeks, <strong>the</strong> morphological
alterations (transmission electron microscopy,
hemo<strong>to</strong>xylin eosin <strong>and</strong> Masson staining of mesentery
artery in control group, diabetic group <strong>and</strong> diabetic +
NaHS treatment group), <strong>the</strong> effect of NaHS <strong>and</strong> CaR
activa<strong>to</strong>r (Calindol) on <strong>the</strong> tension of mesentery
secondary artery loop <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> expression of CaR, CSE,
Cyclin D1 were observed, respectively.
Results: HE staining shows that intima of artery
thicken in 8w <strong>and</strong> 12w diabetic rats, Masson staining
shows collagen of perivascular impaired <strong>and</strong> TEM
observed <strong>the</strong> smooth muscle cell proliferation,
endo<strong>the</strong>lial cells impaired <strong>and</strong> internal elastic lamina
dissolution, <strong>the</strong> changes have modified after NaHS
treatment. Compared <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> control group, <strong>the</strong> tension
of mesentery secondary artery loop in <strong>the</strong> diabetic
groups significantly decreased (4w: 13.2%, 8w:
13%,12w: 10.3%, P

GdCl3 (4w: 6.5%, P>0.05 diabetic, 8.3%; 8w: 13.1%,
P

e applied <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> description of <strong>the</strong>se changes. This
paper will elaborate in detail around <strong>the</strong>se new
criterions, <strong>and</strong> some examples will be provided.
Climate <strong>and</strong> irrigation affect <strong>the</strong> population
dynamics of Chinese striped hamster in
North China Plain
Chuan YAN
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Integrated Management on Pest Insects
<strong>and</strong> Rodents in Agriculture, Institute of Zoology, CAS, Beijing
100101, China. Email: yanch1985@gmail.com
Climatic (extrinsic) fac<strong>to</strong>rs may interact with
density‐dependent (intrinsic) fac<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>to</strong> alter long‐term
population dynamics, yet investigation of how
anthropogenic disturbance modifies such dynamics is
lacking. We investigated <strong>the</strong> effects of density dependence,
climate, recurrent disturbance from flood irrigation <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong>ir interactions on <strong>the</strong> population dynamics of a
common rodent pest, <strong>the</strong> Chinese striped hamster
(Cricetulus barabensis), over 27 years in <strong>the</strong> cropl<strong>and</strong>s of
<strong>the</strong> North China Plain. While warmer wea<strong>the</strong>r increased
population sizes in non‐breeding seasons, this effect was
counteracted by <strong>the</strong> negative effect of flood irrigation in
breeding seasons. Precipitation showed significant
positive effects in non‐breeding seasons, but negative
effects in breeding seasons. There were important
interactions between intrinsic dynamics, climate <strong>and</strong>
anthropogenic disturbance: low temperature significantly
increased <strong>the</strong> strength of density dependence in
non‐breeding seasons, whereas intensification of flood
irrigation area significantly increased <strong>the</strong> strength of
density dependence but reduced <strong>the</strong> effect of summer
precipitation in breeding seasons. Overall climate
change is expected <strong>to</strong> increase population levels, but
anthropogenic disturbance from flood irrigation will help
<strong>to</strong> prevent long‐term population increases. The
interactions between anthropogenic disturbance <strong>and</strong>
both intrinsic <strong>and</strong> extrinsic fac<strong>to</strong>rs caution that we need
<strong>to</strong> consider anthropogenic disturbance as an integral
component of population responses <strong>to</strong> climate change.
Climate change influences on trophic
interactions that affect breeding bird <strong>and</strong>
plant communities
Thomas E MARTIN
University of Montana, Montana, USA. Email:
<strong>to</strong>m.martin@umontana.edu
The contribution of climate change <strong>to</strong> declining
populations of organisms remains a question of
outst<strong>and</strong>ing concern. Much attention <strong>to</strong> declining
populations has focused on how changing climate
drives phenological mismatches between animals
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir food. Effects of climate on plant
communities may provide an alternative, but
particularly powerful, influence on animal
populations because plants provide habitats. Here,
we show that <strong>the</strong> abundance of deciduous trees <strong>and</strong>
associated songbirds have declined with decreasing
snowfall over 22 years of study in montane Arizona,
USA. We experimentally tested <strong>the</strong> hypo<strong>the</strong>sis that
declining snowfall indirectly influences plants <strong>and</strong>
associated birds by allowing greater over‐winter
herbivory by elk (Cervus canadensis). We excluded
elk from one of 2 paired snowmelt drainages (10
ha/drainage), <strong>and</strong> replicated this paired experiment
across 3 distant canyons. Over 6 years, we
reversed multi‐decade declines in plant <strong>and</strong> bird
populations by experimentally inhibiting heavy
winter herbivory associated with declining
snowfall. Moreover, predation rates on songbird
nests decreased in exclosures, despite higher
abundances of nest preda<strong>to</strong>rs, demonstrating <strong>the</strong>
over‐riding importance of habitat quality <strong>to</strong> avian
recruitment. Thus, our results suggest that climate
impacts on a plant–animal interaction can have
forceful ramifying effects on plants, birds <strong>and</strong>
ecological interactions.
Clostridium <strong>the</strong>rmocellum 27405
harbouring increased copy numbers of
β­glucosidase a significantly increases
cellulase expression
WenshengQIN
Lakehead University, 955 Oliver Road, Thunder Bay,
Ontario P7B 5E1, Canada. Email:
wenshengqin@yahoo.com
44

The anaerobic, <strong>the</strong>rmophilic <strong>and</strong> ethanogenic
bacterium Clostridium <strong>the</strong>rmocellum has great
potential for consolidated bioprocessing (CBP) <strong>to</strong>
make a more cost effective production of biofuels.
However, its application is still hindered by obstacles
such as end‐product inhibition. In this study, <strong>the</strong> copy
number of β‐glucosidase A (bglA) in C. <strong>the</strong>rmocellum
27405 was increased by expression from shuttle
vec<strong>to</strong>r pIBglA in attempts <strong>to</strong> increase cellulase
production <strong>and</strong> ethanol titre by lowering <strong>the</strong>
end‐product inhibition of cellulose. Using a modified
electrotransformation pro<strong>to</strong>col C. <strong>the</strong>rmocellum
transformant (+MCbglA) harbouring pIBglA was
successfully produced. The β‐glucosidase activity of
+MCbglA was 2.3‐ <strong>and</strong> 1.6‐fold greater than wild‐type
(WT) during late log <strong>and</strong> stationary phases of growth.
Similarly, <strong>to</strong>tal cellulase activity of +MCbglA was
shown <strong>to</strong> be 1.7‐, 2.3‐ <strong>and</strong> 1.6‐fold greater than WT
during, log, late log <strong>and</strong> stationary phases of growth.
However, <strong>the</strong>re was no significant correlation found
between increased cellulase production <strong>and</strong> increased
ethanol titres for +MCbglA compared <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> WT. We
suggest <strong>to</strong>xic end‐products (i.e. ethanol, actetate <strong>and</strong>
lactate) interfere with increased ethanol production.
None<strong>the</strong>less, we successfully increased <strong>to</strong>tal cellulase
activity by increased expression of bglA <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>reby
increased <strong>the</strong> productivity of C.<strong>the</strong>rmocellum during
<strong>the</strong> hydrolysis stage in CBP. Our work may also lend
insights in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> complex metabolism of
C.<strong>the</strong>rmocellum for future improvement of this strain
in ethanol production.
Conservation of high altitude biodiversity at
<strong>the</strong> battlefield of India
Aishwarya MAHESHWARI
WWF‐India, 172‐B, Lodi Estate, New Delhi 110003, India. Email:
amaheshwari@wwfindia.net
First base‐line surveys were conducted in Kargil, Ladakh
<strong>to</strong> document <strong>the</strong> occurrence <strong>and</strong> distribution of large
carnivores <strong>and</strong> presence of snow leopard confirmed from
<strong>the</strong> battlefield of India. Direct sightings were made of
snow leopard (n=1) <strong>and</strong> Tibetan wolf (n=2) <strong>and</strong>
associated species. Along 13 transects, habitat use by
<strong>the</strong>se carnivores was assessed through direct <strong>and</strong>
indirect evidence. Snow leopard used <strong>the</strong> eastern aspect
(n=11) significantly more (χ² = 9.18, P< 0.05) than
nor<strong>the</strong>rn (n=2) <strong>and</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn (n=3). The eastern aspect
was found significantly different. Very broken terrain
(n=13) was used more than smooth (n=2) <strong>and</strong> level
surface (n=1); <strong>and</strong> this difference was significant (χ² =
16.73, P< 0.05). The steep slopes (n=11) were used
more than middle (n=3) <strong>and</strong> lower (n=2). There was a
significant difference in <strong>the</strong> use of various slopes (χ² =
7.67, P< 0.05). Habitat use by Tibetan wolf was assessed
<strong>and</strong> found that <strong>the</strong>re was no significant difference in
<strong>the</strong> use of aspect (χ² = 2.43, P> 0.05). Similarly, <strong>the</strong>re
was no significant difference in use of various
l<strong>and</strong>forms i.e. not significant (χ² = 4.5, P> 0.05). Even
use of various slopes was not found significantly
different (χ² = 2.32, P> 0.05). Eight vantage points were
selected for estimating abundance of prey species;
overall density estimated 0.09/km² for Asiatic ibex <strong>and</strong>
for Ladakh urial 0.06/km² in areas surveyed of Kargil.
Cy<strong>to</strong>genetic assessment of cancer risk in
oral pre­malignant lesions of smokeless
<strong>to</strong>bacco users
Ch<strong>and</strong>irasekar RAMACHANDRAN
Department of Zoology Bharathiar University Coimba<strong>to</strong>re
641046, India. Email: genech<strong>and</strong>ru@gmail.com
Tobacco use is one of <strong>the</strong> leading <strong>and</strong> preventable
causes of morbidity <strong>and</strong> mortality in <strong>the</strong> world. It is
estimated that around 4.9 million deaths occur annually
due <strong>to</strong> <strong>to</strong>bacco, <strong>and</strong> expected <strong>to</strong> rise about 10 million by
2030. It substantiates that <strong>to</strong>bacco will cause more
deaths in <strong>the</strong> next 30 years than malaria, tuberculosis,
maternal <strong>and</strong> major childhood diseases all <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r,
<strong>to</strong>bacco‐related deaths are expected <strong>to</strong> occur in <strong>the</strong>
developing countries. Tobacco chemicals are <strong>to</strong>xic <strong>to</strong>
DNA that plays a key role in initiation <strong>and</strong> promotion of
oral cancer. We analyzed <strong>the</strong> cy<strong>to</strong>genetic <strong>and</strong> gene
polymorphism in <strong>the</strong> smokeless <strong>to</strong>bacco users <strong>and</strong>
associated it with cy<strong>to</strong>genetic parameters.
Underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> biology of oral carcinogenesis using
premalignant lesions will yield important advances for
detecting high‐risk patients, moni<strong>to</strong>ring preventive
interventions <strong>and</strong> assessing cancer risk. The result of
our study revealed that <strong>to</strong>bacco users displayed varied
45

levels of elevated chromosomal damage <strong>and</strong>
micronucleated cells than non‐<strong>to</strong>bacco users. The
variation in <strong>the</strong> extent of genetic damage was dependent
on <strong>the</strong> duration of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>bacco use. The results of this
study show that while both <strong>to</strong>bacco chewers <strong>and</strong> exhibit
elevated chromosomal damage, although differences exist
in <strong>the</strong> type of aberrations. Results of cy<strong>to</strong>genetic <strong>and</strong>
molecular analyses will be correlated for effective
identification of potential targets in oral cancer
progression pathway from pre‐malignancy <strong>to</strong> malignancy
that can be interpreted for potential biomarker discovery.
De novo transcrip<strong>to</strong>me sequencing <strong>and</strong>
characterization of Chinomantes dehaani
P<strong>and</strong>a Da PAN
Jiangsu Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 1 Wenyuan
Road, Nanjing 210046, China. Email: p<strong>and</strong>a12354@sina.com
Brachyura comprises 7,000 extant species, constituting
<strong>the</strong> largest group of Decapoda, yet few transcrip<strong>to</strong>mic
data are available in public database <strong>and</strong> lack of genomic
resource. In <strong>the</strong> present study, we sequenced <strong>the</strong>
transcrip<strong>to</strong>me of Chinomantes dehaani, which is one of
<strong>the</strong> dominant burrowing macro‐benthos in salt marsh of
Yangtze estuary. More than 62 million raw sequencing
reads were generated using Illumina sequencing platform
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>n assembled in<strong>to</strong> 102019 unigenes with a mean
length of 469 nt. By using BLAST (E‐value≤1.0E‐5)
against <strong>the</strong> known proteins, a <strong>to</strong>tal of 33458 (32.80%)
unigenes were annotated. Of <strong>the</strong>se annotated unigenes,
9242 <strong>and</strong> 11244 unigenes were assigned <strong>to</strong> Gene
On<strong>to</strong>logy (GO) <strong>and</strong> Clusters of Orthologous Group (COG),
respectively. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, 14663 perfect simple
sequence repeats (SSRs) were detected in all unigenes.
Within <strong>the</strong> searched SSRs, di‐nucleotide repeat was <strong>the</strong>
most abundant type (8153, 55.6%). These SSRs will
provide valuable markers for fur<strong>the</strong>r researches on
phylogeography. O<strong>the</strong>rwise, we found a number of highly
expression genes which playing essential roles in
osmoregula<strong>to</strong>ry processes. Our data provide <strong>the</strong> most
comprehensive transcrip<strong>to</strong>me resource available for <strong>the</strong>
study of C. dehaani.
Developing undergraduate quantitative
biology courses <strong>to</strong> augment postgraduate
enrollment in bioinformatics <strong>and</strong>
computational Biology: efforts <strong>to</strong>wards a
plausible model for Africa
Lorna HOLTMAN
Postgraduate Studies, University of <strong>the</strong> Western Cape, South
Africa. Email: lholtman@uwc.ac.za
African researchers have recognized <strong>the</strong> need <strong>to</strong>
develop bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> computational biology
expertise <strong>to</strong> support research in neglected tropical
diseases <strong>and</strong> agriculture. The Human Heredity <strong>and</strong>
Health in Africa (H3Africa) project supported by <strong>the</strong>
National Institutes of Health <strong>and</strong> Wellcome Trust seek
<strong>to</strong> provide up‐<strong>to</strong>‐date platforms <strong>to</strong> enable African
biomedical scientists gain insight in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> genomics
<strong>and</strong> environmental determinants of prevalent diseases
<strong>to</strong> aid in discovering potential diagnosis <strong>and</strong> treatment
for African diseases. To support <strong>the</strong>se goals, sufficient
African investiga<strong>to</strong>rs need <strong>to</strong> be trained with <strong>the</strong>
requisite skills <strong>and</strong> competence <strong>to</strong> undertake effective
bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> computational biology research
comparable <strong>to</strong> world‐class st<strong>and</strong>ards. Notable
academic bodies such as <strong>the</strong> South African National
Bioinformatics Institute, erstwhile National
Bioinformatics Network of South Africa, African
Institute for Ma<strong>the</strong>matical Sciences, European
Bioinformatics Institute, World Health Organization,
African Society for Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> Computational
Biology <strong>and</strong> International Society for Computational
Biology have contributed significantly <strong>to</strong>wards <strong>the</strong>
development of Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> Computational
Biology skills in Africa. It appears much emphasis has
been placed on postgraduate ra<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>the</strong>
undergraduate level of studies. Even though some
universities offer bioinformatics related undergraduate
modules, it appears <strong>the</strong>se modules do not equip
undergraduate students with sufficient quantitative
biology skills suitable for enrolment in postgraduate
studies in Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> Computational Biology.
Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, most already existing Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong>
Computational Biology related undergraduate modules
probably do not entice many students <strong>to</strong> pursue
fur<strong>the</strong>r postgraduate studies or careers in
46

computational biology. Herein, we report on various
efforts geared <strong>to</strong>wards designing a potential model as
part of strategies for incorporating quantitative biology
modules in<strong>to</strong> undergraduate life science. Some of <strong>the</strong>se
include employing ma<strong>the</strong>matical methods underlying
bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> computational biology <strong>to</strong>ols <strong>and</strong>
software applications, as well as simple ma<strong>the</strong>matical
algorithms that constitute <strong>the</strong> core of systems biology
fundamental <strong>to</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> pathophysiology of
diseases.
DNA barcoding technology: an ongoing
molecular <strong>to</strong>ol for biological studies
Nancai PEI
using a resolved barcode phylogeny, ra<strong>the</strong>r than a
poorly‐resolved phylogeny. The excellent performance
of rapid identification, resolved‐phylogeny
reconstruction <strong>and</strong> powerful ecological interpretation
indicate that DNA barcode technology is potentially
qualified as an effective <strong>to</strong>ol for current biological
studies.
Early radiation of Mollusca
Pavel Yu PARKHAEV
Borissiak Paleon<strong>to</strong>logical Institute of <strong>the</strong> Russian Academy of
Sciences, Profsoyuznaya 123, Moscow 117647, Russia. Email:
pparkh@paleo.ru
Research Institute of Tropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of
Forestry, #682 Guangshan Road 1, Tianhe, Guangzhou 510520,
China. Email: nan‐caipei@scib.ac.cn
Molecular <strong>to</strong>ols play an important role when processing
<strong>the</strong> data <strong>and</strong> obtaining results for biological studies. DNA
barcoding, a kind of newly developed molecular
technology, aims <strong>to</strong> discriminate biological species by
utilizing a short universal gene sequence taken from a
st<strong>and</strong>ardized portion of <strong>the</strong> genome. Besides <strong>the</strong> ability of
species’ correct identification, DNA barcoding can work
as <strong>the</strong> founder <strong>to</strong> discover potentially new species,
especially un‐described <strong>and</strong> cryptic species. Toge<strong>the</strong>r
with traditional taxonomy, DNA barcoding, providing with
a huge amount of molecular sequence data, emerges a
modern discipline named integrative taxonomy. Based on
<strong>the</strong> DNA barcode sequence data, a resolved phylogeny can
be obtained by adopting a combination comprising of
genes with slow evolving rates (as <strong>the</strong> Anchor) <strong>and</strong> genes
with fast evolving rate (as <strong>the</strong> Identifier). Fur<strong>the</strong>r,
benefiting from <strong>the</strong> resolved phylogeny, phylogenetic
diversity for biological communities across large spatial
scales can be computed accurately than before.
Better‐resolved phylogenies, based on a matrix of
multi‐loci DNA barcodes, can increase <strong>the</strong> power when
interpreting <strong>the</strong> observed patterns in <strong>the</strong> biological
communities, <strong>and</strong> can decrease <strong>the</strong> probability of type II
statistical errors often happened when a poorly‐resolved
phylogeny present. Much previously published literature
has detected significantly phylogenetic structure both in
tropical forest plots <strong>and</strong> subtropical forest plots when
The phylum Mollusca is one of <strong>the</strong> largest metazoan
group including approximately 130 000 nominal recent
<strong>and</strong> 70 000 nominal extinct species. In addition <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
high taxonomic diversity, molluscs are characterized by
a number of different bauplans. Molluscs dwell in
almost all types of habitats, occupying variable
ecological niches in all range of marine <strong>and</strong> freshwater
basins, <strong>and</strong> on <strong>the</strong> l<strong>and</strong>. Such diversity <strong>and</strong> ecological
success of <strong>the</strong> phylum were achieved during <strong>the</strong> long
evolution, lasting at least during <strong>the</strong> entire
Phanerozoic.
The earliest finds of undoubted molluscs come from
<strong>the</strong> terminal Precambrian (uppermost
Nemakin–Daldynian) – basal Cambrian (lowermost
Tommotian). The Vendian soft‐bodied animal
Kimberella, recently declared as molluscan ances<strong>to</strong>rs,
has principle ethologic <strong>and</strong> structural differences,
hence representing different animal phylum, but not
Mollusca. Studies of ancient molluscs reveal important
data for general <strong>and</strong> evolutionary malacology, shedding
<strong>the</strong> light on <strong>the</strong> earliest diversification <strong>and</strong> evolution of
major branches of <strong>the</strong> phylum. As a result, we can
affirm <strong>the</strong> following peculiarities of <strong>the</strong> earliest
molluscan radiation:
(1) The oldest representatives of phylum appear just
below <strong>the</strong> Precambrian–Cambrian boundary. The
classes Monoplacophora, Polyplacophora,
Gastropoda, <strong>and</strong> Bivalvia have been formed already
in <strong>the</strong> earliest Cambrian. O<strong>the</strong>r classes, Cephalopoda
<strong>and</strong> Scaphopoda, have originated later, by <strong>the</strong> Late
47

Cambrian–Early Ordovician, aplacophorans appeared
in <strong>the</strong> Silurian.
(2) Gastropods were <strong>the</strong> most morphologically variable
<strong>and</strong> systematically diverse group of univalved
Cambrian molluscs.
(3) The major part of Cambrian gastropods was
represented by a monophyletic subclass
Archaeobranchia, which was a ‘base’ for fur<strong>the</strong>r
evolution of <strong>the</strong> class Gastropoda, being <strong>the</strong> ances<strong>to</strong>r
of <strong>the</strong> larger gastropod branches.
Effective biodiversity conservation
challenges in Africa: a case of East Africa
Raymond KATEBAKA
African Union of Conservationists, PO Box 5068, Kampala,
Ug<strong>and</strong>a. Email: rkatebaka@afruc.org
The need <strong>to</strong> support current human needs in <strong>the</strong>
contemporary world places multiple <strong>and</strong> often competing
dem<strong>and</strong>s on ecosystems. Despite significant
environmental change, Africa still has a considerable,
significant s<strong>to</strong>re of biodiversity. However, <strong>the</strong> challenges
<strong>to</strong>day are key in promoting sustainable natural resource
use <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> ensure that <strong>the</strong> rate of extraction, including
development process, remains within <strong>the</strong> limits of
sustainability. Strategies <strong>to</strong> ensure sustainability may rely
on a combination of protection strategies including
protected areas <strong>and</strong> conservation measures within in situ
<strong>and</strong> ex situ. Governance affects within <strong>the</strong> institutional
frameworks in <strong>the</strong> East Africa region requires a coherent
approach <strong>to</strong> effective conserve biodiversity. Current
developments of non‐renewable resources increase
pressure on fragile ecosystems in <strong>the</strong>ir deposits. The
implementation of CBD is inadequate in <strong>the</strong> region.
There is a need <strong>to</strong> harmonize development requirements
with necessary legal regimes.
Environmental awareness <strong>and</strong> conservation
of biological resources in Egypt: a review of
moves <strong>to</strong> improve <strong>the</strong> ethical management
of our ecosystems
Hussein Samir SALAMA
National Research Centre, El‐bohos St, Dokki‐ Cairo, Egypt.
Email: hsarsalama@hotmail.com
During <strong>the</strong> past 3 decades, Egypt has paid increasing
attention <strong>to</strong> environmental issues at both official <strong>and</strong>
popular levels, aiming <strong>to</strong> improve ethical management
of our ecosystems <strong>and</strong> which are affected by many
fac<strong>to</strong>rs. The Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency
(EEAA) was established in 1980 <strong>to</strong> set national
environmental policies <strong>and</strong> see <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir implementation,
including conservation of biological resources <strong>and</strong>
natural heritage <strong>and</strong> preservation of genetic resources
of living species, animals or plants that are threatened
with extinction. Challenges <strong>to</strong> nature conservation are
caused by an absence of awareness which necessitates
raising <strong>the</strong> efficiency of environmental education. A
network of 27 protected areas or protec<strong>to</strong>rates
extending over 15% of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal area of Egypt was
established, encompassing over 20000 flora <strong>and</strong> fauna
species. Problems facing <strong>the</strong>se protec<strong>to</strong>rates <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir
management will be discussed. The introduction of
genetically modified (GM) crops is still limited, due <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> uncertainty about GM impact on <strong>the</strong> environment
<strong>and</strong> biodiversity. Few proposals have been reported <strong>to</strong>
raise <strong>the</strong> efficiency of <strong>the</strong> current management policy of
our ecosystems.
Epigenetic regulation of key developmental
genes: a genome­wide approach in <strong>the</strong>
medaka fish
Takeda HIROYUKI
Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science,
The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Email:
htakeda@biol.s.u‐<strong>to</strong>kyo.ac.jp; htakeda@iubs.org
In ES cells, ‘key developmental genes’ are marked by
specific modification called ‘bivalent’, co‐existence of
active (H3K4me) <strong>and</strong> repressive (H3K27me) his<strong>to</strong>ne
modifications. The bivalent state becomes univalent
(active or repressive) upon differentiation. Although
extensive researches have been conducted using ES
cells, in vivo evidence of this bivalency during early
vertebrate development is still limited. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, <strong>the</strong>
relationship between his<strong>to</strong>ne <strong>and</strong> DNA methylation has
not been well studied thus far. To clarify <strong>the</strong>se issues,
we performed <strong>the</strong> genome‐wide DNA methylome
analysis as well as ChIP‐seq analysis of H3K4me <strong>and</strong>
H3K27me using undifferentiated blastula‐stage
48

embryos of medaka fish. We found that most of <strong>the</strong>
genomic DNA is highly methylated but loci where H3K4
<strong>and</strong>/or H3K27 methylation occur are exceptionally
hypomethylated. Among <strong>the</strong>m, ~200 loci were found <strong>to</strong>
possess long DNA hypomethylated domain (>5kb) with
bivalent his<strong>to</strong>ne modifications. Interestingly, ~75 % of
genes of such loci are classified as key developmental
genes including transcriptional regula<strong>to</strong>rs such as
homeobox <strong>and</strong> T‐box genes. The subsequent analysis
using adult liver <strong>and</strong> muscle revealed that those key genes
are subject <strong>to</strong> DNA methylation, except for H3K4me‐rich
promoter regions, when actively transcribed. Our
time‐course data suggest that decrease in H3K27me
occurs first, prefiguring DNA methylation at later stages.
Toge<strong>the</strong>r with detailed examination on some specific
genes, we propose that key developmental genes are
regulated in a step‐wise manner throughout life, bivalent
<strong>and</strong> DNA hypomethylated state in undifferentiated early
embryos, his<strong>to</strong>ne‐modification‐dependent induction
during development <strong>and</strong> finally <strong>the</strong> maintenance of
transcription by DNA‐methylation after birth.
Evolution as a scientific <strong>the</strong>ory: evidence
from remarkable Chinese fossils
Zhonghe ZHOU
Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> Paleoanthropology, CAS,
Beijing, China. Email: Zhonghe@yeah.net;
zhouzhonghe@ivpp.ac.cn
When Darwin wrote On <strong>the</strong> Origin of Species(1859), <strong>the</strong>
fossil record was poorly sampled <strong>and</strong> largely incomplete,
yet <strong>the</strong> knowledge of paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> geology cultivated
in <strong>the</strong> nineteen century played a fundamental role in
affirming Darwin’s idea of evolution. In <strong>the</strong> 1930s–1940s,
Simpson brought paleon<strong>to</strong>logy in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> evolutionary
syn<strong>the</strong>sis that constitutes modern evolutionary <strong>the</strong>ory.
With strong scientific backing, he established <strong>the</strong> study of
large‐scale evolution, or macroevolution, distinct from
evolution in a general sense (or microevolution). Ano<strong>the</strong>r
major <strong>the</strong>oretical contribution by paleon<strong>to</strong>logists
occurred in <strong>the</strong> 1970s, when Aldridge <strong>and</strong> Gould
proposed <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>ory of punctuated equilibrium <strong>to</strong>
challenge <strong>the</strong> gradualism <strong>the</strong>ory of evolution.
Fossils provide <strong>the</strong> only direct evidence of <strong>the</strong> his<strong>to</strong>ry of
evolution. Fossils that fill <strong>the</strong>oretical evolutionary
intervals or gaps between existing taxa are often called
‘missing links’. In <strong>the</strong> 1850s, missing links were rare
<strong>and</strong> major gaps existed in <strong>the</strong> fossil record; however
<strong>to</strong>day, more than a century later, this is no longer <strong>the</strong>
case.
Fossil discoveries in <strong>the</strong> past 2 decades, particularly
from China, have greatly enriched our underst<strong>and</strong>ing of
<strong>the</strong> evolutionary tree of life <strong>and</strong> enhanced <strong>the</strong> evidence
in support of Darwin’s evolutionary <strong>the</strong>ory. Probably
most remarkable among <strong>the</strong>se discoveries are <strong>the</strong>
earliest vertebrates uncovered from <strong>the</strong> Early Cambrian,
<strong>the</strong> oldest <strong>and</strong> most primitive turtle from <strong>the</strong> Middle
Triassic, <strong>and</strong> four‐winged dinosaurs that are among <strong>the</strong>
closest relatives <strong>to</strong> birds. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, studies on
Chinese fossils have shed new light on major patterns of
biological radiation <strong>and</strong> extinction events during <strong>the</strong> last
500 million years.
The sudden appearance of advanced animals in <strong>the</strong>
Cambrian fossil record, known as ‘Darwin’s headache’,
can now be addressed through discoveries from various
early Cambrian <strong>and</strong> Precambrian lagerstätte; <strong>the</strong>
discovery of numerous flowered plants from <strong>the</strong> Early
Cretaceous also helps <strong>to</strong> explain Darwin’s ‘abominable
mystery’. Yet probably <strong>the</strong> most significant of <strong>the</strong>se
Chinese discoveries is <strong>the</strong> discovery of 160 million year
old fea<strong>the</strong>red dinosaurs that constitute perfect missing
links between birds <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir dinosaurian ances<strong>to</strong>rs.
One of <strong>the</strong>se important taxa is named Anchiornis huxleyi,
with its species name in honor of Huxley, Darwin’
bulldog, who was <strong>the</strong> first <strong>to</strong> propose <strong>the</strong> hypo<strong>the</strong>sis of
a dinosaurian origin of birds.
Evolution as a scientific <strong>the</strong>ory or fact, has withs<strong>to</strong>od
various challenges over <strong>the</strong> past 150 years; however,
<strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>ory itself is still evolving <strong>and</strong> probably can never
be called complete. While paleon<strong>to</strong>logy continues <strong>to</strong>
contribute evidence of <strong>the</strong> fact of evolution <strong>and</strong> elucidate
details of evolutionary his<strong>to</strong>ry, we remain a long way
from filling <strong>the</strong> gap between our underst<strong>and</strong>ing of
evolution on <strong>the</strong> micro‐ <strong>and</strong> macroevolutionary scale.
Evolvability in sequence space
Daniel L HARTL
Department of Organismic <strong>and</strong> Evolutionary Biology, Harvard
University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. Email:
dhartl@oeb.harvard.edu
49

The <strong>the</strong>rapeutic utility of most first‐line antimalarial
drugs has been compromised by <strong>the</strong> evolution of
resistance that is often associated with multiple amino
acid replacements in <strong>the</strong> target protein. Antifolate
antimalarials target <strong>the</strong> metabolic enzyme dihydrofolate
reductase (DHFR), part of a bifunctional enzyme needed
for <strong>the</strong> syn<strong>the</strong>sis of tetrahydrofolate used in purine <strong>and</strong>
amino acid biosyn<strong>the</strong>sis. We have studied evolutionary
pathways in <strong>the</strong> evolution of DHFR for resistance <strong>to</strong>
antifolates in <strong>the</strong> DHFR enzymes from
Plasmodiumfalciparum <strong>and</strong> P. vivax, <strong>the</strong> most widespread
<strong>and</strong> important malaria parasites in regard <strong>to</strong> public
health. Our approach is based on studies in which all
possible intermediates in <strong>the</strong> resistance pathway are
created by site‐directed mutagenesis <strong>and</strong> assayed for
<strong>the</strong>ir level of resistance. The resistance assays are carried
out in transgenic bacteria <strong>and</strong> yeast carrying <strong>the</strong> coding
sequence of <strong>the</strong> parasite DHFR. Evolutionary trajec<strong>to</strong>ries
are determined using probabilities of fixation based on
<strong>the</strong> relative levels of resistance. While different antifolates
target <strong>the</strong> active site of DHFR, <strong>the</strong> evolutionary l<strong>and</strong>scapes
for resistance are not congruent for different drugs. Nor
are <strong>the</strong> resistance l<strong>and</strong>scapes congruent for enzymes
from different species for <strong>the</strong> same drug. Our results bear
generally on mechanisms of protein evolution in
sequence space <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> ruggedness of evolutionary
l<strong>and</strong>scapes. They also help explain observed patterns of
DHFR polymorphism in natural populations <strong>and</strong> why <strong>the</strong>
most resistant forms of <strong>the</strong> parasite are confined <strong>to</strong> areas
of low malaria transmission. I will also describe <strong>the</strong>
‘morbidostat’, a new continuous‐culture device that
au<strong>to</strong>matically selects for ever‐increasing levels of
antibiotic resistance, <strong>and</strong> show how <strong>the</strong> morbidostat can
be used <strong>to</strong> measure <strong>the</strong> reproducibility of evolution in
sequence space.
Experiences in accessing biological
resources for non­commercial research:
results of an informal survey
Sylvia I MARTINEZ <strong>and</strong> Susette BIBER‐KLEMM
ABS program of <strong>the</strong> Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT), Bern,
Switzerl<strong>and</strong>. Email: sylvia.martinez@unibas.ch;
Susette.Biber‐Klemm@unibas.ch
After <strong>the</strong> adoption of <strong>the</strong> Bonn Guidelines in 2002 <strong>the</strong>
Swiss Academy of Science conceptualised <strong>and</strong> started a
programme on ABS awareness raising <strong>and</strong> capacity
building for <strong>the</strong> scientific community in Switzerl<strong>and</strong>.
During <strong>the</strong> first years many researchers complained
about <strong>the</strong> additional ABS formalities <strong>and</strong> that access for
non‐commercial research was becoming increasingly
difficult, if not impossible. In order <strong>to</strong> clarify <strong>the</strong> type of
problems <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir causes, a small series of qualitative
interviews was carried out in 2009 with researchers
who at <strong>the</strong> time were knowledgeable about <strong>the</strong> ABS
principles. Even if not representative, <strong>the</strong> results show a
broad array of experiences, starting from relatively
smooth processing of <strong>the</strong> request <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> ab<strong>and</strong>onment
of <strong>the</strong> research project due <strong>to</strong> processing or transaction
fee difficulties.
Our talk will analyse <strong>the</strong> positive <strong>and</strong> negative fac<strong>to</strong>rs
that had an impact on ABS procedures <strong>and</strong> relations. It
<strong>the</strong>n deduces what avenues <strong>and</strong> openings are available
for users <strong>and</strong> providers of genetic resources <strong>to</strong> help
mitigating conceivable problems. A specific focus will be
put on <strong>the</strong> role of <strong>the</strong> respective research communities.
We finally present reflections regarding <strong>the</strong>
implementation of <strong>the</strong> Nagoya Pro<strong>to</strong>col at national levels.
Here suggestions of how <strong>the</strong> academic community can
contribute <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> creation of frameworks that
incorporate concerns of both, providers <strong>and</strong> academic
non‐commercial research users, are put up for
discussion.
Exploring <strong>the</strong> impact of <strong>the</strong>
‘roof­of­<strong>the</strong>­world’ on <strong>the</strong> diversification of
Sou<strong>the</strong>ast Asian l<strong>and</strong> plants
Harald SCHNEIDER
Institute of Botany,CAS, Beijing, China. Email:
h.schneider@nhm.ac.uk
Orogenic events in <strong>the</strong> earth his<strong>to</strong>ry, e.g. mountain
formation, likely had a profound impact on <strong>the</strong>
assembly of biological diversity. For example, recent
studies on <strong>the</strong> biodiversity of South America recovered
strong evidence that <strong>the</strong> Cenozoic rise of <strong>the</strong> Andeans
triggered <strong>the</strong> rapid diversification of many lineages of
vascular plants. However, relatively little attention has
been given on <strong>the</strong> effect of <strong>the</strong> formation of <strong>the</strong>
50

oof‐of‐<strong>the</strong>‐world by <strong>the</strong> rise of <strong>the</strong> Himalaya triggered by
<strong>the</strong> collision of Indian tec<strong>to</strong>nic plate with <strong>the</strong> Eurasian
continent in <strong>the</strong> last 70 million years. Especially <strong>the</strong>
ra<strong>the</strong>r recent formation of <strong>the</strong> Qinghai–Tibetan plateau
had considerable impact on <strong>the</strong> monsoon climates <strong>and</strong>
thus impacted not only <strong>the</strong> evolution of plants adapted <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> alpine conditions in <strong>the</strong> high altitudes of <strong>the</strong> Himalaya
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> xeric habitats in central Asia but also plants
occurring in climatic regions with summer monsoon
climates. The hypo<strong>the</strong>sis of <strong>the</strong> impact of <strong>the</strong> rise of <strong>the</strong>
Himalaya on plant diversity in South East Asia is studied
using phylogenetic approaches incorporating divergence
time estimates, ancestral area reconstruction, inference of
niche evolution, <strong>and</strong> estimates of diversification rates.
The study of existing <strong>and</strong> newly generated phylogenetic
hypo<strong>the</strong>ses on several lineages of angiosperms ferns
recovered evidence supporting this hypo<strong>the</strong>sis of a
substantial impact on <strong>the</strong> assembly of lineage diversity
triggered by <strong>the</strong> rise of <strong>the</strong> Qinghai–Tibetan plateau.
However, <strong>the</strong> recovered patterns indicate <strong>the</strong>
involvement of different processes in <strong>the</strong> response <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Cenozoic mountain formations in South America <strong>and</strong>
South East Asia.
Foraging preferences of scatter­hoarding
rodents on tannin content in seeds
Bo WANG
tannin content is inconsistent across years, possibly
responding <strong>to</strong> confounding fac<strong>to</strong>rs in <strong>the</strong> community.
Experiment 2 proved that environmental fac<strong>to</strong>rs, such
as seed abundance <strong>and</strong> background tannin levels, have
no effect on <strong>the</strong> foraging behavior of rodents on tannin.
Experiment 3 proposed that a combination of seed
traits might be important, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> results demonstrated
that 2 key nutrient fac<strong>to</strong>rs, i.e. fat <strong>and</strong> protein, both
could attenuate <strong>the</strong> exclusion of seeds with higher
tannin concentrations by rodents, thus influencing seed
fate. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, aside from <strong>the</strong> concentrations of
tannin, fat, <strong>and</strong> protein, numerous o<strong>the</strong>r traits of plant
seeds may also influence rodent foraging behavior. The
mutualistic interaction between scatter‐hoarding
rodents <strong>and</strong> seed plants has co‐evolved for millions of
years. We suggest that by clarifying rodent foraging
preferences, a clear underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong> evolution of
plant seed traits may be obtained because of <strong>the</strong>ir strong
potential for selective pressure.
Forecasting sublethal impacts of climate
change in marine ecosystems: sometimes
<strong>the</strong> details make all <strong>the</strong> difference
Brian HELMUTH <strong>and</strong> Mackenzie ZIPPAY
Biological Sciences, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC,
USA.Email: zippay@environ.sc.edu
Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, CAS, Mengla, Yunnan
666303, China. Email: yangblue@xtbg.org.cn
The mutualistic interaction between scatter‐hoarding
rodents <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir seed plants is highly complex yet poorly
unders<strong>to</strong>od. Plants may benefit from <strong>the</strong> seed dispersal
behavior of rodents, as long as seed consumption is
minimized. Likewise, rodents may maximize foraging
efficiency <strong>and</strong> cache high‐quality resources for future
consumption. Defensive compounds, such as tannins, are
thought <strong>to</strong> be a major mechanism for plant control over
rodent behavior. However, previous studies, using
naturally occurring seeds, have not provided conclusive
evidence <strong>to</strong> support this hypo<strong>the</strong>sis. Here we test <strong>the</strong>
importance of tannin concentrations on <strong>the</strong>
scatter‐hoarding behavior of rodents by using an artificial
seed system for 3 consecutive experiments. Experiment 1
showed that rodent foraging behavior based on seed
An increasing body of research has demonstrated <strong>the</strong>
oftenidiosyncratic responses of organisms <strong>to</strong>
climate‐related fac<strong>to</strong>rs such as increases in air, sea‐ <strong>and</strong>
l<strong>and</strong>‐surface temperatures, especially when coupled
with nonclimatic stressors. This argues that sweeping
generalizations about <strong>the</strong> likely impacts of climate
change on organisms <strong>and</strong> ecosystems are likely less
valuable than process‐based explorations that focus on
key species <strong>and</strong> ecosystems. Mussels in <strong>the</strong> genus
Mytilus have been studied for centuries, <strong>and</strong> much is
known of <strong>the</strong>ir physiology <strong>and</strong> ecology. Like o<strong>the</strong>r
intertidal organisms, <strong>the</strong>se animals may serve as early
indica<strong>to</strong>rs of climate change impacts. As structuring
species, <strong>the</strong>ir survival has cascading impacts on many
o<strong>the</strong>r species, making <strong>the</strong>m ecologically important, in
addition <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir economic value as a food source.
Here we briefly review <strong>the</strong> categories of information
available on <strong>the</strong> effects of temperature change on
51

mussels within this genus. While a considerable body of
information exists about <strong>the</strong> genus in general, knowledge
gaps still exist, specifically in our ability <strong>to</strong> predict how
specific populations are likely <strong>to</strong> respond <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> effects of
multiple stressors, both climate‐ <strong>and</strong> non‐climate related,
<strong>and</strong> how <strong>the</strong>se changes are likely <strong>to</strong> result in
ecosystem‐level responses. Whereas this genus
provides an excellent model for exploring <strong>the</strong> effects of
climate change on natural <strong>and</strong> human‐managed
ecosystems, much work remains if we are <strong>to</strong> make
predictions of likely impacts of environmental change on
scales that are relevant <strong>to</strong> climate adaptation.
Fostering interdisciplinarity at <strong>the</strong> interface
of biology <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matics: lessons from a
national institute
Chris<strong>to</strong>pher WELSH
National Institute for Ma<strong>the</strong>matical <strong>and</strong> Biological Syn<strong>the</strong>sis
(NIMBioS), University of Tennessee, Suite 106, 1122 Volunteer
Blvd, Knoxville, TN 37996‐3410, USA. Email: cwelsh@utk.edu
Life science is an immense field with extensive
connections <strong>to</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r sciences <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matics. Despite
a long his<strong>to</strong>ry of efforts in ma<strong>the</strong>matical biology,
particularly in areas such as ecology <strong>and</strong> epidemiology,
<strong>the</strong> potential for ma<strong>the</strong>matics <strong>to</strong> contribute <strong>to</strong> both
<strong>the</strong>ory <strong>and</strong> practice across <strong>the</strong> broader life sciences has
only been recently coming <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> fore. As one effort <strong>to</strong>
encourage <strong>and</strong> foster new interdisciplinary connections,
<strong>the</strong> US National Science Foundation has supported an
Institute that brings <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> talents of <strong>to</strong>p
researchers from around <strong>the</strong> world <strong>to</strong> collaborate across
disciplinary boundaries <strong>to</strong> find creative solutions <strong>to</strong>
<strong>to</strong>day’s complex biological problems.
NIMBioS utilizes a team structure for Working Groups
that devote several meetings over a two year period <strong>to</strong>
address a significant fundamental or applied question.
Investigative Workshops <strong>and</strong> Tu<strong>to</strong>rials offer
shorter‐period broader discussion <strong>and</strong> training in active
research areas requiring biology <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matical
connections. The education <strong>and</strong> outreach program
promotes cross‐disciplinary approaches <strong>to</strong> science for
learners of all ages. I will describe some lessons from <strong>the</strong>
first few years of activities at this Institute.
Free bioinformatics resources at <strong>the</strong>
EMBL­EBI
Gabriella RUSTICI
EMBL‐EBI, Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, Hinx<strong>to</strong>n CB10
1SD, UK. Email: gabry@ebi.ac.uk
The European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) is an
academic research institute based in <strong>the</strong> UK, <strong>and</strong> is part
of <strong>the</strong> European Molecular Biology Labora<strong>to</strong>ry (EMBL).
EMBL‐EBI was established in 1994 <strong>and</strong> grew out of
EMBL’s commitment <strong>to</strong> making biological data <strong>and</strong>
information accessible <strong>to</strong> life scientists in all disciplines.
We serve <strong>the</strong> scientific community by providing
freely available bioinformatics resources, promoting
basic research, providing training <strong>to</strong> scientists at all
levels <strong>and</strong> disseminating cutting‐edge technologies <strong>to</strong>
industry.
We manage several large public databases containing
biological data <strong>and</strong> information spanning genomics,
proteomics, cheminformatics, transcrip<strong>to</strong>mics,
pathways <strong>and</strong> systems. We also create <strong>to</strong>ols that allow
researchers <strong>to</strong> analyse this information <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> upload
<strong>and</strong> share <strong>the</strong>ir work.
This talk will provide a broad introduction <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
EMBL‐EBI core data resources <strong>and</strong> an underst<strong>and</strong>ing of
when, why <strong>and</strong> how <strong>to</strong> use such resources.
Functional genomics of microalgal oil
production
Jian XU
Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy <strong>and</strong> Bioprocess Technology,
CAS, Qingdao, China. Email: xujian@qibebt.ac.cn
Microalgae are considered one of <strong>the</strong> most promising
feeds<strong>to</strong>cks of biodiesel. However, <strong>the</strong> genetic diversity,
variation <strong>and</strong> evolution of <strong>the</strong> microalgal traits relevant
<strong>to</strong> oil production remain ill defined. Answers <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>se
questions have obvious implications in developing
strategies or approaches of higher throughput,
sensitivity, accuracy <strong>and</strong> reproducibility for screening,
characterizing <strong>and</strong> engineering of crucial microalgal
traits. Nannochloropsis is a phylogenetic distinct genus
of small unicellular microalgae. Members of this group
52

have been found <strong>to</strong> be capable of rapid growth <strong>and</strong> robust
production of neutral lipids while supplied with flue gases
in large‐scale cultivations. In this talk, I will introduce a
Functional Phylo‐Genomics approach <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>and</strong>
engineer <strong>the</strong> genomic diversity, function <strong>and</strong> evolution of
microalgal oil production using Nannochloropsis as a
model. This effort is part of <strong>the</strong> international
collaboration on FUNGEA, or FUNctional Genomics of
Energy Algae.
Gas molecules <strong>and</strong> plant response <strong>to</strong> abiotic
stress
Wenhao ZHANG
Institute of Botany, CAS, 20 Nanxincun, Xiangshan, Haidian,
Beijing 100093, China. Email: whzhang@ibcas.ac.cn
The gas molecules of nitric oxide (NO), carbon
monoxide (CO) <strong>and</strong> hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) have been
established <strong>to</strong> be gasotransmitters in mammals. There
is emerging evidence demonstrating that <strong>the</strong>se
molecules are also involved in regulation of diverse
physiological processes in plants. In addition, <strong>the</strong> gas
molecule of ethylene is 1 of <strong>the</strong> 5 classical plant
hormones involved in modulation of numerous
physiological events in plants. In this talk I will
summarize <strong>the</strong> recent progress on <strong>the</strong> roles of <strong>the</strong>se
gas molecules <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir crosstalk in response of higher
plants <strong>to</strong> abiotic stress.
Genome­wide patterns of divergence during
sympatric speciation: a case study in two
wild rice species
Song GE
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Systematic <strong>and</strong> Evolutionary Botany,
Institute of Botany, CAS, Beijing 100093, China. Email:
gesong@ibcas.ac.cn
The genetic basis of speciation <strong>and</strong> adaptation <strong>to</strong> different
environments is a fundamental question in evolutionary
biology <strong>and</strong> remains largely unknown since Darwin.
Recent decade has witnessed significant advances in
studies of speciation <strong>and</strong> adaptive evolution using
sequencing technology. However, investigation on plant
speciation at genome level is scarce. Two wild rice
species, Oryza nivara<strong>and</strong> O. rufipogon, are sympatric
but distinct morphologically <strong>and</strong> ecologically despite
different opinions on <strong>the</strong>ir taxonomic status. Oryza
nivarais annual, pho<strong>to</strong>period insensitive, self‐fertilized,
<strong>and</strong> adapted <strong>to</strong> seasonally dry habitats, whereas O.
rufipogonis perennial, pho<strong>to</strong>period sensitive, largely
cross‐fertilized, <strong>and</strong> adapted <strong>to</strong> persistently wet habitats.
Thus <strong>the</strong>se 2 species are typically incipient species <strong>and</strong>
provide a unique opportunity <strong>to</strong> study speciation <strong>and</strong>
ecological adaptation at <strong>the</strong> whole genome scale. Here
we take <strong>the</strong> advantage of <strong>the</strong> high‐throughput
sequencing <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong> patterns of genomic
divergence between two wild rice species <strong>and</strong> identify
<strong>the</strong> genome regions or genes responsible for speciation
<strong>and</strong> adaptive differentiation. Based on <strong>the</strong>
re‐sequencing data with an average 2x‐10x coverages
for each of 10 individuals sampled from <strong>the</strong> two species,
we obtained 2.5 million SNPs for <strong>the</strong> 2 species. Using
population genomics approaches, we identified 4847
10‐kb windows (about 12.7% of <strong>the</strong> genome), which
showed significantly differentiated between two species.
Based on <strong>the</strong> criterion of over 10 significantly
differentiated <strong>and</strong> consecutive 10‐kb windows, we
fur<strong>the</strong>r characterized 67 genomic isl<strong>and</strong>s of divergence
(speciation isl<strong>and</strong>s) across 11 rice chromosomes,
consisting of 12.78 M (3.34% of <strong>the</strong> genome). The
speciation isl<strong>and</strong>s were fur<strong>the</strong>r confirmed by population
genetic analysis in which 60 genes sampled from within
<strong>and</strong> outside <strong>the</strong> isl<strong>and</strong>s were sequenced for 3 pairs of
natural populations of <strong>the</strong> two species. Interestingly,
<strong>the</strong>se speciation isl<strong>and</strong>s contained 843 predicted genes
(2.7% of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal genes in rice) that involve mainly
protein metabolic process, pollination, transport,
reproduction, cellular process, transcription, flower
development, regulation of gene expression, epigenetic.
Fur<strong>the</strong>r efforts by population genetics <strong>and</strong> functional
genomics approaches are under way. This study
demonstrates <strong>the</strong> power of next‐generation sequencing
for identifying potentially speciation isl<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong>
adaptive genes, which might provide new insights in<strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> genetic mechanisms underlying <strong>the</strong> differentiation
<strong>and</strong> adaption of two wild rice species <strong>and</strong> plant
speciation in general.
Genome­wide SNP polymorphism <strong>and</strong>
signature of natural selection in finless
53

porpoises: adaptive population divergence,
taxonomic implications, <strong>and</strong> conservation
recommendations
Guang YANG, Shuzhen LI, Shixia XU, Huirong
WAN, Heyi JI, Kaiya ZHOU
Jiangsu Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing
210046, China <strong>and</strong>Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Reproductive Medicine,
Department of Cell Biology <strong>and</strong> Medical Genetics, Nanjing
Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China. Email:
gyang@njnu.edu.cn
A <strong>to</strong>tal of 140 ideal SNPs were isolated from <strong>the</strong> finless
porpoise <strong>to</strong> conduct an evolutionary <strong>and</strong> conservation
study especially for addressing population genetic
structure <strong>and</strong> adaptive differentiation. Bayesian clustering
<strong>and</strong> PCA analyses all suggested that finless porpoises in
Chinese waters could be divided in<strong>to</strong> 3 distinct genetic
groupings, which provided some support ei<strong>the</strong>r for a
subdivision of 3 geographical populations/subspecies for
<strong>the</strong> finless porpoise, or for an identification of 2 species
recently suggested for <strong>the</strong> 2 finless porpoise forms
overlapping in <strong>the</strong> Taiwan Straits. Low levels of
within‐population genetic variation (mean H E = 0.3525,
SD = 0.1188) <strong>and</strong> significant differentiation among
populations (F ST values ranging from 0.0727 <strong>to</strong> 0.1358,
P

Environmental (conservation) education is recognized as
one of <strong>the</strong> processes that shall contribute individuals <strong>to</strong>
change, by acquiring essential knowledge <strong>and</strong> skills <strong>to</strong>
take positive action <strong>to</strong>wards a better environment,
especially regarding natural ecosystems. As new
environmental problems arise, conservation education
has <strong>to</strong> include <strong>the</strong>se new <strong>and</strong> future scenarios, <strong>the</strong>
science, <strong>the</strong> methods, <strong>the</strong> resources <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> technology,
<strong>to</strong> cope with <strong>the</strong> challenge. Thirty years after <strong>the</strong> first
time <strong>IUBS</strong> discussed <strong>and</strong> integrated Environmental
education in<strong>to</strong> its scope of work, we will review <strong>the</strong> state
of <strong>the</strong> art <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> challenges ahead.
species can be described within this century, <strong>and</strong> before
<strong>the</strong>y go extinct.
H 2 S acts an antioxidative role in delaying
maturation <strong>and</strong> senescence in plants
Shuaiping GAO, Shiping LI, Lanying HU,
Yanhong LI <strong>and</strong> Hua ZHANG
School of Biotechnology <strong>and</strong> Food Engineering, Hefei
University of Technology, Hefei 230009, China. Email:
zh<strong>and</strong>zhy@yahoo.com.cn
Global databases reveal progress in
discovering all species on Earth: will most
species be discovered before <strong>the</strong>y go
extinct?
Mark J COSTELLO
Leigh Marine Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, University of Auckl<strong>and</strong>, New Zeal<strong>and</strong>.
Email: m.costello@auckl<strong>and</strong>.ac.nz
Claims that taxonomists are in decline <strong>and</strong> tens of millions
of species remain <strong>to</strong> be discovered, have led <strong>to</strong> suggestions
that taxonomy is fruitless because most species will be
extinct before <strong>the</strong>y are described. The advent of
biodiversity informatics is enabling production of global
databases <strong>and</strong> associated statistics, <strong>and</strong> may be improving
efficiency <strong>and</strong> productivity in <strong>the</strong> process of discovering
life on Earth. Some recent results have been surprising,
such as <strong>the</strong> continued high rates of discovery of new
species in well‐studied geographic regions. More
statistically robust predictions of how many species may
exist on Earth have been in <strong>the</strong> range of 2–12 million, with
hyper‐estimates of tens of millions of species finding no
support. Estimates of extinction rates are now more
variable than estimates of species richness on Earth.
Evidence that <strong>the</strong>re are more taxonomists describing
species than ever before, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir numbers have been
increasing, have been more controversial. If <strong>the</strong>re really is
increased taxonomic effort, <strong>the</strong>n does this explain <strong>the</strong>
continued high rates of species discovery ra<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>the</strong>
ease with which new species may be found? This
presentation examines this evidence <strong>and</strong> its implications. It
concludes that with modest increase in effort that most
55
Accumulating evidence shows that hydrogen sulfide
(H 2 S) plays various physiological roles in plants, such as
seed germination, root organogenesis, abiotic stress
<strong>to</strong>lerance, <strong>and</strong> senescence of cut flowers. However,
whe<strong>the</strong>r H 2 S participates in <strong>the</strong> regulation of
maturation <strong>and</strong> senescence in plants remains unclear. In
<strong>the</strong> present work, cut flowers <strong>and</strong> postharvest fruits
were used as <strong>the</strong> experimental materials, <strong>the</strong> effects of
H 2 S on postharvest shelf life in fruits or vase life in cut
flowers were reviewed, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> mechanism of
antioxidant metabolism involving in H 2 S signal
regulation in plants was discussed. It showed that H 2 S
was involved in preventing senescence of cut flowers
<strong>and</strong> prolonging flower vase life in a wide spectrum of
botanical species including herbaceous <strong>and</strong> woody
plants. It also anticipated in delaying <strong>the</strong> ripening <strong>and</strong>
senescence in postharvest fruits, such as <strong>the</strong> strawberry
<strong>and</strong> pear. Fur<strong>the</strong>r investigation showed that H 2 S
maintained higher activities of antioxidant enzymes
such as catalase (CAT), guaiacol peroxidase (POD),
ascorbate peroxidase (APX), glutathione reductase (GR),
SOD <strong>and</strong> lower activities of lipoxygenase (LOX) relative
<strong>to</strong> untreated controls. H 2 S also reduced malondialdehyde
(MDA),hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) <strong>and</strong> superoxide anion
( • O 2− ) <strong>to</strong> levels below control plants. We interpret <strong>the</strong>se
data as indicating that H 2 S plays an antioxidant function
in prolonging vase life of cut flowers <strong>and</strong> delaying
postharvest shelf life of fruits. Its antioxidant role in
alleviating peroxidative damage induced by ROS
overproduction in plants might be a universal event.
Harvesting microalgae using bioflocculating
agents produced by Solibacillus silvestris
for efficient bioenergy production

Xinqing ZHAO, Chun WAN, Suolian GUO <strong>and</strong>
Fengwu BAI
Dalian University of Technology, School of Life Science <strong>and</strong>
Biotechnology, 2 Linggong Road, Dalian 116024, China. Email:
xqzhao@dlut.edu.cn
Microalgae have been used extensively as alternative raw
materials for bioenergy production. Some microalgae
strains accumulate high content of lipids or starch, <strong>and</strong>
are promising for biodiesel <strong>and</strong> bioethanol production.
However, economic production of microalgae products in
large scale is restricted by <strong>the</strong> high cost in cell recovery,
which normally has high energy requirements <strong>and</strong> capital
investment. Recovery of microalgae cells using
biodegradable microbial flocculent is a promising method
without energy costs or secondary contamination of
metals. In this study, a novel biflocculant producing
bacterial strain W01 was isolated from active sludge of
civil wastewater, <strong>and</strong> was identified as Solibacillus
silvestris. Culture broth of W01 showed excellent
flocculating ability on marine microalgae. The maximum
flocculation efficiency (90%) was obtained after
cultivation of W01 at 37°C for 48 h. The flocculation
efficiency of W01 retained stable without any addition of
metal ions. Anthrone reaction, carbazole‐sulfuric acid test
<strong>and</strong> Elson‐Morgen method were carried out for natural
sugar, uronic acid, <strong>and</strong> amino sugar content analyses
respectively, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Fourier‐transform infrared (FTIR)
spectrum of <strong>the</strong> purified bioflocculant indicated <strong>the</strong>
presence of hydroxyl, amino groups, peptide linkage <strong>and</strong>
ester linkage. The bioflocculant produced by W01 has <strong>the</strong>
potential <strong>to</strong> harvest microalgae for cost‐effective energy
production using microalgae.
Heavy metal stress­induced biological effects
<strong>and</strong> molecular mechanisms investigation
Lan WANG
Shanxi University, 92 Wucheng Road, Taiyuan 030006, China.
Email: angel198408@126.com
Many xenobiotics released by industries may exert
potentially adverse effects on aquatic organisms.
Cadmium (Cd) is one of <strong>the</strong> most deleterious heavy metals
in aquatic systems. To investigate Cd‐induced biological
effects <strong>and</strong> molecular mechanisms in freshwater
crustacean, freshwater crabs (Sinopotamon henanense)
were exposed <strong>to</strong> different concentrations of Cd for
different time. The relationship between tissue‐specific
Cd accumulation <strong>and</strong> metallothionein (MT) induction
was first investigated using <strong>the</strong> Cd saturation assay <strong>and</strong>
a<strong>to</strong>mic absorption spectropho<strong>to</strong>metry method. The
results showed that a positive correlation existed
between MT induction <strong>and</strong> Cd accumulation both in
hepa<strong>to</strong>pancrease <strong>and</strong> gill. Antioxidant defense system,
including glutathione (GSH), <strong>and</strong> enzymes such as
superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), <strong>and</strong>
glutathione peroxidase (GPx) <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r with lipid
peroxidation indica<strong>to</strong>r malondialdehyde (MDA) level
were <strong>the</strong>n determined. The results showed <strong>the</strong>se indices
were changed in a Cd‐concentration <strong>and</strong> ‐time manner,
<strong>and</strong> severe oxidative damage was observed. Lastly,
apop<strong>to</strong>tic changes were studied. Typical morphological
characteristic <strong>and</strong> physiological changes of apop<strong>to</strong>sis
were observed using a variety of methods (HE staining,
AO/EB doule fluorescent staining, Transmission Electron
Microscope observation <strong>and</strong> DNA fragmentation
analysis), <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> activities of caspase‐3 <strong>and</strong> caspase‐9
were assayed. The results showed Cd‐induced oxidative
stress can subsequently result in cell apop<strong>to</strong>sis. In
summary, during Cd exposure, MT induction <strong>and</strong>
antioxidant system play an important role as defensive
mechanism. With <strong>the</strong> increasing Cd accumulation <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> saturation of MT induction, <strong>the</strong> generation rate of
Cd‐induced cy<strong>to</strong><strong>to</strong>xic reactive oxygen species (ROS)
exceeds <strong>the</strong> antioxidative capacity, ROS could fur<strong>the</strong>r
activate apop<strong>to</strong>tic processes that may be mediated via
mi<strong>to</strong>chondria‐dependent apop<strong>to</strong>sis pathway by
regulating <strong>the</strong> activities of caspase‐3 <strong>and</strong> caspase‐9.
How does cadmium affect <strong>the</strong> oxygen
consumption of freshwater crab
Sinopotamon henanense
Ruijing XUAN, Hao WU <strong>and</strong> Lan WANG
School of Life Science, Shanxi University, 92 Wucheng Road,
Taiyuan 030006, China. Email: angel198408@126.com
Cadmium (Cd) is one of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>xic heavy metals in
aquatic systems that could interfere with <strong>the</strong> oxygen
56

consumption of crustaceans. To explore how Cd affects
<strong>the</strong> oxygen consumption of freshwater crab Sinopotamon
henanense, <strong>the</strong> crabs were exposed <strong>to</strong> 0.71, 1.42,
2.86mg/L Cd for three weeks. The oxygen consumption,
gill morphological changes, cardiac metabolism activity
(activity of isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) <strong>and</strong>
cy<strong>to</strong>chrome c oxidase (CCO), mRNA expression of CCO
active subunit 1 (cco­1)), cardiomyocyte ultrastructure
changes <strong>and</strong> ATP level were investigated. After exposure,
oxygen consumption was decreased at 2.86mg/L, which
partly resulted from profound gill structural changes. The
branchial epi<strong>the</strong>lial cells were necrosed, disorganized <strong>and</strong>
vacuolized. Ultrastructurally, decreased number of apical
microvilli, vacuolized mi<strong>to</strong>chondria <strong>and</strong> condensed
chromatin in gill epi<strong>the</strong>lial cells were observed. Cd
exposure also induced decreased IDH <strong>and</strong> CCO activity,
down‐regulation of cco­1 mRNA expression with <strong>the</strong> loss
of cardiomyocyte mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial membrane integrity,
suggesting <strong>the</strong> impaired cardiac metabolism activity.
Heart ATP level was lower than that in control. By
coupling morphological <strong>to</strong> physiological <strong>and</strong> biochemical
endpoints, this work provides new insights in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
mechanisms involved in metal <strong>to</strong>xicity <strong>and</strong> metabolism
impairment of S. henanenseexposed <strong>to</strong> Cd.
How rapid was <strong>the</strong> biggest biological mass
extinction during <strong>the</strong> Phanerozoic?
Permian‐Triassic boundary. To better constrain <strong>the</strong>
timing, <strong>and</strong> ultimately <strong>the</strong> causes of this event, we
collected a suite of geochronologic, iso<strong>to</strong>pic <strong>and</strong>
biostratigraphic data on tens of well‐preserved
Permian‐Triassic sections in South China <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
peri‐Gondwanan region. High‐precision U‐Pb dating
based on 29 volcanic ash layers <strong>and</strong> biodiversity pattern
pooled occurrence data of 4500 species in a large
geographic area reveal that <strong>the</strong> extinction interval was
less than 200000 years, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> extinction peak
occurred just before 252.28+/‐0.08 Ma <strong>and</strong> coincided
with a d13C excursion of about ‐5‰. It was
synchronous in marine <strong>and</strong> terrestrial realms;
associated charcoal‐rich <strong>and</strong> soot‐bearing layers
indicate widespread wildfires on l<strong>and</strong>. The
end‐Guadalupian biological crisis was ano<strong>the</strong>r less
pronounced event separated by a high‐diversity
interval more than 7 millions years long from <strong>the</strong>
end‐Permian mass extinction.
How <strong>to</strong> promote longevity: let H 2 S count <strong>the</strong>
way
Guangdong YANG
School of Kinesiology, Lakehead University, Canada. Email:
gyang@lakeheadu.ca
Shuzhong SHEN
Nanjing Institute of Geology <strong>and</strong> Palaeon<strong>to</strong>logy, 39 East Beijing
Road, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210008, China. Email:
szshen@nigpas.ac.cn
The end‐Permian mass extinction has been universally
documented as <strong>the</strong> biggest extinction during <strong>the</strong>
Phanerozoic <strong>and</strong> resulted in <strong>the</strong> extinction of 95%
marine species <strong>and</strong> 75% terrestrial species. In <strong>the</strong>
immediate aftermath <strong>the</strong> marine ecosystem was
prevailed by microbial <strong>and</strong> mono<strong>to</strong>nous communities
dominated by disaster taxa, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> whole recovery <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
pre‐extinction level <strong>to</strong>ok more than 5 million years.
Although it is <strong>the</strong> most intensively‐studied event, its
causes <strong>and</strong> patterns remain contentious yet. It has been
documented that <strong>the</strong> end‐Permian mass extinction was a
protracted event beginning from <strong>the</strong> end‐Guadalupian
about 8 million years before <strong>the</strong> end of Permian. By
contrast, some o<strong>the</strong>rs suggested that this event happened
within a very short time beginning just before <strong>the</strong>
57
H 2 S, <strong>the</strong> third member of <strong>the</strong> gasotransmitter family
along with nitric oxide <strong>and</strong> carbon monoxide, exerts a
wide range of actions in our body. H 2 S can be
endogenously produced by cystathionine gamma‐lyase
(CSE) <strong>and</strong> cystathionine beta‐synthase (CBS), <strong>and</strong> one
of <strong>the</strong> signaling mechanisms of H 2 S is post‐translational
modification of proteins through S‐sulfhydration.
Aging at <strong>the</strong> cellular level, known as cellular senescence,
can result from increases in oxidative stress. Here we
showed that mouse embryonic fibroblasts isolated from
CSE knockout mice (KO‐MEFs) displayed increased
oxidative stress <strong>and</strong> cellular senescence in comparison
with MEFs from wild‐type mice (WT‐MEFs) in a
passage‐dependent manner. Incubation of <strong>the</strong> cells
with NaHS (a well‐known H 2 S donor) significantly
increased glutathione level <strong>and</strong> rescued KO‐MEFs from
senescence. Short interfering‐mediated knockdown of
CBS also stimulated cell.

Human­otter symbiosis: an age­old
traditional conservation practice in
Bangladesh
Mohammad AZIZ
Department of Zoology, Jahangirnagar University, Savar, Dhaka
1342, Bangladesh. Email: maaziz78@gmail.com
Fishing with otters Lutra perspicillata demonstrates a
unique age‐old his<strong>to</strong>ry of a distinctive symbiosis <strong>and</strong>
exemplify a perfect traditional conservation practice in
Bangladesh. Otter‐fishing is a technique where otters are
used <strong>to</strong> chase fishes in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> adjacent deployed net. This
unique otter‐fishing has been <strong>the</strong> mainstay for a local
Malo community for <strong>the</strong> last 2 centuries, providing mutual
benefits <strong>to</strong> both counterparts. The daily average net
income from this otter‐fishing estimated as $6 per boat
help survive a family with mean size of 5.93±2.85 (range:
3–16; n=27). A significant portion (73%) of otter‐fishers
has no alternative income sources <strong>to</strong> sustain <strong>the</strong>ir family,
particularly during lean period of winter months while
very little or no opportunity for fishing exists. We
documented a <strong>to</strong>tal of 100 individuals of smooth‐coated
otter belong <strong>to</strong> 27 Malo families dispersed in 7 villages in
southwestern part of <strong>the</strong> country. Average population size
of this captive otters per family was estimated as
3.70±1.46 (range: 2–6; n=27). This community has been
able <strong>to</strong> successfully breed this otters over <strong>the</strong> centuries
passing <strong>the</strong> traditional knowhow from fa<strong>the</strong>r <strong>to</strong> sons.
This idiomatic relationship between human <strong>and</strong> otters
has been providing subsistence <strong>to</strong> about 250 fishers <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong>ir dependants directly while <strong>the</strong> later is conserved in a
semi‐captive condition despite drastic decline of wild
population throughout <strong>the</strong> country. However, future of
this long‐lasting relationship seems bleak with much
uncertainty because of unwillingness <strong>to</strong> carry on this
practice <strong>the</strong>se days by <strong>the</strong>ir descendants.
Hydrogen sulfide alleviates cadmium <strong>to</strong>xicity
in Arabidopsis thaliana
Yanxi PEI
College of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.
Email: peiyanxi@sxu.edu.cn
Hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) is an important gasotransmitter
in regulating cellular signaling processes. Cysteine
desulfhydrases (CDes) are mainly responsible for <strong>the</strong>
degradation of cysteine <strong>to</strong> produce H 2 S in plants. In <strong>the</strong>
present study, we evaluated <strong>the</strong> protective effect of H 2 S
against cadmium (Cd)‐induced oxidative stress in
Arabidopsis thaliana. The expression level of CDes <strong>and</strong>
H 2 S production was gradually increased as <strong>the</strong>
concentration of CdCl 2 increased. Prior <strong>to</strong> metal
exposure, seedlings pretreated with 50 μM NaHS as a
H 2 S donor significantly reversed <strong>the</strong> dry weight <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Cd‐induced increase in lipid peroxidation <strong>and</strong> decrease
in glutathione content in leaves. The hydrogen peroxide
<strong>and</strong> malondialdehyde contents were markedly increased
under Cd stress, but <strong>the</strong>se increases were reversed by
NaHS pretreatment. H 2 S prevented <strong>the</strong> Cd‐induced
decrease in glutathione reductase activity <strong>and</strong> increase
in superoxide dismutase activity <strong>and</strong> res<strong>to</strong>red catalase
activity.
Hydrogen sulfide functions downstream of
hydrogen peroxide in ethylene­induced
s<strong>to</strong>matal closure in Arabidopsis thaliana
Xin LIU
Email: liuxin6080@yahoo.com.cn
Hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) is a newly discovered signaling
molecule in plants <strong>and</strong> has caused increasing attention
in recent years but its function in s<strong>to</strong>matal movement is
unclear. In plants, H 2 S is syn<strong>the</strong>sized via cysteine
degradation catalyzed by L‐/D‐cysteine desulfhydrase
(L‐/D‐CDes). To determine <strong>the</strong> subcellular localization of
L‐/D‐CDes, transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana plants
over‐expressing AtL‐CDes <strong>and</strong> AtD‐CDes were
generated, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> results showed that AtL‐CDes is
located in <strong>the</strong> cy<strong>to</strong>plasm <strong>and</strong> AtD‐CDes is located in <strong>the</strong>
chloroplast. The transcription levels of AtL‐CDes <strong>and</strong>
AtD‐CDes were affected by <strong>the</strong> chemicals that causing
s<strong>to</strong>matal closure, indicating that <strong>the</strong> H 2 S generated from
L‐/D‐CDes plays a major role in inducing s<strong>to</strong>matal
closure. Meanwhile, H 2 S syn<strong>the</strong>tic inhibi<strong>to</strong>rs
significantly inhibited ethylene‐induced s<strong>to</strong>matal
closure in Arabidopsis. Ethylene treatment caused
increase of <strong>the</strong> H 2 S production <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> L‐/D‐CDes
activities in Arabidopsis leaves. L‐/D‐CDes
58

over‐expressing plants exhibited enhanced induction of
s<strong>to</strong>matal closure compared <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> wild‐type after ethylene
treatment, however, similar effect was not observed in <strong>the</strong>
Atl‐cdes <strong>and</strong> Atd‐cdes mutants. Moreover, H 2 S production,
AtL‐CDes, AtD‐CDes transcription level <strong>and</strong> L‐/D‐CDes
activities were not significantly affected in <strong>the</strong> H 2 O 2
production mutants Atpao2, Atpao4, AtrbohF <strong>and</strong> AtrbohD.
Our results <strong>the</strong>refore suggest that H 2 S functions
downstream of H 2 O 2 in ethylene‐induced s<strong>to</strong>matal closure
in Arabidopsisthaliana.
Insect invasions in Europe <strong>and</strong> vulnerability
of European tree species
Alain ROQUES
European trees. The sentinel trees included 5
broadleaved species (Quercuspetreae, Q. suber, Q. ilex,
Fagus sylvatica, <strong>and</strong> Carpinus betulae) <strong>and</strong> 2 conifers
(Abies alba <strong>and</strong> Cupressus semprevirens). A <strong>to</strong>tal of 99
insect species were observed <strong>to</strong> be capable of switching
on<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>se new hosts. Among <strong>the</strong>m, a <strong>to</strong>tal of 34
species showed more than 5 colonization events,
essentially infesting Q. petreae but also at a lower
extent Q. suber <strong>and</strong> C. betulae.
Integrated control of dengue vec<strong>to</strong>r by
Mesocyclops <strong>and</strong> Bacillus thuringiensis
from Lahore, Pakistan
Jahan NUSRAT
INRA Zoology Forestière, Orléans, France. Email:
alain.roques@orleans.inra.fr
Government College University, Lahore, Pakistan. Email:
jehan_n@hotmail.com
Data about <strong>the</strong> woody plant hosts of <strong>the</strong> alien insects
established in Europe was compiled from <strong>the</strong> DAISIE <strong>and</strong>
FORTHREATS European databases. They were analyzed
with regard <strong>to</strong> putative pathways (plants for planting vs
wood <strong>and</strong> wood derivates), plant taxonomy, invaded
environment, <strong>and</strong> time period in order <strong>to</strong> appreciate
possible changes in tree species susceptibility <strong>to</strong> invasion
with time.
The analysis revealed that <strong>the</strong> plant for planting
pathway is largely dominating as a source of alien insect
invasion in Europe during <strong>the</strong> last period, <strong>and</strong> a majority
of <strong>the</strong> introduced species originated from Asia. Large
differences are observed in <strong>the</strong> colonization of European
woody plant species by alien insects, citrus, palms,
Prunus, Picea, Acer<strong>and</strong> Eucalyptusbeing <strong>the</strong> most
colonized. However, <strong>the</strong> trend appeared <strong>to</strong> change with
time. Whereas <strong>the</strong> number of new species colonizing
native broadleaved, palm trees, tropical legumes <strong>and</strong>
eucalypts largely increased during 2000–2008, <strong>the</strong>
colonization of conifers <strong>and</strong> fruit trees appeared <strong>to</strong>
decrease in <strong>the</strong> same period. More precisely, <strong>the</strong> recent
increase in broadleaved colonization was due <strong>to</strong> a higher
switch of alien species on Fraxinus, Salix<strong>and</strong> Castanea.
Since <strong>the</strong> major part of <strong>the</strong> insect invaders has never
been intercepted by <strong>the</strong> European quarantine services,
sentinel plantings were established in China during
2008–2011 as an early warming method <strong>to</strong> test for <strong>the</strong>
potential of additional Asian insect species <strong>to</strong> colonize
The present study evaluated <strong>the</strong> preda<strong>to</strong>ry capacity <strong>and</strong>
efficacy of a local strain of copepod Mesocyclopsleuckarti
(M. leuckarti) <strong>and</strong> a bacterial strain
Bacillusthuringiensisisraelensis (Bti) for <strong>the</strong> control of
Aedes aegypti larvae. The main objective was <strong>to</strong> develop
a cost‐effective <strong>and</strong> environment friendly integrated
vec<strong>to</strong>r control model in Lahore, Pakistan. M. leuckarti
was collected from an artificial pond in <strong>the</strong> Lahore Zoo.
Single species culture was established in labora<strong>to</strong>ry.
Aedes aegypti reared in labora<strong>to</strong>ry were used <strong>to</strong>
evaluate <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>xic effect of Bti. Larval mortality was
evaluated singly <strong>and</strong> both with Bti +copepod in <strong>the</strong> field
using 4 litre containers for 10 weeks. M. leuckarti <strong>and</strong>
Bti showed 100% larval mortality during <strong>the</strong> first week
of field experiments when used singly, which declined <strong>to</strong>
94 <strong>and</strong> 64% in <strong>the</strong> following weeks up <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> week 5,
respectively. At <strong>the</strong> end of fifth week,Bti was not
effective <strong>to</strong> kill larvae <strong>and</strong> reapplication caused 80–91%
mortality by <strong>the</strong> end of week 10. In an integrated group
(M. leuckarti + Bti), larval mortality was 99.3% by <strong>the</strong>
end of week 5. Reapplication of Bti in this group during
sixth week caused 100% mortality, which remained
99.6% by <strong>the</strong> end of week 10. Therefore, an integrated
control was found <strong>to</strong> be an effective strategy for <strong>the</strong>
control of dengue vec<strong>to</strong>r in Pakistan.
59

Integration Operating System (IOS) ­ a
cutting­edge DNA recombination technology
Jianqun LING
Genloci Biotechnologies Inc., 301 Hanzhongmen St. NISOP, Bldg
01, Floor 13, Suite A, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. Email:
caijw@genloci.com
Modulation of gene expression may help discern <strong>the</strong> gene
function, characterize biological pathways <strong>and</strong> promote
our underst<strong>and</strong>ing of disease molecular mechanisms.
Conventionally, gene expression can be manipulated at
<strong>the</strong> RNA level, using RNA interfere technology (RNAi),
PNA <strong>and</strong> LNA, or at <strong>the</strong> DNA level, using homologous
recombination <strong>to</strong> achieve donor DNA knock out/in. These
techniques suffer from very low efficiency (10–6) in
mammalian somatic cells. Recently, Zinc Finger Nuclease
(ZFN) <strong>and</strong> TALEN technology provide a more efficient
way (1–20%) <strong>to</strong> manipulate target region, but exhibit
time‐consuming <strong>and</strong> off‐target effects.
Integration operating system (IOS) is a novel DNA
recombination technology, which employs: (1) a pair of
LNA oligos targeting <strong>to</strong> specific site in genome; (2) a DNA
construct containing target region; <strong>and</strong> (3) a vec<strong>to</strong>r
expressing specific recombinase. Co‐transfection <strong>the</strong>se
components in<strong>to</strong> a cell line, LNA oligos may induce DNA
configuration change at <strong>the</strong> target region of genome <strong>and</strong>
construct DNA, <strong>the</strong> recombinase can bind <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> regions
<strong>and</strong> cut <strong>the</strong> single str<strong>and</strong> region at <strong>the</strong> end, <strong>the</strong>n DNA
recombination induced by innate DNA repair machinery
<strong>to</strong> integrate <strong>the</strong> construct in<strong>to</strong> target region. IOS
technology have been tested <strong>to</strong> target several genes in
both alleles, achieving 100% gene silence, providing
higher site‐specific integration efficiency up <strong>to</strong> 30% in
less than one month. IOS kits can be used investigate gene
function, make stable cell lines produce protein, <strong>and</strong>
develop new gene <strong>the</strong>rapy strategies. RNAi technology for
gene knockdown <strong>and</strong> ZFN <strong>and</strong> TALEN technology for gene
knockout will be replaced, which may facilitate basic
research of functional genomics <strong>and</strong> drug development.
Interaction of hydrogen sulfide <strong>and</strong> estrogen
on smooth muscle cell proliferation
Hongzhu LI
Department of Pathophysiology, Harbin Medical University,
Harbin, China. Email: hongzhuli61@163.com
Hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) can be endogenously generated
from cystathionine gamma‐lyase (CSE) in
cardiovascular system, offering a cardiovascular
protection. It is also known that <strong>the</strong> lower risk of
cardiovascular diseases in female is partially attributed
<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> protective effect of estrogen. The current study
explores <strong>the</strong> interaction of H 2 S <strong>and</strong> estrogen on smooth
muscle cell (SMC) growth. In <strong>the</strong> present study, we
found that <strong>the</strong> proliferation of cultured vascular SMCs
isolated from wild‐type mice (WT‐SMCs) was inhibited,
but that from CSE gene knockout mice (CSE‐KO‐SMCs)
increased, by estrogen treatments. The expression of
estrogen recep<strong>to</strong>r α (ERα), but not ERβ, was
significantly decreased in CSE‐KO‐SMCs compared with
that in WT‐SMCs. Exogenously applied H 2 S markedly
increased ERα expression. In addition, <strong>the</strong> inhibition of
ER activation <strong>and</strong> knockdown of ERα expression in
WT‐SMCs or <strong>the</strong> overexpression of ERα in CSE‐KO‐SMCs
reversed <strong>the</strong> respective effects of estrogen on cell
proliferation. The expression of cyclin D1 was reduced
in WT‐SMCs but increased in CSE‐KO‐SMCs after
estrogen treatments, which was reversed by knockdown
of ERα in WT‐SMCs or overexpression of ERα in
CSE‐KO‐SMCs, respectively. The overexpression of
cyclin D1 in WT‐SMCs or knockdown of cyclin D1
expression in CSE‐KO‐SMCs reversed <strong>the</strong> effects of
estrogen on cell proliferation. These results suggest that
H 2 S mediates estrogen‐inhibited proliferation of SMCs
via selective activation of ERα/cyclin D1 pathways.
Interactions between hemoparasitesvec<strong>to</strong>rs
<strong>and</strong> wild birds
Santiago MERINO RODRIGUEZ
Consejo Superior Investigaciones, Museo Nacional de Ciencias
Naturales, Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, Madrid 28006, Spain.
Email: santiagom@mncn.csic.es
In field experiments we reduced through medication <strong>the</strong>
intensity of infection by Haemoproteus majoris in blue
tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), <strong>and</strong> demonstrated detrimental
effects of natural levels of infection by this parasite
species on host reproductive success, condition <strong>and</strong>
60

survival. In addition, we found that those birds infected by
more than one parasite genus were paler in colour than
those parasitized just by one indicating that
carotenoid‐based colours are indica<strong>to</strong>rs of health status in
blue tits.
On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r h<strong>and</strong>, although game<strong>to</strong>cyte sex ratios in
haemospororin parasites are usually female skewed, in
some cases less female‐biased <strong>and</strong> even male‐biased sex
ratios are encountered. The ‘fertility insurance
hypo<strong>the</strong>sis’ tries <strong>to</strong> explain <strong>the</strong>se biases as an
evolutionary strategy <strong>to</strong> facilitate gamete encounter.
Haemoproteus sex ratios became male skewed following
<strong>the</strong> experimental medication treatment in agreement
with <strong>the</strong> predictions of that hypo<strong>the</strong>sis. Multiple
infections (MIs), those by more than one parasite in <strong>the</strong>
same erythrocyte, may also be a way <strong>to</strong> ensure fertility.
However, our results do not support this possibility <strong>and</strong>
MIs may be promoted by host immune system.
Finally, several Haemoproteus <strong>and</strong> Plasmodium
haplotypes were isolated <strong>and</strong> sequenced from biting
midges Culicoides <strong>and</strong> wild birds from seven species <strong>to</strong>
underst<strong>and</strong> interactions between parasites <strong>and</strong> vec<strong>to</strong>rs.
Biting midge haplotypes showed both specific <strong>and</strong>
generalist relationships with Haemoproteus haplotypes
but only generalist relationships with Plasmodium
haplotypes. Several biting midge haplotypes established
significant coevolutionary links with Haemoproteus
haplotypes.
Internationalizing <strong>the</strong> biodiversity
informatics agenda
David PATTERSON
MBL, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA. Email:dpatterson@mbl.edu
Biodiversity Informatics addresses <strong>the</strong> management of
biodiversity information. The discipline is faced with
two considerable responsibilities. First, <strong>to</strong> scale <strong>to</strong> manage
<strong>the</strong> massive increase of data coming from digitization
initiatives, research policy changes, <strong>and</strong> high throughput
environmental moni<strong>to</strong>ring <strong>and</strong> molecular technologies.
Secondly, it must deliver effective services <strong>to</strong> address
major questions about <strong>the</strong> biosphere. The discipline is
maturing. Many initiatives compile data such as
nomenclatural information, taxonomic underst<strong>and</strong>ing,
checklists, distributional data, data in <strong>the</strong> literature, <strong>and</strong>
molecular identifiers. O<strong>the</strong>rs explore st<strong>and</strong>ards <strong>and</strong>
address technological challenges. Initiatives may apply
<strong>to</strong> clades of various sizes, address taxa that emerge
within particular contexts (such as <strong>the</strong>ir vulnerability or
location), have local, regional, national or international
scope. They deal with research, innovation,
implementation, data aggregation, data delivery,
education <strong>and</strong> capacity development. Biodiversity
Informatics is a rich discipline in growth. Yet, <strong>the</strong> full
scope has not been mapped out, nor have overlap <strong>and</strong>
gaps been identified. The stability of many players is
uncertain. <strong>IUBS</strong> has brought some elements in<strong>to</strong>
existence (Taxonomic Databases Working Group <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> International Committee on Bionomenclature). It is
timely <strong>to</strong> review <strong>the</strong> discipline of biodiversity
informatics at an international level <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> make
recommendations for its purposeful evolution.
Let him play as well…
Klara LOKOS TOTH
University of Szent István, (formerly University of Godollo),
Godollo, Hungary. Email: Tothne.klara@gtk.szie.hu.This work
is supported by TAMOP‐4.2.1./B‐11/2/KMR‐2011‐0003
project.
Statistics are part of our daily life. They are on <strong>the</strong>
television, on <strong>the</strong> radio <strong>and</strong> in <strong>the</strong> newspapers. You do
not even recognize you deal with statistics when you
talk about a 12% rise in <strong>the</strong> price of petrol. In spite of
this, a vast majority of students resist learning statistics.
When statistics come up, <strong>the</strong>ir first reaction is refuse.
Saying: we do not want <strong>to</strong> learn statistics since we do
not like it, also we do not underst<strong>and</strong> it. It is quite a hard
job <strong>to</strong> crush <strong>the</strong>ir resistance <strong>and</strong> arouse <strong>the</strong>ir curiosity
<strong>to</strong>wards <strong>the</strong> subject. In my presentation, I would like <strong>to</strong>
give you a picture how this task is addressed at our
University. However, <strong>the</strong> circumstances are different
from year <strong>to</strong> year <strong>and</strong> we make every effort <strong>to</strong> use <strong>the</strong>
best practices, adopting ourselves <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> everchanging
environment. I will briefly cover my experiences with
o<strong>the</strong>r teaching methods I met during my study travels
around <strong>the</strong> globe <strong>and</strong> I compare <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> our own. I give
a summary of <strong>the</strong> successes <strong>and</strong> failures of <strong>the</strong> way I
follow <strong>and</strong> of what fur<strong>the</strong>r issues I have <strong>to</strong> settle. Similar
<strong>to</strong> housework, developing educational approaches is a
61

never‐ending s<strong>to</strong>ry. Due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> continuously changing
environment, new issues arise every day, which must be
addressed <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> best of our knowledge.
Locomo<strong>to</strong>r inference of fossil mammals
based on quantitative morphometric
analysis of <strong>the</strong> postcranial skele<strong>to</strong>n of
small­bodied extant taxa
Meng CHEN
Department of Biology, University of Washing<strong>to</strong>n, 456 Kincaid
Hall, Box 351800, Seattle, WA 98195‐1800, USA. Email:
mengchen@uw.edu
simple measurements estimates <strong>the</strong> locomo<strong>to</strong>r
adaptation of fossil mammals more accurately <strong>and</strong>
effectively than previous qualitative methods.
Major macroevolutionary events <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir
dynamics between 480 Ma <strong>and</strong> 430 Ma of
Earth his<strong>to</strong>ry: evidences from South China
Renbin ZHAN <strong>and</strong> Jiayu RONG
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Palaeobiology <strong>and</strong> Stratigraphy,
Nanjing Institute of Geology <strong>and</strong> Palaeon<strong>to</strong>logy, CAS, Nanjing
210008, China. Email: rbzhan@nigpas.ac.cn;
jyrong@nigpas.ac.cn
Recent studies of fossil mammal skele<strong>to</strong>ns from <strong>the</strong> Jehol
Group of western Liaoning, China have revealed a much
greater diversity of locomo<strong>to</strong>r adaptations of Mesozoic
mammals than previously known. Instead of <strong>the</strong>
traditional perception that Mesozoic mammals were
generalized terrestrial animals, <strong>the</strong>se discoveries indicate
that mammals of <strong>the</strong> Jehol Group probably approached
<strong>the</strong> ecological diversity of extant mammals. To develop a
method <strong>to</strong> quantify <strong>the</strong> range of locomo<strong>to</strong>r morphotypes
among Mesozoic mammals, I conducted a morphometric
analysis of <strong>the</strong> entire postcranial skele<strong>to</strong>n of 51
small‐bodied extant mammals of 13 orders. Eight
locomo<strong>to</strong>r categories were used <strong>and</strong> 24 osteological
indices were derived from 54 linear measurements of <strong>the</strong>
entire postcranial skele<strong>to</strong>n in contrast <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> indices of
individual elements applied in previous studies. Linear
Discriminant Analysis of those indices indicates
statistically significant differences among <strong>the</strong> diverse
locomo<strong>to</strong>r categories. In <strong>the</strong> Linear Discriminant Analysis
plots, fossorial <strong>and</strong> salta<strong>to</strong>rial mammals have particularly
distinctive postcranial skele<strong>to</strong>ns for specialized locomo<strong>to</strong>r
adaptations, whereas arboreal, scansorial, <strong>and</strong> terrestrial
mammals show some overlap suggesting that similar
morphological features may respond <strong>to</strong> different
locomo<strong>to</strong>r adaptations. Two fossil representatives,
Yanoconodon <strong>and</strong> Fruitafossor, are shown by Principle
Component Analysis <strong>to</strong> plot among generalized terrestrial
<strong>and</strong> specialized fossorial mammals, respectively. This
preliminary study suggests that this quantitative
morphometric analysis helps identify <strong>the</strong> critical indices
derived from <strong>the</strong> entire postcranial skele<strong>to</strong>n for
distinguishing locomo<strong>to</strong>r categories <strong>and</strong> with just several
The time interval between 480 Ma <strong>and</strong> 430 Ma of Earth
his<strong>to</strong>ry includes <strong>the</strong> Ordovician Period <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> early
Silurian Period (<strong>the</strong> Ll<strong>and</strong>overy Epoch), during which
<strong>the</strong> Earth ecosystem experienced 2 major
macroevolutionary events, i.e. <strong>the</strong> Great Ordovician
Biodiversification Event (GOBE) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> end‐Ordovician
mass extinction.
The GOBE was <strong>the</strong> first radiation of <strong>the</strong> Paleozoic
Evolutionary Fauna (PEF). It lasted for tens of millions
years when several diversity acmes occurred <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
basic framework of <strong>the</strong> PEF was established <strong>and</strong>
stabilized. It was manifested not only by a rapid
increase of <strong>the</strong> α‐diversity (<strong>the</strong> number of taxa) of
marine organisms, but also by a substantial expansion
of marine ecosystem, i.e. an increase of β‐diversity (<strong>the</strong>
number of communities) <strong>and</strong> an expansion of ecological
niches. After <strong>the</strong> GOBE, different niches, from near
shore shallow water <strong>to</strong> off shore deeper water, from <strong>the</strong>
water surface through different depths of <strong>the</strong> water
column <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> sea floor <strong>and</strong> even within <strong>the</strong> soft
substrate, were all occupied by different organisms of
different ecotypes. The GOBE was also characterized by
strong heterochroneity between different organisms
within <strong>the</strong> same paleoplate, between different major
groups of <strong>the</strong> same phylum of organism, between
different paleogeographic settings within a single block
(from platform through slope <strong>to</strong> basin), between
different blocks, etc. It is now commonly accepted that
<strong>the</strong> GOBE happened without sudden environmental
changes of ei<strong>the</strong>r regional or global scales. Also, it is
thought <strong>to</strong> be controlled by both intrinsic <strong>and</strong> extrinsic
fac<strong>to</strong>rs, but still controversial on <strong>the</strong> leading fac<strong>to</strong>r(s).
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For example, some researchers suggested that <strong>the</strong>re was
a continuous cooling event from <strong>the</strong> beginning of
Ordovician <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> early Late Ordovician, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> GOBE
was closely connected with such environmental change.
Some geochemists thought <strong>the</strong> GOBE might be related <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> meteorite fall because <strong>the</strong> diversity acme is coincident
with <strong>the</strong> concentration of meteorites at some Lower <strong>to</strong>
Middle Ordovician sections of Sweden <strong>and</strong> South China.
South China is now proven <strong>to</strong> be one of <strong>the</strong> ideal regions
for <strong>the</strong> GOBE investigation, where <strong>the</strong> Ordovician
sequence is well‐developed <strong>and</strong> exposed with many
complete sections yielding abundant fossils of those major
organisms such as brachiopods, grap<strong>to</strong>lites, trilobites, etc.
Preliminary study conducted by our colleagues <strong>and</strong> us
shows a great potential for us <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong> kernel of
<strong>the</strong> GOBE including its dynamics.
The end‐Ordovician mass extinction is one of <strong>the</strong> Big
Fives of <strong>the</strong> Phanerozoic, <strong>and</strong> enjoys a lot of attention
from geologists for decades. The diversity lose of this event
is <strong>the</strong> second serious among <strong>the</strong> Fives, but <strong>the</strong> ecosystem
across <strong>the</strong> O/S boundary was not substantially <strong>and</strong>
catastrophically destroyed. It includes 2 episodes, both of
which were related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> formation <strong>and</strong> decay of <strong>the</strong> end
Ordovician glaciation. It also coincides with a pronounced
δ 13 C positive excursion, which could be recognized at
many places around <strong>the</strong> world. The first episode was
roughly consistent with <strong>the</strong> climax of <strong>the</strong> Late Ordovician
glaciation that caused a global sea‐level drop for 50–100
m within a million years at terminal Katian, Late
Ordovician (about 446 Ma ago). But it was apparently
diachronous in different regions around <strong>the</strong> world,
particularly in different blocks owing <strong>to</strong> a combination of
global climatic change <strong>and</strong> local or regional tec<strong>to</strong>nic
movement. Ecological analyses for both benthic <strong>and</strong>
plank<strong>to</strong>nic (<strong>and</strong> even swimming) organisms show that
<strong>the</strong> first episode began in shallow water environments
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>n spread <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> deep‐water niches. The second
episode was related <strong>to</strong> a rapid melting of <strong>the</strong> glaciers that
caused an abrupt sea‐level rising <strong>to</strong> 100 m before <strong>the</strong> end
of Hirnantian (around 444 Ma ago), <strong>and</strong> killed <strong>the</strong>
widespread Hirnantia Fauna as a whole. South China has
many well‐developed Ordovician‐Silurian transitional
sections. For about half century, we <strong>and</strong> our international
colleagues have measured tens of <strong>the</strong>se sections, <strong>and</strong>
collected tens of thous<strong>and</strong>s fossils of different organisms
mainly brachiopods, grap<strong>to</strong>lites <strong>and</strong> trilobites, three
major constituents of <strong>the</strong>n marine ecosystem. Now we
can analyze <strong>the</strong> diversity change across <strong>the</strong> O‐S
boundary at a scale of some 100 000 years. We found
that <strong>the</strong> macroevolution of each fossil group across <strong>the</strong>
O‐S boundary was actually manifested by <strong>the</strong>
replacement of different faunas. For example, from <strong>the</strong>
late Katian Altaethyrella Fauna through <strong>the</strong> Hirnantian
Hirnantia Fauna <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> latest Hirnantian‐early
Rhuddanian Cathaysiorthis Fauna for brachiopods, from
<strong>the</strong> late Katian
diplograptid‐dichranograptid‐orthograptid fauna (DDO
Fauna) through <strong>the</strong> Hirnantian normalograptid fauna
(N Fauna) <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Rhuddanian monograptid fauna (M
Fauna) for grap<strong>to</strong>lites, <strong>and</strong> from <strong>the</strong> latest Katian
Triathrus Fauna through <strong>the</strong> Hirnantian Sonxites Fauna
<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Rhuddanian Niuchangella Fauna for trilobites
(Zhou Zhiyi, pers. comm., 2012).
Making of a flight appendage: an
evolutionary perspective
LS SHASIDHARA
Indian Institute of Science Education (IISER), Sai Trinity
Complex, Pashan, Pune, India. Email:
ls.shashidhara@iiserpune.ac.in
Insects are <strong>the</strong> first <strong>to</strong> evolve flight appendages.
Amongst <strong>the</strong> various different insect groups, <strong>the</strong>re has
been much diversity in <strong>the</strong> number <strong>and</strong> size of wings.
Most insects have 4 wings (all directly contribute <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
flight), while beetles <strong>and</strong> flies have only 1 pair of wings.
In beetles, <strong>the</strong> forewings are modified as thick
protective cover called elytra <strong>and</strong> only hind‐wings
perform <strong>the</strong> flight function. In contrast, in flies only <strong>the</strong>
forewings perform <strong>the</strong> flight function, while <strong>the</strong>
hind‐wings are modified as small club‐shaped balancing
organs called haltere. In addition, except in few early
insect groups, <strong>the</strong>y all show differences in <strong>the</strong> forewing
<strong>and</strong> hind wing morphology.
In Drosophila, <strong>the</strong> differential development of <strong>the</strong>
wing <strong>and</strong> haltere is dependent on <strong>the</strong> suppression of
wing fate <strong>and</strong> specification of haltere fate by <strong>the</strong> Hox
gene Ultrabithorax (Ubx). This is a classical example of
Hoxregulation of body plan (Lewis 1978) <strong>and</strong> has
served as a paradigmfor underst<strong>and</strong>ing Hox gene
function. Interestingly, Ubx protein itself has not evolved
amongst <strong>the</strong> diverse insect groups, although <strong>the</strong>re are
significant differences in Ubx sequences between
63

Drosophila <strong>and</strong> crustacean Arthropods. We are working
on <strong>the</strong> evolution of diversity in number, size <strong>and</strong> shape in
insect wings by investigating <strong>the</strong> nature of wing
patterning genes that are regulated by Ubx in different
insect species such as Apis, butterflies, silkworm,
Tribolium, mosqui<strong>to</strong> <strong>and</strong> different species of Drosophila.
Mammalian evolution as reflected by key
transitional features in brain <strong>and</strong> ear: new
evidence from Mesozoic mammals of China
Meng JIN
American Museum of Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry, New York, USA. Email:
jmeng@amnh.org
The crown Mammalia can be defined phylogenetically as
<strong>the</strong> clade consisting of <strong>the</strong> most recent common ances<strong>to</strong>r
of extant monotremes <strong>and</strong> placentals <strong>and</strong> all descendants
of that ances<strong>to</strong>r. This clade can be diagnosed by many
characters, such as <strong>the</strong> enlarged brain, complex bony
nasal turbinals associated with <strong>the</strong> development of <strong>the</strong>
secondary palate, <strong>the</strong> dentary‐squamosal jaw joint, <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> tri‐ossicle middle ears. These features are important
<strong>and</strong> critical for various aspects of mammalian biology,
including endo<strong>the</strong>rm, sense of smell, hearing <strong>and</strong>
mastication. Studies of mammalian evolution have
traditionally focused on <strong>the</strong>se ana<strong>to</strong>mic regions in
exploring how <strong>the</strong> mammalian conditions were evolved
from <strong>the</strong>ir <strong>the</strong>rapsid ances<strong>to</strong>rs. Because of <strong>the</strong> rareness
of good fossils in early mammals, many issues relating <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong>se features remain open. For instance, early works on
brain evolution largely focused on <strong>the</strong> overall size <strong>and</strong>
sizes of major brain parts, but more detailed morphology
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> relationships of <strong>the</strong> brain development with o<strong>the</strong>r
parts of <strong>the</strong> skull (nasal structures, eyes <strong>and</strong> ears) are
relatively little known. Even for <strong>the</strong> middle ear evolution,
perhaps <strong>the</strong> most intensively studied region in
mammalian evolution, <strong>the</strong> detail morphologies of those
small ossicles are until recently not known.
During <strong>the</strong> last 2 decades, several Mesozoic mammals
represented by well‐preserved material have been
discovered from China, such as Zhangheo<strong>the</strong>rium,
Mao<strong>the</strong>rium, Repenomamus, Gobiconodon, Cas<strong>to</strong>rocauda,
Volantico<strong>the</strong>rium, Yanoconodon, <strong>and</strong> Liaoconodon. These
fossils provide a great deal of morphological information
that casts new light on <strong>the</strong> evolution of mammals. Along
with discoveries from o<strong>the</strong>r regions, <strong>the</strong>y demonstrate
an early radiation of life styles in Mesozoic mammals
<strong>and</strong>, more importantly <strong>and</strong> for <strong>the</strong> first time ever,
provide <strong>the</strong> detail morphologies of <strong>the</strong> ec<strong>to</strong>tympanic
(angular), malleus (articular <strong>and</strong> prearticular), <strong>and</strong> incus
(quadrate) of Early Cretaceous eutriconodontan
mammals. Using <strong>the</strong> X‐ray computed <strong>to</strong>mography we
can reconstruct internal structures of <strong>the</strong> nasal <strong>and</strong>
brain cavities, <strong>the</strong> inner ear <strong>and</strong> dental eruptions from
Mesozoic mammal skulls that are in 3D preservation.
With <strong>the</strong>se new morphological data, coupled with those
from recent developmental <strong>and</strong> molecular studies on
extant mammals, we are able <strong>to</strong> recognize a transitional
stage during <strong>the</strong> evolution of mammalian middle ear <strong>and</strong>
throw light on <strong>the</strong> possible relationship between <strong>the</strong>
expansion of <strong>the</strong> mammalian brain <strong>and</strong> development of
mammalian sensory organs as reflected by <strong>the</strong>
morphologies of <strong>the</strong> nasal cavities, braincase, eye
sockets, inner ear <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r regions of <strong>the</strong> skull.
Mammal traits <strong>and</strong> environment: molar
<strong>to</strong>oth crown height <strong>and</strong> precipitation
Eronen JUSSI
Department of Geosciences <strong>and</strong> Geography, University of
Helsinki, PO Box 64, Helsinki FIN‐00014, Finl<strong>and</strong>. Email:
jussi.t.eronen@helsinki.fi
The climate system can be investigated from different
perspectives. For <strong>the</strong> study of past climate systems
modeling offers wide variety of <strong>to</strong>ols. But <strong>to</strong> validate <strong>and</strong>
compare <strong>the</strong> results from modeling, we need large
datasets that span both temporal <strong>and</strong> spatial
dimensions with relatively dense sampling. With <strong>the</strong>
recent breakthroughs in developing proxies for
environmental conditions, we can now use mammal
data <strong>to</strong> create estimates of rainfall at different scales in
<strong>the</strong> past. The fossil mammals offer <strong>the</strong> most spatially
<strong>and</strong> temporally resolved record for terrestrial
environments of <strong>the</strong> Cenozoic (65 Ma <strong>to</strong> 1.8 Ma). One of
data‐sources for <strong>the</strong>se data is <strong>the</strong> open access
NOW‐database (http://www.helsinki.fi/science/now/)
that contains information about Eurasian l<strong>and</strong> mammal
taxa <strong>and</strong> localities. We can resolve <strong>the</strong> spatial variability
of <strong>the</strong> past climates at regional <strong>and</strong> continental scale,
<strong>and</strong> track <strong>the</strong> variability at different temporal scales. For
64

example, <strong>the</strong> fossil mammal data depict a continental‐scale
‘flip‐flop’ of alternating dry <strong>and</strong> wet phases in Europe <strong>and</strong>
east Asia during <strong>the</strong> 15–2 million years ago. In <strong>the</strong> first
phase, east Asia is dry <strong>and</strong> western Europe is wet, in <strong>the</strong>
second phase Europe dries, while in Eastern Asia
humidity increases. In <strong>the</strong> third phase Europe becomes
more humid, while eastern Asia dries. Similarly, we can
track <strong>the</strong> aridification of mid‐latitudes in Eurasia during
<strong>the</strong> growth of Tibetan Plateau, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> onset on monsoon.
Combining <strong>the</strong>se data with climate modeling, we can offer
possible scenarios of past climate changes <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
processes that were responsible for <strong>the</strong>se changes.
Ma<strong>the</strong>matical biology education: recent
developments <strong>and</strong> future challenges
John R JUNGCK
Department of Biology, Beloit College, USA. Email:
jungck@beloit.edu
In 2003, <strong>the</strong> National Research Council of <strong>the</strong> US National
Academies of Science released a report entitled Bio 2010
(http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=10497)that
recommended that fundamental reform of biology
education required much more attention <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> inclusion
of ma<strong>the</strong>matics than here<strong>to</strong>fore. Both <strong>the</strong> Howard
Hughes Medical Institute <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> National Science
Foundation invested in numerous US universities <strong>to</strong>
respond <strong>to</strong> this challenge. As a result, <strong>the</strong>se institutions
developed new courses, majors, interdisciplinary
programs <strong>and</strong> especially opportunities for undergraduate
research. Publishers released a variety of textbooks both
for biologically‐oriented calculus, modeling <strong>and</strong> statistics
courses as well as st<strong>and</strong>‐alone courses in bioma<strong>the</strong>matics
<strong>and</strong> quantitative biology. These recent successes in open,
interdisciplinary, research‐rich undergraduate science
education were described in special issues of 2 different
journals: (see special issues of CBE Life Science Education
(http://lifescied.org/content/9/3.<strong>to</strong>c) <strong>and</strong> also
Ma<strong>the</strong>matical Modelling of Natural Phenomena
(http://www.mmnp‐journal.org/action/displayIssue?jid=
MNP&volumeId=6&seriesId=0&issueId=06).
Primarily <strong>the</strong> successes depended on productive
collaborative interdisciplinary teams. Yet most
curriculum development is by individual educa<strong>to</strong>rs for
<strong>the</strong>ir own classrooms <strong>and</strong> is not built upon adopting,
adapting <strong>and</strong> implementing vetted alternatives from
colleagues <strong>and</strong> published literature. How do we prepare
our students for <strong>the</strong> challenges of 21st century science,
productive careers, <strong>and</strong> responsible citizenship? By its
very nature, ma<strong>the</strong>matical biology education requires
<strong>the</strong> participation of individuals that have frequently
been isolated in academic disciplinary silos. Therefore, I
believe that we need <strong>to</strong> engage students, teaching
assistants, lab technicians who prepare lab course
materials, novice <strong>and</strong> experienced faculty from biology,
ma<strong>the</strong>matics <strong>and</strong> associated disciplines such as
biological engineering <strong>and</strong> environmental studies,
science <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matics education researchers,
quantitative <strong>and</strong> qualitative ethnographic evalua<strong>to</strong>rs,
his<strong>to</strong>rians‐philosophers‐sociologists‐anthropologists of
science <strong>and</strong> ma<strong>the</strong>matics <strong>and</strong> industrial employees who
hire our students <strong>to</strong> do ma<strong>the</strong>matical biology <strong>to</strong> address
<strong>the</strong>se challenges. If we do so, I believe that we have <strong>the</strong>
potential <strong>to</strong> not only address some serious challenges <strong>to</strong>
our current practices, but also <strong>to</strong> serve as a pragmatic
successful model for o<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>to</strong> emulate.
Metabolic flux analysis of hydrogen
production by Clostridium butyricum:
growth on glucose­glycerol <strong>and</strong> coculture
with Escherichia coli
Quanyu ZHAO
Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Shanghai 201210,
China. Email: zhaoqy@sari.ac.cn
Hydrogen is clean <strong>and</strong> renewable energy because its
oxidation product is water if enough oxygen is supplied
with. Clostridium species are important bacteria for <strong>the</strong>
fermentations of glucose <strong>and</strong> glycerol for <strong>the</strong>
productions of ethanol, butanol, butyrate,
1,3‐propanediol <strong>and</strong> hydrogen. There are amounts of
experiments for fermentative hydrogen productions
while few studies were presented <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong>
metabolic flux distributions. Constraint‐based metabolic
flux analysis is essential <strong>to</strong> evaluate metabolic regulation
mechanisms, select <strong>the</strong> c<strong>and</strong>idate target for gene
modification <strong>and</strong> optimize hydrogen production process.
A metabolic network of Clostridium butyricum was
reconstructed based on genome sequence, biochemical
knowledge <strong>and</strong> comparative analysis of published
65

Clostridum sp. models. More than 50 reactions were
involved in glycolysis, pen<strong>to</strong>se phosphate pathway,
incomplete citric acid cycle (TCA), pyruvate metabolism,
anaplerotic reaction, hydrogenase, transport process, ATP
maintenance <strong>and</strong> biomass formation. The flux
distributions under 2 substrates (glucose <strong>and</strong> glycerol)
<strong>and</strong> coculture conditions (with E. coli) were estimated by
Metabolic Flux Analysis (MFA). The experimental data was
utilized as constraints <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> maximal biomass
formation was selected as <strong>the</strong> objective function.
Experimental errors of external fluxes were considered in
<strong>the</strong> MFA. The dominant pathways <strong>and</strong> key nodes were
identified. It was also suggested that <strong>the</strong> glucose was
mainly consumed by C. butyricum when it was
co‐cultivated with E. coli.
Microalgal biofuels: progress <strong>and</strong>
opportunities
José A OLIVARES
NAABB, Los Alamos National Labora<strong>to</strong>ry. Email:
olivares@lanl.gov
The National Alliance for Advanced Biofuels <strong>and</strong>
Bioproducts (NAABB) is a consortium of 40 institutions
developed <strong>to</strong> capture <strong>and</strong> integrate intellectual property,
expertise, equipment, <strong>and</strong> facilities from a diverse set of
companies, universities <strong>and</strong> national labora<strong>to</strong>ries in order
<strong>to</strong> develop a systems approach <strong>to</strong> innovation for
sustainable commercialization of biofuels <strong>and</strong> coproducts.
The formation of this alliance brings <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r multiple
institutions with breadth <strong>and</strong> depth of knowledge in
biofuels research. It creates a dynamic network for <strong>the</strong>
flow of ideas from <strong>the</strong> bench <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> marketplace quickly
<strong>and</strong> with constructive iteration so that research <strong>and</strong>
innovation can be tailored appropriately <strong>to</strong>wards
successful commercialization. The NAABB Algal Biofuels
Consortium was formed <strong>to</strong> address key barriers across
<strong>the</strong> full value chain of algal biofuels production. As such, it
is an integrated program developing <strong>to</strong>ols that facilitate
deployment through <strong>the</strong> S&T. The NAABB is bringing
innovation across <strong>the</strong> technology development platforms
with core economics <strong>and</strong> sustainability goals bringing a
cohesive picture <strong>to</strong> all efforts. Several key technical
challenges are being addressed by <strong>the</strong> NAABB Algal
Biofuels Consortium including: 1)algal strains that can be
cultivated in real‐world conditions <strong>and</strong> harvested with
minimal energy; 2)technologies that are scalable <strong>and</strong>
provide <strong>the</strong> energy return on investment; 3) technology
integration with needed nutrient, water, <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
recycles; <strong>and</strong> 4) sustainable technologies with respect <strong>to</strong>
environment, cost <strong>and</strong> permitting. An overview of <strong>the</strong>
consortium’s vision, goals, progress <strong>and</strong> status is
provided in this presentation.
Microbial lipids production by oleaginous
yeasts
Zongbao ZHAO
Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, CAS, 457 Zhongshan
Road, Dalian 116023, China. Email: zhaozb@dicp.ac.cn
Biodiesel is an excellent renewable energy carrier.
However, large‐scale biodiesel production remains
challenge because of limited supply of oil plant‐based
feeds<strong>to</strong>cks. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r h<strong>and</strong>, carbohydrates from
lignocellulosic biomass are <strong>the</strong> most abundant
renewable resources. Some microorganisms can
accumulate lipid <strong>to</strong> more than 20 wt% of <strong>the</strong>ir cell mass.
Microbial lipid consists mainly of triacylglycerols with
fatty acid compositional profile similar <strong>to</strong> those of
vegetable oils. Because it can be obtained from
renewable raw materials, <strong>and</strong> be produced continuously
with no extensive arable l<strong>and</strong> requirement, microbial
lipid has been considered as potential feeds<strong>to</strong>ck for
biodiesel industry.
During <strong>the</strong> past few years, we have been working on
microbial lipids production by oleaginous yeasts. We
identified a h<strong>and</strong> of outst<strong>and</strong>ing oleaginous yeasts,
including Rhodosporidium <strong>to</strong>ruloides, Lipomyces starkeyi,
Cryp<strong>to</strong>coccus curvatus <strong>and</strong> Trichosporon cutaneum.
These yeasts use materials, including glucose, xylose,
raw glycerol <strong>and</strong> corn stalk hydrolysates, as carbon
sources. In particular, we demonstrated that T. cutaneum
AS 2.571 could assimilate glucose <strong>and</strong> xylose
simultaneously, <strong>and</strong> accumulated intracellular lipid up <strong>to</strong>
59 wt% with a lipid coefficient up <strong>to</strong> 0.18 g/g sugar. We
optimized lipid production processes. When using <strong>the</strong>
yeast R. <strong>to</strong>ruloides as <strong>the</strong> lipid producer in a 15L
bioreac<strong>to</strong>r, we achieved lipid content, production titer
<strong>and</strong> lipid productivity of over 65 wt%, 100 g/L <strong>and</strong> 1.0
g/L/h, respectively. We showed that inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry
66

compounds in biomass hydrolysates had limited affects
on lipid production by some of <strong>the</strong>se yeasts. We
demonstrated that phosphate limitation <strong>and</strong> sulfate
limitation could also promote lipid accumulation, albeit
media were nitrogen‐rich as found for natural or waste
materials. We developed a novel strategy for lipid
recovery directly from <strong>the</strong> culture without <strong>the</strong> isolation of
‘fatty’ cells. We also showed that biodiesel can be
produced from ei<strong>the</strong>r oleaginous cell mass or microbial
lipid. During <strong>the</strong> meeting, we wish <strong>to</strong> discuss <strong>the</strong>se in
more detail.
Models used for professional development
of in­service biology teachers in China
Enshan LIU
Department of Biology Education <strong>and</strong> Science Education
Research Center of Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
In mainl<strong>and</strong> China, senior high school science is taught as:
physics, chemistry <strong>and</strong> biology. Curriculum st<strong>and</strong>ards are
issued by <strong>the</strong> national Ministry of Education (MOE),
which keeps <strong>the</strong> science teaching content basically <strong>the</strong>
same throughout <strong>the</strong> country. Aiming <strong>to</strong> transition from
<strong>the</strong> strategies that have expediently managed such a large
population, <strong>to</strong> one that maximizes human capital <strong>to</strong> build
a creative country, high school science curriculum reform
started in 2003. Biology curriculum st<strong>and</strong>ard with a new
framework of teaching contents <strong>and</strong> emphasis on inquiry
was released by MOE that same year. By <strong>the</strong> end of 2011,
millions of students in <strong>the</strong> high schools of 29 provinces
studied biology based on <strong>the</strong> new curriculum st<strong>and</strong>ards.
During 2003 <strong>and</strong> 2004, many high school biology
teachers felt that <strong>the</strong> inquiry‐based curriculum was
extremely <strong>to</strong>ugh <strong>and</strong> difficult <strong>to</strong> teach. So, teacher
professional development became an important issue in
biology curriculum reform. During <strong>the</strong> past 6 years, 3
main models or approaches have been commonly used
for in‐service biology teacherprofessional development,
namely On‐line Teacher Training, Team Work on Planning
Lessons <strong>and</strong> Case Study Lessons. Although <strong>the</strong>re is a long
way <strong>to</strong> go for many teachers <strong>to</strong> instruct biology as inquiry,
<strong>the</strong>se models makes teachers feel more comfortable with
<strong>the</strong> new curriculum. Nowadays, face‐<strong>to</strong>‐face with
inquiry‐based workshopsare used in few teacher
professional development projects, although it is not
commonly used in mainl<strong>and</strong> China.
Molluscans can decide <strong>the</strong> water quality of
rivers
Zahoor PIR, 1 Imtiyaz TALI, 2 Shailendra
SHARMA, 3 LK MUDGAL 1 <strong>and</strong> Anis SEDDIQUE 2
1Department of Zoology, Govt PG Girls College Motitabela
Indore MP‐452001, 2 Department of Zoology, Govt Holkar
Science College Indore MP‐ 452001 <strong>and</strong> 3 Department of
Zoology, Shri Omya College M<strong>and</strong>leshwar Indore MP‐ 452001.
Email: zahoor7887@yahoo.com
Molluscans contribute as <strong>the</strong> second largest
invertebrate group on earth. The molluscan fauna are
absent in strong currents, but appear when <strong>the</strong> current
slows down. Molluscans are helpful in <strong>the</strong> purification of
water in <strong>the</strong>ir capacity <strong>to</strong> act as scavengers. Molluscans
play an important role in <strong>the</strong> assessment of water
quality that is <strong>the</strong>y are used as bioindica<strong>to</strong>rs. Rivers are
always selected as <strong>the</strong> sites for drinking purposes. The
biodiversity of Narmada River is quite varied, rich <strong>and</strong>
needs regular moni<strong>to</strong>ring <strong>and</strong> conservation because <strong>the</strong>
river is subjected <strong>to</strong> various sources of point <strong>and</strong>
non‐point pollution which are posing a threat <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>se
biota. Molluscan species were collected from specific
stations of Narmada River from July 2009 <strong>to</strong> June 2010.
During <strong>the</strong> present investigation, about 8 species of
class gastropoda <strong>and</strong> 8 species of class pelecypoda were
recorded through out <strong>the</strong> year. Among <strong>the</strong> gastropoda
group, Viviparabengalensis was most dominant followed
by Bellamyabengalensis, Indoplanorbis, Unio species,
Thiara scabra, Pila globosa, Thiara lineata, <strong>and</strong> Thiara
tuberculata. Among pelecypoda <strong>the</strong> dominant species
was Lymnaeaacuminate, followed by Lymnea auricularia,
Corbiculastriatella, Pissidium clarkeanum, Melanoides
tuberculates, Musculium indicum, Parreysia favidens,
Corbiculastriatella <strong>and</strong> Perreysia caerulea. Vivipara
bengalensis <strong>and</strong> Bellamya bengalensis dominated <strong>the</strong>
molluscan fauna <strong>and</strong> were distributed from <strong>the</strong>
shoreline <strong>to</strong> 3 m depth in all types of sediments. Some
species of molluscans like Lymnea live in only highly
polluted environments. The species like Thiara <strong>and</strong>
Indoplanorbis live in slightly polluted environment,
while species like Pseudomilleria delyiis highly sensitive
67

<strong>to</strong> pollution <strong>and</strong> can survive only in pollution free
environments. From <strong>the</strong> presence <strong>the</strong>se species, we can
know <strong>the</strong> water quality of a river.
Natural Selection in Genome Evolution
Giorgio BERNARDI
Department of Biology, Rome 3 University, Italy. Email:
gbernardi@uniroma3.it
“Most of <strong>the</strong> familiar features of living organisms show
clear signs of adaptation of structure <strong>to</strong> function. There is
overwhelming evidence that this is <strong>the</strong> outcome of
evolution by natural selection” (B Charlesworth). Whe<strong>the</strong>r
<strong>the</strong> same applies <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> genomes of vertebrates (<strong>and</strong>
o<strong>the</strong>r eukaryotes) with <strong>the</strong>ir overwhelming amount of
non‐protein‐coding DNA is, however, an open question.
Many years ago, we developed a compositional strategy,
which revealed that those genomes are mosaics of
isochores. These are long DNA stretches fairly
homogeneous in base composition that belong <strong>to</strong> a small
number of families characterized by different GC levels
<strong>and</strong> different short‐sequence patterns (i.e.different DNA
structures <strong>and</strong> different DNA‐protein interactions). This
genome organization led us <strong>to</strong> 2 discoveries: (i) <strong>the</strong>
genomic code, a collective definition for <strong>the</strong> correlations
that hold between coding <strong>and</strong> non‐coding sequences;
between coding sequences <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> structural properties
of <strong>the</strong> encoded proteins; <strong>and</strong> between <strong>the</strong> frequencies of
short sequences of isochore families <strong>and</strong> nucleosome
positioning/transcription fac<strong>to</strong>r binding. (ii) The genome
phenotypes, which correspond, at low resolution, <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
patterns of isochore families in <strong>the</strong> genome; at high
resolution, <strong>to</strong> isochore maps on chromosomes. While <strong>the</strong>
latter may be used <strong>to</strong> study genomic variation <strong>and</strong>
genomic diseases, <strong>the</strong> former showed that genome
evolution may proceed according <strong>to</strong> a conservative mode
or <strong>to</strong> a transitional (shifting) mode. The conservation <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> changes of isochore patterns depend upon whe<strong>the</strong>r
<strong>the</strong> environment is constant or shifting. According <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
‘neo‐selectionist <strong>the</strong>ory’, natural selection is responsible
for both modes <strong>and</strong> plays a dominant role in genome
evolution.
Neutral sphingomyelinase 2 <strong>and</strong> HA
Department of Pediatrics, University of Chicago, Chicago, USA.
Email: qjingdong@peds.bsd.uchicago.edu. This is a recent
study published in JBC.
Fibroblasts from <strong>the</strong> fro/fro mouse, with a deletion in
<strong>the</strong> Smpd3 gene coding for <strong>the</strong> active site of neutral
sphingomyelinase2 (NSMase2), secreted increased
amounts of hyaluronan (HA). This was reversed by
transfection with <strong>the</strong> Smpd3 gene, suggesting a
connection between sphingolipid <strong>and</strong>
glycosaminoglycan metabolism. The deficiency of
NSMase2 resulted in s<strong>to</strong>rage of sphingomyelin (SM)
<strong>and</strong> cholesterol with a 50% reduction in ceramides
(Cer). RT‐PCR <strong>and</strong> Western blot analysis showed that
<strong>the</strong> increased HA secretion resulted from increased
hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2) activity localized <strong>to</strong>
sphingolipid‐enriched lipid rafts. Although cholesterol
levels were also elevated in lipid rafts from mouse
fibroblasts deficient in lysosomal acid SMase activity
(deletion of <strong>the</strong> Smpd1 ‐/‐ gene), <strong>the</strong>re was no increase in
HA secretion. We <strong>the</strong>n showed that in fro/fro fibroblasts,
<strong>the</strong> reduced ceramide was associated with decreased
phosphorylation of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) <strong>and</strong>
increased phosphorylation of its substrate Akt‐p,
<strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r with PI3K, PDK1, mTOR <strong>and</strong> p‐70S6K whereas
PTEN was unaffected. Exogenous ceramide, as well as
inhibi<strong>to</strong>rs of Akt (Akt inhibi<strong>to</strong>r VIII), PI3kinase
(LY294002 <strong>and</strong> wortmannin) <strong>and</strong> mTOR (rapamycin)
reduced secretion of HA whereas <strong>the</strong> NSMase2
inhibi<strong>to</strong>r GW4869 increased HA syn<strong>the</strong>sis <strong>and</strong>
secretion. We propose that NSMase2/Cer are <strong>the</strong> key
media<strong>to</strong>rs of <strong>the</strong> regulation of HA syn<strong>the</strong>sis, via
microdomains <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Akt /mTOR pathway.
New au<strong>to</strong>matic methods for detecting
quarantine pests <strong>and</strong> diseases
M FACCOLI, F CHINELLATO, E PETRUCCO
TOFFOLO, M SIMONATO <strong>and</strong> A BATTISTI
Department of Agronomy, Food, Natural Resources, Animals
<strong>and</strong> Environment, Università di Padova, Italy <strong>and</strong> Agripolis,
Viale dell'Università, 16–35020 Legnaro (PD), Italy. Email:
massimo.faccoli@unipd.it
Jingdong QIN
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In order <strong>to</strong> achieve early detection of alien pests, <strong>the</strong>re is a
strong need <strong>to</strong> provide <strong>and</strong> improve methods <strong>to</strong> be used
in surveillance by plant protection organisations, so that
<strong>the</strong>y become more efficient, cheaper <strong>and</strong> can be applied
more widely <strong>to</strong> provide a consistent <strong>and</strong> reliable
surveillance network. In this talk, we review <strong>the</strong> mostly
commonly used methods <strong>to</strong> detect plant pests <strong>and</strong>
associated diseases, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir applications at European
level. More specifically, we address trap design, lure
discovery, lure combination, generic lures, trap density
<strong>and</strong> au<strong>to</strong>matic detection for a few of <strong>the</strong> most important
target insects such as wood beetles (Coleoptera) <strong>and</strong>
whiteflies (Aleyrodidae) associated with plant pathogens.
The use of <strong>the</strong> multi‐lure approach associated with trap
designs specific <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> target organisms is presented <strong>and</strong>
results about its application at ports of entry for detection
<strong>and</strong> identification of alien species under both indoor <strong>and</strong>
outdoor conditions are given. As <strong>the</strong> process of species
introduction is commodity‐driven, <strong>the</strong> trapping design
should be linked as closely as possible <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> type of
commodity. We also present <strong>the</strong> development of an
au<strong>to</strong>matic trap, which registers catches of insects with a
video camera <strong>and</strong> send <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> a remote computer
through mobile phone technology. Once <strong>the</strong> insects have
been captured by <strong>the</strong> trap is necessary <strong>to</strong> identify <strong>the</strong>m,
or <strong>the</strong> microorganisms associated with <strong>the</strong>m, quickly <strong>and</strong>
on‐site. For this reason we adopted <strong>the</strong> LAMP method, a
molecular biology technique that doesnot require complex
labora<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>to</strong>ols or reagents.
Notes on pelvic <strong>and</strong> hindlimb myology <strong>and</strong>
syndesmology of Emeus crassus <strong>and</strong>
Dinornisrobustus (Aves: Dinornithiformes)
ZinovyevANDREY
Tver State University, Volokolamsky Prospect, 19/2, 45, Tver
170033, Russia. Email: m000258@tversu.ru
Dinornis robustus <strong>and</strong> Emeus crassus represent 2
branches of moa locomo<strong>to</strong>r adaptations, Dinornis being
more mobile. Never<strong>the</strong>less, <strong>the</strong> number <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> position
of <strong>the</strong>ir hindlimb muscles are almost identical. The only
difference, related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> locomo<strong>to</strong>r specializations is <strong>the</strong>
development of particular muscles, related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> length of
<strong>the</strong> leg elements. An overall hindlimb ana<strong>to</strong>my of species
checked follows archetype, which is close <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> proposed
for <strong>the</strong> avian ances<strong>to</strong>r. In this way <strong>the</strong> hindlimb
ana<strong>to</strong>my <strong>and</strong> syndesmology of moa resemble that of
ancestral palaeognaths Tinamiformes, as well as
geographically close Apterygiformes <strong>and</strong>
Casuariiformes. There were, however, certain traits in
hindlimb morphology, which would characterize solely
Dinornithiformes. First is an enormous development of
m. iliofemoralis externus, by far surpassing in bulk this
muscle in o<strong>the</strong>r birds. <strong>General</strong>ly reduced in o<strong>the</strong>r birds,
this muscle abducts <strong>the</strong> femur, thus preventing <strong>the</strong>
passive adduction of this bone during one leg supported
locomo<strong>to</strong>r phase. As <strong>the</strong> massive ratites with wide
pelves, moa must have exerted <strong>the</strong> maximal power of
femoral abduc<strong>to</strong>rs (m. iliofemoralis externus, m.
iliotibialis lateralis pars acetabularis) <strong>to</strong> keep <strong>the</strong> body
balanced on one leg. The changes in <strong>the</strong> center of gravity,
proposed for moa in comparison <strong>to</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r birds <strong>and</strong> that
of Dinornis in relation <strong>to</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r moa, does not have
ana<strong>to</strong>mical support. Proceeding from <strong>the</strong> position of
antitrochanter, femora of moa were in <strong>the</strong> same
position as in o<strong>the</strong>r cursorial birds. Thus <strong>the</strong>ir center of
gravity must have resided on <strong>the</strong> line linking both knee
joints. The o<strong>the</strong>r difference, unique for moa (although
additional observations on mummies are desirable), is
an unusual insertion of m. iliofemoralis internus.
Inserting just distally <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> femoral neck on <strong>the</strong>
anterior surface of femoral shaft, it thus must have
changed its function of weak outward rota<strong>to</strong>r of femur.
The significance of this shift is unclear. Of o<strong>the</strong>r pelvic
muscles m. iliofemoralis have unusually long attachment
on <strong>the</strong> posterior surface of <strong>the</strong> femoral shaft, feature,
observed outside of Dinornithiformes only in Apteryx.
Femoral <strong>and</strong> tibiotarsal muscles are well‐developed,
which is expected for cursorial birds. Traces of <strong>the</strong>ir
origin on femur are more pronounced in Emeus crassus,
feature, which is, however, not related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> degree of
femoral muscles development. Muscles of <strong>the</strong> shank in
moa were long‐bellied, as in kiwi. The graviportality
does not pose <strong>the</strong> strong requirements <strong>to</strong> lighten <strong>the</strong>
distal segments of <strong>the</strong> limb, as in cursorial birds. Thus
cnemial crests of moa are relatively smaller; <strong>the</strong> bulk of
<strong>the</strong> shank muscles was more evenly distributed along
<strong>the</strong> length of tibiotarsus. Most of <strong>the</strong> shank muscles,
including powerful mm. gastrocnemii, started on <strong>the</strong>
common aponeuroses, configuration of which was
similar <strong>to</strong> that in <strong>the</strong> majority of birds. Movements in
intertarsal joint, which lacked lig. anticum <strong>and</strong> its
69

stabilizer, m. fibularis brevis, were restricted by
flexion‐extension, as in many specialized cursorial birds,
including Ratitae. Relative length of tarsometatarsus is
greater in Dinornis, which corresponds <strong>to</strong> its greater
mobility. Although <strong>the</strong> majority of <strong>the</strong> intrinsic muscles
must have been preserved in moa, <strong>the</strong>ir relative
development is difficult <strong>to</strong> assess due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> faintness of
traces, <strong>the</strong>y lived on <strong>the</strong> tarsometatarsus. Abduc<strong>to</strong>rs of
digiti 2 <strong>and</strong> 4 <strong>and</strong> extensors of <strong>the</strong> third <strong>and</strong> fourth were
slender <strong>and</strong> long, corresponding <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> length of <strong>the</strong>
tarsometatarsus. Terminal tendons of <strong>the</strong> long digital
flexors <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> second <strong>to</strong>e were, at least in Dinornis
robustus, markedly separated from those <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
fore<strong>to</strong>es. This feature might indicate, that <strong>the</strong> second <strong>to</strong>e
have once played a major role in scratching <strong>and</strong> digging,
reported as one of <strong>the</strong> activities of moa in obtaining <strong>the</strong>
food.
On ethics, <strong>the</strong> pursuit of knowledge, truth
<strong>and</strong> status in <strong>the</strong> hallowed halls of academe
John S. BUCKERIDGE <strong>and</strong> Rob WATTS
School of Civil Engineering <strong>and</strong> Chemical Engineering, RMIT
University, Australia. Email: john.buckeridge@rmit.edu.au
Advancement in academe is largely on <strong>the</strong> basis of
research outputs, i.e. refereed journal papers. This paper
firstly explores pressures on academics, especially
emerging researchers, when English is not a first
language. We assess why, when faculty members rush <strong>to</strong>
improve <strong>the</strong>ir station, <strong>the</strong>y may elect <strong>to</strong> circumvent
ethical pro<strong>to</strong>cols <strong>to</strong> accelerate <strong>the</strong>ir promotion <strong>and</strong> status.
The resulting unethical behaviour includes plagiarism <strong>and</strong>
o<strong>the</strong>r forms of duplication, such as co‐submission.
Consideration is <strong>the</strong>n given <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> wider implications of
both plagiarism <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>ft of intellectual
property – <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> role <strong>the</strong>se have played in <strong>the</strong>
development of individuals, <strong>the</strong> university <strong>and</strong> society.
Origin <strong>and</strong> early radiation of jawed
vertebrates
Min ZHU
Institute of Vertebrate Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy, 142 Xiwaidajie, PO Box 643,
Beijing 100044, China. Email: zhumin@ivpp.ac.cn
An emerging focus in paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> developmental
biology concerns <strong>the</strong> origin <strong>and</strong> early radiation of
gnathos<strong>to</strong>mes, or jawed vertebrates, partly thanks <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> exp<strong>and</strong>ing fossil record <strong>and</strong> its intersection with
developmental biology‐based hypo<strong>the</strong>ses. Recent study
on <strong>the</strong> cranial ana<strong>to</strong>my of galeaspids, a
435–370‐million‐year‐old jawless group from China <strong>and</strong>
nor<strong>the</strong>rn Vietnam, has provided <strong>the</strong> earliest fossil
evidence for <strong>the</strong> disassociation of nasohypophyseal
complex in vertebrate phylogeny, a condition that
current developmental models regard as prerequisites
for <strong>the</strong> developmental of jaws. The past 2 decades have
also seen <strong>the</strong> inspiring discoveries of primitive
gnathos<strong>to</strong>mes from <strong>the</strong> Silurian <strong>and</strong> Early Devonian,
exp<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> diversity <strong>and</strong> disparity in early
gnathos<strong>to</strong>me groups. Some of <strong>the</strong>se finds have yielded
an unexpected mosaic of characters for inferring <strong>the</strong>
sequence of character transformation at <strong>the</strong> root of
osteichthyans, <strong>and</strong> at <strong>the</strong> root of jawed vertebrates in
general. Among <strong>the</strong>se finds, <strong>the</strong> gnathos<strong>to</strong>me taxa from
<strong>the</strong> Silurian Xiaoxiang Fauna of China push <strong>the</strong> early
radiation of jawed vertebrates well before <strong>the</strong> advent of
<strong>the</strong> Devonian ‘Age of Fishes’. The research on <strong>the</strong>
Xiaoxiang Fauna will significantly improve our
underst<strong>and</strong>ings of early diversification of gnathos<strong>to</strong>mes,
especially when <strong>the</strong> morphological reper<strong>to</strong>ire of
acanthodians <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> various primitive placoderms can
be fully deciphered <strong>and</strong> analyzed in light of <strong>the</strong> new
paradigm regarding <strong>the</strong> origin of osteichthyans from
non‐osteichthyan groups.
Origin <strong>and</strong> evolution of birds: combining
paleon<strong>to</strong>logical <strong>and</strong> developmental evidence
Xing XU
CAS, Beijing, China. Email: xingxu@vip.sina.com
The last 2 decades have witnessed great advances in
research on <strong>the</strong> origin <strong>and</strong> early evolution of birds.
These advances have come from both paleon<strong>to</strong>logical
<strong>and</strong> neon<strong>to</strong>logical studies, <strong>and</strong> have included discoveries
of new specimens of both non‐avian dinosaurs <strong>and</strong>
basal birds that have provided significant osteological
<strong>and</strong> even behavorial information, analyses of bone <strong>and</strong>
eggshell microstructure <strong>to</strong> make inferences about
growth strategy <strong>and</strong> physiology in non‐avian dinosaurs
70

<strong>and</strong> early birds, more comprehensive analyses of <strong>the</strong>
phylogenetic framework of <strong>the</strong> transition from non‐avian
dinosaurs <strong>to</strong> birds, <strong>and</strong> analyses of developmental <strong>and</strong>
physiological data from extant archosaurs <strong>to</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> evolution of major avian character systems. Here I
highlight two issues: 1) <strong>the</strong> origin <strong>and</strong> early evolution of
fea<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>and</strong> 2) <strong>the</strong> evolution of avian wings. Recent
paleon<strong>to</strong>logical <strong>and</strong> neon<strong>to</strong>logical studies on fea<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>and</strong>
fea<strong>the</strong>r‐like integumentary structures demonstrate that
<strong>the</strong> defining features of modern fea<strong>the</strong>rs could have
evolved in an incremental ra<strong>the</strong>r than a sudden manner,
an evolutionary model characterized by successive small
evolutionary changes. The evolution of <strong>the</strong> avian wing is a
problem that has attracted <strong>the</strong> interest of both
paleon<strong>to</strong>logists <strong>and</strong> neon<strong>to</strong>logists. Available lines of
evidence, <strong>and</strong> particularly <strong>the</strong> recently collected
developmental data, provide strong support for <strong>the</strong>
occurrence of homeotic changes in <strong>the</strong> development of
<strong>the</strong> neornithine h<strong>and</strong>. However, a close examination of <strong>the</strong>
manual morphology of extinct <strong>the</strong>ropods, in combination
with some developmental data from neornithines, calls
in<strong>to</strong> question <strong>the</strong> occurrence of a complete ‘frameshift’
event as has sometimes been proposed. Instead, <strong>the</strong>
hypo<strong>the</strong>sis of a partial, piecemeal frameshift can better
explain <strong>the</strong> available data regarding morphological change
along <strong>the</strong> line <strong>to</strong> birds in <strong>the</strong>ropod evolution.
Phylogenomic analyses support <strong>the</strong> Glires
hypo<strong>the</strong>sis but reject <strong>the</strong> Euarchonta
hypo<strong>the</strong>sis
group. Phylogenetic <strong>and</strong> likelihood analyses strongly
supported <strong>the</strong> Glires hypo<strong>the</strong>sis, namely <strong>the</strong> grouping
of Rodentia with Lagomorpha (rabbits, hares, <strong>and</strong>
pikas). However, indicated was that tree shrews are a
sister group <strong>to</strong> Glires ra<strong>the</strong>r than <strong>to</strong> Primates, or a basal
clade within Euarchon<strong>to</strong>glires. Additional analyses of
both new <strong>and</strong> previously published data confirmed
<strong>the</strong>se results, <strong>and</strong> supported <strong>the</strong> positioning of
Dermoptera (flying lemurs) as <strong>the</strong> closest relative of
primates. This was fur<strong>the</strong>r evidenced by <strong>the</strong>
observation that 2 of 3 exonic indels used previously <strong>to</strong>
support <strong>the</strong> monophyly of Euarchonta were invalid.
Conclusions: Therefore, Euarchonta <strong>and</strong> Sunda<strong>the</strong>ria
(Dermoptera + Sc<strong>and</strong>entia) may not be natural groups.
To depict more clearly <strong>the</strong> independent status of
Sc<strong>and</strong>entia, Prima<strong>to</strong>morpha <strong>and</strong> Glires, we proposed
<strong>the</strong> replacement of <strong>the</strong> name Euarchon<strong>to</strong>glires by
Scaprima<strong>to</strong>glires. Relaxed molecular clock <strong>and</strong>
diversification rate analyses suggested that
Scaprima<strong>to</strong>glires experienced a rapid diversification,
<strong>and</strong> that Glires, Sc<strong>and</strong>entia <strong>and</strong> Prima<strong>to</strong>morpha may
have diverged almost simultaneously.
Phylogenetic <strong>and</strong> environmental aspects of
early seed plant radiation
Jason HILTON
Earth Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbas<strong>to</strong>n,
Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. Email: j.m.hil<strong>to</strong>n@bham.ac.uk
Xuming ZHOU
Institute of Zoology, CAS, Beijing 100101, China. Email:
xmzhou0103@163.com
Background: The presently well accepted Euarchonta is a
pruned version of Archonta <strong>and</strong> grouped many placental
mammals including tree shrews (Sc<strong>and</strong>entia), flying
lemurs (Dermoptera), <strong>and</strong> primates (Primates) within
Euarchon<strong>to</strong>glires (or Supraprimates). However, both
relationships within Euarchon<strong>to</strong>glires <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Euarchonta hypo<strong>the</strong>sis are in controversy <strong>and</strong> need <strong>to</strong> be
validated.
Results: Here, a phylogenomic dataset containing 1910
exons from 22 representative mammals was compiled <strong>to</strong>
investigate <strong>the</strong> phylogenetic relationships within this
Present day seed plants dominate most terrestrial floras
<strong>and</strong> form <strong>the</strong> basis of plant resources. Current evidence
shows that <strong>the</strong>y originated approximately 363 million
years ago at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> Devonian period <strong>and</strong>
continued <strong>the</strong>ir primary radiation through <strong>the</strong>
Carboniferous. This talk will consider <strong>the</strong> early
evolutionary his<strong>to</strong>ry of seed plants that provides <strong>the</strong>
underlying backbone <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir systematic relationships,
<strong>and</strong> will emphasize <strong>the</strong> importance of whole‐plant
reconstructions in underst<strong>and</strong>ing systematic
relationships between different seed plant groups. The
question of how much of <strong>the</strong> whole‐plant is required
will be addressed using recently constructed datasets
from which it is increasingly apparent that partial
reconstructions of species with fundamentally different
bauplans may significantly alter our underst<strong>and</strong>ing of
71

systematic relationships, whereas addition of ano<strong>the</strong>r
species that nests firmly within a well known group may
not. Environmental consequences of <strong>the</strong> primary seed
plant radiation will also be considered, with this
representing a miles<strong>to</strong>ne in increased independence from
wetl<strong>and</strong> habitats <strong>and</strong> included colonisation of drier <strong>and</strong>
upl<strong>and</strong> settings that affecting <strong>the</strong> carbon, wea<strong>the</strong>ring <strong>and</strong>
water cycles. However, spatial <strong>and</strong> temporal biases are
evident in <strong>the</strong> preservation of fossil suitable of
whole‐plant reconstruction; this normally requires
ana<strong>to</strong>mical preservation that is most likely <strong>to</strong> occur in
wetl<strong>and</strong> settings, whereas plants inhabiting drier settings
have significantly lower preservational potentials <strong>and</strong>
typically lack ana<strong>to</strong>mical preservation. Exceptions
including ana<strong>to</strong>mically preserved fossil plants rafted in<strong>to</strong>
marine settings or preservation within volcanic deposits
are highlighted, including recently discovered examples
from <strong>the</strong> Permian of China.
Phylogenetic <strong>to</strong>ols in reconstructing past
evolutionary patterns
Grimm GUIDO <strong>and</strong> Else Marie FRIIS
Swedish Museum of Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry, Box 50007, SE‐104‐05
S<strong>to</strong>ckholm, Sweden. Email: guido.grimm@nrm.se;
else.marie.friis@nrm.se
One <strong>and</strong> a half centuries ago, <strong>the</strong> first phylogenetic trees
were produced based on <strong>the</strong> concept that organisms
(descendants) evolve from earlier forms (ances<strong>to</strong>rs).
Since about 50 years, <strong>the</strong> newly emerging computer
sciences allowed for <strong>the</strong> first time <strong>to</strong> infer phylogenetic
relationships based on an explicit ma<strong>the</strong>matical
methodology ra<strong>the</strong>r than intuition. In particular, within
<strong>the</strong> last 10 years, <strong>the</strong> advances in computer sciences have
provided us with fast <strong>and</strong> efficient means <strong>to</strong> infer
phylogenetic relationships using maximum likelihood <strong>and</strong>
o<strong>the</strong>r probabilistic methods, which successively have
replaced <strong>the</strong> traditionally used, often biased parsimony
criterion in many fields of biological sciences. The
‘molecular revolution’ has provided us with a virtually
infinitive amount of data on <strong>to</strong>day’s organisms. The need
for fast, flexible <strong>and</strong> efficient reconstruction methods have
also led <strong>to</strong> a renaissance of distance‐based methods.
Distance‐based analyses can be based on any kind of data;
<strong>the</strong>y can be tested for correlation or phylogenetic signal
prior <strong>to</strong> tree‐inference; <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>y can be used <strong>to</strong> infer
phylogenetic networks that relax <strong>the</strong> dicho<strong>to</strong>mous
constraint inherent <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> inference of phylogenetic
trees.
However, thus far, most studies trying <strong>to</strong> infer <strong>the</strong>
phylogenetic position of fossil plant taxa make use of <strong>the</strong>
parsimony criterion despite its long‐known
shortcomings <strong>and</strong> statistical problems. Already <strong>the</strong>
comparison of phylogenetic trees based on
morphological <strong>and</strong> molecular data demonstrates that
morphological evolution is, in many cases, not a most
parsimonious process. In my talk, I will outline <strong>the</strong>
alternatives <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> traditional parsimony‐based
tree‐inference <strong>to</strong> establish phylogenetic relationships
between fossil <strong>and</strong> modern organisms. At <strong>the</strong> h<strong>and</strong> of
exemplary (plant) datasets, I will illustrate how <strong>the</strong>se
alternate <strong>to</strong>ols can be used <strong>to</strong> reconstruct <strong>the</strong>
evolutionary unfolding of groups of organisms, but also
where <strong>the</strong>ir limitations lie. In <strong>the</strong> era of phylogenomics,
<strong>the</strong> great challenge of plant sciences is not <strong>to</strong> provide
more genetic data <strong>and</strong> its analysis, which is a problem
easily overcome by technology, but <strong>to</strong> provide sufficient
morphological data <strong>to</strong> place fossils in a phylogenetic
context.
Plotting <strong>the</strong> road map beyond <strong>the</strong> access
<strong>and</strong> benefit sharing blueprint
Gong CHENG
Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China. Email:
vic<strong>to</strong>r_chenggong@126.com
Access <strong>and</strong> Benefit Sharing (ABS) of genetic resources
(GR) <strong>and</strong> associated traditional knowledge (TK) is a hot
issue in <strong>the</strong> research of biodiversity conservation <strong>and</strong>
sustainable utilization. The Secretariat of <strong>the</strong>
Convention on Biological Diversity has provided a
blueprint for ABS. Based on this blueprint <strong>and</strong> our field
research, this paper discusses <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>ory of providers’
ownership of genetic resources <strong>and</strong> associated
traditional knowledge, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> core elements of Prior
Informed Consent <strong>and</strong> Mutually Agreed Terms. The
authors propose a comprehensive concept of <strong>the</strong>
integrity <strong>and</strong> interactivity of Indigenous <strong>and</strong> Local
Communities as providers, <strong>the</strong> materials (GR), <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
knowledge (TK), <strong>and</strong> suggest that <strong>the</strong> aim of ABS is
protecting this integrity <strong>and</strong> interactivity along with
72

promoting <strong>the</strong> sustainable utilization of GR <strong>and</strong> TK.
Subsequently, authors suggest a specific road map for
ABS, which takes in<strong>to</strong> consideration <strong>the</strong> proposed
priorities.
Population genetic structure <strong>and</strong> his<strong>to</strong>rical
demography of an endemic true freshwater
crab Sinopotamon honanense (Decapoda:
Brachyura) in China based on mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial
DNA analysis
Juanjuan XU
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing,
Jiangsu 210046, China. Email: xujjnj@163.com
Quaternary climatic oscillations have played a significant
role in shaping <strong>the</strong> present geographical distribution <strong>and</strong>
genetic structure of temperate species. To fur<strong>the</strong>r
underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> effect on <strong>the</strong> genetic differentiation
<strong>and</strong> population genetic structure of benthic invertebrates
due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Quaternary ice ages, an endemic true
freshwater crab, Sinopotamon honanense (Decapoda:
Brachyura) distributed in central region of inl<strong>and</strong> China,
were estimated using <strong>the</strong> 2 mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial fragments
(cox1 <strong>and</strong> nad5). 261 individuals from 28 local
populations were collected. 202 polymorphic sites defined
184 haplotypes. The overall species haplotype diversity
was high (h=0.982), <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> nucleotide diversity is
relatively low (π = 0.012). Network structure showed that
<strong>the</strong> haplotype distribution did not seem <strong>to</strong> follow obvious
geographical pattern. The AMOVA indicated that most of
<strong>the</strong> genetic variation (66.05%) resided within
populations. Tajima’s D <strong>and</strong> Fu’s Fs values were all
negative (Tajima's D: ‐1.717, P

Kazuo N WATANABE
University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan. Email:
nabechan@gene.tsukuba.ac.jp
Genetic resources (GR) can be exploited by employment
of modern sciences with effort, expense, special
knowledge, skills <strong>and</strong> high risk in research <strong>and</strong>
development. GR have been vital entities for sustainability
<strong>and</strong> livelihood improvement, <strong>and</strong> have been a common
concern of various stakeholders. A legal‐binding regime
was agreed on Oc<strong>to</strong>ber 2010 as <strong>the</strong> Nagoya Pro<strong>to</strong>col on
Access <strong>to</strong> Genetic Resources <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Fair <strong>and</strong> Equitable
Sharing of Benefits Arising from <strong>the</strong>ir Utilization <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Convention on Biological Diversity (NP‐ABS). During <strong>the</strong>
negotiation of <strong>the</strong> NP‐ABS, <strong>the</strong> distinction of
non‐commercial uses <strong>and</strong> commercial purposes has been
deeply discussed. Article 8 of NP‐ABS was <strong>the</strong>
achievement of substantial efforts by <strong>the</strong> academic
research community <strong>to</strong> secure recognition within NP‐ABS
that each party has an obligation <strong>to</strong> recognize academic
research for <strong>the</strong> conservation <strong>and</strong> sustainable use of
biological diversity, <strong>and</strong> that this can be implemented by
allowing simplified access procedures for
non‐commercial academic research. The academic
research community must acutely comprehend that <strong>the</strong>y
are not expecting an exemption from <strong>the</strong> requirements of
benefit sharing, but should underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> need for
complex strict measures would not be required for
non‐commercial academic research. But academic
communities at large need fur<strong>the</strong>r sophistication of
recognizing <strong>the</strong> context of NP‐ABS for implementation
processes. However, each party can still have <strong>the</strong>ir own
domestic measures <strong>to</strong> enforce its NP‐ABS related laws,
which may complicate <strong>the</strong> processes of <strong>the</strong> access <strong>and</strong>
benefit‐sharing of GR under non‐commercial uses with
relevant needs of fair recognition of <strong>the</strong> rules by
stakeholders in <strong>the</strong> community.
Potentiation of fluoroquinolones by <strong>the</strong> use
of promethazine as efflux pump inhibi<strong>to</strong>r
Aqeel JAVEED, Samreen FAISAL, Muhammad
ASHRAF, Amjad RIAZ, Muhammad Hassan
MUSHTAQ <strong>and</strong> Muti‐Ur‐REHMAN
Department of Pharmacology <strong>and</strong> Toxicology, University of
Veterinary <strong>and</strong> Animal Sciences, Abdul Qadir Jilani Road,
Lahore 54600, Pakistan. Email: aqeel.javeed@uvas.edu.pk
This study was conducted <strong>to</strong> demonstrate <strong>the</strong>
potentiation effect of promethazine, an efflux pump
inhibi<strong>to</strong>r, on <strong>the</strong> sensitivity of Strep<strong>to</strong>coccus pyogenes,
Staphylococcusaureus, <strong>and</strong> Escherichia coli against
flouroquinolones. The sensitivity of <strong>the</strong>se bacteria was
tested against 4 Fouroquinoloies, i.e. ciprofloxacin,
levofloxacin, norfloxacin <strong>and</strong> perfloxacin, by using Kirby
Bauer method. Diameters of inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones were
measured in millimeters. The same experiment was
revised with <strong>the</strong> addition of promethazine in
concentrations of 64μg/mL, 128 μg/mL, 192 μg/mL
<strong>and</strong> 256 μg/mL <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> petri plates. Diameters of
inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones were measured <strong>and</strong> were compared
with <strong>the</strong> negative control. The diameters of inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry
zones of Staphylococcus aureus against ciprofloxacin (5
μg), levofloxacine (5 μg), norflozacine (10 μg) <strong>and</strong>
perflozacin (5 μg) alone were 14.6mm, 20.4mm,
11.2mm <strong>and</strong> 13.2mm but in <strong>the</strong> presence of
promethazine in 256 μg/mL concentration, <strong>the</strong> zones
were 47.6mm, 42.2mm, <strong>and</strong> 35.8mm respectively. The
diameters of inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones of Strep<strong>to</strong>coccus
pyogenses against ciproflozacine (5 μg), levoflozacin (5
μg), norfloxacin (10 μg) <strong>and</strong> perfloxacin (5 μg) alone
were 22.4mm, 20.66mm, 15.0mm <strong>and</strong> 16.8mm but in
<strong>the</strong> presence of promethazine (156 μg/mL) <strong>the</strong>
diameter of inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones were 40mm, 41mm,
37.8mm, <strong>and</strong> 41.4mm respectively. The diameters of
inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones of E. coli against ciproflozacine (5 μg),
levofloxacine (5 μg), norflozacine (10 μg) <strong>and</strong>
perfloxacin (5 μg) alone were 23.2mm, 19.6mm, 20mm
<strong>and</strong> 17mm but in <strong>the</strong> presence of promethazine (256
μg/mL) <strong>the</strong> zones were 42mm, 39mm, 43mm, <strong>and</strong>
35mm respectively. The increase in <strong>the</strong> diameter of
inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zone of bacteria against fluoroquinolones
measured first in <strong>the</strong> absence <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>n in <strong>the</strong> presence
of promethazine was found <strong>to</strong> be significant. These
results also demonstrated that this increase in <strong>the</strong>
diameter of <strong>the</strong> inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry zones was related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
increasing dose of promethazine, indicating that <strong>the</strong>
increase in <strong>the</strong> susceptibility of bacteria for
fluoroquinolones was a result of inhibition of bacterial
efflux pumps by promethazine. These results may be
useful in treating infectious diseases in wild animals.
74

Preparation of palladium nanoparticles by
biological reduction of Cinnamomum
camphora leaves
Feng ZHANG <strong>and</strong> Jiquan FU
School of Materials Science<strong>and</strong> Engineering, Beijing Institute of
Fashion Technology Beijing Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, Beijing 100029.
Email: fujq010@sina.con
Palladium nanoparticle products have extensive
application prospects owing <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir unique optical,
electrical <strong>and</strong> biological affinity. Conventional methods
have been used for preparing palladium nanoparticles,
such as chemical <strong>and</strong> physical method. Biomass reduction
method is a new method developed in recent years.
Biomass reduction method was used <strong>to</strong> obtain palladium
nanoparticles in this paper.
Experimental part: It was investigated that preparation
process of <strong>the</strong> dry powder <strong>and</strong> extract of Cinnamomum
camphora leaves, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> technological conditions of
preparation for both preparation process were obtained.
The technological conditions of biomass reduction
process are also proposed on <strong>the</strong> basis of <strong>the</strong> preliminary
experiments.
Results <strong>and</strong> Discussion: Reduction product was
characterized <strong>and</strong> analyzed by XRD, TEM, EDS <strong>and</strong> SAED
method. XRD results shows that 4 absorption peaks in <strong>the</strong>
spectra is respectively corresponding <strong>to</strong> (111) (200) (220)
<strong>and</strong> (311) plane of elemental palladium crystal. TEM
results shows that palladium nanoparticles are spherical,
elliptical <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r irregular morphology, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> average
size of <strong>the</strong> particles about 4nm. SEAD characterization
showed that <strong>the</strong>re are clear diffraction ring in <strong>the</strong> image,
it indicates that <strong>the</strong> product is crystal palladium. EDS
analysis shows that Pd element is in <strong>the</strong> reaction products,
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> content quality is more than 80%.
Conclusion: 1. In <strong>the</strong> bio‐reduction process, <strong>the</strong>
‘palladium membrane’ floater appeared on <strong>the</strong> surface of
<strong>the</strong> reaction liquid, during that time <strong>the</strong> floater is mainly
palladium element, which is easily collected <strong>and</strong> 2. The
aggregation states of <strong>the</strong> palladium nanoparticles
prepared are spherical, elliptical <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r irregular
shape. Crystal palladium was formed. The palladium
particles average size is about 4 nm.
Preservation of pulses with <strong>the</strong> help of
Nerium indicum Linn. foliage dust <strong>and</strong>
Ricinus communis L. seed oil: study of
antinutritional <strong>and</strong> nutritional parameters
of five commonly utilized pulses
Shripad Mukund UPASANI
PR High School Society's Arts, Commerce <strong>and</strong> Science College,
1786 Shree Vitthal M<strong>and</strong>ir, Opp. Juna Rath, Dharangaon
425105, India. Email:shripad.upasani1@gmail.com
Cas<strong>to</strong>r bean oil (Ricinus communis L.) has shown
excellent results in preservation of green gram <strong>and</strong>
soybean. After 12 months of s<strong>to</strong>rage no infestation has
been seen when 2 mL/kg seed oil is applied <strong>to</strong> green
gram <strong>and</strong> soybean. As much as at 1 g/kg, leaf dust of
Nerium indicum Linn. was seen ineffective in protecting
<strong>the</strong> pulses. We have selected Vigna rediata (L) Wilczek
(green gram) as it is most <strong>and</strong> Glycine max L. least
susceptible host of Callosobruchus chinensis L.
(Coleoptera: Bruchedae). In studying antinutritional
fac<strong>to</strong>rs of 5 commonly utilized pulses red gram was
found <strong>to</strong> have high amount of cyanogenetic glycosides.
Trypsin inhibi<strong>to</strong>r activity is high in soybean. There is
remarkable difference in <strong>the</strong> tannin <strong>and</strong> oxalate contents
as well as haemagglutinating activity of different pulses.
The larvae of C. chinensis penetrate seed coat <strong>and</strong> live
inside. That space also utilized by larvae for pupation,
<strong>the</strong>refore seed coat thickness <strong>and</strong> composition could
also be <strong>the</strong> descending fac<strong>to</strong>rs for infestation.
Nutritional value <strong>and</strong> germination ability of pulses
which are subjected <strong>to</strong> preservation by leaf dust <strong>and</strong>
seed oil was moni<strong>to</strong>red every 2 months up <strong>to</strong> 12
months. In control set reducing sugar level declined
significantly <strong>and</strong> marginal decline in <strong>to</strong>tal carbohydrates,
proteins <strong>and</strong> protease activity has been seen than <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
treated sets. In contrast <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>se, <strong>the</strong> bacterial <strong>and</strong>
fungal count in control was found <strong>to</strong> be almost double
<strong>and</strong> percent germination <strong>and</strong> percent sprouting
decreased <strong>to</strong> half as compared <strong>to</strong> treated. Flavonoids
mixture isolated from Nerium indicum showed almost
90% mortality of C.chinensis in 2 hours. The aqueous
leaf extract was used <strong>to</strong> isolate flavonoids from N.
indicum <strong>and</strong> mortality was achieved at 4–6 mg/mL
concentration in filter paper diffusion assay.
75

Protected Areas <strong>and</strong> Conservation
Symposium
Yan Xie, John MacKinnon <strong>and</strong> Wang Sung
IOZ, CAS, Beijing, China. Email: xieyan@ioz.ac.cn
During last 30 years, China has established various types
of protected areas (PA) where now cover nearly 20% of
its l<strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> protect or manage its natural resources.
However, <strong>the</strong> overall management of <strong>the</strong>se different
protected areas in China is very poor <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> roles of
protected areas for biodiversity conservation are far from
fulfilled. The main reasons for <strong>the</strong> situation are lack of
strong supervision, management criteria, <strong>and</strong>
participation of broad society. China has spent nearly
10 years <strong>to</strong> develop a law <strong>to</strong> improve PA management,
<strong>and</strong> now is at <strong>the</strong> point of issuing a law, however, <strong>the</strong>
current proposed Law of Natural Heritage draft maybe
issued this year is considered not effective for
conservation. In order <strong>to</strong> best use <strong>the</strong> opportunity <strong>to</strong>
have China develop a new law that can effectively
conserve its biodiversity, we have established an expert
group in China <strong>to</strong> study on key issues related <strong>to</strong>
development of <strong>the</strong> law. Current now, we have around
80 experts working on key aspects of PA management
supervision mechanism from government <strong>and</strong> multiple
stakeholders, PA categories <strong>and</strong> functional zones, define
conservation objectives at site level, regional <strong>and</strong> national
levels, financial mechanism, multiple stakeholder benefit
sharing mechanism, public involvement mechanism, <strong>and</strong>
PA management socialization mechanism.
In order <strong>to</strong> learn experiences on PA legislation related
issues in China <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> world, <strong>to</strong> mobilize experts from
various disciplines (including relevant academicians) <strong>to</strong>
work <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r, communicate with various stakeholders
(especially relevant government agencies), <strong>and</strong> achieve
broader communications. We organized a symposium
on Protected Areas <strong>and</strong> Conservation during <strong>the</strong><strong>31st</strong>
<strong>IUBS</strong> GA <strong>and</strong> <strong>Conference</strong> on Biological Sciences <strong>and</strong>
Bioindustry. During <strong>the</strong> symposium, we will give
presentations on following 5 <strong>to</strong>pics <strong>and</strong> get participants
involved in discussion on each of <strong>the</strong>m. After <strong>the</strong>
symposium, recommendation papers will be finalized for
each of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>pic for fur<strong>the</strong>r studies <strong>and</strong> communication
with wider audiences in China.
1. Defining conservation objectives, outcome
moni<strong>to</strong>ring <strong>and</strong> evaluation at site level, regional <strong>and</strong>
national levels – Jeff McNeely (Former Senior
Scientist, IUCN) <strong>and</strong> John McKinnon (Biodiversity
conservation specialist in China);
2. PA management supervision by government agencies
<strong>and</strong> multiple stakeholders – Ernes<strong>to</strong> C. Enkerlin
Hoeflich (Vice President for World Commission on
Protected Areas, IUCN), Wang Yamin (Professor,
Marine College, Sh<strong>and</strong>ong University) <strong>and</strong> Su Liu
(Greater China Manager for Civic Exchange, Hong
Kong; Chinese environmental policy expert);
3. PA categories <strong>and</strong> functional zones, <strong>and</strong> corridors –
Ben Boer (Emeritus Professor in Environmental Law,
Australian Centre for Climate <strong>and</strong> Environmental Law,
Sydney Law School. University of Sydney), Yan Xie
(Associate Research Professor, Institute of Zoology,
Chinese Academy of Sciences), Charles Besancon
(Protected Areas Program Direc<strong>to</strong>r, World
Conservation Moni<strong>to</strong>ring Center), Siobhan Kenney
(Protected Areas Program Officer, World
Conservation Moni<strong>to</strong>ring Center) <strong>and</strong> Scott Perkin
(Head, Regional Biodiversity Conservation
Programme, Asia, IUCN Asia Regional Office);
4. Ensure PA funding for management operation –
Ernes<strong>to</strong> C. Enkerlin Hoeflich, Megan Kram (Public
L<strong>and</strong>s Program Manager for TNC) <strong>and</strong> Aster Zhang
(Project Direc<strong>to</strong>r for Conservation International;
Associate professor of Beijing Normal University);
<strong>and</strong>
5. Public involvement <strong>and</strong> benefit sharing mechanisms
– Phillip Tabas (Vice President for The Nature
Conservancy) <strong>and</strong> Shengzhi Li (Field Project Direc<strong>to</strong>r,
Shan Shui Conservation Center).
Research on <strong>the</strong> inverse problem of
ma<strong>the</strong>matical physics between product
quality <strong>and</strong> pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis process control
efficiency of Dendrobium huoshanense
Xiangyu DING
University of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui,
China. Email: xyding@mail.ustc.edu.cn
The mapping model between product quality <strong>and</strong>
process control efficiency of Dendrobium huoshanense
76

is setup <strong>to</strong> illustrate <strong>the</strong> relationship among <strong>the</strong>m firstly.
Then <strong>the</strong> extension <strong>the</strong>ory is introduced in<strong>to</strong> extension
information entropy descriptions of product quality <strong>and</strong>
process control efficiency of D.huoshanense. And <strong>the</strong>
<strong>the</strong>ory <strong>and</strong> methods of mapping contribution degree,
relational analysis <strong>and</strong> priority calculation of <strong>the</strong> inverse
problem of ma<strong>the</strong>matical physics between product quality
<strong>and</strong> process control efficiency are put forward. Finally,
<strong>the</strong>se methods are applied in extension mapping analysis
of D.huoshanense quality, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> analysis results show
<strong>the</strong> relationships between <strong>the</strong> product quality <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
process control characteristic parameters can be
commendably discovered. This research is of great
significance for quality planning, control efficiency,
pharmacology quality <strong>and</strong> clinical treatment.
Responses of rice crops <strong>to</strong> elevated
tropospheric ozone: recent findings from
Chinese rice FACE studies
Yunxia WANG
Yangzhou University, 48 East Wenhui Road, Yangzhou 225009,
China. Email: yxwang@yzu.edu.cn
Global atmospheric changes as a result of human
activities will significantly alter many elements of <strong>the</strong>
future crop production environment. One of <strong>the</strong>se
changes is <strong>the</strong> rapid increase in tropospheric ozone
concentration, which is currently considered as <strong>the</strong> most
important air pollutant due <strong>to</strong> its prevalence, phy<strong>to</strong><strong>to</strong>xicity
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> significant damages <strong>to</strong> agricultural crops, forest
tree <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r natural vegetation. Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is
<strong>the</strong> most important food crop in <strong>the</strong> world, providing
nutrition for more than half of <strong>the</strong> world’s population.
Current assessments of <strong>the</strong> ozone effects on rice are
based on studies conducted in chambers such as growth
cabinets, glasshouse or open‐<strong>to</strong>p chambers. The
environmental conditions such as temperature, sunlight,
humidity in chambers are different from that in open field,
<strong>and</strong> hence <strong>the</strong>re is uncertainty over how well <strong>the</strong> results
obtained from chambers represent <strong>the</strong> real ozone effects
on rice under natural field conditions. Compared with
chamber studies, free‐air ozone concentration
enrichment (ozone‐FACE) experiment, conducted in fully
open‐air field condition, represents <strong>the</strong> best simulations
for future atmospheric environment. The Chinese rice
ozone‐FACE, located at Yangzhou, China, is <strong>the</strong> first
FACE study in <strong>the</strong> world <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong> response <strong>and</strong>
adaptation of rice crops <strong>to</strong> elevated ozone concentration
that will occur over <strong>the</strong> first half of this century. Based
on <strong>the</strong> description of operation features of <strong>the</strong> Chinese
rice FACE facility, this report will mainly focus on <strong>the</strong>
effects of free‐air ozone concentration enrichment on
<strong>the</strong> pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis, growth, yield, quality <strong>and</strong> lodging
resistance of rice crops. In addition, similarities <strong>and</strong>
differences between findings obtained by FACE <strong>and</strong>
enclosure methodologies will be compared. Finally,
fur<strong>the</strong>r research priorities in this field will be discussed.
Retrospective on <strong>the</strong> iCCB program: how it
came <strong>to</strong> be <strong>and</strong> why
Mikael FORTELIUS
Department of Geosciences <strong>and</strong> Geography, University of
Helsinki, Helsinki, Finl<strong>and</strong>. Email: mikael.fortelius@helsinki.fi
The <strong>IUBS</strong> program on Integrative Climate Change
Biology arose from <strong>the</strong> chance meeting at <strong>the</strong> 2003
<strong>General</strong> <strong>Assembly</strong> in Cairo, Egypt, of Chris<strong>to</strong>ph
Scheidegger, Nils Chr. Stenseth <strong>and</strong> Mikael Fortelius.
When discussing <strong>the</strong> state of underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong>
relationship between climate change <strong>and</strong> evolution at
<strong>the</strong> different scales of observation that each of us
represented, we became convinced that an integrative
initiative was timely <strong>and</strong> that it would fit well under <strong>the</strong>
<strong>IUBS</strong> umbrella. The program was officially approved at
<strong>the</strong> 2006 GA in Washing<strong>to</strong>n, DC, USA, <strong>and</strong> renewed at
<strong>the</strong> 2009 GA in Cape Town, South Africa, where it was
joined by <strong>the</strong> sister initiative Human Consequences of
Climate Change. Much has happened since 2003, <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> biological community is now much more aware of
<strong>the</strong> biotic interactions that attend evolution under
climate change than was <strong>the</strong> case when <strong>the</strong> program
was founded. The role of <strong>the</strong> iCCB is changing as some of
<strong>the</strong> original goals have become almost mainstream
science but <strong>the</strong> core ideas remain distinctive <strong>and</strong> sound.
In particular, <strong>the</strong> integrative potential of trait‐based
ecometrics is still far from fully realized, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> role of
<strong>the</strong> iCCB as an integra<strong>to</strong>r across scales <strong>and</strong> approaches
remains highly relevant.
77

Shedding light on 500 million years of plant
evolution: a tribute <strong>to</strong> Dobzhansky
Ralf RESKI
Plant Biotechnology, University of Freiburg, Germany <strong>and</strong> FRIAS,
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies Schaenzlestrasse 1,
Freiburg 79104, Germany. Email: pbt@biologie.uni‐freiburg.de
With an estimated divergence time of at least 500 million
years ago, extant mosses represent <strong>the</strong> early diverging
lineages of l<strong>and</strong> plants. Due <strong>to</strong> this phylogenetic
intermediate position between green algae <strong>and</strong> seed
plants, <strong>the</strong> moss Physcomitrella patens is optimal <strong>to</strong>
explore <strong>the</strong> evolution of plants. Initially, cosmoss.org, a
P.patens‐centric information web resource, has been
developed <strong>to</strong> provide <strong>and</strong> enable <strong>the</strong> exploration of <strong>the</strong>
annotation of <strong>the</strong> virtual transcrip<strong>to</strong>me assemblies.
Leading <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> release of <strong>the</strong> initial genome assembly
(Rensing et al. 2008), cosmoss.org served as a platform <strong>to</strong>
coordinate <strong>the</strong> analysis <strong>and</strong> annotation of <strong>the</strong> P. patens
genome sequence. Since July 2009, cosmoss.org acts as
<strong>the</strong> central annotation site <strong>and</strong> reposi<strong>to</strong>ry for <strong>the</strong> moss
P.patens <strong>and</strong> has been extended by an integrative genome
browser <strong>and</strong> (functional <strong>and</strong> structural) annotation
curation services. Recently, <strong>the</strong> moss genome was chosen
as 1 out of 7‘plant flagship genomes’ by <strong>the</strong> US
Department of Energy.
Some highlights of evolutionary genomics utilizing <strong>the</strong>
moss genome will be presented, including a novel
mechanism of eukaryotic gene regulation (Khraiwesh etal.
2010).
Squirrel–oak interactions: acase of diffuse
coevolution
Zhishu XIAO
Institute of Zoology, CAS, Beijing 100101, China. Email:
xiaozs@ioz.ac.cn
explore such questions. Advances in molecular
phylogenetics <strong>and</strong> biogeographic information from
both fossil records <strong>and</strong> modern distributions suggest
that squirrels <strong>and</strong> oaks have shared a long evolutionary
his<strong>to</strong>ry, at least from <strong>the</strong> late Eocene from whence <strong>the</strong>y
independently radiated <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> areas where <strong>the</strong>y occur
<strong>to</strong>day. This indicates that squirrels <strong>and</strong> oaks have had
<strong>the</strong> opportunity <strong>to</strong> impose strong reciprocal selection
on one ano<strong>the</strong>r through evolutionary time. In this talk,
we reviewed morphological, physiological <strong>and</strong>
behavioral evidence <strong>to</strong> illustrate diffuse coevolution
between squirrels <strong>and</strong> oaks regarding reciprocal
selection.
Studies on distribution <strong>and</strong> habitat
situation of some wild cycads in China
Yu‐yuan HUANG, 1 Bao‐xuan NONG, 2 Ye‐cong
ZHONG, 3 Li‐jun WEI, 4,5 Feng XU 6 <strong>and</strong>
Yuan‐feng LU 6
1College of Life Sciences, Zhongkai University of Agriculture
<strong>and</strong> Engineering, Guangzhou 510225, China, 2Guangxi
Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanning 530007, China,
3Guangxi Forest Inven<strong>to</strong>ry <strong>and</strong> Planning Institute, Nanning
530011, China, 4 College of Agriculture, Hunan Agricultural
University, Changsha 410128, China, 5 Guangxi Institute of
Subtropical Crops, Nanning 530001, China <strong>and</strong> 6 College of
Forestry, Guangxi University, Nanning 530005, China. Email:
lqxhyy@yahoo.com.cn
Cycads are most primitive seed plants in present time,
all are as grade I protect plants in China, China is <strong>the</strong>
main distributed region of cycads, about have 37
species of Cycadaceae, but <strong>the</strong> situation on <strong>the</strong>
individuals number of <strong>the</strong>se plant population <strong>and</strong>
ecological environment are few research. This paper
carried out <strong>the</strong> studies on <strong>the</strong> wild distribution site <strong>and</strong>
status of habitat of Cycas xilinensis, C. longlingensis, C.
ferruginea, C. segmentifida, C. crasipes,
Tightly coevolved plant‐vertebrate interactions are rare
C.acuminatissima, C. multifida <strong>and</strong>C. guizhouensis. The
in nature in seed dispersal systems. In general, animals
results showed that only C. ferruginea have several
can consume (disperse) many different seed plants, <strong>and</strong>
larger distributed sites, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> area each site is larger,
a seed plant is also consumed (dispersed) by many
<strong>to</strong>tal <strong>the</strong> area being several thous<strong>and</strong>s hm
animal species. Thus, any patterns of coevolution would
2 . But <strong>the</strong>
plant density is small, about each 100–150 m
be diluted, resulting in diffuse ra<strong>the</strong>r than pairwise
2 , some
were one individual each 200–250 m
coevolution. Interactions between scatter‐hoarding
2 . O<strong>the</strong>r vegetation
consists of o<strong>the</strong>r plants were better, but <strong>the</strong> distributed
squirrels <strong>and</strong> oaks provide a valuable model system <strong>to</strong>
78

sites of o<strong>the</strong>r species of cycads were fewer, averaging
only 1 or 2, with a few species at 3 distributed sites.
However, each site was a smaller area, about 65–100 hm 2 ,
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir individual numberswere very few, for exampleC.
xilinensis, C. lionglingensis, C. crasipes, C. multifida, C.
acuminatissima <strong>and</strong> so on. Statisticsshowed 30–60,
<strong>the</strong>reby proving that <strong>the</strong>y are endangered. The major
ecological index of communities in which cycads were
located was also carried out admeasurement <strong>and</strong> analysis.
The research shows that, except C. ferruginea, all 7 o<strong>the</strong>r
species of cycads need quick <strong>and</strong> effective methods <strong>to</strong>
conserve <strong>the</strong>ir habitats <strong>and</strong> exp<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> number of
individuals.
Systematic analysis of <strong>the</strong> crosstalk of
protein post­translational modifications
Zhicheng PAN, Jian REN <strong>and</strong> Yu XUE
Hubei Bioinformatics <strong>and</strong> Molecular Imaging Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry,
Department of Systems Biology, College of Life Science <strong>and</strong>
Technology, Huazhong University of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology,
Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China <strong>and</strong> State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of
Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat‐sen University,
Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, China. Email:
xueyu@mail.hust.edu.cn
Recent studies have confirmed that different
post‐translational modifications (PTMs) prefer <strong>to</strong>
synergistically orchestrate specific biological processes
<strong>and</strong> functions by crosstalks, while identification of PTM
crosstalks is fundamental for dissecting <strong>the</strong> complexity
<strong>and</strong> regula<strong>to</strong>ry mechanisms of PTMs. In this work, we
proposed that sulfation, nitration <strong>and</strong> phosphorylation
can in situ crosstalk by competitively modifying specific
tyrosine residues at <strong>the</strong> same positions. The preference of
<strong>the</strong> in situ crosstalk among <strong>the</strong> 3 PTMs was systematically
analyzed, while statistical results suggested that <strong>the</strong> in situ
crosstalk between sulfation <strong>and</strong> nitration is significantly
under‐represented. However, we observed that both
sulfation <strong>and</strong> nitration prefer <strong>to</strong> insitu crosstalk with
phosphorylation at <strong>the</strong> phosphorylation sites ra<strong>the</strong>r than
non‐phosphorylatable tyrosines, <strong>and</strong> up <strong>to</strong> 24.4% of
known tyrosine phosphorylation sites might also be
modified by ei<strong>the</strong>r sulfation or nitration by computational
prediction. Fur<strong>the</strong>r statistical results suggested that
sulfation <strong>and</strong> nitration preferentially crosstalk with
phosphorylation in distinct biological processes <strong>and</strong>
functions. Taken <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r, we proposed that <strong>the</strong> in situ
crosstalk among sulfation, nitration <strong>and</strong>
phosphorylation might be as ubiqui<strong>to</strong>us as o<strong>the</strong>r types
of PTM crosstalks. In addition, <strong>the</strong> prediction <strong>and</strong>
analysis results in our study might be useful for fur<strong>the</strong>r
experimental consideration.
The biological basis of sustainability
Jeffrey McNEELY
IUCN, Gl<strong>and</strong>, Switzerl<strong>and</strong>. Email: jeffrey.mcneely@iucn.org
While much attention is given <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> infrastructure that
is built by humans – buildings, roads, dams, fac<strong>to</strong>ries,
<strong>and</strong> so forth – ano<strong>the</strong>r sort of infrastructure is even
more important: nature’s infrastructure. The forests,
rivers, wetl<strong>and</strong>s, mountains, deserts, oceans, <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
ecosystems provide benefits <strong>to</strong> people that are
essential <strong>to</strong> human life <strong>and</strong> welfare. Even better, many
of <strong>the</strong>se benefits, commonly called ‘ecosystem services’
are provided by nature free of charge. But of course,
nothing is really free. Maintaining healthy ecosystems
so that <strong>the</strong>y can continue delivering benefits <strong>to</strong> people
may require difficult choices <strong>to</strong> be made. Should a
wetl<strong>and</strong> be converted <strong>to</strong> a ricefield? If so, what are <strong>the</strong>
tradeoffs in terms of flood control, water purification,
<strong>and</strong> fisheries? This paper will describe <strong>the</strong> various
ecosystem services <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> benefits that <strong>the</strong>y provide,
indicate <strong>the</strong> drivers of ecosystem degradation, <strong>and</strong>
suggest some new approaches for ensuring that <strong>the</strong>
policy decisions that affect ecosystems are well
informed by science. When managed properly, natural
ecosystems as well as ecosystems modified by people
can provide a continuous flow of benefits <strong>and</strong> adapt <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> changing conditions that are sure <strong>to</strong> come.
The CHANCE program: transforming
students in<strong>to</strong> ‘global­minded’ scientific
investiga<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>and</strong> citizens
Jacqueline S McLAUGHLIN
The Pennsylvania State University‐Lehigh Valley, USA.
79

The CHANCE program (Connecting Humans And Nature
through Conservation Experiences) is making its mark
by empowering environmental education through
scientific research (www.chance.psu.edu). Come explore
how students <strong>and</strong> teachers can travel <strong>the</strong> world – ei<strong>the</strong>r
virtually or physically – <strong>to</strong> carry‐out real‐world research
on some of <strong>the</strong> world’s most troubling environmental
issues in order <strong>to</strong> learn <strong>the</strong> importance of global
environmental sustainability. Two successful embedded
field courses (in China <strong>and</strong> Panama) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> ‘field‐course
experiential learning model’ that frames <strong>the</strong>m will be
showcased for o<strong>the</strong>r faculty <strong>to</strong> replicate <strong>and</strong>/or
administra<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>to</strong> share with <strong>the</strong>ir faculty <strong>and</strong> staff.
Additionally, participants will learn key strategies for
sustaining academic programs through partnerships,
technology, strategic planning, <strong>and</strong> most of all, by
emulating professional science practice while embracing
conservation. Finally, as a caps<strong>to</strong>ne experience,
participants will virtually travel <strong>to</strong> Greenl<strong>and</strong> with Dr.
Richard Alley, Nobel Laureate <strong>and</strong> Professor at Penn
State’s Earth <strong>and</strong> Mineral Institute, <strong>to</strong> take ice core
samples that provide insight in<strong>to</strong> climate change
fluctuations over <strong>the</strong> centuries <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> Costa Rica with Dr.
Deborah Clark <strong>to</strong> study how increased canopy
temperature is currently affecting tropical rainforest
productivity, How? By using <strong>the</strong> CHANCE ‘research
modules’. These online learning <strong>to</strong>ols enhance <strong>the</strong>
teaching <strong>and</strong> learning of core biological concepts <strong>and</strong> our
world’s environmental realities by using technology <strong>to</strong>
virtually bring real‐world scientists <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir research
data in<strong>to</strong> classrooms.
The climate as a natural resource on <strong>the</strong>
yield stability of wheat
Klara LOKOS TOTH
Szent Istvan University, Godollo, Hungary. This work is
supported by TAMOP‐4.2.1./B‐11/2/KMR‐2011‐0003 project.
This study is about a valuation <strong>and</strong> comparison of <strong>the</strong>
l<strong>and</strong>s of wheat on a regional level. The basis of <strong>the</strong>
analysis was time series data observed by each region.
Based on <strong>the</strong> available source of data, <strong>the</strong> basis of <strong>the</strong>
comparison is <strong>the</strong> counties of Hungary as <strong>the</strong> unit of
observation. Aim of <strong>the</strong> study is <strong>to</strong> value <strong>and</strong> categorize
<strong>the</strong> agricultural areas as source of production based on
<strong>the</strong> yields of wheat in <strong>the</strong> different regions. Each unit of
l<strong>and</strong>s (county) represents a complex effect on <strong>the</strong> yield
through its soil, microclimate, varieties <strong>and</strong>
agro‐techniques (cultivation, fertilization <strong>and</strong> plant
protection). Opinion on <strong>the</strong> scale of stability of l<strong>and</strong>s is
formed by jointly examining <strong>the</strong>se fac<strong>to</strong>rs.
Assuming that <strong>the</strong>re were no fundamental changes
on a regional (county) level in <strong>the</strong> aspect of soil, variety,
agro‐techniques during <strong>the</strong> examined period, as first
approach, <strong>the</strong> stability is examined only in terms of year
effect which has <strong>the</strong> most significant influence on yield.
Thus, <strong>the</strong> pure year effect, which cannot be controlled
or manipulated by any human intervention, can be
disclosed.
Based on <strong>the</strong> responses of <strong>the</strong> year effect on <strong>the</strong>
average yield <strong>the</strong> 19 observed units can be categorized,
which enables us <strong>to</strong> rank <strong>and</strong> characterize <strong>the</strong> seven
regions as well.
This preliminary study is a part of a larger project
that aims <strong>to</strong> elaborate a framework <strong>to</strong> identify <strong>and</strong> value
<strong>the</strong> natural resources.
The aim of this study was <strong>to</strong> compare <strong>and</strong>
demonstrate <strong>the</strong> effect of <strong>the</strong> production area <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
climate as natural resource via <strong>the</strong> wheat yield as one of
<strong>the</strong> many ways of examining natural resources.
The effect of seed size <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> seed fates <strong>and</strong>
hording behavior of rodents in <strong>the</strong>
Xishuangbanna tropical region, China
Lin CAO, 1,2,3 Zhenyu WANG, 1 Zhishu XIAO, 1
Cong GUO, 2 Jin CHEN 3 <strong>and</strong> Zhibin ZHANG 1
1State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Integrated Management of Pest
Insects <strong>and</strong> Rodents in Agriculture, Institute of Zoology, CAS,
Datun Lu, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China, 2 Key
Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Bio‐resources <strong>and</strong> Eco‐environment, Ministry
of Education, College of Life Science, Sichuan University,
Chengdu 610064, China <strong>and</strong> 3 CAS Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Tropical
Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna, Xishuangbanna Tropical
Botanical Garden, CAS, Mengla, Yunnan 666303, China. Email:
zhangzb@ioz.ac.cn
The study of effect of seed size on seed fates has
engaged <strong>the</strong> attention of many biologists; however, <strong>the</strong>
effect of seed size on final fitness of seeds that were
dispersed by small rodents remained unknown, since
80

most studies focused only on <strong>the</strong> effect of seed size <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
seed removal <strong>and</strong> seed caching. Few seeds could survive
<strong>to</strong> establish seedlings which made it difficult <strong>to</strong>
investigate <strong>the</strong> effect of seed size on <strong>the</strong> final fitness
during <strong>the</strong> dispersal stage. We studied how seed size
influenced seed dispersal <strong>and</strong> fates of a dominant shrub
Pit<strong>to</strong>sporopsis kerrii Craib dispersed by small rodents in
<strong>the</strong> Xishuangbanna tropical forest of sou<strong>the</strong>rn China, <strong>and</strong>
we also studied how seed size affected <strong>the</strong> selection <strong>and</strong>
hoarding behavior of four commonly seen rodents species
(Maxomys surifer, Niviventer confucianus, N. fulvescens
<strong>and</strong> Rattusflavipectus) in semi‐natural enclosures in <strong>the</strong>
study site. From 2007 <strong>to</strong> 2011, we individually tracked
<strong>the</strong> fates of 6840 seeds (varying from 1.5 <strong>to</strong> 13.5g) at 3
st<strong>and</strong>s. We found <strong>the</strong> effects of seed size <strong>to</strong> seed fate
varied greatly during different dispersal phases. Large
seeds were more likely <strong>to</strong> be removed from seed stations
<strong>and</strong> dispersed fur<strong>the</strong>r than smaller ones, but more small
seeds were scatter‐hoarded after removal, as more large
seeds were missing after removal from seed stations.
Finally, seed size did not significantly affect <strong>the</strong>
probability of seedling establishment during dispersal
stage. Most missing seeds may have dispersed in<strong>to</strong>
underground burrows <strong>and</strong> were eventually been eaten by
rodents. Our experiments in semi‐natural enclosures also
showed that all 4 species rodents scatter‐ <strong>and</strong>
larder‐hoarded P. kerrii seeds, but 3 of <strong>the</strong>m (N.
confucianus, N. fulvescens <strong>and</strong> R.flavipectus) exhibited
more larder‐hoarding, while only M. surifer showed more
scatter‐hoarding. All 4 species of rodents prefered <strong>to</strong>
harvest (eat <strong>and</strong> remove) small seeds, but <strong>the</strong>y did not
show clear preference for seed size during
scatter‐hoarding. M. surifer <strong>and</strong> R.flavipectus prefer <strong>to</strong>
larder hoard big seeds, while N.confucianus <strong>and</strong> N.
fulvescens did not show a clear preference for seed size
during larder‐hoarding. These findings suggest that <strong>the</strong>
effects of seed size <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> seed fates <strong>and</strong> hording behavior
of rodents were different during different dispersal stages,
but seed size did not significantly affect <strong>the</strong> final fitness
of <strong>the</strong> seeds during <strong>the</strong> dispersal stage.
The Encyclopedia of Life: an international,
open educational resource for biodiversity
learning
Marie STUDER
Learning <strong>and</strong> Education (L+E) Group, Encyclopedia of Life
(EOL).
The Encyclopedia of Life (EOL; www.eol.org) was
established <strong>to</strong> make comprehensive, au<strong>the</strong>nticated
information about <strong>the</strong> world’s biodiversity freely
available over <strong>the</strong> Internet in a single, trusted digital
resource. Encyclopedia of Life currently includes more
than 1 million (<strong>and</strong> growing!) au<strong>the</strong>nticated species
pages with text or image content <strong>and</strong> links <strong>to</strong> over 34
million pages of digitized biodiversity literature
through <strong>the</strong> Biodiversity Heritage Library
(http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/). In addition,
EOL is a partnership of 12 international institutions
<strong>and</strong> over two hundred content providers from around
<strong>the</strong> world. The EOL international partners serve
species pages for <strong>the</strong> flora <strong>and</strong> fauna from a specific
geographic area, in languages used in <strong>the</strong> region,
making this valuable information much more
accessible. EOL is an Open Educational Resource (OER)
that provides an engaging <strong>and</strong> informative learning
platform where students <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>rs can work <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r
<strong>to</strong> help build this global resource <strong>and</strong> learn about
biological diversity worldwide. Examples of <strong>to</strong>ols <strong>and</strong>
activities available for biodiversity learning through
EOL are described, including students writing species
pages using <strong>the</strong> EOL Education Life Desk <strong>to</strong>ol <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
partner’s <strong>to</strong>ols.
The enigma of angiosperm origin
Else Marie FRIIS <strong>and</strong> Kaj Raunsgaard
PEDERSEN
Swedish Museum of Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry, Box 50007, SE‐104‐05
S<strong>to</strong>ckholm, Sweden <strong>and</strong> Department of Geoscience,
Høegh‐Guldbergs Gade 2, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. Email:
else.marie.friis@nrm.se; paly@geo.au.dk
The discovery <strong>and</strong> study of rich mesofossil floras from
<strong>the</strong> Cretaceous with well‐preserved angiosperm
reproductive structures have greatly clarified many
aspects of <strong>the</strong> early phylogenetic <strong>and</strong> ecological
radiation of angiosperms. The fossils document a clear
<strong>and</strong> orderly pattern of increased structural complexity
combined with increased phylogenetic diversity <strong>and</strong>
increased abundance of angiosperms from <strong>the</strong>
81

mid‐Early Cretaceous <strong>and</strong> onwards. The signals from <strong>the</strong>
fossil record are also corroborated by <strong>the</strong> broad
phylogenetic patterns that have been outlined based on
studies of living angiosperms. Thus while we now have a
relatively good insight in<strong>to</strong> patterns of early angiosperm
radiation, <strong>the</strong>re are still many remaining questions
related <strong>to</strong> angiosperm origin <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> rooting of <strong>the</strong>
angiosperm tree. So far <strong>the</strong>re is no consensus regarding
angiosperm <strong>and</strong> seed plant relationships. A major
impediment is <strong>the</strong> failure of deriving key angiosperm
features (e.g. <strong>the</strong> carpel) from structures of o<strong>the</strong>r seed
plants. This may partly be due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> extensive extinctions
both among early diverging lineages of angiosperms <strong>and</strong>
among o<strong>the</strong>r seed plants. Many extinct groups of seeds
plants have been described over <strong>the</strong> years, but new taxa
are constantly being added <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> fossil record <strong>and</strong> it is
clear that <strong>the</strong> extinct seed plant diversity was much
greater than earlier appreciated. Fossils assigned <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Bennettitales–Erdtmani<strong>the</strong>cales–Gnetales group constitute
one complex of plants that have now also been identified
also in mesofossil floras with numerous new taxa. The
new material shows an extensive diversity of this group
in <strong>the</strong> Early Cretaceous parallel with <strong>the</strong> first major
angiosperm proliferation. Exquisite preservation allows
detailed character analyses that may be important for
solving some of <strong>the</strong> outst<strong>and</strong>ing questions in seed plant
phylogeny <strong>and</strong> angiosperm origin.
The evolutionary fate of duplicated genes in
soybean
Jianchang DU
Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanjing 210014,
China. Email: changzi75@hotmail.com
The recent sequenced soybean genome has undergone 2
rounds of whole genome duplication (WGD) events (or
polyploidization), which occurred in ~50 million years
ago (Mya) <strong>and</strong> ~13 Mya, respectively. However <strong>the</strong>
evolutionary fate <strong>and</strong> consequences of duplicated genes
in soybean following whole genome duplications are
poorly unders<strong>to</strong>od. In this study, we investigated <strong>the</strong> rates
of nonsynonymous substitution (Ka) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> rates of
synonymous substitution (Ks) for a nearly complete set of
genes in soybean by comparing <strong>the</strong> orthologs between
soybean <strong>and</strong> its progeni<strong>to</strong>r species Glycine soja. Our
results reveal strong associations between duplication
status <strong>and</strong> Ka <strong>and</strong> gene expression level, <strong>and</strong> overall low
Ks <strong>and</strong> low levels of gene expression in pericentromeric
regions‐<strong>the</strong> cold spots for meiotic recombination in
soybean. The duplicated genes in pericentromeric
regions show lower level of retention rate, <strong>and</strong>
significantly lower Ka, lower Ka/Ks, <strong>and</strong> higher levels of
expression than <strong>the</strong>ir homoeologs in chromosomal
arms. This asymmetric evolution of two members from
individual duplicated gene pairs suggests that distinct
genomic chromatin types are important determinants
shaping <strong>the</strong> patterns of divergence <strong>and</strong> retention of
WGD‐derived genes.
The International Oryza Map Alignment
Project: development <strong>and</strong> analysis of a
genus­wide comparative genomics
platform <strong>to</strong> help solve <strong>the</strong> 9­billion people
question
Rod A WING
Arizona Genomics Institute, University of Arizona, USA. Email:
rwing@Ag.arizona.edu
I‐OMAP PIs: Rod A. Wing, Arizona Genomics Institute,
University of Arizona, USA; Mingsheng Chen, Institute of
Genetics <strong>and</strong> Developmental Biology, CAS, Lizhi Gao, Kunming
Institute of Botany, CAS; Bin Han, National Center for Gene
Research, CAS; Robert Henry, University of Queensl<strong>and</strong>,
Australia; Yue‐ie Hsing, Institute of Plant <strong>and</strong> Microbial Biology,
AS; Nori Kurata, National Institute of Genetics (NIG), Japan;
An<strong>to</strong>nio Costa de Oliveira, Plant Genomics <strong>and</strong> Breeding Center,
Federal University of Pelotas, Brazil; Olivier Panaud, Plant
Genome <strong>and</strong> Development Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, Perpignan University,
France; Wen Wang, Kunming Institute of Zoology, CAS.
OMAP, OGE PIs: Darshan Brar, Department of Plant Breeding
<strong>and</strong> Genetics, International Rice Research Institute,
Philippines; Scott Jackson, Crop <strong>and</strong> Soil Sciences Department,
University of Georgia, USA; Kshirod Jena, Department of Plant
Breeding <strong>and</strong> Genetics, International Rice Research Institute,
Philippines; Manyuan Long, Department of Ecology <strong>and</strong>
Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, USA; Carlos
Machado, Department of Biology, University of Maryl<strong>and</strong>, USA;
Mike S<strong>and</strong>erson, Department of Ecology <strong>and</strong> Evolutionary
82

Biology, University of Arizona, USA; Doreen Ware, USDA‐ARS,
Cold Spring Harbor Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, USA.
In 2011, <strong>the</strong> Economist magazine published an issue
entitled “The 9‐billion People Question” (9BPQ) which
addressed a world‐wide dilemma that is central <strong>to</strong> most if
not all plant scientists – How can our society grow enough
food <strong>to</strong> feed 2 billion additional human beings in less than
40 years? 1 Rice (Oryzasativa) will play a key role in
solving <strong>the</strong> 9BPQ as rice feeds half <strong>the</strong> world <strong>and</strong> it is that
half that will double in size in <strong>the</strong> foreseeable future. Rice
2020 2 is a key initiative aimed at solving <strong>the</strong> 9BPQ <strong>and</strong>
calls for <strong>the</strong> mobilization of our community <strong>to</strong> pool <strong>and</strong>
coordinate all available resources with a common goal of
creating a green super rice, where “green” means less
input (e.g. water, fertilizer, pesticides, l<strong>and</strong>), <strong>and</strong> “super”
means 2‐3 fold yields. 3
One of <strong>the</strong> most important resources that can be
utilized <strong>to</strong> improve cultivated rice is <strong>the</strong> virtually
untapped reservoir of genetic variation hidden within <strong>the</strong>
wild relatives of Oryza. The genus Oryza spans
approximately 15 MY of evolutionary his<strong>to</strong>ry 4 <strong>and</strong> is
composed of 21 wild <strong>and</strong> 2 domesticated (O. sativa, O.
glaberrima) species, 10 distinct genome types (AA, BB, CC,
BBCC, CCDD, EE, FF, GG, KKLL, HHJJ), <strong>and</strong> a 3.6 genome
size variation. Wild Oryza species have a broad habitat
distribution, including Asia, Australia, Africa, South <strong>and</strong>
Central America, <strong>and</strong> many novel biotic/abiotic
resistances have been identified.
To lay <strong>the</strong> foundation for a complete genomic
interrogation of <strong>the</strong> wild relatives of rice we organized
<strong>the</strong> Oryza Map Alignment (OMAP) <strong>and</strong> Oryza Genome
Evolution (OGEP) Projects which have generated a large
of array of publicly available genomic resources most
notably a set of manually edited BAC‐based physical
maps (i.e. 18 deep‐coverage BAC libraries ‐ fingerprinted,
end‐sequenced, <strong>and</strong> FPC assembled) representing 18 of
<strong>the</strong> 23 recognized Oryza species, covering all 8 AA
genome species <strong>and</strong> one each of <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r 9 genome
types (BB, CC, BBCC, CCDD, EE, FF, GG, KKLL, JJKK) 4–6 ; <strong>and</strong>
a set of chromosome 3 short arm sequences from all 8
AA genome species, as well as <strong>the</strong> BB, CC, BBCC, FF, GG
<strong>and</strong> Leerisaperrieri, an Oryza outgroup species. All of
<strong>the</strong>se data <strong>and</strong> resources can be accessed through <strong>the</strong>
www.Gramene.org <strong>and</strong> www.genome.arizona web sites,
respectively.
Analysis of <strong>the</strong>se data sets revealed <strong>the</strong> following key
points: 1) LTR Retro‐transposable element
amplifications dramatically increased <strong>the</strong> size of both
<strong>the</strong> O. australiensis [EE] <strong>and</strong> O. granulata [GG] by as
much as 400 <strong>and</strong> 200 Mb, respectively 7,8 ; 2) The AA
genomes of O. nivara, O. rufipogon (<strong>the</strong> putative
progeni<strong>to</strong>r species of O. sativa), <strong>and</strong> O. glaberrima have
exp<strong>and</strong>ed/contracted by at least 40 Mb (> 10% of <strong>the</strong>ir
genome sizes) relative <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> IRGSP RefSeq 9 ; <strong>and</strong> 3)
Analysis of <strong>the</strong> Adh1 region (~100‐200 kb) across <strong>the</strong>
entire Oryza phylogeny (diploid <strong>and</strong> polyploidy) showed
significant perturbations of synteny including dynamic
evolution of gene families, transposable element
mediated gene movement, mutations, genome size
changes, <strong>and</strong> large scale physical rearrangements 10,11 .
The overriding conclusion from <strong>the</strong>se studies, <strong>and</strong> many
o<strong>the</strong>rs, indicates that a SINGLE reference genome for
<strong>the</strong> genus Oryza (i.e. IRGSP RefSeq) is not sufficient <strong>to</strong>
capture <strong>and</strong> underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> allelic diversity/natural
variation hidden with <strong>the</strong> genus <strong>to</strong> help solve <strong>the</strong> 9BPQ.
To address this resource/knowledge gap we organized
<strong>the</strong> International Oryza Map Alignment Project
(I‐OMAP) <strong>and</strong> have held five gr<strong>and</strong> challenge meetings
(Japan 07, Korea 08, Philippines 09, Brazil 10, <strong>and</strong>
Taipei 11) in conjunction with <strong>the</strong> annual International
Symposiums on Rice Functional Genomics (ISRFG). The
three primary goals of I‐OMAP are <strong>to</strong>: 1) Generate
RefSeqs & Transcrip<strong>to</strong>me data sets for all eight AA
genome species, <strong>and</strong> a representative species of <strong>the</strong>
nine o<strong>the</strong>r genome types; 2) Generate, map, <strong>and</strong>
phenotype advanced ABC, CSSL, RIL populations for <strong>the</strong>
AA genome species for functional <strong>and</strong> breeding studies;
<strong>and</strong> 3) Identify collections of naturally occurring
populations of <strong>the</strong> wild Oryza species for diversity,
conservation, population <strong>and</strong> evolutionary analyses.
This talk will focus on goal number one <strong>and</strong> will report
<strong>the</strong> current status of <strong>the</strong> Oryza RefSeq project. Draft
sequences of two subspecies of O. sativa were published
a decade 12,13 ago followed by <strong>the</strong> IRGSP “gold st<strong>and</strong>ard”
RefSeq of O. sativa ssp. japonica (cv. Nipponbare) in
2005 14 . Significant progress has been achieved over <strong>the</strong>
past 1‐2 years with completion of <strong>the</strong> O. glaberrima
[AA], O. barthii [AA], O. longistaminata [AA] <strong>and</strong> O.
brachyantha [FF] genomes (all unpublished but in
Genbank). <strong>Assembly</strong> is currently progress for <strong>the</strong> O.
nivara [AA], O. glumaepatula [AA] <strong>and</strong> O. punctata [BB]
83

genomes, <strong>and</strong> sequencing is underway for a majority of
<strong>the</strong> remaining diploid species.
It should be noted that <strong>the</strong> I‐OMAP project has a huge
advantage over o<strong>the</strong>r next generation genome
sequencing projects (e.g. Drosophila 12 genomes) 15 in
that physical maps are available for all AA genome
species as well as representatives of all o<strong>the</strong>r 9 genome
type. Such resources facilitate <strong>the</strong> assembly of more
complete genome sequences versus ones that rely solely
on next generation short‐read sequence data <strong>and</strong>
assembly algorithms, <strong>the</strong> so called “gene space
assemblies”.
In addition <strong>to</strong> an I‐OMAP status report, this lecture will
discuss <strong>the</strong> analysis of <strong>the</strong> O. glaberrima genome. O.
glaberrima is 2 nd species of Oryza that was independently
domesticated ~3,500 years ago in West Africa.
1. Parker J. The 9 billion‐people question. In: The Economist. February
24, 2011.
2. Zhang Q, Li J, Xue Y, Han B, Deng XW (2008). Rice 2020: A Call For An
International Coordinated Effort In Rice Functional Genomics.
Molecular Plant, 1, 715–9.
3. Zhang Q (2007). Strategies for developing Green Super Rice.
Proceedings of <strong>the</strong> National Academy of Sciences, 104, 16402–9.
4. Ammiraju JSS, Song X, Luo Met al. (2010). The Oryza BAC Resource: a
genus‐wide <strong>and</strong> genome scale <strong>to</strong>ol for exploring rice genome
evolution <strong>and</strong> leveraging useful genetic diversity from wild relatives.
Breeding Science, 60, 536–43.
5. Ammiraju JS, Luo M, Goicoechea JL et al.(2006). The Oryza bacterial
artificial chromosome library resource: construction <strong>and</strong> analysis of
12 deep‐coverage large‐insert BAC libraries that represent <strong>the</strong> 10
genome types of <strong>the</strong> genus Oryza. Genome Res, 16, 140–7.
6. Kim H, Hurwitz B, Yu Y et al. (2008). Construction, alignment <strong>and</strong>
analysis of 12 framework physical maps that represent <strong>the</strong> 10
genome types of <strong>the</strong> genus Oryza. Genome Biol, 9, R45.
7. Ammiraju JS, Zuccolo A, Yu Yet al. (2007). Evolutionary dynamics of
an ancient retrotransposon family provides insights in<strong>to</strong> evolution of
genome size in <strong>the</strong> genus Oryza. Plant J, 52, 342–51.
8. Piegu B, Guyot R, Picault Net al. (2006). Doubling genome size
without polyploidization: dynamics of retrotransposition‐driven
genomic expansions in Oryza australiensis, a wild relative of rice.
Genome Res, 16, 1262–9.
9. Hurwitz BL, Kudrna D, Yu Yet al. (2010). Rice structural variation: a
comparative analysis of structural variation between rice <strong>and</strong> three
of its closest relatives in <strong>the</strong> genus Oryza. Plant J, 63, 990–1003.
10. Ammiraju JS, Fan C, Yu Y et al. (2010). Spatio‐temporal patterns of
genome evolution in allotetraploid species of <strong>the</strong> genus Oryza. Plant J.
2010 May 6.
11. Ammiraju JS, Lu F, Sanyal A et al. (2008). Dynamic evolution of
Oryza genomes is revealed by comparative genomic analysis of a
genus‐wide vertical data set. Plant Cell, 20, 3191–209.
12. Goff SA, Ricke D, Lan T‐Het al. (2002). A Draft Sequence of <strong>the</strong> Rice
Genome (Oryza sativa L. ssp. japonica). Science, 296, 92–100.
13. Yu J, Hu S, Wang J et al. (2002). A Draft Sequence of <strong>the</strong> Rice
Genome (Oryza sativa L. ssp. indica). Science, 296, 79–92.
14. Sequencing ProjectInternational Rice G: <strong>the</strong> map‐based sequence
of <strong>the</strong> rice genome. Nature (2005). 436, 793–800.
15. Evolution of genes <strong>and</strong> genomes on <strong>the</strong> Drosophila phylogeny.
Nature (2007). 450, 203–18.
The investigation on genetic resources of
domestic animals <strong>and</strong> poultry <strong>and</strong>
traditional knowledge in Miao <strong>and</strong> Tujia
ethnic areas of western Hunan Province
Junnian LI, Dayuan XUE, Dongmei YANG,
Shuanglun TAO <strong>and</strong> Jing LIANG
College of Life Resources <strong>and</strong> Environmental Science, 120
Renmin Road, Jishou, Hunan 416000, China, College of Life
<strong>and</strong> Environmental Science, Minzu University of China <strong>and</strong>
Nanjing Institute of Environmental Science, Ministry of
EnvironmentalProtection of <strong>the</strong> People’s Republic of China.
Email: junnianli@yahoo.com.cn; xuedayuan@hotmail.com
In western Hunan, Miao <strong>and</strong> Tujia nationalities have
long coexisted with nature, <strong>and</strong> have accumulated a
distinctive knowledge of tradition. They domesticated
<strong>and</strong> cultivated many local lives<strong>to</strong>ck <strong>and</strong> poultry species,
such as Xiangxi black pig (endangered), Xiangxi yellow
cattle, Ma<strong>to</strong>u goats, Wuxue goats, Zhijiang ducks
(endangered) <strong>and</strong> Daomao chickens (endangered).
However, since 1990, western Hunan has introduced
many fine breeds from o<strong>the</strong>r locations in China <strong>and</strong>
abroad <strong>to</strong> improve <strong>the</strong> productivity of lives<strong>to</strong>ck by
crossbreeding, resulting in a sharp decline, or even
extinction, of <strong>the</strong> local species of domesticated lives<strong>to</strong>ck
<strong>and</strong> poultry. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, traditional knowledge of
lives<strong>to</strong>ck <strong>and</strong> poultry breeding has been lost due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
migration of young laborers for work <strong>and</strong> changes <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> lifestyles of <strong>the</strong> original inhabitants. This
investigation aimed <strong>to</strong> reveal <strong>the</strong> traditional knowledge
of <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> consciousness of sharing <strong>the</strong> benefits arising
from <strong>the</strong> use of traditional knowledge of <strong>the</strong> lives<strong>to</strong>ck
through personal interviews, group discussions <strong>and</strong>
84

questionnaire surveys in Xiangxi Au<strong>to</strong>nomous Prefecture
of Tujia <strong>and</strong> Miao Nationalities. The results showed that
35 <strong>to</strong> 55 year old indigenous people are <strong>the</strong> main bearers
of <strong>the</strong> traditional knowledge of indigenous lives<strong>to</strong>ck <strong>and</strong>
poultry species, <strong>and</strong> are also <strong>the</strong> main perpetra<strong>to</strong>rs of <strong>the</strong>
lives<strong>to</strong>ck <strong>and</strong> poultry crossbreeding. However, <strong>the</strong>y lack
<strong>the</strong> knowledge of protecting or sharing <strong>the</strong> benefits
arising from <strong>the</strong> use of traditional knowledge of lives<strong>to</strong>ck.
Thus, it is urgent <strong>to</strong> preserve <strong>the</strong> genetic resources of
domestic animals <strong>and</strong> traditional knowledge of domestic
animals in Miao <strong>and</strong> Tujia ethnic areas of western Hunan.
The pure effect of climate on species
distribution
Raimundo REAL<strong>and</strong> Ana Luz MARQUEZ
Diversity, <strong>and</strong> Conservation Research Team, Department of
Animal Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Malaga
ES‐29071, Malaga. Email: rrgimenez@uma.es
Climate is one of <strong>the</strong> main drivers of species distribution.
However, as different environmental fac<strong>to</strong>rs tend <strong>to</strong>
covary, <strong>the</strong> effect of climate cannot be taken at face value,
as it may be ei<strong>the</strong>r inflated or obscured by o<strong>the</strong>r
correlated fac<strong>to</strong>rs. We used <strong>the</strong> favourability models of 4
species inhabiting Spanish mountains (Alytes dickhilleni,
Vipera latasti, Aquila fasciata <strong>and</strong> Capra pyrenaica) as a
case study <strong>to</strong> evaluate <strong>the</strong> relative contribution of climate
in <strong>the</strong>ir forecasted favourability by using variation
partitioning <strong>and</strong> weighting <strong>the</strong> effect of climate in relation
<strong>to</strong> non‐climatic fac<strong>to</strong>rs.Calculating <strong>the</strong> pure effect of <strong>the</strong>
climatic fac<strong>to</strong>r (PCF), <strong>the</strong> pure effects of non‐climatic
fac<strong>to</strong>rs (PNCF), <strong>the</strong> shared climatic effect (SCF) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
proportion of <strong>the</strong> pure effect of <strong>the</strong> climatic fac<strong>to</strong>r in
relation <strong>to</strong> its apparent effect ( ), we assessed <strong>the</strong>
apparent effect <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> pure independent effect of
climate <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>n projected both types of effects when
modelling <strong>the</strong> future favourability for each species <strong>and</strong>
combination of different Atmosphere–Ocean <strong>General</strong>
Circulation Models <strong>and</strong> Emission Scenarios. The results
show that <strong>the</strong> apparent effect of climate can be ei<strong>the</strong>r
inflated (overrated) or obscured (underrated) by o<strong>the</strong>r
correlated fac<strong>to</strong>rs. Transferring <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> future <strong>the</strong> pure
climatic effect <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> apparent climatic effect delimits
<strong>the</strong> maximum <strong>and</strong> minimumfavourable areas forecasted
for each species in each climate change scenario.
The recovery of Eurasian lynx at
Saihanwula Biosphere Reserve in Inner
Mongolia
Weidong BAO
Beijing Forestry University, Qinghua East Road, Haidian,
Beijing, China. Email: wdbao@bjfu.edu.cn
To verify <strong>the</strong> living status of wild felids <strong>and</strong> population
development, in 2006, we started a field‐moni<strong>to</strong>ring
program on Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) recovery at <strong>the</strong>
Saihanwula Biosphere Reserve. Line transacts <strong>and</strong>
active traces were used <strong>to</strong> capture lynx activities during
winter, <strong>and</strong> camera traps were used <strong>to</strong> identify
individuals throughout <strong>the</strong> years of this study. We found
an increasing trend of this lynx population with <strong>the</strong>
following main results.
In November 2006, we found tracks of a mo<strong>the</strong>r lynx
with her cubs at a core area of <strong>the</strong> reserve. It was <strong>the</strong>
first time <strong>to</strong> obtain breeding information since 1988
when 2 one‐month old lynx cubs were found in a rock
den in <strong>the</strong> same area. A poached adult male was found
in December 2008 <strong>and</strong> a terri<strong>to</strong>rial individual was
pho<strong>to</strong>graphed in Oc<strong>to</strong>ber 2011. The winter line transect
moni<strong>to</strong>ring confirmed that <strong>the</strong>re were at least 3
terri<strong>to</strong>rial lynx active at this area of 110km 2 .
In December 2006, a single line of lynx tracks was
recorded at ano<strong>the</strong>r core area of <strong>the</strong> reserve. Since <strong>the</strong>n
more active traces were found <strong>and</strong> one lynx entered our
capture cage, but unfortunately <strong>the</strong> cage release
mechanism didnot work well <strong>and</strong> this individual walked
out <strong>the</strong> cage. A mo<strong>the</strong>r lynx with her 2 sub‐adult cubs
were pictured at <strong>the</strong> prey remains of our radio‐tracked
roe deer in November 2011. According <strong>to</strong> body shape
<strong>and</strong> patterns of <strong>the</strong> camera pho<strong>to</strong>s <strong>the</strong>re were 5–7 lynx
living in <strong>the</strong> core area of 150km 2 by 2011.
Based on field surveys of <strong>the</strong> main prey of lynx, <strong>the</strong>
roe deer population is beginning <strong>to</strong> grow as a result of
<strong>the</strong> provision of salt <strong>and</strong> hay for deer during <strong>the</strong> winter
months by <strong>the</strong> reserve administration. Thus, <strong>the</strong> lynx
population is increasing with that of <strong>the</strong> roe deer.
However, poaching is still <strong>the</strong> major threat <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
recovery of Eurasian lynx, <strong>and</strong> more action <strong>to</strong> prevent
this disturbance is needed at <strong>the</strong> reserve.
85

The Swiss awareness­raising <strong>and</strong>
capacity­building programme for academia
Susette BIBER‐KLEMM <strong>and</strong> Sylvia I MARTINEZ
ABS program of <strong>the</strong> Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT), Bern,
Switzerl<strong>and</strong>. Email: sylvia.martinez@unibas.ch;
Susette.Biber‐Klemm@unibas.ch
This presentation will give an overview of <strong>the</strong> Swiss
awareness‐raising <strong>and</strong> capacity‐building programme for
academia <strong>and</strong> present in more detail <strong>the</strong> sample ABS
Agreement for non‐commercial academic research.
A national survey about research with genetic
resources from o<strong>the</strong>r countries conducted at Swiss
universities revealed insufficient knowledge about <strong>the</strong>
Convention on Biological Diversity <strong>and</strong> about <strong>the</strong>
resulting ABS obligations among scientists in Switzerl<strong>and</strong>.
Subsequently a national awareness‐raising programme
for scientists was started in order <strong>to</strong> align <strong>the</strong>ir research
conduct <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> CBD ABS requirements, <strong>to</strong> increase <strong>the</strong>ir
negotiation capacity <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> better market <strong>the</strong>
contribution of biodiversity science for <strong>the</strong> CBD.
The programme includes <strong>to</strong>ols such as a good practice
manual with clear instructions on how <strong>to</strong> access genetic
resources <strong>and</strong> share benefits, a website, flyers,
publications, lectures at universities <strong>and</strong> a coaching
service. At <strong>the</strong> international level, <strong>and</strong> triggered by <strong>the</strong>
persistent access problems faced by academic
non‐commercial research, our team submitted proposals
for simple access procedures <strong>to</strong> <strong>and</strong> participated in <strong>the</strong>
international ABS pro<strong>to</strong>col negotiations.
Among <strong>the</strong> latest <strong>to</strong>ols is a Model ABS Agreement (<strong>the</strong>
so‐called Mutually Agreed Terms) specifically designed
for non‐commercial purposes. It was elaborated in
cooperation with partners from provider states <strong>and</strong> is
based on an analysis of critical items emerging in ABS
relations between researcher <strong>and</strong> provider. It can serve
as a checklist for relevant items <strong>to</strong> be included in an ABS
contract <strong>and</strong> is intended as a supportive <strong>to</strong>ol for all
stakeholders dealing with non‐commercial academic
research.
Training <strong>to</strong> science teachers applying
science inquiry teaching methodology
High School Affiliated <strong>to</strong> Fudan University, 383 Guoquan Lu,
Yangpu District 200433, Shanghai.
Teachers Without Borders is a multi‐culture team; its
goal is <strong>to</strong> ga<strong>the</strong>r, emerge, exchange <strong>and</strong> communicate
excellent teaching experiences <strong>and</strong> knowledge from
countries all over <strong>the</strong> world in order <strong>to</strong> improve
teaching efficiency. Teachers Without Borders entered
China in 2006 with trainings <strong>and</strong> established
cooperation with Qing Yang Bureau of Education,
Chengdu, China in 2010, <strong>and</strong> also held workshops
regarding science inquiry teaching methodology. The
workshop characteristics: <strong>the</strong> workshop itself was a
good example of typical science inquiry classes through
trainers organizing trained teachers <strong>to</strong> observe <strong>and</strong>
comment on excellent teaching cases. The trainers also
painstakingly designed brains<strong>to</strong>rming activities in
order <strong>to</strong> help trainees <strong>to</strong> initiate ideas on how <strong>to</strong> solve
problems regarding science inquiry teaching methods
in <strong>the</strong>ir classes. However, what is more important is <strong>to</strong>
help trainees <strong>to</strong> implement science inquiry method in<strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> class, which requires a long <strong>and</strong> steady men<strong>to</strong>rship.
After <strong>the</strong> workshop, Teachers Without Borders <strong>and</strong>
Qing Yang Teacher Resource <strong>and</strong> Learning Center
continued research on <strong>the</strong>ory, helped trained teachers
underst<strong>and</strong> what <strong>the</strong>y had learned through observing
organized open classes <strong>and</strong> individual coaching in
terms of <strong>the</strong>ory <strong>and</strong> practice. Meanwhile, <strong>the</strong> teaching
advisor <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> teacher masters among <strong>the</strong> trained
teachers from Qing Yang influenced o<strong>the</strong>r teachers
from this region. The purpose is <strong>to</strong> encourage teachers
<strong>to</strong> independently initiate <strong>the</strong>ir own ideas on how <strong>to</strong>
work out realistic plans <strong>to</strong> conquer difficulties in
classroom teaching. The long‐term goals are <strong>to</strong> change
ways of teaching <strong>and</strong> ways of learning through
continuous men<strong>to</strong>rship <strong>and</strong> have <strong>the</strong> students learn <strong>to</strong>
study initiatively just like a scientist doing scientific
research.
Traits, habitats <strong>and</strong> changing
climates: ecometrics <strong>and</strong> vertebrate
locomotion
David P POLLY
Xianlin ZHOU
86

Department of Geological Sciences, Indiana University, 1001
E10th Street, Blooming<strong>to</strong>n, IN 47401, USA. Email:
pdpolly@indiana.edu
Climate change research increasingly focuses on
dynamics among species, ecosystems <strong>and</strong> climates:
better data about <strong>the</strong> his<strong>to</strong>rical behaviours of <strong>the</strong>se
dynamics are urgently needed. Relevant data from
ecology, palaeon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>and</strong> geology already exist, but <strong>the</strong>ir
integration is hampered by differences in temporal <strong>and</strong>
geographic scales. Ecometrics, <strong>the</strong> quantitative analysis
of functional traits, can help bridge <strong>the</strong>se scales because
<strong>the</strong>se ‘taxon‐free’ data are easily integrated across
<strong>the</strong>m. We study <strong>the</strong> locomo<strong>to</strong>r traits in terrestrial
vertebrate carnivores (mammals <strong>and</strong> snakes) in order <strong>to</strong>
better underst<strong>and</strong> how <strong>the</strong>se traits sort species <strong>and</strong>
communities in response <strong>to</strong> changing climates <strong>and</strong>
habitats. In modern North America, locomo<strong>to</strong>r traits of
both groups are strongly sorted by ecoregion <strong>and</strong>
vegetation type, suggesting that locomo<strong>to</strong>r specialization
plays an important role in vertebrate community
assembly dynamics on a large scale. The sorting is more
evident at <strong>the</strong> community level ra<strong>the</strong>r than at <strong>the</strong> species
level because <strong>the</strong> average effect of climate <strong>and</strong> vegetation
is stronger across species than it is for any individual
species. The relationship is strong enough that
macrovegetation can be predicted correctly by locomo<strong>to</strong>r
traits 60% of <strong>the</strong> time, as accurate as many climate‐based
global vegetation models. Unsurprisingly, <strong>the</strong>
relationship is weakest in areas where local habitats are
heterogeneous. Data from <strong>the</strong> last 350 ka demonstrate
that geographic response <strong>to</strong> climate changes is 2 <strong>to</strong> 3
orders of magnitude greater than evolutionary
adaptation. Examples of ecometric shifts in locomo<strong>to</strong>r
traits in response <strong>to</strong> changed habitats over his<strong>to</strong>rical
(decades) <strong>and</strong> paleon<strong>to</strong>logical (tens of thous<strong>and</strong>s of years)
time scales are presented.
Two new progoneatan complete
mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial genomes: phylogenetics <strong>and</strong>
evolutionary implications
Yan DONG
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing
210046, China. Email: dongyan_bio@126.com
The complete mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial genomes of a microscopic
pauropod, Pauropus longiramus, <strong>and</strong> a giant pill
millipede, Sphaero<strong>the</strong>riidae sp. have been sequenced.
These 2 circular molecules contain <strong>the</strong> entire set of 37
genes with 14487 bp <strong>and</strong> 14970 bp in length,
respectively. Comparative analyses revealed that
Pauropus present a distinct gene organization for
effective compacting genome size by overlapping <strong>and</strong>
truncating tRNA genes with neighbor genes. The o<strong>the</strong>r,
Sphaero<strong>the</strong>riidae exhibit an ancestral gene order, which
is identical <strong>to</strong> that in Limulus polyphemus. Based on
extensive taxa sampling, <strong>the</strong> phylogenetic relationships
among <strong>the</strong> Progoneata were reconstructed. AU tests
rejected 4 previously phylogenetic hypo<strong>the</strong>ses that
break up <strong>the</strong> Progoneata clade (S + P + D). Our
mi<strong>to</strong>genomic phylogenetic relationships support <strong>the</strong>
<strong>to</strong>pology of ((S + P) + D), <strong>and</strong> confirm <strong>the</strong> basal position
of Chilopoda in Myriapoda. And a sister‐group
relationship between Pauropoda <strong>and</strong> Symphyla was
supported by present independent mi<strong>to</strong>genome
evidence. The myriapod time tree was derived from a
relaxed molecular clock by use of Bayesian method
combined with fossil‐calibrated analysis of 2 fossil
calibrations (<strong>the</strong> oldest known diplopod fossil <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
first en<strong>to</strong>gnathan fossil). The origin of <strong>the</strong> Myriapoda
was estimated around 555 Mya (95% CI: 444–704 Mya),
it is comparable with <strong>the</strong> date of <strong>the</strong> Cambrian explosion
<strong>and</strong> c<strong>and</strong>idate myriapod‐like fossils found from <strong>the</strong>
Cambrian. The splitting of <strong>the</strong> ancestral lineages of
progoneatan <strong>and</strong> chilopod myriapods from a common
ances<strong>to</strong>r occurred during <strong>the</strong> Late Cambrian 505 Mya
with a 95% credible interval of 425–548 Mya. The
separation of <strong>the</strong> 2 clads, pauropodan <strong>and</strong> symphylan
dates back <strong>to</strong> 330 Mya (95% CI: 222–415 Mya) in <strong>the</strong>
Lower Carboniferous. The time‐scale we provided
suggests that early myriapod diversification leading <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> 4 extant stem groups was not <strong>the</strong> result of once
rapid radiation as previously proposed. A Carboniferous
origin of micro‐progoneatan might be related with <strong>the</strong>
contemporary environmental change.
Underst<strong>and</strong>ing science: <strong>the</strong> basis for
approaching conservation, evolution <strong>and</strong>
climate change
Marvalee H WAKE
87

Department of Integrative Biology <strong>and</strong> Museum of Vertebrate
Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720‐3140,
USA. Email: mhwake@berkeley.edu
physiological responses <strong>to</strong> climate change
Simon MORLEY
Conservation biology <strong>and</strong> evolution, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> implications
for both of global climate change, are major concerns of
<strong>IUBS</strong>. One of our missions is <strong>to</strong> develop <strong>and</strong> present <strong>the</strong>
science involved in <strong>the</strong>se issues, <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> educate scientists,
students, <strong>the</strong> public at large, <strong>and</strong> policy makers about
<strong>the</strong>se <strong>to</strong>pics. Education programs <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ols are being
developed that focus on <strong>the</strong>m, but <strong>the</strong>re is a more
fundamental problem that must be dealt with as well.
Given <strong>the</strong> impact of science on society, <strong>the</strong> lack of public
underst<strong>and</strong>ing of science is a grave concern. In large part,
<strong>the</strong> current confusions about evolution, global warming,
<strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r aspects of science are symp<strong>to</strong>matic of a
general misunderst<strong>and</strong>ing of what science is <strong>and</strong> what it
is not. Science is rarely considered a dynamic process
through which we gain a reliable underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong>
natural world. As a result, <strong>the</strong> public becomes vulnerable
<strong>to</strong> misinformation <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> benefits of science become
obscured. The problem is particularly difficult in <strong>the</strong> US.
However, efforts are being made <strong>to</strong> develop responsible
education methods <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ols. An example is an
NSF‐funded initiative <strong>to</strong> improve public underst<strong>and</strong>ing
about how science works, why it matters, <strong>and</strong> who
scientists are. Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Science is a collaborative
project, developed by <strong>the</strong> University of California,
Berkeley, Museum of Paleon<strong>to</strong>logy. It includes <strong>the</strong>
creative aspects of scientific research, <strong>the</strong> influence <strong>and</strong>
diversity of <strong>the</strong> scientific community, <strong>the</strong> applications,
<strong>the</strong> joys, <strong>and</strong> even <strong>the</strong> frustrations. It is web‐based, <strong>and</strong>
includes materials appropriate <strong>to</strong> kindergarten through
undergraduate college students (<strong>and</strong> teachers!!), as well
as <strong>the</strong> lay public. It facilitates critical assessment of
conflicting representations of scientific evidence in <strong>the</strong>
media. Materials have been translated in<strong>to</strong> many
languages. Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Science, Underst<strong>and</strong>ing
Evolution, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Climate Change
program currently in development are designed <strong>to</strong>
provide <strong>the</strong> resources appropriate <strong>to</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing
science <strong>and</strong> its application <strong>to</strong> such issues as conservation
<strong>and</strong> climate change.
Using regions where biodiversity <strong>and</strong> ocean
warming hotspots overlap <strong>to</strong> predict
British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road,
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB30ET, UK. Email:
smor@bas.ac.uk
Underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> responses of organisms <strong>to</strong>
environmental variability is crucial <strong>to</strong> our ability <strong>to</strong>
predict <strong>the</strong> global redistribution of biodiversity under
climate change. Both mean <strong>and</strong> extreme temperatures
are increasing causing <strong>the</strong> geographic ranges of species
<strong>to</strong> move polewards. Regions with <strong>the</strong> most rapid
warming, <strong>the</strong>refore, present an opportunity <strong>to</strong> quickly
advance our underst<strong>and</strong>ing of current <strong>and</strong> likely future
changes. The sub‐Antarctic isl<strong>and</strong> of South Georgia is
one such ocean warming hotspot. S. Georgia is also
geographically isolated, 1000 km from <strong>the</strong> nearest l<strong>and</strong>,
<strong>and</strong> whilst <strong>the</strong> marine fauna is predominately Antarctic,
with high levels of endemism, currents also supply larvae
from north of polar front. This leads <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> isl<strong>and</strong> being a
biodiversity hotspot <strong>and</strong> region where both <strong>the</strong>
equa<strong>to</strong>rward <strong>and</strong> poleward range limits overlap.
With its position at <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn edge of <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn
Ocean S. Georgia already experiences <strong>the</strong> warmest
maximum sea surface temperatures (SST), <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
widest annual SST range within <strong>the</strong> Sou<strong>the</strong>rn Ocean.
The summer SST at S. Georgia is above <strong>the</strong> measured
physiological limits of many of <strong>the</strong> co‐occurring species
from fur<strong>the</strong>r south on <strong>the</strong> Antarctic Peninsula. To cope
with <strong>the</strong> warmer environment at S. Georgia some of
<strong>the</strong>se co‐occurring species have altered depth
distributions at S. Georgia, <strong>to</strong> avoid <strong>the</strong> warmest water
masses, <strong>and</strong> have greater physiological plasticity <strong>to</strong> cope
with <strong>the</strong> more variable <strong>the</strong>rmal conditions.
Underst<strong>and</strong>ing how gene flow <strong>and</strong> adaptation of species
at S. Georgia has affected physiological <strong>to</strong>lerance will
indicate important mechanisms underlying species
geographic ranges in <strong>the</strong> ocean.
What is a cycadophyte? – The use of
morphotaxa in palaeobotany
Christian POTT <strong>and</strong> Stephen McLOUGHLIN
88

Swedish Museum of Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry, S<strong>to</strong>ckholm, Sweden. Email:
christian.pott@nrm.se
Plants with cycad‐like leaves (cycadophytes) played a key
role in <strong>the</strong> Mesozoic vegetation prior <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> late Mesozoic
ecological radiation of flowering plants. The Mesozoic,
<strong>the</strong>refore, has sometimes been referred <strong>to</strong> as <strong>the</strong> ‘age of
cycads’, but it has long been clear that <strong>the</strong>se cycadophyte
leaves were produced by at least two groups of seed plants
that were not closely related phylogenetically, i.e.
Cycadales <strong>and</strong> Bennettitales. The Cycadales are a small
group of extant plants that in most phylogenetic
reconstructions are placed as <strong>the</strong> basal branch in <strong>the</strong> seed
plant tree. The Bennettitales are in morphology‐based
analyses usually placed with angiosperms, Gnetales,
extinct Erdtmani<strong>the</strong>cales, <strong>and</strong> Pen<strong>to</strong>xylales in a
monophyletic group (<strong>the</strong> anthophytes). Major problems
with attempts <strong>to</strong> resolve seed plant phylogeny are
extensive extinctions <strong>and</strong> inadequate knowledge of <strong>the</strong>
extinct groups; many fossil taxa included in
morphology‐based analyses are in urgent need of
re‐evaluation using modern techniques <strong>and</strong>
reconstruction <strong>to</strong>ols. Of particular interest is an improved
underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong> fossil taxa included in <strong>the</strong>
anthophytes <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r potentially related fossils. Recent
studies show that <strong>the</strong> cycadophytes were more diverse
than previously accepted <strong>and</strong> that <strong>the</strong> current
classification of <strong>the</strong> group was oversimplified. At least 6
distinguishable groups (fossil <strong>and</strong> modern Cycas‐like
cycads, o<strong>the</strong>r modern cycads, Nilssoniales, Cycadeoidaceae,
Williamsoniaceae, Pen<strong>to</strong>xylales) are generally
incorporated in <strong>the</strong> cycadophytes. These groups
encompass diverse plant architectures, foliage types,
reproductive architectures, <strong>and</strong> ecology, which deserve
more detailed investigations <strong>to</strong> resolve <strong>the</strong>ir phylogenetic
relationships <strong>and</strong> ecological preferences. The talk will
give an overview of <strong>the</strong> status quo <strong>and</strong> analyse <strong>the</strong>
challenges in cycadophyte taxonomy/nomenclature by
means of selected examples.
When <strong>the</strong> world turned ‘brown’: Resource
competition, apparent competition <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
‘Miocene Transformation’
Yoram AYAL
Ben Gurion University, PO Box 102 Midreshet Ben Gurion, Israel.
Email: ayal@bgu.ac.il
The Miocene was a key epoch during which <strong>the</strong> early
Cenozoic, mostly forested, biomes were transferred <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> late Cenozoic–Quaternary, open forests <strong>and</strong>
grassl<strong>and</strong>s biomes. Current <strong>the</strong>ories suggest that this
transformation was due mainly <strong>to</strong> abiotic fac<strong>to</strong>rs,
mainly <strong>the</strong> development of cooler <strong>and</strong> more seasonal
climates, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> decrease in CO 2 levels. Here I suggest
an alternative, ecologically based, hypo<strong>the</strong>sis <strong>to</strong> explain
<strong>the</strong> recorded changes in biomes structure.
During <strong>the</strong> late Oligocene, some browsing mammals
reached body‐size that enabled <strong>the</strong>m <strong>to</strong> minimize
predation pressure on <strong>the</strong>m <strong>and</strong> as a result <strong>the</strong>ir
populations increased <strong>to</strong> a level where <strong>the</strong>y
over‐browsed <strong>the</strong> forest trees <strong>and</strong> control <strong>the</strong>m. Thus,
many forested biomes changed <strong>the</strong>ir state from being
‘green’ (where plants are resource limited) <strong>to</strong> ‘brown’
(where plants are herbivore controlled). The
competition for diminishing browser resources
resulted in <strong>the</strong> evolution of diverse body‐plane of
browsers enabling finer resource partition <strong>and</strong> high
species diversity. The heavy browsing started <strong>to</strong> limit
trees abundance, opening forest gaps <strong>and</strong> as a result,
<strong>the</strong> spread of grassy areas within <strong>the</strong> forested ones. The
spread of open forests selected for <strong>the</strong> evolution of
mix‐feeding habitat generalist Proboscidea, <strong>and</strong>
open‐grassl<strong>and</strong> grazers. Concomitantly, <strong>the</strong> open forest
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> spreading grassl<strong>and</strong> gave advantage <strong>to</strong> habitat
generalist Carnivora over <strong>the</strong> forest specialists
Creodonta. Thus, at <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong> Miocene <strong>and</strong> early
Pliocene, habitat specialist titanic perissodactyle
browsers were outcompeted by habitat generalist
Proboscidea, <strong>and</strong> habitat generalist felids <strong>and</strong> canids
replaced <strong>the</strong> forest specialist creodonts. Concomitantly,
apparent competition between (a) medium <strong>to</strong> large,
grassl<strong>and</strong> grazers <strong>and</strong> forest browsers, through habitat
generalist large felids <strong>and</strong> (b) grasses in <strong>the</strong> open forests
<strong>and</strong> grassl<strong>and</strong>s <strong>and</strong> trees in <strong>the</strong> forested habitat through
mix‐feeding Proboscidea, resulted in <strong>the</strong> extinction of
many of <strong>the</strong> forest‐dwelling browsers, <strong>the</strong> decline of <strong>the</strong>
forested biomes <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> spread of grassl<strong>and</strong>s.
Workshop on investigative case­based
learning
Margaret WATERMAN <strong>and</strong> E<strong>the</strong>l STANLEY
89

Biology Department, Sou<strong>the</strong>ast Missouri State University, USA
<strong>and</strong> BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium, Beloit College, USA.
Email: mwaterman@semo.edu; stanleye@beloit.edu
Workshop on Writing Scientific Papers;
<strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award <strong>and</strong> Integrative
Zoology Exceptional SpeakerPrize
Exploring sustainability issues while addressing 21st
century skills in <strong>the</strong> classroom: we will focus
on introducing 21st century skills (UNESCO 2011) as we
explore contemporary problems including sustainability
<strong>and</strong> global health. Join us as we introduce cases <strong>to</strong>
scaffold investigations as well as global resources on
sustainability data <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>ols
1. How <strong>to</strong> get published in an international journal <strong>and</strong>
improve your global visibility: Carol BACCHUS
2. Underst<strong>and</strong>ing Peer Review <strong>and</strong> Practical writing tips:
Judy PENG
3. Publication Ethics: John BUCKERIDGE
4.Introduction <strong>to</strong> Integrative Zoology (INZ): Terry
BOYD‐ZHANG
5. Guidelines for publishing a paper in INZ: Wei ZHANG
6. <strong>IUBS</strong> Young Scientist Award: Nathalie FOMPROIX
7. INZ Exceptional Speaker Prize: Yan XIE
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Please note that posters have been listed in alphabetical order according <strong>to</strong> title.
Abstract for Posters <strong>and</strong> Exhibition
A brief introduction of Dongzhaigang
Long­term Research Station for Mangrove
Wetl<strong>and</strong> Ecosystem in Hainan Isl<strong>and</strong> of
China
Baowen LIAO
Dongzhaigang Long‐term Research Station for Mangrove
Wetl<strong>and</strong> Ecosystem, Hainan, China. Email:
mangro@pub.guangzhou.gd.cn
Overview: Dongzhaigang Long‐term Research Station for
Mangrove Wetl<strong>and</strong> Ecosystem on Hainan Isl<strong>and</strong>,
established in Hainan Dongzhaigang National Nature
Reserve, only 30 kilometers from Haikou, with 3300
hectares of mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s. The station was
established by <strong>the</strong> Research Institute of Tropical Forestry,
<strong>the</strong> Chinese Academy of Forestry (technical supporting
unit), after completing <strong>the</strong> national ‘Eighth Five‐Year’
(starting in 1991) <strong>and</strong> ‘Ninth Five‐Year’ mangrove
scientific <strong>and</strong> technological research project, <strong>and</strong>
upgraded <strong>to</strong> a State Forestry Administration ecological
research station in 2004.
The mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong> of this station is <strong>the</strong> only one
that is <strong>the</strong> most typical <strong>and</strong> primitive of tropical natural
mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s ecosystems in China, <strong>and</strong> it has <strong>the</strong>
highest community, species <strong>and</strong> habitat diversity. There
are mangrove plants including 17 families with 35 species,
associated plants 18 family 33 species, birds 159 species,
fish 57 species, benthos 92 species, which represent <strong>the</strong>
flora <strong>and</strong> fauna at <strong>the</strong> transitional zone from tropical <strong>to</strong>
subtropical wetl<strong>and</strong>s. And <strong>the</strong> wetl<strong>and</strong> has been included
in <strong>the</strong> ‘Ramsar’ International Importance Wetl<strong>and</strong>s List,
<strong>and</strong> is an ideal place of mangrove ecosystem positioning
<strong>and</strong> long‐term research.
Objectives: A mangrove comprehensive study platform
will gradually be built with advanced equipment <strong>and</strong> high
research level, with sharing as well as openness. The
station will focus on <strong>the</strong> mangrove ecosystem structure
<strong>and</strong> functional changes in law <strong>and</strong> res<strong>to</strong>ration of ecology
research, which can provide <strong>the</strong>oretical guidance <strong>and</strong>
technical support for building an ecological security
system of <strong>the</strong> coastal mangroves in China.
The main directions:
◆Ecosystem structure <strong>and</strong> functional changes of
mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s
◆Res<strong>to</strong>ration ecology of mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s
◆Biodiversity of mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s
◆Impact <strong>and</strong> response of mangrove wetl<strong>and</strong>s ecosystem
<strong>to</strong> global climate change
◆Complex ecosystem establishment of fisheries <strong>and</strong>
mangrove forests <strong>and</strong> sustainable management
◆Security system <strong>the</strong>ory <strong>and</strong> methods of mangrove
ecosystems for windbreaks
◆Disaster prevention <strong>and</strong> effective mitigation of
mangroves
Infrastructure: In 2004, <strong>the</strong> State Forestry Administration
has invested more than 3.5 million yuan in equipment
installation <strong>and</strong> infrastructure transformation for <strong>the</strong>
station in 2004. Currently <strong>the</strong> station has built a tidal
simulation labora<strong>to</strong>ry, a chemical analysis labora<strong>to</strong>ry, 16
long‐term fixed plots, 4 tidal wave au<strong>to</strong>matic observation
systems, a bird observa<strong>to</strong>ry, 2 wea<strong>the</strong>r stations, an
experimental nursery <strong>and</strong> a number of o<strong>the</strong>r related
equipment. In short, <strong>the</strong> research station will eventually
be established one opening four‐in‐one integrated
technology platform with moni<strong>to</strong>ring, research,
demonstration <strong>and</strong> popular science education.
Acute haema<strong>to</strong>logical response of <strong>the</strong>
African catfish Clarias gariepinus
(Burchell, 1822) after intramuscular
injection with crude (aqueous) extracts
of <strong>the</strong> leaves of Jatropha tanjoriensis:
Ellis <strong>and</strong> Saroja (Family:
Euphorbiaceae)
Ovie KORI‐SIAKPERE <strong>and</strong> Louisa EFEHI ERO
Department of Animal <strong>and</strong> Environmental Biology, Delta State
University, PMB 1, Abraka, Nigeria. Emailoviekori@yahoo.com
91

Plants are used in <strong>the</strong> modern era for <strong>the</strong> extraction <strong>and</strong>
development of drugs <strong>and</strong> a large number of patients rely
on medicinal herbs. Jatropha tanjorensisisis a herbaceous
plant of Euphorbiaceae family <strong>and</strong> it shows
intermediacy in phenotypic characters between
J.gossypifolia<strong>and</strong> J.curcas. It is commonly called hospital
<strong>to</strong>o far, catholic vegetable, iyana‐ipaja <strong>and</strong> lapalapa. It is
used for fencing, as an edible leafy vegetable <strong>and</strong> as
medicine.
Tank‐raised Clarias gariepinus (mean <strong>to</strong>tal length 28.39 ±
0.33 cm SE; mean weight, 99.34 ± 2.48g SE) were
obtained were obtained locally from a commercial fish
farm <strong>and</strong> transferred <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Animal <strong>and</strong> Environmental
Biology Research Labora<strong>to</strong>ry, Delta State University,
Abraka where <strong>the</strong>y were held in large plastic aquaria of
140L capacity with clean borehole water. They were <strong>the</strong>n
acclimatized for 14 days, during which time <strong>the</strong>y were fed
with commercial fish feed pellets (Coppens) twice daily.
Fresh leaves of J. tanjorensis were obtained locally on
campus. They were air‐dried for 2 weeks <strong>and</strong> later
oven‐dried for 3 hours, after which <strong>the</strong>y were ground <strong>to</strong>
fine powder <strong>and</strong> dissolved in distilled water. The solution
was evaporated <strong>to</strong> dryness using a rotary evapora<strong>to</strong>r.
Five test concentrations (2.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0 <strong>and</strong> 10.0g/L)
were prepared by serial dilution for injection in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
fish. 2mL of <strong>the</strong> solution was injected intramuscularly <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> fish. Blood samples were obtained from <strong>the</strong> caudal
circulation after 96hours <strong>and</strong> used for <strong>the</strong> measurement
of haema<strong>to</strong>crit, haemoglobin concentration<strong>and</strong> red blood
cell counts. Empirical data of <strong>the</strong> results obtained were
subjected <strong>to</strong> statistical analysis using one‐way analysis of
variance (ANOVA) <strong>to</strong> test for level of significance between
<strong>the</strong> various concentrations of J. tanjorensis injected
intramuscularly.
The haema<strong>to</strong>logical values of haemoglobin (HB),
haema<strong>to</strong>crit (Hct), <strong>and</strong> red blood cell (RBC) in <strong>the</strong>
injected fish were significantly lower (P< 0.05) than <strong>the</strong>
control while <strong>the</strong> Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV), Mean
Corpuscular Haemoglobin (MCH) <strong>and</strong> Mean Corpuscular
Haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were significantly
higher (P< 0.05) in <strong>the</strong> injected fish than <strong>the</strong> control.
This study highlights <strong>the</strong> fact that acute concentrations of
aqueous extracts of J. tanjorensis have moderate
deleterious consequences on <strong>the</strong> haema<strong>to</strong>logical
parameters of C. gariepinus.
Advances in studies on <strong>the</strong> res<strong>to</strong>ration of a
salt lake ecosystem by introducing Artemia
in Tibet
Shasha LIU, Qinxian JIA, Xifang LIU, Xinsheng
NIU <strong>and</strong> Mianping ZHENG
MLR Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Saline Lake Resources <strong>and</strong>
Environments, Institute of Mineral Resources, CAGS, Beijing
100037, China. Email: liushashajida@163.com
There are a lot of salt lakes in Tibet, some of which are
enclosed by steep mountains <strong>and</strong> thus develop in<strong>to</strong>
relatively restricted environments. It is difficult for <strong>the</strong>m
<strong>to</strong> exchange with outside drainage basins, which results in
low biodiversity <strong>and</strong> a single lower trophic level. In order
<strong>to</strong> promote <strong>the</strong> salt lake ecosystem biodiversity <strong>and</strong>
protect <strong>the</strong> fragile ecological environment suffered from
stress of economic growth in nor<strong>the</strong>rn Tibet, <strong>the</strong> studies
of introduced organisms with higher trophic levels <strong>and</strong>
certain economic value was implemented. Dangxiong Co
salt lake, our preferred experimental site, is surrounded
on 3 sides by steep mountains <strong>and</strong> its eco‐isl<strong>and</strong> effect is
obvious. After <strong>the</strong> argument of ecological risks <strong>and</strong>
simulated experiment of ecological effects during 2003
<strong>and</strong> 2004. In 2004, we introduced 850 g Artemia cysts
in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> lake <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>y <strong>the</strong>n formed relatively stable
natural populations, which perfected <strong>the</strong> local ecosystem
through bringing in numbers of waterfowl in 2009. At
present we report <strong>the</strong> research progress up <strong>to</strong> 2011.
The data of 25 sites was collected during <strong>the</strong> period
ofOc<strong>to</strong>ber–November. Based on data analysis of different
water layers, <strong>the</strong> Artemia polypides <strong>and</strong> cysts distributed
mainly in <strong>the</strong> surface water layer of 0.0–0.2m, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
average biomass was 1.146×10 3 ind•m ‐2 <strong>and</strong> 2.590×10 4
ind•m ‐2 respectively, <strong>the</strong> ratio were 24.62% <strong>and</strong> 30.81%
respectively in <strong>the</strong> water column biomass. Biomass
decreased continuously with increasing depth in
middle‐layer water <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> average biomass of polypides
(2.0–8.0m) <strong>and</strong> cysts (2.0–10.0m) was only 2.969×10 2
ind•m ‐2 <strong>and</strong> 5.958×10 3 ind•m ‐2 respectively, which
accounted for 25.52% <strong>and</strong> 28.36% respectively in <strong>the</strong>
water column biomass. However, a slightly increasing
trend in <strong>the</strong> 10–12m deep‐layer water was shown. Few
polypide <strong>and</strong> cyst distributed in <strong>the</strong> water layer on
sediment over 12m in depth. The horizontal distribution
characteristics of polypides <strong>and</strong> cysts in Dangxiong Co
92

were different from o<strong>the</strong>rs. They usuallydistributed
densely in <strong>the</strong> open water region <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir mean density
was 4.736×10 3 ind•m ‐2 <strong>and</strong> 9.790×10 4 ind•m ‐2
respectively <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> cysts resources of 49.06%
concentrated in <strong>the</strong> mid‐lake of 18.21% areas. There was
a small quantity of polypides <strong>and</strong> cysts in <strong>the</strong> shallow zone
of <strong>the</strong> lake, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>y were rare in <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn lakeshore
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> reception basin of <strong>the</strong> river. Until <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong>
year, cysts resources of 14.96 <strong>to</strong>ns in <strong>the</strong> lake were
assessed using <strong>the</strong> cysts density isoline map. The natural
rate of increase was 1.404 y ‐1 .
The gross primary productivity, determined by using <strong>the</strong>
‘Black <strong>and</strong> white bottle’ method, was 11.813g (O 2 )/m 2 •d
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> net primary productivity was 3.324g (O 2 )/m 2 •d
during <strong>the</strong> survey in Oc<strong>to</strong>ber 2010 in <strong>the</strong> salt lake.
Following <strong>the</strong> law of material recycling <strong>and</strong> energy
flowing hierarchy structural <strong>and</strong> net primary productivity,
<strong>the</strong> environmental capacity of <strong>the</strong> cysts in <strong>the</strong> lake was
about 296.39t.
Based on <strong>the</strong> natural rate of increase, cysts resource
extent will approach <strong>the</strong> environmental capacity of <strong>the</strong>
lake at <strong>the</strong> end of 2018, six years from now. At that time,
<strong>the</strong> resources will bring certain economic benefits for
Tibet.
Anti­fertility effect of quinestrol in male
Mongolian gerbils (Merione sunguiculatus)
Wei SHEN <strong>and</strong> Dazhao SHI
China Agricultural University, #2 Yuanmingyuan West Road,
Beijing. Email: shidazhao@cau.edu.cn
In this study, Mongolian gerbils were r<strong>and</strong>omly divided
in<strong>to</strong> multi‐dose treated group (MDT group), one‐dose
treated group (ODT group) <strong>and</strong> control group (CK group)
<strong>to</strong> explore effects of quinestrol on reproductive organs
<strong>and</strong> reproduction. The epididymides, seminal vesicles <strong>and</strong>
semen quality, fertility were assessed at 15, 30, 60 <strong>and</strong> 90
days after.
A potential <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> limiting fac<strong>to</strong>rs for
growing herbaceous peony (Paeonia L.) in
south China
Daike TIAN, 1,2 Chunyu SHEN, 1,3 Zhenlin LIAO 4
<strong>and</strong> Songjun ZENG 1
93
1South China Botanical Garden, CAS, 2 Shanghai Chenshan
Botanical Garden, Shanghai Chenshan Plant Science Research
Center, CAS, Chenshan Botanical Garden 3888 Chenhua Road,
Songjiang Shanghai 201602 China 3 Graduate University of <strong>the</strong>
CAS <strong>and</strong> 4 College of Food Science, South China Agricultural
University. Email: dktian@sibs.ac.cn
Herbaceous peony (Paeonia L.) is one Chinese traditional
flower <strong>and</strong> a popular ornamental throughout <strong>the</strong> world.
It is cultivated mainly in <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rn regions <strong>and</strong> rarely
seen in <strong>the</strong> south, due <strong>to</strong> a limitation of environmental
fac<strong>to</strong>rs. The study on cultivation of <strong>the</strong> herbaceous peony
in <strong>the</strong> south is extremely absent. In this study, 3 cultivars
of herbaceous peonies ‘Da Fugui’, ‘Lian Tai’ <strong>and</strong> ‘Yangfei
Chuyu’ were planted in <strong>the</strong> 7 experimental sites in south
China in order <strong>to</strong> investigate <strong>the</strong>ir adaptability <strong>and</strong>
growth performance. A potential <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> limiting fac<strong>to</strong>rs
for outdoor cultivation of <strong>the</strong> herbaceous peony in <strong>the</strong>
south regions were discussed. For <strong>the</strong> first time,
cultivation regions in China, suitable or not for
herbaceous peony were categorized. From which, <strong>the</strong>
question of “Can <strong>the</strong> herbaceous peony be cultivated in
south China?” was answered. The major conclusions are:
(1) Due <strong>to</strong> a warm climate, cold accumulation usually
could not meet <strong>the</strong> requirement of <strong>the</strong> herbaceous peony
vernalization in Guangdong province. (2) The warm
temperature <strong>and</strong> high humidity in <strong>the</strong> spring of south not
only advanced plant growth, caused bud abortion
<strong>and</strong>significantly reduced flower number, but also made
plants more vulnerable <strong>to</strong> disease. (3) Vernalization <strong>and</strong>
dormancy release of plants are closely related <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
accumulation of lower temperature. (4) China can be
divided in<strong>to</strong> suitable, cultivable <strong>and</strong> unsuitable regions
for growing herbaceous peony. With <strong>the</strong> exception of a
few higher altitude areas, <strong>the</strong> southward regions starting
from Nanling Ridge <strong>and</strong> places with similar latitudes <strong>and</strong>
climates are not suitable for <strong>the</strong> outdoor cultivation of <strong>the</strong>
herbaceous peony.
Arabidopsis GHMP1 involved in abscisic acid
signal transduction pathways
Qiong ZHAO, DashiYU, Xinhong GUO, Yi CUI,
Hongping CHANG, Congying YUAN, Yu WANG,
Shuai HU <strong>and</strong> Xuanming LIU

School of Biology, State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Chemo/Biosensing
<strong>and</strong> Chemometrics, Hunan University, Changsha 410082,
China. Email: gxh@hnu.edu.cn
GHMP super kinase family is an important protein
kinases in eukaryotes. Its main role is <strong>to</strong> catalyze protein
phosphorylation by transferring <strong>the</strong> phosphate of ATP <strong>to</strong>
amino acid residues of <strong>the</strong> specific substrate, which was
involved in a variety of signal transduction. So far, 12
genes have been identified in Arabidopsis belonging <strong>to</strong>
GHMP Super kinase family, but little was known of <strong>the</strong>ir
physiological functions. In <strong>the</strong> present study, <strong>the</strong>
expression patterns <strong>and</strong> functions of T‐DNA mutant of
GHMP1 gene in Arabidopsis were analysed. The real time
PCR results showed that <strong>the</strong>re was a high transcription
level in roots <strong>and</strong> flowers, but low level in leaf, petiole, <strong>and</strong>
stem, indicating GHMP1 belonged <strong>to</strong> tissue‐specific gene.
The expression of GHMP1 gene was induced by ABA <strong>and</strong>
NaCl. When <strong>the</strong> young seedlings for 14 days old were
treated with 10 μM ABA for an hour or with 100 mM
NaCl for 2 hours, <strong>the</strong> transcription level of GHMP1 gene
was up <strong>to</strong> its peak, suggesting that GHMP1 gene may
mediate <strong>the</strong> ABA <strong>and</strong> salt stress‐induced signaling
pathways. The transcription levels of a series of stress
response genes (abi1, abi2, KIN1/2, SOS2/3, OST1,
RD29A/B, RAB18, RD22, DREB1/2A) related <strong>to</strong> ABA <strong>and</strong>
salt responses were compared by real‐time PCR between
<strong>the</strong> ghmp1‐1 mutant <strong>and</strong> wild type with 10 μM ABA
treatment for an hour, <strong>the</strong> distinct differences in
transcription levels in <strong>the</strong>se genes were displayed as <strong>the</strong>
deletion of GHMP1 gene. Therefore, we can presume <strong>the</strong>
GHMP1 gene play an important role in ABA signal
pathway. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, 2 GHMP1 genes T‐DNA
homozygous mutant ghmp1‐1 <strong>and</strong> ghmp1‐2 were
screened through <strong>the</strong> ‘double‐primer’ method <strong>and</strong> were
identified by <strong>the</strong> RT‐PCR method. The functions of T‐DNA
insertion mutants of <strong>the</strong> GHMP1 gene in Arabidopsis
were studied by reverse genetics research methods. The
changes in phenotype, such as seed germination rate,
root length, s<strong>to</strong>matal aperture <strong>and</strong> rate of water loss
between <strong>the</strong> mutant <strong>and</strong> wild‐type, were observed. The
results showed that mutants are less sensitive <strong>to</strong>
exogenous ABA <strong>and</strong> NaCl in seed germination <strong>and</strong> root
elongation compared with <strong>the</strong> wild‐type. Fur<strong>the</strong>r evidence
showed that <strong>the</strong> role of GHMP1 gene response <strong>to</strong> salt <strong>and</strong>
ABA signaling pathways in Arabidopsis, which proved its
activation role as a stress‐related transcription fac<strong>to</strong>r.
These data provided some invaluable references for <strong>the</strong>
physiological functions of <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r GHMP genes.
A study on Toxoplasma gondii in mice in
Libya
Rashed AHMED
Tripoli University, PO Box 13662, Tripoli, Libya. Email:
ahmedrashedx3@yahoo.com
This study was carried out in order <strong>to</strong> determine <strong>the</strong>
prevalence of Toxoplasmagondii antibodies <strong>and</strong>
identification on <strong>the</strong> brain cyst of T.gondii in house mice
(Musmusculus). A <strong>to</strong>tal of 21 blood samples were found
positive for <strong>the</strong> presence of T.gondii antibodies, giving an
overall prevalence of 35%, <strong>and</strong> microscopic examination
of <strong>the</strong> brain <strong>and</strong> tissue cyst were observed <strong>and</strong> revealed
embedded bradyzoites of T. gondii which appeared dark
bluish panana shaped in an aggregated mass within
tissues cyst in his<strong>to</strong>pathological section. The present
work represents <strong>the</strong> first report of T.gondii infection in
mice in Libya.
An Oligocene biota from <strong>the</strong> Ningming Basin
in south China near <strong>the</strong> border with Vietnam
Gengjiao CHEN, Gongle SHI, Zhuqiu SONG,
Zhiming XIE <strong>and</strong> Yunfa CHEN
Natural His<strong>to</strong>ry Museum of Guangxi Zhuang Au<strong>to</strong>nomous
Region, 1‐1 RenminDonglu,Nanning 530012, China. Email:
zhangwei@nhmg.org
An Oligocene biota from <strong>the</strong> Ningming Basin in south
China bears abundant exquisitely‐preserved fossils
including fish, insect, molluscs, turtle <strong>and</strong> plant
macrofossils. Most of <strong>the</strong> macrofossils are leaves with well
preserved cuticle, some are samara, pod <strong>and</strong>
gymnosperm seed cones among o<strong>the</strong>r things. This flora is
dominated by angiosperms, with 4 gymnospermous
species. The fish fauna is dominated by Cyprinidae
(Cypriniformes), along with some Clupeomorpha, <strong>and</strong> a
few fishes of Siluriformes <strong>and</strong> Perciformes. Most of <strong>the</strong>
members of this biota are regarded as new genus or
species. A preliminary physiognomic investigation of
associated woody dicotyledonous leaves found in <strong>the</strong>
94

fossil flora shows that <strong>the</strong> climate is cooler <strong>and</strong> more
humid in <strong>the</strong> area in that time than <strong>to</strong>day. That <strong>the</strong>
Cyprindae in that fauna is ra<strong>the</strong>r diverse in Oligocene
suggests an earlier diversification than previously
believed. The constitution of <strong>the</strong> fish group indicates that
<strong>the</strong> sedimental environment should be freshwater,
relating occasionally <strong>to</strong> marine water. This cyprinid fauna
show certain similarities <strong>to</strong> contemporary nor<strong>the</strong>rn
Vietnam in constitution, perhaps indicating some
relationship between <strong>the</strong>se 2 areas of biogeography.
BAC­end sequencing <strong>and</strong> analysis of Zhikong
scallop (Chlamys farreri) genome
Xiaojun ZHANG
Institute of Oceanology, CAS, 7 Nanhai Road, Qingdao 266071,
China.Email: xjzhang@qdio.ac.cn
Zhikong scallop (Chlamys farreri) is one of most
economically important species <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> aquaculture
industry in China. To fur<strong>the</strong>r underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> scallop
genome, a <strong>to</strong>tal of 10237 BAC clones were r<strong>and</strong>omly
selected <strong>and</strong> both ends sequenced with an ABI 3130xl
Genetic Analyzer. After trimming <strong>and</strong> quality filtering,
17447 BAC end sequences (BESs) including 7314
paired‐ends were obtained, with an average length of 446
bp. A <strong>to</strong>tal of 7773272 bp were generated, representing
approximately 0.63% of <strong>the</strong> scallop genome. Based on
this survey, <strong>the</strong> scallop genome was found <strong>to</strong> be highly
AT‐rich, with 63.45% AT <strong>and</strong> 36.55% GC. Approximately
23.95% of <strong>the</strong> scallop genome consisted of repetitive
elements, of which t<strong>and</strong>em repeat sequences amounted <strong>to</strong>
14.92% <strong>and</strong> interspersed repeats amounted <strong>to</strong> 9.03% of
<strong>the</strong> scallop genome. A <strong>to</strong>tal of 8550 simple sequence
repeats (SSR) were detected from 5473 BESs. AT‐rich SSR
motifs, especially poly (A/T) <strong>and</strong> poly (AT/TA), were <strong>the</strong>
most abundant t<strong>and</strong>em repeats units. LTR/Gypsy <strong>and</strong>
LINE/CR1 were <strong>the</strong> main retrotransposons elements,
accounted for 1.87% <strong>and</strong> 1.22% of <strong>the</strong> genome
respectively. After annotation with Nr, Nt <strong>and</strong> EST
database, 1610 protein‐coding sequences were
recognized from 4006 BESs. These BESs were identified
as a major genome resource for scallop <strong>and</strong> mollusk
genomic research.
Biodiversity of Jogeswari Caves, India: is it
on <strong>the</strong> verge of extinction?
Leena MURALIDHARAN
VKKMenon College, Bh<strong>and</strong>up, Mumbai. Email:
leena.doc<strong>to</strong>r@gmail.com
Cave organisms are unique <strong>and</strong> constitute one of <strong>the</strong>
important components of biodiversity. Cave ecosystems
remain more or less stable, compared <strong>to</strong> its ambient
environmental niche. Perpetual darkness, high humidity,
constant airflow <strong>and</strong> higher CO 2 make <strong>the</strong> subterranean
ecosystem unique. The present study deals with physical
<strong>and</strong> chemical fac<strong>to</strong>rs of each zone of <strong>the</strong> cave. This study
also reveals <strong>the</strong> status of <strong>the</strong> species as a caverniocle. The
main entrance of <strong>the</strong> cave is heavily polluted. Harmful
effluents reaching this cave have slowly started depleting
<strong>the</strong> biodiversity <strong>and</strong> serious measures <strong>to</strong> conserve <strong>the</strong>
whole biodiversity has been suggested.
Bio­equip.com
WWW.BIO‐EQUIP.COM was established in July 1998 as a
free online information portal for lab equipments <strong>and</strong>
supplies. Now it is a leading provider of free News, Events
& Expos, Product Direc<strong>to</strong>ry, New Products, Technical
Articles, Application Notes, Biotechnology Services <strong>and</strong>
Jobs.
Serving cus<strong>to</strong>mers through two websites,
www.bio‐equip.com <strong>and</strong> www.bio‐equip.cn, BIO‐EQUIP
offers cus<strong>to</strong>mers a complete product direc<strong>to</strong>ry which
involves more than 100 products ranges among
labora<strong>to</strong>ry equipments, reagents, lab wares, lab animals,
Bio Services, Bio Softwares <strong>and</strong> Books.
Bio‐equip.com serves Chinese cus<strong>to</strong>mers from
research communities, universities, hospitals <strong>and</strong> clinical
diagnostic labs, pharmaceutical fac<strong>to</strong>ry, inspection <strong>and</strong>
quarantine bureau, CDC, as well as environmental control
<strong>and</strong> industrial processing.
Bio‐equip.cn established in 2006 is <strong>the</strong> best access <strong>to</strong>
China’s suppliers of labora<strong>to</strong>ry equipments, reagents <strong>and</strong>
labora<strong>to</strong>ry wares. More than 400 Chinese <strong>and</strong> foreign
95

enterprises have become bio‐equip’s register members.
Visi<strong>to</strong>rs from 110 countries established relationship with
our register members through bio‐equip.cn according <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> latest report in Dec. 2011.
Chunxu HAN, Wenhua XIONG <strong>and</strong> Zhibin
ZHANG
ISZS, IOZ, CAS, Beijing, China. Email: iszs@ioz.ac.cn
Biological characteristics of Thitarodes pui
(Lepidoptera, Hepialidae), one host species
of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (Hypocreales,
Ophiocordycipitaceae)
Wenjing WU, Zixuan SUN <strong>and</strong> Guren ZHANG
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biological Control/Institute of
En<strong>to</strong>mology, Sun Yat‐sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
Email: zhanggr@mail.sysu.edu.cn
The en<strong>to</strong>mopathogenic fungus Ophiocordyceps sinensis
can parasitize <strong>the</strong> ghost moth Thitarodes pui, which is
endemic <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> alpine habitats of <strong>the</strong> Tibet Plateau above
4000m.The complex of <strong>the</strong> fungal fruiting body <strong>and</strong>
mummified moth larvae has been used as a health food
<strong>and</strong> traditional medicine, called Dong Chong Xia Cao in
Chinese. A complete generation of T. pui lasts 3–4 years,
including 41–47 days for egg, 990‐1350 days for larva,
35–41 days for pupa <strong>and</strong> 3–8 days for adult. Larvae dig
burrows in soil <strong>and</strong> feed on roots of herbaceous plants, as
well as humus fragments. There are 7 <strong>to</strong> 9 larval instars in
its life cycle. The survival rate of <strong>the</strong> experimental
population was fairly low (2.6%). The population trend
index was 7.95, indicating greater population size for <strong>the</strong>
next generation. Pupae occurred at <strong>the</strong> end of April <strong>to</strong>
early May. The 7th <strong>and</strong> 9th instars pupatedin<strong>to</strong> males <strong>and</strong>
females, respectively, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> 8th instar larvae pupated
in<strong>to</strong> ei<strong>the</strong>r males or females. The adults emerged with a
peak at 17:00pm from late June <strong>to</strong> mid‐July. The male <strong>to</strong>
female sex ratio was 1.5:1, higher than those of o<strong>the</strong>r
Thitarodes species in China. Female moths attracted males
from 21:00pm <strong>to</strong> 21:30pm <strong>and</strong> mated for 1–7 hours.
Oviposition began immediately after mating. Each adult
female laid 768 ± 206 eggs. Knowledge of <strong>the</strong> biology of
<strong>the</strong> ghost moth may help <strong>to</strong> optimize <strong>the</strong> rearing of larvae
<strong>and</strong> increase <strong>the</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong> genus Hepialidae.
Biological consequences of global change
(BCGC)
Global change is now one of <strong>the</strong> most discussed <strong>to</strong>pics in
<strong>the</strong> world. Indeed, our earth is facing great challenges of
global change, such as global warming <strong>and</strong> human
disturbance. Underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> impact of global change is
extremely important for <strong>the</strong> sustainable development of
our society. Unfortunately, <strong>the</strong> biological consequences of
global change have been largely ignored. There is urgent
need <strong>to</strong> streng<strong>the</strong>n researches on <strong>the</strong> biological
consequences of global change.
It was due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>se circumstances that <strong>the</strong> International
Society of Zoological Sciences (ISZS) initiated an
international research program called Biological
Consequences of Global Change (BCGC) in 2008, first
supported by <strong>the</strong> Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). In
2009, ISZS organized a symposium on BCGC in Beijing
<strong>and</strong> about 130 participants attended <strong>the</strong> symposium. Also
in 2009, BCGC was adopted by <strong>the</strong> International Union of
Biological Sciences (<strong>IUBS</strong>) as a new international
research program, led by Dr Zhibin Zhang, Dr Yury Yu
Dgebuadze <strong>and</strong> Dr Hari Sharma. In June 2010 <strong>and</strong> July
2012, INZ published special issues on BCGC, edited by
Nils Chr. Stenseth <strong>and</strong> Zhibin Zhang respectively.
Currently, <strong>the</strong>re are over 20 scientists from Australia,
Chile, China, France, India, Norway, Russia, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> USA in
<strong>the</strong> program.
The focus of <strong>the</strong> BCGC program is <strong>to</strong> organize a diverse
group of international experts, with expertise in many
scientific disciplines, <strong>to</strong> develop an underst<strong>and</strong>ing of <strong>the</strong>
biological consequences <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> mechanisms on
biological structures, endangered species <strong>and</strong> biological
disasters under both global climate change <strong>and</strong> human
activities. BCGC has become a core scientific program of
<strong>IUBS</strong> according <strong>to</strong> a recent review by <strong>IUBS</strong>.The <strong>IUBS</strong>/ISZS
sponsored BCGC program provides an excellent platform
for scientists around <strong>the</strong> world <strong>to</strong> collaborate in exploring
<strong>the</strong> impact of global change on biodiversity, ecological
infectious diseases, agricultural pests, invasive species
<strong>and</strong> many o<strong>the</strong>r <strong>to</strong>pics of interest. In <strong>the</strong> future, BCGC
should exp<strong>and</strong> its research networks <strong>to</strong> include more
sciences from different places around <strong>the</strong> globe. This will
help <strong>to</strong> reveal regional differences in response <strong>to</strong>
biological aspects of global change. BCGC will continue <strong>to</strong>
96

improve its website <strong>and</strong> database quality which will
fur<strong>the</strong>r promote idea exchanges <strong>and</strong> accurate modeling
studies. BCGC will also improve public awareness about
its research output, which may help in <strong>the</strong> policy‐making
of governments for managing our biological resources.
BioonGroup
BioonGroup was established in
2001. Now it has become <strong>the</strong>
first Chinese media platform <strong>and</strong> professional service
provider of biological medicine industry. Relying on <strong>the</strong>
Internet, BioonGroup can provide consulting research,
industry analysis, br<strong>and</strong> packaging, product promotion,
human resources, conference planning <strong>and</strong>
comprehensive service system for enterprises,
research <strong>and</strong> development institutions, universities,
parks <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> government of biological medicine
industry. BioonGroup contains six websites (for
example: www.bioon.com, www.bioon.com.cn,
www.pharmon.com.cn,
www.bioonjob.com,
www.bioinsight.com.cn, <strong>and</strong> www.bioevent.cn) <strong>and</strong>
core database of biological medicine industry, so we
can provide <strong>the</strong> leading, accurate, efficient service
systems <strong>and</strong> solutions.
Ceramide regulation of HA synthase
Jingdong QIN
University of Chicago, Rm C‐418, 5841 S Maryl<strong>and</strong> Ave, MC
4068, USA. Email: qjingdong@peds.bsd.uchicago.edu
Fibroblasts from <strong>the</strong> fro/fro mouse, with a deletion in <strong>the</strong>
Smpd3 gene coding for <strong>the</strong> active site of neutral
sphingomyelinase2 (NSMase2), secreted increased
amounts of hyaluronan (HA). This was reversed by
transfection with <strong>the</strong> Smpd3 gene, suggesting a
connection between sphingolipid <strong>and</strong> glycosaminoglycan
metabolism. The deficiency of NSMase2 resulted in
s<strong>to</strong>rage of sphingomyelin (SM) <strong>and</strong> cholesterol with a
50% reduction in ceramides (Cer). RT‐PCR <strong>and</strong> Western
blot analysis showed that <strong>the</strong> increased HA secretion
resulted from increased hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2)
activity localized <strong>to</strong> sphingolipid‐enriched lipid rafts.
Although cholesterol levels were also elevated in lipid rafts
from mouse fibroblasts deficient in lysosomal acid SMase
activity (deletion of <strong>the</strong> Smpd1‐/‐ gene), <strong>the</strong>re was no
increase in HA secretion. We <strong>the</strong>n showed that in fro/fro
fibroblasts, <strong>the</strong> reduced ceramide was associated with
decreased phosphorylation of protein phosphatase 2A
(PP2A) <strong>and</strong> increased phosphorylation of its substrate
Akt‐p, <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r with PI3K, PDK1, mTOR <strong>and</strong> p‐70S6K
whereas PTEN was unaffected. Exogenous ceramide, as
well as inhibi<strong>to</strong>rs of Akt (Akt inhibi<strong>to</strong>r VIII), PI3kinase
(LY294002 <strong>and</strong> wortmannin) <strong>and</strong> mTOR (rapamycin)
reduced secretion of HA whereas <strong>the</strong> NSMase2 inhibi<strong>to</strong>r
GW4869 increased HA syn<strong>the</strong>sis <strong>and</strong> secretion. We
propose that NSMase2/Cer are <strong>the</strong> key media<strong>to</strong>rs of <strong>the</strong>
regulation of HA syn<strong>the</strong>sis, via microdomains <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
Akt/mTOR pathway.
Characterization <strong>and</strong> functional
identification of vacuolar Na + /H + antiporter
from Nitraria sibirica Pall
Li WANG 1 ,Xiaofei LIN 1 , Huiping MAO 1
<strong>and</strong>Wenbo ZHANG 2
1College of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot
010021, China <strong>and</strong> 2College of Forestry, Inner Mongolia
Agricultural University, Hohhot 010019, China. Email:
linxiaofei04@hotmail.com
Vacuolar Na + /H + antiporters play an important role in
plants salt <strong>to</strong>lerance, which can deliver Na + in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
vacuoles against <strong>the</strong> electrochemical gradient. The
compartmentation of Na + provides an effective
mechanism <strong>to</strong> avert <strong>the</strong> deleterious effects of Na + on
cy<strong>to</strong>sol, <strong>and</strong> maintain an osmotic potential by Na + in <strong>the</strong>
vacuoles. In this study, using <strong>the</strong> method of degenerate
PCR <strong>and</strong> rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), an
ortholog of Na + /H + antiporter, referred <strong>to</strong> as NsNHX1,
was isolated from Nitraria sibirica Pall.
The cloned NsNHX1 cDNA contains 2182‐bp, with a
predicted ORF of 1635‐bp. The predicted NsNHX1 ORF
encodes a protein of 544 amino acids with 59.9 kDa of
<strong>the</strong>oretical molecular mass <strong>and</strong> 8.15 of isoelectric point.
The predicted amino acid sequence has an
amiloride‐binding motif <strong>and</strong> conserved domains as kefB,
CPA2, b‐cpa1, NhaP, etc. The phylogenetic analysis shows
that NsNHX1 forms a clade with <strong>the</strong> most closely related
plant NHX homologs, which was distinct from <strong>the</strong> cluster
of plasma membrane Na + /H + antiporters such as AtSOS1,
97

OsSOS1 <strong>and</strong> ZxSOS1. These results suggest that NsNHX1
encodes a <strong>to</strong>noplast Na + /H + antiporter, which belongs <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> cation‐pro<strong>to</strong>n antiporter family.
Transient expression of an NsNHX1::GFP translational
fusion product in onion epidermal cells is visualized by
epifluorescence microscopy. GFP fluorescence is
concentrated <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> vacuolar membrane. The result
indicates that <strong>the</strong> NsNHX1 is located in <strong>to</strong>noplast of plant
cells.Semi‐quantitative RT‐PCR analysis shows that <strong>the</strong>
mRNA level of NsNHX1 is significantly higher in leaf than
those in stem or root. The steady‐state level of NsNHX1
transcript is up‐regulated by treatment with NaCl, cold or
ABA, but not induced by drought. In <strong>the</strong> different salt
degree stress, <strong>the</strong> NsNHX1 transcript level has <strong>the</strong>
maximum value in treatment with 200 mM NaCl.
To analyze <strong>the</strong> function <strong>and</strong> expression of NsNHX1, 2
transgenic lines of Arabidopsis WT <strong>and</strong> nhx1 mutation
with heterologously expressed of NsNHX1 were made.
The T2 generations homozygous plants will be used <strong>to</strong>
analyze <strong>the</strong> function of NsNHX1 exposed <strong>to</strong> salt stress.
The Nitraria is a genus of flowering plants in
Zygophyllaceae family, which grows primarily in deserts
<strong>and</strong> semideserts, <strong>and</strong> exhibits a strong salt resistance.
Therefore, <strong>the</strong> research on molecular mechanism of salt
<strong>to</strong>lerance is very necessary in Nitraria.
Characterizing polysaccharide biosyn<strong>the</strong>sis
in plant for syn<strong>the</strong>sis de novo <strong>and</strong> molecular
design
Baocai ZHANG
Institute of Genetics <strong>and</strong> Developmental Biology, Beijing 100101,
China. Email: bczhang@genetics.ac.cn
Polysaccharides, <strong>the</strong> most abundant organic polymers in
<strong>the</strong> world, have versatile applications. Besides being a
basic structural element, enabling plants <strong>to</strong> st<strong>and</strong> up, plant
cells wall also contain polysaccharides with regulation
function <strong>and</strong> clinical effects. Although progress has been
made on identifying glycosyltransferases involved in each
main polysaccharide syn<strong>the</strong>sis, not enough proteins
responsible for syn<strong>the</strong>sis have been identified <strong>to</strong> offer <strong>the</strong>
panoramic view. In a model plant rice, we identified
several genes required for wall syn<strong>the</strong>sis by genetic
analysis, covering glycosyltransferases, nucleotide sugar
transporters <strong>and</strong> proteins for vesicle trafficking <strong>and</strong>
extracellular deposition. How <strong>the</strong> polysaccharides were
efficiently syn<strong>the</strong>sized <strong>and</strong> assembly will be our next
focus. We have already started <strong>to</strong> reconstruct syn<strong>the</strong>sis
machinery in Pichia now. This progress will pave <strong>the</strong> way
for heterologous syn<strong>the</strong>sis de novo <strong>and</strong> molecular design
of high‐value polysaccharides.
Cloning <strong>and</strong> characterization of c<strong>and</strong>idate
genes from an ALS inhabiting
herbicide­resistant mutant line M9 in
brassica napus
Maolong HU, Huiming PU, Jian Qin GAO, Wei
Hua LONG, Cun Kou QI, Jiefu ZHANG <strong>and</strong> Song
CHEN
Institute of industrial Crops, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural
Sciences, Nanjing Sub‐center, National Center of Oil Crops
Improvement <strong>and</strong> Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Cot<strong>to</strong>n <strong>and</strong> Rapeseed
(Nanjing), Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing 210014, China.
The application of herbicide‐resistant rapeseed has many
advantages such as saving labor cost, increasing benefits
<strong>and</strong> promoting soil <strong>and</strong> water conservation. However, due
<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> lack of herbicide‐resistant genes with independent
intellectual property rights, commercialized
herbicide‐resistant rapeseed has not yet been planted in
China. A mutant line M9 conferring resistance <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
ace<strong>to</strong>lactate synthase (ALS) or ace<strong>to</strong>hydroxyacid synthase
(AHAS) inhibiting herbicides was previously found in <strong>the</strong>
rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) by spontaneous mutation.
The resistance of M9 was inherited as a single, dominant
nuclear gene on <strong>the</strong> basis of genetic analyses. Three
genes BnALS1‐3 encoding ALS were isolated from <strong>the</strong>
mutant <strong>and</strong> wild type, using <strong>the</strong> homology‐based
c<strong>and</strong>idate gene method. Molecular analysis identified a
single‐point mutation leading <strong>to</strong> an amino acid
substitution from serine 653 (relative <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Arabidopsis
thaliana ALS sequence) (AGC) <strong>to</strong> asparagine (AAC) at <strong>the</strong>
herbicide‐binding site of <strong>the</strong> rapeseed BnALS1 gene. The
resistant gene of M9 was designed BnALS1R <strong>and</strong>
transformed <strong>to</strong> MICMS (Mutsu‐Isuzu Cy<strong>to</strong>plasmic Male
Sterile) res<strong>to</strong>rer lines by hybridization <strong>and</strong> microspore
culture. All <strong>the</strong> resistant res<strong>to</strong>re lines had <strong>the</strong> specific
b<strong>and</strong> of BnALS1R by PCR analysis <strong>and</strong> sequencing, which
definitely confirmed that <strong>the</strong> resistance of M9 resulted
from <strong>the</strong> point mutation (Ser653Asn). These results
98

provided <strong>the</strong> herbicide‐resistant gene BnALS1R with
independent intellectual property rights in rapeseed
breeding, as well as in o<strong>the</strong>r crops.
Cloning <strong>and</strong> characterization of
LarixgmeliniiMurEgene
Ting ZHANG 1 , Xiaofei LIN, 1 Yueying XU 1 <strong>and</strong>
Hiroyoshi TAKANO 2
1College of Life Science, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot
010021, China <strong>and</strong> 2 Graduate School of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology,
Kumamo<strong>to</strong> University, Kumamo<strong>to</strong>, Japan.Email:
linxiaofei04@hotmail.com
The endosymbiotic <strong>the</strong>ory states that plastids of green
plants are derived from a single primary endosymbiosis
involving a eukaryote <strong>and</strong> a cyanobacterium.
Peptidoglycans (PGs) are continuous covalent
macromolecular structures found on <strong>the</strong> outside of <strong>the</strong>
cy<strong>to</strong>plasmic membrane of almost all eubacteria, which
protect bacterial cells from osmotic pressure, maintain
<strong>the</strong> unique shapes of bacterial cells <strong>and</strong> are involved in
cell division. Previous studies showed that PGs of plastids
gradually degrade during <strong>the</strong> evolution of plants. Some
genes encoded key enzyme in PGs syn<strong>the</strong>sis disappeared,
horizontally transferred or functionally changed.
Ten Mur genes are associated with PGs biosyn<strong>the</strong>sis in
bacteria. Enzymes encoded by bacterial MurE genes
catalyze <strong>the</strong> ATP‐dependent formation of uridine
diphosphate‐Nacetylmuramic acid‐tripeptide in bacterial
peptidoglycan biosyn<strong>the</strong>sis. The MurE gene have been
found in genomes of Physcomitrella patens <strong>and</strong>
Arabidopsis thaliana, <strong>and</strong> gene knockout experiments
showed that <strong>the</strong> MurE genes have different function in P.
patens <strong>and</strong> A. thaliana. PpMurE is related <strong>to</strong> chloroplast
division in moss, <strong>and</strong> AtMurE affect chloroplast
development in A. thaliana. To investigate <strong>the</strong> mechanism
of functional transformation of MurE in chloroplast
evolution, it is necessary <strong>to</strong> isolate ortholog of MurE <strong>and</strong>
analyze its function in gymnosperm.
In this study, an ortholog of MurE was isolated from Larix
gmelinii by degenerate‐PCR <strong>and</strong> RACE, referred <strong>to</strong> as
LgMurE. The 2868 bp of full‐length cDNA was predicted
<strong>to</strong> encode a protein of 787 amino acids with a molecular
mass of 86.88 kDa, which shows striking sequence
similarity <strong>to</strong> MurE proteins from bacteria, cyanobacteria
<strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r plants. A putative transit peptide predicted <strong>to</strong>
locate in chloroplast was detected from LgMurE by Target
P program. The plasmid pUC18‐TP‐GFP was constructed
<strong>to</strong> detect subcellular localization by transformation of
P.patens, which shows that <strong>the</strong> LgMurE is located in
chloroplast. To detect <strong>the</strong> function of <strong>the</strong> LgMurE,plasmid
pTFH22.4‐LgMurE sense <strong>and</strong> antisense were constructed
<strong>to</strong> introduce in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> pro<strong>to</strong>plasts of Larix gmelinii.
Dahurian larch, L. gmelinii, is an important coniferous
species, which is in a different evolutional stage with P.
patens <strong>and</strong> A. thaliana. Functional analysis of <strong>the</strong> LgMurE
<strong>and</strong> complementation assay with those of cyanobacteria,
P. patens <strong>and</strong> A. thaliana, may provide <strong>the</strong>oretical <strong>and</strong>
experimental basis for underst<strong>and</strong>ing <strong>the</strong> evolution of
plastids <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> transition mechanism of gene function
during evolution his<strong>to</strong>ry.
Construction <strong>and</strong> primary analysis of
suppression subtractive library of female
sterile mutant FS­M1 in Brassica napus
Sanxiong FU, Cunkou QI, Hui GUI, Song
CHEN<strong>and</strong> Xiaoying ZHOU
Nanjing Sub‐Center (Rapeseed) of National Center of Oilseeds
Crop Improvement, Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Cot<strong>to</strong>n <strong>and</strong> Rapeseed
(Nanjing), Ministry of Agriculture, China <strong>and</strong> Institute of
Industrial Crops, Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences,
Nanjing 210014, China. Email: gulemin@<strong>to</strong>ngji.edu.cn
The female sterile mutant FS‐M 1 was isolated from a
spontaneous mutation of Brassica napus var. Ningyou10.
When <strong>the</strong> mutant is crossed as a female, a very poor seed
set is obtained, whereas it is fertile as a pollen donor. The
floret of <strong>the</strong> mutant consisted of almost equal‐length
stamens, a short pistil, a flat style <strong>and</strong> ovary <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
stigma was chapped. In order <strong>to</strong> screen <strong>the</strong> genes
involved in embryogenesis <strong>and</strong> flower development, <strong>the</strong>
suppressive subtraction hybridization (SSH) technique
was used. Two differential expressing cDNA libraries
were constructed with <strong>the</strong> cDNAs of <strong>the</strong> mutant FS‐M 1 as
driver <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> cDNAs of its wild type Ningyou10 as tester,
vice versa. The recombined efficiencies of <strong>the</strong> forward
<strong>and</strong> backward subtractive library were 96.2% <strong>and</strong> 94.5%,
respectively. The inserted fragment size ranged from
100bp <strong>to</strong>1000bp, with an average size of about 500 bp.
768 clones in <strong>the</strong> forward <strong>and</strong> backward subtractive
99

library were screened by dot blot hybridization. One
hundred positive clones of forward library <strong>and</strong> 134
positive clones of backward library were obtained. After
sequencing <strong>the</strong> clones expressing differentially in 2
cultivars <strong>and</strong> blasting <strong>the</strong>ir sequences, some ESTs
regulating <strong>the</strong> embryogenesis, such as SAMDC, SLSG‐6,
<strong>and</strong> SLR1 were obtained from forward library. Some ESTs
regulating flower development, such as YAB5 <strong>and</strong> MYB
transcription fac<strong>to</strong>rs were also obtained from backward
library. The CRC transcription fac<strong>to</strong>r most likely causing
pistil mutation was also found in this study. These results
are helpful for <strong>the</strong> fur<strong>the</strong>r study of mechanisms for female
plant sterility.
Construction of high oil­producing
cyanobacteria by negative regulation of
PEPC gene expression
Xiaohui JIA, 1 Dingji SHI, 2 Hualing MI, 3 Qilin
TIAN, 1 Xiwen HUANG 1 <strong>and</strong> Peimin HE 1
1College of Fisheries <strong>and</strong> Life Sciences, Shanghai Ocean
University, Shanghai 201306, 2 Institute of Botany, CAS, Beijing,
100093 <strong>and</strong> 3 Institute of Plant Physiology <strong>and</strong> Ecology, Shanghai
Institution for Life Sciences CAS, Shanghai 200032, China. Email:
xhjia@shou.edu.cn; cyano.shi@yahoo.com.cn
In <strong>the</strong> recent five years, <strong>the</strong> idea that microalgae may be
perfect feeds<strong>to</strong>cks for biodiesel production, has gradually
become global commonsense. Although this biotechnique
has been stimulated <strong>to</strong> develop from lab <strong>to</strong> industry, <strong>the</strong>
advances have been actually limited as a suitable species
of microalgae have not been found. For producing
biodiesel, <strong>the</strong> ideal species of microalga must possess <strong>the</strong>
following characteristics: high content of lipids, rapid
growth (or great pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis efficiency), non<strong>to</strong>xic,
good adaptation <strong>and</strong> easy collection. However, it may be
hard <strong>to</strong> find such an ideal species in nature, so <strong>the</strong> species
may have <strong>to</strong> be improved by artificial construction. The
aim of this work was <strong>to</strong> construct a higher oil‐producing
cyanobacteria by gene manipulation of
phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) in Anabaena
7120.
Anabaena sp. PCC 7120 is a heterocys<strong>to</strong>us, filamen<strong>to</strong>us
cyanobacterium. It performs most of <strong>the</strong> characteristics
described above but with a higher content of oils <strong>and</strong>
lipids. The manipulation site of this work was selected at
PEPC, which regulates both lipid <strong>and</strong> protein syn<strong>the</strong>sis in
<strong>the</strong> metabolic pathway of cyanobacteria <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r
oxygenic, pho<strong>to</strong>tropic organisms. Our lab has found <strong>the</strong>re
were 2 conservative domains (FA <strong>and</strong> FB) in PEPC gene
sequence <strong>and</strong> constructed 3 types of PEPC gene mutants:
(1) FA domain regulated; (2) FB domain regulated; <strong>and</strong> (3)
both FA <strong>and</strong> FB regulated. Here, <strong>the</strong> data was only on <strong>the</strong>
mutant regulated both FA <strong>and</strong> FB (called mutant PEPCⅢ).
Higher oil‐productivity depends mainly on both <strong>the</strong>
content of lipids <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> growth rate (or net
pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis). The data showed that <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal lipids of
<strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ were 31% in its biomass (dry weight) <strong>and</strong>
that of <strong>the</strong> wild type Anabaena 7120 was only 12%. The
lipid content of <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was raised 158.3%
compared with that of <strong>the</strong> wild type cells. The net
pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis in <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was higher 15% than
that in <strong>the</strong> wild type under saturation light. The optimum
temperature was 35℃ for both <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ <strong>and</strong> wild
type, <strong>and</strong> in lower temperature (20–25℃) net
pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis in <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was higher than that in
<strong>the</strong> wild type. The optimum pH of <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was at 8.5,
<strong>and</strong> that of <strong>the</strong> wild type was at 8.0. At lower pH (pH6.5–7)
net pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis in <strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was greater 15‐43%
than in <strong>the</strong> wild type. It was interesting that although <strong>the</strong>
expression of PEPC was negative regulation in <strong>the</strong>
MutantⅢ, its net pho<strong>to</strong>syn<strong>the</strong>sis still exceeded that in <strong>the</strong>
wild type while <strong>the</strong> concentration of soluble carbon was
kept at normal level or higher level. Based on <strong>the</strong>se data,
<strong>the</strong> MutantⅢ was worth <strong>to</strong> develop in industrialization of
algal biodiesel.
Decreased renal advanced glycation end
products (AGE) accumulation in
pre­diabetic rats by Poria cocos <strong>and</strong>
Dioscorea opposite crude extracts
Wenyi CHENG, 1 Hsiu‐Chuan LEE 2 <strong>and</strong> Shih‐Yi
HUANG 1
1School of Nutrition <strong>and</strong> Health Sciences, Taipei Medical
University, 250 Wu‐Xing Street, Taipei <strong>and</strong> 2 Biotechnology
Incubation Center, Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica,
Taipei. Email: sihuang@tmu.edu.tw
Poria cocos <strong>and</strong> Dioscorea opposite have been considered
<strong>to</strong> present anti‐inflammation capability <strong>and</strong> are used in
blood sugar‐controlled diets. The proposed study was <strong>to</strong>
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evaluate <strong>the</strong> effect of single or combination of crude
extracts from Poria cocos <strong>and</strong> Dioscorea opposite on renal
advanced glycation end products (AGEs) formation in
pre‐diabetic rats. After induced with 20 mg/kg
strep<strong>to</strong>zo<strong>to</strong>cin, <strong>the</strong> blood sugar levels of rats remained
mimic prediabetes status (140‐200 mg/dL). Then, single
dose of Poria cocos crude extracts (0.14 g/kg/day) <strong>and</strong>
Dioscorea opposite crude extracts (0.35 g/kg/day),
combination of both, or vehicle were administered for 8
weeks. Blood <strong>and</strong> selected organ samples were collected
during <strong>the</strong> study. The results showed 8‐week
administration of single or combination of <strong>the</strong>se crude
extracts could significantly reduce <strong>the</strong> fasting blood
glucose level (p 0.05) <strong>and</strong> delay <strong>the</strong> progress <strong>to</strong> overt
diabetes. The levels of tumor necrosis fac<strong>to</strong>r‐α (TNF‐α)
<strong>and</strong> interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) concentrations in plasma <strong>and</strong>
liver were significantly decreased in administered
groups compared <strong>to</strong> control group (p 0.05). Such
founding are highly correlated with <strong>the</strong> thickness of
glomerular basement membrane. The
immunohis<strong>to</strong>chemistry stain showed that <strong>the</strong> expression
of AGEs <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> recep<strong>to</strong>r for advanced glycation end
products (RAGE) in kidney mainly accumulated in
afferent arteriole <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> proximal area of renal vessel.
These results suggest that administration of Poria cocos
or Dioscorea opposite crude extracts could exert an
anti‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry effect by reducing AGEs formation
<strong>and</strong> prevent <strong>the</strong> process of diabetes in pre‐diabetic rats.
Discussion on reduction treatment suitable
for allergenicity of Penaeus vannameimajor
allergen tropomyosin
Jiayi SUN, Xichang WANG, Yuan LIU <strong>and</strong> Ying LU
College of Food Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Shanghai Ocean
University, Shanghai, China. Email: Tears123123@126.com
In this study, ultrasound(300 W, 3 min),
enzymolysis(35 °C, 10 min) <strong>and</strong> ultrasound(300 W, 3 min)
combining with enzymolysis(35 °C, 10 min) treatment
were individually used <strong>to</strong> reduce shrimp major allergen
tropomyosin (Tm). The reduction degree was evaluated
by Tricine‐SDS‐PAGE, Western blot <strong>and</strong> S<strong>and</strong>wich ELISA.
Based on <strong>the</strong> data, a protein b<strong>and</strong> with molecular weight
about 35 kDa was reduced remarkably after treated by
enzymolysis <strong>and</strong> ultrasound combining with enzymolysis.
Western blot data showed that <strong>the</strong> 35kDa protein was
shrimp allergen Tm. S<strong>and</strong>wich ELISA results appeared
that <strong>the</strong> Tm protein treated by enzymolysis with ficin <strong>and</strong>
alcalase lost <strong>the</strong> immunological activity. The amount of Tm
treated with ‐chymotrypsin <strong>and</strong> bromelian was
reduced, however, according <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> s<strong>and</strong>wich ELISA, it
still showed weak immunological activity. Ultrasound
treatment showed <strong>the</strong> worst reduction effect. Enzyme
digestion sites analysis of every enzyme for Tm implied
that appropriate digestion temperature <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> amount
of digestion sites were important for <strong>the</strong> reduction effect.
Their roles are necessary <strong>to</strong> pay attention when reducing
<strong>the</strong> allergenicity of shrimp allergen Tm.
Distribution <strong>and</strong> expression studies on
aquaporin­1 (AQP­1) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> cystic fibrosis
transmembrane regula<strong>to</strong>r (CFTR) in silver
sea bream
Norman YS WOO, Eddie E DEANE, James CY
LUK, Anna KY KWONG <strong>and</strong> Teresa WS YUEN
School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong,
Shatin, NT, Hong Kong SAR, China. Email:
normanwoo@cuhk.edu.hk
Aquaporins have been implicated <strong>to</strong> play a role in water
transport in various osmoregula<strong>to</strong>ry epi<strong>the</strong>lia of teleosts.
Using immunolocalization pro<strong>to</strong>cols we studied <strong>the</strong>
spatial distribution of aquaporin‐1 (AQP1) in <strong>the</strong> gill,
intestine <strong>and</strong> kidney of silver sea bream (Sparus sarba)
that were acclimated <strong>to</strong> seawater (SW) or freshwater
(FW). In <strong>the</strong> gill, immunoreactivity of AQP1 was mainly
detected at <strong>the</strong> primary <strong>and</strong> secondary lamellae junctions
<strong>and</strong> found <strong>to</strong> co‐localize with Na + ‐K + ‐ATPase reactivity
mainly within <strong>the</strong> region of <strong>the</strong> chloride cells. For
intestine it was found that AQP1 was localized at <strong>the</strong>
basal side of villi epi<strong>the</strong>lial cells for both SW‐<strong>and</strong> FWacclimated
sea bream. However in SW‐acclimated fish,
AQP1 was observed <strong>to</strong> be scattered amongst <strong>the</strong>
intestinal goblet cells. In kidney, AQP1 immunoreactivity
was restricted <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> apical membranes of some renal
tubular cells for both SW‐ <strong>and</strong> FW‐acclimated silver sea
bream. RT‐PCR analysis was used <strong>to</strong> measure AQP1
transcript abundance in salinity acclimated sea bream
<strong>and</strong> it was found that expression was highest in gill tissue
taken from fish that were acclimated <strong>to</strong> low salinity
101

conditions. For intestine, <strong>the</strong> highest AQP1 transcript
amounts were found in sea bream acclimated <strong>to</strong>
isosmotic <strong>and</strong> hypersaline conditions. Recent studies
have also been directed <strong>to</strong>wards <strong>the</strong> role <strong>and</strong> importance
of chloride transport via <strong>the</strong> cystic fibrosis
transmembrane regula<strong>to</strong>r (CFTR) in silver sea bream.
In gills, it was found that CFTR expression remained
relatively unchanged in sea bream that were acclimated
across a broad salinity range suggesting that de novo
syn<strong>the</strong>sis of CFTR does not occur during salinity
acclimation of sea bream. A final set of experiments
were carried out <strong>to</strong> assess <strong>the</strong> potential role of <strong>the</strong>
olfac<strong>to</strong>ry rosettes on osmoregula<strong>to</strong>ry function in salinity
acclimated sea bream. Using DIG‐labeled antisense
cRNA probes, for in situ hybridization, we localized both
CFTR <strong>and</strong> Na + ‐K + ‐ATPase in cryosections of olfac<strong>to</strong>ry
rosettes. Specific signals for Na + ‐K + ‐ATPase were detected
on <strong>the</strong> surface layers of olfac<strong>to</strong>ry epi<strong>the</strong>lial cells but CFTR
mRNA expression could not be localized in <strong>the</strong> olfac<strong>to</strong>ry
epi<strong>the</strong>lium. Using a whole mount in situ hybridization
technique, Na + ‐K + ‐ATPase mRNA were found <strong>to</strong> be
abundantly localized in <strong>the</strong> primary lamellae of <strong>the</strong>
olfac<strong>to</strong>ry rosettes, especially on <strong>the</strong> lamellar surface
which was directly exposed <strong>to</strong> SW. Taken <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r
<strong>the</strong>se studies give us new some insights in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> spatial
distribution <strong>and</strong> expression profiles of key water <strong>and</strong>
chloride ion regula<strong>to</strong>rs in a euryhaline teleost.
Ecometric approaches in conservation
paleobiology
Gregory DIETL
Paleon<strong>to</strong>logical Research Institution, 1259 Trumansburg Road,
Ithaca, NY, USA. Email: gpd3@cornell.edu
Humans have become <strong>the</strong> world’s greatest force altering
<strong>the</strong> Earth <strong>and</strong> its biota. A major challenge for <strong>the</strong> future is
finding ways <strong>to</strong> ameliorate human impacts on biodiversity,
<strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong> res<strong>to</strong>re <strong>and</strong> sustain <strong>the</strong> ecosystem services on
which we depend. The emerging field of Conservation
Paleobiology–<strong>the</strong> application of <strong>to</strong>ols <strong>and</strong> methods of
paleon<strong>to</strong>logy <strong>to</strong> biodiversity conservation–promises rapid
knowledge transfer of basic research that can be used <strong>to</strong>
address environmental problems. This approach can
provide valuable insights about biotic responses <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
most important environmental stressors (<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir
interactions) acting <strong>to</strong>day, such as habitat change,
overexploitation of wild species, invasive species,
pollution, <strong>and</strong> climate change. Here I will review
examples illustrating how a trait‐based (ecometric)
approach has been used in Conservation Paleobiology <strong>to</strong>:
document past ecological response <strong>to</strong> climate change,
identify patterns of species at risk, detect shifting
baselines <strong>and</strong> differentiate human impacts from natural
processes. I highlight cases for which direct observation
of traits <strong>and</strong> modern environmental conditions alone
would lead <strong>to</strong> misleading conclusions about <strong>the</strong> likelihood
<strong>and</strong>/ or magnitude of biotic response.
Effects of combined seed traits in formation
of mutualism/predation between seeds <strong>and</strong>
rodents among multiple species in a
subtropical forest in China
Gang CHANG 1,2 <strong>and</strong> Zhibin ZHANG 1
1State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Integrated Management of Pest Insects
<strong>and</strong> Rodents in Agriculture, Institute of Zoology, CAS, Beijing
100101, China <strong>and</strong> 2 Shaanxi Institute of Zoology, Xi’an 710032,
China. Email: zhangzb@ioz.ac.cn
Effects of seed traits on seed hoarding behaviors of
rodents <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>n seeding regeneration of trees have been
widely studied, but strong co‐varying seed traits often
obscure <strong>the</strong> relationship between seed fates <strong>and</strong> seed
traits under rodent predation in field condition. Using
principle component analysis, <strong>the</strong> effects of seed traits of
5 tree species on hoarding behaviors of 7 sympatric
rodent species in semi‐natural enclosures in <strong>the</strong> Banruosi
Subtropical Forest in Southwest China were investigated,
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> mutualism/predation network structure among
seeds <strong>and</strong> rodents were also analyzed. We found that
different rodent species showed different positive <strong>and</strong>
negative effects on seed regeneration of <strong>the</strong> 5 tree species.
There was a slight overlap in mutualism among seeds <strong>and</strong>
rodents, but a greater overlap among seeds <strong>and</strong> rodents in
predation. We found that more hard h<strong>and</strong>ling traits (i.e.
heavy weight, hard seed coat) <strong>and</strong> high nutritional traits
(i.e. high protein, high fat, high caloric, low starch) are
more important in formation of mutualism between seeds
<strong>and</strong> rat species, while high <strong>to</strong>xicant trait (i.e. high tannin)
is more important in formation of mutualism between
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seeds <strong>and</strong> Apodemus species,Seeds with more hard
h<strong>and</strong>ling traits tended <strong>to</strong> be less frequently harvested, less
frequently eaten in situ or after removal, <strong>and</strong> more
frequently scatter‐hoarded or larder‐hoarded by rodents.
Seeds with high nutritional traits are more frequently
eaten after removal, <strong>and</strong> more frequently scatter‐hoarded.
Seeds with high <strong>to</strong>xicant trait were more frequently eaten
in situ or after removal, <strong>and</strong> more frequently
scatter‐hoarded. The h<strong>and</strong>ling time hypo<strong>the</strong>sis, high
tannin hypo<strong>the</strong>sis, <strong>and</strong> high nutrition hypo<strong>the</strong>sis were
supported in some, but not all, seed‐rodent partnerships.
The divergence in formation of mutualism <strong>and</strong> predation
may play an important role in maintaining <strong>the</strong> complex
<strong>and</strong> diversified community structure in forest
ecosystems.
Embryonic <strong>and</strong> larval development of marsh
frog, Pelophylax ridibundus, (Amphibia,
Anura), in Lorestan Province, western Iran
Masumeh NAJIBZADEH, 1 Jamshid
DARVISH, 1 Hajigholi KAMI 2 <strong>and</strong> Alireza
PESARAKLOO 3
1Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Ferdowsi University
of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran, 2 Department of Biology, Faculty of
Sciences, Golestan University of Gorgan, Gorgan, Iran <strong>and</strong>
3Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Lorestan University
of Khorrambad, Khorramabad, Iran. Email:
Masumnajibzadeh@gmail.com
We studied <strong>the</strong> development <strong>and</strong> morphology of different
larval stages of Pelophylax ridibundus. Eggs, collected from
<strong>the</strong> natural pond outside <strong>the</strong> city of Khorramabad
(Lorestan, Iran) have evolved in <strong>the</strong> water from <strong>the</strong>ir
home pond. We document diagnostic morphological
characters provided by Gosner (1960) larval stages <strong>and</strong>
compare data with o<strong>the</strong>r breeding reports. The larvae
hatched about 7 days after egg deposition. Principal
diagnostic features included <strong>the</strong> formation of <strong>the</strong>
funnel‐shaped oral disc that can be readily distinguished
this species from o<strong>the</strong>r sympatric species. Tadpoles in all
stages possess a labial <strong>to</strong>oth row formula of 2(1)3/ (1).
Larvae developed faster at higher temperatures. The
largestbody lengthof larval P. ridibundus measured about
54mm in 70 days after egg deposition. The mean <strong>to</strong>tal
developmental time observed for P. ridibundus was 103
day. Compared with <strong>the</strong> majority of o<strong>the</strong>r Palearctic
anurans, it appears that embryonic <strong>and</strong> larval
development is usually slow rapid in P. ridibundus.
Enhanced production of 1­Deoxynojirmiycin
via mixed cultivation of fungi isolated from
mulberry rhizosphere
Qiang LI, Gengsheng JI, Xuding GU, Juanjuan FEI
<strong>and</strong> Zaiqiang WU
School of Biology <strong>and</strong> Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University
of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Zhenjiang 212018, China. Email:
comeonflareup@yahoo.com.cn
To help meet <strong>the</strong> challenge of DNJ manufacture from
microbial fermentation, optimal condition for <strong>the</strong>
fermentation have attracted substantial research interest.
In <strong>the</strong> case, mix strategy was carried out <strong>to</strong> cultivate
mulberry rhizosphere Bacillus subtilis BJ‐B121(DNJ
producing strain), Rhizopus spp.BJ‐F13 <strong>and</strong>
AspergillusnigerBJ‐F8 according <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> plate duel culture
assay <strong>and</strong> inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry activity assay in vitro. We
characterized mixed cultivation of Bacillus subtilis
BJ‐B121 <strong>and</strong> mulberry rhizosphere microorganisms on
<strong>the</strong> basis of biochemical data. Rhizosphere soil
microorganisms may be interact with each o<strong>the</strong>r <strong>and</strong> lead
<strong>to</strong> improvement of DNJ production. Campared with
monoculture, <strong>the</strong> of glucose consumption <strong>and</strong> DNJ
production were efficient <strong>and</strong> DNJ production was
26‐32% in mixed cultivation <strong>and</strong> 100 μg/mL <strong>and</strong> 308
μg/mL improved DNJ production were obtained. In
addition, DNJ did not affect <strong>the</strong> growth of <strong>the</strong> mixed cells.
Environment <strong>and</strong> ethics: extreme viewpoint
from Extreme North
Kupriyashkin ANDREY
Norilsk Industrial Institute, 50 let Oktyabrya, 7, Norilsk, 6633010,
Russia. Email: kupra@norcom.ru
The environmental problems of <strong>to</strong>day: <strong>the</strong> change of
natural mobility of elements <strong>and</strong> gap of biogeochemical
cycles. Nor<strong>the</strong>rn ecosystems are vulnerable <strong>to</strong> industrial
pollution because destruc<strong>to</strong>rs can operate only in summer.
Compared <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> temperate zone, evolutionary time <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong>m is flowing 3 times slower. Therefore, a natural
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nutrient transport of heavy metals with bacteria is
impossible. Species influence on <strong>the</strong> bioshere
geochemically. Birds carry a significant amount of organic
matter from <strong>the</strong> aquatic ecosystems on<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> ground. In
<strong>the</strong> North, bloodsucking mosqui<strong>to</strong>es <strong>and</strong> chironomids
dying on <strong>the</strong> ground <strong>and</strong> create ‘lift’ elements. People are
different in that <strong>the</strong>y can do this much faster <strong>and</strong> more
efficiently, taking straight from <strong>the</strong> bowels. The basis of
our civilization ‐ <strong>the</strong> hydrocarbons. With this resource we
try go out of control environmental fac<strong>to</strong>rs <strong>and</strong> spend
wasteful of natural resources for <strong>the</strong> sake of ‘comfortable’
isolation from environment.
Epidemiological, serological studies <strong>and</strong>
control measures of trypnosomiasis (surra)
in camels
Muhammad Fiaz QAMAR, Sonia TAHSEEN <strong>and</strong>
Nusrat JAHAN
<strong>and</strong> recently, melarsen oxide cysteamine (cymelarsan) are
generally used for <strong>the</strong>rapy <strong>and</strong> prophylaxis of T. evansi.
The <strong>the</strong>rapeutic <strong>and</strong> prophylactic use of trypanocides is
affected by numerous limitations, including <strong>to</strong>xicity <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> development of resistance by <strong>the</strong> parasites. The
emergence of drug‐resistant trypanosome strains is
considered a very serious problem in trypanosomosis
control, particularly for <strong>the</strong> resource‐poor, at‐risk
populations <strong>and</strong> farmers in Cholistan <strong>and</strong> in parasite
control. This has increased cost <strong>and</strong> reduced efficiency of
production <strong>to</strong> farmers.
Freshwater ichthyofaunal diversity of
mountain streams: a comparative study of
two spatially isolated nature reserves in
Jiangxi, China
Maolin HU, 1 Yinlan LIU, 2 Huiming ZHOU 3 <strong>and</strong>
Fei LI 4
Department of Zoology, Govt College University, Lahore, Pakistan.
Email: fiazqamar1@yahoo.com
Trypanosomosis, caused by Trypanosoma evansi, a blood
pro<strong>to</strong>zoan causing ‘surra’, is one of <strong>the</strong> most important
diseases of camels. Because of <strong>the</strong> high rate of healthy
carriers, <strong>the</strong> parasite easily spreads in various directions.
Pakistan has a camel population of about 1.03 million <strong>and</strong>
out of that 0.8 million are in cholistan. The economic
impact of surra is often underestimated due <strong>to</strong> a low rate
of detection of <strong>the</strong> infection. Economic losses are due <strong>to</strong> a
wide range of pathological expressions of surra, i.e.
mortality, weight loss <strong>and</strong> reduction in milk yield,
preciated sale or slaughtering of sick animals, abortion
<strong>and</strong> infertility, diminished work capacity <strong>and</strong> draught
powe, immune system impairment <strong>and</strong> treatment costs.
Several <strong>to</strong>ols have been developed during <strong>the</strong> last 20 years
for serological diagnosis, such as ELISA <strong>and</strong> CATT (card
agglutination test), which brought satisfying results. For
detection of active infection, PCR <strong>to</strong>ols have improved <strong>the</strong>
parasi<strong>to</strong>logical techniques. There is no effective vaccine
against trypanosomes <strong>and</strong> no sustainable vec<strong>to</strong>r control
strategies. The control of trypanosomosis continues <strong>to</strong>
rely principally on chemo<strong>the</strong>rapy <strong>and</strong> chemoprophylaxis
using <strong>the</strong> salts of 3 compounds: diminazene, homidium
<strong>and</strong> isometamidium. In addition, quinapyramine, suramin
1School of Life Sciences, Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi
330031 China, 2 Nanchang Foreign Language, Nanchang, Jiangxi
330025, China, 3 Jiangxi Fisheries Research Institute, Nanchang
330039, Jiangxi, China <strong>and</strong> 4 Jiangxi Entry‐Exit Inspection <strong>and</strong>
Quarantine Bureau, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330002, China. Email:
mlhu1981@yahoo.com.cn
Worldwide, freshwater fishes are <strong>the</strong> most diverse of all
vertebrate groups, but are also <strong>the</strong> most highly
threatened. Nature reserve is an important asset as
refuge of rich floral <strong>and</strong> faunal biodiversity including
fishes. Of a <strong>to</strong>tal of 220 freshwater fish species recorded
throughout Jiangxi about 131 species (59.5%) are
believed <strong>to</strong> be endemic, many occurring in <strong>the</strong>
mountainous regions. Therefore, protected areas such as
nature reserves, could play an important role in
conservation of freshwater fishes within Jiangxi.
Danzhangshan (153.70 km 2 ) <strong>and</strong> Raoheyuan (115.96
km 2 ) nature reserves,belonging <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> forest ecological
nature reserve,are located in <strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>astern
Jiangxi.Most mountain streams in both nature reserves
flow in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Le’an River, which drains in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Raohe
River. Recently, numerous anthropogenic disturbances,
such as fires <strong>and</strong> mining, have triggered physico‐chemical
alterations in <strong>the</strong> nature reserve mountain streams. At
present, <strong>the</strong>re have been several notable surveys of <strong>the</strong>
flora <strong>and</strong> fauna withinboth nature reserves. However,
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until our survey, <strong>the</strong>re have been no studies on <strong>the</strong>
distribution <strong>and</strong> abundance of fish species withinboth
nature reserves. Therefore, <strong>the</strong>re is a need <strong>to</strong> identify
better <strong>the</strong> conservation value of <strong>the</strong> both nature reserves
in relation <strong>to</strong> biogeographical diversity of fishes <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
fac<strong>to</strong>rs impacting on fish communities.
The fish fauna of mountain streams in <strong>the</strong> both nature
reserves was investigated during 2008. A <strong>to</strong>tal of 385
fish were collected <strong>and</strong> classified in<strong>to</strong> 4 orders 7 families
<strong>and</strong> 14 species. At Danzhangshan, 8 species in 4 families
of fishes were collected, while at Raoheyuan <strong>the</strong>re were
12 species in 7 families.
The dominant family, Cyprinidae, accounted for 57.14%
(8 species) of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal number of fish species collected
from both nature reserves. Cyprinidae accounted for
62.50% (5 species) of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal fish species collected <strong>and</strong>
81.36% of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal abundance (96 ind.) at
Danzhangshan, <strong>and</strong> 50.00% (6 species) of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal fish
species <strong>and</strong> 76.78% of <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal abundance (205 ind.) at
Raoheyuan.
At Danzhangshan, <strong>the</strong> dominant species was
Rhynchocypris oxycephalus [relative abundance (RA),
67.80%] <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> subdominant species were
Odon<strong>to</strong>butissinensis (RA, 12.71%), Acrossocheilus
parallens (RA, 6.80%), Abbottina rivularis(RA, 5.08%) <strong>and</strong>
Rhinogobiuscliffordpopei (RA, 3.39%). At Raoheyuan,
Acrossocheilusparallens (RA, 31.09%) was <strong>the</strong> dominant
species, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> subdominant species were Opsariichthys
bidens (RA, 29.96%), Rhynchocypris oxycephalus (RA,
9.36%), Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (RA, 7.12%),
Odon<strong>to</strong>butissinensis (RA, 5.24%), Vanmanenia
pingchowensis (RA, 4.49%), Gnathopogon imberbis <strong>and</strong>
Rhinogobiuscliffordpopei (RA, 3.75% respectively),
Carassius auratusauratus (RA, 2.24%) <strong>and</strong> Pseudobagrus
Homalopteridae (12 ind., RAE 7.84%; one species) <strong>and</strong>
Bagridae (5 ind., RAE 3.27%; one species). The most
common endemic <strong>to</strong> China was A. parallens (RAE 59.48%
in both nature reserves combined). At Raoheyuan, A.
parallens was <strong>the</strong> dominant endemic <strong>to</strong> China, followed
in order of abundance by O. sinensis, V.pingchowensis, G.
imberbis, R. cliffordpopei <strong>and</strong> P. ondon. At Danzhangshan,
Odon<strong>to</strong>butis sinensis was dominant <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> subdominant
species were A. parallens <strong>and</strong> R. cliffordpopei.
Comparison of fish species within o<strong>the</strong>r nature reserves
in Jiangxi mountain area shows <strong>the</strong>re is highest
endemism in Raoheyuan nature reserve, except that in
Ma<strong>to</strong>ushan nature reserve. We conclude that Raoheyuan
<strong>and</strong> Dazhangshan nature reserves are important for
conservation of freshwater ichthyofauna diversity in
Jiangxi, especially for endemic species. Current threats <strong>to</strong>
conservation of fishes within <strong>the</strong> both nature reserves
are identified <strong>and</strong> management solutions are suggested.
His<strong>to</strong>ne deacetylase inhibition abrogates
TNF­α–induced PAI­1 expression in pleural
meso<strong>the</strong>lial cells <strong>and</strong> inhibits pleural fibrosis
in vivo
Weilin CHEN, 1 Joen‐Rong SHEU, 1 Che‐Jen
HSIAO, 2 Shih‐Hsin HSIAO, 3 Chil‐Li CHUNG 2,3 <strong>and</strong>
George HSIAO 1
1Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences <strong>and</strong> Department of
Pharmacology, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University,
Taipei, 2 School of Respira<strong>to</strong>ry Therapy, College of Medicine,
Taipei Medical University, Taipei <strong>and</strong> 3 Division of Pulmonary
Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Medical
University Hospital, Taipei. Email: geohsiao@tmu.edu.tw
ondon (RA, 1.87%).
Rationale: Tumor necrosis fac<strong>to</strong>r (TNF)‐α up‐regulates
Overall, 6 species were found <strong>to</strong> be endemic <strong>to</strong> China (5
<strong>the</strong> expression of plasminogen activa<strong>to</strong>r inhibi<strong>to</strong>r (PAI)‐1
families; RA 71.43%) <strong>and</strong> endemism of stream fish in
in pleural meso<strong>the</strong>lial cells (PMCs), contributing <strong>to</strong> fibrin
both nature reserves combined was 42.86%. Relative
deposition <strong>and</strong> pleural fibrosis. His<strong>to</strong>ne deacetylases
abundance of endemic species <strong>to</strong> China was higher at
(HDACs) have been found implicated in fibrogenesis.
Raoheyuan (50.00%) than at Danzhangshan (37.50%).
Therefore, we investigated <strong>the</strong> effects of HDAC inhibition
Endemic fishes were classified in<strong>to</strong> 3 species <strong>and</strong> 3
on TNF‐α‐induced PAI‐1 expression in PMCs <strong>and</strong> on
families at Danzhangshan, <strong>and</strong> 6 species <strong>and</strong> five families
pleural fibrosis in vivo.
at Raoheyuan. The dominant family of endemic fishes
Methods: MeT‐5A human PMCs were treated with TNF‐α
was Cyprinidae [93 ind., relative abundance of endemics
in <strong>the</strong> presence or absence of an HDAC inhibi<strong>to</strong>r
(RAE) 60.78%, 2 species] <strong>and</strong> subdominant families
m‐carboxycinnamic acid bis‐hydroxamide (CBHA) or of
were Odon<strong>to</strong>butidae (29 ind., RAE 18.95%; one species),
transfection of specific siRNAs against HDAC1‐4. The
Gobiidae (14 ind., RAE 9.15%; one species),
HDAC activity, PAI‐1 mRNA <strong>and</strong> protein expression,
105

NF‐κB <strong>and</strong> MAPK activation, <strong>and</strong> PAI‐1 promoter activity
were analyzed by RT‐PCR or immunoblotting, respectively.
Wistar rats administered intrapleurally with or without
CBHA followed by injection with doxycycline were
sacrificed on day 7. Fibrosis <strong>and</strong> PAI‐1 expression of <strong>the</strong>
visceral pleurae were assessed using
immunohis<strong>to</strong>chemistry <strong>and</strong> immunoblotting.
Results: CBHA concentration‐dependently abrogated
TNF‐α–induced PAI‐1 mRNA, protein expression <strong>and</strong>
HDAC activity in human PMCs. CBHA strongly inhibited
activation of p38/JNK <strong>and</strong> ATF2/c‐Jun, but not NF‐κB
signaling, <strong>and</strong> repressed PAI‐1 promoter activity. Among
<strong>the</strong> 4 HDACs tested, HDAC4 knockdown most efficiently
attenuated PAI‐1 protein syn<strong>the</strong>sis <strong>and</strong> impaired
TNF‐α–mediated p38/JNK activation. Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, CBHA
markedly blocked doxycycline‐induced fibrosis <strong>and</strong> PAI‐1
expression in <strong>the</strong> visceral pleurae of rats.
Conclusions: Inhibition of HDAC activity with CBHA may
abrogate TNF‐α–activated HDAC4/MAPK signaling <strong>and</strong>
PAI‐1 expression in human PMCs, <strong>and</strong> inhibit pleural
fibrosis in vivo. Given <strong>the</strong> antifibrotic effect of CBHA, it is
imperative <strong>to</strong> assess <strong>the</strong> clinical value of HDAC inhibi<strong>to</strong>rs
as potential <strong>the</strong>rapeutic agents for pleural fibrosis.
His<strong>to</strong>rical demographic processes in <strong>the</strong>
montane <strong>and</strong> riverine systems: molecular
evidence from <strong>the</strong> endemic true freshwater
crab Sinopotamon honanense (Decapoda:
Brachyura)
HY SUN, L ZHU, JJ XU, J YAN, YF SUN, F FANG
<strong>and</strong>Q ZHAO
Jiangsu Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing
210046, Jiangsu, China. Email: sunhongying@njnu.edu.cn. This
work was supported by grant from <strong>the</strong> National Natural Science
Foundation of China (31071902) <strong>to</strong> HYS.
Mountain ranges <strong>and</strong> riverine systems in central eastern
China harbor diverse assemblage of temperate <strong>and</strong>
subtropical benthic freshwater invertebrate. The weak
dispersal abilities <strong>and</strong> dem<strong>and</strong>ing freshwater
environment of habitat made <strong>the</strong>m as good indica<strong>to</strong>r
organisms. To shed light on species diversification <strong>and</strong>
demographic processes that occurred in montane <strong>and</strong>
riverine areas, we assessed genetic diversity <strong>and</strong>
demographic his<strong>to</strong>ry in <strong>the</strong> direct‐developing, endemic
Chinese freshwater crab Sinopotamon honanense using
microsatellite loci <strong>and</strong> mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial sequences. A <strong>to</strong>tal
of 485 individuals from 28 localities were sampled across
its distribution areas. We found that S. honanense
exhibited a vertically altitudinal belt distribution. And
high genetic diversity, limited genetic differentiation
between populations, <strong>and</strong> high his<strong>to</strong>rical migration rates
were estimated in <strong>the</strong> studied populations, implying high
connectivity across latitudinal belts. Tajima’s D <strong>and</strong> Fu’s Fs
values were all negative, fur<strong>the</strong>r evidence for a recent
population expansion was provided by <strong>the</strong> Bayesian
Skyride analysis; <strong>the</strong> results indicated S. honanense
experienced a rapid increase in effective population
size.Abundant gene flow occurred between S. honanense
populations, <strong>and</strong> significant long‐distance dispersals in
northward direction (t = 4.341, P< 0.001). The
preponderance of <strong>the</strong>se data suggested that <strong>the</strong> recent
population continuous expansion was largely due <strong>to</strong> a
northward shift in <strong>the</strong> climate transitional zone, in which
S. honanense can maintain positive population growth.
The result suggested that <strong>the</strong> Pleis<strong>to</strong>cene had profound
effects on <strong>the</strong> genetic diversity patterns of <strong>the</strong> freshwater
crabs. The postglacial population expansion might lead <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> current distributions of S. honanense lack of
phylogeographic structure.
Integrative Zoology
Zhibin Zhang, Yan XIE <strong>and</strong> Wenhua XIONG
INZ Edi<strong>to</strong>rial Office, ISZS, IOZ, CAS, Beijing, China. Email:
inz@ioz.ac.cn
Integrative Zoologyis <strong>the</strong> official
journal of <strong>the</strong> International
Society of Zoological Sciences (ISZS) <strong>and</strong> focuses on
zoology as an integrative discipline encompassing all
aspects of animal life. Published in partnership with <strong>the</strong>
Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences <strong>and</strong>
Wiley‐Blackwell, this new multidisciplinary journal aims
<strong>to</strong> encompass <strong>the</strong> varying perspectives <strong>and</strong> scholarly
disciplines that contribute <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> underst<strong>and</strong>ing of
Zoological phenomena. Please visit us at <strong>the</strong> following
websites:
http://www.globalzoology.org/WhatWeDo/IntegrativeZo
ology.aspx;
106

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/%28ISS
N%291749‐4877;
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subject/code/00006
1/homepage/iubs_virtual_issue.htm
Isolation <strong>and</strong> characterization of <strong>the</strong>
Larixgmelinii UGDH gene
Ningning LI, 1 Li WANG, 1 Wenbo ZHANG 2
<strong>and</strong>Xiaofei LIN 1
5.74, that shows striking sequence similarity <strong>to</strong> UGDH
proteins from Cinnamomum osmophloeum<strong>and</strong>
Piceasitchensis. The protein structure prediction shows
that <strong>the</strong> LgUGDH is a cy<strong>to</strong>solic protein, which has a
membrane‐associated region in its N‐teminal. For
investigating character of <strong>the</strong> LgUGDH, a xxx‐bp of <strong>the</strong>
LgUGDH promoter was isolated, <strong>and</strong> plasmids of
pUC18‐LgUDGH:GFP <strong>and</strong> pBI101‐LgUGDH were
constructed. The character of <strong>the</strong> LgUGDH will be
investigated by transforming Arabidopsis thaliana.
1College of Life Sciences, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot
010021, China <strong>and</strong> 2College of Forestry, Inner Mongolia
Agricultural University, Hohhot 010019, China.
Isolation of cold­active alkaline cellulase
producing actinomycete <strong>and</strong> investigation of
its enzyme properties
Dahurian Larch, Larix gmelinii (Rupr.), is 1 of 3 major
timber conifers in nor<strong>the</strong>ast China, which has straight
timber, clear wood texture, compact wood <strong>and</strong> natural
color. In addition, fiber cells of <strong>the</strong> larch are longer, <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> content of nonfiber cells is lower, so that <strong>the</strong> L.
gmelinii has important economic value in <strong>the</strong> building,
decoration, paper production <strong>and</strong> chemical fiber
industry. However, because <strong>the</strong> ecological amplitude of
<strong>the</strong> larch is very large, significant difference in <strong>the</strong>
physical <strong>and</strong> mechanical properties <strong>and</strong> processing
properties generally can be found in <strong>the</strong> larch from
different habitats. Therefore, it is very important <strong>to</strong>
choose eximious seedlings for afforestation, <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>
improve timber quality by controlling expression of
genes related <strong>to</strong> wood formation.
The cell wall consists <strong>to</strong> a large part of different
polysaccharides, <strong>and</strong> approximately 50% of those
originate from UDP‐glucuronate. UDP‐glucuronate is a
key precursor for <strong>the</strong> syn<strong>the</strong>sis of hemicelluloses <strong>and</strong>
pectins for <strong>the</strong> cell wall formation. UDP‐glucuronate is
formed from UDP‐glc by UDP‐glc dehydrogenase (UGDH),
<strong>and</strong> UGDH has been suggested <strong>to</strong> be an important
rate‐limiting enzyme in <strong>the</strong> pathways leading <strong>to</strong>
hemicellulose <strong>and</strong> pectin formation. Therefore, it is
necessary <strong>to</strong> isolate UGDH gene from L. gmelinii, <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>
analyze expression pattern, function <strong>and</strong> mechanism of
<strong>the</strong> gene.
In <strong>the</strong> study, an ortholog of UGDH, referred <strong>to</strong> as LgUGDH,
was isolated by degenerate PCR <strong>and</strong> RACE from L.
gmelinii. The 1904bp of full‐length LgUGDH cDNA is
predicted <strong>to</strong> encode a protein of 481 amino acids with a
molecular mass of 52.62 kDa <strong>and</strong> a isoelectric point of
Qiang LI, Juanjuan FEI, Gengsheng JI, Xuding GU
<strong>and</strong> Zaiqiang WU
School of Biology <strong>and</strong> Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University
of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Zhenjiang 212018, China. Email:
biojustlq@yahoo.cn
This work aimed <strong>to</strong> isolate cold‐active alkaline cellulase
producing strain, produce <strong>the</strong> unique cellulase with low
cost <strong>and</strong> carry out hydrolysis in alkaline enviroment at
low temperature. Sixteencellulose‐producing strains were
isolated from mulberry rhizosphere soil in winter. A
cold‐active cellulase producingactinomycete strain BJ‐XH
was isolated using methods of CMC clear haloes, congo
red dying <strong>and</strong> cellulase activities detection. It was
identified belonging <strong>to</strong> Nocardiopsis. Conditions of
cellulase production via fermentatation, enzyme
constitutions <strong>and</strong> characteristics of strain BJ‐XH were
investigated. The results indicated that strain BJ‐XH is a
aerobic, alkaline actinomycete. The optimal condition for
cellulase production was 28℃, pH 8.5 <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> inoculation
dose was 6% in shaking flask culture for 6–8 days. This
strain can produce alkaline cellulase, which was mainly
composed of Cx enzyme. The enzyme activity can reach
3.6 IU/mL at 20℃ <strong>and</strong> pH 9.0 (optimal catalysis
conditions). In addition, Mn 2+ , Fe 3+ <strong>and</strong> Co 2+ could
stimulate <strong>the</strong> enzyme reaction, while Cu 2+ <strong>and</strong> Pb 2+ inhibit
<strong>the</strong> enzyme activity. The cellulase is a promising regeant
for low temperature applications in detergents <strong>and</strong> fibroin
fibre treatment.
107

Link <strong>the</strong> female infants of rhesus macaque
<strong>and</strong> climatic fac<strong>to</strong>rs in Mt. Taihangshan Area,
Jiyuan, China
Jiqi LU, Baishi WANG, Zhenlong WANG <strong>and</strong> He
LU
Institute of Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Ecology, Zhengzhou University,
Zhengzhou 450001 China. Email: lujq@zzu.edu.cn
Reproduction is a key process by which a species
survives, thrives, or, failing this, becomes extinct. As an
important issue within population ecology, birth rate of
given population has been paying more intention for
conservation of endangered wildlife. The capacity for
growth is a measure of <strong>the</strong> success of a population of a
species. However, <strong>the</strong>re are so many interactions
between individuals <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> environment, measuring
how well populations grow is often complex. Population
ecologists commonly divide <strong>the</strong> fac<strong>to</strong>rs that regulate <strong>the</strong>
size of populations in<strong>to</strong> density‐dependent <strong>and</strong>
density‐independent fac<strong>to</strong>rs. Climate, including
temperature, rainfall <strong>and</strong> wind patterns, is simply <strong>the</strong>
wea<strong>the</strong>r that is dominant or normal in a particular region.
Mammals usually produce approximately equal numbers
of sons <strong>and</strong> daughters, It is now clear that <strong>the</strong>
male‐<strong>to</strong>‐female sex ratio at <strong>the</strong> time of conception
(primary sex ratio) <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> secondary sex ratio at birth
can be strikingly skewed from <strong>the</strong> <strong>the</strong>oretical 1:1
expected ratio. Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), <strong>the</strong>
only primate with a broader geographic distribution
o<strong>the</strong>r than humans, are found ubiqui<strong>to</strong>usly throughout
mainl<strong>and</strong> Asia. <strong>the</strong> wild populations of M. m. tcheliensis, a
subspecies unique <strong>to</strong> China, mainly occurs in <strong>the</strong> Mt.
Taihangshan area (34°54'‐35°16' N, 12°02'‐112°52' E),
<strong>the</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rnmost region of rhesus macaques worldwide.
To underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> reproductive ecology of this
non‐human primate, we analyzed <strong>the</strong> relationship
between new‐born females of troop WW‐1 <strong>and</strong> climatic
fac<strong>to</strong>rs in a temperate forest in <strong>the</strong> Mt. Taihangshan area,
Jiyuan, China. The results showed that: 1) <strong>the</strong> population
of WW‐1 grew from 23 <strong>to</strong> 51 individuals from 2003 <strong>to</strong>
2011, <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>tally 45 newborn infant macaques, 30
females <strong>and</strong> 15 males, contributed <strong>to</strong> this dynamic; 2)
yearly mean temperature did not significantly influence
<strong>the</strong> number of infant females; <strong>and</strong> 3) new‐born female
macaques decreased with increased annual precipitation.
The results from this study indicated that rhesus
macaques have evolutionarily adapted <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
environment in <strong>the</strong> Mt. Taihangshan area, north China.
Microscopic <strong>and</strong> molecular survey of blood
parasites of <strong>the</strong> endemic Schreiber’s Green
lizard (Lacerta schreiberi) in <strong>the</strong> central
mountains of <strong>the</strong> Iberian Peninsula (Spain)
Megía RODRIGO
MNCN‐CSIC, c/José Gutiérrez Abascal, 2, Madrid 28006, Spain.
Email: rodrigo.megia@mncn.csic.es
The study of ecological interactions between host <strong>and</strong>
parasites needs of <strong>the</strong> previous step of correct
identification <strong>and</strong> classification of parasitic fauna. In this
work we have accomplished a microscopic <strong>and</strong> molecular
survey of parasites in<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> circulating blood of <strong>the</strong>
endemic Schreiber’s green lizard, Lacertaschreiberi, in a
population from <strong>the</strong> Iberian Peninsula.
We have found 2 genera of apicomplexan pro<strong>to</strong>zoa:
Eimeria <strong>and</strong> Hepa<strong>to</strong>zoon. The first one is a well‐known
genus of intestinal coccidian <strong>and</strong>, although it has been
previously reported parasitizing certain organs of birds
<strong>and</strong> mammals, it had not been described within blood
cells before. This parasite is morphologically similar <strong>to</strong>
hemococcidians of <strong>the</strong> genus Schellackia. Phylogenetically
it is situated along with o<strong>the</strong>r Eimeria parasites from
frogs of East Europe <strong>and</strong> a snake of North America in a
group separated from <strong>the</strong> main group of <strong>the</strong> genus
Eimeria.
The parasite of <strong>the</strong> genus Hepa<strong>to</strong>zoon found in this
study is molecularly identical <strong>to</strong> one found infecting
lizards from nor<strong>the</strong>rn Africa. This Hepa<strong>to</strong>zoon haplotype
forms a group with o<strong>the</strong>r parasites isolated from lizards
from nor<strong>the</strong>rn Africa <strong>and</strong> this group is basal <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> clade
grouping Hepa<strong>to</strong>zoon parasites infecting carnivores. The
presence of <strong>the</strong> same haplotype in both continents, Africa
<strong>and</strong> Europe, confers an interesting biogeographic
perspective <strong>to</strong> this work.
Moni<strong>to</strong>ring impacts of climate change on
biodiversity: an altitudinal transect in a
protected area in Amazonian Peru
108

Lily O RODRIGUEZ, 1 Germán FORERO, 2 Armin
NIESSER 3 <strong>and</strong> Reiner ZIMMERMANN 3
1GIZ – Perú. Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Climate Change Project,Deutsche
Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH,
Calle Los Manzanos 119, Lima 27, San Isidro, Perú, 2 Nicholas
School of <strong>the</strong> Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
<strong>and</strong> 3 Forest Ecology <strong>and</strong> Remote Sensing Group, FEARS, Institut
fur Botanik 210, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany.
Email: lilyrodriguez@hotmail.com
Impacts of climate change on tropical ecosystems are
hardly documented, mainly because of lack of consistent
long‐term data. These data will be important for
adaptation <strong>and</strong> future management, underst<strong>and</strong>ing how
species <strong>and</strong> communities adapt <strong>to</strong> new situation <strong>and</strong>
modeling fur<strong>the</strong>r changes in <strong>the</strong> future, or even
establishing pro<strong>to</strong>cols for moni<strong>to</strong>ring biodiversity for
REDD+ projects. We established an altitudinal transect
(250–2250 m), in <strong>the</strong> Serranias del Sira (Sira Communal
Reserve), for moni<strong>to</strong>ring changes in biodiversity elements
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> climate. Along <strong>the</strong> transect, we expect <strong>to</strong>
moni<strong>to</strong>r changes on altitudinal ranges, abundance <strong>and</strong>
phenology in different communities of birds, frogs <strong>and</strong>
vegetation. We did a 41‐year his<strong>to</strong>rical analysis on
altitudinal ranges of birds (Forero et al. 2011), showing
an average upward shift of 49 m for 55 bird species. The
shift is significantly upward, but also significantly smaller
than <strong>the</strong> 152 m one expects from warming in <strong>the</strong> region.
We also sampled for frogs in 100 m 2 plots (4 plots 100 m
of altitude) along <strong>the</strong> transect, <strong>to</strong> establish <strong>the</strong> baseline on
species relative densities. At <strong>the</strong> same time, we sampled
for <strong>the</strong> fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis,
which does not appear <strong>to</strong> have reached <strong>the</strong> area. For
vegetation, we established 5 plots of 1 ha, (RAINFOR type)
<strong>and</strong> characterized <strong>the</strong> composition of <strong>the</strong> flora of each
vegetation type. In <strong>the</strong>se plots we will be moni<strong>to</strong>ring
changes on composition trees (dbh > 10 cm), turnover
<strong>and</strong> growth, <strong>to</strong> be sampled every 5 years. At each plot,
we have also installed high‐resolution digital
dendrometers on 15 trees, <strong>and</strong> meteorological stations <strong>to</strong>
record wea<strong>the</strong>r conditions (temperature, precipitation,
humidity, radiation <strong>and</strong> wind). We present our
preliminary results after <strong>the</strong> first year of work in this
transect.
Multiple infections, parasitemia <strong>and</strong>
ultraviolet colouration in blue tits (Cyanistes
caeruleus)
Elisa PEREZ BADAS
MNCN‐CSIC, 2 Jose Gutierrez Abascal, 28006 Madrid. Email:
elisa.perez@mncn.csic.es
Blood parasites are widespread in birds across all
continents, with <strong>the</strong> exception of <strong>the</strong> Antarctica, where
vec<strong>to</strong>rs are absent. The most common genera are
Haemoproteus, Plasmodium, Leucocy<strong>to</strong>zoon,
Trypanosoma <strong>and</strong> nema<strong>to</strong>de larvae (microfilariae), but
little is known about <strong>the</strong> relationship between <strong>the</strong>se
parasites <strong>and</strong> secondary sexual selection signals, such as
plumage colour. Several studies have shown that more
parasitized birds are paler than those that are uninfected,
but none have assessed <strong>the</strong> effect of multiple infections
on plumage colour in <strong>the</strong> ultraviolet (UV‐A) range.
Therefore, using a population of blue tits in central Spain
in which all <strong>the</strong>se parasites are present, we measured UV
colouration (UV chroma) in <strong>the</strong> breast plumage in relation
<strong>to</strong> presence <strong>and</strong> abundance of blood parasites. We
determined <strong>the</strong> intensity of parasitic infections by
combining data from microscopic scanning of blood
smears <strong>and</strong> a quantitative PCR. A fragment of <strong>the</strong>
mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial cy<strong>to</strong>chrome gene of <strong>the</strong> parasites was
amplified from avian blood samples. We found a positive
significant correlation between parasitemia by
Haemoproteus <strong>and</strong> UV chroma. In addition <strong>to</strong> this, we
found that males that harboured infections by more
genera of parasites showed marginally significant
brighter UV chroma. Overall, while male ‘attractiveness’
<strong>and</strong> male survival has been associated with brighter UV
colouration in crown fea<strong>the</strong>rs, our results indicate that
breast plumage colouration may convey a different piece
of information, at least in terms of parasite load. Thus, we
speculate that <strong>the</strong> assessment of male status by females in
some bird species might be based on multiple signals.
N­methylmorpholine­N­oxide/alkali
preatreatment improved corncob
bioconversion processing <strong>to</strong> sugars for
bio­ethanol production
109

Qiang LI, Xuding GU, Gengsheng LI, Juanjuan
FEI <strong>and</strong> Zaiqiang WU
School of Biology <strong>and</strong> Chemical Engineering, Jiangsu University
of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Zhenjiang 212018, China. Email:
comeonflareup@yahoo.com.cn
To fully exploit <strong>the</strong> benefits of
N‐methylmorpholine‐N‐oxide (NMMO) in lignocelluloses
bioconversion <strong>to</strong> bio‐ethanol, NMMO/alkali system was
established <strong>to</strong> efficiently pretreat cellulosic biomass for
enhanced production of sugars <strong>and</strong> subsequent
bio‐ethanol production. After optimization of reaction
parameters, corncob was pretreated at 85% NMMO with
loading of 1% NaOH, 120 o C <strong>and</strong> 2 h resulted in 100%
yield in <strong>the</strong> subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis for 60h.
FTIR analysis revealed thatNMMO/alkali‐treated corncob
was more porous <strong>and</strong> amorphous than <strong>the</strong> untreated
sample, which led <strong>to</strong> improved saccharification. Analysis
of <strong>the</strong> structure also illustrated that <strong>the</strong> NMMO/alkali
system can efficiently convert <strong>the</strong> crystalline cellulose I <strong>to</strong>
cellulose II. Subsquently, The untreated <strong>and</strong> treated
materials under various conditions were subjected <strong>to</strong>
separate enzymatic hydrolysis <strong>and</strong> fermentation (SHF) <strong>to</strong>
ethanol by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. About 80%
improvement of ethanol production (0.16 g ethanol/g
corn cob) was obtained when corncob was treated with
NMMO/alkali system compared <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> water‐treated
sample. Almost no cellulose loss, ambient pressure,
relatively moderate conditions, <strong>and</strong> high efficiency make
<strong>the</strong> NMMO/alkali system a good alternative for
pretreatment system of high‐crystalline cellulosic
materials.
Optimal conditions of capsaicinoids
extraction from chili peppers using
ultrasonic­assisted extraction (UAE)
Xiangyuan DENG
Jiangsu University of Science <strong>and</strong> Technology, Sibaidu. Email:
dengxy2009@126.com
Chili peppers (Capsicum frutescens), appreciated for <strong>the</strong>ir
pungency, taste, <strong>and</strong> aroma, have been extensively used
over <strong>the</strong> years as food additives, pigments, <strong>and</strong>
physiological <strong>and</strong> pharmaceutical products. Capsaicinoids,
a given name of pungent compounds, are <strong>the</strong> principal
pungent <strong>and</strong> irritating constituents in most capsicum
fruits, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir structures are acid amides of
vanillylamine <strong>and</strong> C9–C11 branched chain fatty acids. A
common use of capsaicinoids is in <strong>to</strong>pical analgesics
against pain, anti‐arthritic <strong>and</strong> anti‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry
ointments, which are also utilized as natural inhibi<strong>to</strong>r of
pathogenic microorganisms in food industry due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir
antimicrobial properties.
In this present study, <strong>the</strong> optimal conditions of
ultrasonic‐assisted extraction (UAE) of capsaicinoids from
hot Chili peppers were determined for large scale
preparation. First, single fac<strong>to</strong>r experiments were
performed <strong>to</strong> optimize <strong>the</strong> extraction procedure of
capsaicinoids, <strong>and</strong> initial optimized results were: ratio of
solvent <strong>to</strong> mass of 6‐10 mL/g, extraction temperature of
25–35 °C, <strong>and</strong> extraction time of 0–‐30 min. Then, an
orthogonal array experimental design (L9(34)) was used
<strong>to</strong> fur<strong>the</strong>r optimize <strong>the</strong> extraction procedure. The results
of F‐test <strong>and</strong> P‐value indicated that <strong>the</strong> effect order on
extraction yield of capsaicinoids from high <strong>to</strong> low was
ratio of solvent <strong>to</strong> mass, extraction time, <strong>and</strong> extraction
temperature. The maximum extraction yield of
capsaicinoids was obtained at ratio of solvent <strong>to</strong> mass of
10 mL/g, extraction time of 40 min, <strong>and</strong> extraction
temperature of 25 °C. Under <strong>the</strong>se conditions, <strong>the</strong>
extraction yields of capsaicinoids were 2.35±0.042 <strong>and</strong>
3.92±0.089 mg/g for conventional <strong>and</strong> UAE methods,
respectively.
Optimization of enzymatic hydrolysis
process of Chrysomya megacephalaprotein
using response surface methodology
Yanyan YANG, Min ZHANG, Chao SONG <strong>and</strong>
Guren ZHANG
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biological Control/Institute of
En<strong>to</strong>mology, Sun Yat‐sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
Email:zhanggr@mail.sysu.edu.cn; yyy19880919@126.com
Chrysomya megacephala is one of <strong>the</strong> most common <strong>and</strong>
worldwide blowflies. The larvae have a great potential for
industrial exploitation in <strong>the</strong> food <strong>and</strong> medical industry
due <strong>to</strong> its high protein <strong>and</strong> fatty acids. In this study,
response surface methodology (RSM) was used <strong>to</strong>
determine <strong>the</strong> optimum enzymatic hydrolysis processing
110

conditions of C. megacephala protein. Optimization
fac<strong>to</strong>rs were enzyme dosage (5–7%), level of water added
(20–30 mL/g), pH (8–9) <strong>and</strong> temperature (50–60℃)
while investigated response was <strong>the</strong> degree of hydrolysis
(DH%). An optimal design, with 4 variables <strong>and</strong> one
response function, was employed <strong>to</strong> study <strong>the</strong> effect of <strong>the</strong>
individual variables on <strong>the</strong> response function. For each
response, second‐order polynomial models were
developed using multiple linear regression analysis. The
degree of hydrolysis was significantly affected by <strong>the</strong>
enzyme dosage, pH <strong>and</strong> temperature. Applying
desirability function method, optimum hydrolysis
operating conditions were found <strong>to</strong> be enzyme dosage of
7%, level of water added of 25 mL/g, pH of 9.0 <strong>and</strong>
temperature of 59.87℃. At this optimum point, <strong>the</strong> actual
degree of hydrolysis was found <strong>to</strong> be 23.30%, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
predicted value 22.66%. The results presented in this
work show a fast, simple <strong>and</strong> easy enzymatic hydrolysis
process of C. megacephala protein.
Patterns determinants <strong>and</strong>conservation of
vascular plants on <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau
Yujing YAN <strong>and</strong> Zhiyao TANG
Department of Ecology, College of Urban <strong>and</strong> Environmental
Science, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China. Email:
africarugu@gmail.com
Large‐scale patter of species richness <strong>and</strong> its
determinants have long been <strong>the</strong> central issues in
biogeography <strong>and</strong> macroecology. The Tibetan Plateau is
<strong>the</strong> highest plateau in <strong>the</strong> world; it provides habitats for
about 8000 vascular plants, of which about 17% are
endemic <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> plateau. The plateau is undergoing
remarkable climate change. To underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> response
of ecosystems <strong>to</strong> climate change on <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau, it
is <strong>the</strong>refore necessary <strong>to</strong> explore <strong>the</strong> patterns <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
fac<strong>to</strong>rs determine <strong>the</strong>se patterns of <strong>the</strong> biodiversity. Here,
we studied patterns of richness of <strong>the</strong> vascular plant,
based on a high resolution distribution database of
vascular plants. The results show that most of <strong>the</strong> vascular
plants are distributed on <strong>the</strong> eastern part of <strong>the</strong> plateau
<strong>and</strong> in <strong>the</strong> main mountain areas, while <strong>the</strong> species
endemic <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> Tibetan Plateau are mostly distributed
along <strong>the</strong> HimalayaMountains. The complimentary
algorithm revealed that ‘hotspots’ of endemic plants are
mainly located in <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>astern part of <strong>the</strong> plateau.
Moreover, an area occupies approximately 20% of <strong>the</strong>
plateau could cover all <strong>the</strong> species endemic <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> plateau.
The annual precipitation <strong>and</strong> mean temperature of <strong>the</strong>
coldest month are <strong>the</strong> fac<strong>to</strong>res in shaping <strong>the</strong>se patterns;
whereas <strong>the</strong> habitat hererogeneity played no significant
role in determing this pattern.
Population dynamics <strong>and</strong> invasive his<strong>to</strong>ry of
red swamp crayfish (Procambarus Clarkii)
Lijun HE 1,2 <strong>and</strong> Min CHAO 2
1State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Estuarine <strong>and</strong> Coastal Research, East
China Normal University, Shanghai 200062 China <strong>and</strong> 2 East
China Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of
Fishery Sciences, Shanghai200090, China. Email:
tiger02j@hotmail.com
Since <strong>the</strong> 1900s, human activities have increased
opportunities for biological invasion <strong>and</strong> caused some
severe economic <strong>and</strong> ecological questions in <strong>the</strong>
terrestrial ecosystem. In China, red swamp crayfish
(Procambarusclarkii) is an economically important
aquatic invasive species. This species has quickly
exp<strong>and</strong>ed <strong>to</strong> almost <strong>the</strong> entire drainage of Yangtze River
through human‐mediated translocations or natural
migrations since <strong>the</strong>ir first introduction. To elucidate <strong>the</strong>
genetic diversity <strong>and</strong> population origin of this introduced
crayfish, we obtained samples from 8 sites in China <strong>and</strong> 2
sites in native USA. Segment of mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial
cy<strong>to</strong>chrome oxidase subunit I gene (COI) was amplified,
<strong>and</strong> some DNA sequences from o<strong>the</strong>r native population in
North America <strong>and</strong> alien population in Europe were also
downloaded from GenBank. A star‐like tree <strong>and</strong> shallow
intraspecific divergence indicate recent population
expansion in native North America. Relative <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
native population in USA <strong>and</strong> Mexico, genetic bottleneck
<strong>and</strong> reduced genetic variation were revealed from
populations in European <strong>and</strong> China. Two of 3 European
haplotypes were shared by Louisiana samples, which
supports <strong>the</strong> records that P. Clarkii was first introduced
from Louisiana <strong>to</strong> Spain in 1973. Only 2 haplotypes
occurred in <strong>the</strong> Chinese samples. One of <strong>the</strong>m was shared
by a dominant <strong>and</strong> central haplotype from Louisiana, <strong>the</strong>
o<strong>the</strong>r was shared by a terminal haplotype from
nor<strong>the</strong>astern Mexico, which likely provide direct evidence
111

that <strong>the</strong> Chinese samples originated from <strong>the</strong> USA. A
genetic diversity gradient was observed from <strong>the</strong>
sampling localities in China: sites from <strong>the</strong> lower Yangtze
River showed <strong>the</strong> most genetic diversity with 2
co‐occurring haplotypes, while only a single haplotype
was observed in some sites far from <strong>the</strong> estuarine of
Yangtze River. This biogeographic pattern was consistent
with an anecdotal report that Chinese samples of P. Clarkii
were first introduced in<strong>to</strong> Nanjing <strong>and</strong> neighboring cities
in <strong>the</strong> lower Yangtze River by <strong>the</strong> Japanese army during
<strong>the</strong> World War II. Future sampling from Japan will provide
more detailed genetic information about colonization
his<strong>to</strong>ry of P. Clarkiiamong China, Japan <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> USA.
Population genetic diversity <strong>and</strong>
demographic his<strong>to</strong>ry of two freshwater crabs
(Sinopotamon acutum<strong>and</strong>S.shensiense)
endemic <strong>to</strong> China
F FANG, HY SUN,YK JI, Q ZHAO<strong>and</strong>W GAO
freshwater crabs experienced rapid population
expansion since 0.1 Ma, corresponding <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> warm <strong>and</strong>
humid climate after <strong>the</strong> retreat of <strong>the</strong> last extensive glacial
period (0.5‐0.175 Ma). We calculated significant
among‐population structure for both species (S. acutum:
Φ ST =0.919, P< 0.001; S.shensiense: Φ ST =0.707, P< 0.001).
In conclusion, climate fluctuations may have played
important roles for genetic diversity <strong>and</strong> population
his<strong>to</strong>ry of S. acutum<strong>and</strong>S. shensiense. Additionally, <strong>the</strong>
present habitat loss <strong>and</strong> fragmentation in distribution
range could make influence on diversity <strong>and</strong> distribution
of <strong>the</strong>se 2 freshwater crabs. Special protection measures
should be taken because of <strong>the</strong>ir genetic uniqueness <strong>to</strong>
preserve <strong>the</strong>ir genetic diversity.
Population genetic diversity <strong>and</strong> genetic
structure of an endemic true freshwater
crabSinopotamon honanense (Decapoda:
Brachyura) in China based on microsatellite
DNA analysis
Jiangsu Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing
210046, China. Email: sunhongying@njnu.edu.cn. This work
was supported by grant from <strong>the</strong> National Natural Science
Foundation of China (31071902) <strong>to</strong> HYS.
Pleis<strong>to</strong>cene climatic fluctuations have played major roles
in shaping <strong>the</strong> genetic diversity <strong>and</strong> population his<strong>to</strong>ry
observed in extant species in China. However, patterns of
diversification are species idiosyncratic <strong>and</strong> indicative of
Zhu LIN <strong>and</strong> Hongying SUN
Jiangsu Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong> Biotechnology,
College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing
210046, Jiangsu, China. This work was supported by grants
from <strong>the</strong> National Natural Science Foundation of China
(31071902) <strong>to</strong> HYS, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Priority Academic Program
Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions
(PAPD).Email: sunhongying@njnu.edu.cn
variations in geographic divergence.
The genetic diversity <strong>and</strong> genetic structure of an endemic
Sinopotamonacutum<strong>and</strong>S. shensiense are true freshwater
Chinese freshwater crab, Sinopotamonhonanense, were
crabs endemic <strong>to</strong> China, both of which have a sympatric
investigated by analyzing 9 microsatellite loci for 485
distribution along <strong>the</strong> Qingling–Daba Mountains. We
samples collected from 28 localities across current
combined maternally inherited mtDNA <strong>and</strong> biparentally
distribution range of species. Basic statistics showed that
inherited microsatellite DNA <strong>to</strong> explore <strong>the</strong> genetic
<strong>the</strong> mean overall values of H O <strong>and</strong> H E were
diversity <strong>and</strong> demographic his<strong>to</strong>ry of S.
0.6125±0.2250 <strong>and</strong> 0.6402±0.1538, respectively. The
acutum<strong>and</strong>S.shensiense, respectively, in order <strong>to</strong>
population genetic diversity declines linearly with
underst<strong>and</strong> how freshwater crabs located in montane
increasing latitude (r 2 =0.415, P

from mutation‐drift equilibrium with heterozygote
deficiency under <strong>the</strong> TPM <strong>and</strong> SMM model using <strong>the</strong>
program BOTTLENECK. These results suggested that <strong>the</strong>
S.honanense population did not experience <strong>the</strong> recent
population bottleneck. The estimated gene flow was
provided by population graph <strong>and</strong> migrate analysis which
showed strong gene flow among populations across <strong>the</strong> S.
honanense‘s distribution range in northward direction (t
= 4.341, P < 0.001). Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, significant
long‐distance dispersal event occurred from <strong>the</strong>
sou<strong>the</strong>rnmost <strong>to</strong> nor<strong>the</strong>rnmost possibly due <strong>to</strong>
male‐mediated gene flow (t = 3.051, P< 0.01). The
preponderance of <strong>the</strong>se data suggested that <strong>the</strong> recent
population continuous expansion was largely due <strong>to</strong> a
northward shift in <strong>the</strong> climate transitional zone, in which
S. honanensecan maintain positive population growth.
And <strong>the</strong> male crabs played major role in <strong>the</strong> long‐distance
migrations.
Structure changes of initial chi<strong>to</strong>san <strong>and</strong> chi<strong>to</strong>san
derivatives were confirmed by FT‐IR spectroscopy. The IR
spectra of chi<strong>to</strong>san oligomers showed <strong>the</strong> characteristic
absorption peaks of saccharide units while many fine
absorption peaks compared with <strong>the</strong> initial chi<strong>to</strong>san.
These results revealed that different low molecular
weights of chi<strong>to</strong>san oligomers could be prepared by this
simple but effective procedure, which may open new
perspectives in fields of food, pharmaceutical <strong>and</strong>
cosmetic due <strong>to</strong> its excellent special biological functions
such as antitumor activity, immune‐enhancing activity
<strong>and</strong> antifungal activity.
QTL mapping for main agronomic
characters in maize
Xinmei GUO, Yubing LI, Yuhe PEI <strong>and</strong> Xiyun
SONG
Preparation <strong>and</strong> characterization of
chi<strong>to</strong>san oligomers from
Chrysomyiamegacephala
Chao SONG, Min ZHANG, Yanyan YANG <strong>and</strong>
Guren ZHANG
State Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biological Control/Institute of
En<strong>to</strong>mology, Sun Yat‐sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China.
Email: zhanggr@mail.sysu.edu.cn
Chi<strong>to</strong>san oligomers, derivatives of chi<strong>to</strong>san with low
molecular weights, are characterized by improved
water‐solubility <strong>and</strong> some special biological functions.
Chi<strong>to</strong>san is a derivative of deacetylation chitin extracted
from <strong>the</strong> larval cuticles of Chrysomyia megacephala, a
widespread necrophagous fly, by chemical treatments. In
this work, Chi<strong>to</strong>san oligomers with different molecular
weights were successfully prepared by chi<strong>to</strong>san oxidative
degradation involving hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ). Effects of
concentration of H 2 O 2 , reaction temperature <strong>and</strong>
degradation time on <strong>the</strong> molecular weights of chi<strong>to</strong>san
oligomers were studied, discovering <strong>the</strong> optimum
conditions (5% H 2 O 2 , 70 ℃ <strong>and</strong> 3 h) of procedure
determined on <strong>the</strong> basis of orthogonal tests. End group
analysis was employed <strong>to</strong> measure <strong>the</strong> number‐average
molecular weights of <strong>the</strong> products, which exhibited a
broad range (46–0.34kDa) of low molecular weights.
Qingdao Key Lab of Germplasm Innovation <strong>and</strong> Application of
Major Crops, College of Agronomy <strong>and</strong> Plant Protection, Qingdao
Agricultural University, Qingdao, Sh<strong>and</strong>ong 266109, China. Email:
songxy@qau.edu.cn
Oil, protein <strong>and</strong> starch content are main agronomic
characters in maize. In this paper, 278 of F 2:3 individuals
derived from <strong>the</strong> cross between inbreds LX00‐6 <strong>and</strong> E28
were used for developing <strong>the</strong> mapping population. Genetic
linkage map with simple sequence repeat markers had
been established <strong>to</strong> detect QTLs affecting nutritional
quality. The main results were as follows:The correlation
analysis of <strong>the</strong> nutritional quality characters indicated
that oil content of <strong>the</strong> F 2:3 populations was positively
correlated with protein <strong>and</strong> starch content, while starch
content was negatively correlated with protein content.
In a word, we could not improve <strong>the</strong> oil, protein <strong>and</strong>
starch in maize simultaneously.
Oil content about 3 <strong>to</strong> 4 percentage, <strong>to</strong>ok up 44.24
percentage in F 2:3 population, oil content about 4 <strong>to</strong> 5
percentage, <strong>to</strong>ok up 55.40 percentage <strong>and</strong> oil content
over 5 percentage only <strong>to</strong>ok up 0.36 percentage, oil
content usually distributes 3 <strong>to</strong> 5 percentage. Protein
content distributing 11 <strong>to</strong> 12 <strong>to</strong>ok up 49.28 percentage,
protein content over 14 percentage <strong>to</strong>ok up 0.72
percentage <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> protein content below 9 percentage
<strong>to</strong>ok up 0.36 percentage; <strong>the</strong> protein content usually
distributes 10 <strong>to</strong> 13 percentage. The starch content
113

mainly distributed 71 <strong>to</strong> 72 percentage, taking up 50
percentage in F 2:3 population. In F 2:3 population, <strong>the</strong> starch
content over 73 percentage <strong>to</strong>ok up 1.4 percentage <strong>and</strong>
below 69 percentage <strong>to</strong>ok up 0.7 percentage. It explained
that <strong>the</strong> starch content in F 2:3 population was concentratly
distributed. In general, different nutritional qualities
distribute continuously.
334 pairs of maize SSR primers were used <strong>to</strong> detect <strong>the</strong>
polymorphism in parents LX00‐6 <strong>and</strong> E28, of which 25
pairs of polymorphism primers were obtained.
Connecting with <strong>the</strong> information or known primers, <strong>the</strong>
genetic linkage map had been established using
MAPMAKER/EXP 3.0, in which <strong>the</strong> markers on <strong>the</strong>
1 st ,2 nd ,5 th ,6 th ,8 th <strong>and</strong> 10 th chromosome. The genetic
linkage map covered 124 loci <strong>and</strong> spanned maize genome
about 1497cM, with an average interval of 12.07 cM.
Based on <strong>the</strong> linkage map <strong>and</strong> nutritional quality detected,
3 QTLs controlling nutritional quality traits were
identified by using QTL composite interval mapping. We
mapped 1 QTL associated with oil locating on <strong>the</strong> 1 st
chromosome <strong>and</strong> demonstrating additive effect. 2 QTLs
associated with starch were located on <strong>the</strong> 1 st <strong>and</strong> 8 th
chromosome <strong>and</strong> demonstrated partial dominance effect.
But we found no QTLs associating with protein content.
More SSR primers are being used <strong>to</strong> detect <strong>the</strong>
polymorphism in parents, <strong>the</strong> high‐resolution genetic
map will be obtained <strong>and</strong> more QTLs will be found.
Research on soil infiltration law of different
l<strong>and</strong>ues types in Jinsha River dry­hot valley
Zhiqin LIU
Southwest Foresty University.Email: lzq‐xl@163.com
This article takes 4 different slope l<strong>and</strong>s(arbor forest,
shrub l<strong>and</strong>, grassl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> wastel<strong>and</strong>) of Laocheng village
as <strong>the</strong> experimental points in Jinsha River dry‐hot volley.
The advanced double‐rings method is adopted <strong>to</strong> illustrate
<strong>the</strong> rules of soil moisture infiltration characteristics in
four different l<strong>and</strong>use types. The results show that <strong>the</strong>
physical properties <strong>and</strong> structure of forestl<strong>and</strong> are better
than those of non‐forest l<strong>and</strong>; different l<strong>and</strong>use types have
obvious differences in soil infiltration capability among
four different patterns of l<strong>and</strong>use. Arbor forest behaved
<strong>the</strong> best infiltration capability <strong>and</strong> wastel<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> worst;
<strong>the</strong> average infiltration <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> steadily infiltration attains
1.67mm/min <strong>and</strong> 0.5mm/min respectively during <strong>the</strong>
first 120min of soil water infiltration process in arbor
forest. The rate of whatever <strong>the</strong> average infiltration or <strong>the</strong>
steadily infiltration express <strong>the</strong> same regulation. The
arbor forest is slightly higher than <strong>the</strong> shrub l<strong>and</strong>, <strong>the</strong>
grassl<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> waste l<strong>and</strong>. The moisture infiltration
rate in different l<strong>and</strong>use types can all be thoroughly
defined through <strong>the</strong> Hor<strong>to</strong>n equation. Water infiltration is
affected by <strong>the</strong> bulk density of <strong>the</strong> soil. With <strong>the</strong> bulk
density increasing, <strong>the</strong> steady infiltration rate decreases
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> two are at an exponential function.
Studies on mutation breeding <strong>and</strong>
mechanism of isomannanase producing
strain by UV light
Liping WANG <strong>and</strong> Zhaoyan MU
Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China.
Mannan oligosaccharides (MOS), which can stimulate <strong>the</strong>
growth of bifidobacteria selectively, are a kind of
prebiotics <strong>and</strong> ideal feed additives. MOS can be obtained
by hydrolyzing mannana with isomannanase <strong>and</strong>
improving <strong>the</strong> activity of mannanase is one of <strong>the</strong> key
fac<strong>to</strong>rs for <strong>the</strong> efficient production of MOS. To improve
<strong>the</strong> activity of isomannanase, a Bacillus subtilis K‐6 strain
secreting isomannanase preserved in our labora<strong>to</strong>ry was
induced mutated, <strong>the</strong> solid‐state fermentation conditions
of a positive mutant B. subtilis K‐6‐9 was optimize, <strong>and</strong>
mechanism of mutation of K‐6‐9 was analyzed by
bioinfonnatics methods.
The results showed that treated with ultraviolet (UV) light,
mutations of K‐6 were produced, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> enzyme activity
of <strong>the</strong> obtained highest‐yielding mutant K‐6‐9 reached up
<strong>to</strong> 348.2 U/mL, which was 169.1% higher than <strong>the</strong>
enzyme activity of K‐6. The results of 5 sub‐cultures
showed that <strong>the</strong> enzyme activity of K‐6‐9 were between
342.9 U/mL <strong>and</strong> 349.5 U/mL, indicating <strong>the</strong> mutant is
stable.
In addition, <strong>the</strong> optimal condition of solid‐state
fermentation for production of enzyme was studied by
single fac<strong>to</strong>r experiment <strong>and</strong> orthogonal experiment with
K‐6‐9. The results showed that <strong>the</strong> optimized medium
formulation for enzyme producing were wheat bran 40%,
yeast cell 8%, NH 4 Cl 1.5%, <strong>and</strong> ratio of material <strong>and</strong>
water 1:1.2, <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> optimal culture conditions were
114

inocula 3%, pH 7.5, media volume 25 g/250 mL <strong>and</strong>
fermentation time 72 h. The maximum enzyme activity of
K‐6‐9 reached up <strong>to</strong> 601.6 U/mL under <strong>the</strong> optimized
condition.
Gene encoding isomannanase of K‐6 <strong>and</strong> K‐6‐9 was
cloned <strong>and</strong> expressed, <strong>and</strong> computer analyze of nucleic
acid data <strong>and</strong> deduced amino acid sequence were
accomplished using <strong>the</strong> Clustal X
(1.8),DNASTAR,GENEDOC (3.2) programs. According <strong>to</strong>
<strong>the</strong> bioinfonnatics analysis of gene sequences ofK‐6 <strong>and</strong>
K‐6‐9,<strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal base mutation rate of K‐6‐9 was 1.02%,
<strong>the</strong> types of base changes included base transition <strong>and</strong>
transversion. Among <strong>the</strong> 11 base mutations that had
detected, <strong>the</strong> frequency of base transitions(54.5%) was
1.2 times higher that <strong>the</strong> base transversions (45.5%), <strong>the</strong>
transitions between C <strong>and</strong> T accounted for largest
proportion, A‐G transitions <strong>and</strong> A‐T transversions were
also interchanged at high frequency. After
comparativeanalysis of deduced isomannanase protein
sequences of K‐6 <strong>and</strong> K‐6‐9, we found <strong>the</strong>re were
two‐point mutation forms, one was Pro (conservative
amino acid)‐Ser(non‐conservative amino acid) at 21nt,
ano<strong>the</strong>r was Ser(non‐conservative amino
acid)‐Glu(conservative amino acid) at 23nt. From a
comprehensive <strong>and</strong> comparative data analysis, <strong>the</strong> mutual
mutations between conservative amino acid <strong>and</strong>
non‐conservative amino acid may play an important role
in proteins assembling correctly <strong>and</strong> executing <strong>the</strong>ir
function effectively.
Sustainable development of Mu Us s<strong>and</strong>y l<strong>and</strong>
ecosystem <strong>and</strong> Mongolian traditional
vegetation conservation culture
Liang MAN, 1 Yixia LIU, 2 Heng ZHANG 3 <strong>and</strong> Fan
WANG 4
1College of Life Sciences, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin,
China, 2 College of Geography, Inner Mongolia Normal University,
Huhhot City, China, 3 College of Life Sciences, Tianjin Normal
University, Tianjin, China <strong>and</strong> 4 College of Life Sciences, Tianjin
Normal University, Tianjin, China. Email:
mlmongl@yahoo.com.cn
The Mu Us s<strong>and</strong>y l<strong>and</strong> is located in <strong>the</strong> north of <strong>the</strong> Loess
Plateau in China. There are steppe desert zone, desert
steppe zone, typical steppe zone <strong>and</strong> forest steppe zone
from northwest <strong>to</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>ast in <strong>the</strong> Mu Us s<strong>and</strong>y l<strong>and</strong>, <strong>and</strong>
<strong>the</strong> steppe zone is <strong>the</strong> dominant part.
Mongolian traditional vegetation conservation culture
plays an important role in <strong>the</strong> sustainable utilization <strong>and</strong>
conservation of <strong>the</strong> Mu Us s<strong>and</strong>y l<strong>and</strong> ecosystem. When
<strong>the</strong>y use <strong>the</strong> edible s<strong>and</strong>y pioneering plants for food, <strong>the</strong>y
make use of only <strong>the</strong> above‐ground parts of <strong>the</strong> plants in
order <strong>to</strong> not harm <strong>the</strong> below‐ground parts, especially <strong>the</strong>
roots <strong>and</strong> subterranean organs.
The dense branch‐leaf system <strong>and</strong> a dense root system of
<strong>the</strong> annual Agriophyllum pungens, <strong>the</strong> biennial Pugionium
cornutum <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> semi‐shrub Artemisiasphaerocephala
can reduce circulating air speed, <strong>and</strong> can cover <strong>the</strong>
surface of dunes. The rhizomes of <strong>the</strong> perennial herb
Psammochloa villosa are <strong>to</strong>ugh, fast growing <strong>and</strong> deep,
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir interweaving distribution can form a dense
system of roots. Thus <strong>the</strong> dense branch–leaf <strong>and</strong> powerful
root network systems of <strong>the</strong> 4 species of pioneering
plants are able <strong>to</strong> delay dune disappearance, stabilizing <strong>the</strong>
s<strong>and</strong>y l<strong>and</strong> <strong>and</strong> dune, with favorable benefits for fur<strong>the</strong>r
stability via <strong>the</strong> colonization of secondary plants.
The changes of rodent community on <strong>the</strong>
beach of Dongting Lake after Three­Gorge
Project
Meiwen ZHANG, 1 Yong WANG, 1 Bo LI, 1 Cong
GUO, 2 Guoxian HUANG 3 <strong>and</strong> Guo SHEN 1
1Dongting Lake Station for Wetl<strong>and</strong> Ecosystem Research, Key
Labora<strong>to</strong>ry of Agro‐ecological Processes in Subtropical Region,
Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, CAS, Changsha 410125,
China, 2 College of Life Science, Sichuan University, Chengdu
610064, China <strong>and</strong> 3 Research Center for Eco‐environmental
Sciences, CAS, Beijing 100085, China. Email:
wang.aamu@gmail.com. The National Natural Science
Foundation of China (30870402 ; 31170396 ; 51009129)
supported <strong>the</strong> study.
Flood is <strong>the</strong> natural attribute <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> beaches of Dongting
Lake. Regulation of water by Three Gorges Reservoir
(TGR) has modified timing <strong>and</strong> distribution of water, <strong>and</strong>
reduced flood rates <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>refore <strong>the</strong> area <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> time of
<strong>the</strong> beaches emerging out in Dongting Lake has been
changed, which affects <strong>the</strong> animals that inhabit in <strong>the</strong>
beach areas. We show <strong>the</strong> data of rodent species
composition from 1991 on <strong>the</strong> beach. It can be deduced
115

that <strong>the</strong> regulation of water by TGR has had a remarkable
influence on <strong>the</strong> structure of rodent communities on <strong>the</strong>
beach.Apodemus agrarias, for example, seldom inhabited
on <strong>the</strong> beach before TGP, is now found universally on <strong>the</strong>
beach <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> population is growing. Meanwhile, it is
known that Yantze voles (Microtus fortis) was <strong>the</strong> only
absolutely dominant species on <strong>the</strong> beach, <strong>and</strong> its
development is closely related <strong>to</strong> evolvement of lake
beaches surrounding Dongting Lake. The population of
<strong>the</strong> voles may increase fur<strong>the</strong>r because of <strong>the</strong> lower water
level <strong>and</strong> more emerging time during rainy season as a
result of dispatching down flow rate after TGP. Therefore,
we should pay more attention <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> population
fuctuation of A. agrarias <strong>and</strong> M. fortis, as well as <strong>the</strong>
succession of rodent communitieson <strong>the</strong> beach areas of
Dongting Lake.
The complete mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial genome of
Lasiopodomys m<strong>and</strong>arinus (Arvicolinae,
Rodentia) <strong>and</strong> its phylogenetic analysis
Zhenlong WANG
Zhengzhou University, No.100 Kexue Road, Gaoxin District,
Zhengzhou, Henan, China. Email: zhenlong.wang1@gmail.com
The m<strong>and</strong>arin vole (Lasiopodomysm<strong>and</strong>arinus,
Milne‐Edwards, 1871) is a subterranean rodent that
widely distributed in nor<strong>the</strong>ast <strong>and</strong> central China, north
central Mongolia <strong>and</strong> adjacent part of Siberia south of
Lake Baikal <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> sou<strong>the</strong>rn <strong>and</strong> central Korean
Peninsula. The m<strong>and</strong>arin vole is a labora<strong>to</strong>ry animal
model using in <strong>the</strong> study about subterranean hypoxic
stress on mammals. By using long‐PCR, we determined
<strong>the</strong> complete mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial (MT) genome of L.
m<strong>and</strong>arinus. Our results showed that <strong>the</strong> mi<strong>to</strong>chondrial
genome of L. m<strong>and</strong>arinus was a circular molecule 16
367bp, <strong>and</strong> had a typical gene content of 13 protein
coding, 22 tRNAs <strong>and</strong> 2 rRNAs genes. Except for <strong>the</strong> 8
tRNA <strong>and</strong> ND6 genes, all o<strong>the</strong>r MT genes are encoded on
<strong>the</strong> heavy str<strong>and</strong>. We analyzed <strong>the</strong> phylogenetic position
of L.m<strong>and</strong>arinus within <strong>the</strong> Rodentia <strong>and</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r mammals
by using <strong>the</strong> sequence of 13 protein coding genes
connected <strong>to</strong>ge<strong>the</strong>r. Our phylogenetic study proved that L.
m<strong>and</strong>arinus was one of <strong>the</strong> subspecies of Lasiopodomys.
And <strong>the</strong> Lasiopodomys should be retained as a separated
genus of Arvicolinae. The phylogenetic analysis also gave
a fur<strong>the</strong>r evidence of Rodents monophyly.
The FUNG­GROWTH database: linking
growth <strong>to</strong> genome
Miaomiao ZHOU, 1 Wiebenga AD, 1 Robert
VINCENT, 1 Pedro M COUTINHO, 1 Ronaldde
VRIES 1 <strong>and</strong> BernardHENRISSAT 2
1Centre of Fungal Biodiversity, KNAW<strong>and</strong> 2 AFMB, Marseille,
France. Email: m.zhou@cbs.knaw.nl
Aspergillus genome sequences demonstrate <strong>the</strong> potential
<strong>to</strong> utilize a variety of different carbon sources. Natural
carbon sources for many fungi are based on plant
biomass <strong>and</strong> often consist of polymeric compounds, such
as polysaccharides. They cannot be taken up by <strong>the</strong> fungal
cell <strong>and</strong> are extracellularly degraded by a complex mixture
of enzymes. Plant polysaccharide degrading enzymes
have been studied for decades due <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir applications in
food <strong>and</strong> feed, paper <strong>and</strong> pulp, beverages, detergents,
textile <strong>and</strong> biofuels. These enzymes have been classified
based on amino acid sequence modules (www.cazy.org).
Based on <strong>the</strong> hypo<strong>the</strong>sis that Aspergillus genomes have
evolved <strong>to</strong> suit <strong>the</strong>ir ecological niche, we have performed
a comparative study using 34 Aspergillus species/strains.
In this study we have compared growth profiles on 35
different carbon sources (consisting of mono‐, oligo‐ <strong>and</strong>
polysaccharides, lignin, protein <strong>and</strong> crude plant biomass)
<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> CAZy annotation of <strong>the</strong> genomes <strong>to</strong> identify
correlations between growth <strong>and</strong> genomic potential.
Fur<strong>the</strong>r analysis involves comparative transcrip<strong>to</strong>mics
using various system biology strategies, focusing on
degradation related gene regula<strong>to</strong>rs.
Highlights of <strong>the</strong>se integrative bioinformatics analysis
will be presented as well as <strong>the</strong> public database in which
<strong>the</strong> growth data is s<strong>to</strong>red <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> developments of <strong>the</strong>
database anticipated for <strong>the</strong> next two years.
The inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry mechanisms of heat shock
protein 90 inhibition on LPS­enhanced
inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry cy<strong>to</strong>kine <strong>and</strong> matrix
metalloproteinase­9 expression in human
monocytic cells
116

Jing‐Shiun JAN, 1 Che‐Jen HSIAO, 2,3 Ya‐Ting KO, 1
Tzong‐Huei LEE 4 <strong>and</strong> George HSIAO 1
Shirleen YU
1Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences <strong>and</strong> Department of
Pharmacology, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University,
Taipei, 2 School of Respira<strong>to</strong>ry Therapy, College of Medicine,
Taipei Medical University,Taipei, 3Division of Pulmonary
Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Taipei Medical
University Hospital, Taipei<strong>and</strong> 4Graduate Institute of
Pharmacognosy, Taipei Medical University, Taipei. Email:
geohsiao@tmu.edu.tw
There is much evidence indicating that activated human
monocytes/macrophages syn<strong>the</strong>size, <strong>and</strong> secrete several
pro‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry cy<strong>to</strong>kines <strong>and</strong> matrix
metalloproteinases (MMPs), <strong>and</strong> participate in <strong>the</strong>
inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry diseases. In this study, we investigated <strong>the</strong>
effects <strong>and</strong> mechanism of radicicol, as a heat shock
protein 90 (HSP90) inhibi<strong>to</strong>r, extracted from Nectria
balsamea #YMJ94052402, on human monocytic MMPs
<strong>and</strong> pro‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry cy<strong>to</strong>kine expression. Radicicol
(0.1‐5 μM) exhibited concentration‐dependent inhibition
of MMP‐9 enzymatic activation induced by tumor
necrosis fac<strong>to</strong>r‐α (TNF‐α), interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β) or
lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in human monocytic (THP‐1)
cells. Western blot analysis showed that radicicol
concentration‐dependently suppressed monocytic MMP‐9
protein expression. It was also found that radicicol
enhanced HSP70 expression in LPS‐activated monocytic.
Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, we also found that radicicol could
significantly reduce <strong>the</strong> degradation of inhibi<strong>to</strong>r‐κB‐α
(IκB‐α) induced by LPS. In addition, we found that
radicicol showed reduction of <strong>to</strong>tal Akt expression in
LPS‐stimulated THP‐1 cells. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r h<strong>and</strong>,
enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) showed
that radicicol presented an inhibi<strong>to</strong>ry effect on ei<strong>the</strong>r
TNF‐α or IL‐6 production. However, radicicol exerted
with no significant effect on TNF‐α expression induced by
LPS in hyper<strong>to</strong>nic condition. In conclusion, we
demonstrate that radicicol attenuate MMP‐9 expression
<strong>and</strong> production of pro‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry cy<strong>to</strong>kines. Its main
mechanism might involve interference with <strong>the</strong> NF‐κB or
PI3K/Akt pathways. These results provide new
opportunities for <strong>the</strong> development of new
anti‐inflamma<strong>to</strong>ry strategies.
ThermoFisher Scientific
117
Thermo Fischer Scientific, Inc., Beijing, China. Email:
shirleen.yu@<strong>the</strong>rmofisher.com
Thermo Fisher Scientific
Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is <strong>the</strong>
world leader in serving
science. Our mission is <strong>to</strong>
enable our cus<strong>to</strong>mers <strong>to</strong> make <strong>the</strong> world healthier, cleaner
<strong>and</strong> safer. With revenues of $12 billion, we have
approximately 39,000 employees <strong>and</strong> serve cus<strong>to</strong>mers
within pharmaceutical <strong>and</strong> biotech companies, hospitals
<strong>and</strong> clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research
institutions <strong>and</strong> government agencies, as well as in
environmental <strong>and</strong> process control industries. We create
value for our key stakeholders through three premier
br<strong>and</strong>s, Thermo Scientific, Fisher Scientific <strong>and</strong> Unity
Lab Services, which offer a unique combination of
innovative technologies, convenient purchasing options
<strong>and</strong> a single solution for labora<strong>to</strong>ry operations
management. Our products <strong>and</strong> services help our
cus<strong>to</strong>mers solve complex analytical challenges, improve
patient diagnostics <strong>and</strong> increase labora<strong>to</strong>ry productivity.
For more information, please visit us at:
http://www.<strong>the</strong>rmofisher.cn/
Timing <strong>and</strong> synchrony of births in Père
David’s deer
Zhenyu ZHONG
Beijing Milu Ecological Research Center, Beijing Milupark, Nan
Haizi, Daxing, Beijing, China. Email: zhyzh@milupark.org.cn
Neonatal fawns of Père David’s deer (Elaphurusdavidianus)
in Nanhaizi Milupark, Beijing, China, were weighted <strong>and</strong>
marked, <strong>and</strong> timing <strong>and</strong> synchrony of births were
examined during 11 consecutive years (1998–2008).
Duration <strong>and</strong> timing of birth seasons varied among years.
Nei<strong>the</strong>r among‐year differences in average date of
fawning nor among‐year differences in <strong>the</strong> dispersion of
births occurred. Births were synchronized in all years;
80% of births <strong>to</strong>ok place in

fawning (Kendall’s taub r=0.224, P=0.346>0.05), <strong>the</strong>
population density in winter correlated with <strong>the</strong> earliest
date (Kendall’s taub r=0.404, P=0.086>0.05), <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong>
population density showed significant negatively related
<strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> interquartile difference (Kendall’s taub r=‐0.636,
P=0.009

Four seasons' <strong>the</strong>ory is set up. Four seasons' whole is put
forward here, having 4 seasons' organs <strong>and</strong> function.
Creatures are 4 seasons' whole. Life body is <strong>the</strong> unity of
state‐variation <strong>and</strong> state‐stability The Solar System is
bi‐four seasons' whole or life system, so are <strong>the</strong> galaxy
<strong>and</strong> society. There are 4 kinds of inorganic matter <strong>and</strong> 4
kinds of forces in <strong>the</strong> universe. And all inorganic matters
in <strong>the</strong> Solar System <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> universe constitute inorganic
life body. The fundamental construction of life body is
bi‐four seasons' whole covering state‐varying
organization, state‐stabilizing organization <strong>and</strong> control
organization. Having state‐varying organization;
atmosphere, state‐stabilizingorganization; solid sphere
<strong>and</strong> control organization; hydrosphere, <strong>the</strong> earth is life
body. Creatures constantly occur in <strong>the</strong> 4 seasons'
movement of <strong>the</strong> Earth <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Solar System.
Variation in life­his<strong>to</strong>ry traits of
Daphniasimilis as a response <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong>
combined stresses of elevated ammonia <strong>and</strong>
hypoxia
Kai LV, Qianqian WANG, Rui CHEN <strong>and</strong>Zhou
YANG
Jiangsu Province Key Labora<strong>to</strong>ry for Biodiversity <strong>and</strong>
Biotechnology, School of Biological Sciences, Nanjing Normal
University, 1 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing 210046, China. Email:
yangzhou@njnu.edu.cn
Nuisance cyanobacterial blooms are distributed in lakes
<strong>and</strong> reservoirs around <strong>the</strong> world as a result of water‐body
eutrophication. The degradation of heavy blooms often
causes hypoxia <strong>and</strong> elevated concentrations of ammonia
in lakes, which can aggravate <strong>the</strong> adverse effect of blooms
on aquatic organisms. The aim of this study was <strong>to</strong> assess
<strong>the</strong> combined effects of elevated ammonia <strong>and</strong> hypoxia on
life‐his<strong>to</strong>ry traits ofa species of common cladoceran
Daphnia similis isolated in an eutrophicated lake which
regularly suffer from cyanobacterial blooms.
A 3×2 fac<strong>to</strong>rial design experiment was conducted with
animals exposed <strong>to</strong> combinations of three NH 3 ‐N levels (0,
0.300, 0.476 mg/L) <strong>and</strong> 2 dissolved oxygen levels
(normoxia: 8.0 mg/L<strong>and</strong> hypoxia:2.0 mg/L). Incubations
were 14 d <strong>and</strong> recorded <strong>the</strong> following life‐his<strong>to</strong>ry traits:
survival day; number of moults; time <strong>to</strong> first eggs; time <strong>to</strong>
first brood; size at first eggs; size at first brood; number
of offspring per brood; number of broods per female; <strong>and</strong>
<strong>to</strong>tal offspring per female.
Results showed: (1) hypoxia significantly decreased mean
survival day <strong>and</strong> number of moults, whereas ammonia
had no effect on <strong>the</strong> two traits. (2) The age at maturity
<strong>and</strong> reproduction is delayed by ammonia; <strong>the</strong> somatic
growth was seriously inhibited under high ammonia
levels <strong>and</strong> thus resulted in reproduction at a smaller body
size; whereas hypoxia marginally delayed <strong>the</strong> age <strong>and</strong> size
at maturation. (3) And both ammonia <strong>and</strong> hypoxia were
significantly detrimental <strong>to</strong> number of offspring per brood,
broods <strong>and</strong> <strong>to</strong>tal offspring per female; <strong>the</strong> interactive
effects of ammonia <strong>and</strong> hypoxia occurred for 4 traits:
mean survival day, time <strong>to</strong> first eggs, number of broods
<strong>and</strong> offspring per brood.
Our data clearly demonstrate that ammonia <strong>and</strong> hypoxia
are severely harmful <strong>to</strong> D. similis as ammonia <strong>and</strong>
hypoxia could contribute <strong>to</strong> enhanced mortality,
decreased moults, reduced growth, delayed maturation
<strong>and</strong> lower fecundity. The animals required more time <strong>to</strong>
reach maturation, which indicated phenotypic plasticity of
age <strong>and</strong> size at maturity in D. similis under ammonia
stress, i.e. age at maturity increases <strong>and</strong> size at maturity
decreases when <strong>the</strong> environment becomes less favourable.
Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, interactive effect of ammonia <strong>and</strong> hypoxia
is a paramount consideration with relation <strong>to</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>to</strong>xicity
of ammonia <strong>to</strong> aquatic organisms. It is generally assumed
that Daphnia has a limited energy budget <strong>and</strong> that its
response <strong>to</strong> an environmental challenge will draw energy
away from normal development <strong>and</strong> reproduction. As <strong>the</strong>
clone of D. similis used in <strong>the</strong> experiments was isolated
from an eutrophicated lake which regularly suffer from
cyanobacterial blooms, our data can thus be used <strong>to</strong>
provide a ‘closer‐field scenario’ assessment of hypoxia
<strong>and</strong> elevated ammonia caused by degradation of
cyanobacterial blooms.
Wiley­Blackwell, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Carol BACCHUS <strong>and</strong> Judy PENG
Wilely Blackwell, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Shanghai, China. Email:
cbacchus@wiley.com
Wiley‐Blackwell was formed in February 2007 as a result
of <strong>the</strong> acquisition of
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
by John Wiley & Sons,
Inc., <strong>and</strong> its merger with
119

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120

List of Participants
N Jianmei
anjianmei@hotmail.com
CHENG Gong
vic<strong>to</strong>r_chenggong@126.com
ANDREY Kupriyashkin
kupra@norcom.ru
CHENG Hongzhou
hongzc‐2006@126.com
ANDREY Zinovyev
m000258@tversu.ru
CHENG Qi
chengqi@caas.net.cn
APOPALLOD
saclejdsh@pregnancymiraclerevi
CHENG Taisheng
taishengcheng@yahoo.com.tw;
Apopallod
ewnow.org
taisheng@mail.nutn.edu.tw
AQUEEL Javeed
aqeel.javeed@uvas.edu.pk
CODJIA Jean T Claude
jtccodjia@yahoo.fr
AYAL Yoram
ayal@bgu.ac.il
COSTELLO Mark
m.costello@auckl<strong>and</strong>.ac.nz
AZIZ Abdul
maaziz78@gmail.com
DAI Rong
dai_rong2008@163.com;
BACCHUS Carol
cbacchus@wiley.com
annadai_2008@hotmail.com
BAO Weidong
wdbao@bjfu.edu.cn
DALLE Tussie Gemedo
gemedod@yahoo.com
BAYER Ed
ed.bayer@weizmann.ac.il
de VRIES Ronald
r.devries@cbs.knaw.nl
BERNARDI Giorgio
gbernardi@uniroma3.it
DENG Xiangyuan
dengxy2009@126.com
BIBER‐KLEMM S
Susette.Biber‐Klemm@unibas.ch
DGEBUZDZE Yury
dgebuadze@sevin.ru
BOER Ben
ben.boer@sydney.edu.au
DIETL Gregory
gpd3@cornell.edu
BRANDEN Henrik
h.br<strong>and</strong>en@comhem.se
DING Jun
1670119130@qq.com
BRON Peter Allard
Peter.Bron@nizo.nl
DING Xiangyu
xyding@mail.ustc.edu.cn
BU Wenjun
wenjunbu@nankai.edu.cn
DONG Chunjuan
dcj04@mails.tsinghua.edu.cn
BUCKERIDGE John
john.buckeridge@rmit.edu.au
DONG Lianhua
Donglh@nim.ac.cn
BURNS Carolyn
carolyn.burns@otago.ac.nz
DONG Quanmin
dqm850@sina.com
CAI Hua
chczh@163.com
DONG Yan
dongyan_bio@126.com
CAI Miao
caimiao@sipo.gov.cn
DU Jianchang
changzi75@hotmail.com
CAI Zhiquan
zhiquan.cai@126.com
DU Lihui
dlhlh2000@yahoo.com.cn
CAO Lin
linc913@gmail.com
DU Niu
ndu@ucsd.edu
CHANDIRASEKAR R
genech<strong>and</strong>ru@gmail.com
DU Weiguo
duweiguo@ioz.ac.cn
CHANG Gang
snow1178@snnu.edu.cn
DU Yiguang
duyg@dicp.ac.cn
CHANG Hsueh‐wen
hwchang@mail.nsysu.edu.tw
DUAN Shengwen
hun<strong>and</strong>sw@163.com
CHANG Meemann
zhangmiman@ivpp.ac.cn
ERONEN Jussi
jussi.t.eronen@helsinki.fi
CHEN CS
cschen@mx.nthu.edu.tw
FACCOLI Massimo
massimo.faccoli@unipd.it
CHEN Gengjiao
cgj@nhmg.org
FAN Feiyu
Feiyu.Fan@gmail.com
CHEN George
chengq@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn
FAN Lianmei
lianmeifan@163.com
CHEN Hong‐Zhou
hongzc_2006@126.com
FAN Xifeng
fanxifengcau@yahoo.cn
CHEN Liwei
lchen@tnc.org
FENG Miao
feng_m@tib.cas.cn
CHEN Meng
mengchen@uw.edu
FOMPROIX Nathalie
nfomproix@iubs.org
CHEN Rui
865504454@qq.com
FORTELIUS Mikael
mikael.fortelius@helsinki.fi
CHEN Rui
15298392220@163.com
FRIIS Else Marie
ElseMarie.Friis@nrm.se
CHEN Weicai
chenweicai2003@yahoo.com.cn;
FU Jiquan
fujq010@sina.com
chenweicai@nhmg.org
FU Sanxiong
naufsx@163.com
CHEN Weiling
d119098010@tmu.edu.tw
FU Siqing
siqingfu@mails.tjmu.edu.cn
CHEN Yi
wpl94@xinhuanet.com
GOMOIU
mtgomoiu@gmail.com
CHEN Yu
houhu‐yu@163.com
Marian‐Traian
CHEN Ze
chenze@yeah.net
GRIMM Guido
guido.grimm@nrm.se
121

GU Lemin
gulemin@<strong>to</strong>ngji.edu.cn
KAKHA Nadiradze
foodsafetyge@gmail.com
GU Rong
1583975910@qq.com
KATEBAKA Raymond
rkatebaka@afruc.org
GU Shi‐Hong
gu330@mail.nmns.edu.tw
KEVAN Peter
peponapis@gmail.com
GUAN Dongming
gdm321@sina.com
KHOROZYAN Igor
ikhorozyan@aua.am
GUO Bei
guobeibac@<strong>to</strong>m.com
KORI‐SIAKPERE Ovie
oviekori@yahoo.com
GUO Xinhong
gxh@hnu.edu.cn
KOU Xiaojun
xj_kou@bnu.edu.cn
GUO Xinmei
xmguo2009@126.com
KRAM Megan
mkram@tnc.org
HAMMOND Edward
eh@pricklyresearch.com
KUCIEL Michal
m.kuciel@uj.edu.pl
HAN de WINDE J
J.H.deWinde@tudelft.nl
LAMCHHANE Babu R
baburaml@gmail.com
HAN Fa
hanfa@nwipb.cas.cn
LANG Nanjun
nanjunlang@126.com
HAN Han
yy@163.com
LEE Hsiu Chuan
hcjoyce.lee@gmail.com
HAN Qingxi
qxhan@yic.ac.cn
LEE Ningning
lnn‐86@foxmail.com
HE Hongxuan
hehx@ioz.ac.cn
LENG Xiangpeng
2010104015@njau.edu.cn
HE Lijun
tiger02j@hotmail.com
LI Baoquan
bqli@yic.ac.cn
HE San'an
sahe@jsmail.com.cn
Li Bin
binli@sibs.ac.cn
HE Xiaowen
nancyhe0621@yahoo.cn
LI Fayao
lifayao@yahoo.com.cn
HE Zhengming
Hezm@nicpbp.org.cn
LI Guilan
lgl63@126.com
HEI Qili
heiqili@cnic.cn
LI Haipeng
lihaipeng@picb.ac.cn
HELMUTH Brian
helmuth@environ.sc.edu
LI Hongtao
dqm850@sina.com
HILTON Jason
j.m.hil<strong>to</strong>n@bham.ac.uk
LI Hongzhu
hongzhuli61@163.com
HOLTMAN Lorna
lholtman@uwc.ac.za
LI Jingen
gen0224@163.com
HOU Lixia
houlixia78@163.com
LI Junnian
Junnianli@yahoo.com.cn
HOU Xincun
houxincun@yahoo.com.cn
LI Li
lili_bio@163.com
HSIAO George
geohsiao@tmu.edu.tw
LI Longqing
lilongqing21@foxmail.com
HU Maolin
mlhu1981@yahoo.com.cn
LI Min
lim@nxu.edu.cn
HU Maolong
humolon@163.com
LI Ningning
lnn‐86@foxmail.com
HU Yanxi
peiyanxi@sxu.edu.cn
LI Qiang
biojustlq@yahoo.cn
HU Yukun
Huyk@ms.xjb.ac.cn
LI Renhui
reli@ihb.ac.cn
HUANG Shaohua
shaohuahuang@vip.163.com
LI Shengzhi
lsz678@yahoo.com.cn
HUANG Shih‐Yi
sihuang@tmu.edu.tw
LI Tianjiang
litianjiang92@yahoo.com.cn
HUANG Yan
p<strong>and</strong>ayard@hotmail.com
LI Wen‐Hsiung
whli@uchicago.edu
HUANG Yuyuan
lqxhyy@yahoo.com.cn
LI Xinhai
lixh@ioz.ac.cn
IQBAL Asim
kashanaiqbal@yahoo.co.uk
LI Yan'e
Lye8270@163.com
JACKAI Terence N
drsinjumotaze@gmail.com
Li Ying
endlesssnow2012@gmail.com
JAHN Regine
r.jahn@bgbm.org
LI Yingjun
liyingjun214@163.com
JAIN Shivani
shivani.jain@ceeindia.org
LI Zhonglin
ahlzl1990@163.com
JALLON Jean‐Marc
jmjallon@hotmail.com
LIAN Ling
lianling51@163.com
JAN Jing‐Shiun
m120099037@tmu.edu.tw
LIANG Bowen
ailiangbowen@yahoo.cn
JI Gengsheng
comeonflareup@yahoo.com.cn
LIAO Baowen
mangro@pub.guangzhou.gd.cn
JI Hualei
rayjby@gmail.com
LIN Liling
592187488@qq.com
JIA Xiao‐Hui
xhjia@shou.edu.cn
LIN Maozi
dragonlmz@163.com
JIANG Shuiyuan
jsy@gxib.cn
LIN Xiaofei
Linxiaofei04@hotmail.com
JIANGiang Jian
jjx@dlnu.edu.cn
LING Jianqun
caijw@genloci.com
JUNGCK John
jungck@beloit.edu
LIU Aizhong
liuaizhong@xtbg.ac.cn
122

LIU Bin
liubio@bjut.edu.cn
MURALIDHARAN L
leena.doc<strong>to</strong>r@gmail.com
LIU Qian
liu_q1@tib.cas.cn
NAJIBZADEH M
masumnajibzadeh@gmail.com
LIU Shasha
liushashajida@163.com
NERONOVValery
rusmabcom@gmail.com
LIU Shelan
liushelan@126.com
NISHIDA Harufumi
helecho@bio.chuo‐u.ac.jp
LIU Wen
wliu@sioc.ac.cn
NOLTE Dale
Dale.L.Nolte@aphis.usda.gov
LIU Xin
liuxin6080@yahoo.com.cn
NUSRAT Jahan
jehan_n@hotmail.com
LIU Yusheng
Ysl8877@163.com
OLIVARES Jose
olivares@lanl.gov
LIU Zhengchu
hun<strong>and</strong>sw@163.com;
OTUECHERE C
goziemo12@yahoo.com
ibfclzc@189.cn
OU Guowu
ouyang_1978@yahoo.com.cn
LIU Zhiqin
lzq‐xl@163.com
PAN Da P<strong>and</strong>a
p<strong>and</strong>a12354@sina.com
LOKOS TOTH Klara
Tothne.klara@gtk.szie.hu
PAN Zhicheng
panzhicheng183@gmail.com
LONG Chunlin
long@mail.kib.ac.cn
PARKHAEV Pavel
pparkh@paleo.ru
LU Jiqi
lujq@zzu.edu.cn;
PATTERSON David
dpatterson@mbl.edu
roadjq@gmail.com
PEDERSEN Kaj R
paly@geo.au.dk
LU Lizhi
lulizhibox@163.com
PEI Nancai
nancai.pei@gmail.com
LU Wei
Luwei0317@vip.sina.com
PEI Yanxi
peiyanxi@sxu.edu.cn
LU Xiaoming
lu‐xiaoming@126.com
PENG Ching‐I
bopeng@sinica.edu.tw
LU Yan
lyttkx@gmail.com
PENG Weidong
pwdjxmu@hotmail.com
LUMBSCH Thorsten
tlumbsch@fieldmuseum.org
PENG Yu
pengyu77882003@yahoo.com.cn
LUO Maofang
maofang@ibcas.ac.cn
PEREZ BADAS Elisa
elisa.perez@mncn.csic.es
LV Jizhou
ljzffff@163.com
BIROPeter
biro.peter@okologia.mta.hu
LV Kai
kay.njnu@gmail.com
PIERCE Robin
R.L.Pierce@tudelft.nl
LV Lingling
Lianzi9381@yahoo.com.cn
PIERROT‐BULTS A
pierrot@uva.nl
LV Shicheng
lvshicheng@126.com
PING Shuzhen
pingszhen@yahoo.com.cn
MA Yanbin
mybin_wx@163.com
PIR Zahoor
zahoor7887@yahoo.com
MacKINNON John
jrm@ecbp.cn
POLLY David
pdpolly@indiana.edu
MAHESHWARI
amaheshwari@wwfindia.net;
POTT Christian
christian.pott@nrm.se
Aishwarya
aishwaryamaheshwari@gmail.co
QAMAR Fiaz
fiazqamar1@yahoo.com
m
QI Bin
qibin65@126.com
MAHMUD Md
smahmud76@gmail.com
QIAO Yake
qiaoyake@126.com
MAN Liang
mlmongl@yahoo.com.cn
QIN Danlin
1229367834@qq.com
MAO Huiping
huipingmao@hotmail.com
QIN Jingdong
qjingdong@peds.bsd.uchicago.ed
MARQUEZ Ana Luz
almarquez@uma.es
u
MARTIN Thomas
<strong>to</strong>m.martin@umontana.edu
QIN Liu
qinliu@ecust.edu.cn
MARTINEZ Sylvia
sylvia.martinez@unibas.ch
QIN Wensheng
wenshengqin@yahoo.com
McNEELY Jeffrey
Jeff.McNEELY@iucn.org;
QIU Sun
qiu_sun@yahoo.com;
jam@iucn.org
723903013@qq.com
MEN Xingyuan
Menxy2000@hotmail.com
RASHED Ahmed
ahmedrashedx3@yahoo.com
MENG Jin
jmeng@amnh.org
RAY Paresh
paresh.c.ray@jsums.edu
MEYER Vera
vera.meyer@tu‐berlin.de
REAL Raimundo
rrgimenez@uma.es
MILLER Charles
chuck.miller@mobot.org
RESKI Ralf
pbt@biologie.uni‐freiburg.de
MITCHELL Greg
mary@spg.ucsd.edu
RIOS Teresa
tererios@ono.com
MORLEY Simon
smor@bas.ac.uk
RODIGUEZ Santiago
santiagom@mncn.csic.es
MU Yi
mu_mu0129@sohu.com
RODRIGO Megía
rodrigo.megia@mncn.csic.es
123

RODRIGUEZ Lily lilyrodriguez2@terra.com.pe
ROQUES Alain
alain.roques@orleans.inra.fr
RUSTICI Gabriella gabry@ebi.ac.uk
SALAMA Hussein hsarsalama@hotmail.com
SALICK Jan
jan.salick@mobot.org
SCHEIDEGGER C chris<strong>to</strong>ph.scheidegger@wsl.ch
SCHNEIDER Harald h.schneider@nhm.ac.uk
SGET Tryrtye
jkhjhlk@qq.com
SHAH Hamid
drhamidshah@yahoo.com
SHARMA Hari
h.sharma@cgiar.org
SHASHIDHARA L ls.shashidhara@iiserpune.ac.in
SHEN Shuzhong szshen@nigpas.ac.cn
SHI Dazhao
shidazhao@cau.edu.cn
SHI Ding‐Ji
cyano.shi@yahoo.com.cn
SHI Dongyan
sdsdy88_66@163.com
SINHA Ravindra rksinha.pu@gmail.com
SIVASAKTHIVEL S sakthisiva1982@yahoo.com
SOKEFUN Olusola osokefun@gmail.com
SONG Chao
songyun700@126.com;
583216355@qq.com
SONG Zhuqiu
songzhuqiu@126.com
STANLEY E<strong>the</strong>l
stanleye@beloit.edu
STENSETH Nils Chr n.c.stenseth@bio.uio.no
STUDER Marie
mstuder@eol.org
SUN Hongying
sunhongying@njnu.edu.cn
SUN Jiayi
tears123123@126.com
SUN Jibin
sun_jb@tib.cas.cn
SUN Lianhong
lianhong@ustc.edu.cn
SUN Zixuan
zxsun321@126.com
TABAS Philip
ptabas@tnc.org
TAKEDA Hiroyuki htakeda@biol.s.u‐<strong>to</strong>kyo.ac.jp
TAKEDA Hiroyuki htakeda@iubs.org
TANG Wenqiao
wqtang@shou.edu.cn
TENGKU‐Dahlan
Tengku‐Sharizad
sharizad.dahlan@icsu‐asia‐pacific
.org
THOMAS Vernon vthomas@uoguelph.ca
TIAN Chaogguang tian_cg@tib.cas.cn
TIAN Daike
dktian@sibs.ac.cn
OLIVERTom
<strong>to</strong>liver@ceh.ac.uk
TSENDSUREN O tsosuren@yahoo.com
TSERENNADMID R rkh<strong>and</strong>aa@yahoo.com
TSUKAMOTO Yoshiaki tsukamo<strong>to</strong>@jba.or.jp
UJAN Javed Ahmed javed.asrl_nwsuaf@live.com;
javedujjan@yahoo.com
UPASANI Shripad M
WAHL Sebastian
WAKE David
WAKE Marvalee
WAN Chun
WANG Bo
WANG Cheng
WANG Hai‐Bo
WANG Jian
WANG Jing
WANG Jinqi
WANG Jinxiang
WANG Jun
WANG Lan
WANG Li
WANG Limei
WANG Lina
WANG Liping
WANG Qianqian
WANG Quanchao
WANG Shutao
WANG Sung
WANG Xuefang
WANG Yan
WANG Yong
WANG Yujiong
WANG Yunxia
WANG Zhenlong
WATANABE Kazuo
WATERMAN Margaret
WEI Xiao
WELSH Chris<strong>to</strong>pher
WEN Jiabin
WILSON Gregory
WILSON Michael
WU Jen‐Leih
WU Juying
WU Qi
WU Shaoqiang
WU Wenjing
XIA Xin
XIAO Ruijing
shripad.upasani1@gmail.com
S.A.Wahl@tudelft.nl
wakelab@berkeley.edu
mhwake@berkeley.edu
wanchun0715@mail.dlut.edu.cn
yangblue@xtbg.org.cn
ellislinnaw@126.com
hb7925@163.com
jwang@fjnu.edu.cn
wj@nim.ac.cn
w_j_q@sina.com
Wangjx11@163.com
jun.wang@nigpas.ac.cn
lanwang@sxu.edu.cn
wanglind2010@foxmail.com
wlmqb@126.com
wang_ln@tib.cas.cn
lpwang@shou.edu.cn
4011.qianqian@163.com
qcwang@yic.ac.cn
stwang@iccas.ac.cn
wangs@ioz.ac.cn
wfl901@yahoo.com.cn
ywang@yic.ac.cn
wang.aamu@gmail.com;
wangy@isa.ac.cn
wyj@nxu.edu.cn
yxwang@yzu.edu.cn
zhenlong.wang1@gmail.com;
wzl@zzu.edu.cn
nabechan@gene.tsukuba.ac.jp
mwaterman@semo.edu
weixiao@gxib.cn
cwelsh@utk.edu
Wenjiabin2005@sina.com
gpwilson@u.washing<strong>to</strong>n.edu
mike.wilson@ucl.ac.uk
jlwu@gate.sinica.edu.tw
wujuying1@263.net
ribozyme@ioz.ac.cn
sqwu@sina.com
rikku1518@qq.com
xiaxin2613@163.com
200913102004@mail.sxu.cn
124

XIAO Shuhai
xiao@vt.edu
ZHANG Baocai
bczhang@genetics.ac.cn
XIAO Shuming
sumey1@163.com
ZHANG Feng
chuanjun1699@163.com
XIAO Ting
xiaoting826448@163.com
ZHANG Hua
zh<strong>and</strong>zhy@yahoo.com.cn
XIAO Wei
weixiao@gxib.cn
ZHANG Lianbing
l.zhang@nanogune.eu
XIAO Zhezhi
geohsiao@tmu.edu.tw
ZHANG Lingyun
Lyzhang73@sohu.com
XIE Yan
xieyan@ioz.ac.cn
ZHANG Linyuan
zly@milupark.org.cn
XIE Zhaohui
lanzhouxie@126.com
ZHANG Meiwen
zhangmw@isa.ac.cn
XING Fu
xingf@nenu.edu.cn
ZHANG Peijiang
peijiang.zhang@<strong>to</strong>m.com
XU Huibin
xuhuibin413@163.com
ZHANG Wei
zhangwei@nhmg.org
XU Jian
xujian@qibebt.ac.cn
ZHANG Weihua
zhangwh116@hotmail.com
XU Juanjuan
xujjnj@163.com
ZHANG Wenhao
whzhang@ibcas.ac.cn
XU Shixia
xushixia78@163.com
ZHANG Xiaojun
xjzhang@qdio.ac.cn
XU Wenjiang
xumpa@163.com
ZHANG Xuewen
hwchang@mail.nsysu.edu.tw
XU Xing
xingxu@vip.sina.com
ZHANG Zhibin
zhangzb@ioz.ac.cn
XUE Dayuan
xuedayuan@hotmail.com
ZHANG Jing
sunshining1@126.com
XUE Shaowu
xsw92@yahoo.com.cn
ZHANG Lin
zhanglin01@sinochem.com
XUE Yan
xueyan@hhu.edu.cn
ZHANG Min
hfpld@163.com
XUE Yu
xueyu@mail.hust.edu.cn
ZHANG Qian
Ysl8877@163.com
YAN Chuan
yanch1985@gmail.com
ZHANG Qiang
qiangzhang04@126.com
YAN Chuan
yanch1985@gmail.com
ZHANG Ting
zhangtingnmg@163.com
YAN Jinzhong
yjzh272@<strong>to</strong>m.com
ZHANG Wei
zhangwei@nhmg.org
YAN Yujing
africarugu@gmail.com
ZHANG Xian
xidyzhang@sina.com
CHEN Yang
chenyang@sibs.ac.cn
ZHAO Fang
nellzhao@126.com
YANG Dewei
Dewei‐y@163.com
ZHAO Qiuwei
zhaoqiuwei2007@yahoo.com.cn
YANG Guang
gyang@njnu.edu.cn
ZHAO Quanyu
zhaoqy@sari.ac.cn
YANG Guangdong
gyang@lakeheadu.ca
ZHAO Xinqing
xqzhao@dlut.edu.cn
YANG Jingbiao
yangjingbiao@gmail.com;
ZHAO Zhongbao
zhaozb@dicp.ac.cn
king08@126.com
ZHENG Huaizhou
zhz@fjnu.edu.cn
YANG Jinghui
yjhnn32@126.com
ZHENG Wei
dqm850@sina.com
YANG Lianxin
lxyang@yzu.edu.cn
ZHONG Zhenyu
zhyzh@milupark.org.cn
YANG Qing
yq@xtbg.org.cn
ZHOU Jiuxuan
zhou.jiuxuan@gmail.com
YANG Xianyu
xianyu_yang@hotmail.com
ZHOU Miaomiao
m.zhou@cbs.knaw.nl
YANG Xiaoming
yangxm04@yahoo.com.cn
ZHOU Sheng
zhous@scsio.ac.cn
YANG Xuejun
yxjun2004@yahoo.com.cn
ZHOU Xuming
Zhouxuming@ioz.ac.cn;
YANG Yanyan
yyy19880919@126.com
xmzhou0103@163.com
YANG Zhou
Yangzhou@njnu.edu.cn
ZHU Lin
zhulin2304@163.com
YIN Heng
yinheng@dicp.ac.cn
ZHU Min
zhumin@ivpp.ac.cn
YIN Qingyuan
qing‐yuan.yin@dsm.com
ZHU Yong
ahuzhuyong@163.com
YU Guwei
Yu_guowei999@hotmail.com
ZHU Ziwei
zzw_2009@hotmail.com
YU Li
yuli1220@yahoo.com.cn
ZHUANG Wen‐ying
zhuangwy@im.ac.cn
YUAN Xiaohuan
sunringner@163.com
ZHUANG Yiqing
yqzhuang@sina.com
YUAN Yongchao
yuanyc2007@yahoo.com.cn
ZHAN Jingxun
windofebenbourg@msn.com
ZHAN Renbin
rbzhan@nigpas.ac.cn
125