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Background Social insects are among the most serious invasive pests in the world, particularly successful at monopolizing environmental resources to outcompete native species and achieve ecological dominance. The invasive success of some social insects is enhanced by their unicolonial structure, under which the presence of numerous queens and the lack of aggression against non-nestmates allow high worker densities, colony growth, and survival while eliminating intra-specific competition. In this study, we investigated the population genetics, colony structure and levels of aggression in the tawny crazy ant, Nylanderia fulva , which was recently introduced into the United States from South America. Results We found that this species experienced a genetic bottleneck during its invasion lowering its genetic diversity by 60%. Our results show that the introduction of N. fulva is associated with a shift in colony structure. This species exhibits a multicolonial organization in its native range, with colonies clearly separated from one another, whereas it displays a unicolonial system with no clear boundaries among nests in its invasive range. We uncovered an absence of genetic differentiation among populations across the entire invasive range, and a lack of aggressive behaviors towards conspecifics from different nests, even ones separated by several hundreds of kilometers. Conclusions Overall, these results suggest that across its entire invasive range in the U.S.A., this species forms a single supercolony spreading more than 2000 km. In each invasive nest, we found several, up to hundreds, of reproductive queens, each being mated with a single male. The many reproductive queens per nests, together with the free movement of individuals between nests, leads to a relatedness coefficient among nestmate workers close to zero in introduced populations, calling into question the stability of this unicolonial system in which indirect fitness benefits to workers is apparently absent.

Antagonistic interactions can affect population growth and dispersal of an invasive species. Wolbachia are intracellular endosymbiont bacteria that infect arthropod and nematode hosts and are able to manipulate reproduction, which in some cases leads to cocladogenesis. Moreover, the presence of the strictly maternally transferred Wolbachia in a population can indirectly induce selective sweeps on the hosts’ mitochondria. Ants have a Wolbachia infection rate of about 34%, which makes phylogenetic studies using mitochondrial markers vulnerable of being confounded by the effect of the endosymbiont. Nylanderia fulva is an invasive ant native to South America, considered a pest in the United States. Its distribution and biology are poorly known in its native range, and the taxonomic identity of this and its closely related species, Nylanderia pubens , has only recently been understood with the aid of molecular phylogenies. Aiming at estimating robust phylogenetic relationships of N. fulva in its native range, we investigated the presence and pattern of Wolbachia infection in populations of N. fulva from Argentina, part of its native range, to account for its possible effect on the host population structure. Using the ftsZ gene, 30 nests of N. fulva and four from sympatric Nylanderia species were screened for the presence of Wolbachia . We sequenced the MLST genes, the highly variable gene wsp , as well as glyQ , a novel target gene for which new primers were designed. Phylogeny of the ants was estimated using mtDNA (COI). We found supergroup A Wolbachia strains infecting 73% of N. fulva nests and two nests of Nylanderia sp. 1. Wolbachia phylogenetic tree inferred with MLST genes is partially congruent with the host phylogeny topology, with the exception of a lineage of strains shared by ants from different N. fulva clades. Furthermore, by comparing with Wolbachia sequences infecting other ants, we found that the strains infecting different N. fulva clades are not monophyletic. Our findings suggest there are three recent independent horizontally transmitted Wolbachia infections in N. fulva , and we found no evidence of influence of Wolbachia in the host mtDNA based phylogeny.

The evidence presented here highlights the role of the nitric oxide (NO) as anti‐stress molecule, capable to handling with UV‐B‐induced changes in the redox state of cell. Our model proposes that the UV‐B perception triggers an increase in abscisic acid (ABA) concentration, which increases H 2 O 2 and induces NO. In parallel, UV‐B activates the UV‐B receptor UVR8. UVR8 is stabilized by endogenous NO and activates the HY5 transcription factor. HY5 may regulate the expression and activity of nitrate reductase, inducing NO increase. NO reduces ROS levels by its scavenger activity. Likewise, HY5 also up‐regulates the expression of CHS and CHI. That results in an increase of flavonoid and anthocyanin content, which are capable of absorbing UV‐B radiation and scavenge ROS. Moreover, NO may also regulates the activity of the antioxidant system (AS) by posttranslational modifications of antioxidants enzymes as catalases, peroxidases, oxidases, and reductases.

How do agrarian elites protect themselves from redistribution in urban democracies? Against a well-established theoretical tradition in comparative politics which holds that landowners’ interests are incompatible with democracy, this dissertation shows that agrarian elites can use democratic institutions to protect themselves from redistribution. I study landowners’ strategies for exerting political influence since re-democratization in three countries, Argentina, Brazil and Chile. My analysis identifies the conditions under which agrarian elites will participate in the electoral arena, and the factors that shape their electoral strategies. I argue that agrarian elites’ strategies of political influence are shaped by two factors: (1) the level of threat they perceive and (2) their level of intra-group fragmentation. First, the threat that democratic governments may implement redistributive policies that jeopardize the continuity of their business (e.g., agrarian reform) gives agrarian elites the incentives to organize in the electoral arena. Absent this threat, rural elites will not invest in electoral representation. Second, the way landowners organize their electoral participation is conditioned by their degree of fragmentation. Where landed elites are a cohesive group, they will engage in party-building. By contrast, where significant cleavages exist among agrarian elites, higher coordination costs will hinder party-building. My research draws on a range of qualitative and quantitative data gathered during a year of fieldwork in nine locations in the three countries. The main data source is a set of 158 in-depth interviews conducted with key actors, including leaders of producers’ associations, high-ranking public officials, and federal and state level legislators. I supplement this evidence with data from newspaper archives, business associations’ publications, legislative debates, and election and campaign contribution records. The dissertation makes two main theoretical contributions. First, it helps us understand why democracy may perpetuate inequality, by examining how economic elites organize in the electoral arena to block redistributive policies. Second, it shows that economic elites can achieve electoral representation in the absence of strong conservative parties. This is important because the representation of elite interests is crucial for democratic consolidation, but party-building has become increasingly more difficult in the contemporary context.

Low UV-B fluence is a signaling stimulus that regulates various physiological processes and induces photomorphogenic responses in plants. The specific UV-B receptor UVR8 is a key component in these processes. Although UVR8 sequence is conserved, few homologs have been cloned and reported to be functional. Here we show the cloning and functional analysis of Zea mays UVR8 (ZmUVR8). ZmUVR8 presents 73% of identity with AtUVR8, maintaining the key tryptophan responsible of UV-B perception. ZmUVR8 also contains the VP domain, involved in the interaction with the proteins CONSTITUTIVELY PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 1 (COP1) and REPRESSOR OF UV-B PHOTOMORPHOGENESIS 1 (RUP1). Whereas UVR8 was expressed in non-irradiated Arabidopsis and maize leaves, after 2 h of UV-B irradiation, its expression was reduced. The expression of chalcone synthase (CHS), involved in flavonoid biosynthesis and regulated by UVR8, was increased in irradiated Arabidopsis and maize leaves. Arabidopsis uvr8-1 null mutant was complemented with ZmUVR8 driven by the CaMV-35S promoter and fused to eGFP. ZmUVR8-eGFP fusion was mainly localized in nuclei of transgenic lines, irrespective of UV-B treatments. UV-B suppressed hypocotyl elongation in wild type (WT) Arabidopsis plants, whereas in uvr8-1 hypocotyl growth was observed. However, hypocotyl elongation was reduced in UV-B irradiated transgenic lines complemented with ZmUVR8. Moreover, CHS and transcription factor HY5 (ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL 5) expression were also restored in these plants. These results confirm that ZmUVR8 is similar enough to AtUVR8 to restore UV-B perception and signaling in Arabidopsis mutant uvr8-1, thus being a functional UV-B photoreceptor. That reinforce the importance of UVR8 as a functional UV-B-responsive regulator in land plants.

This study explores variables related to teachers’ perception of disruption at school as a function of teachers (sense of personal accomplishment, professional disengagement and depersonalization and emotional exhaustion) and school (overall school management and quality of school rules) factors. Using a questionnaire regarding school climate, data from 4,055 teachers across 187 high schools were analyzed. Hierarchical linear modeling was applied and the results indicate that, taken separately, significant individual teacher predictors (Model 1) explain 26% (95% CI [.23, .29]) of the variability of the perceived disruption, especially depersonalization and emotional exhaustion. Contextual school variables (Model 2) explained 15% (95% CI [.12, .18]) of variance in teachers’ perceived disruption, with a significant negative relationship with the quality of rules. Model 3 included the above factors plus interactions between the emotional exhaustion and depersonalization variables and school indicators (30% of variance explained; 95% CI [.26, .33]). The results indicated the existence of a moderating effect for the quality of school rules, so that fair and properly-applied rules in the school context may be associated with a decrease in the relationship between depersonalization and emotional exhaustion and perceived disruption.

Low UV-B fluence is a signaling stimulus that regulates various physiological processes and induces photomorphogenic responses. The specific UV-B receptor UVR8, is a key component in these processes. Although UVR8 sequence is conserved, few homologs from plants have been cloned and reported to be functional. Here we show the cloning and functional analysis of Zea mays UVR8 (ZmUVR8) a monocotyledon species. ZmUVR8 has 73% of identity to AtUVR8. Key tryptophan responsible of UV-B perception are conserved, as well as the VP domain, involved in the interaction with the proteins COP1 and RUP1. Whereas UVR8 is expressed in non-irradiated of both Arabidopsis and maize leaves, after 2h of UV-B irradiation its expression was reduced. The expression of chalcone synthase (CHS) involved in flavonoid biosynthesis and regulated by UVR8, was increased in irradiated Arabidopsis and maize leaves. Arabidopsis uvr8-1 null mutant was complemented with ZmUVR8 driven by the CaMV-35S promoter and fused to eGFP. ZmUVR8-eGFP fusion was mainly localized in nuclei of transgenic lines, irrespective of UV-B treatments. Also, UV-B suppressed hypocotyl growth in WT Arabidopsis plants whereas uvr8-1 was impaired in this response. However, hypocotyl elongation was reduced in UV-B irradiated transgenic lines complemented with ZmUVR8. Moreover, CHS and transcription factor HY5 (ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL 5) expression were also restored in these plants. These results confirmed that ZmUVR8 is similar enough to AtUVR8 to restore UV-B perception and signaling in Arabidopsis mutant uvr8-1 being a functional UV-B photoreceptor. Footnotes * This version was controlled with anti plagarism softwares

The purpose of the present paper was to evaluate the effects of an 8-week multimodal program focused on core stability exercises and recovery massage with DVD support for a 6-month period in physical and psychological outcomes in breast cancer survivors. A randomized controlled clinical trial was performed. Seventy-eight (n=78) breast cancer survivors were assigned to experimental (core stability exercises plus massage-myofascial release) and control (usual health care) groups. The intervention period was 8 weeks. Mood state, fatigue, trunk curl endurance, and leg strength were determined at baseline, after the last treatment session, and at 6 months of followup. Immediately after treatment and at 6 months, fatigue, mood state, trunk curl endurance, and leg strength exhibited greater improvement within the experimental group compared to placebo group. This paper showed that a multimodal program focused on core stability exercises and massage reduced fatigue, tension, depression, and improved vigor and muscle strength after intervention and 6 months after discharge.

Ultraviolet-B (UV-B) is present in sunlight (280-315 nm) and has diverse effects on living organisms. Low fluence rate of exposure induces a specific photomorphogenic response regulated by the UV-B response locus 8 (UVR8) receptor. UVR8 was first described in In the absence of stimuli it is located in the cytoplasm as a homodimer. However, upon UV-B irradiation, it switches to a monomer and interacts with the ubiquitin ligase E3 COP1 via the UVR8 β-propeller domain and the VP core. This induces the expression of the transcription factor HY5 leading to changes in the expression of genes associated with UV-B acclimation and stress tolerance. UVR8 senses UV-B through tryptophan residues being Trp233 and 285 the most important. Based on the comparison and analysis of UVR8 functionally important motifs, we report a comprehensive phylogeny of UVR8, trying to identify UVR8 homologs and the ancestral organism where this gene could be originated. Results obtained showed that are the first organisms from the group where UVR8 appears. UVR8 is present in green algae, bryophytes, lycophytes, and angiosperms. All the sequences identified contain tryptophans 233 and 285, arginines involved in homodimerization and the VP domain suggesting they are true UVR8 photoreceptors. We also determined that some species from bryophytes and angiosperms contain more than one UVR8 gene copy posing the question if UVR8 could constitute a gene family in these species. In conclusion, we described the functional conservation among UVR8 proteins from green algae to higher plants.

Wilkie Collins’s fraudulent rhetoric of protest against patriarchal Victorian oppression is manifested through his manipulation of Marian Halcombe’s character: she does not represent an attainable example of women’s empowerment but rather of women’s subordination. Marian confronts Victorian patriarchal discourse through the doomed, symbolic games of chess she plays with Fosco and Collins, but she is inevitably disciplined, tamed, and transformed into the perfect “Angel in the House.” When the novel concludes, neither gender roles will have been changed nor equality attained, and feminine readers will have been lured into accepting that resignation, sacrifice and submission are the only alternatives.