Thesis (PhD.)--University of Tasmania, 2005. / Accompanying CD in pocket inside back cover. Includes bibliographical references.

Globally, human modification of land and the human-aided introduction of exotic species are considered to be the main drivers behind species decline and extinction. Human colonisation of New Zealand and subsequent development resulted in the conversion of native forests and shrublands into productive land, which together with the introduction of invasive species has caused the decline of many species, and many more are now threatened with extinction. This issue is particularly prevalent in the lowland eastern areas of the South Island, in which there has been intensive land development. One strongly affected group are species within the genus Olearia, in which several species are threatened with extinction, including nationally declining Olearia lineata. In contrast, other species in this genus, such as non-threatened O. bullata, are seemingly not as strongly impacted. My study investigated the mechanisms behind why O. lineata is nationally declining in comparison to the non-threatened congener O. bullata. To do this, I investigated two main research questions; one question investigated the demographic structure of populations to determine if regeneration is occurring and the vegetation composition of the surrounding community. Sampled populations indicated regeneration failure in O. lineata populations but also in O. bullata populations, despite its non-threatened status. I found that a high proportion communities contained exotic grasses, therefore, the second question was how the presence of the exotic grass- Agrostis capillaris, affected recruitment of O. lineata and O. bullata. Two glasshouse experiments investigated how the presence or absence of grass affected germination and growth of seedlings. Both Olearia species were found to germinate in the presence of grass, but seedlings grew significantly better in the absence of grass. Olearia are also important native Lepidoptera hosts as a suite of native moths feed exclusively on this genus. Therefore, a third research question investigated the abundance of larvae and the community composition of Lepidoptera on O. lineata and O. bullata in comparison to another Lepidoptera host Coprosma propinqua. Moth larvae were collected and some species successfully reared to find there was higher larvae abundance on O. lineata and high species overlap between O. lineata and O. bullata with little species overlap between the two Olearia species and C. propinqua. Overall, my research found that exotic invasive grasses potentially cause regeneration failure in both O. bullata and O. lineata. However, the largest impact in the difference of threat status is due to O. lineata populations occurring in the most developed lowland areas of the eastern South Island, whereas O. bullata populations occur in less human modified, higher altitude areas. The further development of these areas through human activity threatens the future persistence of these Olearia species and the future of the Olearia Lepidoptera specialists.

Submitted by Automa??o e Estat?stica (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2016-02-22T23:12:48Z No. of bitstreams: 1 PiataDeMeloGurgel_DISSERT.pdf: 2045322 bytes, checksum: c97574e0cf9c99147223d9afdcec71de (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2016-02-26T00:14:18Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 PiataDeMeloGurgel_DISSERT.pdf: 2045322 bytes, checksum: c97574e0cf9c99147223d9afdcec71de (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-02-26T00:14:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 PiataDeMeloGurgel_DISSERT.pdf: 2045322 bytes, checksum: c97574e0cf9c99147223d9afdcec71de (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-04 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior - CAPES / A contamina??o dos ambientes aqu?ticos ? um fen?meno que remonta ?s origens das civiliza??es humanas e foi amplificado pelo advento dos processos industriais. A cidade de Maca?ba/RN/Brasil tem como principal corpo h?drico o rio Jundia? que sofre descarga de efluentes de diversas ind?strias. O estudo se bifurcou numa frente de percep??o socioambiental, realizado por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas cujo efluente t?xtil foi apontado pela popula??o como o principal problema no rio. Observou-se que quase a totalidade dos entrevistados apresentava preocupa??o com o meio ambiente. Al?m disso, h? uma inclus?o dos indiv?duos como parte causadora da problem?tica, pois uma parte significativa reconhece que suas atividades podem causar preju?zos ao ambiente e ? sa?de da popula??o. A partir disto, o monitoramento experimental da qualidade de ?gua foi conduzido por meio de analises f?sicas e qu?micas e ensaios ecotoxicol?gicos que se propuseram a avaliar em Pomacea lineata e em Mysidopsis juniae o efeito isolado do efluente t?xtil e sua influ?ncia no rio em compara??o com os limites estabelecidos pela legisla??o brasileira. Apesar das analises f?sicas e qu?micas demonstrarem-se inconclusivas acerca da participa??o do efluente t?xtil na contamina??o ambiental do rio, os ensaios ecotoxicol?gicos demonstraram-se contundentes ao sinalizar que o efluente pode apresentar risco aos organismos aqu?ticos e consequentemente ? sa?de humana. Assim, por meio de uma abordagem interdisciplinar foi poss?vel estudar a causa do problema socioambiental apontado pela popula??o na fase de percep??o e o efeito mensur?vel com an?lises de qualidade de ?gua no rio por meios dos ensaios mencionados. / The contamination of aquatic environments is a phenomenon that dates back the origins of human civilizations and was amplified by the advent of industrial processes. The Jundia? river , Maca?ba's main water source, suffering discharge of effluents from various industries. The study work?s in two fronts, the environmental perception front was conducted through semistructured interviews whose textile effluent was appointed by the population as the main problem in the river. It was observed that nearly all respondents had concerns about the environment. In addition, there is an inclusion of individuals as the cause of the problem, because a significant part recognizes that its activities may cause damage to the environment and people's health. In other front, the experimental monitoring of water quality was conducted through ecotoxicological tests and physiochemical analysis that proposed to assess Pomacea lineata .Mysidopsis juniae isolated effect of textile effluent and its influence on the river compared with the limits established by Brazilian law. Although the physio-chemical analysis shows is inconclusive about the participation of the textile effluent in environmental contamination of the river, the ecotoxicological tests have shown to blunt the signal that the effluent may present a risk to aquatic organisms and consequently to human health. Thus, an interdisciplinary way it was possible to study the cause of the environmental problem identified by the population in the realization phase and measurable effect on water quality analysis in the river by means of the tests mentioned.

Submitted by Alberto Vieira (martins_vieira@ibest.com.br) on 2018-01-12T17:42:34Z No. of bitstreams: 1 576675.pdf: 24206483 bytes, checksum: f9816b609327b2737e0382acc3943b53 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-01-12T17:42:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 576675.pdf: 24206483 bytes, checksum: f9816b609327b2737e0382acc3943b53 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2002 / Estuda a biologia floral, a fenologia e a reprodução de Capparis lineata Domb. ex Pers., Capparis flexuosa (L.) L. e Cleome rosea Vahl. ex DC., em áreas de restinga, localizadas em Itaipuaçu e Maricá (RJ, Brasil), no período de 1997 a 2000. As duas espécies de Capparis apresentam flores brancas, planas, nectaríferas, perfumadas, hermafroditas e noturnas. As flores são polinizadas por esfingídios, fato confirmado pelas observações de campo e pela presença de escamas de lepidópteros noturnos sobre os estigmas. Capparis lineata é uma trepadeira pouco frequente na área de estudos, apresenta floração anual e sincrônica que se estende de setembro (final da estação fria e seca) a dezembro (meados da estação quente e chuvosa), com pico em outubro. Capparis flexuosa tem hábito variando de arbusto prostrado a arvoreta e ocorre desde a zona da praia até a fimbria da mata, sendo muito frequente nas comunidades densas e fechadas que ocorrem sobre os cordões arenosos. Apresenta floração extensa, durante cerca de 10 meses do ano, com vários episódios de emissão floral, os quais são mais sincrônicos nos meses de dezembro/janeiro e março (estação quente e chuvosa), quando as flores duram apenas uma noite e originam muitos frutos com muitas sementes. Nos episódios que ocorrem na estação fria e seca, as flores permanecem atrativas pela manhã, podendo ser polinizadas por Xylocopa ordinaria, originando, entretanto, frutos pequenos e com poucas sementes. São feitas considerações acerca do envolvimento de formigas na dispersão das sementes de C. flexuosa. O estudo mostra uma grande variabilidade morfológica entre todas as espécies esfingófilas encontradas na área de estudo, além de uma forte sazonalidade do evento de floração das mesmas, que ocorre, predominantemente, na estação quente e chuvosa. Capparis lineata e C. flexuosa são auto-incompatíveis, com proporções Fruto/Flor de 6,9% e 45%, respectivamente. A baixa produção de frutos em C. lineata foi investigada, tendo-se concluído que tanto a limitação de polinizadores quanto a falta de recursos energéticos maternos estão envolvidos no número de frutos produzidos por planta. Cleome rosea é monocárpica, com ciclo de vida anual. As populações naturais e cultivadas apresentam sistema sexual subdióico, com plantas exclusivamente femininas, as quais emitem apenas flores pistiladas, e plantas poliníferas, que emitem flores hermafroditas (7,9% a 48,7%), estaminadas (50% a 92,1 %) e pistiladas (0 a 2,4%). As flores são zigomorfas, de cor rosa, nectaríferas e polinizadas, principalmente, por borboletas. Flores hermafroditas apresentam hercogamia, que previne a auto-polinização espontânea. Nas plantas poliníferas, as flores hermafroditas, em geral, são emitidas na base das inflorescências e antecedem a emissão das flores estaminadas, caracterizando uma dicogamia inter-floral. São apresentadas evidências de que a presença de frutos na base das inflorescências inibe a emissão de novas flores hermafroditas e acelera o início da fase de emissão de flores estaminadas. A espécie é autocompatível. As sementes produzidas pelas plantas femininas são resultantes de xenogamia, enquanto que aquelas produzidas pelas plantas poliníferas podem ser resultantes de geitonogamia. Em condições naturais, as plantas femininas produzem mais frutos e sementes do que as plantas poliníferas. Os frutos das primeiras contêm sementes com menor índice de aborto e com maior taxa de germinação. / Studies floral biology, phenology and reproductive system of Capparis lineata Domb. ex Pers., Capparis flexuosa (L.) L. and Cleome rosea Vahl. ex DC., at sandy coastal plains ("restingas") of Maricá (RJ, Brasil), from 1997 to 2000. The two species of Capparis present white, dish-type, nectariferous, scented, hermaphrodite and nocturnal flowers. The pollination by sphingids had been confirmed based on observation of natural populations and by the finding of nocturnal lepidoptera's scales over the stigmas. Capparis lineata is a climber uncommon in the study area. It presents annual and synchronous flowering which remains from September (end of the cold and dry season) to December (rniddle of the hot and rainy season), with its peak in October. Capparis flexuosa varies from a prostrate shrub to a small tree and is found from the vicinity of the beach to the edge of the woods, being more common in the dense scrub communities at the sandy layers. It presents extensive flowering, during ten months in the year, with several episodes of floral emission, which are more synchronous in December, January and March (hot and rainy season), when the flowers last only one night, producing many fruits with many seeds. During the cold and dry season, the flowers remain attractive in the morning, and can be pollinated by Xylocopa ordinaria, generating, however, smaller fruits with fewer seeds. Considerations are risen about the participation of ants in the seed dispersion of C. flexuosa. The study shows a great morphological variability between the flowers of all the sphingophyllous species found at the study area, and also a strong seasonality of the flowering periods, tending towards the wet and hot season. Capparis lineata e C. jlexuosa are self-incompatible, with Fruit/Flower proportions of 6.9% and 45%, respectively. The possible causes of the low fruit-set of C. lineata has been investigated and evidences of pollinator limitation and selective abortion of fruits is presented. Cleome rosea is an annual monocarpic species. The natural and cultivated populations present female plants, with only pistilate flowers, and polliniferous plants, with hermaphrodite (7.9% to 48.7%), staminate (50% to 92.1%) and pistilate flowers (0 to 2.4%), characterizing a subdioecious sexual system. The zygomorphic, pink, nectariferous flowers of C. rosea are mainly pollinated by butterflies. The hennaphrodites flowers have intra-floral hercogamy, which prevent the spontaneous self-pollination, and, in general, are produced at the base of the inflorescences and precede the emission of the staminate flowers, characterizing an inter-floral dicogamy. Evidences are showed that the presence of developing fruits at the base of the inflorescences inhibit the new hemaphrodite flowers and accelerate the beginning of the staminate phase of flower emission. The species is self-compatible. The seeds produced by the female plants are always cross-fertilized, while the seeds produced by the polliniferous plants may be self-fertilized by geitonogamy. In natural conditions, the female plants produce more fruits and seeds, with smaller rate of abortion and greater rate of germination than the polliniferous ones.

Submitted by (edna.saturno@ufrpe.br) on 2016-07-19T13:52:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Barbara Brooklyn Timoteo Nascimento Silva.pdf: 534821 bytes, checksum: 10562bfdf804ec2c27773d76d75cefab (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-19T13:52:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Barbara Brooklyn Timoteo Nascimento Silva.pdf: 534821 bytes, checksum: 10562bfdf804ec2c27773d76d75cefab (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-02-21 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / Pomacea lineata (Spix, 1827) is a pulmonate gastropod that has a large dependence on humidity, Ampullaridae belongs to the family whose geographic distribution includes almost all the Neotropical Region , which inhabits waters of course slow and stagnate. Pulmonate gastropods have a conspicuous ecological feature, aestivation, which is a form of resistance and adaptation probably best defined as a survival strategy to cope with the arid conditions, but is also typically associated with lack of food availability, and often with high ambient temperatures. During these periods of aestivation some physiological aspects can be changed, as in molluscs, most of these is temperature dependent and can be altered by its variation, including the activity of the immune system. The innate immune system of invertebrates involves humoral and cellular response similar to that found in vertebrates. The cellular defenses occurs in combination with humoral defenses. Humoral responses include the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) and phenol oxidase enzyme activity, and cellular immune reactions are performed by hemocytes, performing, among other functions, encapsulation and phagocytosis of the pathogen. Thus, this research aimed to obtain information on some immunological parameters snail P. lineata in conditions of induced aestivation. The snails were induced to aestivation through the gradual withdrawal of water in the aquarium and abstention from food, getting in these conditions for 60 days. After this period, hemolymph of 40 individuals were collected for analysis of the total haemocyte count, measurement of nitric oxide, phenol oxidase activity and total protein. The results revealed that animals under aestivation showed a significant increase in the total number of hemocytes and measurement of nitric oxide, which may confer greater chance of survival. / Pomacea lineata (Spix, 1827) é um gastrópode pulmonado que apresenta uma grande dependência da umidade, pertencente à família Ampullaridae cuja distribuição geográfica inclui quase toda a Região Neotropical, na qual habita águas de curso lento e estagnadas. Gastrópodes pulmonados apresentam uma característica ecológica conspícua, a estivação, que é uma forma de resistência e adaptação provavelmente melhor definida como uma estratégia de sobrevivência para lidar com as condições áridas, mas também é tipicamente associada com a falta de disponibilidade de alimentos e, frequentemente, com as altas temperaturas ambientais. Durante estes períodos de estivação alguns aspectos fisiológicos podem ser alterados, pois nos moluscos, a maioria desses, é dependente da temperatura e podem ser alterados pela sua variação, incluindo a atividade do sistema imunitário. O sistema imunológico inato dos invertebrados envolve a resposta celular e humoral similarmente ao encontrado nos vertebrados. As defesas celulares ocorrem em combinação com as defesas humorais. As respostas humorais, incluem a produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio (ROS) e óxido nítrico (NO) e a atividade da enzima fenoloxidase, e as reações imunes celulares são realizadas pelos hemócitos, que executam, dentre outras funções, o encapsulamento e fagocitose do patógeno. Assim, esta pesquisa teve por objetivo obter informações sobre alguns parâmetros imunológicos do caramujo P. lineata em condições de estivação induzida. Os caramujos foram induzidos à estivação através da retirada gradual de água no aquário e abstenção de alimento, ficando nestas condições por 60 dias. Após este período, hemolinfa de 40 indivíduos foram coletadas para as análises de contagem total de hemócitos, dosagem de óxido nítrico, atividade da fenoloxidase e proteínas totais. Os resultados revelaram que os animais estivantes apresentavam um aumento significativo no número total de hemócitos e na dosagem de óxido nítrico, o que pode conferir maior chance de sobrevivência.

Ce travail de thèse s'attache à identifier des plantes et/ou molécules à activités cytotoxique, antioxydante, anti-inflammatoire et antivirale ciblant le virus du chikungunya (CHIKV) dans le but de trouver des alternatives thérapeutiques vis-à-vis du stress oxydatif et de l'inflammation, mécanismes impliqués dans les maladies chroniques non transmissibles (diabète, obésité…), et de la maladie du chikungunya, maladie vectorielle réémergente. La première partie de ces travaux présente les résultats obtenus lors d'un criblage d'activités biologiques réalisé sur une sélection de dix-huit plantes endémiques et indigènes de La Réunion. Les activités ciblées ont été les activités cytotoxiques sur une lignée cellulaire humaine (cellules THP-1), les activités antioxydantes évaluées par un test in cellulo d'hémolyse et par quatre tests chimiques (TEAC/DPPH/FRAP/ORAC) ainsi qu'une évaluation de la teneur en composés phénoliques (test FOLIN) et les activités anti-inflammatoires testées sur des macrophages murins (cellules RAW-BlueTM). Les résultats obtenus ont permis de mettre, plus particulièrement, en évidence les activités de différents extraits : cytotoxique pour Carissa spinarum, antioxydantes pour Agarista buxifolia et Dryopteris wallichiana et anti-inflammatoire pour Stillingia lineata et Indigofera ammoxylum. La deuxième partie du travail est consacrée à l'étude phytochimique d'une espèce indigène de La Réunion, Stillingia lineata, choisie en raison des résultats obtenus lors de ce criblage biologique préliminaire et de ceux du programme Phytochik. Un fractionnement bioguidé par un test antiviral, réalisé sur des cellules Vero (cellules rénales de singe vert Cercopithecus aethiops) contaminées par le CHIKV, a conduit à l'isolement de trois macrocycles diterpéniques rares de type tonantzitlolone dont l'un présente une structure non caractérisée jusque-là, et d'un pimarane de structure nouvelle. La 4'-acétoxytonantzitlolone a été identifiée comme molécule candidate contre le CHIKV (CE50 = 7 μM). Des relations structure-activité ont pu être définies ; la présence d'un groupement oxygéné sur la chaîne latérale des tonantzitlolones semble jouer un rôle important sur la réponse antivirale de ces squelettes diterpéniques. / The aims of this PhD work were to identify plants and/or molecules with cytotoxic, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory or antiviral (chikungunya virus , CHIKV) activities in order to find therapeutic alternatives towards oxidative stress and inflammation, mechanisms involved in chronic noncommunicable diseases (diabetes, obesity ...), and chikungunya disease, reemerging vector-borne disease. The first part of this work presents the results obtained from a biological screening carried out on a selection of eighteen endemic and indigenous plants of La Réunion. The targeted activities were cytotoxicity on a human cell line (THP-1), antioxidant activities evaluated using an in cellulo hemolysis assay and four chemical tests (TEAC / DPPH / FRAP / ORAC) together with an evaluation of the content of phenolic compounds (FOLIN test) and anti-inflammatory activity tested in murine macrophages (RAW cells-BlueTM). The results allowed to highlight activities of different extracts in particular : cytotoxic for Carissa spinarum, antioxidant for Dryopteris wallichiana and Agarista buxifolia and anti-inflammatory for Stillingia lineata and Indigofera ammoxylum.The second part of this work is devoted to the phytochemical study of Stillingia lineata, an indigenous species of La Réunion chosen because of the results obtained in this preliminary biological screening and those carried out in Phytochik programme. Bioassay-guided fractionation performed on Vero cells (green monkey kidney cells Cercopithecus aethiops) infected with CHIKV led to the isolation of three rare macrocycle-type diterpenes called tonantzitlolone and a new pimarane. The 4'-acetoxytonantzitlolone was identified as a candidate molecule against CHIKV (EC50 = 7 μM). Structure-activity relationships have been defined, the presence of an oxygenated group on the side chain of tonantzitlolones seems to play an important role in the antiviral response of the diterpene skeleton.