[Population dynamics of the Apulian communities from 1972 to 1976].
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Understanding the role of interactions between intrinsic feedback loops and external climatic forces is one of the central challenges within the field of population ecology. For rodent dynamics, the seasonal structure of the environment necessitates changes between two stages: reproductive and non-reproductive. Nevertheless, the interactions between seasonality, climate, density dependence and predators have been generally ignored. We demonstrate that direct climate effects, the nonlinear effect of predators and the nonlinear first-order feedback embedded in a seasonal structure are key elements underlying the large and irregular fluctuations in population numbers exhibited by a small rodent in a semi-arid region of central Chile. We found that factors influencing population growth rates clearly differ between breeding and non-breeding seasons. In addition, we detected nonlinear density dependencies as well as nonlinear and differential effects of generalist and specialist predators. Recent climatic changes may account for dramatic perturbations of the rodent's population dynamics. Changes in the predator guild induced by climate are likely to result, through the food web, in a large impact on small rodent demography and population dynamics. Assuming such interactions to be typical of ecological systems, we conclude that appropriate predictions of the ecological consequences of climate change will depend on having an in-depth understanding of the community-weather system.
The functional role of bacteria in the midgut of adult mosquitoes is unknown. In this study, we examined the population dynamics of midgut bacteria of laboratory reared Anopheles stephensi, An. gambiae, and An. albimanus. Mosquito midguts were dissected under sterile conditions and examined for the presence of bacteria using standard microbiologic techniques. Ninety percent and 73% (n = 30) of newly emerged An. gambiae and An. stephensi, respectively, harbored bacteria. In contrast, only 17% (n = 23) of An. albimanus harbored any bacteria. The bacterial population increased 11-40-fold in the presence of a blood meal, but then decreased to pre-blood meal levels in 3-5 days. Pseudomonas cepacia, Enterobacter agglomerans, and Flavobacterium spp. were found in all three anopheline species. Midgut bacteria were acquired both transtadially and through the sugar meal. Transtadial transmission was demonstrated by successfully passaging Escherichia coli HS5 from the larval to the adult stage. However, midgut bacteria were acquired more efficiently through the sugar meal than through transtadial passage. An increase in midgut bacterial counts after mosquitoes were exposed to a bacteria/sugar suspension significantly reduced oocyst infection rates and densities in Plasmodium falciparum-infected mosquito cohorts. Since bacteria occur naturally in wild mosquitoes, it may be possible to modify anopheline vector competence using introduced or indigenous bacteria.
The microbial population dynamics at the start-up stage of a wastewater treatment reactor was investigated using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis based on 16S rDNA and rRNA gene sequences. The results of fragment peaks suggested that the number and activity of nitrifying bacteria increased in association with the start of nitrification, and the relative ratios of 16S rRNA of these bacteria changed prior to those of the 16S rDNA. Furthermore, multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis revealed that the 16S rRNA exhibited wider dispersion than the 16S rDNA at the start-up stage, indicating that the diversity of 16S rRNA in the microbial communities was strongly affected by environmental changes.
From October 1999 to July 2001, a prospective cohort study was conducted to assess the intestinal Escherichia coli population dynamics of 23 sexually active couples. We tested the hypothesis that intestinal persistence and predominance of specific E. coli strains, co-colonization of sex partners with the same E. coli strain, and the intestinal diversity of fecal E. coli, contribute to recurrent urinary tract infection (UTI). E. coli isolates causing UTI, asymptomatic bacteriuria (ABU), or intestinal co-colonization were evaluated by ERIC2 PCR and compared with strains recovered exclusively from stool samples with respect to intestinal persistence, predominance, and diversity. Contrary to our hypothesis, UTI-causing strains exhibited similar levels of intestinal persistence and predominance as did fecal strains, and UTI episodes were not associated with shifts in fecal E. coli diversity. In contrast, intestinal co-colonization strains exhibited greater persistence and predominance than did fecal strains and were more likely to cause ABU, and co-colonization episodes were associated with significantly increased fecal E. coli diversity. Nonetheless, intestinal co-colonization strains were not associated with UTI. These findings suggest that E. coli strains involved in co-colonization may be more important contributors to intestinal E. coli dynamics than to UTI pathogenesis.
"Historians have long noticed that population declines in ancient China often coincided with dynasty changes, and that most of these declines were the result of internecine wars which, in turn, were often initiated by famine or density pressure. Since the interactions between density pressure, internecine wars, and dynasty changes cannot be explained by the traditional age-specific density-dependent population structure, we propose to use a bandit/peasant/ruler occupation-specific population model to interpret the dynamic socio-economic transitions of ancient Chinese population, and provide econometric support to our model. We also highlight the rich dynamics of the composition of human population, a factor which was often neglected in previous research on general populations."
The objective of this study was to model a typical dairy waste stream, monitor the chemical and bacterial population dynamics that occur during aerobic or anaerobic treatment and subsequent storage in a simulated lagoon, and compare them to those of waste held without treatment in a simulated lagoon. Both aerobic and anaerobic treatment methods followed by storage effectively reduced the levels of total solids (59 to 68%), biological oxygen demand (85 to 90%), and sulfate (56 to 65%), as well as aerobic (83 to 95%), anaerobic (80 to 90%), and coliform (>99%) bacteria. However, only aerobic treatment reduced the levels of ammonia, and anaerobic treatment was more effective at reducing total sulfur and sulfate. The bacterial population structure of waste before and after treatment was monitored using 16S rRNA gene sequence libraries. Both treatments had unique effects on the bacterial population structure of waste. Aerobic treatment resulted in the greatest change in the type of bacteria present, with the levels of eight out of nine phyla being significantly altered. The most notable differences were the >16-fold increase in the phylum Proteobacteria and the approximately 8-fold decrease in the phylum Firmicutes. Anaerobic treatment resulted in fewer alterations, but significant decreases in the phyla Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes, and increases in the phyla Planctomycetes, Spirochetes, and TM7 were observed.
The influence of cell surface properties on attachment to soil particles and on population dynamics of introduced bacteria was studied in sterilized and nonsterilized loamy sand and silt loam. Rhizobium leguminosarum RBL5523 and three Tn5 mutants (RBL5762, RBL5810, and RBL5811) with altered cell surface properties were used. Cellulose fibrils were not produced by RBL5762. Both RBL5810 and RBL5811 produced 80 to 90% less soluble exopolysaccharides and RBL5811 had, in addition, an altered lipopolysaccharide composition. In sterilized soil the total number of cells as well as the number of particle-associated cells of RBL5523 and RBL5810 were, in general, higher as compared with cell numbers of RBL5762 and RBL5811. Differences between strains in percentage of particle-associated cells in sterilized soil were only found at high inoculum densities, when populations increased little. In the nonsterilized silt loam, final population sizes, as well as numbers of particle-associated cells, of the parental strain (RBL5523) were higher than those of strains with altered cell surface properties after 56 and 112 days of incubation. But in general, differences in survival among the strains were not very marked. The importance of association with soil particles or aggregates for the survival of introduced cells was affirmed by the pronounced increase of the percentage of particle-associated cells during incubation in nonsterilized as well as sterilized soil. However, no clear relation among altered cell surface properties, particle association, and survival was found.
We present and analyze a series of mathematical models for the emergence of resistance during antibiotic treatment of an infected host. The models consider the population dynamics of antibiotic-sensitive and -resistant bacteria during the course of treatment and addresses the following problems: (i) the probability of obtaining a resistant mutant during the course of treatment as a function of antibiotic exposure; (ii) the conditions under which high, infrequent doses of an antibiotic are predicted to succeed in preventing the emergence of resistance; (iii) the conditions for the success of multiple drug treatment in suppressing the emergence of resistance and the relationship between antibiotic synergism and suppression of resistance; and (iv) the conditions under which nonadherence to the prescribed treatment regimen is predicted to result in treatment failure due to resistance. We analyze the predictions of the model for interpreting and extrapolating existing experimental studies of treatment efficacy and for optimizing treatment protocols to prevent the emergence of resistance.
The TaqMan quantitative PCR (QPCR) method was used to detect and quantify the 16S rRNA genes of aceticlastic methanogens at different taxonomic levels. Three different sets of primers coupled with a TaqMan probe for QPCR assays to detect the 16S rRNA genes of the order Methanosarcinales, as well as the families Methanosarcinaceae and Methanosaetaceae, were separately used. Using these primer and probe sets, the 16S rRNA genes of aceticlastic methanogens in samples from various anaerobic processes (i.e., nine pure cultures, batch experiment, and three different continuous processes including a full-scale digester), were monitored and quantified by QPCR assays. A batch experiment cultivating a mixture of aceticlastic methanogens, was conducted to monitor their population dynamics. Using this group-specific quantification method, the dynamics of a competition between two aceticlastic populations, as modulated by the acetate concentration, could well be described. The target 16S rRNA genes in environmental samples, collected from three different anaerobic processes treating sludge, cheese whey, and synthetic wastewaters, were additionally quantified. The quantified 16S rRNA gene concentrations for all samples successfully represented the community structures of the target methanogens, which were correlated accurately with the operational parameters of the anaerobic processes. It was also successful to demonstrate probe nesting of aceticlastic methanogens at the levels of order and family.
In this paper we evaluated the population dynamics and obtained estimates of the net primary production of the aquatic macrophyte Nymphaea rudgeana in an arm of the Itanhaém River (São Paulo State, Brazil). This species presents, in the studied area, a broad seasonal variation of biomass. As from November (13.1 g DW/m2) we observed a gradual increase of biomass that reached a maximum in February (163.1 g DW/m2). Then, the biomass decreased, maintaining low levels until a new growth period. The reduction of biomass is associated to the development of floating aquatic macrophytes (Pistia stratiotes and Salvinia molesta) and, subsequently to environmental factors (higher salinity values) that are unfavorable to their development. The net primary production of N. rudgeana was estimated from the biomass data, and the annual productivity value was estimated between 3.02 and 3.82 t/ha/year.
The reduced cost of high throughput sequencing, increasing automation, and the amenability of sequence data for evolutionary analysis are making DNA data (or the corresponding amino acid sequences) the molecular marker of choice for studying microbial population genetics and phylogenetics. Concomitantly, due to the ever-increasing computational power, new, more accurate (and sometimes faster), sequence-based analytical approaches are being developed and applied to these new data. Here we review some commonly used, recently improved, and newly developed methodologies for inferring population dynamics and evolutionary relationships using nucleotide and amino acid sequence data, including: alignment, model selection, bifurcating and network phylogenetic approaches, and methods for estimating demographic history, population structure, and population parameters (recombination, genetic diversity, growth, and natural selection). Because of the extensive literature published on these topics this review cannot be comprehensive in its scope. Instead, for all the methods discussed we introduce the approaches we think are particularly useful for analyses of microbial sequences and where possible, include references to recent and more inclusive reviews.
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In sheep wetted by rain, proliferation of bacteria in the skin-fleece microenvironment invariably discolours the fleece and causes a dermatitic condition known as fleecerot. The changes in population dynamics of fleece bacteria were analysed by carrying out skin washings at randomly selected sites on the back of sheep before, and at 48 h and 96 h after exposure to rain. Gram-positive rods belonging to Bacillus species (10(2)-10(4) cfu/cm2) predominated in dry fleece. Gram-positive cocci (e.g. Micrococcus and Staphylococcus species) as well as Gram-negative rods (pseudomonads) were also present but in lower abundance (less than 10(2) cfu/cm2). Fleece bacterial populations generally increased in numbers during the first 24-48 h of wetting. By 96 h however, skin washings showed a preponderance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (10(4)-10(6) cfu/cm2) and to a lesser extent, pigmented Micrococcus species. Growth of fleece bacteria was associated with a characteristic green or yellow/orange staining of fleece. Fewer species of bacteria were isolated from sheep showing green staining while those animals with yellow/orange discolourations appeared to have a more mixed microflora composition. The predominance of P. aeruginosa in the wet fleece of sheep displaying either green or yellow/orange bacterial stain, was accompanied by a significant serological response against this species. Since skin bacteria have never been observed to penetrate cutaneously in skin sections biopsied from fleecerot sites, it must be concluded that the sheep skin is sensitized by continuous exposure to antigens that are associated with or released by P. aeruginosa.
BACKGROUND: Extensive work has been done to identify and explain multi-year cycles in animal populations. Several attempts have been made to relate these to climatic cycles. We use advanced time series analysis methods to attribute cyclicities in several North-American mammal species to abiotic vs. biotic factors. RESULTS: We study eleven century-long time series of fur-counts and three climatic records--the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the El-Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), and Northern Hemisphere (NH) temperatures--that extend over the same time interval. Several complementary methods of spectral analysis are applied to these 14 times series, singly or jointly. These spectral analyses were applied to the leading principal components (PCs) of the data sets. The use of both PC analysis and spectral analysis helps distinguish external from intrinsic factors that influence the dynamics of the mammal populations. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that all three climatic indices influence the animal-population dynamics: they explain a substantial part of the variance in the fur-counts and share characteristic periods with the fur-count data set. In addition to the climate-related periods, the fur-count time series also contain a significant 3-year period that is, in all likelihood, caused by biological interactions.
This paper studies the dynamics of an age-structured population which experiences cyclical variation in vital rates. The principal features of population behavior are found to be contained in an explicitly calculable response function. Three distinct regimes of qualitative behavior are described when cycle period is respectively much less than, of the order of, and much greater than the average generation length. These results make explicit the way in which transient properties corresponding to average vital rates determine population response to cycles.
A simple mathematical model for the overall dynamics of the interaction between fox populations and rabies is presented. The model helps to explain epidemiological patterns observed in Europe, including the 3 to 5 year cycle in fox populations infected with rabies, threshold densities and average levels of prevalence of infection. We give a quantitative discussion of the possibilities of controlling rabies by culling or vaccinating foxes (or by a mixture of the two).