Vertically Stratified Ash-Limb Beetle Fauna in Northern Ohio

To better understand the diversity and ecology of indigenous arthropods at risk from the invasive emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire) in North American forests, saproxylic beetles (Insecta: Coleoptera) were reared from ash (Fraxinus sp.) limbs suspended in the canopy, ~10–17 m above the ground, and from those placed on the ground in a mature mixed hardwood forest. In total, 209 specimens from 9 families and 18 species were collected from 30.0 m2 of limbs. The generalist cerambycid Neoclytus acuminatus (Fabricius) was the most commonly captured taxon, followed by an assemblage of four exotic ambrosia beetles dominated by Xylosandrus crassiusculus (Motschulsky). Two species largely or entirely restricted to ash, the buprestid Agrilus subcinctus Gory and the curculionid Hylesinus aculeatus (Say), were collected as well. Although there were no differences in beetle richness, abundance, or density between limb positions, community composition differed significantly. This can be largely attributed to phloem and wood-feeding species (i.e., Cerambycidae and Buprestidae) being more common in the suspended limbs and ambrosia beetles being more numerous on the forest floor. Possible explanations for these patterns are discussed

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Pedobiologia- International Journal of Soil Biology

jo u rn al homepage: www.elsevier.de/pedobi Impacts of emerald ash borer-induced tree mortality on leaf litter arthropods an

Ornamental plants, 1983: a summary of research

Capital requirements for establishing container nurseries in Ohio - 1982 / Harold H. Kneen, Reed D. Taylor, David E. Hahn, and Elton M. Smith -- Production costs of operating container nurseries in Ohio - 1982 / Harold H. Kneen, Reed D. Taylor, David E. Hahn, and Elton M. Smith -- Pigmented polyethylene films for nursery crop storage / John A. Wynstra and Elton M. Smith -- Micropropagation of Ajuga reptans 'Burgundy Glow' / R. Daniel Lineberger and Audrey Wanstreet -- Effects of fertilizer in the propagation medium and extended photoperiod on growth of Acer rubrum 'Red Sunset' cuttings / Steven M. Still and Bryce H. Lane -- Area of weed control from a single herbicide tablet / M. A. Ruizzo, E. M. Smith, and S. F. Gorske -- Slow release herbicide formulations for container grown landscape crops / M. A. Ruizzo, E. M. Smith, and S. F. Gorske -- Effects of pre-emergence herbicides on selected herbaceous perennials / Elton M. Smith, Gary Gibson, and Sharon A. Treaster -- Controlling weeds in garden lily, gladiolus, and dahlia with pre-emergence herbicides / Elton M. Smith and Sharon A. Treaster -- Root pruning landscape plants produced on sand capillary beds / Elton M. Smith and Sharon A. Treaster -- Genetic variation in wound response among cultivars of Acer platanoides L. / Peter W. Gallagher and T. Davis Sydnor -- A preliminary host preference study for fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea Drury) / T. Davis Sydnor and Daniel Herms -- Evaluation of flowering crabapple susceptibility to apple scab in Ohio - 1982 / Elton M. Smit

Psychiatric genome-wide association study analyses implicate neuronal, immune and histone pathways

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of psychiatric disorders have identified multiple genetic associations with such disorders, but better methods are needed to derive the underlying biological mechanisms that these signals indicate. We sought to identify biological pathways in GWAS data from over 60,000 participants from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium. We developed an analysis framework to rank pathways that requires only summary statistics. We combined this score across disorders to find common pathways across three adult psychiatric disorders: schizophrenia, major depression and bipolar disorder. Histone methylation processes showed the strongest association, and we also found statistically significant evidence for associations with multiple immune and neuronal signaling pathways and with the postsynaptic density. Our study indicates that risk variants for psychiatric disorders aggregate in particular biological pathways and that these pathways are frequently shared between disorders. Our results confirm known mechanisms and suggest several novel insights into the etiology of psychiatric disorders

Predicting non-native insect impact: focusing on the trees to see the forest

Non-native organisms have invaded novel ecosystems for centuries, yet we have only a limited understanding of why their impacts vary widely from minor to severe. Predicting the impact of non-established or newly detected species could help focus biosecurity measures on species with the highest potential to cause widespread damage. However, predictive models require an understanding of potential drivers of impact and the appropriate level at which these drivers should be evaluated. Here, we used non-native, specialist herbivorous insects of forest ecosystems to test which factors drive impact and if there were differences based on whether they used woody angiosperms or conifers as hosts. We identified convergent and divergent patterns between the two host types indicating fundamental similarities and differences in their interactions with non-native insects. Evolutionary divergence time between native and novel hosts was a significant driver of insect impact for both host types but was modulated by different factors in the two systems. Beetles in the subfamily Scolytinae posed the highest risk to woody angiosperms, and different host traits influenced impact of specialists on conifers and woody angiosperms. Tree wood density was a significant predictor of host impact for woody angiosperms with intermediate densities (0.5–0.6 mg/mm3) associated with highest risk, whereas risk of impact was highest for conifers that coupled shade tolerance with drought intolerance. These results underscore the importance of identifying the relevant levels of biological organization and ecological interactions needed to develop accurate risk models for species that may arrive in novel ecosystems

Diurnal variations in the expression of core-clock genes correlate with resting muscle properties and predict fluctuations in exercise performance across the day

OBJECTIVES: In this study, we investigated daily fluctuations in molecular (gene expression) and physiological (biomechanical muscle properties) features in human peripheral cells and their correlation with exercise performance. METHODS: 21 healthy participants (13 men and 8 women) took part in three test series: for the molecular analysis, 15 participants provided hair, blood or saliva time-course sampling for the rhythmicity analysis of core-clock gene expression via RT-PCR. For the exercise tests, 16 participants conducted strength and endurance exercises at different times of the day (9h, 12h, 15h and 18h). Myotonometry was carried out using a digital palpation device (MyotonPRO), five muscles were measured in 11 participants. A computational analysis was performed to relate core-clock gene expression, resting muscle tone and exercise performance. RESULTS: Core-clock genes show daily fluctuations in expression in all biological samples tested for all participants. Exercise performance peaks in the late afternoon (15-18 hours for both men and women) and shows variations in performance, depending on the type of exercise (eg, strength vs endurance). Muscle tone varies across the day and higher muscle tone correlates with better performance. Molecular daily profiles correlate with daily variation in exercise performance. CONCLUSION: Training programmes can profit from these findings to increase efficiency and fine-tune timing of training sessions based on the individual molecular data. Our results can benefit both professional athletes, where a fraction of seconds may allow for a gold medal, and rehabilitation in clinical settings to increase therapy efficacy and reduce recovery times

Novel multiple sclerosis susceptibility loci implicated in epigenetic regulation

We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on multiple sclerosis (MS) susceptibility in German cohorts with 4888 cases and 10,395 controls. In addition to associations within the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) region, 15 non-MHC loci reached genome-wide significance. Four of these loci are novel MS susceptibility loci. They map to the genes L3MBTL3, MAZ, ERG, and SHMT1. The lead variant at SHMT1 was replicated in an independent Sardinian cohort. Products of the genes L3MBTL3, MAZ, and ERG play important roles in immune cell regulation. SHMT1 encodes a serine hydroxymethyltransferase catalyzing the transfer of a carbon unit to the folate cycle. This reaction is required for regulation of methylation homeostasis, which is important for establishment and maintenance of epigenetic signatures. Our GWAS approach in a defined population with limited genetic substructure detected associations not found in larger, more heterogeneous cohorts, thus providing new clues regarding MS pathogenesis