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Sociality And The Evolution Of Intelligence, Alan Kamil

Papers in Behavior in Biological Sciences

Two recently published studies provide important new data relevant to the evolution of human intelligence. Both studies of social behavior in baboons, Bergman et al. demonstrated that baboons use two criteria simultaneously to classify other troop members, and Silk et al. showed that highly social female baboons have higher reproductive success than less social females. Taken together, these studies provide strong evidence for the importance of social context in cognitive evolution.

A Role For Talin In Presynaptic Function, Jennifer R. Morgan, Gilbert Di Paolo, Hauke Werner, Valentina A. Shchedrina, Marc Pypaert, Vincent A. Pieribone, Pietro De Camilli

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Talin, an adaptor between integrin and the actin cytoskeleton at sites of cell adhesion, was recently found to be present at neuronal synapses, where its function remains unknown. Talin interacts with phosphatidylinositol-(4)-phosphate 5-kinase type Iγ, the major phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)-bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P₂]–synthesizing enzyme in brain. To gain insight into the synaptic role of talin, we microinjected into the large lamprey axons reagents that compete the talin–PIP kinase interaction and then examined their effects on synaptic structure. A dramatic decrease of synaptic actin and an impairment of clathrin-mediated synaptic vesicle endocytosis were observed. The endocytic defect included an accumulation of clathrin-coated pits …

Endocytic Function, Glycosaminoglycan Specificity, And Antibody Sensitivity Of The Recombinant Human 190-Kda Hyaluronan Receptor For Endocytosis (Hare), Ed Harris, Janet A. Weigel, Paul H. Weigel

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

The human hyaluronan receptor for endocytosis (hHARE) mediates the endocytic clearance of hyaluronan (HA) and chondroitin sulfate from lymph fluid and blood. Two hHARE isoforms (190 and 315 kDa) are present in sinusoidal endothelial cells of liver, spleen, and lymph nodes (Zhou, B., McGary, C. T., Weigel, J. A., Saxena, A., and Weigel, P. H. (2003) Glycobiology 13, 339–349). Here we report the specificity and function of the 190-kDa HARE, expressed without the larger isoform, in Flp-In 293 cell lines (190hHARE cells). Like the native protein, recombinant hHARE contains ~25 kDa of N-linked oligosaccharides, binds HA in a ligand blot …

5-Hydroxydecanoate Is Metabolised In Mitochondria And Creates A Rate-Limiting Bottleneck For Β-Oxidation Of Fatty Acids, Peter J. Hanley, Stefan Dröse, Ulrich Brandt, Rachel A. Lareau, Abir L. Banerjee, D. K. Srivastava, Leonard J. Banaszak, Joseph J. Barycki, Paul P. Van Veldhoven, Jürgen Daut

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

5-Hydroxydecanoate (5-HD) blocks pharmacological and ischaemic preconditioning, and

has been postulated to be a specific inhibitor of mitochondrial ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP)

channels. However, recent work has shown that 5-HD is activated to 5-hydroxydecanoyl-CoA

(5-HD-CoA), which is a substrate for the first step of β-oxidation. We have now

analysed the complete β-oxidation of 5-HD-CoA using specially synthesised (and purified)

substrates and enzymes, as well as isolated rat liver and heart mitochondria, and compared

it with the metabolism of the physiological substrate decanoyl-CoA. At the second step of

β-oxidation, catalysed by enoyl-CoA hydratase, enzyme kinetics were …

Identification Of Methionine-Rich Clusters That Regulate Copper-Stimulated Endocytosis Of The Human Ctr1 Copper Transporter, Yan Guo

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Copper uptake and subsequent delivery to copper-dependent

enzymes are essential for many cellular processes.

However, the intracellular levels of this nutrient

must be controlled because of its potential toxicity. The

hCtr1 protein functions in high affinity copper uptake

at the plasma membrane of human cells. Recent studies

have shown that elevated copper stimulates the endocytosis

and degradation of the hCtr1 protein, and this

response is likely an important homeostatic mechanism

that prevents the overaccumulation of copper. The domains

of hCtr1 involved in copper-stimulated endocytosis

and degradation are unknown. In this study we examined

the importance of potential copper-binding

sequences in …

Mobilization Of Intracellular Copper Stores By The Ctr2 Vacuolar Copper Transporter, Erin M. Rees, Jaekwon Lee, Dennis J. Thiele

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Copper plays an essential role in processes including signaling to the transcription and protein trafficking machinery, oxidative phosphorylation, iron mobilization, neuropeptide maturation, and normal development. Whereas much is known about intracellular mobilization of ions such as calcium, little information is available on how eukaryotic cells mobilize intracellular copper stores. We describe a mechanism by which the Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ctr2 protein provides bioavailable copper via mobilization of intracellular copper stores. Whereas Ctr2 exhibits structural similarity to the Ctr1 plasma membrane copper importer, microscopic and biochemical fractionation studies localize Ctr2 to the vacuole membrane. We demonstrate that Ctr2 mobilizes vacuolar copper stores …

Interactions Between Small Heat Shock Protein Subunits And Substrate In Small Heat Shock Protein-Substrate Complexes, Kenneth L. Friedrich,, Kim C. Giese, Nicole R. Buan, Elizabeth Vierling

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are dynamic oligomeric proteins that bind unfolding proteins and protect them from irreversible aggregation. This binding results in the formation of sHSP-substrate complexes from which substrate can later be refolded. Interactions between sHSP and substrate in sHSP-substrate complexes and the mechanism by which substrate is transferred to ATP-dependent chaperones for refolding are poorly defined. We have established C-terminal affinity-tagged sHSPs from a eukaryote (pea HSP18.1) and a prokaryote (Synechocystis HSP16.6) as tools to investigate these issues. We demonstrate that sHSP subunit exchange for HSP18.1 and HSP16.6 is temperature-dependent and rapid at the optimal growth temperature …

Consequences Of A Short Pulse Of Pesticide Exposure For Survival And Reproduction Of Gammarus Pulex, Anders Cold, Valery E. Forbes

Valery Forbes Publications

The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of a short and environmentally realistic pulse exposure of different life stages of the freshwater amphipod, Gammarus pulex, to the pyrethroid insecticide, esfenvalerate. We were particularly interested in determining the extent to which detectable effects on key life-history traits persisted following cessation of a brief exposure to this pesticide. Our results indicate that environmentally realistic exposure concentrations of this widely used insecticide can have a significant effect on the survival and reproduction of Gammarus pulex. Comparison of LC₅0 values indicates that G. pulex has a similar sensitivity …

Host–Symbiont Stability And Fast Evolutionary Rates In An Ant–Bacterium Association: Cospeciation Of Camponotus Species And Their Endosymbionts, Candidatus Blochmannia, Patrick H. Degnan, Adam B. Lazarus, Chad D. Brock, Jennifer J. Wernegreen

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Bacterial endosymbionts are widespread across several insect orders and are involved in interactions ranging from obligate mutualism to reproductive parasitism. Candidatus Blochmannia gen. nov. (Blochmannia) is an obligate bacterial associate of Camponotus and related ant genera (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The occurrence of Blochmannia in all Camponotus species sampled from field populations and its maternal transmission to host offspring suggest that this bacterium is engaged in a long-term, stable association with its ant hosts. However, evidence for cospeciation in this system is equivocal because previous phylogenetic studies were based on limited gene sampling, lacked statistical analysis of congruence, and have …

Book Review: Los Mamíferos De La Provincia De Jujuy, Argentina, Federico G. Hoffmann

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The province of Jujuy lies in the northwestern corner of Argentina, abutting Chile and Bolivia in the west and northeast, and ranging from 500 to 6,000 m in elevation. As a result of its location and topography, vegetation ranges from subtropical forests in the lowlands to high-altitude grasslands on the slopes of the Andes, and more than 130 mammalian species can be encountered in the province, from mice-eating bats to forest and pampas deer to llamas and guanacos. This book defies pigeonholing as a single-purpose guide, and contains a wider range of information than biogeographical and identification data. There is …

Book Review: Tangled Trees: Phylogeny, Cospeciation, And Coevolution, Federico G. Hoffmann

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Host-parasite associations and the study of their coevolution and cospeciation have long been of strong interest to evolutionary biologists. This book does an excellent job of bringing readers up to date in the field, including both theoretical and empirical reports, the development of novel methodological approaches, and the incorporation of molecular data. The book is divided into 2 sections; the first presents theoretical developments in the field, while the second focuses on experimental results.

Isolation And Characterization Of 11 Polymorphic Microsatellite Loci In Collared Lizards (Crotaphytus Collaris), Delbert W. Hutchison, Jared L. Strasburg, Jennifer A. Brisson, Shawn Cummings

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

We identified 11 polymorphic microsatellite loci in collared lizards (Crotaphytus collaris). Polymorphism assessment in 512 individuals from 52 populations sampled across much of the species distribution revealed a fairly high degree of genetic diversity (six to 20 alleles per locus) and a wide range of average expected heterozygosity values (0.143–0.530). We found no evidence for linkage, very few deviations from HW expectation (two of 572 possible population/locus analyses) and thus no evidence for null alleles. There was a tendency for reduced polymorphism towards the northern periphery.

Do Harvest Refuges Buffer Kangaroos Against Evolutionary Responses To Selective Harvesting?, Brigitte Tenhumberg, Andrew J. Tyre, Anthony R. Pople, Hugh P. Possingham

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

There is a wealth of literature documenting a directional change of body size in heavily harvested populations. Most of this work concentrates on aquatic systems, but terrestrial populations are equally at risk. This paper explores the capacity of harvest refuges to counteract potential effects of size-selective harvesting on the allele frequency of populations. We constructed a stochastic, individual-based model parameterized with data on red kangaroos. Because we do not know which part of individual growth would change in the course of natural selection, we explored the effects of two alternative models of individual growth in which alleles affect either the …

Phylogenetic Relationships Of Malvatheca (Bombacoideae And Malvoideae; Malvaceae Sensu Lato) As Inferred From Plastid Dna Sequences, David A. Baum, Stacey Dewitt Smith, Alan Yen, William S. Alverson, Reto Nyffeler, Barbara A. Whitlock, Rebecca L. Oldham

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Previous molecular phylogenetic analyses have revealed that elements of the former families Malvaceae sensu stricto and Bombacaceae together form a well-supported clade that has been named Malvatheca. Within Malvatheca, two major lineages have been observed; one, Bombacoideae, corresponds approximately to the palmate-leaved Bombacaceae, and the other, Malvoideae, includes the traditional Malvaceae (the mallows or Eumalvoideae). However, the composition of these two groups and their relationships to other elements of Malvatheca remain a source of uncertainty. Sequence data from two plastid regions, ndhF and trnK/matK, from 34 exemplars of Malvatheca and six outgroups were analyzed. Parsimony, likelihood, and …

Genetic Discontinuities Among Populations Of Cleistes (Orchidaceae, Vanilloideae) In North America, Stacey Dewitt Smith, Robyn S. Cowan, Katharine B. Gregg, Mark W. Chase, Nigel Maxted, Michael F. Fay

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Genetic patterns were examined in five populations of North American Cleistes with three sources of molecular data: amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP), DNA sequencing, and plastid microsatellites. Populations of C. bifaria were sampled in four areas of the south-eastern US: the coastal plains of Florida and North Carolina and the mountains of North Carolina and West Virginia. A population of C. divaricata sympatric with the North Carolina coastal plain C. bifaria was also sampled. Analysis of the three types of molecular data resulted in the same relationships among the five sampled populations. The coastal plain population of C. divaricata was …

How Predation Risk Affects The Temporal Dynamics Of Avian Leks: Greater Sage Grouse Versus Golden Eagles, Adam R. Boyko, Robert M. Gibson, Jeffrey R. Lucas

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Leks often attract predators as well as mates, yet most evolutionary models have assumed that sexual selection, not predation, drives lekking behavior. We explored the influence of predation on lek dynamics using a stochastic dynamic game model based on the lek-breeding greater sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and its principal avian predator, the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). The model predicts time-dependent male lek attendance as a function of factors affecting both mating success (female arrival rate, male numbers, and social status) and predation risk (eagle arrival rate and group size). Dominant males are predicted to arrive sooner …

Predicting Predation Efficiency Of Biocontrol Agents: Linking Behavior Of Individuals And Population Dynamics, Brigitte Tenhumberg

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Behavioral ecology and population ecology are two separate branches of ecology; studies linking the effect of individual behavior and population dynamics are rare. This paper connects a stochastic optimal foraging model of insect predators with an age structured population model of its prey. I modeled syrphid larvae feeding on cereal aphids, an interaction critical to cereal crops in Germany. The key stochastic element in this model is the foraging success of predators, which influences survival and developmental time of predators and mortality of the prey population. The model predicts that the level of control incurred by predators is highest if …

The Role Of Local Spatial Heterogeneity In The Maintenance Of Parapatric Boundaries: Agent Based Models Of Competition Between Two Parasitic Ticks, Andrew J. Tyre, Brigitte Tenhumberg, C. Michael Bull

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Recent models of ecological parapatry, where the geographical distributions of two similar species abut without overlapping, have shown that spatial gradients in intrinsic growth rates can lead to sharp boundaries when dispersal is density dependent. However, a well documented parapatric boundary in southern Australia between two tick species that parasitise a large lizard lacks one or both of these features; dispersal of ticks is random and there may not be a gradient of population growth rates for one of the species. There is local variation in population growth rates arising from variation in the number of host lizards with overlapping …

How Predation Risk Affects The Temporal Dynamics Of Avian Leks: Greater Sage Grouse Versus Golden Eagles, Adam R. Boyko, Robert M. Gibson, Jeffrey R. Lucas

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Leks often attract predators as well as mates, yet most evolutionary models have assumed that sexual selection, not predation, drives lekking behavior. We explored the influence of predation on lek dynamics using a stochastic dynamic game model based on the lek-breeding greater sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and its principal avian predator, the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). The model predicts time-dependent male lek attendance as a function of factors affecting both mating success (female arrival rate, male numbers, and social status) and predation risk (eagle arrival rate and group size). Dominant males are predicted to arrive sooner …

Aggregated Seed Dispersal By Spider Monkeys Limits Recruitment To Clumped Patterns In Virola Calophylla, Sabrina E. Russo, Carol K. Augsperger

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The initial spatial pattern of seed deposition influences plant population and community structure, particularly when that pattern persists through recruitment. In a vertebrate-dispersed rain forest tree, Virola calophylla, we found that spatially aggregated seed deposition strongly influenced the spatial structure of later stages. Seed dispersion was clumped, and seed densities were highest underneath V. calophylla females and the sleeping sites of spider monkeys (Ateles paniscus), the key dispersal agent. Although these site types had the lowest per capita seed-to-seedling survival, they had the highest seedling/sapling densities. Conversely, seed and seedling/sapling densities were lowest, and seed survival was …

Long-Range Visibility Of Greater Sage Grouse Leks: A Gis-Based Analysis, Andrea S. Aspbury, Robert M. Gibson

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

We investigated whether male greater sage grouse, Centrocercus urophasianus, select lek locations on the basis of topographic features that affect their visibility to both conspecific females and a major avian predator, the golden eagle, Aquila chrysaetos. We mapped locations of displaying males at all leks in a local population and used a Geographic Information System (GIS) and digital elevation model (DEM) to generate ‘viewsheds’ around male locations within a boundary set by the estimated maximal visual acuity of the viewer. Areas visible around leks were compared to those visible around random sites with the same conformation of displaying …

Impact Of Intraspecific Polyploidy In Andropogon Gerardii (Poaceae) Populations, Kathleen H. Keeler

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Andropogon gerardii populations are comprised of two (or more) polyploid forms over much of the range of the species. To understand the impact of intraspecific polyploidy, polyploid cytotypes were compared over 4 y in native grasslands in Boulder, Colorado. Boulder A. gerardii populations averaged 59.6% hexaploids (60 chromosomes), 35.3% enneaploids (90 chromosomes) and 5.1% intermediate (aneuploid) chromosome numbers using flow cytometry to infer chromosome numbers. Neither mean clone area nor mean annual change in clone area differed significantly between ploidy levels. Hexaploid clones produced significantly more viable seeds than enneaploids. Enneaploids are not replacing themselves, whether that is measured absolutely …

Kangaroo Management Options In The Murray-Darling Basin, Ron Hacker, Steve Mcleod, John Druhan, Brigitte Tenhumberg, Udai Pradhan

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Foreword........................ i

List of figures & tables ........................iii

Acknowledgments........................ iv

Background ........................1

Defining stakeholder aspirations........................ 2

Pastoralists ........................2

Non-government conservationists ........................2

Kangaroo industry........................ 3

Government wildlife management agencies........................ 3

Defining and evaluating management strategies ........................4

Data collection ........................6

The animals ........................6

Field sites ........................6

Field data collection procedures ........................6

Summary of field data........................ 13

Key biological relationships........................ 13

Population and harvest data ........................15

Model development ........................23

The temporal model ........................23

The spatial model........................ 23

The genetic model ........................28

Multi-criteria decision analysis ........................31

Results and discussion ........................32

Comparing management options with stakeholder objectives ........................32

Strategies for long-term average population densities ........................37 …

Occurrence And Characterization Of Mercury Resistance In The Hyperthermophilic Archaeon Sulfolobus Solfataricus By Use Of Gene Disruption, James Schelert, Vidula Dixit, Viet Hoang, Jessica Simbahan, Melissa Drozda, Paul H. Blum

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mercury resistance mediated by mercuric reductase (MerA) is widespread among bacteria and operates under the control of MerR. MerR represents a unique class of transcription factors that exert both positive and negative regulation on gene expression. Archaea and bacteria are prokaryotes, yet little is known about the biological role of mercury in archaea or whether a resistance mechanism occurs in these organisms. The archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus was sensitive to mercuric chloride, and low-level adaptive resistance could be induced by metal preconditioning. Protein phylogenetic analysis of open reading frames SSO2689 and SSO2688 clarified their identity as orthologs of MerA and MerR. …

Culture-Independent Analysis Of Fecal Enterobacteria In Environmental Samples By Single-Cell Mrna Profiling, Han Chen, Gomathinayagam Ponniah, Nancy Salonen, Paul H. Blum

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

A culture-independent method called mRNA profiling has been developed for the analysis of fecal enterobacteria and their physiological status in environmental samples. This taxon-specific approach determines the single-cell content of selected gene transcripts whose abundance is either directly or inversely proportional to growth state. Fluorescence in situ hybridization using fluorochrome-labeled oligonucleotide probes was used to measure the cellular concentration of fis and dps mRNA. Relative levels of these transcripts provided a measure of cell growth state and the ability to enumerate fecal enterobacterial cell number. Orthologs were cloned by inverse PCR from several major enterobacterial genera, and probes specific for …

Mercury Inactivates Transcription And The Generalized Transcription Factor Tfb In The Archaeon Sulfolobus Solfataricus, Vidula Dixit, Elisabetta Bini, Melissa Drozda, Paul H. Blum

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Mercury has a long history as an antimicrobial agent effective against eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms.

Despite its prolonged use, the basis for mercury toxicity in prokaryotes is not well understood. Archaea, like

bacteria, are prokaryotes but they use a simplified version of the eukaryotic transcription apparatus. This

study examined the mechanism of mercury toxicity to the archaeal prokaryote Sulfolobus solfataricus. In vivo

challenge with mercuric chloride instantaneously blocked cell division, eliciting a cytostatic response at

submicromolar concentrations and a cytocidal response at micromolar concentrations. The cytostatic response

was accompanied by a 70% reduction in bulk RNA synthesis and elevated …

Environment-Dependent Survival Of Drosophila Melanogaster: A Quantitative Genetic Analysis, Mei-Hui Wang, Oleg Lazebny, Lawrence G. Harshman, Sergey V. Nuzhdin

Lawrence G. Harshman Publications

Survival under starvation conditions was investigated in relationship to survival when food was present because these traits could be linked by evolutionary history. Recombinant inbred lines de-rived from natural populations of Drosophila melanogaster were used to test genetic correlations and architecture of these survival traits. Sexes were genetically correlated within traits and there was significant correlation between survival traits. A number of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) were pre-sent for starvation survival and/or survival on food. In general, the QTL effects were consistent for sexes and environments. QTL effects were found on each major chromosome, but the major effects were largely …

Roles Of Substrate Availability And Infection Of Resting And Activated Cd4+T Cells In Transmission And Acute Simian Immunodeficiency Virus Infection, Zhi-Qiang Zhang, Stephen W. Wietgrefe, Qingsheng Li, Marta Dykhuizen Shore, Lijie Duan, Cavan Reilly, Jeffrey D. Lifson, Ashley T. Haase

Qingsheng Li Publications

In studies of sexual mucosal transmission and early stages of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) and HIV infections, productive infection predominates in CD4+T cell populations, in both ostensibly resting and activated cells. The surprising ability of SIV and HIV to replicate in resting cells in vivo, in contrast to propagation of infection in vitro, suggested a model in which during the early stages of infection these viruses exploit the greater availability of resting cells to maintain unbroken chains of transmission from an infected resting cell to another resting cell nearby. Because immune activation in response to infection provides more …

The Hemolymph Jh Titer Exhibits A Large-Amplitude, Morph-Dependent, Diurnal Cycle In The Wing-Polymorphic Cricket, Gryllus Firmus, Zhangwu Zhao, Anthony J. Zera

Anthony Zera Publications

The hemolymph juvenile hormone (JH) titer was measured in over 500 flight-capable and flightless, adult female Gryllus firmus at 3–6 h intervals during each of days 2–8 of adulthood. The flight-capable morph exhibited a large-amplitude daily cycle in the hemolymph JH titer, while the flightless morph exhibited a barely perceptible cycle. The JH titer cycle was observed on all days in the flight-capable morph, but the large amplitude cycle (>15–20 fold increase in mean titer; >100-fold increase in some individuals), began on day 5. For both the large and small amplitude cycles, the JH titer peaked near the end …

The Double-Edged Sword Of Biological Control In Conservation And Restoration, Svata M. Louda, Peter Stiling

Svata M. Louda Publications

The most fundamental question in considering deliberate introductions of exotic species against invasive species is whether the outcomes can be predicted precisely enough a priori to know with some certainty that the benefits will outweigh the environmental costs. This issue is obscured by reiteration of an overly simplistic description of the ecology underlying biological control. Classical biological control is not a simple exercise in “community re-assemblage” (Hoddle 2004); it involves the introduction of alien organisms into new species assemblages, in new physical environments, and without the rest of their foodweb. Predicting the outcome of such introductions is infinitely more complex …