Are well‐intended Buddhist practices an under‐appreciated threat to global aquatic biodiversity?

Abstract 1. The inherently pro‐conservation and humane Buddhist practice of ‘live release’, entailing the release into the wild of creatures destined for slaughter, poses potentially significant conservation consequences if inappropriate, invasive species are procured for release. 2. This article collates evidence, citing one legal case and other examples, about the risks of the live release of potentially invasive aquatic species that may result in serious, possibly irreversible, conservation threats to aquatic biodiversity and natural ecosystems, with ensuing adverse ecological and human consequences. 3. It is essential that practitioners are aware of these risks if their actions are not to work diametrically against the pro‐conservation and humane intents of the practice. 4. Ensuring that live release occurs safely necessitates raising awareness, with guidance informed by science, to ensure that good intentions do not result in perverse, environmentally destructive outcomes. 5. We propose four simple principles to achieve this, for dissemination to the global adherents of these otherwise entirely laudable practices

Genotyping of invasive Ponto-Caspian gobies in Croatia

The biology and ecology of non-native freshwater Ponto-Caspian (P-C) gobies: monkey goby, Neogobius fluviatilis (Pallas, 1814), round goby, Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814) and bighead goby, Ponticola kessleri (Günther, 1861) have been studied in Croatia, but the genetic structure of populations in the Sava River catchment remains unknown. Only a single mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b haplotype, consistent with native Black Sea populations, has been detected within Croatian populations. Based on emerging molecular evidence, the invasive potential (e.g. upstream migration and environmental plasticity) of individual non-native gobies within the Sava River catchment, may be influenced by genetic structuring

Variability in the duration and timing of the estuarine to freshwater transition of critically endangered European eel Anguilla anguilla

The European eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) is a critically endangered catadromous fish. Their inshore and in-river arrival as glass eel and elvers is an important stage of their life cycle, marking the transition from marine to freshwater habitats. Considerable knowledge gaps remain on the temporal and spatial patterns of this transition period to freshwater residency. Stable isotope (SI) analysis (δ13C, δ15N) was used to assess the timing and duration of the marine to freshwater transition among glass eels and elvers migrating upstream of the weirs at, or just upstream of, the tidal limit of four English rivers. (Parrett, Frome, Piddle, Chelmer). Variability in SI was low in the Parrett and Frome, resulting in narrow isotopic niches, but was high in the Piddle and Chelmer, resulting in wider niches. The Parrett and Frome data were then used to train a discriminant function analysis (DFA) model to classify eels as ‘marine’, ‘freshwater-established’ and ‘transitioning’. When applied to the Piddle and Chelmer eel SI data, only a small proportion of eels were classified as marine and transitioning, with most being freshwater established. These results suggest that most eels present in the lower reaches rivers have been present for sufficient time for their SI values to represent feeding on local prey resources, with relatively few eels being newly arrived from the marine environment. The transition of eels from marine to freshwater in this species can therefore be prolonged, with many ascending rivers at least one winter after their initial arrival

Low microplastic loads in riverine European eel (Anguilla anguilla) from SW England during their marine-freshwater transition.

The microplastic loads in elvers of the critically endangered European eel Anguilla anguilla, sampled in the lower reaches of three English rivers, were very low (incidence: 3.3 %, mean ± SD: 0.03 ± 0.18 particles) and did not vary with body length or between rivers. Particles were mostly black, polyolefins, fibres and fragments of size 101-200 μm. Current levels indicate a low contamination pressure locally and, consequently, management efforts might prioritise mitigating the effects of other stressors affecting the species. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

A Randomised, Double-Blind, Controlled Vaccine Efficacy Trial of DNA/MVA ME-TRAP Against Malaria Infection in Gambian Adults

BACKGROUND: Many malaria vaccines are currently in development, although very few have been evaluated for efficacy in the field. Plasmodium falciparum multiple epitope (ME)– thrombospondin-related adhesion protein (TRAP) candidate vaccines are designed to potently induce effector T cells and so are a departure from earlier malaria vaccines evaluated in the field in terms of their mechanism of action. ME-TRAP vaccines encode a polyepitope string and the TRAP sporozoite antigen. Two vaccine vectors encoding ME-TRAP, plasmid DNA and modified vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA), when used sequentially in a prime-boost immunisation regime, induce high frequencies of effector T cells and partial protection, manifest as delay in time to parasitaemia, in a clinical challenge model. METHODS AND FINDINGS: A total of 372 Gambian men aged 15–45 y were randomised to receive either DNA ME-TRAP followed by MVA ME-TRAP or rabies vaccine (control). Of these men, 296 received three doses of vaccine timed to coincide with the beginning of the transmission season (141 in the DNA/MVA group and 155 in the rabies group) and were followed up. Volunteers were given sulphadoxine/pyrimethamine 2 wk before the final vaccination. Blood smears were collected weekly for 11 wk and whenever a volunteer developed symptoms compatible with malaria during the transmission season. The primary endpoint was time to first infection with asexual P. falciparum. Analysis was per protocol. DNA ME-TRAP and MVA ME-TRAP were safe and well-tolerated. Effector T cell responses to a non-vaccine strain of TRAP were 50-fold higher postvaccination in the malaria vaccine group than in the rabies vaccine group. Vaccine efficacy, adjusted for confounding factors, was 10.3% (95% confidence interval, −22% to +34%; p = 0.49). Incidence of malaria infection decreased with increasing age and was associated with ethnicity. CONCLUSIONS: DNA/MVA heterologous prime-boost vaccination is safe and highly immunogenic for effector T cell induction in a malaria-endemic area. But despite having produced a substantial reduction in liver-stage parasites in challenge studies of non-immune volunteers, this first generation T cell–inducing vaccine was ineffective at reducing the natural infection rate in semi-immune African adults

Technical challenges of providing record linkage services for research

Background: Record linkage techniques are widely used to enable health researchers to gain event based longitudinal information for entire populations. The task of record linkage is increasingly being undertaken by specialised linkage units (SLUs). In addition to the complexity of undertaking probabilistic record linkage, these units face additional technical challenges in providing record linkage ‘as a service’ for research. The extent of this functionality, and approaches to solving these issues, has had little focus in the record linkage literature. Few, if any, of the record linkage packages or systems currently used by SLUs include the full range of functions required. Methods: This paper identifies and discusses some of the functions that are required or undertaken by SLUs in the provision of record linkage services. These include managing routine, on-going linkage; storing and handling changing data; handling different linkage scenarios; accommodating ever increasing datasets. Automated linkage processes are one way of ensuring consistency of results and scalability of service. Results: Alternative solutions to some of these challenges are presented. By maintaining a full history of links, and storing pairwise information, many of the challenges around handling ‘open’ records, and providing automated managed extractions are solved. A number of these solutions were implemented as part of the development of the National Linkage System (NLS) by the Centre for Data Linkage (part of the Population Health Research Network) in Australia.Conclusions: The demand for, and complexity of, linkage services are growing. This presents as a challenge to SLUs as they seek to service the varying needs of dozens of research projects annually. Linkage units need to be both flexible and scalable to meet this demand. It is hoped the solutions presented here can help mitigate these difficulties

Safety and immunogenicity of the candidate tuberculosis vaccine MVA85A in West Africa.

BACKGROUND: Vaccination with a recombinant modified vaccinia Ankara expressing antigen 85A from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, MVA85A, induces high levels of cellular immune responses in UK volunteers. We assessed the safety and immunogenicity of this new vaccine in West African volunteers. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We vaccinated 21 healthy adult male subjects (11 BCG scar negative and 10 BCG scar positive) with MVA85A after screening for evidence of prior exposure to mycobacteria. We monitored them over six months, observing for clinical, haematological and biochemical adverse events, together with assessment of the vaccine induced cellular immune response using ELISPOT and flow cytometry. MVA85A was well tolerated with no significant adverse events. Mild local and systemic adverse events were consistent with previous UK trials. Marked immunogenicity was found whether individuals had a previous BCG scar or not. There was not enhanced immunogenicity in those with a BCG scar, and induced T cell responses were better maintained in apparently BCG-naïve Gambians than previously studied BCG-naïve UK vaccinees. Although responses were predominantly attributable to CD4+ T cells, we also identified antigen specific CD8+ T cell responses, in subjects who were HLA B-35 and in whom enough blood was available for more detailed immunological analysis. CONCLUSIONS: These data on the safety and immunogenicity of MVA85A in West Africa support its accelerated development as a promising booster vaccine for tuberculosis. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00423839