Land Use and Bobwhite Populations in an Agricultural System in West Tennessee

The efficacy of a computer assisted habitat evaluation system (IMGRID: Information Management on a GRID cell system) was tested on Ames Plantation in west Tennessee. Habitat characteristics and bobwhite (Colinus virginiana) population size were compared to delineate the effect of land use changes on bobwhites. Significant changes in land use occurred. Pastures decreased from 120.4 ha in 1966 to 35.0 ha in 1980, while soybeans increased from 102.4 to 193. 1 ha. Idle land decreased from 212.9 ha to 178.6 between 1966 and 1980. Bobwhite population size was negatively correlated with the area maintained in soybeans (r = -0.63) and positively correlated with pastures (r = 0.76) and idle land (r = O. 76). Multiple component analyses indicated highest use by bobwhites of (1) areas where idle land, forests, and agriculture came within close proximity, (2) areas near food plots, and (3) idle land alone. Single component analyses identified high use by bobwhites of idle land, wild herbaceous vegetation, and food plots. Within forests or idle land, bobwhites preferred areas containing honeysuckle

Polymorphisms of the Tumor Suppressor Gene LSAMP are Associated with Left Main Coronary Artery Disease

Previous association mapping on chromosome 3q13-21 detected evidence for association at the limbic system-associated membrane protein (LSAMP) gene in individuals with late-onset coronary artery disease (CAD). LSAMP has never been implicated in the pathogenesis of CAD. We sought to thoroughly characterize the association and the gene. Non-redundant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across the gene were examined in an initial dataset (168 cases with late-onset CAD, 149 controls). Stratification analysis on left main CAD (N = 102) revealed stronger association, which was further validated in a validation dataset (141 cases with left main CAD, 215 controls), a third control dataset (N = 255), and a family-based dataset (N = 2954). A haplotype residing in a novel alternative transcript of the LSAMP gene was significant in all independent case-control datasets (p = 0.0001 to 0.0205) and highly significant in the joint analysis (p = 0.00004). Lower expression of the novel alternative transcript was associated with the risk haplotype (p = 0.0002) and atherosclerosis burden in human aortas (p = 0.0001). Furthermore, silencing LSAMP expression in human aortic smooth muscle cells (SMCs) substantially augmented SMC proliferation (p<0.01). Therefore, the risk conferred by the LSAMP haplotype appears to be mediated by LSAMP down-regulation, which may promote SMC proliferation in the arterial wall and progression of atherosclerosis