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Abstract: Winter food is crucial for survival of animals in northern temperate regions where green vegetation is scarce or absent during the winters. The Daurian pika (Ochotona dauurica Pallas, 1776) is a steppe-dwelling, burrowing small mammal widely distributed in Inner Mongolian grasslands. Winters are severe in Inner Mongolian steppes with temperatures ranging from −40 to 5°C. Pikas cache food plants in haypiles in late autumn. Forbs constituted over 90% of haypile biomass and were the main winter food of Daurian pikas. We conducted a haypile removal experiment during 1992 and 1993 to determine the ecological importance of haypiles. Pika densities in the spring were significantly lower on the removal plots than on the control plots. Therefore, haypiles as a food resource improve over-winter survival of Daurian pikas. Winter food availability may limit pika abundance in central Inner Mongolia. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) and Daurian pikas (Ochotona dauurica) are two key small mammal species in the Inner Mongolian grasslands, China. Mongolian gerbils displayed density-dependent population growth, but the time lag of density dependence was short and within season. The spring–autumn population growth rate was inversely related to population density in Mongolian gerbils of the Erdos desert grasslands. The autumn–spring population growth rate of Mongolian gerbils was inversely related to winter precipitation. Precipitation had stronger effects on the population growth of gerbils during the non-breeding season. The monthly population growth rate of Daurian pikas was positively related to the monthly precipitation and was inversely related to population density in central Inner Mongolia. Daurian pikas select habitats with tall plants. Increased precipitation enhances plant production and increases the height of plants in arid and semi-arid regions. This enhancement of plant height might increase the population growth of Daurian pikas. Mongolian gerbils live in short grasslands. Increased winter precipitation might result in higher winter mortality of Mongolia gerbils, or taller plants might supress gerbil population growth in wet years. Therefore, responses of small mammal species to changes in precipitation depend on the life history of small mammals and changes in vegetation induced by climatic changes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Traditionally, methane (CH4) emission from terrestrial plants is thought to originate from belowground microbial metabolism under anaerobic conditions, with subsequent transport to the atmosphere through stems. However, a recent study reported aerobic CH4 emission from plants by an unrecognized process, a result that has since been questioned. We investigated CH4 emissions under aerobic conditions from aboveground tissues of 44 species indigenous to the temperate Inner Mongolia steppe. Ten herbaceous hydrophytes (wetland-adapted plants) were examined, two of which—Glyceria spiculosa and Scirpus yagara—emitted CH4 from stems but not from detached leaves. Of 34 xerophytes (arid-adapted plants) examined, 7 out of 9 shrub species emitted CH4 from detached leaves but not stems, whereas none of 25 herbaceous xerophytes. emitted CH4. The herbaceous hydrophyte, S. yagara, emitted highly 13C-depleted CH4, suggesting a microbial origin. Achillea frigida exhibited the highest CH4 emission rates among the shrubs and continuously emitted relatively 13C-enriched CH4 from detached leaves, indicating that CH4 was derived directly from plant tissues under aerobic conditions. Because woody species are relatively rare in the Inner Mongolia steppe, aerobic, plant-derived CH4 emission is probably negligible in this region. Our results may imply a larger role for aerobic CH4 production in upland ecosystems dominated by woody species or in ecosystems where woody encroachment is occurring as a result of global change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Man-made desert algal crusts were constructed on a large scale (3000m2) in Inner Mongolia, China. Microcoleus vaginatus was mass cultivated and inoculated directly onto unconsolidated sand dune and irrigated by automatic sprinkling micro-irrigation facilities. The crusts were formed in a short time and could resist the erosion of winds and rainfalls 22 days after inoculation. The maximum biomass in the man-made algal crusts could also reach 35μgChl a/cm2 of soil. Effects of environmental factors such as temperature, irrigation, rainfall and soil nutrients on algal biomass of man-made algal crusts were also studied. It was found that rainfalls and lower light intensity had significantly positive effects on the biomass of man-made algal crusts. The preliminary results suggested that man-made algal crusts could be formed rapidly, and thus it might be a new feasible alternative method for fixing unconsolidated sand. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Objective: This study aims to examine the association between inflammatory biomarkers and dyslipidemia and its components among Mongolians in China., Methods: Data were obtained from 2544 Mongolians via standard questionnaires and blood samples in Inner Mongolia, China. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) and soluble E-selectin (sE-selectin) as well as blood lipids were examined., Results: Individuals with dyslipidemia had higher levels of hsCRP, sICAM-1 and sE-selectin than those without dyslipidemia (all P values<0.001). Compared to the lowest quartile of inflammatory biomarkers, individuals with the highest quartile were more likely to have dyslipidemia (odds ratio, 95% confidence interval: 3.215, 2.551-4.116 for hsCRP; 1.575, 1.253-1.980 for sICAM-1; 1.495, 1.193-1.873 for sE-selectin). Moreover, hsCRP was associated with all the components of dyslipidemia, whereas, sICAM-1 was not related to high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) or triglycerides (TAG). Additionally, sE-selectin was just associated with TAG., Conclusion: Our study indicated that elevated plasma levels of hsCRP, sICAM-1 and sE-selectin were positively and significantly associated with increased risk of dyslipidemia among Mongolians. However, the associations were not identical for different inflammatory biomarkers with the components of dyslipidemia.

Chronic inflammation and endothelial dysfunction may be associated with hypertension and cardiovascular disease. We examined associations between inflammatory and endothelial dysfunction biomarkers and the risk of prehypertension among Mongolians. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 2589 Mongolians aged 20 years and older in Inner Mongolia, China. Three blood pressure measurements, body weight, height and lifestyle factors were obtained for all participants. Overnight fasting blood samples were obtained to measure the biomarkers, including C-reactive protein (CRP), soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1), soluble E-selectin (sE-selectin) and angiotensin II. The average levels of CRP (7.43 vs. 5.86), sICAM-1 (339.38 vs. 328.05), sE-selectin (19.11 vs. 18.32) and angiotensin II (52.00 vs. 47.00) were all significantly higher in hypertensives than that in prehypertensives (all P<0.05); prehypertensives had higher levels of CRP (5.86 vs. 4.85) and sICAM-1 (328.05 vs. 314.14) compared with normotensives (both P<0.05). Hypertension (odds ratio (OR): 1.50, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.07, 2.11) and prehypertension (OR: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.85) were positively and significantly associated with elevated CRP adjusted for multivariable. Hypertension (OR: 1.56, 95% CI: 1.18, 2.06) and prehypertension (OR: 1.32, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.71) were also positively and significantly associated with higher sICAM-1 adjusted for age and gender. Elevated CRP and sICAM-1 were associated with prehypertension among Mongolian population. This study suggests that inflammation and endothelial dysfunction may have a role in the development of hypertension.

To determine the relationship between apolipoprotein E (APOE) epsilon4 and sporadic Alzheimer's disease (SAD) in the Mongolian population in China, we examined 106 Mongolian SAD patients in China and 100 Mongolian healthy controls. All subjects were genotyped for APOE. The odds ratio (OR) for developing SAD was significantly increased in carriers of the APOE epsilon4 allele compared with APOE epsilon4 non-carriers (chi(2)=5.59, df=1, P=0.018, OR=1.84, 95% CI 1.02-3.31). Our findings suggested that APOE epsilon4 is a high-risk factor for AD in the Mongolian population in China. The present study is the first to establish the relationship between APOE epsilon4 and SAD in the Mongolian population.

A new species of philometrid nematode (Nematoda: Philometridae), Philometroides buirnurensis sp. n., is described and illustrated on the basis of female specimens from subcutaneous tissues of the inner surface of the abdominal cavity and the bile duct of cyprinid fishes Leucisuus waleckii (Dybowski), 1869 (type host), Pseudaspius leptocephalus (Pallas), 1776 and Hemiibarbus labeo (Pallas), 1776, from the Buir Nur Lake, a boundary lake between China and Mongolia, on southwest of the Hulun Buir League in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. The new species distinctly differs from its congeners mainly in that the posterior half of its body is tapered and conspicuously narrower than the anterior region and that both the head and tail ends are rounded. The cuticular bosses are distributed extensively at both ends but poorly on the middle part of the body. The most peculiar feature of the bosses situated at both ends was their lobe- or rodlike shape and their transverse orientation. Four pairs of submedian outer cephalic papillae and 1 pair of caudal papilla are all relatively large. The new species differs from the most similar congener, Philometroides ganzhouensis Yu, 1998, in having 4 inner cephalic papillae and in the presence of 2 caudal papillae in mature specimens.