Isopoda (Crustacea) from the Levantine Sea with comments on the biogeography of Mediterranean isopods

This study focuses on the isopod fauna of the eastern Mediterranean, mainly from the waters of Lebanon. Ninety-five samples containing isopods were obtained by scuba diving (depths 0 to 44 m) at 32 stations along the coast of Northern Cyprus, Syria, and Lebanon. The substrates most frequently sampled were caves, vertical walls, and calcareous algae crusts or build-ups. A total of 502 individuals were studied, belonging to 28 species, included in 20 genera, nine families, and three suborders. Four new species from this collection (Atarbolana beirutensis, Cirolana bitari, Cirolana zibrowiusi, Mesanthura pacoi) have already been published. Brief diagnoses and illustrations were included. The collection studied here consists mostly of Mediterranean species, some already known in the area. Ten (eleven, when cf. species is confirmed) are new records in the Levantine Sea (Apanthura addui, Cirolana manorae, Cymodoce fuscina, Cymodoce pilosa, Elaphognathia bacescoi, Gnathia illepidus, Gnathia inopinata, Heptanthura cryptobia, Kupellonura serritelson, Metacirolana rotunda, Pseudocerceis cf. seleneides). Of them, three (four, when cf. species is confirmed) are new records in the Mediterranean Sea (Apanthura addui, Cirolana manorae, Metacirolana rotunda, Pseudocerceis cf. seleneides). Eight species (28.5%) can be considered as non-indigenous (Apanthura addui, Cirolana manorae, Cymodoce fuscina, Metacirolana rotunda, Paracerceis sculpta, Paradella dianae, Pseudocerceis cf. seleneides, Sphaeroma walkeri). This manuscript also provides an inventory of the known Mediterranean isopod fauna (excluding Epicaridea, Oniscidea, and brackish water Aselloidea), which totals 295 species. The isopod fauna of various subregions of the Mediterranean, the Suez Canal, and the Red Sea / Gulf of Aden is compared, and the transit of species through the Suez Canal is discussed. The list of non-indigenous species in the Mediterranaean Sea is updated to 23

Symplegma (Ascidiacea: Styelidae), a non-indigenous genus spreading within the Mediterranean Sea: taxonomy, routes and vectors

Symplegma is a genus of compound ascidians (Fam. Styelidae) with warm water affinities and distribution in tropical and subtropical waters of the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic Oceans. The first record of this genus (as S. viride) in the Mediterranean was from 1951 in the Levantine Sea, presumably entering the basin from the Red Sea through the Suez Canal. Subsequently, it has been expanding its distributional range northward along the Levantine Sea coast, probably following the prevailing surface current direction. Recently, Symplegma has colonized the Aegean, Ionian and Tyrrhenian Seas, where it is spreading quickly, most likely mediated by shipping (i.e., hull fouling). Some specimens from the Ionian Sea (specifically from Tunisia, Malta) present opaque tunics resembling the Indo-Pacific Symplegma bahraini; however, morphological studies suggest that the genus in the Mediterranean Sea is represented by a single species, Symplegma brakenhielmi. The taxonomy of S. brakenhielmi, as well as its spreading routes and possible introduction vectors are analysed.The surveys in Porto Marina El Alamein, Egypt were conducted within the framework of the MAPMED Project “MAnagement of Port areas in the MEDiterranean Sea Basin” funded by ENPI CBC MED Cross-Border Cooperation. The specimens of S. brakenhielmi from Kiyikislacik (Aegean Sea) were collected during a project funded by Ege University (16/SÜF/003). The surveys in Kuriat Island, Tunisia were conducted within the framework of the Supporting the management of the marine and coastal protected area of the Kuriat Islands executed by SPA/RAC in partnership with the Coastal Protection and Management Agency and Notre Grand Bleu NGO and funded by the MAVA Foundation

Action plan for the conservation of habitats and species associated with seamounts, underwater caves and canyons, aphotic hard beds and chemo-synthetic phenomena in the Mediterranean Sea (Dark Habitats action plan)

Dark habitats are environments where the luminosity is extremely weak, or even absent (aphotic area) leading to an absence of macroscopic autochthonous photosynthesis. The bathymetric extension of this lightless area depends to a great extent on the turbidity of the water and corresponds to benthic and pelagic habitats starting from the deep circa-littoral. Caves which show environmental conditions that favour the installation on of organisms characteristic of dark habitats, are also taken into account. Dark habitats are dependent on very diverse geomorphological structures (e.g. underwater caves, canyons, slopes, isolated rocks, abyssal plains, cold seeps, brine anoxic lakes, hydrothermal springs and seamounts). Dark habitats represent outstanding and potential ecosystems with regard to their: Frailty and vulnerability to any land-based pressure Play an important part in the way the Mediterranean ecosystem functions, insofar as they constitute the main route for transferring matter between the coast and the deep sea Considered as biodiversity hotspots and recruiting areas forming a veritable reservoirs of knowledge and biodiversity Natural habitats that come under Habitat Directive on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora and appear as such as priority habitats requiring protection (Directive 92/43). A certain number of underwater caves enjoy protection status because they fall within the geographical boundaries of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) Understanding of these functions is necessary for a better understanding and management of the biodiversity of Mediterranean coastal zones and continental shelf.peer-reviewe

Caveolin-1 Variant Is Associated With the Metabolic Syndrome in Kuwaiti Children

Caveolin-1 (CAV1) variants have been suggested to be associated with obesity and related metabolic disorders, but information based on human studies is limited. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the potential association between the CAV1 rs1997623 C/A variant and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Kuwaiti children. DNA from saliva samples collected from 1313 Kuwaiti children (mean age: 12 years) were genotyped using the TaqMan SNP genotyping assay. The classification of MetS was based on the presence/absence of four indicators; (1) central obesity, (2) elevated systolic or diastolic blood pressure, (3) low salivary high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), and (4) high salivary glucose. In this study, children with MetS scored ≥3, children in the intermediate metabolic group scored 1 or 2 and children without MetS scored 0. About one-third of the children were obese. A total of 246 children (18.7%) were classified as having MetS; 834 children (63.5%) were in the intermediate metabolic group, and 233 children (17.7%) had no indication of MetS. Obesity was highly prevalent in the MetS group (91.9%) while 26.8% of children were obese in the intermediate metabolic group. None of the children were obese in the group without MetS. Analysis of the CAV1 rs1997623 variant revealed a significant association of the A-allele (p = 0.01, Odds Ratio (OR) = 1.66) and the heterozygous CA-genotype (p = 0.005, OR = 1.88) with MetS. Consistently, the A-allele (p = 0.002, OR = 1.71) and CA-genotype (p = 0.005, OR = 1.70) also showed significant association with the intermediate metabolic group. Furthermore, the A-allele (p = 0.01, OR = 1.33) and the CA-genotype (p = 0.008, OR = 1.55) were associated with low levels of saliva HDLC. Individuals who were heterozygous or homozygous for the variant (CA/AA) showed significantly lower levels of high HDLC compared to those harboring the CC-genotype (p = 0.023). Our study revealed a novel association of the CAV1 rs1997623 variant with the MetS and with low saliva HDLC levels in young Kuwaiti children and indicated the need for further in-depth studies to unravel the role of CAV1 gene in the genetic etiology of MetS

New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records (July 2019)

This is the second collective paper issued in 2019, currently amalgamates new knowledge on the Mediterranean geographic distributions of 17 species from five phyla (six aliens, three cosmopolitans, two east Atlantic records and six natives). The acknowledged species were reported from ten countries, mentioned here from west to east: Spain: first report of the east Atlantic grouper Cephalopholis taeniops in the western Mediterranean and an inclusion of Pontarachna puntulum and Litarachna communis to the pontarachnid fauna of Spain; Morocco: first record of Solea senegalensis from the Moroccan Mediterranean coast; Algeria: a valid confirmation for the presence of Sardinella maderensis; Malta: a first record of the Red Sea stomatopod Erugosquilla massavensis; Italy: a rare observation of the crab Paragalene longicrura from Siciliy and a further integration of the alien brown shrimp Penaeus aztecus to the commercial catch in Sicily; Montenegro: a first record of the Lessepsian bigfin reef squid Sepioteuthis lessoniana from the Adriatic Sea; Turkey: northernmost documentation of the Mediterranean flatworm Prostheceraeus giesbrechtii in the Aegean Sea; Israel: a solid confirmation for the population establishment of both the alien rock shrimp Sicyonia lancifer and two species of angelfish, and a first and deepest record of the crystalline goby Odondebuenia balearica; Lebanon: first record of the jellyfish Pelagia noctiluca; Syria: first records of the crown jellyfish Nausithoe punctate and the smallscale codlet Bregmaceros nectabanus

Nouvelles donnees sur la faune et la flore benthiques de la cote libanaise. Migration Lessepsienne

FrLe macrozoobenthos de la côte libanaise compte, actuellement, 662 espèces: 33 spongiaires, 9 cnidaires, 1 turbellarié, 1 némerte, 2 nématodes, 33 bryozoaires, 2 sipunculiens, 136 polychètes, 298 mollusques, 1 brachiopode, 104 crustacés, 16 échinodermes et 26 ascidies. Ces espèces appartenant, en général, à la faune méditerrannéene et atlantique, renferment 37 espèces introduites: 31 lessepsiennes, 1 indopacifique et 5 exotiques. Le macrophytobenthos, connu jusqu’à présent, révèle 208 espèces dont 4 lessepsiennes. Des remarques sur quelques espèces lessepsiennes, bien établies au Liban, sont signalées.EnAt present, the macrozoobenthos of the lebanese coast count 662 species: 33 porifera, 9 cnidaria, 1 turbellaria, 1 nemertea, 2 nematoda, 33 bryozoa, 2 sipuncula, 136 polychaeta, 298 mollusca, 1 brachiopoda, 104 cructacea, 16 echinodermata and 26 ascidians. In general, these species belong to the Mediterranean and Atlantic fauna and include 37 introuced species: 31 lessepsians, 1 indopacific and 5 exotic species. The macrophytobenthos that are presently known encompass 208 species, of which 4 are lessepsian. Notes on some well established lessepsian species in Lebanon are mentioned

n updated checklist of the marine fishes in Lebanon. An answer to Bariche and Fricke (2020): "The marine ichthyofauna of Lebanon: an annotated checklist, history, biogeography, and conservation status"

Bitar, Ghazi, Badreddine, Ali (2021): n updated checklist of the marine fishes in Lebanon. An answer to Bariche and Fricke (2020): "The marine ichthyofauna of Lebanon: an annotated checklist, history, biogeography, and conservation status". Zootaxa 5010 (1): 1-128, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5010.1.1, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5010.1.