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Managing for biodiversity: impact and action thresholds for invasive plants in natural ecosystems
(2017)
Some studies examining the impacts of invasive plant species in native plant communities have demonstrated non-linear damage functions, whereby community components, such as species richness, are seemingly unaffected by the presence of an invader until it has attained relatively high levels of abundance, whereupon there is a marked decrease with further increases in abundance. Given chronic limitations in the resources available for managing invasive species, it has been argued that the most damaging invaders would be controlled most efficiently by maintaining their abundances below such threshold levels. Because many impact studies do not involve sampling over a wide range of invader abundances it is not possible to estimate the prevalence of threshold relationships. Furthermore, studies that have employed appropriate sampling methods have shown that different life forms exhibit different threshold responses, indicating that maintenance management for biodiversity values should be designed to protect the most sensitive species or groups of species. Since control costs increase with invader abundance, economic and ecological considerations are aligned when invaders are sustainably maintained at relatively low abundances. Adopting such an approach should also minimise negative impacts where damage functions are linear.
Die Echte Katzenminze, auch Katzenkraut, Katzenmelisse oder Steinmelisse genannt, ist eine alte Heilpflanze, die bereits von den Römern in Mitteleuropa kultiviert wurde. Ihre Ver-wilderungen gehörten zur typischen Flora der Dörfer, der Umgebung von Klöstern und Gehöften. Die Art tritt aber auch im Siedlungsbereich größerer Städte auf. Sie war in der nordrhein-westfälischen Flora zumindest im letzten Jahrhundert nie häufig und ist heute nur noch sehr selten zu finden (z. B. BECKHAUS 1893, HÖPPNER & PREUSS 1926, RUNGE 1990, HAEUPLER & al. 2003, GORISSEN 2015). Derzeit steht sie landesweit als stark gefährdet auf der Roten Liste (RL 2, RAABE & al. 2011), in einigen Großlandschaften wird sie sogar als "vom Aussterben bedroht" (RL 1) oder "ausgestorben" (RL 0) eingestuft. Dabei muss man aber wissen, dass aktuelle Vorkommen der Echten Katzenminze oft als neophytisch klassifi-ziert und deswegen nicht in der Roten Liste berücksichtigt werden. Hierbei drängt sich die Frage auf, inwiefern sich solche neophytischen Vorkommen überhaupt von anderen Vorkommen unterscheiden.
Robinia pseudoacacia L. (black locust) is a North American tree, considered controversial because of the conflict between multiple uses by humans and negative environmental impacts, which have resulted in it being listed among the most invasive species in Europe. The current management of Robinia stands in Central Europe varies locally according to national legislation, preferring either socio-economic benefits or biodiversity impacts. We collected field data from our target region of Czechia, reviewed research articles including local grey literature mostly from Central and Southern Europe, unpublished results of local projects and inquired relevant specialists. Because Robinia grows in habitats ranging from urban to forest to natural grassland, neither unrestricted cultivation nor large-scale eradication is applicable as a universal practice. In this paper we suggest a complex management strategy for Robinia stands that takes into account habitat, this species’ local ability to spread, as well as economic, cultural and biodiversity aspects. We categorized Robinia stands growing in Europe into eight groups and proposed stratified approach to the management based on decisions that reflect local context. Depending on that, the management includes (i) establishment of new plantations, (ii) maintenance or utilization of existing stands, (iii) tolerance
and (iv) conversion to original vegetation. Our complex management strategy will provide a comprehensive guideline for the management of alien trees in Europe.
This paper presents an analysis of the novel 'Die fremde Frau' by the writer Paul Zifferer (1879-1929) who came from Bystřice pod Hostýnem in Moravian Wallachia. It is a largely unknown, late naturalistic text which addresses national and social issues that were topical at the end of the 19th century. The novel offers a critical reflection on both bourgeois society and national tensions in Moravian Wallachia. It oscillates between conservativism and revolution, between historical authenticity and fiction. Moreover, the analysis shows that German literature from Moravian Wallachia deserves a serious and comprehensive exploration - as does Paul Zifferer's work, especially in the context of German or Austrian naturalism and aesthetic modernism.
Plant parasitic nematodes (PPN) are known to survive periods of desiccation, an ability that increases the risk of them surviving unintentional transport between countries. To investigate nematode survival in soil subject to prolonged storage, soil collected from a native forest and an organic orchard was stored separately in cupboards at ambient temperature for 36 months. Subsamples were taken at 0, 3, 6, 12, 13, 24 and 36 months to determine the presence of plant parasitic and total nematodes using a standard misting technique. Pratylenchus was used as a model to determine if PPNs that had been under prolonged storage were able to infect plant hosts at 13, 24 and 36 months. Overall, the total number of nematodes recovered from stored soil declined over time, with differences in species diversity determined by molecular methods, related to soil origin. No PPN were recovered in soil stored beyond 13 months using the three-day misting technique. By comparison, Pratylenchus nematodes, using a baiting method, were found to successfully invade host plant roots (ryegrass and white clover) even after 36 months storage and were observed to produce offspring at 13 months. Baiting was not effective for Pratylenchus found in soil originally collected from the forest but was for orchard soil, a result attributed to the lack of suitable host plants for the Pratylenchus species found in forest soil. This study demonstrated, that in protected environments, nematodes could survive for at least 36 months and were observed to produce offspring at 13 months. Baiting with a host plant was more sensitive in detecting nematodes than using the misting extraction technique, although this approach only works where the host plant is known. Without a priori knowledge of the nematode-plant host association, plant baiting may also produce false negatives. In the context of plant biosecurity and providing an accurate risk assessment in soil contaminants, the development of a generic test for PPN that induces nematodes in a resting stage to emerge and respond to a cue would enhance the probability of detection. However, as assessments at the border are often time limited, a molecular based bioassay that can be used to indicate the presence of multiple species of live PPN species may be a more feasible option for risk assessments.
In an era of global change, the process of biotic homogenisation by which regional biotas become more similar through time has attracted considerable attention from ecologists. Here, a retrospective look at the literature is taken and the question asked how comprehensive is the understanding of this global phenomenon? The goal is to identify potential areas for additional and future enquiries to advance this research frontier and best ensure the long-term preservation of biological diversity across the world. Six propositions are presented here to; (1) broaden our geographic and taxonomic understanding, (2) diversify the spatial and temporal scales of inquiry, (3) reconcile past and embrace new approaches to quantification, (4) improve our knowledge of the underlying drivers, (5) reveal the conservation implications and (6) forecast future homogenisation. It is argued that significant progress in the understanding of the causes, consequences and conservation implication of biotic homogenisation will come by integrating concepts and approaches from ecology, evolution and conservation across a hierarchy of spatial and temporal scales.
The paper provides an updated checklist of the alien flora of Turkey with information on its structure. The alien flora of Turkey comprises 340 taxa, among which there are 321 angiosperms, 17 gymnosperms and two ferns. Of the total number of taxa, 228 (68%) are naturalized and 112 (32%) are casual. There are 275 neophytes (172 naturalized and 103 casual) and 61 archaeophytes (52 naturalized and 9 casual); four species could not be classified with respect to the residence time. In addition, 47 frequently planted taxa with a potential to escape are also listed. The richest families are Asteraceae (38 taxa), Poaceae (30), Fabaceae (23) and Solanaceae (22). As for the naturalized alien plants, the highest species richness is found in Asteraceae (31 taxa), Poaceae (22), Amaranthaceae (18) and Solanaceae (15). The majority of alien taxa are perennial (63.8% of the total number of taxa with this life history assigned, including those with multiple life histories), annuals contribute 33.8% and 2.4% are biennial aliens. Among perennials the most common life forms are phanerophytes, of which 20.3% are trees and 12.6% shrubs; woody vines, stem succulents, and aquatic plants are comparatively less represented. Most of the 340 alien taxa introduced to Turkey have their native ranges in Americas (44.7%) and Asia (27.6%). Of other regions, 9.1% originated in Africa, 4.4% in Eurasia, 3.8% in Australia and Oceania and 3.5% in the Mediterranean. The majority of taxa (71.9%) were introduced intentionally, whereas the remaining (28.1%) were introduced accidentally. Among the taxa introduced intentionally, the vast majority are ornamental plants (55.2%), 10.0% taxa were introduced for forestry and 6.7% as crops. Casual alien plants are most commonly found in urban and ruderal habitats (40.1%) where naturalized taxa are also often recorded (27.3%). Plants that occur as agricultural weeds are typically naturalized rather than casual (16.0% vs 7.1%, respectively). However, (semi)natural habitats in Turkey are often invaded by alien taxa, especially by those that are able to naturalize.
Previously, we have synthesized a diverse range of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA)-based semiaromatic polyamides via enzymatic polymerization. This novel class of polymers are biobased alternatives to polyphthalamides, which are petrol-based semiaromatic polyamides. From a commercial perspective, they have interesting properties as high-performance materials and engineering thermoplastics. It is even more appealing to explore novel FDCA-based polyamides with added functionality, for the development of sustainable functional materials. Here, a set of FDCA-based heteroatom polyamides have been successfully produced via Novozyme 435 (N435)-catalyzed polymerization of biobased dimethyl 2,5-furandicarboxylate with (potentially)heteroatom diamines, namely, 4,9-dioxa-1,12-dodecanediamine (DODA), diethylenetriamine, and 3,3-ethylenediiminopropylamine. We performed the enzymatic polymerization in solution and bulk. The latter approach is more sustainable and results in higher molecular weight products. Among the tested heteroatom diamines, N435 shows the highest catalytic activity toward DODA. Furthermore, we find that all obtained FDCA-based heteroatom polyamides are amorphous materials with a relatively high thermal stability. These heteroatom polyamides display a glass-transition temperature ranging from 41 to 107 °C.
Alien plants were first recorded in 1937 in the 2 million ha Kruger National Park (KNP, a savanna protected area in South Africa), and attempts to control them began in the mid-1950s. The invasive alien plant control program expanded substantially in the late 1990s, but its overall efficacy has not been determined. We present an assessment of invasive alien plant control operations over several decades in KNP. We based our assessment on available information from a range of control programs funded from various sources, including national public works programs, KNP operational funds, and foreign donor funds. Over ZAR 350 million (~ US$ 27 million) has been spent on control interventions between 1997 and 2016. We found evidence of good progress with the control of several species, notably Opuntia stricta, Sesbania punicea, Lantana camara and several aquatic weeds, often because of effective biological control. On the other hand, we found that over one third (40%) of the funding was spent on species that have subsequently been recognised as being of lower priority, most of which were alien annual weeds. The allocation of funds to non-priority species was sometimes driven by the need to meet additional objectives (such as employment creation), or by perceptions about relative impact in the absence of documented evidence. We also found that management goals were limited to inputs (funds disbursed, employment created, and area treated) rather than to ecological outcomes, and progress was consequently not adequately monitored. At a species level, four out of 36 species were considered to be under complete control, and a further five were under substantial control. Attempts to control five annual species were all considered to be ineffective. On the basis of our findings, we recommend that more studies be done to determine impacts associated with individual invasive alien species; that the criteria used to prioritise invasive alien species be documented based on such assessments, so that management can justify a focus on priority species; and that funding be re-directed to those species that clearly pose greater threats, and for which other solutions (such as biological control) are not an option.
This paper analyzes serpentine figures in Eichendorff's novella 'Das Marmorbild', which are inscribed in the body of Venus in the mannerist style. These figurae serpentinatae gradually gain dynamism, move into the foreground of attention, and then condense into repulsive snake figures which evoke associations of the cunning snake of the Garden of Eden, the serpents on the back of the Frau Welt figure, and the fearsome Echidna of Greek mythology. These allusions also characterize the art which Venus represents as something abysmal and threatening. The multiple contextualization of the snake also reveals that 'Das Marmorbild' offers a double reading: in the narrower sense, Venus can be viewed as a representation of Romantic art, while in the wider sense she personifies art in general.
Fibroblasts were isolated from skin biopsies from two patients with bipolar I disorder. One patient was a 26 year old female carrying a risk haplotype in the DGKH (diacylglycerol kinase eta) gene and the other was a non-carrier 27 year old male. Patient fibroblasts were reprogrammed into human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) by using a Sendai virus vector. DGKH-risk haplotype and non-risk haplotype hiPSCs showed expression of pluripotency markers and were able to differentiate into cells of the three germ layers. These cell models are useful to investigate the role of risk gene variants in bipolar disorder.
Radiographic outcomes following lateral alveolar ridge augmentation using autogenous tooth roots
(2018)
Background: To assess and compare the radiographic outcomes following lateral alveolar ridge augmentation using autogenous tooth roots (TR) and autogenous bone (AB) blocks.
Methods: In a total of 30 patients, lateral ridge augmentation was conducted in parallel groups using either (1) healthy autogenous tooth roots (e.g., retained wisdom or impacted teeth) (n = 15) or (2) cortical autogenous bone blocks harvested from the retromolar area. Cone-beam computed tomographic (CBCT) scans taken at 26 weeks of submerged healing were analyzed for the basal graft integration (i.e., contact between the graft and the host bone in %) (BI26) and the cross-sectional grafted area (mm2) (SA26).
Results: Both groups revealed a comparable clinical width of the alveolar ridge at baseline (CWb). Mean BI26 and SA26 values amounted to 69.26 ± 26.01% (median 72.44) and 22.07 ± 12.98 mm2 (median 18.83) in the TR group and 79.67 ± 15.66% (median 78.85) and 12.42 ± 10.11 mm2 (median 11.36) in the AB group, respectively. Between-group differences in mean SA26 values were statistically significant (p = 0.031). Linear regression analysis failed to reveal any significant correlations between BI26 and CWb/SA26 values in either group.
Conclusions: TR grafts may be associated with improved SA26 values following lateral alveolar ridge augmentation.
Trial registration: DRKS00009586. Registered 10 February 2016.
Site-specific recombinases (SSR) are utilized as important genome engineering tools to precisely modify the genome of mice and other model organisms. Reporter mice that mark cells that at any given time had expressed the enzyme are frequently used for lineage tracing and to characterize newly generated mice expressing a recombinase from a chosen promoter. With increasing sophistication of genome alteration strategies, the demand for novel SSR systems that efficiently and specifically recombine their targets is rising and several SSR-systems are now used in combination to address complex biological questions in vivo. Generation of reporter mice for each one of these recombinases is cumbersome and increases the number of mouse lines that need to be maintained in animal facilities. Here we present a multi-reporter mouse line for loci-of-recombination (X) (MuX) that streamlines the characterization of mice expressing prominent recombinases. MuX mice constitutively express nuclear green fluorescent protein after recombination by either Cre, Flp, Dre or Vika recombinase, rationalizing the number of animal lines that need to be maintained. We also pioneer the use of the Vika/vox system in mice, illustrating its high efficacy and specificity, thereby facilitating future designs of sophisticated recombinase-based in vivo genome engineering strategies.
Detecting associations between genomic changes and phenotypic differences is fundamental to understanding how phenotypes evolved. By systematically screening for parallel amino acid substitutions, we detected known as well as novel cases (Strc, Tecta, and Cabp2) of parallelism between echolocating bats and toothed whales in proteins that could contribute to high-frequency hearing adaptations. Our screen also showed that echolocating mammals exhibit an unusually high number of parallel substitutions in fast-twitch muscle fiber proteins. Both echolocating bats and toothed whales produce an extremely rapid call rate when homing in on their prey, which was shown in bats to be powered by specialized superfast muscles. We show that these genes with parallel substitutions (Casq1, Atp2a1, Myh2, and Myl1) are expressed in the superfast sound-producing muscle of bats. Furthermore, we found that the calcium storage protein calsequestrin 1 of the little brown bat and the bottlenose dolphin functionally converged in its ability to form calcium-sequestering polymers at lower calcium concentrations, which may contribute to rapid calcium transients required for superfast muscle physiology. The proteins that our genomic screen detected could be involved in the convergent evolution of vocalization in echolocating mammals by potentially contributing to both rapid Ca2+ transients and increased shortening velocities in superfast muscles.
The 'Deutsche Referenzkorpus (DeReKo)' of the Mannheimer Institut für Deutsche Sprache currently contains over 28 billion words, and it is constantly being expanded. The sheer size of the corpus makes it impractical for researchers to analyze its entire content. On the other hand, the DeReKo offers the possibility of taking seriously the principle that every research project needs its own corpus - by acting as a 'reference corpus' that can be used in combination with special corpora. This paper addresses the question of whether a corpus should contain complete texts or only statistically relevant extracts; it also discusses the uses and necessity of 'small corpora'.
During the NEOBIOTA conference 2010 in Copenhagen (see http://www.neobiota.eu/conferences for an overview of all conferences), the attendants decided to transform the serial of the European Group on Biological Invasions Neobiota, edited by Ingo Kowarik and Uwe Starfinger, into an international, open access journal. In the following year, NeoBiota was relaunched under the same name, but with an upper case 'B', by Pensoft Publishers. In the editorial of the first issue, a large group of co-editors claimed for openness in covering a broad range of issues in invasion science, including the intersections with applied and social sciences, and referring to different groups of taxa and geographical regions (Kühn et al. 2011). What happened since then? We think that it is now time to shortly reflect how the new NeoBiota journal has developed in the first years of its infancy – based on some data on the published papers, the addressed topics and the geographical background of our contributing authors.
Lianas are prevalent in gaps and edges of forests where they compete intensely with trees, reducing growth and recruitment. Invasive lianas have the potential to be particularly harmful as the competitive advantage of the liana life history may be coupled with the more competitive qualities of invasiveness. However, in early stages of growth of lianas and native tree seedlings, facilitatory interactions or competitive interactions associated with soil nutrients may be more prevalent. We investigated interactions at the early stages of growth between native and invasive lianas with a common rainforest tree of temperate Australian rainforests under different light conditions. Invasive lianas, as a group, were not more competitive than native lianas in reducing growth of a native rainforest seedling. At this stage in the life cycle most lianas were as competitive as a conspecific seedling. However, one invasive liana, Anredera cordifolia, was particularly competitive and reduced biomass of tree seedlings. Light had little effect on growth of lianas nor on the impact of competition, however, specific leaf area differed between low and medium light conditions.
Moderate light did improve growth in the rainforest tree seedling. When lianas were grown with a rainforest tree, three liana species overyielded, while one species was unaffected by growing with the tree seedling. Overyielding suggests a strong positive interaction with the neighbouring plant, mediated through belowground processes. We discuss the potential for these interactions to be facilitative, parasitic or competitive. We therefore show that interactions early in the life of rainforest species can be complex mixtures of interactions which are likely to influence the ability of lianas to dominate rainforests.
Functional traits are useful for comparing the resource use of invasive and native species, with goals of identifying resource overlap to predict competitive interactions. The invasion of northeastern North America by the woodwasp Sirex noctilio has resulted in competition with the native congeneric Sirex nigricornis for suppressed and weakened pines. We compared sizes of adults, venom glands, fecundity, tree species use, voltinism and abundance of the invasive woodwasp S. noctilio with the native S. nigricornis in northeastern North American pines. Rearing adults from attacked pines showed that these species used the same tree species but S. noctilio were far more abundant, especially with increasing time since establishment. Adults of the invasive S. noctilio were larger than S. nigricornis, female S. noctilio had larger glands carrying phytotoxic venom in relation to body size, average-sized S. noctilio females carried more eggs, and S. noctilio developed faster than S. nigricornis. Sirex noctilio was the dominant woodwasp infesting suppressed pines in our study areas. We hypothesize that the future abundance of S. nigricornis could depend in part on the availability of wood for oviposition by this native that is not available or acceptable to the earlier-emerging S. noctilio.
Background: In Germany, patients suffering from life-limiting conditions are eligible for specialized outpatient palliative care (SOPC). Evaluation of the quality of this service lacks currently integration of patient-relevant outcomes. There is also no scientific consensus how to prove quality of care in the special context of SOPC adequately. Existing quality reports are primarily based on descriptive structural data which do not allow for estimation of process quality or result quality. The ELSAH study ("Evaluation of Specialized Outpatient Palliative Care in the German state of Hesse") aims to choose - or, if necessary, to adopt - to evaluate and to implement a suit of measures to assess, evaluate and monitor the quality of specialized, home-based palliative care.
Methods: All 22 SOPC teams providing their services in the state of Hesse, Germany, participate in the ELSAH study. The study is divided in two phases: a preparation phase and a main study phase. Based on the findings of the preparation phase we have chosen a preliminary set of instruments including the Integrated Palliative Outcome Scale, Views on Care, Zarit Burden Interview, Phase of Illness, Goal Attainment Scaling, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status, Consumer Quality Indices Palliative Care and Sense of Security in Care. During the main study phase, we will use a mixed-methods approach to evaluate the instruments’ psychometric properties (reliability, validity, feasibility and practicability), to identify barriers, facilitators and limitations of their routine use and to explore how their use affects the care within the SOPC setting.
Discussion: At the end of this study, an outcome- and patient-centered, validated measurement approach should be provided, adapted for standardized evaluations in SOPC across patient groups, palliative care services and regions nationwide. The standardized application of instruments should allow for making valid statements and comparisons of health care quality in SOPC based on process- and outcome-evaluation rather than relying on structural data only. Moreover, the instruments might directly influence the care of patients in palliative situations.
Trial registration: German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS-ID: DRKS00012421).
Background: Many gene variants modulate the individual perception of pain and possibly also its persistence. The limited selection of single functional variants is increasingly being replaced by analyses of the full coding and regulatory sequences of pain-relevant genes accessible by means of next generation sequencing (NGS).
Methods: An NGS panel was created for a set of 77 human genes selected following different lines of evidence supporting their role in persisting pain. To address the role of these candidate genes, we established a sequencing assay based on a custom AmpliSeqTM panel to assess the exomic sequences in 72 subjects of Caucasian ethnicity. To identify the systems biology of the genes, the biological functions associated with these genes were assessed by means of a computational over-representation analysis.
Results: Sequencing generated a median of 2.85 ⋅ 106 reads per run with a mean depth close to 200 reads, mean read length of 205 called bases and an average chip loading of 71%. A total of 3,185 genetic variants were called. A computational functional genomics analysis indicated that the proposed NGS gene panel covers biological processes identified previously as characterizing the functional genomics of persisting pain.
Conclusion: Results of the NGS assay suggested that the produced nucleotide sequences are comparable to those earned with the classical Sanger sequencing technique. The assay is applicable for small to large-scale experimental setups to target the accessing of information about any nucleotide within the addressed genes in a study cohort.