Background. The interaction between the Blue Moon butterfly, Hypolimnas bolina, and Wolbachia has attracted interest because of the high prevalence of male-killing achieved within the species, the ecological consequences of this high prevalence, the intensity of selection on the host to suppress the infection, and the presence of multiple Wolbachia infections inducing different phenotypes. We exam

The National Innovation System (NIS) is an interactive model of innovation that has the potential of better enhancing the use of knowledge for economic development. This approach is increasingly capturing the attention of developing economies as a means of utilizing knowledge for economic growth. This paper assesses how the NIS concept is being embraced in the East African (EA) region. It does so

An experimental and computational study of the near-wall combustion in a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine has been conducted by applying laser based diagnostic techniques in combination with numerical modeling. Our major intent was to characterize the combustion in the velocity- and thermal boundary layers. The progress of the combustion was studied by using fuel tracer LIF, tAn experimental and computational study of the near-wall combustion in a Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI) engine has been conducted by applying laser based diagnostic techniques in combination with numerical modeling. Our major intent was to characterize the combustion in the velocity- and thermal boundary layers. The progress of the combustion was studied by using fuel tracer LIF, t

This article deploys narrative method to explore how young adults in China enrolled in higher education negotiate future intergenerational obligations. The study finds that the process through which filial piety is being renegotiated is complex and sometimes contradictory, and norms and values do not always align with practices, as intergenerational obligations need to be managed in tandem with ob

Maternally inherited parasites are known to impose a wide variety of reproductive manipulations upon their host. These often produce strong selection on the host to suppress the parasite, resulting in a reduction in the frequency of the parasite. However, in the butterfly Hypolimnas bolina, infected with a Wolbachia bacterium, field data demonstrate that suppression of the male-killing phenotype d

Sex-ratio distorters are found in numerous species and can reach high frequencies within populations. Here, we address the compelling, but poorly tested, hypothesis that the sex ratio bias caused by such elements profoundly alters their host's mating system. We compare aspects of female and male reproductive biology between island populations of the butterfly Hypolimnas bolina that show varying de

Ultrafiltration can be used to concentrate arabinoxylan isolated from wheat bran. Prefiltration with diatomaceous earth and air sparging during ultrafiltration of the alkaline hemicellulose solution were both found to increase the flux, while nitrogen sparging had no effect. The flux of the untreated solution was 51 L/m2 h, while the flux after prefiltration of the solution with diatomaceous earth

Native γ-trace, a small basic protein present in high concentration in cerebrospinal fluid, semen and neuroendocrine cells, but of unknown biological function, is shown to be a potent inhibitor of the cysteine proteinases papain, ficin, and human cathepsins B, H and L. It proves to be the tightest-binding protein inhibitor of cathepsin B so far discovered. The name cystatin C is proposed for γ-tra

The blood serum concentrations of creatinine and the low molecular weight proteins cystatin C, beta 2-microglobulin and retinol-binding protein were measured in 106 patients whose glomerular filtration rates were assessed by Cr-ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA)-clearance determinations. The reciprocals of the serum concentrations of creatinine, cystatin C and beta 2-microglobulin were closely cor

The invasion of the native wet forests of the tropical oceanic island of Tahiti (French Polynesia, South Pacific) by miconia, Miconia calvescens DC. (Melastomataceae), a tree introduced as an ornamental plant in 1937, has caused the decline of many endemic plant species following the drastic decrease of the light in the understory. Among them, the small dioiceous tree Myrsine longifolia Nadeaud (M