In many legumes, including Lotus japonicus and Medicago truncatula, susceptible root hairs are the primary sites for the initial signal perception and physical contact between the host plant and the compatible nitrogen-fixing bacteria that leads to the initiation of root invasion and nodule organogenesis. However, diverse mechanisms of nodulation have been described in a variety of legume speci...

We survey some recent developments in the theory of b-function, spectrum, and multiplier ideals together with certain interesting relations among them including the case of arbitrary subvarieties. Dedicated to Professor Masaki Kashiwara

The mosquito Aedes japonicus japonicus, originally restricted to temperate East Asia, is now widespread in North America and more recently has become established in Europe. To ascertain the putative number of separate introductions to Europe and examine patterns of expansion we analyzed the genetic makeup of Ae. j. japonicus populations from five cemeteries in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhinela...

The amphidromous goby Sicyopterus japonicus is distributed throughout southern Taiwan and Japan. Larvae of this freshwater fish go through a long marine stage. This migratory mode influences population genetic structure. We examined the genetic diversity, population differentiation, and demographic history of S. japonicus based on the mitochondrial DNA control region. We identified 102 haplotyp...

In terms of evolutionary biology, a population admixture of more than two distinct lineages may lead to strengthened genetic variation through hybridization. However, a population admixture arising from artificial secondary contact poses significant problems in conservation biology. In urban Tokyo, a population admixture has emerged from two lineages of Japanese common toad: native Bufo japonic...

Five species of the Laboulbeniales, including two unrecorded species are reported from South Korea. They are as follows; Dioicomyces anthici Thaxter on Anthicus confucii Marseul, Laboulbenia melanaria Thaxter on Anisodacthius tricuspidatus Morawitz, L. philonthi Thaxter on Philonthus wuesthoffi Bernhauer, Peyritschiella japonicus Terada on Philonthus japonicus Sharp, and Scaphidiomyces baeocera...

Hatchery-reared Argyrosomus japonicus (Temminck & Schlegel) were released into estuaries of varying habitat between 1996 and 2004, and growth and recruitment to the fishery evaluated. Fish stocked earlier in summer had significantly faster growth rates (P < 0.01), and post-stocking mortality ranged from 1.1% to 11.7% within 7 day post-release. Argyrosomus japonicus stocked in the Georges River ...

The spread of exotic mosquito species into new environments can introduce shifts in mosquito populations and potentially alter public health risks to mosquito-borne diseases. The successful establishment of exotic species may occur due to their competitive advantage over other cohabitating species. We hypothesized that the recently introduced exotic mosquito Aedes japonicus japonicus (Theobald)...

Indirect defense of plants against herbivores often involves the induced emission of volatile infochemicals including terpenoids that attract natural enemies of the herbivores. We report the isolation and characterization of a terpene synthase cDNA (LjEbetaOS) from a model legume, Lotus japonicus. Recombinant LjEbetaOS enzyme produced (E)-beta-ocimene (98%) and its Z-isomer (2%). Transcripts of...

Eelgrass ecosystems have a wide variety of ecological functions in which living tissues and detritus may be a food source for many marine animals. In this study, we conducted a laboratory simulating experiment to understand the trophic relationship between the eelgrass Zostera marina L and the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus. A mixture of decaying eelgrass debris and seafloor surface muddy ...