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With developments in humans' daily lives, and the increase in the plastic production, the waste plastic which is difficult to be degraded is ever increasing and has an influence on the stability of ecosystem. Recent studies have shown that yellow mealworms (the larvae of Tenebrio molitor) can feed on and degrade plastic. In this paper, the related researches on plastic-feeding mealworms were reviewed from the following three aspects: (1) screening of plastic-degrading microorganisms in the gut of yellow mealworms; (2) the gut microbial diversity of plastic-feeding yellow mealworms; (3) digestive capacity and growth performance of yellow mealworms, which might provide some references for reasonable and economical management of plastic pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation was conducted on the butterflies on the south slope of Taibai Mountain from April to October, 2009, with their diversity index, evenness index, dominance index, and species richness calculated and analyzed. A total of 126 species were recorded, belonging to 77 genera and 5 families. Nymphalidae had the highest diversity index (3. 3621) and species richness (9. 9363), and Pieridae had the highest dominance index (0.0573 ) and evenness index (0. 8352). The genera and species were most abundant in June-August, the diversity index was the highest in July (3. 4094), and the species richness was the highest in August (10. 7). The bio-geographic component analysis of 124 species (other 2 species were not identified) showed that the widely distributed species were most abundant (51 species), occupying 40.5% of the total, followed by Palaearctic species (41 species), occupying 32. 5%, and Oriental species were the least (32 species), occupying 25. 4%, which suggested that Taibai Mountain could be the transitional area of Palearctic and Oriental regions. The comparative analysis of the butterfly diversity and faunal characteristics on the south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain showed that there were 85 shared species, and the similarity coefficient was 62. 0%, indicating that the butterfly fauna had definite difference between the two slopes though they were geographically in proximity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation was made on the community structure and diversity of butterfly in the Mt. Liupanshan National Nature Reserve of Ningxia. There were 130 species, belonging to 5 families and 68 genera. Nymphalidae had the highest number of genus (33) and species (68), while Papilionidae only had 2 genera and 2 species. Lycaenidae had the highest richness index (1.75) and evenness index (0.84), Nymphalidae had the highest diversity index (3.01), Pieridae had the highest dominance index (0.90), while Papilionidae had the lowest richness index (0.37), diversity index 0.40), and dominance index (0). In the subfamily of Nymphalidae, Satyrinae had the highest number of genera (13) and species (24), Libytheinae only had 1 genus and 1 species, Apaturinae had the highest richness index (1.11) and evenness index (0.84), Limenitinae had the highest diversity index (2.04), and Satyrinae had the highest dominance index (0.96). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An investigation was conducted on the butterflies on the south slope of Taibai Mountain from April to October, 2009, with their diversity index, evenness index, dominance index, and species richness calculated and analyzed. A total of 126 species were recorded, belonging to 77 genera and 5 families. Nymphalidae had the highest diversity index (3.3621) and species richness (9.9363), and Pieridae had the highest dominance index (0.0573) and evenness index (0.8352). The genera and species were most abundant in June-August, the diversity index was the highest in July (3.4094), and the species richness was the highest in August (10.7). The bio-geographic component analysis of 124 species (other 2 species were not identified) showed that the widely distributed species were most abundant (51 species), occupying 40.5% of the total, followed by Palaearctic species (41 species), occupying 32.5%, and Oriental species were the least (32 species), occupying 25.4%, which suggested that Taibai Mountain could be the transitional area of Palearctic and Oriental regions. The comparative analysis of the butterfly diversity and faunal characteristics on the south and north slopes of Taibai Mountain showed that there were 85 shared species, and the similarity coefficient was 62.0%, indicating that the butterfly fauna had definite difference between the two slopes though they were geographically in proximity.

Objective: To investigate the association between aggressive behaviors and catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) single nucleotide polymorphism at position 158 from a valine to a methionine (Val158Met) as well as serotonin (5-HT) transporter gene linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) in children., Methods: A total of 68 children who were exposed to domestic violence were recruited. The frequencies of genotypes and alleles of COMT Val158Met and 5-HTTLPR were examined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) techniques. A comparison was conducted between 24 children with high scores of aggressive problems and 44 control children with low scores of aggressive problems according to Child Behavior Checklist (for parents).ResultsThere were no significant differences in genotypes of COMT Val158Met (χ2=1.612, P=0.447) and 5-HTTLPR (χ2=1.807, P=0.405) between the two groups. There were also no significant differences in the frequencies of alleles of COMT Val158Met (χ2=1.648, P=0.119) and 5-HTTLPR(χ2=0.403, P=0.527) in the two groups., Conclusions: COMT Val158Met and 5-HTTLPR might not be the susceptible genes of children's aggression, suggesting that children's aggressive behaviors might be affected by multivariate factors.

Objective: To explore the correlation between domestic violence in pregnancy and plasma glutamate (Glu), gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and cortisol levels in neonates., Methods: By cross-sectional survey and domestic violence (DV) interview with Abuse Assessment Survey (AAS), 56 abused pregnant women were screened and 107 non-abused pregnant women served as controls. Blood from umbilical vein of neonatal were collected immediately after delivery. Levels of Glu, GABA in plasma were assayed by using high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection on samples. Levels of plasma cortisol were detected by with immunoradiometric assay. All variables of the two groups were compared. Chi-square, t/z-test, Spearman correlation, liner regression analysis were adopted., Results: In the DV group, there were 49 women (87.5%) experiencing psychological abuse and 2 (3.6%) physical abuse during pregnancy. Moreover, 29 women (51.8%) experienced sexual abuse in the period of pregnancy. By comparison, our study showed higher levels of plasma Glu, GABA and cortisol in neonates of the DV group than those of the controls [(1509 +/- 339) pmol/L vs (811 +/- 270) pmol/L, (1460 +/- 369) pmol/L vs (707 +/- 296) pmol/L, (491 +/- 87) microg/L vs (392 +/- 108) microg/L, t = 14.326, t = 14.138, t = 5.916, P < 0.001]. Spearman correlation analysis showed significantly positive correlation between severity of psychological abuse and levels of Glu, GABA and cortisol (r = 0.705, 0.696, 0.425, P < 0.01) and positive correlation between the severity of sexual abuse and levels of Glu, GABA and cortisol (r = 0.471, 0.424, 0.274, P < 0.01)., Conclusion: Domestic violence in pregnancy may alter the levels of some excitatory and inhibitory amino acids and change the endocrinic function in neonates.

Objective: To investigate the prevalence of domestic violence (DV) in Hunan., Methods: Using a multi-stage sampling strategy, 9451 households involving 32 720 persons in urban, rural and industrial areas in Hunan, China were studied. Multiform clue investigation and face-to-face interviews were combined to investigate the prevalence of DV., Results: A lifetime prevalence of DV was reported by 1533 households (16.2%). A total of 1098 households (11.6%) reported at least one incident of DV in the previous year. Both lifetime and 12-month prevalence of DV varied significantly by geographic setting (P < 0.01). The lifetime prevalence abuse rates were: spousal 10.2%, child abuse 7.8%, and elder 1.5%. With regard to household structure, the lifetime prevalence of DV was highest among those remarried families (21.0%), followed by married couples with one child and extended families with several generations living together (20.1% and 20.0%, respectively). The highest rate of spousal abuse was found among remarried families (14.7%), while child and elder abuse was most prevalent among extended families (12.4% and 4.1%, respectively)., Conclusions: The findings suggested that although the prevalence of DV in Hunan was modest compared to Western countries, it remained a serious public health problem affecting over 1 in 10 households. Furthermore, the prevalence of various types of DV varied by geographic setting and family structure, suggesting that diverse geographic setting and family constellations carried different risk and protective features.