Evaluating Promotional Approaches for Citizen Science Biological Recording: Bumblebees as a Group Versus Harmonia axyridis as a Flagship for Ladybirds

Over the past decade, the number of biological records submitted by members of the public have increased dramatically. However, this may result in reduced record quality, depending on how species are promoted in the media. Here we examined the two main promotional approaches for citizen science recording schemes: flagship-species, using one charismatic species as an umbrella for the entire group (here, Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) for Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), and general-group, where the group is promoted as a whole and no particular prominence is given to any one species (here, bumblebees, genus Bombus (Hymenoptera: Apidae)). Of the two approaches, the general-group approach produced data that was not biased towards any one species, but far fewer records per year overall. In contrast, the flagship-species approach generated a much larger annual dataset, but heavily biased towards the flagship itself. Therefore, we recommend that the approach for species promotion is fitted to the result desired

Forest landscape ecology and global change: an introduction

Forest landscape ecology examines broad-scale patterns and processes and their interactions in forested systems and informs the management of these ecosystems. Beyond being among the richest and the most complex terrestrial systems, forest landscapes serve society by providing an array of products and services and, if managed properly, can do so sustainably. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the field of forest landscape ecology, including major historical and present topics of research, approaches, scales, and applications, particularly those concerning edges, fragmentation, connectivity, disturbance, and biodiversity. In addition, we discuss causes of change in forest landscapes, particularly land-use and management changes, and the expected structural and functional consequences that may result from these drivers. This chapter is intended to set the context and provide an overview for the remainder of the book and poses a broad set of questions related to forest landscape ecology and global change that need answers

Effect of Network Architecture on Synchronization and Entrainment Properties of the Circadian Oscillations in the Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

In mammals, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus constitutes the central circadian pacemaker. The SCN receives light signals from the retina and controls peripheral circadian clocks (located in the cortex, the pineal gland, the liver, the kidney, the heart, etc.). This hierarchical organization of the circadian system ensures the proper timing of physiological processes. In each SCN neuron, interconnected transcriptional and translational feedback loops enable the circadian expression of the clock genes. Although all the neurons have the same genotype, the oscillations of individual cells are highly heterogeneous in dispersed cell culture: many cells present damped oscillations and the period of the oscillations varies from cell to cell. In addition, the neurotransmitters that ensure the intercellular coupling, and thereby the synchronization of the cellular rhythms, differ between the two main regions of the SCN. In this work, a mathematical model that accounts for this heterogeneous organization of the SCN is presented and used to study the implication of the SCN network topology on synchronization and entrainment properties. The results show that oscillations with larger amplitude can be obtained with scale-free networks, in contrast to random and local connections. Networks with the small-world property such as the scale-free networks used in this work can adapt faster to a delay or advance in the light/dark cycle (jet lag). Interestingly a certain level of cellular heterogeneity is not detrimental to synchronization performances, but on the contrary helps resynchronization after jet lag. When coupling two networks with different topologies that mimic the two regions of the SCN, efficient filtering of pulse-like perturbations in the entrainment pattern is observed. These results suggest that the complex and heterogeneous architecture of the SCN decreases the sensitivity of the network to short entrainment perturbations while, at the same time, improving its adaptation abilities to long term changes

Complex Consequences of Herbivory and Interplant Cues in Three Annual Plants

Information exchange (or signaling) between plants following herbivore damage has recently been shown to affect plant responses to herbivory in relatively simple natural systems. In a large, manipulative field study using three annual plant species (Achyrachaena mollis, Lupinus nanus, and Sinapis arvensis), we tested whether experimental damage to a neighboring conspecific affected a plant's lifetime fitness and interactions with herbivores. By manipulating relatedness between plants, we assessed whether genetic relatedness of neighboring individuals influenced the outcome of having a damaged neighbor. Additionally, in laboratory feeding assays, we assessed whether damage to a neighboring plant specifically affected palatability to a generalist herbivore and, for S. arvensis, a specialist herbivore. Our study suggested a high level of contingency in the outcomes of plant signaling. For example, in the field, damaging a neighbor resulted in greater herbivory to A. mollis, but only when the damaged neighbor was a close relative. Similarly, in laboratory trials, the palatability of S. arvensis to a generalist herbivore increased after the plant was exposed to a damaged neighbor, while palatability to a specialist herbivore decreased. Across all species, damage to a neighbor resulted in decreased lifetime fitness, but only if neighbors were closely related. These results suggest that the outcomes of plant signaling within multi-species neighborhoods may be far more context-specific than has been previously shown. In particular, our study shows that herbivore interactions and signaling between plants are contingent on the genetic relationship between neighboring plants. Many factors affect the outcomes of plant signaling, and studies that clarify these factors will be necessary in order to assess the role of plant information exchange about herbivory in natural systems

Emilin1 gene and essential hypertension: a two-stage association study in northern Han Chinese population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Elastogenesis of elastic extracellular matrix (ECM) which was recognized as a major component of blood vessels has been believed for a long time to play only a passive role in the dynamic vascular changes of typical hypertension. Emilin1 gene participated in the transcription of ECM's formation and was recognized to modulate links TGF-β maturation to blood pressure homeostasis in animal study. Recently relevant advances urge further researches to investigate the role of Emilin1 gene in regulating TGF-β signals involved in elastogenesis and vascular cell defects of essential hypertension (EH).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We designed a two-stage case-control study and selected three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), rs3754734, rs2011616 and rs2304682 from the HapMap database, which covered Emilin1 gene. Totally 2,586 subjects were recruited from the International Collaborative Study of Cardiovascular Disease in Asia (InterASIA). In stage 1, all the three SNPs of the Emilin1 gene were genotyped and tested within a subsample including 503 cases and 490 controls, significant SNPs would enter into stage 2 including 814 cases with hypertension and 779 controls and analyze on the basis of testing total 2,586 subjects.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In stage 1, single locus analyses showed that SNPs rs3754734 and rs2011616 had significant association with EH (P < 0.05). In stage 2, weak association for dominant model were observed by age stratification and odds ratio (ORs) of TG+GG vs. TT of rs3754734 were 0.768 (0.584-1.009), 0.985 (0.735-1.320) and 1.346 (1.003-1.806) in < 50, 50-59 and ≥ 60 years group and ORs of GA+AA vs. GG of rs2011616 were 0.745 (0.568-0.977), 1.013 (0.758-1.353) and 1.437 (1.072-1.926) in < 50, 50-59 and ≥ 60 years group respectively. Accordingly, significant interactions were detected between genotypes of rs3754734 and rs2011616 and age for EH, and ORs were 1.758 (1.180-2.620), P = 0.006 and 1.903 (1.281-2.825), P = 0.001, respectively. Results of haplotypes analysis showed that there weren't any haplotypes associated with EH directly, but the interaction of hap2 (GA) and age-group found to be significant after being adjusted for the covariates, OR was 1.220 (1.031-1.444), P value was 0.020.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings don't support positive association of Emilin1 gene with EH, but the interaction of age and genotype variation of rs3754734 and rs2011616 might increase the risk to hypertension.</p

Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Exercise and Dietary Behaviors of Middle-Aged and Older Adults

BackgroundDifferences in health behaviors may be important contributors to racial/ethnic disparities in the health status of adults. Studies to date have not compared whether there are health behavior differences in exercise and dietary behaviors among middle-age and older adults in the four largest racial/ethnic categories.ObjectiveTo investigate racial/ethnic differences in exercise and dietary behaviors of middle-aged and older adults.DesignWe used data from the 2007 California Health Interview Survey. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine interactions between age and race/ethnicity in predicting two categories of health behaviors. Analyses were conducted adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, health insurance status, and healthcare utilization.ParticipantsA population-based sample of 33,189 California adults 45 years old and older: 26,522 non-Hispanic whites, 1,686 African American/blacks, 2,565 Asian/Pacific Islanders (1,741 English-proficient; 824 limited English-proficient), and 2,416 Latinos (1,538 English-proficient; 878 limited English-proficient).Main measuresSelf-report leisure-time physical activity (moderate and vigorous) and daily consumption of fruits and vegetables.Key resultsRacial/ethnic minorities generally engaged in less healthy exercise and dietary behaviors than whites, with differences more pronounced in middle adulthood. The disparities were the greatest among English-proficient minorities. Specifically, among middle-aged respondents, all racial/ethnic minorities engaged in less vigorous physical activity than whites (ORs range = 0.28 to 0.73; 95% CI range = 0.16-1.00). Additionally, middle-aged, English-proficient minorities engaged in less moderate physical activity compared to whites (ORs range =0.57 to 0.67; 95% CI range = 0.45-0.79). Furthermore, middle-aged, English-proficient Latinos had a poorer diet than whites (OR = 0.54; 0.39-0.75). Few significant racial/ethnic differences emerged in the exercise and dietary behaviors of older adults.ConclusionsRacial/ethnic disparities in exercise and dietary behaviors are most notable among middle-aged, acculturated minorities. Results highlight the need to promote positive exercise and dietary behaviors during critical preventive ages, when racial/ethnic disparities are large and the potential to prevent chronic disease is great

Brain Expressed microRNAs Implicated in Schizophrenia Etiology

BACKGROUND: Protein encoding genes have long been the major targets for research in schizophrenia genetics. However, with the identification of regulatory microRNAs (miRNAs) as important in brain development and function, miRNAs genes have emerged as candidates for schizophrenia-associated genetic factors. Indeed, the growing understanding of the regulatory properties and pleiotropic effects that miRNA have on molecular and cellular mechanisms, suggests that alterations in the interactions between miRNAs and their mRNA targets may contribute to phenotypic variation. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We have studied the association between schizophrenia and genetic variants of miRNA genes associated with brain-expression using a case-control study design on three Scandinavian samples. Eighteen known SNPs within or near brain-expressed miRNAs in three samples (Danish, Swedish and Norwegian: 420/163/257 schizophrenia patients and 1006/177/293 control subjects), were analyzed. Subsequently, joint analysis of the three samples was performed on SNPs showing marginal association. Two SNPs rs17578796 and rs1700 in hsa-mir-206 (mir-206) and hsa-mit-198 (mir-198) showed nominal significant allelic association to schizophrenia in the Danish and Norwegian sample respectively (P = 0.0021 & p = 0.038), of which only rs17578796 was significant in the joint sample. In-silico analysis revealed that 8 of the 15 genes predicted to be regulated by both mir-206 and mir-198, are transcriptional targets or interaction partners of the JUN, ATF2 and TAF1 connected in a tight network. JUN and two of the miRNA targets (CCND2 and PTPN1) in the network have previously been associated with schizophrenia. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We found nominal association between brain-expressed miRNAs and schizophrenia for rs17578796 and rs1700 located in mir-206 and mir-198 respectively. These two miRNAs have a surprising large number (15) of targets in common, eight of which are also connected by the same transcription factors

Sympatric Spawning but Allopatric Distribution of Anguilla japonica and Anguilla marmorata: Temperature- and Oceanic Current-Dependent Sieving

Anguilla japonica and Anguilla marmorata share overlapping spawning sites, similar drifting routes, and comparable larval durations. However, they exhibit allopatric geographical distributions in East Asia. To clarify this ecological discrepancy, glass eels from estuaries in Taiwan, the Philippines, Indonesia, and China were collected monthly, and the survival rate of A. marmorata under varying water salinities and temperatures was examined. The composition ratio of these 2 eel species showed a significant latitude cline, matching the 24°C sea surface temperature isotherm in winter. Both species had opposing temperature preferences for recruitment. A. marmorata prefer high water temperatures and die at low water temperatures. In contrast, A. japonica can endure low water temperatures, but their recruitment is inhibited by high water temperatures. Thus, A. japonica glass eels, which mainly spawn in summer, are preferably recruited to Taiwan, China, Korea, and Japan by the Kuroshio and its branch waters in winter. Meanwhile, A. marmorata glass eels, which spawn throughout the year, are mostly screened out in East Asia in areas with low-temperature coastal waters in winter. During summer, the strong northward currents from the South China Sea and Changjiang River discharge markedly block the Kuroshio invasion and thus restrict the approach of A. marmorata glass eels to the coasts of China and Korea. The differences in the preferences of the recruitment temperature for glass eels combined with the availability of oceanic currents shape the real geographic distribution of Anguilla japonica and Anguilla marmorata, making them “temperate” and “tropical” eels, respectively

Challenges and Pitfalls in the Management of Parathyroid Carcinoma: 17-Year Follow-Up of a Case and Review of the Literature

A 29-year-old man presented to his primary care physician with nausea, severe weight loss and muscle weakness. He had a hard, fixed neck swelling. He was severely hypercalcaemic with 10-fold increased parathyroid hormone (PTH) concentrations. A diagnosis of primary hyperparathyroidism was established and the patient was referred for parathyroidectomy. At neck exploration, an enlarged parathyroid gland with invasive growth into the thyroid gland was found and removed, lymph nodes were cleared and hemithyroidectomy was performed. A suspected diagnosis of parathyroid carcinoma was confirmed histologically. Serum calcium and PTH levels normalised post-operatively, but hyperparathyroidism recurred within 3 years of surgery. Over the following 17 years, control of hypercalcaemia represented the most difficult challenge despite variable success achieved with repeated surgical interventions, embolisations, radiofrequency ablation of metastases and treatment with calcimimetics, bisphosphonates and haemodialysis using low-dialysate calcium. In this paper, we report the challenges and pitfalls we encountered in the management of our patient over nearly two decades of follow-up and review recent literature on the topic