The traits of the behavior of sled dogs depending on their origin

A dog is a unique animal, capable of complex relationships not only with its relatives, but also with a man. Impulsivity is a behavioral trait described as the inability to postpone behavior in the presence of significant signals. The purpose of the work was to study the traits of the behavior of sled dogs depending on their origin. The studies have been carried out on dogs of the breeds of Siberian and Alaskan husky. The animals have been divided into groups: the 1st group Siberian husky (show type); the 2nd group – Siberian husky (sports type); the 3rd group – Alaskan husky. It has been found that Siberian husky of the show type and the Siberian husky of the sports type were indifferent to the shot (4,6 points). Alaskan husky dogs received a significantly lower score of 3,5 points (P > 0,95). According to the degree of excitability, the ratio of animal ratings in the studied groups was distributed as follows; the dogs of the 3rd group had the high degree of excitability, which received 2,8±0,09 points out of 3 possible points. Significantly lower scores of 2,0 and 2,2 were awarded to individuals of the 1st and 2nd groups (Siberian husky of show and sports types) with the significant difference of P > 0,999 and P > 0,95, respectively, in relation to animals of the 3rd group (Alaskan husky). For the 1st and 2nd groups of dogs, the average degree of excitability was more characteristic. While in the 3rd group there were no dogs with the low degree of excitability. The dogs of Siberian husky show-type did not show fear and fright towards a man. In the dogs of Siberian husky show type, the passive-defensive reaction was not expressed.

Termitophily Documented in Earwigs (Dermaptera)

Based on behavioral observations, we report termitophily by the earwig Spirolabia kaja Kočárek, sp. nov. (Spongiphoridae: Labiinae). The new species was found in association with the wood-boring termite Schedorhinotermes sarawakensis (Holmgren, 1913) in a dipterocarp rain forest in Borneo; in addition to being observed in the galleries, termite–earwig interactions were subsequently documented in the laboratory. We found that earwigs and termites communicate by antennation, and we observed no form of targeted mutual or unilateral aggressive behavior. The earwigs responded to the proximity of an experimentally irritated termite soldier by conflict-avoidance behavior based on thanatosis, which seems to be a defensive reaction that may reduce the chance of being attacked by an irritated termite. Based on the analysis of gastrointestinal tract contents, we conclude that S. kaja sp. nov. is an omnivorous species that feeds mainly on plant tissues and fungi but occasionally on arthropod remains. The occurrence of S. kaja sp. nov. adults together with the nymphs (2nd to 4th instars) in the galleries of S. sarawakensis strongly suggests that the earwig can reproduce inside the termite colony. Spirolabia kaja Kočárek, sp. nov. is the first earwig species for which termitophily has been demonstrated.

Disentangling factors that assemble New Zealand's ant communities

<p>Several biotic and abiotic stressors can influence community assembly. The negative co-occurrence patterns observed within many communities, for example, may derive either from behavioural similarities (e.g. species displaying high aggression levels towards each other) or habitat preference. I evaluated the role of several stressors that may shape New Zealand’s ant communities. First, I investigated (in chapter 2) the co-occurrence patterns of two native ant communities located within transitional grassland-forest habitats. I also monitored the temperature variation in these habitats over a one-year period. I found that grasslands are exposed to higher temperature variation than forest habitats. I also found that some ants are mostly associated with forest habitats and others with grasslands. Using null models to examine these communities, I found evidence that two ant species (Monomorium antarcticum and Prolasius advenus) exhibit negative co-occurrence patterns. In the reminder of my thesis I developed a series of laboratory-based experiments to examine the processes that could explain the co-occurrence patterns that I observed in these ant communities. In chapter 3, I subjected heterospecific groups of ants to interactions in controlled conditions. I asked if interspecific aggression predict the survival probability and co-occurrence patterns described in chapter 2. My results demonstrated that aggression predicted the survival probability of interacting ant species and their co-occurrence patterns. I argued that aggressive behaviour might reflect the risks imposed by competitors. Differences in aggression may thus be a key factor influencing sympatric and allopatric co-occurrence patterns of these ant communities. In chapter 4, I tested the hypotheses that arrival sequence and diet influence the strength of interactions between colonies of two species that exhibited negative co-occurrence patterns (P. advenus and M. antarcticum). When arriving first, P. advenus displayed increased aggression and M. antarcticum a defensive reaction. The adoption of a defensive reaction by M. antarcticum increased their colony survival probability. Changes in carbohydrate and protein availability modulated colony activity rates of both species. These results indicate that arrival sequence can modulate the territorial behaviour displayed by interacting species in situations of conflict. Also, I showed that these ant species adjust their foraging activity rates in according to their diet, but different species do so differently. In chapter 5, I expanded the scope of chapter 4 and asked if aggression and foraging behaviour of P. advenus and M. antarcticum change in different conditions of temperature, diet and group size. For both ant species, changes in temperature had stronger effects on small than large colonies. Small groups of M. antarcticum displayed higher foraging activity at lower temperatures. Conversely, small groups of P. advenus displayed higher foraging activity at high temperatures. Also, small M. antarcticum colonies displayed increased aggression and significantly reduced the size of large P. advenus colonies, regardless of temperature and diet. These results suggest that P. advenus and M. antarcticum perform differently at different temperatures. Furthermore, I demonstrated that the persistence of these small colonies might be related to their ability to modulate foraging activities and interspecific aggression according to the environment. I also investigated (in chapter 6) the effects of a neurotoxic pesticide (neonicotinoid) on a native (M. antarcticum) and an invasive ant (Linepithema humile). I tested whether sublethal contamination with a neonicotinoid affects foraging, fitness and the outcome of interspecific interactions between these ants. Overall, pesticide exposure increased aggression of the invasive ant and reduced the aggression of the native species. Importantly, non-exposed individuals of the invasive species subjected to interactions against exposed natives were less aggressive, but more likely to survive. These results suggest that the modification of the physicochemical environment by pesticide contamination could change the dynamics of communities and influence invasion success. Overall, this thesis highlights that synergistic effects between several biotic and abiotic factors influence community assembly. My results suggest that non-random allopatric patterns of niche occupancy observed in these ant communities are better explained by high levels of aggression displayed between pairs of species that seldom co-occur, though I was unable to falsify the hypothesis that habitat preference also plays a role in determining their distribution and co-occurrence patterns. The modification of behaviour by external factors – either natural (e.g. temperature) or human mediated (e.g. pesticide exposure) – likely has broad effects on population and community dynamics and on patterns of species co-existence.</p>

Disentangling factors that assemble New Zealand's ant communities

<p>Several biotic and abiotic stressors can influence community assembly. The negative co-occurrence patterns observed within many communities, for example, may derive either from behavioural similarities (e.g. species displaying high aggression levels towards each other) or habitat preference. I evaluated the role of several stressors that may shape New Zealand’s ant communities. First, I investigated (in chapter 2) the co-occurrence patterns of two native ant communities located within transitional grassland-forest habitats. I also monitored the temperature variation in these habitats over a one-year period. I found that grasslands are exposed to higher temperature variation than forest habitats. I also found that some ants are mostly associated with forest habitats and others with grasslands. Using null models to examine these communities, I found evidence that two ant species (Monomorium antarcticum and Prolasius advenus) exhibit negative co-occurrence patterns. In the reminder of my thesis I developed a series of laboratory-based experiments to examine the processes that could explain the co-occurrence patterns that I observed in these ant communities. In chapter 3, I subjected heterospecific groups of ants to interactions in controlled conditions. I asked if interspecific aggression predict the survival probability and co-occurrence patterns described in chapter 2. My results demonstrated that aggression predicted the survival probability of interacting ant species and their co-occurrence patterns. I argued that aggressive behaviour might reflect the risks imposed by competitors. Differences in aggression may thus be a key factor influencing sympatric and allopatric co-occurrence patterns of these ant communities. In chapter 4, I tested the hypotheses that arrival sequence and diet influence the strength of interactions between colonies of two species that exhibited negative co-occurrence patterns (P. advenus and M. antarcticum). When arriving first, P. advenus displayed increased aggression and M. antarcticum a defensive reaction. The adoption of a defensive reaction by M. antarcticum increased their colony survival probability. Changes in carbohydrate and protein availability modulated colony activity rates of both species. These results indicate that arrival sequence can modulate the territorial behaviour displayed by interacting species in situations of conflict. Also, I showed that these ant species adjust their foraging activity rates in according to their diet, but different species do so differently. In chapter 5, I expanded the scope of chapter 4 and asked if aggression and foraging behaviour of P. advenus and M. antarcticum change in different conditions of temperature, diet and group size. For both ant species, changes in temperature had stronger effects on small than large colonies. Small groups of M. antarcticum displayed higher foraging activity at lower temperatures. Conversely, small groups of P. advenus displayed higher foraging activity at high temperatures. Also, small M. antarcticum colonies displayed increased aggression and significantly reduced the size of large P. advenus colonies, regardless of temperature and diet. These results suggest that P. advenus and M. antarcticum perform differently at different temperatures. Furthermore, I demonstrated that the persistence of these small colonies might be related to their ability to modulate foraging activities and interspecific aggression according to the environment. I also investigated (in chapter 6) the effects of a neurotoxic pesticide (neonicotinoid) on a native (M. antarcticum) and an invasive ant (Linepithema humile). I tested whether sublethal contamination with a neonicotinoid affects foraging, fitness and the outcome of interspecific interactions between these ants. Overall, pesticide exposure increased aggression of the invasive ant and reduced the aggression of the native species. Importantly, non-exposed individuals of the invasive species subjected to interactions against exposed natives were less aggressive, but more likely to survive. These results suggest that the modification of the physicochemical environment by pesticide contamination could change the dynamics of communities and influence invasion success. Overall, this thesis highlights that synergistic effects between several biotic and abiotic factors influence community assembly. My results suggest that non-random allopatric patterns of niche occupancy observed in these ant communities are better explained by high levels of aggression displayed between pairs of species that seldom co-occur, though I was unable to falsify the hypothesis that habitat preference also plays a role in determining their distribution and co-occurrence patterns. The modification of behaviour by external factors – either natural (e.g. temperature) or human mediated (e.g. pesticide exposure) – likely has broad effects on population and community dynamics and on patterns of species co-existence.</p>

Vandal Practices as a Psychological Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Vandalism can be seen as a form of individual self-realization and expression of the individual and collective responses to change. In this paper, we intend to look at the meaning and motivations behind acts of vandalism. We also aim to classify cases of vandalism that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. In total, we analyzed 80 cases of vandalism related to the COVID-19. The information was obtained from open online sources: publications in online communities and media found through the use of hashtags #COVID-19 and #vandalism. As a result, five categories of vandalism were identified: (a) vandalism as a mechanism of adaptation to change; (b) vandalism as a coping strategy; (c) vandalism as an unconscious defensive reaction to a threatening situation; (d) vandalism as resistance to change; and (e) vandalism as a reflection of the sense of social injustice. We found that vandalism during the pandemic was used mostly as a way of adaptation to change and as a coping strategy. Moreover, our findings have also demonstrated that social instability and transitivity in the crisis period stimulate people to rethink the current social order and search for new social forms, structures, and principles.

Alterations in sucrose and phenylpropanoid metabolism affected by BABA-primed defense in postharvest grapes and the associated transcriptional mechanism

Defense elicitors can induce fruit disease resistance to control postharvest decay but may incur quality impairment. Our present work aimed to investigate the resistance against Botrytis cinerea induced by the elicitor β-aminobutyric acid (BABA) and to elucidate the specific transcriptional mechanism implicated in defense-related metabolic regulations. The functional dissection results demonstrated that after inoculation with the fungal necrotroph B. cinerea, a suite of critical genes encoding enzymes related to sucrose metabolism and phenylpropanoid pathway in priming defense in grapes were transcriptionally induced by 10 mM BABA treatment. In contrast, more UDP-glucose, a shared precursor of phenylpropanoid and sucrose metabolism, may be redirected to the phenylpropanoid pathway for the synthesis of phytoalexins, including trans-resveratrol and ε-viniferin, in 100 mM BABA-treated grapes, resulting in direct resistance but compromised soluble sugar contents. An R2R3-type MYB protein from Vitis vinifera, VvMYB44, was isolated and characterized. VvMYB44 expression was significantly induced upon the grapes expressed defensive reaction. Subcellular localization, Y2H and Co-IP assays revealed that the nuclear-localized VvMYB44 physically interacted with the SA-responsive transcription co-activator NPR1 in vivo for defence expression. In addition, VvMYB44 directly bound to the promoter regions of sucrose and phenylpropanoid metabolism-related genes and transactivate their expression, thus tipping the balance of antifungal compound accumulation and soluble sugar maintenance. Hence, these results suggest that 2R-type VvMYB44 might be a potential positive participant in BABA-induced priming defense in grape berries, contributing to avoiding the excessive consumption of soluble sugars during the postharvest storage.

Feeling Deficient but Reluctant to Improve: How Perceived Control Affects Consumers' Willingness to Purchase Self-Improvement Products Under Self-Deficit Situations

This study explored how perceived control affects consumers' willingness to purchase self-improvement products (WSP) under self-deficit situations. For this purpose, three experiments were conducted to examine the following sources of control: the controllability of self-deficits (Experiment 1); the locus of control (Experiment 2); and situational perceived control (Experiment 3). According to the results, higher perceived control can reduce consumers' defensive reaction tendencies, thus increasing their willingness to purchase products that claim to improve their current deficits. Moreover, the aforementioned effect only occurs in within-domain improvement products, rather than without-domain improvement products.

Inflammation-Mediated Angiogenesis in Ischemic Stroke

Stroke is the leading cause of disability and mortality in the world, but the pathogenesis of ischemic stroke (IS) is not completely clear and treatments are limited. Mounting evidence indicate that neovascularization is a critical defensive reaction to hypoxia that modulates the process of long-term neurologic recovery after IS. Angiogenesis is a complex process in which the original endothelial cells in blood vessels are differentiated, proliferated, migrated, and finally remolded into new blood vessels. Many immune cells and cytokines, as well as growth factors, are directly or indirectly involved in the regulation of angiogenesis. Inflammatory cells can affect endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and activation by secreting a variety of cytokines via various inflammation-relative signaling pathways and thus participate in the process of angiogenesis. However, the mechanism of inflammation-mediated angiogenesis has not been fully elucidated. Hence, this review aimed to discuss the mechanism of inflammation-mediated angiogenesis in IS and to provide new ideas for clinical treatment of IS.

Who Engages in Gender Bullying? The Role of Homophobic Name-Calling, Gender Pressure, and Gender Conformity

This study examines whether bullies’ gender conformity, pressure to conform to gender norms (felt pressure), and experiences of homophobic name-calling are associated with a tendency to bully gender conforming victims (GCV) and gender non-conforming victims (GNCV). Longitudinal changes were analyzed on all peer interactions in an entire 6th-grade cohort over two-time points during the academic year (152 girls and 128 boys). Experiencing homophobic name-calling at Time 1 predicted perpetrating bullying against GNCV at Time 2. Only for boys, one’s own gender conformity predicted bullying GNCV at Time 2. No significant associations with bullying GCV at Time 2 were found. Bullying GNCV may represent a defensive reaction to demonstrate bullies’ own gender conformity. Particularly among male bullies, one’s own gender conformity can affect the selection of victims based on their gender conformity. This study has important implications for the development of interventions to reduce aggressive behaviors against GNCV in middle school.