简介：Thispaperpresentsthedesign,fabrication,andexperimentalcharacterizationofaperistalticmicropump.ThemicropumpiscomposedoftwolayersfabricatedfromPolydimethylsiloxane(PDMS)material.Thefirstlayerhasarectangularchannelandtwovalveseals.Threerectangularminilightweightpiezo-compositeactuatorsareintegratedinthesecondlayer,andusedasactuationparts.Twolayersarebonded,andcoveredbytwoPolymethylMethacrylate(PMMA)plates,whichhelpincreasethestiffnessofthemicropump.Amaximumflowrateof900μL·min-1andamaximumbackpressureof1.8kPaarerecordedwhenwaterisusedaspumpliquid.Wemeasuredthepowerconsumptionofthemicropump.Themicropumpisfoundtobeaprom-isingcandidateforbio-medicalapplicationduetoitsbio-compatibility,portability,bidirectionality,andsimpleeffectivedesign.

简介：AsapartofabasicresearchprojectonXeno-transplantion,wehavebeenengagedinthederivationofembryonicstemcelllinesfromChineseminiswine.Here,wereportedforthefirsttimetheestablishmentoftwoporcineEGcelllines(BPEG1andBPEG2)fromprimordialgermcellsofgenitalridgesofa28anda27dembryosrespectively.Theirpluripotentnaturehasbeenidentifiedbycolonymorphology,markercharacterizationaswellasbyinvitroandinvivodifferentiation.TheseporcineEGcellsarepotentiallyusefulforfurtherbasicstudies.

简介：TheApollobutterfly,Parnassiusapollo(Linnaeus),wascommoninEuropeover100yearsago,butcurrentlyitisconsideredasnearthreatened.Differentconservationprogramshavepromotedthepersistenceofthisspecies;however,itisstillendangered.AnexampleofsuchprogramswastheactiondevotedtoreestablishtheApollobutterflypopulationinPieninyNationalPark(Poland)fromonly20-30individualswhichhadsurvivedtillthelastdecadeofthe20thcentury.Thisreintroductionhasbeensuccessful;however,unexpecteddevelopmentalproblemsappeared.Butterflieswithdeformedorreducedwingsbecamefrequentinthepopulationlivinginthenaturalhabitat,andparticularlyamongthoserearedunderseminaturalconditions(inthesameenvironment,butfencedbyanet).Untilrecently,reasonsforthesemalformationsremainedunknown.However,reportspublishedduringlastmonthsindicatedthattherearegenetic,biochemical,andmicrobiologicalfactorscontributingtothisphenomenon.Inthemalformedindividuals,lesionsinthewinglessgeneanddysfunctionsoflaccase1and2werefoundtobesignificantlymorefrequentthaninnormalinsects.AlargefractionofbutterflieswithdeformedorreducedwingswasdevoidoftheprokaryoticsymbiontWolbachia,whichwaspresentinmostnormalindividuals.Moreover,Yersiniapseudotuberculosis(Pfeiffer)SmithandThai,andSerratiasp.,bacteriapathogenictoinsects,weredetectedinthebiologicalmaterialfrombothnormalandmalformedbutterfliesfromthispopulation.Thesefindingsaresummarizedanddiscussedinthisreview,inthelightofconservationofinsectsandrestitutionoftheirpopulationsfromalownumberofindividuals.