Three-type MJO Initiation processes over the Western Equatorial Indian Ocean

Thirty strong Madden–Julian Oscillation（MJO） events in boreal winter 1982–2001 are selected to investigate the triggering processes of MJO convection over the western equatorial Indian Ocean（IO）.These MJO events are classified into three types,according to their dynamic and thermodynamic precursor signals in situ.In Type I,a remarkable increase in low-level moisture occurs,on average,7 days prior to the convection initiation.This low-level moistening is mainly due to the advection of the background mean moisture by easterly wind anomalies over the equatorial IO.In Type II,lower-tropospheric ascending motion anomalies develop,on average,4 days prior to the initiation.The cause of this ascending motion anomaly is attributed to the anomalous warm advection,set up by a suppressed MJO phase in the equatorial IO.In Type III,there are no clear dynamic and thermodynamic precursor signals in situ.The convection might be triggered by energy accumulation in the upper layer associated with Rossby wave activity fluxes originated from the midlatitudes.

Research on Locating the Source of Abnormal Disturbances in the Border Region of Shaanxi and Gansu

Abnormal disturbances, s uch as sharp pulses, w ere observed by vertical pendulum tiltmeters in Wudu, Hanzhong and Ningshaan seismic stations on August 6, 2008.According to the time and spatial location of the anomalies,we build a"source precursor"propagator to calculate possible focal region by aid of quasi-Newton least squares and grid search methods. The calculated focal region is located at the aftershock area of the Wenchuan earthquake on the northern section of Longmenshan fault zone,which may be related to the 54km-away M S5. 0 Pingwu-Beichuan earthquake,with starting time of about thirty three hours before the earthquake.

HP30-2, a mitochondrial PRAT protein for import of signal sequence-less precursor proteins in Arabidopsis thaliana

Chloroplasts and mitochondria contain a family of putative preprotein and amino acid transporters designated PRAT. Here, we analyzed the role of two previously characterized PRAT protein family members, encoded by At3g49560 （HP30） and At5g24650 （HP30-2）, in planta using a combination of genetic, cell biological and biochemical approaches. Expression studies and green fluorescent protein tagging identified HP30-2 both in chloroplasts and mitochondria, whereas HP30 was located exclusively in chloroplasts. Biochemical evidence was obtained for an association of mitochondrial HP30-2 with two distinct protein complexes, one containing the inner membrane translocase TIM22 and the other containing an alternative NAD（P）H dehydrogenase subunit （NDCI） implicated in a respiratory complex 1-1ike electron trans- port chain. Through its association with TIM22, HP30-2 is involved in the uptake of carrier proteins and other, hydrophobic membrane proteins lacking cleavable N H2-terminal presequences, whereas HP30-2＇s interaction with NDC1 may permit controlling mitochondrial biogenesis and activity.