Report of a magpie preying on a post-fledgling Daurian redstart.

A magpie () preying on a fledgling of Daurian redstart () was incidentally recorded with a video shot by mobile phone on 26 May 2021, providing direct evidence for magpie predation. It also shows that predation is an important factor that affects the survival of fledglings, indicating that survival of fledglings should be considered in evaluating breeding success of birds. The fledgling was about 13-day-old posthatching, and it was on its first day of leaving the nest when the incident occurred.

Population Genetic Structure Analysis Reveals Decreased but Moderate Diversity for the Oriental Fire-Bellied Toad Introduced to Beijing after 90 Years of Independent Evolution.

Detailed molecular genetic research on amphibian populations has a significant role in understanding the genetic adaptability to local environments. The oriental fire-bellied toads () were artificially introduced to Beijing from Shandong Province in 1927, and since then, this separated population went through an independent evolution. To explore the differentiation of the introduced population with its original population, this study analyzed the genetic structure of the oriental fire-bellied toad, based on the mitochondrial genome control region and six microsatellite sites.

Non-invasive genetic analysis indicates low population connectivity in vulnerable Chinese gorals: concerns for segregated population management.

Detailed information on the size and genetic structure of wildlife populations is critical for developing effective conservation strategies, especially for those species that have suffered population decline and fragmentation due to anthropogenic activities. In the present study, we used a non-invasive approach combining fecal pellet sampling with mitochondrial DNA and nuclear DNA microsatellite marker analysis to monitor and compare the population structure of the Chinese goral () in Beijing and northeast Inner Mongolia in China. Of the 307 fecal samples confirmed to be from , 15 individuals (nine females and six males) were found in the Beijing population and 61 individuals (37 females and 24 males) were found in the Inner Mongolian population.

PKCepsilon increases endothelin converting enzyme activity and reduces amyloid plaque pathology in transgenic mice.

Deposition of plaques containing amyloid beta (Abeta) peptides is a neuropathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here we demonstrate that neuronal overexpression of the epsilon isozyme of PKC decreases Abeta levels, plaque burden, and plaque-associated neuritic dystrophy and reactive astrocytosis in transgenic mice expressing familial AD-mutant forms of the human amyloid precursor protein (APP). Compared with APP singly transgenic mice, APP/PKCepsilon doubly transgenic mice had decreased Abeta levels but showed no evidence for altered cleavage of APP.