Abstract:The fragments of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit Ⅰ(COⅠ) gene were amplified from 29 Apple Snails in 6 different locations,then sequenced and analyzed.Compared with the corresponding COⅠ gene sequences of Pomacea canaliculata,P.insularum,P.diffusa,P.haustrum,P.paludosa,P.camena and Pila conica in the ampullariids published in GenBank,the taxonomic status of introduced Apple Snails in six regions of China was examined.The results showed that the length of COⅠ gene sequence was 619 bp,including 99 variable sites and 80 parsimony sites.The average contents of A,T,C and G were 23.6%,39.1%,16.6% and 20.7%,respectively.Total 13 different haplotypes of apple snails were found in 6 different locations.There were 3 haplotypes in Guangzhou,Qinzhou and Jian,and two haplotypes in Maoming,Xiamen and Yaan.In addition,3 locations of Guangzhou,Xiamen and Qinzhou all existed a uniform haplotype.Molecular analyses showed that the genetic distances ranged from 0.114 to 0.191 between apple snails in six locations in China and Pomacea diffusa,P.haustrum,P.paludosa,P.camena,0.011 to 0.063 between P.insularum and Haplotype 4,5,6,9,13,and 0 to 0.074 between P.canaliculata and other eight haplotypes.Phylogenetic analysis based on the mitochondrial COⅠ gene segregated them into seven major clades including 6 species of the genus Pomacea and one of the genus Pila. Haplotype 1,2,3,7,8,10,11,12 and Pomacea canaliculata formed a clade that was sister to the P.insularum clade including Haplotype 4,5,6,9,13.Sequence analysis,genetic distances and Phylogenetic trees suggested that there were two species of non-native apple snails in China continent including P.canaliculata and P.insularum,and this two species had mixed with each other in the course of pervasion.This study will provide a scientific basis for developing resources investigation,control and management of apple snails in the future.

Abstract:The complete cDNA sequence of DNaseⅠ was isolated from Litopenaeus vannamei hepatopancreas by RT-PCR and RACE.The full length cDNA of DNaseⅠ was 1 614 bp,consisting of a 5’-noncoding region of 116 bp,a 3’-noncoding region of 289 bp,and an open reading frame of 1 209 bp encoding a polypeptide of 403 amino acids.Real time quantitative PCR analysis revealed that the expression level of DNaseⅠ gene of L.vannamei in hepatopancreas was 16-162 folds higher than that in other 5 selected organs and DNaseⅠ gene of L.vannamei belonged to hepatopancreas type.Furthermore,a DNaseⅠ protein expression system based on Escherichia coli was constructed and functional recombinant DNaseⅠ protein was obtained successfully.

Abstract:Through PCR amplification,the β-actin gene promoter fragment SZ21(2 398 bp ) of Leuciscus merzbacheri was obtained.We forecasted its transcriptional regulation elements using bioinformatics method.In view of its ORF and introns sequence,the system development was analyzed between L.merzbacheri and other closely related fish species.Three core promoter transcriptional elements were situated in the transcriptional start site(+1) upper -89,-59,-26,including the CAAT-box,CArG motif,TATA-box.Results of putative transcription binding sites analysis of the promoters revealed the presence of several critical transcription binding sites such as the MEF2,SATB,CHRF,INRE,MTEN,E-box,RU49,ZBPF,CREB,Enhance region and CEBP in the further promoter.The splice sites abided by GT…AG rule in the spliceosome introns.The promoter SZ21 sequence included the intron 1,intron 2,intron 3,and 155 amino acids.The system development analysis of three introns showed that Megalobrama amblycephala had more close relationship to Ctenopharyngodon idella and Mylopharyngodon piceus than L.merzbacheri. This is not consistent with the traditional classification,and the reason needs further investigation.

Abstract:As one important fruit plant,wild cherry (Prunus pseudocerasus) is widely distributed in subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests in China.In 2007 and 2008,fruit removal by frugivorous birds and its potential impacts on seed dispersal and natural regeneration of wild cherry were investigated in a subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forest in the Dujiangyan City of Sichuan Province,Southwest China.The results showed that the falling peak of ripe fruits occurred from late April to early May,but the proportion of fruits removed by birds was significantly lower in 2007(4.0%±1.0%) than in 2008(27.7%±5.7%).In the study site,we identified at least 16 bird species consuming cherry fruits or seeds,which belong to the following three functional groups based on their fruit/seed handling behaviors:legitimate seed dispersers,which swallowed whole fruits and defecated intact seeds away from parent plants through the end of gut,including Pycnontus sinensis,Spizixos semitorques,Hypisipetes leucocephalus,Garrulax snnio and Urocissa erythorhyncha; pulp consumers,which only consumed fruit pulps but dropped seeds under parent plants,e.g.Alcippe morrisonia and Zosterops iaponicus; and pure seed consumers such as Carpopacus erythrinus and Paradoxornis gularis. Among the legitimate seed dispersers,the total visiting frequency by three Pycnonotidae birds (P.sinensis,S.semitorques and H.leucocephalus) was very high in both years,up to 55.3%(2007) and 35.3%(2008),respectively.This suggests that the three Pycnonotidae birds are main seed dispersers to wild cherry and could have a substantial impact on spatial patterns and natural regeneration of wild cherry in the Dujiangyan forest.

Abstract:Digital terrain model(DTM) was build from combining information of digital elevation model(DEM),river model,model of lake and home range around lakes,and vegetation model.DTM was applied to search potential habitat of Bar-headed Goose (Anser indicus) by using the overlap functions of Geographic Information System(GIS).The locations of potential habitat of Bar-head Goose were checked by satellite-tracking data of eleven bar-headed geese banded in Qinghai Lake.The result showed that total of 275 sites of bar-headed goose potential habitat was located.The potential habitat consists of lake and home range around the lake.The total area of the lake waters are about 10 306.4 km2 and 59 sites were verified that bar-headed goose stopped over there for rest.Around some lake there was little bar-headed goose track-points which may be obtained on the fly,and it can’t be confirmed that they stopped over there at present.Breeding sites,stopovers in process of migration,and wintering sites of bar-headed goose showed higher concentrations and its’ migration route is relatively stable.

Abstract:To study the effects and mechanisms of Nano-Se on cognition performance after sleep deprivation(SD) in mice.A total of 120 male mice were randomly divided into 2 batches.The first batch of 24 mice was randomly divided into 3 groups:control(NC),Na₂SeO₃(SE) and Nano-Se(NS).These mice were administered respectively with SE and NS(1 μg/d,2 μg/d,4 μg/d) by intra-gastric injection for 30 days,then their Se content and GSH-Px activity in blood were measured; The second batch of 96 mice were randomly divided into 4 large groups:control(N-SeC) and low,middle,high Nano-Se groups(L,M,H).Nano-Se solutions(2 μg/ml,4 μg/ml,8 μg/ml)were administered(0.5 ml/d) to mice of L,M and H groups respectively by intra-gastric injection for 30 days,and the control group was administered with distilled water.Each large group was divided into 4 groups:SD control(SDC),SD18h,SD36h and SD54h.SD model was induced in mice by single platform technique.In the SD mice,the cognitive ability of the mice were tested by Y-maze.Further,brain GSH-Px,NO and MDA levels were measured.Blood GSH-Px activity was enhanced by Nano-Se compared to SE group,but the blood Se content was not different.SD decreased cognitive ability and GSH-Px activity,but increased NO and MDA levels.Compared to N-SeC,Nano-Se improved cognitive ability,increased GSH-Px activities,while decreased NO levels in M and H groups.MDA reduction was found in H group only.Our data suggest that Nano-Se could improve cognitive ability of mice,the mechanism of which might involve the increased GSH-Px activity and decreased free radical content.

Abstract:To investigate the effects of organ chlorine pesticide—endosulfan on erythrocyte immune functions in mice,in vivo and in vitro experiments were designed.A total of 40 mice were randomly divided into 4 groups in in vivo experiment.They were gavaged with endosulfan at levels of 0,0.4,1.6,and 6.4 mg/(kg·d)for 25 days,respectively.Blood was then collected to determine the immune functions of erythrocytes.In In vitro experiment,the erythrocytes from 9 mice were incubated with different concentrations of endosulfan:0(control),0(acetone,dissolvent),5,10,20,and 40 μg/ml,respectively.The immune adherent capacity of the erythrocyte was determined after culturing for 2 hours in vitro.In vivo experiment showed that the ratio of erythrocyte-C3b rosetting(C3bRR) significantly decreased,while the ratio of immune complexes rosetting(ICRR) increased with the increase of endosulfan dosage.There was no significant difference among the 4 groups in the activity of regulating NK cells by erythrocytes.The activity of regulating T cell adhering function by erythrocytes in 6.4 mg/(kg·d)group was significantly lower compared with other three groups.The activity of erythrocyte natural adhering enhancing factor in plasma remarkably reduced in 1.6 mg/(kg·d)group and 6.4 mg/(kg·d)group compared with that of the control group.The activity of erythrocyte natural adhering inhibitory factor decreased in 0.4 mg/(kg·d) group,but increased in 6.4 mg/(kg·d) group.In vitro,the C3bRR of erythrocytes declined,while the ICRR ascended with the increase of endosulfan concentration.These results suggest that endosulfan inhibits the erythrocyte immune adherent function and the positive regulating function of T cells by erythrocytes,and decreases the immune-enhancing activity of erythrocyte.The results also show that the effects of endosulfan on inhibitory factor activity are complicated:it inhibits the activity of inhibitory factor at the low dosage,while improves the activity of inhibitory factor at the high dosage.

Abstract:The full-length BMP15(GenBank:EU743938) gene was cloned in the goat,and its two exons were analyzed using the F-CSGE.The results showed that one single nucleotide was mutated(A-G) at 901 bp,and the mutation made the 32nd amino acid turn from serine to glycine.Mutation was detected using LDR,and its correlation with litter size was analyzed in 3 goat breeds including Jining grey goat,Lubei white goat and Yimeng black goat.The results showed that the mutation did not affect litter size in Jining grey goat,but significantly increased the litter size in Lubei white goat and Yimeng black goat(P<0.05).The GG or AG genotype had 0.34(P<0.01) or 0.31(P<0.01) more kids when compared to that of AA genotype in Lubei white goat; the AG genotype had 0.13(P<0.01) more kids when compared to that of AA genotype in Yimeng black goat.These preliminary results show that the BMP15 gene is either a major gene that influences the reproductivity in Lubei white goat and Yimeng black goat or a molecular marker in close linkage with reproductivity.

Abstract:By using noninvasive DNA technology,20 fecal samples and 2 muscle samples of Sichuan Snub-nosed Monkeys(Rhinopithecus roxellana)from Baishuijiang Nature Reserve of Gansu province(BSJ),Changqing Nature Reserve of Shaanxi Province(SH) and Shennongjia Nature Reserve of Hubei Province(SNJ) were analyzed and the mitochondrial DNA D-loop fragments were successfully amplified.Sequences were aligned with the GenBank by BLAST software and 22 samples were identified as R.roxellana.According to the analysis by Clustal W and DNASP software,17 haplotypes and 54 diversity sites were found in 22 Sichuan snub-nosed monkey samples with 393 bp length of mtDNA D-loop region.The haplotype diversity was 0.965 and nucleotide diversity was 3.10%.The genetic distance and nucleotide divergence of R.roxellana among BSJ,SH,and SNJ were 0.003-0.098 and 0.08%-2.80%,respectively.Therefore,the results show a high variation in the mitochondrial DNA D-loop region and genetic distance of R.roxellana from the three sampling sites.

Abstract:The activity rhythm and reproductive behaviors of Chinese Giant Salamander (Andrias davidianus) in imitaded-natural habitat were observed.Chinese Giant Salamander hid in the den in the daytime and moved out at 8:30 pm,their activity reached the peak in 9:00 pm and remained to 1:00 am of the next day.After then,they began to return to the den.After 3:00 am,no any Chinese Giant Salamanders was observed in open water.The nocturnal activity of Chinese Giant Salamander varied with season changes.The nocturnal activity frequency of Chinese Giant Salamander reached the peak in August and September in a year.The mature male salamander showed various reproductive behaviors in the reproductive season,mainly including sand-pushing,lovemaking,head-washing,mating and egg-safeguarding.Lovemaking behaviors were composed of gather together,head exposing,inspection,following,anogenital sniffing,kissing,inviting and creeping on the back of female.

Abstract:A survey about the feeding sites and food abundance of feralized Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) was carried out from September to November in autumn 2008 in Ningshan Shaanxi by using plot methods.The result showed that the paddy fields are main feeding sites of crested ibis.The factors that affected the food site selection were human disturbance,the degree of width and softness of soil.36 species were collected and identified in the feeding sites,and field furrowing had no significant effect on food abundance and food biomass.In general,the food was not abundant for crested ibis in autumn wandering stage in the area.

Abstract:"Co-precipitation" is one of the most popular methods for preparation of magnetic iron-dextran particles,which is simple and easy to operate. These particles can be obtained by dissolving FeCl₂,FeCl₃ together with dextran in H₂O in a proper ratio and adding NH₄OH into this solution. After the chemical reaction completed,the poduct is dark-brown including numerous different sized magnetic iron-detran particles and their aggregates due to the effects of temprature,pH,the speed of NH₄OH addition and some other factors. In fact,the primary reaction product is centrifuged to eliminate the large particles and to obtain ideal-sized particles,while this centrifugation results in the loss of the most primary reaction product and low production of the ideal-sized particles. In this experiment,the pellet from the centrifugation was treated with ultrasound,and as the result,the production of magnetic iron-dextran particles was increased to 20 times of the original production from 0.5 g to 10 g. When these particles were added to the mixtures of singel cells and conjugating pairs of Paramecium caudatum,highly synchronized conjugating pairs were obtained,which indicates its high quality of the particles. The importance of the current improvement for preparation of magnetic iron-dextran particles can be evaluated by its universal use in bioscience,biomedical and bioengineering due to their excellent biocompatibility and targeting performance.

Abstract:This paper analyzed the annuli characteristics of sagitta,part of dorsal fin ray(n=11 and 12),opercular (n=20 and 25) and vertebra(n=38 and 45) of 174 Triplophysa teunis samples and 258 T.yarkandensis samples collected from Kezi River in southern Xinjiang in May 2008,and assessed their usage in age determination.The results showed that dorsal fin ray and opercular were unsuitable for ageing,mostly because of the pseudoannuli and ambiguous annuli.The annuli characteristics on vertebra of T.teunis with body length less than 6.0 cm could not be seen easily,their interpretability and age agreement were 52.63% and 70.00% respectively.The sectioned vertebra interpretability and age agreement of T.yarkandensis were 93.33% and 78.57% respectively,but there were pseudoannuli disturbances on the sectioned vertebra of the specimen under 5 years,which will decrease the accuracy of aging.Growth markers such as daily growth increments,checks and annuli can be seen on the sectioned sagitta.The annuli characteristics of the sectioned sagitta displayed a pattern of alternating zones of widely-and closely-spaced circular,and the outer edges of the circular were annuli.The ages of 171 samples can be identified from 174 T.teunis samples,the interpretability and age agreement were 98.28% and 94.74% respectively. The ages of 244 samples can be identified from 258 T.yarkandensis samples,the interpretability and age agreement were 94.57% and 93.44% respectively.As for as ages assigned based on sectioned vertebra and sagitta from the same specimen by two independent identifiers,age agreement of T.teunis were 75.00% and 80.00% respectively,those of T.yarkandensis were 73.81% and 83.33% respectively,no significant difference between identifier 1 and 2 (P>0.05).The results indicated that sectioned sagittae were more suitable to age determination for two esquamate Triplophysa,sectioned vertebrae can be used as accessory ageing materials for older individuals.

Abstract:One hundred and thirty six specimens of Oriental Sucking Barb(Garra orientalis),ranged 54-167 mm in length and 3.0-114.6 g in weight were collected from October 2006 to October 2008 in the Nujiang River.Their age and growth were examined.The age estimation was made by the otolith ring and 10 age classes were identified.The relationship between the otolith radius and body length was expressed as L=0.061R^1.131 (n=125,R²=0.907),while that between body length and body weight as W=0.1×10^-4L^3.160.von Bertalanffy growth parameters derived from back-calculated body length was as follows:L_∞=224.79 mm,k=0.094/year,t₀ =0.51 year for male and L_∞=228.91 mm,k=0.091/year,t₀ =0.639 year for female;L_∞=227.78 mm,k=0.091/year,t₀ =0.588 year for all the collected specimens.The inflection point of the weight growth curve was 12.15 years for male and 13.75 years for female.

Abstract:Anatomy and histology of the brain were observed in Ichthyophis bannanicus. The brain of I. bannanicus can be divided into four distinct parts:telencephalon,diencephalon,mesencephalon and myelencephalon,which is similar to the other species of Ichthyophidae. The telencephalon consists of the olfactory bulb,accessory olfactory bulb and cerebrum. The developed olfactory bulb has two pairs of olfactory nerve. The cerebrum is long ellipse in shape and is the main part of the brain. The infundibulum connects with the flat and spoon-shaped hypophysis in the ventral diencephalon. The mesencephalon is ellipse-shaped. The cerebellum is absent. The myelencephalon has a greater bending. Meanwhile,the structure and feature mentioned above are compared with those of other amphibians. The results are discussed on the basis of the original phylogenetic position of the brain in I.bannanicus.

Abstract:The present paper deals with the effect of short-term continuing food restriction on Tree Sparrows’ (Passer montanus) body weight and BMR (basal metabolic rate) as well as their physiological adjusting mechanism. The Tree Sparrows fed regularly were selected to be the control group (0D,D for day) and four groups of sparrows with same food-intake but different hunger hours (1D,3D,5D and 7D) to be the objects of study and acclimation. The results shows that there exists marked linear relationship between the body weight and BMR (r=0.512,P=0.001). There is no distinct difference as for the BMR level of unit weight among the five groups of Tree Sparrows,but distinct between the 5D and 7D team of body’s BMR(P<0.05). Tree Sparrows of the control group gain weight,while sparrows of the four acclimation groups lose weight on different levels. Compared with the control group,the degrees of weight loss for the sparrows of experimental group 1D and 7D become respectively marked (P<0.05) and extramarked (P<0.01); sparrows of group 3D and 5D have weight down,but still show slight increase compared with group 1D and 7D. The continuous starvation of 1 to 7 days causes the sparrows’ weight to present a down-up-down changing tendency. The conclusion is that when food-intake is not sufficient,consuming the body’s energy reserves and improving the digestibility are key points for sparrows to deal with the hungry environment and also one of their successful survival strategies.

Abstract:Tooth replacement pattern was observed in Villus Noctule Bat (Nyctalus velutinus) in 1997 and 200 specimens had been involved in this study. The dental formula of milk teeth was I 2/3,C1/1,PM2/2,M0/0=22.The first decay and eruption of tooth took place in 4 days and 14 days after birth,respectively. The termination of decay and eruption was in 31 days after birth. The sequence of decay of the milk teeth were PM²,PM¹,C¹,I¹,I² in upper jaw and I₁,PM₂ or I₂,I₃ ,PM₁,C₁ in lower jaw. The eruptional sequence of the permanent teeth were M¹,PM²,or C¹,M²,PM¹ or M³,I¹,I² in upper jaw and M₁,I₁ or PM₂ ,I₂ or M₂,I₃ or PM₁,C₁,M₃ in lower jaw.

Abstract:Preimplantation embryos consume and produce amino acids in a manner dependent upon their developmental stages,and detection of embryo metabolism may be predictive of subsequent viability.The consumption and production of amino acids by in vitro produced mouse preimplantation embryos were examined to seek for an effective amino acid composition for embryo in vitro development and optimize culture system.A total of 480 zygotes were collected from the oviducts of superovulated mice and these zygotes were cultured with KSOMaa containing Eagle’s essential amino acids and non-essential amino acids.The content of glycine,leucine,threonine,valine,phenylanine,and tyrosine in the culture medium increased at 2-cell stage,while decreased at 4-cell or 8-16 cell stages,but subsequently increased by blastocyst stage.The content of glutamic acid,methionine,arginine,and alanine decreased from 2-cell stage to blastocyst stage.The content of serine,lysine and alanine showed continuous increase during embryo development.The content of aspartic acid,proline,and tryptophan decreased at 2-cell stage,but increased in the following stages.The content of isoleucine increased at all stages except for blastocyst stage.

Abstract:To investigate the gastric mobility of Mandarin Vole (Lasiopodomys mandarinus)under different energy demands and supplements.Intragastric pressure and mobility were recorded with the instrument of Powerlab/8sp.Compared with control female,intragastric pressure levels and mobility both showed significantly increased(P<0.05) in fasting female and lactating female.But,compared with lactating female,the intragastric pressure and mobility reduction in fasting female significantly decreased(P<0.05) in fasting for 72 h female.It was concluded that gastrointestinal physiological functions adapt to different energy demands and supplements,and the adaptation mechanism is related to the extent of energy threatening.

Abstract:In order to investigate the relationship between the morphology of digestive tract in Tupaia belangeri from the region of Luquan in Kunming and habitual environment,variations on length and weight of the digestive tract including stomach,small intestine,large intestine,caecum in June(summer) and December(winter) 2008 were measured,respectively.The results showed that the digestive tract characters in T.belangeri had variations between summer and winter.The length and weight of small intestine increased in low ambient temperature and poor food quantity; the weights of organs were largest in winter in T.belangeri. The results of present study indicated that T.belangeri could meet with the environment threats like low ambient temperature,less available of food by altering the length and weight of digestive tract.The change pattern of T.belangeri in summer and winter were suggested that the adjustments in capacity and size of the gastrointestinal tract play an important role in their digestive strategies of T.belangeri in natural environment.

Abstract:To study the effects of high-sucrose and high-fat diet on tubulointerstitial fibrosis,male New Zealand white rabbits(Oryctolagus cuniculus) were randomly divided into two groups:the control group(n=10,fed with normal chow) and the experimental model group(n=10,fed with 37% sugar,10% lard and 53% normal chow).The levels of fasting plasma glucose and triglyceride were tested once a month.Urinary glucose,microalbumin,and N-acetyl-β-glucosaminidase(NAG) were measured at the end of the 5th month.The tubulointerstitial fibrosis index(TIFI) and the area of collagen fiber were calculated in the renal medulla with HE or VG staining respectively.The protein expression of type Ⅳ collagen,fibronectin and transforming growth factor β1(TGF-β1) were determined by immunohistochemical staining.Feeding high-sucrose and high-fat diet to rabbits markedly caused hyperglycaemia,hypertriglyceridemia,albuminuria,glucosuria,and increased urinary NAG levels(P<0.05 or P<0.01).The edema,inflammatory cell infiltration and proliferation of collagen fiber were observed in tubulointerstitium of the experimental model group.The area of collagen fiber 22.47%±5.66% and the grade of TIFI 2.369±0.6734 were significantly higher in the experimental model group than those in the control group(9.43%±3.03% and 0.6810±0.2248,P<0.01,respectively).The protein expression of type Ⅳ collagen,fibronectin and TGF-β1 was significantly increased in renal medulla of the experimental model group compared to that of the control group(P<0.01).Thus,these results suggest that high-sucrose and high-fat diet can injure the tubulointerstitial structure and function,increase the expression of extracellular matrix and accelerate the process of tubulointerstitial fibrosis in rabbits.