Conservation of microsatellites among tropical trees (Leguminosae)

Although microsatellites or simple sequence repeats (SSRs) have become a popular tool in genetic mapping and gene flow studies, their utility is limited due to paucity of information about DNA sequences in plants. We tested the utility of microsatellite markers characterized for the tropical tree Pithecellobium elegans as a genetic tool for related species. The results indicate that SSR loci are conserved among closely related species, and SSR primers developed for P. elegans could be successfully used as a genetic tool in several species of the tribe Ingeae. This study indicates that there is high potential for the transfer of SSR markers among closely related taxa, circumventing laborious cloning and screening procedures involved in characterizing SSR loci for many species

Running into New Territory in SUSY Parameter Space

The LEP-II bound on the light Higgs mass rules out the vast majority of parameter space left to the Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM) with weak-scale soft-masses. This suggests the importance of exploring extensions of the MSSM with non-minimal Higgs physics. In this article, we explore a theory with an additional singlet superfield and an extended gauge sector. The theory has a number of novel features compared to both the MSSM and Next-to-MSSM, including easily realizing a light CP-even Higgs mass consistent with LEP-II limits, tan(beta) < 1, and a lightest Higgs which is charged. These features are achieved while remaining consistent with perturbative unification and without large stop-masses. Discovery modes at the Tevatron and LHC are discussed.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures; Typo in equation (4.5) corrected; submitted to JHE

Identifying forest ecosystem regions for agricultural use and conservation

ABSTRACT Balancing agricultural needs with the need to protect biodiverse environments presents a challenge to forestry management. An imbalance in resource production and ecosystem regulation often leads to degradation or deforestation such as when excessive cultivation damages forest biodiversity. Lack of information on geospatial biodiversity may hamper forest ecosystems. In particular, this may be an issue in areas where there is a strong need to reassign land to food production. It is essential to identify and protect those parts of the forest that are key to its preservation. This paper presents a strategy for choosing suitable areas for agricultural management based on a geospatial variation of Shannon's vegetation diversity index (SHDI). This index offers a method for selecting areas with low levels of biodiversity and carbon stock accumulation ability, thereby reducing the negative environmental impact of converting forest land to agricultural use. The natural forest ecosystem of the controversial 1997 Ex-Mega Rice Project (EMRP) in Indonesia is used as an example. Results showed that the geospatial pattern of biodiversity can be accurately derived using kriging analysis and then effectively applied to the delineation of agricultural production areas using an ecological threshold of SHDI. A prediction model that integrates a number of species and families and average annual rainfall was developed by principal component regression (PCR) to obtain a geospatial distribution map of biodiversity. Species richness was found to be an appropriate indicator of SHDI and able to assist in the identification of areas for agricultural use and natural forest management

Pollination of Pagamea duckei Standl. (Rubiaceae): a functionally dioecious species

The floral biology, pollination and breeding system of Pagamea duckei Standl. (Rubiaceae) were studied at the Reserva Biológica da Campina, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. Floral morphology suggested that P. duckei is a distylous species. However, crossing experiments revealed that it is functionally dioecious. The flowers are actinomorphic, yellowish, produce nectar and a sweet odor, which is more intense in the morning. Anthesis started in the morning between 5.00 and 6.00 AM and extended until dusk, when the corolla tube abscissed. The flowers were visited mostly by bees of the genus Melipona. Pagamea duckei is not agamospermic and thus needs pollen vectors for effective pollination. The results of this study strengthen the idea that, in Pagamea, species with distylous flower morphology are actually functionally dioecious