Evolution of ecological diversity in the neotropical tanagers of the genus Tangara (Aves: Thraupidae)

The origin and maintenance of biological diversity has been one of the fundamental issues in biology. However, the evolution of ecological traits that affect species coexistence and species diversity is poorly known. My research aimed to investigate the evolution of species-specific ecological and morphological traits and to understand the process of ecological diversification and species coexistence in Tangara tanagers (Thraupidae) by using phylogenetic comparative methods. Tangara is the largest avian genus in the New World with 50 recognized species. As many as ten species of Tangara are found sympatrically in the same Andean cloud forest, and many syntopic species travel together in mixed-species flocks. The distribution of Tangara covers all of subtropical and tropical America from sea level to tree line; thus, Tangara species show a wide range of habitat preferences as well as strong variation in number of coexisting species and species combinations. Like many other species of tanagers, Tangara species are omnivorous; their diet consists of both insects and fruit. I collected extensive ecological and behavioral data at six study sites to quantify ecological differences among sympatric species. I measured museum skins and skeletons to define morphospace of each taxon. DNA sequences were used to build a molecular phylogeny, which reveals the speciation pattern. I combined ecological data, morphological data, distributional data from literature, and a molecular phylogeny by two phylogenetic analytical methods to elucidate evolution of ecological diversity among 25 Tangara taxa. Permutational phylogenetic regression analyses showed significant phylogenetic effects for arthropod foraging, but not for fruit foraging, habitat use, and elevational distribution. A disparity-through-time plot showed that the relative disparity of arthropod foraging decreased more rapidly than the other niche axes. These analyses revealed diverse evolutionary patterns unique to each niche axis. The relative strength of phylogenetic effects, frequency of homoplasy, mode of evolution, and association with morphology differed substantially among the four niche axes. Fruit foraging and habitat specialization showed the greatest ecological plasticity in relation to phylogeny, and the variation in microhabitat preference in arthropod foraging associated with species-specific attack maneuver was the most conservative and consistent with the phylogeny

Selección de diferentes sistemas de producción de cacao (Theobroma cacao, Malvaceae) por aves en Alto Beni, Bolivia - una prueba de cafetería en el campo

El cacao (Theobroma cacao, Malvaceae) es una especie nativa de Sudamérica, y se considera que su cultivo cumple un rol importante para la conservación de biodiversidad. Se estudió la selección de aves entre cinco sistemas de producción de cacao y barbecho, a través de una prueba de cafetería en Alto Beni, Bolivia. Las aves fueron cuantificadas por medio del conteo de punto modificado durante la época seca. Se registraron 239 visitas de 43 especies de aves pertenecientes a 18 familias. El número de especies y la frecuencia de visitas de las aves estuvieron relacionadas positivamente con la complejidad de la estructura vegetal y la diversidad de árboles, disminuyendo desde el barbecho, el sistema agroforestal sucesional (SAFS), los sistemas agroforestales, hasta los monocultivos (β1 = - 0.149 ± 0.046 para el número de especies, β1 = - 0.167 ± 0.078 para la frecuencia de visitas). En los monocultivos se registró la mitad del número de especies observadas en las parcelas de barbecho. En los cultivos convencionales la frecuencia de visitas de aves disminuyó hasta un 37-46% de la frecuencia observada en las parcelas de barbecho. Se observó una mayor similitud en la composición de aves entre el SAFS y el barbecho, sugiriendo que el SAFS, al tener una estructura vegetal diversa, alberga recursos más similares al barbecho. Es importante incentivar los sistemas agroforestales complejos de cacao para la conservación de las aves en los paisajes agrícolas

Disparity in emergency medical services across Japan

By using a prospective, nation-wide, population-based out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) database (All-Japan Utstein Registry, January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2012), we examined the disparity in emergency medical services across Japan and found significant disparities among prefectures. By dividing Japan into seven parts, Hasegawa et al. (2013) analysed regional variability in survival outcomes of OHCA and found a two-fold regional difference in neurologically favourable survival after OHCA. However, seven regions are constructed of North, Northeast, East, Central, Midwest, West, South, and Japan has 47 prefectures. Each prefecture grouped in the same region would be different from others in many aspects. To identify regional disparities more in prehospital care and in-hospital post-resuscitation care, we investigated survival outcomes of OHCA in prefecture levels. As the budgets of central and local governments are not unrestrained but restricted all over the world, the findings in the paper would be beneficial to consider optimal level of regional emergency medical services

肩甲切痕のバリエーション-3DCT による検討

BACKGROUND:Although cadaveric studies have revealed suprascapular notch shape variations, few have investigated the association between suprascapular notch variation and age or gender. The purpose of this study was to investigate suprascapular notch shape variations by use of three-dimensional computed tomography (3DCT) and to determine if there was any association with age or gender.METHODS:Three-dimensional CT images of 762 shoulders of 762 patients were analyzed in this study. Participants comprised 404 men and 358 women, with an average age of 58.2 ± 19.1 years. Suprascapular notch shape variations were classified into six types on the basis of Rengachary's classification.RESULTS:Of the total study population, 11.4% were classified as type I, 23.5% as type II, 30.1% as type III, 14.8% as type IV, 15.9% as type V, and 4.3% as type VI. Average age was 56.5 ± 20.5 years for type I, 57.0 ± 19.5 years for type II, 55.5 ± 20.0 years for type III, 56.4 ± 18.5 years for type IV, 65.5 ± 14.4 years for type V, and 68.0 ± 13.4 years for type VI. Statistically significant age differences were found between types I-IV and V, between types I-IV and VI, and between the non-ossification group (types I-IV) and the ossification group (types V and VI). Male-to-female ratio among each type, and between the non-ossification group and the ossification group, were not statistically significantly different.CONCLUSIONS:Our results suggest that transverse scapular ligament ossification is associated with aging whereas individual variation explains differences among types I, II, III, and IV. Three-dimensional CT provides useful information for arthroscopic resection of the transverse scapular ligament, when the wide variety of suprascapular notch shape variations is considered.LEVEL OF EVIDENCE:Level IV.博士（医学）・乙第1361号・平成27年5月28日© Springer International Publishing AG, Part of Springer Science+Business Media. The definitive version is available at " http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00776-014-0636-x "© The Japanese Orthopaedic Association 201

DNA base flipping by a base pair-mimic nucleoside

On the basis of non-covalent bond interactions in nucleic acids, we synthesized the deoxyadenosine derivatives tethering a phenyl group (X) and a naphthyl group (Z) by an amide linker, which mimic a Watson–Crick base pair. Circular dichroism spectra indicated that the duplexes containing X and Z formed a similar conformation regardless of the opposite nucleotide species (A, G, C, T and an abasic site analogue F), which was not observed for the natural duplexes. The [Formula: see text] values among the natural duplexes containing the A/A, A/G, A/C, A/T and A/F pairs differed by 5.2 kcal mol(−1) while that among the duplexes containing X or Z in place of the adenine differed by only 1.9 or 2.8 kcal mol(−1), respectively. Fluorescence quenching experiments confirmed that 2-amino purine opposite X adopted an unstacked conformation. The structural and thermodynamic analyses suggest that the aromatic hydrocarbon group of X and Z intercalates into a double helix, resulting in the opposite nucleotide base flipping into an unstacked position regardless of the nucleotide species. This observation implies that modifications at the aromatic hydrocarbon group and the amide linker may expand the application of the base pair-mimic nucleosides for molecular biology and biotechnology

A Delivery Method for Compound Video Playback in Wireless Network

ISPA2006 : International Symposium on Parallel and Distributed Processing and Applications , Dec 4-7, 2006 , Sorrento, ItalyIn this paper, we propose a method to realize compound video (multiple videos on a layout)delivery service for mobile terminals. In the proposed method, we introduce proxies which receive multiple videos from corresponding servers and produce a composite video from the received videos in real-time according to the layouts which users specify. However, if users require sets of videos with slightly different layouts, multiple similar composite videos will be generated and the wireless bandwidth will be suppressed to transfer them. So, the proposed method identifies the common part in layouts of user requirements, and transmits to each user a composite video corresponding to the common part and remaining videos. We have developed a greedy algorithm which calculates the set of videos to be transmitted within the available bandwidth, so that the sum of satisfaction degrees of all users is maximized. Through experiments, we confirmed that our method can achieve much higher user satisfaction degrees compared to the case that each user terminal receives multiple videos separately and plays them back in parallel

Effects of spatially limited external magnetic fields on short sample tests of large-scale superconductors

For short sample tests of large-scale superconductor coil conductors, it is difficult to get sufficient spatial uniformity using external magnetic fields because of the size limitations of test facilities. The effects of spatially limited external magnetic fields on short sample tests are discussed by comparing the test results for narrow and broad external magnetic fields. The authors tested short samples of pool-cooled 10 kA class superconductors using two kinds of split coils which are different in bore size. The measured recovery currents for the narrow external field are more than twice those for the broad field. It shows that the insufficient spatial distribution of the external field biases the stability measurements of superconductor

Can computed tomography differentiate adenocarcinoma in situ from minimally invasive adenocarcinoma?

Background: Given the subtle pathological signs of adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS) and minimally invasive adenocarcinoma (MIA), effective differentiation between the two entities is crucial. However, it is difficult to predict these conditions using preoperative computed tomography (CT) imaging. In this study, we investigated whether histological diagnosis of AIS and MIA using quantitative three-dimensional CT imaging analysis could be predicted. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the images and histopathological findings of patients with lung cancer who were diagnosed with AIS or MIA between January 2017 and June 2018. We used Synapse Vincent (v. 4.3) (Fujifilm) software to analyze the CT attenuation values and performed a histogram analysis. Results: There were 22 patients with AIS and 22 with MIA. The ground-glass nodule (GGN) rate was significantly higher in patients with AIS (p < 0.001), whereas the solid volume (p < 0.001) and solid rate (p = 0.001) were significantly higher in those with MIA. The mean (p = 0.002) and maximum (p = 0.025) CT values were significantly higher in patients with MIA. The 25th, 50th, 75th, and 97.5th percentiles (all p < 0.05) for the CT values were significantly higher in patients with MIA. Conclusions: We demonstrated that quantitative analysis of 3D-CT imaging data using software can help distinguish AIS from MIA. These analyses are useful for guiding decision-making in the surgical management of early lung cancer, as well as subsequent follow-up