Location, sample size, and mean forearm length in males and females of 23 populations of <i>Rhinolophus ferrumequinum</i>.

<p>^a Denotes populations without body size data for individuals.</p

Model I linear regression of mean forearm length against latitude of females and males (n = 16).

<p>Model I linear regression of mean forearm length against latitude of females and males (n = 16).</p

Effects of geographic sites and sex on variation in forearm length of <i>Rhinolophus ferrumequinum</i> as revealed by an univariate two-way ANCOVA with latitude as covariate.

<p>This analysis is based on length of forearm for the 14 sites (n = 368).</p><p>df, degrees of freedom; SS, sum of squares; MS, mean square.</p

Rensch’s rule in the greater horseshoe bat, <i>Rhinolophus ferrumequinum.</i>

<p>Log₁₀ (mean male forearm length) is plotted against log₁₀ (mean female forearm length). The dashed line represents isometry, the solid line represents major axis linear regression line (slope = 1.343). Each dot represents a single population based on the mean forearm length of females and males (n = 23).</p

A Test of Rensch’s Rule in Greater Horseshoe Bat (<i>Rhinolophus ferrumequinum</i>) with Female-Biased Sexual Size Dimorphism

<div><p>Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) is widespread within the animal kingdom. Rensch’s rule describes a relationship between SSD and body size: SSD increases with body size when males are the larger sex, and decreases with body size when females are the larger sex. Rensch’s rule is well supported for taxa that exhibit male-biased SSD but patterns of allometry among taxa with female-biased size dimorphism are mixed, there is evidence both for and against the rule. Furthermore, most studies have investigated Rensch’s rule across a variety of taxa; but among-population studies supporting Rensch’s rule are lacking, especially in taxa that display only slight SSD. Here, we tested whether patterns of intraspecific variation in SSD in greater horseshoe bats conform to Rensch’s rule, and evaluated the contribution of latitude to Rensch’s rule. Our results showed SSD was consistently female-biased in greater horseshoe bats, although female body size was only slightly larger than male body size. The slope of major axis regression of log₁₀ (male) on log₁₀ (female) was significantly different from 1. Forearm length for both sexes of greater horseshoe bats was significantly negatively correlated with latitude, and males displayed a slightly but nonsignificant steeper latitudinal cline in body size than females. We suggest that variation in patterns of SSD among greater horseshoe bat populations is consistent with Rensch’s rule indicating that males were the more variable sex. Males did not have a steeper body size–latitude relationship than females suggesting that sex-specific latitudinal variation in body size may not be an important contributing factor to Rensch’s rule. Future research on greater horseshoe bats might best focus on more comprehensive mechanisms driving the pattern of female-biased SSD variation.</p></div

Results of ANCOVA for testing homogeneity of slopes between latitude and forearm length in two sex groups.

<p>This analysis is based on mean forearm length from 16 populations.</p

Comparing Two New Composite Photocatalysts, <i>t</i>‑LaVO₄/g‑C₃N₄ and <i>m</i>‑LaVO₄/g‑C₃N₄, for Their Structures and Performances

The objective of this research was to prepare, characterize, and evaluate two new composite photocatalysts: <i>t</i>-LaVO₄/g-C₃N₄ and <i>m</i>-LaVO₄/g-C₃N₄. The two catalysts were synthesized with <i>m</i>-LaVO₄ or <i>t</i>-LaVO₄ and g-C₃N₄, and characterized by various techniques including Brunauer–Emmett–Teller method (BET), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ultraviolet–visible-light (UV-vis) diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The structure characterizations indicate that the two composites have similar phase composition. Both of them consist of LaVO₄ and g-C₃N₄. Meanwhile, their photoabsorption performance is also similar. The photocatalytic test indicates that both <i>m</i>-LaVO₄ and <i>t</i>-LaVO₄ can effectively promote the photoactivity of g-C₃N₄, as demonstrated with the PL and photocurrent–time experiments, although the optimal concentrations of LaVO₄ in the two catalysts are different. Both LaVO₄/g-C₃N₄ and <i>t</i>-LaVO₄/g-C₃N₄ are promising photocatalysts for degradation of RhB

Modified Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay Strategy Using Graphene Oxide Sheets and Gold Nanoparticles Functionalized with Different Antibody Types

Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and graphene oxide (GO) sheets are excellent nano carriers in many analytical methods. In this study, a modified enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) strategy was developed using antibody-functionalized GO sheets and GNPs. This modification significantly reduced the limit of detection (LOD) and cost greatly of this assay. The applicability of the method was demonstrated by detecting HSP70 in a human serum sample. This result suggests that the 3G-ELISA method is feasible to detect an antigen in a complex mixture, and the LOD is up to 64-fold and the cost is as low as one-tenth of the conventional ELISA method