An algorithm for modeling two species plasmas, which evolves the number density, flow velocity, and temperature equations coupled to Maxwell's electric and magnetic field equations, is discussed. Charge separation effects and the displacement current are retained. Mathematical derivations of normal modes in cold and hot plasmas, as represented by dispersion relations resulting from a linear analysis of the two fluid equations, are presented. In addition, numerical theory in relation to the ideas of geometry, temporal and spatial discretization, linearization of the fluid equations, and an expansion using finite elements is given. Numerical results generated by this algorithm compare favorably to analytical results and other published work. Specifically, we present numerical results, which agree with electrostatics, plasma oscillations at zero pressure, finite temperature acoustic waves, electromagnetic waves, whistler waves, and magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) waves, as well as a Fourier analysis showing fidelity to multiple dispersion relations in a single simulation. Final consideration is given to two species plasma stability calculations with a focus on the force balance of the initial conditions for a resistive MHD tearing mode benchmark and a static minimum energy plasma state.

Ischemic stroke is characterized by a disruption of blood supply to a part of the brain tissue, which leads to a focal ischemic infarct. The expression and activity of MMP-9 is increased in ischemic stroke and is considered to be one of the main factors responsible for damages to the cerebral vasculature, resulting in compromised blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity. However, the regulatory mechanisms of MMP-9 expression and activity are not well established in ischemic stroke. Since hypoxia/ischemia and reperfusion generates reactive oxygen species (ROS), I hypothesize that ROS is one of factors involved in up-regulation of MMP-9 expression in brain cells and ROS-mediated effect may occur via MAPK signaling pathway. My study has provided the evidence that ROS is responsible for an increase in MMP-9 expression in astrocytes mediated via MAPK-AP1 signaling pathway. Preliminary studies with an in vitro model of the BBB suggest that inhibition of MMP-9 is a critical component of reducing ROS-induced BBB permeability.

No description available.

Flavonoids are of great interest for their antioxidant and health-promoting activities. Ascorbate (vitamin C) has antioxidant activities but also sometimes displays pro-oxidant activities <i>in vitro</i> and reportedly <i>in vivo</i>. This research investigated to what extent flavonoids moderate oxidative stress from vitamin C <i>in vivo</i>.<p>Dietary experiments were conducted in two phases using adult male Wistar rats. First, all animals were maintained for two weeks on a control flavonoid-free diet with the dietary requirement (27 IU) of vitamin E/kg diet. In the subsequent four weeks, the animals were treated in four groups (8 rats/group), being fed the following diets: flavonoid-free control (C), ascorbate-supplemented (7.55 mmol/kg diet) (A), flavonoid-supplemented (2.67 mmol/kg diet) (F) and flavonoids (2.67 mmol/kg diet) plus ascorbate (7.55 mmol/kg diet)-supplemented (T). Measurements were done on in vivo biomarkers of oxidative stress, tissue antioxidants and on tissue in vitro susceptibility to oxidative stress.<p>In the combined feeding of ascorbate plus flavonoids, endogenous thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) increased in liver by 114%. No effects of dietary ascorbate or flavonoids were seen on endogenous TBARS in brain or heart, or on plasma thiols or erythrocyte fragility.<p><i>In vitro</i>, the susceptibility to TBARS formation of liver homogenate (incubated for 60 min at 37ºC in air) showed a significant 60% increase in ascorbate-fed animals compared to control, but no increase in animals fed ascorbate plus flavonoids, suggesting that the additional feeding of flavonoids helped to prevent the increase produced by ascorbate-feeding. Incubation of liver mitochondria with 300 µM ascorbate in vitro produced a large (2-7 fold) increase in TBARS, but there was no difference among mitochondria from the different feeding groups.<p>The ability of flavonoid-feeding in protecting against oxidative stress from ascorbate in vivo could not be demonstrated in this study, even showing pro-oxidant effects of flavonoids in combination with ascorbate in liver. However, in vitro tests in liver suggest a protective effect of flavonoid-feeding against susceptibility to oxidative stress from ascorbate. Further investigations are needed in order to resolve the differences observed in vitro and in vivo and to determine the endogenous effects of specific flavonoids under ascorbate-induced oxidative stress.

Decision support systems (DSS) that integrate long-term duck population and land use data are currently being used to develop conservation programs on the Canadian prairies. However, understanding inter-relationships between ducks and other grassland bird species would greatly enhance program planning and delivery among various bird conservation initiatives. Therefore, to achieve these goals, grassland bird species richness and relative abundance were compared between areas of low, moderate and high predicted waterfowl breeding densities (strata) in the southern Missouri Coteau, Saskatchewan. Roadside point counts were conducted during spring 2001 and 2002, and habitats were delineated within 400 m radius of each point. More birds of more species were encountered in the high density waterfowl stratum when compared with low but species that tended to co-occur with ducks were primarily wetland-associated. Overall, duck and other grassland bird species richness and abundance were moderately correlated (0.69 > r > 0.37, all Ps < 0.05); strong positive correlations between priority species of conservation concern and northern pintails were not found. No difference in mean number of priority grassland species occurred among strata, but differences were found for both number of species and total birds detected among routes within strata. High duck density stratum was more heterogeneous, consisting of greater areas of forage, shrub, wetlands, and open water bodies whereas low stratum contained larger, more uniformly-shaped habitat patches and greater proportion of cropland. Ordination analyses revealed that most priority species occurred in grassland-dominated sites with lower shrub area and wetland density whereas most wetland-associated species, including ducks and 2 priority species (Wilsons phalarope and marbled godwit) inhabited cultivated areas with higher wetland density. Ducks and priority species generally did not co-occur at the stop-level in highly heterogeneous landscapes but suitable habitats for both groups may exist in near proximity. In homogeneous landscapes, ducks and other wetland-associated common species were less abundant because of limited number of suitable wetlands. To achieve these dual goals, conservation efforts should be focused in areas containing wetlands adjacent to contiguous tracts of native pasture.

The fungus <i>Colletotrichum truncatum</i> (Schw.) Andrus and Moore causes lentil anthracnose, which is a major challenge to lentil production in Western Canada. The pathogen infects leaves and stems, resulting in defoliation, stem girdling, plant wilting, and possibly plant death. Two races, Ct0 and Ct1, have been identified in the pathogen population in Canada. However, the differences in the infection process between the two races have not been described in detail. Currently, several lentil cultivars, such as CDC Redberry, CDC Robin, CDC Rosetown, CDC Rouleau, and CDC Viceroy, have resistance against race Ct1, whereas there are no cultivars showing resistance to race Ct0. The objective of this study was to investigate differences in the infection process between race Ct0 and race Ct1 using the fully susceptible cultivar Eston and the race Ct1-resistant cultivar CDC Robin. Experiments on glass well slides showed that race Ct0 had no inherently different conidium germination rate compared to race Ct1, and that differences in conidium germination between the two races on lentil plants were the result of specific interactions between the two races and lentil resistance. Investigations of the infection process of the two races on detached and attached leaves of both lentil cultivars were conducted starting 12 h postinoculation (hpi) until 72 hpi, including conidium germination, appressorium formation, and leaf penetration. Results indicated that differences in virulence of the two races may be related to the ability of conidia to germinate and form appressoria, as well as the ability of primary infection hyphae to grow in response to cues from the lentil cultivars. Furthermore, resistance of lentil to isolates of race Ct1 appeared to involve an inhibition in and/or delay of the spread of primary infection hyphae inside the plant tissue. Results of infection studies of one isolate from each race on attached leaves did not completely agree with results of the same isolates on detached leaves. Based on this study, race Ct0 and race Ct1 do not appear to be classical physiological races, but may represent aggressive races or some intermediate forms.

Genetic diversity has rarely been the focus of study in species at risk in Canada. <i>Tradescantia occidentalis</i> is one of 157 species listed by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC 2005a). This species is nationally threatened due to the limited number of populations, their geographic isolation from each other and from the main distribution in the United States of America, and habitat loss. The National Recovery Team for Plants at Risk in the Prairie Provinces and the Alberta Western Spiderwort Recovery Team have called for research into the habitat requirements, demography, and genetic diversity of <i>T. occidentalis</i> in Canada. As a result, this study was designed to address the following objectives: 1) to conduct an inventory of the Canadian populations, 2) to investigate intra- and interpopulation genetic diversity in <i>Tradescantia occidentalis</i>, and 3) to provide recommendations for the conservation management of this species. <p>Information on demography and plant communities in <i>Tradescantia occidentalis</i> habitats indicated that the numbers of individuals in the Saskatchewan and Manitoba populations were similar to previous surveys; however, the Alberta population was significantly larger in number than prior estimates, indicating population growth. Taxonomic lists were prepared for each province in habitats with and without <i>T. occidentalis</i>. Community types, as separated by RA analysis, differed by province and not by association with <i>T. occidentalis</i>. Euphorbia esula, an invasive species in Canada, was observed in the Saskatchewan and Manitoba populations but was absent in Alberta. <p> Using amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs), genetic diversity was assessed at the intra- and interpopulation levels. Relatively low levels of intrapopulation variation were observed in Saskatchewan and Alberta, while higher levels were found in Manitoba. Gene flow via pollen or propagule transfer may account for higher genetic diversity among the closely situated Manitoba populations. The lack of correlation between dendrogram topology and geographic distribution suggests panmixia in all populations. Levels of intrapopulation diversity were low to moderate depending on primer combination used, indicating that populations are isolated within each province. <p>Information on population demography and genetic diversity are important within a conservation context. The large number of individuals within each population and the perceived increase in some populations suggest that the existing populations of <i>Tradescantia occidentalis</i> are relatively stable. Although levels of genetic diversity are low in Saskatchewan and Alberta compared to Manitoba, it appears that all populations are adapted to their local environments based on their apparent size and stability. The most viable conservation strategy for this species is in situ protection. This should include controlling invasive plant species, monitoring grazing, and preventing further habitat fragmentation. Ex situ methods must also be explored. Transplantation of individuals from one population to the next may not be a successful conservation strategy due to the moderate level of population differentiation. Alternatively, it is recommended that a seed bank from each population be implemented in case of a drastic population decline.

Although considerable research has been invested in disentangling the factors limiting species’ ranges at local and continental spatial scales, less attention has been granted to the relationship between species’ spatial distributions and landscape attributes at intermediate spatial scales. This research investigates the spatial relationship between avian species’ distributions (Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas [2001-2005] data) and landcover heterogeneity (Ontario Land Cover [1991-1998] data) in terms of their respective boundary locations (i.e., high rates of change in landcover composition and avian species turnover) in a vulnerable transitional zone in southern Ontario. Significant spatial overlap was found between landcover and avian boundaries. Given that land management decisions are most often made at the regional or landscape scales, this positive spatial relationship has important implications for conservation efforts. Future research should focus on assessing the spatial relationship between landcover heterogeneity and avian species’ distributions for different functional and taxonomic groups.

The purpose of this research project is to identify the species-level diversity and distribution of trees within the urban setting of Peel Region (Ontario, Canada) and to determine how these characteristics change as a function of land use type. To address this, alpha diversity (species richness within a community), evenness, and beta diversity (species richness between communities) were calculated for eight distinct land use types within the study area. As well, the influence that a variety of socioeconomic and urban form variables have in determining urban forest composition was examined using regression techniques. Results indicate that significant relationships exist between land use type, species richness and overall tree abundance. Variables reflecting wealth and urban form are also shown to significantly influence tree abundance. The results of this study address issues pertaining to the adaptation, conservation, and management of the region’s urban tree species.

Rationale/ Hypothesis: Reactive oxygen species, including lipid hydroperoxides, play a critical role as second messengers in many physiological processes in the body. Heightened reactive oxygen species production at the time of birth imposes an oxidative stress upon the lung, which may trigger postnatal alveologenesis and physiological lung cell apoptosis in the neonatal rat. Methods: Neonatal rats were subcutaneously injected daily with vehicle (corn oil) or diphenyl-phenyl diamine for the first 6 days of life to study alveologenesis and physiological lung cell apoptosis. Add-back experiments were conducted with a prototypic lipid hydroperoxide, t-butyl hydroperoxide. Main Results: Treatment with diphenyl-phenyl diamine resulted in parenchymal thickening, reduced numbers of secondary crests and enlarged air spaces, all consistent with the inhibition of alveologenesis and reduced physiological lung cell apoptosis. Conclusion: Following an oxidative stress at birth, lipid hydroperoxide formation triggers postnatal alveologenesis and physiological lung cell apoptosis in the neonatal rat.