| 1. |
- Cornelissen, Johannes H C, et al.
(författare)
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Global negative vegetation feedback to climate warming responses of leaf litter decomposition rates in cold biomes
- 2007
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Ingår i: Ecology Letters. - : Wiley. - 1461-023X .- 1461-0248. ; 10:7, s. 619-627
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Whether climate change will turn cold biomes from large long-term carbon sinks into sources is hotly debated because of the great potential for ecosystem-mediated feedbacks to global climate. Critical are the direction, magnitude and generality of climate responses of plant litter decomposition. Here, we present the first quantitative analysis of the major climate-change-related drivers of litter decomposition rates in cold northern biomes worldwide.Leaf litters collected from the predominant species in 33 global change manipulation experiments in circum-arctic-alpine ecosystems were incubated simultaneously in two contrasting arctic life zones. We demonstrate that longer-term, large-scale changes to leaf litter decomposition will be driven primarily by both direct warming effects and concomitant shifts in plant growth form composition, with a much smaller role for changes in litter quality within species. Specifically, the ongoing warming-induced expansion of shrubs with recalcitrant leaf litter across cold biomes would constitute a negative feedback to global warming. Depending on the strength of other (previously reported) positive feedbacks of shrub expansion on soil carbon turnover, this may partly counteract direct warming enhancement of litter decomposition.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Jonsdottir, Ingibjörg H, 1966, et al.
(författare)
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Stress och minnesfunktion
- 2007
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Ingår i: Socialmedicinsk tidskrift. ; årg 84:2
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)
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| 4. |
- Jägerbrand, Annika K, 1972-, et al.
(författare)
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Phenotypic variation at different spatial scales in relation to environment in two circumpolar bryophyte species
- 2005
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Ingår i: Lindbergia. - : ABE-IPS. - 0105-0761 .- 2001-5909. ; 30:3, s. 125-142
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Morphology, physiology and biomass in two widespread bryophyte species, Hylocomium splendens and Racomitrium lanuginosum, were studied to examine the extent to which different species exhibit similar phenotypic variation patterns within and across regions. Analyses of nine morphological variables, chlorophyll content, nitrogen content, C/N ratio and biomass were conducted in samples from five sites in two geographically separated and climatically different regions, Iceland and northern Sweden. Both species exhibited large between-site variation in morphology, physiology and biomass, but within-site variation in morphology was substantially higher in Hylocomium splendens than Racomitrium lanuginosum. Morphological patterns were partly similar, partly different between the species, indicating that the two species respond morphologically to external factors on different scales. The lowest concentrations of chlorophyll and nitrogen were found at the same sites for both species, while the site of highest concentration was not the same. In Hylocomium splendens, chlorophyll content was positively correlated with biomass. Many of the observed relationships between morphological, physiological variables and biomass were species-specific. Our results demonstrate that the two bryophytes exhibit different phenotypic responses to environmental variation. Copyright © Lindbergia 2006.
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| 5. |
- Lindgren, Åsa, 1973-
(författare)
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Effects of herbivory on arctic and alpine vegetation
- 2007
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The distribution of plant species and functional traits in alpine and arctic environments are determined by abiotic conditions, but also by biotic interactions. In this thesis, I investigate interactions among plants and herbivory effects on plant community composition and plant functional traits in three different regions: Swedish Lapland, Beringia (USA/Russia) and Finnmark (Norway). Reindeer grazing was found to be extensive in southern Lapland and had limited effects on plant community composition and seedling germination. However, reindeer presence was found to influence plant functional traits, particularly in the subalpine birch forest. Tall herbs were lower and had lower SLA when reindeer were present, while small herbs showed an opposite pattern. The contrasting effects on the two herb groups are probably explained by a competitive release for small herbs when the tall herbs are suppressed by reindeer. Rodents had the largest relative impact on plant community composition in southern Lapland and this is consistent with the study from Finnmark, where rodents heavily affected dwarf shrubs on predator-free islands. With no predators present, vole densities increased profoundly and almost depleted some dwarf shrub species. These results support the idea that small mammals in arctic and alpine tundra are controlled by predators (i.e. top-down). However, a decrease in the nutritional quality in a sedge after defoliation gives support for the idea that small mammals are regulated by plant quality (i.e. bottom-up). In Beringia, small and large herbivores differed in the relation to plant community composition, since large herbivores were related to species richness and small herbivores were related to plant abundance. Plant functional traits were related only to large herbivores and standing crop of vascular plants.
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| 6. |
- Manni, Luigi, 1962, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of exercise on ovarian morphology and expression of nerve growth factor and alpha(1)- and beta(2)-adrenergic receptors in rats with steroid-induced polycystic ovaries
- 2005
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Ingår i: J Neuroendocrinol. ; 17:12, s. 846-58
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Oestadiol valerate (EV)-induced polycystic ovaries (PCO) in rats cause anovulation and cystic ovarian morphology. Denervation of ovarian sympathetic nerves restores ovulatory disruption. In the present study, we determined whether 5 weeks of voluntary exercise influence ovarian morphology and the expression of sympathetic markers in the EV-induced PCO rat model. The effect of exercise on (i) ovarian morphology; (ii) mRNA and protein expression of nerve growth factor (NGF); and (iii) mRNA and number of ovarian-expressing cells for the NGF receptor (p75 neurotrophin receptor) and the alpha(1a)-, alpha(1b)-, alpha(1d)- and beta(2)-adrenergic receptors (ARs) in rats with EV-induced PCO was evaluated. PCO was induced by a single i.m. injection of EV, and controls were injected with oil alone in adult cycling rats. The rats were divided into four groups: (i) control (oil); (ii) exercise group (oil + exercise); (iii) a PCO group (EV); and (iv) a PCO exercise group (EV + exercise). The exercise and PCO exercise groups ran voluntarily for 5 weeks in computer-monitored wheels placed in the cages where they were housed. The results obtained indicated that ovarian morphology was almost normalised in the PCO exercise group; NGF mRNA and protein concentrations were normalised in the PCO exercise group; high numbers of NGF receptor expressing cells in PCO ovaries were lowered by exercise; and the number of immunopositive cells of the different AR subtypes were all reduced after exercise in the PCO group, except for the alpha(1b)- and beta(2)-AR whereas the mRNA levels were unaffected, indicating transcriptional regulation. In conclusion, our data indicate a beneficial effect of regular exercise, as a modulator of ovarian sympathetic innervation, in the prevention and treatment of human PCOS.
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| 7. |
- Naylor, Andrew Stuart, 1977, et al.
(författare)
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Extended voluntary running inhibits exercise-induced adult hippocampal progenitor proliferation in the spontaneously hypertensive rat.
- 2005
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Ingår i: Journal of neurophysiology. - : American Physiological Society. - 0022-3077 .- 1522-1598. ; 93:5, s. 2406-14
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Previous work has shown that voluntary running increases cell proliferation and neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of the adult hippocampus. Here we report that long-term running for 24 days results in a down-regulation of hippocampal progenitor proliferation to one-half the level of nonrunning controls compared with a fivefold increase in progenitor proliferation seen after 9 days of voluntary running (short-term running). The negative effects seen on proliferation after 24 days of running were prevented by restricting daily running distances (by 30-50%) during 24 days. Long-term running for 24 days increases the response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, with an increase in adrenal gland weight and increased plasma corticosterone levels, as well as decreased thymus weight, indicating a stress response as a possible mediator of decreased progenitor proliferation. Furthermore, the negative effects seen on the observed stress response after 24 days of running were prevented by restricting daily running distance. Short-term running did not alter these stress parameters compared with nonrunning controls. However, it increased phosphorylated cyclic AMP response element binding protein (pCREB) in the dentate gyrus, an increase that was not seen in nonrunning controls or after 24 days of running. Taken together, these data suggest that voluntary running does not always enhance proliferation and that the decrease in progenitor proliferation seen in long-term running is possibly mediated by mechanisms involving a stress response in the animal. However, a moderate level of long-term running was able to prevent the negative stress-related changes seen in unrestricted long-term running.
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