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opencc-zeroDec 2016View details →

Data from: Fitness in invasive social wasps: the role of variation in viral load, immune response and paternity in predicting nest size and reproductive output

Within any one habitat, the relative fitness of organisms in a population can vary substantially. Social insects like the common wasp are among the most successful invasive animals, but show enormous variation in nest size and other fitness-related traits. Some of this variation may be caused by pathogens such as viruses that can have serious consequences in social insects, which range from reduced productivity to colony death. Both individual immune responses and colony-level traits such as genetic diversity are likely to influence effects of pathogen infections on colony fitness. Here we investigate how infections with Kashmir Bee Virus (KBV), immune response and intracolony genetic diversity (due to queen polyandry) affect nest size in the invasive common wasp, Vespula vulgaris. We show that KBV is highly prevalent in wasps and expression of antiviral immune genes is significantly increased with higher viral loads across individuals. Patriline membership within a nest did not influence KBV susceptibility or immune response. A permutational MANCOVA revealed that polyandry, viral load, and expression of the immune gene Dicer were significant predictors of variation in nest size. High intracolony genetic diversity due to polyandry has previously been hypothesized to improve colony-level resistance to parasites and pathogens. Consistent with this hypothesis, we observed genetically diverse colonies to be significantly larger and to produce more queens, although this effect was not driven by the pathogen we investigated. Invasive wasps clearly suffer from pathogens and expend resources, as indicated here by elevated immune gene expression, toward reducing pathogen-impact on colony fitness.

opencc-zeroDec 2013View details →

Data from: Demographic responses of rare forest plants to multiple stressors: the role of deer, invasive species and nutrients

Forest ecosystems in eastern North America face multiple threats or stressors including plant and animal invasions and increased white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) herbivory. While each stressor may have independent detrimental effects on native biota, stressors often co-occur and are likely to have interactive effects. Despite recognition that concurrent processes drive plant demographic responses, few studies evaluate independent and combined effect of stressors. Using a network of 12 sites that varied in non-native plant cover and introduced earthworm density and biomass we experimentally assessed effects of deer exclusion (30 x 30 m paired plots), slug exclusion and nutrient addition on survival, growth and fecundity of four rare forest understorey plant species (Aristolochia serpentaria L., Agrimonia rostellata Wallr., Carex retroflexa Muhl. ex Willd, and Trillium erectum L). We found that single and combined effects of stressors were species-specific and varied according to plant stage and demographic parameter. Interactions were prevalent among all studied stressors and, for most cases, did not follow predicted responses. We found detrimental deer herbivory effects on reproductive A. rostellata and non-consumptive effects on A. serpentaria and T. erectum. Negative deer effects follow underlying predictions, and override effects of other stressors, even when other concurrent processes are at play. Contrary to expectations, we did not find negative effects of non-native plants. Earthworms had positive effects on A. rostellata and C. retroflexa (especially when deer were excluded), but negative effects on T. erectum. Slug effects were dependent on other stressors, especially on interactions with non-native plants and earthworms. Nutrient addition had a negative effect on survival of A. serpentaria and T. erectum, but positive effects on C. retroflexa and T. erectum growth. Synthesis: We found prevalent but unpredictable interactions among all study factors and plant species. Negative direct and indirect deer effects overrode impacts of all other stressors we investigated. A multi-factor approach is critical to predict plant responses to concurrent environmental forces. Assessment of combined effects should form an essential component of subsequent research on plant demography and management of declining species.

opencc-zeroDec 2012View details →

Data from: Sex-specific responses to sexual familiarity, and the role of olfaction in Drosophila

Studies of mating preferences have largely neglected the potential effects of individuals encountering their previous mates ('directly sexually familiar'), or new mates that share similarities to previous mates, e.g. from the same family and/or environment ('phenotypically sexually familiar'). Here, we show that male and female Drosophila melanogaster respond to the direct and phenotypic sexual familiarity of potential mates in fundamentally different ways. We exposed a single focal male or female to two potential partners. In the first experiment, one potential partner was novel (not previously encountered) and one was directly familiar (their previous mate); in the second experiment, one potential partner was novel (unrelated, and from a different environment from the previous mate) and one was phenotypically familiar (from the same family and rearing environment as the previous mate). We found that males preferentially courted novel females over directly or phenotypically familiar females. In contrast, females displayed a weak preference for directly and phenotypically familiar males over novel males. Sex-specific responses to the familiarity of potential mates were significantly weaker or absent in Orco1 mutants, which lack a co-receptor essential for olfaction, indicating a role for olfactory cues in mate choice over novelty. Collectively, our results show that direct and phenotypic sexual familiarity is detected through olfactory cues and play an important role in sex-specific sexual behaviour.

opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →

Data from: Teasing apart plant community responses to N enrichment: the roles of resource limitation, competition and soil microbes

Although ecologists have documented the effects of nitrogen enrichment on productivity, diversity and species composition, we know little about the relative importance of the mechanisms driving these effects. We propose that distinct aspects of environmental change associated with N enrichment (resource limitation, asymmetric competition, and interactions with soil microbes) drive different aspects of plant response. We test this in greenhouse mesocosms, experimentally manipulating each factor across three ecosystems: tallgrass prairie, alpine tundra and desert grassland. We found that resource limitation controlled productivity responses to N enrichment in all systems. Asymmetric competition was responsible for diversity declines in two systems. Plant community composition was impacted by both asymmetric competition and altered soil microbes, with some contributions from resource limitation. Results suggest there may be generality in the mechanisms of plant community change with N enrichment. Understanding these links can help us better predict N response across a wide range of ecosystems.

opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →

Data from: Patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning: species-level responses and the critical role of species traits

Overgrazing has resulted in widespread decline in biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in grasslands worldwide in recent decades. However, few studies have examined the patterns and thresholds of grazing-induced changes in community structure and ecosystem functioning along a grazing gradient and based on species-level responses and plant functional traits. To identify the thresholds of grazing intensity at both species and community levels, we conducted a grazing manipulation experiment with seven levels of grazing intensity (0–9 sheep ha-1) and two topographies (flat versus slope) in a typical steppe. Four plant functional traits were measured, including specific leaf area (SLA), plant height, leaf nitrogen content (LNC) and stem: leaf ratio (SLR). The threshold of grazing intensity that significantly altered community composition was at 3.75 sheep ha-1 for the flat system and 3.0 sheep ha-1 for the slope system. For both flat and slope systems, the threshold grazing intensity for changes in primary productivity was at 3.0 sheep ha-1, beyond which the productivity decreased substantially. At species level, the abundances of common species, most of which are perennial grasses, declined at moderate grazing intensities (3.0–4.5 sheep ha-1). The abundances of most rare species, which are perennial forbs, declined at low grazing intensities (1.5–3.0 sheep ha-1). Specific leaf area and leaf nitrogen content are good predictors of species-level responses to grazing. Low SLA and high LNC species are negatively affected by high grazing intensity, while high SLA and low LNC species are little affected by grazing. The negative effect of grazing intensity on species abundance was greater in the slope system than in the flat system. Synthesis and applications. Our results indicate that the structural and functioning thresholds of grazing intensity depend on plant traits and species composition, which is mediated by topographic location. These findings, integrating plant functional traits and threshold approaches, have important implications for determining sustainable grazing intensity in grassland management and biodiversity conservation in semi-arid regions.

opencc-by-4.0Nov 2023View details →

Dataset related to the paper "Role of enhancement modifications in evaluating tumor response to immunotherapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma"

Dataset related to the paper "Role of enhancement modifications in evaluating tumor response to immunotherapy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma"

opencc-zeroSep 2022View details →

Dataset of Rapid adaptive responses of rosette-type macrophyte Vallisneria natans juveniles to varying water depths: The role of leaf trait plasticity

Rosette-type submerged macrophytes are widely distributed across a range of water depths in shallow lakes and play a key role in maintaining ecosystem structures and functions. However, little is known about the rapid adaptive responses of such macrophytes to variations in water depth, especially at the juvenile stage. Here, we conducted a short term in situ mesocosm experiment, in which the juveniles of Vallisneria natans were exposed to a water depth gradient ranging from 20 to 360 cm. Twenty-two leaf-related traits were examined after four weeks of growth in a shallow lake. Most (18) traits of V. natans generally showed high plasticity in relation to water depth. Specifically, juveniles allocated more biomass to leaves, and had higher specific leaf area, leaf length to width ratio, chlorophyll content, and carotenoids content in deep waters, displaying trait syndrome associated with high resource acquisition. In contrast, V. natans juveniles in shallow waters had higher leaf dry matter content, leaf soluble carbohydrate content, carotenoids per unit chlorophyll, and peroxidase activity, pertaining to resource conservation. Notably, underwater light intensity was found to be the key factor explaining the trait plasticity along the water depth gradient, and 1.30 mol photons m–2 d–1 (at 270 cm) could be the optimal irradience level based on the total biomass of V. natans juveniles. The present study highlights the significance of leaf trait plasticity for rosette-type macrophytes in response to variations in water depth, and sheds new light on the differences between trade-offs in deep- and shallow-water areas.

opencc-by-4.0Jun 2024View details →

Roles of the Labrador Current in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation responses to greenhouse warming

This archive contains data and MATLAB code used to generate figures in the paper "Roles of the Labrador Current in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation responses to greenhouse warming".

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2024View details →

Data sets and code for Sullivan and Koski "The role of photosynthetic response to environmental variation in shaping an elevational cline in leaf variegation"

Open the record for dataset details and reuse information.

opencc-zeroSep 2021View details →

Changes in body surface temperature play an under-appreciated role in the avian immune response

Fever and hypothermia are well characterized components of systemic inflammation. However, our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying such changes in body temperature is largely limited to rodent models and other mammalian species. In mammals, high dosages of an inflammatory agent (e.g., lipopolysaccharide, LPS) typically leads to hypothermia (decrease in body temperature below normothermic levels), which is largely driven by a reduction in thermogenesis, and not changes in peripheral vasomotion (i.e., changes in blood vessel tone). In birds, however, hypothermia occurs frequently, even at lower dosages, but the thermoeffector mechanisms associated with the response remain unknown. We immune-challenged zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) with LPS and monitored changes in subcutaneous temperature and energy balance (i.e., body mass, food intake), and assessed surface temperatures of, and heat loss across, the eye region, bill, and legs. We hypothesized that if birds employ similar thermoregulatory mechanisms to similarly-sized mammals, LPS-injected individuals would reduce subcutaneous body temperature and maintain constant surface temperatures when compared with saline-injected individuals. Instead, LPS-injected individuals showed a slight elevation in body temperature, and this response coincided with a reduction in peripheral heat loss, particularly across the legs, as opposed to changes in energy balance. However, we note that our interpretations should be taken with caution due to small sample sizes within each treatment. We suggest that peripheral vasomotion, allowing for heat retention, is an underappreciated component of the sickness-induced thermoregulatory response of small birds.

Fig. 4 in Identification of TabZIP family members with possible roles in the response to auxin in wheat roots

Fig. 4. Phylogenetic analysis, gene structure, and conserved motifs in bZIP genes from T. Aestivum, Arabidopsis and O. sativa. A: The phylogenetic tree was constructed based on the full-length sequences of bZIP proteins using MEGA7 software. Different clusters are shown in different colours. B: The motif composition of bZIP proteins. Motifs 1 to 10 are displayed by different coloured boxes. C: Exon-intron structure of bZIP genes. Green boxes indicate untranslated 5′ and 3′ regions, and yellow boxes indicate exons. Black lines indicate introns, and the number indicates the phases of corresponding introns. The length of the protein can be estimated using the scale at the bottom. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the Web version of this article.)

Fig. 3 in Identification of TabZIP family members with possible roles in the response to auxin in wheat roots

Fig. 3. Phylogenetic analysis of bZIP genes from T. Aestivum, Arabidopsis and O. sativa. The different-coloured arcs indicate different groups (or subgroups) of bZIP genes. The black solid triangles represent bZIP genes with 'At' and 'Os' prefixes from Arabidopsis and rice, respectively. The coloured stars represent TabZIP genes differentially expressed under two concentrations of IAA.

Fig. 6 in Identification of TabZIP family members with possible roles in the response to auxin in wheat roots

Fig. 6. Statistical analysis of primary root elongation among wild-type (Ws), hy5 mutant, and TabZIP6D_147/hy5 complementary lines. Seeds were grown in 1/2 MS plates supplemented with 0, 1, and 50 μM IAA for 1 week. Three independent biological replicates for each genotype were performed. Asterisks indicate significant differences between wild-type and mutant or complementary lines at the p <0.01 level (t-test).

Fig. 1 in Identification of TabZIP family members with possible roles in the response to auxin in wheat roots

Fig. 1. Phenotypes and numbers of differentially expressed genes of T. aestivum cv. Chinese Spring roots under 1 and 50 μM IAA. A: Two-day wheat seedlings before treatments. B: Seven-day wheat seedlings under 1 and 50 μM IAA. C: Statistical data of root length in B. Double asterisks above bars indicate significant differences between the control and treatment groups at the p <0.01 level (t-test). D: Venn diagram of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under 1 and 50 μM IAA.

Fig. 4 in Suspension cell secretome of the grain legume Lathyrus sativus (grasspea) reveals roles in plant development and defense responses

Fig. 4. Physicochemical assessment of the grasspea suspension secretome (GSS), including pI (A), molecular weight (in kDa) (B), and hydrophilicity (C), with respect to MSS, DSS and LSS (MSS corresponds to the monocot suspension secretome, DSS to the dicot suspension secretome and LSS to the lower plant suspension secretome).

Fig. 2 in Suspension cell secretome of the grain legume Lathyrus sativus (grasspea) reveals roles in plant development and defense responses

Fig. 2. Generation of grasspea calli, establishment of suspension culture and isolation of the grasspea suspension secretome (GSS). (A) Root-cut and shoot-cut embryo axes were employed for the generation of 4-week-old calli, which were bulked together in a suspension culture. (B) Microscopic examination of suspension cells and viability assessment using Evans blue (left panel) and FDA (right panel). (C) Quantitative analysis of physicochemical properties including changes in pH in the suspension culture, fresh weight (FW), dry weight (DW), soluble sugars and total protein. (D) Protein SDS-PAGE profile of the grasspea secretome. Lane 1 represents the molecular weight marker (MW). Purity evaluation of grasspea secreted fraction using (E) catalase activity and (F) western blotting with anti-RbcL (Supplementary Fig. S1). Relative catalase activities are presented as mean ± SE of triplicate experiments.

Fig. 3 in Suspension cell secretome of the grain legume Lathyrus sativus (grasspea) reveals roles in plant development and defense responses

Fig. 3. Overview of total grasspea suspension secreted (GSS) proteins and prediction of mode of secretion and (A) localization using multiple tools (B). Comparison of shared and distinct GSS proteins, first (C) with respect to total in vitro secretome (IVS) and in planta secretome (IPS) and second (D) compared to the in vitro suspension culture secretome reported in monocots, dicots, and lower plants, abbreviated as MSS, DSS and LSS, respectively (MSS corresponds to monocot suspension secretome, DSS to dicot suspension secretome and LSS to lower plant suspension secretome).

Fig. 1 in Suspension cell secretome of the grain legume Lathyrus sativus (grasspea) reveals roles in plant development and defense responses

Fig. 1. Schematic representation of the experimental design and workflow of the establishment of the grasspea suspension secretome (GSS). Proteomic profiling was accomplished by generating suspension culture and sequential assessment of physicochemical properties and protein identification.

Fig. 6 in Suspension cell secretome of the grain legume Lathyrus sativus (grasspea) reveals roles in plant development and defense responses

Fig. 6. Localization validation of endochitinase (S597) and G-type lectin S-receptor-like serine threonine kinase (S718). The panels include (A) expression of YFPtagged S597 in onion epidermal cells, (B) plasmolysis of S597-transformed onion peel (C), expression of YFP-tagged S718 in onion peel cells and (D) plasmolyzed onion peel cells expressing YFP-tagged S718. A pSITE3CA empty vector control was also monitored besides the target genes (E).