Life Sciences Commons^™

A Review Of Baobab (Adansonia Digitata) Products: Effect Of Processing Techniques, Medicinal Properties And Uses, Donatien Kabore, Hagrétou Sawadogo-Lingani, Bréhima Diawara, Clarise Compaoré, Mamoudou H. Dicko Prof., Mogens Jacobsen

Pr. Mamoudou H. DICKO, PhD

A general literature review including the effect of processing techniques, medicinal value and uses of baobab tree is reported in this manuscript. Baobab tree has multi-purpose uses, as it produces food and non-food products such as medicines, fuel, timber, fodder. Every part of the baobab tree is reported to be useful. The seeds, leaves, roots, flowers, fruit pulp and bark of baobab are edible. Baobab leaves are used in the preparation of soup. Seeds are used as a thickening agent in soups, but they can be fermented and used as a flavouring agent or roasted and eaten as snacks. The …

Natural Disease Resistance In Threatened Staghorn Corals, Steven V. Vollmer, David I. Kline

Steve Vollmer

Disease epidemics have caused extensive damage to tropical coral reefs and to the reef-building corals themselves, yet nothing is known about the abilities of the coral host to resist disease infection. Understanding the potential for natural disease resistance in corals is critically important, especially in the Caribbean where the two ecologically dominant shallow-water corals, Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, have suffered an unprecedented mass die-off due to White Band Disease (WBD), and are now listed as threatened under the US Threatened Species Act and as critically endangered under the IUCN Red List criteria. Here we examine the potential for natural …

Genetic Diversity And Connectivity In The Threatened Staghorn Coral (Acropora Cervicornis) In Florida, Elizabeth M. Hemond, Steven V. Vollmer

Steve Vollmer

Over the past three decades, populations of the dominant shallow water Caribbean corals, Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata, have been devastated by white-band disease (WBD), resulting in the listing of both species as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. A key to conserving these threatened corals is understanding how their populations are genetically interconnected throughout the greater Caribbean. Genetic research has demonstrated that gene flow is regionally restricted across the Caribbean in both species. Yet, despite being an important site of coral reef research, little genetic data has been available for the Florida Acropora, especially for the staghorn coral, …

Autotomy Of The Posterior Foot In Agaronia Propatula (Caenogastropoda: Olividae) Occurs In Animals That Are Fully Withdrawn Into Their Shells, Samantha D. Rupert, Winfried S. Peters

Winfried S. Peters

Living More Than Just Enough For The City: Persistence Of High-Quality Vegetation In Natural Areas In An Urban Setting, Rebecca W. Dolan, Jessica D. Stephens, Marcia E. Moore

Rebecca W. Dolan

Urban environments pose special challenges to flora, including altered disturbance regimes, habitat fragmentation, and increased opportunity for invasion by non-native species. In addition, urban natural area represents most people’s contact with nature, given the majority of the world’s population currently live in cities. We used coefficients of conservatism (C-values), a system that ranks species based on perceived fidelity to remnant native plant communities that retain ecological integrity, to quantify habitat quality of 14 sites covering 850 ha within the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, in the Midwestern United States. All sites contained significant natural area and were inventoried via intensive complete …

Coastal Campsite Monitoring Protocol- Kenai Fjords National Park, Christopher Monz

Christopher Monz

No abstract provided.

The Illusion Of Plenty: Hyperstability Masks Collapses In Two Recreational Fisheries That Target Fish Spawning Aggregations, Brad E. Erisman, Larry G. Allen, Jeremy T. Claisse, Daniel J. Pondella Ii, Eric F. Miller, Jason H. Murray

Daniel Pondella

Fisheries that target fish spawning aggregations can exhibit hyperstability, in which catch per unit effort (CPUE) remains elevated as stock abundance declines, but empirical support is limited. We compiled several fishery-dependent and fishery-independent data sets to assess stock trends in the barred sand bass (Paralabrax nebulifer) and the kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus) in southern California, USA, evaluate the interaction between spawning aggregations and fishing activities, and test for hyperstability. Annual and seasonal trends from fisheries and population data indicate that regional stocks of both species have collapsed in response to overfishing of spawning aggregations and changes in environmental conditions. The …

Arcane Secrets Of The Umass Libraries, Maxine G. Schmidt

Maxine G Schmidt

No abstract provided.

Population Genetics Of An Ecosystem-Defining Reef Coral Pocillopora Damicornis In The Tropical Eastern Pacific, David J. Combosch, Steven V. Vollmer

Steve Vollmer

Background Coral reefs in the Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) are amongst the most peripheral and geographically isolated in the world. This isolation has shaped the biology of TEP organisms and lead to the formation of numerous endemic species. For example, the coral Pocillopora damicornis is a minor reef-builder elsewhere in the Indo-West Pacific, but is the dominant reef-building coral in the TEP, where it forms large, mono-specific stands, covering many hectares of reef. Moreover, TEP P. damicornis reproduces by broadcast spawning, while it broods mostly parthenogenetic larvae throughout the rest of the Indo-West Pacific. Population genetic surveys for P. damicornis …

Koufax's Perfect Game--The Tale Of The Data, Frederick Cohan

Frederick M. Cohan

No abstract provided.

Genetic Admixture In Multidimensional Niche Space: Asymmetrical Niche Similarity Promotes Gene Flow In Armadillos (Dasypus Novemcinctus), Maria Arteaga, John Mccormack, Luis Eguiarte, Rodrigo Medellín

John E. McCormack

We unite genetic data with a robust test of niche divergence to test the hypothesis that patterns of gene flow between two lineages of the nine-banded armadillo are influenced by their climatic niches. We collected Geographical Information System (GIS) data on climate using locality information from 111 individuals from two lineages that had associated genetic material. We tested whether niches of these lineages were more conserved or divergent than the background environments of their geographic ranges and found evidence for niche conservatism on two axes and no evidence for divergence on any axis. To address the role of niche similarity …

Extensive Clonal Spread And Extreme Longevity In Saw Palmetto, A Foundation Clonal Plant, Mizuki K. Takahashi, Liana M. Horner, Toshiro Kubota, Nathan A. Keller, Warren G. Abrahamson Ii

Warren G. Abrahamson, II

The lack of effective tools has hampered our ability to assess the size, growth and ages of clonal plants. With Serenoa repens (saw palmetto) as a model, we introduce a novel analytical frame work that integrates DNA fingerprinting and mathematical modelling to simulate growth and estimate ages of clonal plants. We also demonstrate the application of such life-history information of clonal plants to provide insight into management plans. Serenoa is an ecologically important foundation species in many Southeastern United States ecosystems; yet, many land managers consider Serenoa a troublesome invasive plant. Accordingly, management plans have been developed to reduce or …

Island Fragmentation Drives Evolutionary Diversification Of Galápagos Lava Lizards (Microlophus Spp.), Mark Jordan, H. Snell

Mark A. Jordan

No abstract provided.

Phenotypic Divergence Despite High Levels Of Gene Flow In Galapagos Lava Lizards (Microlophus Albemarlensis), Mark Jordan, H. Snell, H. Snell, W. Jordan

Mark A. Jordan

The extent of evolutionary divergence of phenotypes between habitats is predominantly the result of the balance of differential natural selection and gene flow. Lava lizards (Microlophus albemarlensis) on the small island of Plaza Sur in the Galápagos archipelago inhabit contrasting habitats: dense vegetation on the western end of the island thins rapidly in a transitional area, before becoming absent on the eastern half. Associated with these habitats are phenotypic differences in traits linked to predator avoidance (increased wariness, sprint speed, and endurance in lizards from the sparsely vegetated habitat). This population provides an opportunity to test the hypothesis that reduced …

The Influence Of Historical Landscape Change On Genetic Variation And Population Structure Of A Terrestrial Salamander ( Plethodon Cinereus ), Mark Jordan, Douglas Morris, Scott Gibson

Mark A. Jordan

Forest loss and fragmentation is expected to shape the genetic structure of amphibian populations and reduce genetic variation. Another factor widely understood to have impacted these same parameters in North America is the range expansion that occurred following glacial retreat at the end of the Pleistocene. The Eastern Red-Backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus) has been subjected to both processes. In this context, we investigated the historical events that are likely to have shaped genetic variation in this species using a panel of six microsatellite markers screened on individuals sampled across ten localities in northeastern Indiana, USA. We found low genetic diversity …

Historical Fragmentation And Genetic Drift In Populations Of Galápagos Lava Lizards (Microlophus Albemarlensis Complex), Mark Jordan, H. Snell

Mark A. Jordan

No abstract provided.

Determinants Of Local And Migratory Movements Of Great Lakes Double-Crested Cormorants, Alban Guillaumet, Brian S. Dorr, Guiming Wang, Jimmy D. Taylor Ii, Richard B. Chipman, Heidi Scherr, Jeff Bowman, Kenneth F. Abraham, Terry J. Doyle, Elizabeth Cranker

Brian S Dorr

We investigated how individual strategies combine with demographic and ecological factors to determine local and migratory movements in the double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus). One hundred and forty-five cormorants were captured from 14 nesting colonies across the Great Lakes area and fitted with satellite transmitters. We first tested the hypotheses that sexual segregation, density-dependent effects, and the intensity of management operations influenced home range size during the breeding season. The influence of these factors appeared to be limited in part due to random variability in foraging and dispersal decisions at individual and colony levels. We also designed a statistical framework to …

Rebound In Us Productive Sectors, Harry D. Saunders

Harry D. Saunders

This presentation describes rebound measurements in the US economy, the dominance of "embedded energy" (production-side energy use), and the economic costs of polices to mitigate rebound effects.

Net Exchanges Of Co2, Ch4, And N2o Between China's Terrestrial Ecosystems And The Atmosphere And Their Contributions To Global Climate Warming, Hanqin Tian, Xiaofeng Xu, Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu, Mingliang Liu, Wei Ren, Guangsheng Chen, Jerry Melillo, Jiyuan Liu

Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu

China's terrestrial ecosystems have been recognized as an atmospheric CO2 sink; however, it is uncertain whether this sink can alleviate global warming given the fluxes of CH4 and N2O. In this study, we used a process-based ecosystem model driven by multiple environmental factors to examine the net warming potential resulting from net exchanges of CO2, CH4, and N2O between China's terrestrial ecosystems and the atmosphere during 1961–2005. In the past 45 years, China's terrestrial ecosystems were found to sequestrate CO2 at a rate of 179.3 Tg C yr−1 with a 95% confidence range of (62.0 Tg C yr−1, 264.9 Tg …

Science Boot Camp For Librarians: Cpd On A Shoestring, Maxine G. Schmidt, Rebecca Reznik-Zellen

Maxine G Schmidt

Science Boot Camp for Librarians was envisioned as a casual but intensive immersion event into selected scientific subjects that employ networked computing capabilities for research and collaboration. The goal of the event is to provide librarians with networking opportunities, but more importantly, to give them some of the context and ocabulary of a discipline to enable them to better engage faculty and research scientists with regard to escience. A half-day is devoted to each of three topics chosen for that year’s camp. A local faculty member provides an overview of the research area, and a second describes a single project …

Species-Level Correlates Of Susceptibility To The Pathogenic Amphibian Fungus Batrachochytrium Dendrobatidis In The United States, Betsy Bancroft, Barbara Han, Catherine Searle, Lindsay Biga, Deanna Olson, Lee Kats, Joshua Lawler, Andrew Blaustein

Lee Kats

Disease is often implicated as a factor in population declines of wildlife and plants. Understanding the characteristics that may predispose a species to infection by a particular pathogen can help direct conservation efforts. Recent declines in amphibian populations world-wide are a major conservation issue and may be caused in part by a fungal pathogen, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). We used Random Forest, a machine learning approach, to identify species-level characteristics that may be related to susceptibility to Bd. Our results suggest that body size at maturity, aspects of egg laying behavior, taxonomic order and family, and reliance on water are good …

Effects Of Management On Double-Crested Cormorant Nesting Colony Fidelity, Bronson K. Strickland, Brian S. Dorr, Fred Pogmore, Gary Nohrenberg, Scott C. Barras, John E. Mcconnell, John Gobeille

Brian S Dorr

No abstract provided.

Antimicrobial And Antioxidant Activities Of Essential Oil And Methanol Extract Of Matricaria Chamomilla L. From Djibouti, Fatouma M. Abdoul-Latif, Mohamed Nabil, Prosper Edou, Adwa A. Ali, Samatar O. Djama, Louis-Clément Obamé, Mamoudou H. Dicko Prof.

Pr. Mamoudou H. DICKO, PhD

The essential oil and methanol extracts of Matricaria Chamomilla L. were subjected to screening for their possible antioxidant activity by two complementary test systems, namely 2,2-diphenykpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging and β-carotene-linoleic acid assays. BHT was used as positive control in both test systems. In the DPPH test system, the IC50 values of essential oil and methanol extracts were 4.18 and 1.83 μg/ml, respectively. In the β-carotene-linoleic acid system, oxidation was effectively inhibited by M. Chamomilla, the RAA value of essential oil and methanol extracts were 12.69 and 11.37 %, respectively. When compared to BHT, the essential oil and methanol …

Impacts Of Tropospheric Ozone And Climate Change On Net Primary Productivity And Net Carbon Exchange Of China's Forest Ecosystems, Wei Ren, Hanqin Tian, Bo Tao, Arthur Chappelka, Ge Sun, Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu, Mingliang Liu, Guangsheng Chen, Xiaofeng Xu

Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu

We investigated how ozone pollution and climate change/variability have interactively affected net primary productivity (NPP) and net carbon exchange (NCE) across China's forest ecosystem in the past half century. Using the dynamic land ecosystem model (DLEM) in conjunction with 10-km-resolution gridded historical data sets (tropospheric O3 concentrations, climate variability/change, and other environmental factors such as land-cover/land-use change (LCLUC), increasing CO2 and nitrogen deposition), we conducted nine simulation experiments to: (1) investigate the temporo-spatial patterns of NPP and NCE in China's forest ecosystems from 1961–2005; and (2) quantify the effects of tropospheric O3 pollution alone or in combination with climate variability …

New Phylogenetic Information Suggests Both An Increase And At Least One Loss Of Cooperative Breeding During The Evolutionary History Of Aphelocoma Jays, Elena Berg, Robert Aldredge, A. Peterson, John Mccormack

John E. McCormack

Efforts to identify ecological and life history factors associated with cooperative breeding have been largely unsuccessful, and interest is growing in the role of phylogenetic history in determining the distribution of this social system among lineages. In birds, cooperative breeding is distributed non-randomly among lineages, suggesting that phylogenetic inertia may play an important role in determining its distribution. The bird genus Aphelocoma has been particularly well studied because, although it is a relatively small genus, it shows broad among-lineage variation in level of cooperation. Previous analyses described an unusual unidirectional pattern of evolutionary loss of cooperation in Aphelocoma. Here, historical …

An Income-Based Analysis Of Historical Us Energy Consumption, Harry D. Saunders

Harry D. Saunders

This paper introduces a new decomposition of energy consumption to reveal the effects of consumer income levels on energy use. It concludes that the great bulk of energy consumption in the US is embedded in goods and services purchased by consumers and that this component of energy demand is growing more rapidly than direct use of energy by households owing to the preferences of high-income consumers. Significantly, this embedded component of energy demand has historically experienced large rebound magnitudes. The analysis also concludes that energy consumption is driven by more than just income level, with the lowest-income consumers using more …

Population Growth Of Mexican Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida Brasiliensis Mexicana) Predates Human Agricultural Activity, Amy L. Russell, Murray P. Cox, Veronica A. Brown, Gary F. Mccracken

Amy L. Russell

Climate And Land Use Controls Over Terrestrial Water Use Efficiency In Monsoon Asia, Hanqin Tian, Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu, Guangsheng Chen, Xiaofeng Xu, Mingliang Liu, Wei Ren, Bo Tao, Ge Sun, Shufen Pan, Jiyuan Liu

Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu

Much concern has been raised regarding how and to what extent climate change and intensive human activities have altered water use efficiency (WUE, amount of carbon uptake per unit of water use) in monsoon Asia. By using a process-based ecosystem model [dynamic land ecosystem model (DLEM)], we examined effects of climate change, land use/cover change, and land management practices (i.e. irrigation and nitrogen fertilization) on WUE in terrestrial ecosystems of monsoon Asia during 1948–2000. Our simulations indicated that due to climate variability/change, WUE in the entire area decreased by 3·6% during the study period, with the largest decrease of 6·8% …

China's Terrestrial Carbon Balance: Contributions From Multiple Global Change Factors, Hanqin Tian, Jerry Melillo, Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu, David Kicklighter, Mingliang Liu, Wei Ren, Xiaofeng Xu, Guangsheng Chen, Chi Zhang, Shufen Pan, Jiyuan Liu, Steven Running

Chaoqun (Crystal) Lu

The magnitude, spatial, and temporal patterns of the terrestrial carbon sink and the underlying mechanisms remain uncertain and need to be investigated. China is important in determining the global carbon balance in terms of both carbon emission and carbon uptake. Of particular importance to climate-change policy and carbon management is the ability to evaluate the relative contributions of multiple environmental factors to net carbon source and sink in China's terrestrial ecosystems. Here the effects of multiple environmental factors (climate, atmospheric CO2, ozone pollution, nitrogen deposition, nitrogen fertilizer application, and land cover/land use change) on net carbon balance in terrestrial ecosystems …

Adaptation As Process: The Future Of Darwinism And The Legacy Of Theodosius Dobzhansky, David Depew

David J Depew

Conceptions of adaptation have varied in the history of genetic Darwinism depending on whether what is taken to be focal is the process of adaptation, adapted states of populations, or discrete adaptations in individual organisms. I argue that Theodosius Dobzhansky’s view of adaptation as a dynamical process contrasts with so-called “adaptationist” views of natural selection figured as “design-without-a-designer” of relatively discrete, enumerable adaptations. Correlated with these respectively process and product oriented approaches to adaptive natural selection are divergent pictures of organisms themselves as developmental wholes or as “bundles” of adaptations. While even process versions of genetical Darwinism are insufficiently sensitive …