Whereas the PL peak energy monotonically changes with the Bi fraction and P in, a different behavior is observed with the spectrum full-width at half maximum (FWHM). The observation of the spectral broadening in Figure 2 suggests an increase of the FWHM with adding Bi. However, this is true only at high excitation intensity, as it is shown in the inset of Figure 4, where there is a clear PL narrowing effect with Bi% at low P in.

This can be explained in terms of clustering effects and localized exciton states induced by Bi incorporation. At low excitation power, the PL signal is dominated by localized exciton recombination, whose energy distribution shrinks with increasing Bi, moving from a set of quasi-discrete energy levels to a quasi-band formation with a larger density of states (see illustration in the top of Figure 4 inset), and hence resulting in an enhanced contribution to the PL spectrum. Figure 4 PL FWHM PHA-848125 price vs. P in for the PLX3397 in vitro three samples. The inset shows the FWHM vs. Bi%, for the three excitation power densities and a scheme of Bi cluster state distribution. With increasing incident power, the localized levels saturate, giving rise to delocalized excitons and to an increase in the FWHM. This is probably due to inhomogeneous broadening caused by fluctuations in the local Bi composition, valence band potential, and strain distribution, and eventually

band filling. The change in the FWHM with P in is illustrated in Figure 4 for three samples, where the two different processes depending on the P in clearly appear. All five samples follow the same u-shaped trend, with a minimum FWHM in the P in region between 0.5 and 20 mW, Loperamide as already observed by Mazur et al. [16] in GaAsBi QW samples under CW excitation power. The excitation power corresponding to this minimum for each sample

will be referred as P MIN. At low intensity, excitons tend to be highly localized and cannot be separated, so they recombine radiatively. By increasing P in, filling of the localized states occurs, and delocalized excitons start recombining, with the PL emission energy approaching the theoretical Varshni curve. From previously reported Arrhenius plot in a similar sample, we observed that there is a continuous set of activation energies for these excitons (some of which can be cured by thermal annealing) [15]. Therefore, their contribution is expected to be always present, but predominant at the lowest P in Target Selective Inhibitor Library supplier values. In order to discriminate the contribution of delocalized and localized excitons, an efficient way consists in separating them in two families, in a similar way as reported by Mazur et al. [16], and fit all PL spectra by two Gaussians. Figure 5 shows, for example, the GaAsBi PL transition of sample 1, which is strongly asymmetric, together with the Gaussian fitting of the two exciton recombination-related peaks. Figure 5 Fitting (black line) of the normalized sample 5 PL spectrum (circles) with the sum of two Gaussian curves.

Constructs shRNAlentiviral BI 2536 ic50 constructs in pLKO.1 against human LAMP1 was purchased from Sigma Aldrich, and following verification of knockdown, clone ID NM_005561.2-1183s1c1 used to compromise lysosomal integrity. Packaging vectors were obtained through Addgene, Inc. (Cambridge, MA). Lentivirus particles were prepared by transfection of 293 T cells in T75 flasks with 3 μg construct, 2.8 μgpRSV-Rev, 2.4 μgpMDLg/pRRE, and 0.6 μg pMD2.G utilizing FuGENE® 6 Transfection Reagent from F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. (Basel, Switzerland).

Forty-eight and 72 hours following transfection, supernatant was transferred to Bxpc3 cells in the presence of polybrene (8 μg/mL). Transformed cells were selected with puromycin (1 μg/mL) and assayed accordingly. Antibody staining Cells were washed once with PBS prior to fixation with IC

Fixation Buffer (eBiosciences) for 15 EX 527 order minutes at 37°C. Fixed cells were washed with PBS, resuspended in Permeabilization Buffer (eBiosciences), and incubated for 30 minutes at room temperature. Intracellular antigen staining was performed with FITC-antibody LCZ696 manufacturer dilution of 1:100 in Permeabilization Buffer for 60 minutes at room temperature. Mean fluorescence in FL1 was quantified with a FACSCalibur flow cytometer. Cell viability Cell lines maintained at optimal culture conditions were seeded into 96-well white, clear-bottom plates and following treatment, viability determined with CellTiter-Glo Luminescent Viability Assay from Promega (Madison, WI). Luminescence was quantified with a SpectraMax Gemini microplate spectrofluorometer from Molecular Devices (Silicon Valley, CA). Viability relative to vehicle was fit by non-linear regression and plotted against concentration. Cellular protease

assay Cells were treated in the presence of inhibitors and cytosolic extracts prepared using the digitonin extraction ASK1 method as previously described [43]. Washed cells were resuspended at 1×106 cells/mL in extraction buffer consisting of sucrose (250 mM), HEPES (20 mM), KCl (10 mM), MgCl2 (1.5 mM), EDTA (1 mM), and digitonin (30 μM). Cells were placed on ice on an orbital shaker for 10 minutes prior to centrifugation for 1 min at 14,000 rpm at 4°C. Supernatants were collected and 20 μL used to detect cleavage of Z-RR-AMC in and equal volume of reaction buffer consisting of sodium acetate (100 mM), NaCl (200 mM), EDTA (4 mM), DTT (10 mM), and Z-RR-AMC (10 μM). Plates were read following incubation at 37 ° for 60 minutes with SpectraMax Gemini microplate spectrofluorometer, Molecular Devices (Silicon Valley, CA) (ex 355 nm, em 450 nm).

The construction of a more easily transformable mutant, B. licheniformis MW3, has largely overcome this challenge [50]. In order to facilitate the understanding of germinant/receptor interactions in B. licheniformis, we have constructed disruption and complementation mutants of the gerAA locus in B. licheniformis MW3. Spores of these mutants have been studied in germination assays with L-alanine, casein hydrolysate and the non-nutrient germinant Ca2+Dipicolinic acid (Ca2+DPA).

These studies reveal that gerA is MLN2238 a main germinant receptor complex of B. licheniformis recognising amino acid(s), and supports the view that L-alanine is an important nutrient-germinant for this species. Results and Discussion Construction of the disruption and complementation mutants To elucidate the role of the hypothetical GerA proteins during spore germination, a disruption mutant of the gerAA locus in B. licheniformis MW3 was constructed. B. licheniformis MW3 was used as target strain due to its superior transformability compared to its fully sequenced parent strain DSM 13 [50]. The gerAA Selleckchem BI-2536 mutant, NVH-1307, was constructed

so that a part of the gerAA gene was substituted with a spectinomycin resistance cassette. This will cause the mutant to acquire spectinomycin resistance, and in addition, affect a potential phenotype related to the disrupted gene. If the target gene is part of an operon, which is the case of gerAA, downstream transcripted genes will also be affected, and the receptor non functional. Sequence analysis showed that in addition to harbouring the spectinomycin cassette in the gerAA locus, NVH-1307 also harboured two

additional mutations (one base substitution and one base deletion) in the gerAA locus. These mutations were most likely acquired during PCR amplification of the fragments used to construct the disruption vector (pMAD_SpRΔgerAA). These mutations were “”accepted”" (not corrected) due to their location in the gene targeted for disruption. However, in construction of the plasmid used for gerAA complementation, a polymerase with a higher expected fidelity was applied to limit the Thalidomide risk of such mutations. Sequence analysis of the complementation plasmid pHT315_MW3gerA revealed no mutations in the amplified gerA operon when compared to the sequence of Veith et al.[48]. Genetic modification studies have shown that the germination rates could be significantly increased when specific germinant receptors are over-expressed in B. subtilis [51]. Thus, expression of germinant receptors is apparently not optimised for maximal spore germination, forwarded as a possible evolutionary strategy to prevent premature germination at nutrient conditions LCZ696 research buy inadequate for sustained vegetative growth [3]. Very high levels of receptor expression could on the other hand have a negative effect on the sporulation process [51].

In addition to overweight/obese populations, a few experimental investigations have been conducted in normal https://www.selleckchem.com/products/AZD6244.html weight subjects [44–47]. In relation to improvements in body weight and body composition, the results were similar to those of the overweight/obese trials – no improvements with increasing meal frequencies [44–47]. Even under isocaloric conditions or when caloric intake was designed to maintain the subjects’ current body weight, increasing meal frequency

from one meal to five meals [47] or one meal to three meals [45] did not improve weight loss. One exception to the non-effectiveness of increasing meal frequency in bodyweight/check details composition was conducted by Fabry and coworkers [48]. The investigators demonstrated that increases in skinfold thickness were significantly greater when ingesting three meals per day as compared to five or seven meals per day in ~10-16 year old boys and girls. Conversely, no

significant differences were observed in ~6-11 year old boys or girls [48]. Application to Nutritional Practices of Athletes: Based on the data from experimental investigations utilizing obese and normal weight participants, it would appear that increasing meal frequency would not benefit the athlete in terms of improving body composition. Interestingly, when improvements in body composition are reported as a result of increasing meal frequency, the population studied was an athletic cohort [49–51]. Thus, based on this limited information, one might speculate that an

increased meal frequency in athletic populations may improve body composition. The results of these studies and their implications will be discussed later in the section LGX818 in vivo entitled “”Athletic Populations”". Blood Markers of Health Reduced caloric intake, in a variety of insects, worms, rats, and fish, has been shown to have Megestrol Acetate a positive impact on health and lifespan [52–54]. Similarly, reduced caloric intake has been shown to have health promoting benefits in both obese and normal-weight adults as well [55]. Some of the observed health benefits in apparently healthy humans include a reduction in the following parameters: blood pressure, C-reactive protein (CRP), fasting plasma glucose and insulin, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and atherosclerotic plaque formation [55]. However, much less has been published in the scientific literature regarding the effects of varying meal frequencies on markers of health such as serum lipids, serum glucose, blood pressure, hormone levels, and cholesterol. Gwinup and colleagues [56, 57] performed some of the initial descriptive investigations examining the effects of “”nibbling”" versus “”gorging”" on serum lipids and glucose in humans. In one study [57], five hospitalized adult women and men were instructed to ingest an isocaloric amount of food for 14 days in crossover design in the following manner: One large meal per day 10 meals per day given every two hours Three meals per day “”Gorging”" (i.e.

In previous studies, it was indicated that the use of a strong reductant such as borohydride

promotes the formation of silver nanoBMS202 clinical trial particles in the solution, which have a narrow size distribution. However, the severe deficiency confronted during the preparation of nanoparticles is the stability of the solution and the aggregation of nanoparticles [6–9]. In order to solve this problem, various methods are developed by researchers, such as the addition of surfactants (polyvinyl pyrrolidone selleck compound and polyethylene glycol), spray pyrolysis, low plasma, and so on [5, 10, 11]. Nevertheless, the synthesis of a monodisperse and stable silver nanoparticle suspension is challenging and may go through tedious and complex procedures, which

may hinder the practical applications of silver nanoparticles on textiles. In this paper, we developed a method to synthesize a multi-amino compound (RSD-NH2) using methacrylate and polyethylene polyamine as a precursor with the presence of methanol [12]. The schematic description of the RSD-NH2′s molecular structure can be seen in Figure  1. We can see that a lot of amino and imino groups are on the surface of RSD-NH2, which can reduce silver ions to atoms and subsequently grow to silver nanoparticles [13]. The size distribution of particles and the properties of the solution are characterized. Furthermore, an in situ formation of silver nanoparticles on the silk fabrics is carried BAY 11-7082 cost out to avoid the aggregation of particles in the solution [14]. PTK6 The antibacterial property of silk fabrics was studied, particularly washed after different times. Figure 1 Schematic description of the RSD-NH 2 ‘s molecular structure. Methods Materials The mass

of mulberry silk fabric is 60 g/m2 (purchased from Xinchang Co. Ltd, Guangzhou, China). Methacrylate, polyethylene polyamine, methanol, sodium sulfide (Na2S), silver nitrate (AgNO3), and nitric acid (HNO3) in analytical grade were purchased from Sinopharm Chemical Reagent Co. Ltd. (Beijing, China). The multi-amino compound (RSD-NH2) was prepared in the laboratory. Nutrient broth and nutrient agar, which are both biochemical reagents to culture bacteria, were purchased from Scas Ecoscience Technology Inc. (Shanghai, China). Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 6538) and Escherichia coli (ATCC 8099) were obtained from the College of Life Science, Soochow University (China). Synthesis of the multi-amino compound (RSD-NH2) Polyethylene polyamine (1 M, 104 ml) was added in a 250-ml three-neck round-bottomed glass flask equipped with a constant-voltage dropping funnel, a thermometer, and a nitrogen inlet tube. The solution was stirred with a magnetic agitator. The flask was cooled to 24°C using a circulating water bath. Simultaneously, the mixture of methacrylate (1 M, 86 ml) in methanol was dropped slowly into the flask through the funnel.

We report here the identification of 108 human proteins that interact with flavivirus NS3 or NS5 proteins or both. Based on our Y2H screen results, we created the first flavivirus NS3 and NS5 proteins interaction network composed

of 186 interactions and involving 120 distinct human proteins. Analysis of this virus-host interaction network revealed the topological features of the cellular proteins targeted by the flavivirus NS3 and NS5 proteins and identified functional pathways related to flavivirus biology. Methods Plasmid DNA contructs Coding sequences for NS3 and NS5 Flaviviruses full-length proteins or NS3 helicase, NS3 protease, NS5 polymerase and NS5 methyltransferase functional domains were provided in pDONR207 entry vector (Gateway, Invitrogen) by Bruno Coutard (Architecture FGFR inhibitor et Fonction des Macromolécules Biologiques, UMR6098, Marseille) and referenced in ViralORFeome database [17]. The viral ORFs were isolated from the following viruses: dengue virus serotype 1 (strain D1/H/IMTSSA/98/606), Alkhurma virus (strain 1176), West Nile virus (Strain paAn001), Japanese Encephalitis

virus (strain Beijing1), Kunjin virus (MRM61C) and Tick borne encephalitis virus (strain 263). Cellular ORF coding for AZI2 was purchased from Invitrogen (clone IOH41551) and coding sequences for selleck NFKBIA, and TRAF4 were obtained from Bcl-w the Human ORF Collection (OHS4187, Open Biosystems). Viral and cellular coding sequences were subsequently transferred by in vitro recombination from pDONR207 into different Gateway-compatible destination vectors following manufacturer’s recommendation (LR cloning reaction, Invitrogen). To perform yeast-two hybrid experiments, human prey coding sequences were recombined into pACT2 (Invitrogen) to be expressed in fusion downstream of the activation NVP-BSK805 ic50 domain of Gal4 (Gal4-AD) and viral bait coding sequences into pGBKT7 to be expressed in fusion downstream of the DNA binding domain of Gal4 (Gal4-BD). In mammalian cells, GST-tag and 3xFLAG-tag fusions were achieved using pDEST27 (Invitrogen), or pCI-neo-3XFLAG (kindly

provided by Y. Jacob Institut Pasteur) vectors, respectively. Yeast two-hybrid assay Viral cDNAs cloned into bait Gal4-BD vector pGBKT7, were transformed into AH109 yeast strain (Clontech) and used to screen by mating human cDNA libraries from liver, brain, spleen and bronchial epithelia cloned in the GAL4-AD pACT2 vectors, and transformed into prey Y187 yeast strains. The mating between baits and prey yeast cells was performed on a selective medium lacking histidine and supplemented with 10 mM 3-amino-triazole (3-AT; Sigma-Aldrich). After 6 days of culture on selective medium, [His+] diploids colonies were isolated and further selected over 3 weeks by culture on selective medium to eliminate false-positives colonies.

valdunensis (1 T) 38 check details Stromata small, typically around 1 mm diam, very variable in colour, white, yellow, yellowish brown, light brown, rust, reddish brown, often varying within a specimen; conidia distinctly tubercular, (sub-)globose with l/w = 1.0–1.1, conidiophores and phialides on dense pustules on CMD conspicuously curved, not submoniliform; click here anamorph common, teleomorph

uncommon H. rufa (1 T) 38′ Stromata similar, mostly reddish brown; conidia verruculose, subglobose to ellipsoidal with l/w = 1.0–1.3; conidiophores and phialides not conspicuously curved; on CMD terminal conidiophores often conspicuously submoniliform; pustules if formed not compact; common H. viridescens (1 T) 39 Dry mature stromata dark brown, violaceous-brown, to nearly black 40 39′ Fresh and dry mature stromata primarily with orange, orange-brown to rust colours 43 40 Perithecial wall colourless; effuse and pustulate conidiation structurally similar 41 40′ Perithecial wall yellow; stromata yellow when young and fresh; if pustules formed then effuse conidiation structurally different from pustulate conidiation 42 41 Stromata effuse to

subpulvinate, typically dark violaceous-brown; in association with green algae on decorticated wood; large characteristic coilings produced on CMD; poor and limited growth at 30°C H. subeffusa (1 T) 41′ Stromata pulvinate, lacking violet tones; good growth at 30°C H. petersenii (1 GF120918 research buy T) 42 On SNA pustules with phialides 4–11 × 3–3.7 μm formed, mean l/w of conidia 1.4; uncommon H. neorufa (1 T) 42′ On SNA no pustules formed but characteristic broad and flat shrubs, in fresh isolates aggregating to flat hedges with phialides 7–20 × 3–5 μm; mean l/w of conidia 1.5; widespread and common H. neorufoides (1 T) 43 Stromata up to 15 mm long, Casein kinase 1 effuse to flat pulvinate; usually associated with abundant, widely effused, bright blue-green anamorph; conidial pustules in culture with a yellow reverse, surrounded by surface hyphae

with conspicuously thickened cells; conidiophores dimorphic, curved in a dense cluster and/or long regularly tree-like; uncommon H. stilbohypoxyli (1 T) 43′ Stromata smaller; anamorph in nature less conspicuous 44 44 Stromata pulvinate, yellow- or orange-brown when young, becoming dark brown; mean l/w of conidia 1.2 H. petersenii (1 T) 44′ Stromata discoid or flat pulvinate when dry, remaining more or less orange-brown 45 45 Mean l/w of conidia 1.5; teleomorph rare H. koningii (1 T) 45′ Mean l/w of conidia 1.3–1.4; teleomorph locally common on Fagus H. rogersonii (1 T) 46 Stromata rosy, reddish, reddish-brown, at least when young 47 46′ Stromata different in colour 50 47 Stromata remaining reddish during their development, ostiolar dots conspicuous, dark brown to black; on Alnus spp. above 1000 m in the Alps H.

Oligonucleotides were designed to amplify fragments of Selleck SAHA HDAC about 100–150 bp from the target genes (Table 2). Quantitative real time PCR of selected genes was performed using the SYBR Green PCR Master Mix (ABI,

Cheshire, UK). To control for genomic DNA contamination, each sample was also incubated with a reaction mixture that lacked RT. Real time PCR conditions were as follows: 94°C for 10 min, 40 cycles of 94°C for 30 s, 60°C for 30 s and 72°C for 30 s. A step of 78°C for 10 s during which fluorescence was measured was included at the end of each cycle. The reactions were subjected to a heat dissociation protocol after the final cycle of PCR to indicate the proper temperature for fluorescence detection. After PCR amplifications, data were analyzed with iQ5 Optical System version 1.1.1442.0 Software (Bio-Rad). The threshold cycle (Ct) was calculated from the programme. Serial dilution of the cDNA was subjected to real time PCR. For each transcript, plots of Log2(dilution factor) CYC202 order against the Ct values provided an estimate of the efficiency of the amplification. The target gene mRNA level were normalised internally to the level of hrdB mRNA according to the Pfaffl’s

method [39]. C-1027 production and analysis For C-1027 production, S. globisporus strains were grown in liquid medium FMC-1027-1 by a two-stage fermentation. The spore suspensions of the different strains were adjusted to the same concentration for inoculation. The seed inoculum was prepared by inoculating 100 ml of FMC-1027-1 with an aliquot of the spore suspension and incubating the mixture at 28°C and 250 rpm for 2 days. The seed culture (5%) was added to a fresh 100 ml of FMC-1027-1, continuing to incubate at 28°C and 250 rpm for 5 days. To obtain statistically significant results, each strain was represented by a triplicate sample set. Dry weight of mycelia was measured in cultures taken at different time points in the fermentation

course and the pattern of growth curves were monitored consistently among the relevant strains. The production of C-1027 was analyzed using the fermentation supernatants of relevant strains Ixazomib mw with the same growth curves. C-1027 production was detected by assaying its antibacterial activity against B. subtilis [35]. The fermentation supernatant (180 μl) was added to stainless steel cylinders placed on F403 agar plate containing B. subtilis spores (0.4% v/v). C-1027 production was estimated by measuring the sizes of the inhibition zones after incubated at 37°C for 12 h. Isolation and HIF inhibitor high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of C-1027 chromophore were carried out mostly following Liu et al. [25]. Briefly, (NH4)2SO4 was added to the 250 ml fermentation supernatant of relevant strains to 100% saturation and then adjusted to pH 4.0 with 0.

J Mater Sci 2010, 45:5347–5352.learn more CrossRef 7. Luo B, Song XJ, Zhang F, Xia A, Yang WL, Hu JH, Wang CC: Multi-functional

thermosensitive composite microspheres with high magnetic susceptibility based on magnetite colloidal nanoparticle clusters. Langmuir 2010,26(3):1674–1679.CrossRef 8. Maity D, Zoppellaro G, Sedenkova V, Tucek J, Safarova K, Polakova K, Tomankova K, Diwoky C, Stollberger R, Machala L, Zboril R: Surface design of core-shell superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles drives record relaxivity values in functional MRI contrast agents. Chem Commun 2012, 48:11398.CrossRef 9. Shen LH, Bao JF, Wang D, Wang YX, Chen ZW, Ren L, Zhou X, Ke XB, Chen M, Yang AQ: One-step synthesis of monodisperse, water-soluble ultra-small Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles AZD1390 molecular weight for potential bioapplication. Nanoscale 2013, 5:2133.CrossRef 10. Xu YY, Zhou M, Geng HJ, Hao JJ, Ou QQ, Qi SD, Chen HL, Chen XG: A simplified method for synthesis of Fe 3 O 4 @PAA nanoparticles and its application for the removal of basic dyes. Appl Surf Sci 2012,258(1):3897–3902.CrossRef 11. Jin J, Yang F, Zhang F, Hu W, Sun SB, Ma J: 2, 2′-(Phenylazanediyl) diacetic acid modified Fe 3 O 4 @PEI for selective removal of cadmium ions from blood. Nanoscale 2012,4(3):733–736.CrossRef 12. Wang YF, Xu F,

Zhang L, Wei XL: One-pot solvothermal synthesis of Fe 3 O 4 –PEI composite and its further modification with Au nanoparticles. J Nano Res 2012, old 15:1338.CrossRef 13. Yang DP, Gao F, Cui DF, Yang M: Microwave rapid synthesis PARP inhibitor of nanoporous Fe3O4 magnetic microspheres. Curr Nanosci 2009, 5:485–488.CrossRef 14. Ma WF, Xu SA, Li JM, Guo J, Lin Y, Wang CC: Hydrophilic dual-responsive magnetite/PMAA core/shell microspheres with high magnetic susceptibility and pH sensitivity via distillation-precipitation polymerization. J Polym Sci Pol Chem 2011, 49:2725–2733.CrossRef 15. Yi YF, Zhang Y, Wang YX, Shen LH, Jia MN, Huang Y, Hou ZQ, Zhuang GH: Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid as capping ligands for highly water-dispersible iron oxide particles. Nanoscale Res Lett 2014, 9:27.CrossRef 16. Zhou SF,

Li Y, Cui F, Jia MM, Yang XR, Wang Y, Xie LY, Zhang QQ, Hou ZQ: Development of multifunctional folate-poly(ethylene glycol)-chitosan-coated Fe 3 O 4 nanoparticles for biomedical applications. Macromol Res 2014,22(1):58–66.CrossRef 17. Liu L, Xiao L, Zhu HY, Shi XW: Preparation of magnetic and fluorescent bifunctional chitosan nanoparticles for optical determination of copper ion. Microchim Acta 2012,178(3–4):413–419.CrossRef 18. Yang H, Yuan B, Lu YB, Cheng RS: Preparation of magnetic chitosan microspheres and its applications in wastewater treatment. Sci China Ser B-Chem 2009,52(3):249–256.CrossRef 19. Pospiskovaa K, Safarik I: Low-cost, easy-to-prepare magnetic chitosan microparticles for enzymes immobilization. Carbohydr Polym 2013, 96:545–548.CrossRef 20.

Specialist species were defined as such by the individual authors due to their being forest-dependant (late seral species) or open-habitat dependant in the case of grassland and shrubland transitions. Presence or absence of extremely rare or threatened/endangered species was also recorded. Site GS-9973 in vivo information including location, mean annual precipitation, plantation age and size, species composition, change in canopy cover, proximity check details to native vegetation, and silvicultural methods were also recorded where available. Statistical methods In order to avoid

making assumptions about sample distribution and variance in categories with small sample sizes, Fisher’s sign tests (signed binary-tranform tests) were used to determine whether each category of plantation transition significantly impacted measures of diversity and richness. Fisher’s sign test is Selleckchem HSP inhibitor a conservative test with less power than Student’s t-tests and Mann–Whitney U test, and is the preferred

test in the absence of normal or symmetrical distributions. Student’s t-tests with unequal variances were used to compare native versus exotic plantations within the secondary, primary, and exotic and degraded pasture forest transitions as data in these categories were approximately normally distributed. Non-parametric Spearman’s rank correlations were

used to evaluate the relationship between plantation age and species richness. All statistical analyses were done using the JMP software package (JMP 2007). Results Effects of land-use transition type The type of land-use transition significantly influenced the biodiversity outcomes of plantation establishment. Elongation factor 2 kinase Plant species richness significantly decreased in grassland to plantation (–35% ± 7%; P < 0.001), primary forest to plantation (–35% ± 6%; P < 0.001), and shrubland to plantation (–34% ± 10%; P < 0.05) transitions, but significantly increased in secondary forest to plantation transitions (35% ± 8%; P < 0.05). Species richness also tended to increase in the exotic and degraded pasture (25% ± 15%; P = 0.83), but results were not significant due to high variability within the data (Fig. 2, Table 1). Fig. 2 Change in species richness by category of land-use change. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.001, •Boxplot outliers Table 1 Changes in plant species richness, specialist/endemic/narrow species richness, native species richness, and exotic species richness, by type of land-use transition Land-use transition ∆ Plant species richness (%) Total n (obs.) Total n (pub.