Species range expansions and (re)colonization of landscapes variously dominated by humans occur on a global scale. Understanding such range enlargements and subsequent changes in the composition of ...ecological communities is important for conservation management, and the golden jackal (Canis aureus) can be considered a model species for regional and continental range expansion. Although this mesopredator has been known from the Adriatic Coast of southeastern Europe for over 500 years, the species is a recent arrival further north, including in Slovenia where jackals were first confirmed in the 1950s. Research from eastern Italy found jackals with ancestry from the Dalmatian region on the Adriatic Coast and the Pannonian region further east. We predicted similar ancestry for Slovenian jackals, and examined samples from Croatia, including Dalmatia and interior regions, Serbia, Hungary, and Slovenia with 25 microsatellite markers to determine population genetic structure. We detected two distinct genetic clusters, representing the Dalmatian and Balkan-Pannonian (Pannonian) jackal populations (FST = 0.157, 95% CI: 0.112–0.209). Contrary to expectations, only few individuals in Slovenia exhibited signs of Dalmatian ancestry, and none appeared to be direct immigrants. Some results suggested a third cluster centered in northern Hungary. These divergent profiles might indicate immigration from outside the study area, and samples from regions further east are required for additional resolution. Based on our results, we hypothesize that Dalmatia has not been a substantial source for recent range expansion of the species, which has likely occurred from the east. Further investigation can help resolve the ancestry and current distribution of the Dalmatian and Pannonian populations, and the ecological relationships resulting from progressively overlapping distributions of canid species. Finally, genomic research could illuminate whether genetic variants from eastern areas might have facilitated jackal expansion into regions characterized by a colder climate, the presence of snow, and extensive forest cover; habitats seemingly avoided by the jackals occupying the Adriatic Coast and surrounding areas in southeastern Europe.
•The golden jackal (Canis aureus) is a model for exploring species range expansions.•We examined population genetic structure in the Dinaric-Pannonian region.•Samples from Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, and Hungary showed two distinct clusters.•Most were assigned to the Pannonian cluster, another population occurs in Dalmatia.•We hypothesize that European expansion has occurred mainly from the Pannonian area.
Rapid development of molecular genetics has provided ecologists and wildlife managers with a powerful set of tools for studying and monitoring wildlife. We applied these tools to estimate the size of ...the brown bear population in Slovenia in 2007. In the years after the estimate was made public, we followed how this estimate affected policy and management actions in Slovenian bear management. We designed and executed a large-scale noninvasive genetic sampling across the range of this species in the country with a network of volunteers and estimated the size of the brown bear population in Slovenia using mark-recapture modeling. In a highly intensive 3-month sampling in autumn 2007, we collected 1057 samples. A total of 931 samples were successfully genotyped, yielding 354 different genotypes. Using mark-recapture and correcting for the edge effect caused by bears moving in and out of the sampling area across the Slovenian-Croatian border, and accounting for detected mortality, we estimated “winter” population size (after annual mortality, before reproduction) at 424 (95% confidence interval 383–458). We also observed an uneven male and female ratio of 0.405 and 0.595, respectively. Using “citizen science,” we managed to conduct a highly intensive large-scale sampling with modest financial resources, something that would be impossible to do otherwise. We produced the first robust, scientifically defensible estimate of the brown bear population size in Slovenia. Although at first reluctantly considered by managers as equivalent to other “traditional” population monitoring data, awareness of the importance of the estimate grew with time. It became the first reference point for understanding population dynamics, a basis to which current and future development of the population is being compared to. As such, we can expect it will profoundly affect Slovenian bear management in the years to come.
Human harvest is the most important mortality factor for wild ungulates in Europe and can affect several aspects of ungulate biology. There is a growing concern about possible negative side effects ...of human harvest. To better understand the differences between human and natural mortality, we compared the extent, age and sex structure, nutritional condition, spatial and temporal distribution of human harvest, and natural predation by the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx on the European roe deer Capreolus capreolus, the most abundant wild ungulate in Europe. Compared to the human harvest, lynx were less likely to kill fawns and yearlings than adults, and among adult deer, lynx were more likely to kill females. The proportion of roe deer with fat-depleted bone marrow was higher among lynx prey than among harvested animals. Average lynx kill rate was estimated to 47.8 roe deer per year, and lynx predation was considerably lower than the human harvest in the same area. While human harvest increased with higher roe deer density, lynx predation was similar across the gradient of roe deer densities. Comparison with other countries indicated that differences between human harvest and natural mortality of ungulates vary considerably in different parts of Europe. Variation in hunting practices and, even more importantly, carnivore predation may have an important role in buffering unwanted side effects of harvest of wild ungulates.
Although a considerable improvement in knowledge about small mammal fauna in Slovenia has been noted over the past 30 years, the group is still understudied. Here we present results of the nine-year ...trapping and information on abundance and community assemblage of small mammals of Goteniška gora, a mountain in southern Slovenia. Trappings were conducted every September from 2002 to 2010. Traps were set in different habitats, ranging from open-space meadows and stony karst areas to dense fir-beech forests (Abieti-Fagetum dinaricum). At least 12 different species constituted local communities, mostly resembling central European deciduous and mixed forest communities. Some representatives of Alpine small mammal communities and a Pleistocene relict were also present.
A series of complexes of divalent transition metals (Cu(II), Mn(II), Zn(II), Co(II) and Ni(II)) with the quinolone antibacterial agent fleroxacin, in the absence or presence of an
-diimine such as ...2,2'-bipyridine, 1,10-phenanthroline or 2,2'-bipyridylamine, were prepared and characterized. The complexes were characterized by various physicochemical and spectroscopic techniques and by single-crystal X-ray crystallography. The in vitro antibacterial activity of the complexes was studied against the bacterial strains
,
and
and was higher than that of free quinolone. The affinity of the complexes for bovine and human serum albumin was studied by fluorescence emission spectroscopy and the determined binding constants showed tight and reversible binding to the albumins. The interaction of the complexes with calf-thymus DNA was studied by various techniques, which showed that intercalation was the most plausible mode of interaction.
Global corporations are characterized by a large number of employees and geographically dispersed offices. Moreover, the competitiveness in the global market requires them to invest in their human ...resources to be able to remain a step ahead of competition. Implementing large scale classical education in such environments is challenging and costly. Mobile e-learning (m-learning) allows users to tailor their professional training and education to their needs and time constraints. However, in self-paced education, it is very hard to keep user retention and engagement. To achieve the latter, we have designed and developed an m-learning platform for corporate environments based on the triggering persuasive technology principle that try to incite users in regularly using the platform. We have evaluated the application in-the-wild in corporate environments of differently sized companies with 300 users. Users were subjected to three different conditions: no triggering, simple regular triggering, and adaptive triggering. The results show that the use of adaptive triggering in m-learning increases user engagement as well as course completion rates more than simple regular triggering and no triggering.
An organometallic ruthenium complex of quinolone antibacterial agent ofloxacin, (η(6)-p-cymene)RuCl(O,O-oflo)·2.8H(2)O (1·2.8H(2)O), was isolated, and its crystal structure was determined. In this ..."piano-stool" complex, quinolone is bidentately coordinated to the metal through the ring carbonyl and one of the carboxylic oxygen atoms. Interactions of the title complex with DNA were studied by spectroscopic methods electronic, fluorescence, and circular dichroism (CD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was established that the electrostatic attraction between the ruthenium complex and DNA in a solution is important for binding because interactions were observed only in a solution with low ionic strengths. An induced-CD (ICD) signal was observed in a solution of DNA and the title complex, which proves interaction between ruthenium and macromolecules. Competitive binding between cisplatin and 1 to DNA revealed that cisplatin prevents binding of 1. Our experiments revealed that binding of the title complex to DNA occurs also if guanine N7 is protonated. AFM has shown that the title complex provokes DNA shrinkage. Preliminary biological tests have also been performed.
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