Offspring of first-generation hatchery steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) grow faster in the hatchery than offspring of wild fish, but survive worse in the wild: Possible mechanisms for inadvertent domestication and fitness loss in hatchery salmon

Salmonid fish raised in hatcheries often have lower fitness (number of returning adult offspring) than wild fish when both spawn in the wild. Body size at release from hatcheries is positively correlated with survival at sea. So one explanation for reduced fitness is that hatcheries inadvertently select for trait values that enhance growth rate under the unnatural environment of a hatchery, but that are maladaptive in the wild environment. A simple prediction of this hypothesis is that juveniles of hatchery origin should grow more quickly than fish of wild origin under hatchery conditions, but should have lower survival under wild conditions. We tested that hypothesis using multiple full sibling families of steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) that were spawned using either two wild parents (WxW) or two first-generation hatchery (HxH) parents. Offspring from all the families were grown together under hatchery conditions and under semi-natural conditions in artificial streams. HxH families grew significantly faster in the hatchery, but had significantly lower survival in the streams. That we see this tradeoff after only a single generation of selection suggests that the traits involved are under very strong selection. We also considered one possible alteration to the hatchery environment that might reduce the intensity of selection among families in size at release. Here we tested whether reducing the fat content of hatchery feed would reduce the variance among families in body size. Although fish raised under a low-fat diet were slightly smaller, the variation among families in final size was unchanged. Thus, there is no evidence that reducing the fat content of hatchery feed would reduce the opportunity for selection among families on size at release

Do Gravity-Related Sensory Information Enable the Enhancement of Cortical Proprioceptive Inputs When Planning a Step in Microgravity?

International audienceWe recently found that the cortical response to proprioceptive stimulation was greater when participants were planning a step than when they stood still, and that this sensory facilitation was suppressed in microgravity. The aim of the present study was to test whether the absence of gravity-related sensory afferents during movement planning in microgravity prevented the proprioceptive cortical processing to be enhanced. We reestablished a reference frame in microgravity by providing and translating a horizontal support on which the participants were standing and verified whether this procedure restored the proprioceptive facilitation. The slight translation of the base of support (lateral direction), which occurred prior to step initiation, stimulated at least cutaneous and vestibular receptors. The sensitivity to proprioceptive stimulation was assessed by measuring the amplitude of the cortical somatosensory-evoked potential (SEP, over the Cz electrode) following the vibration of the leg muscle. The vibration lasted 1 s and the participants were asked to either initiate a step at the vibration offset or to remain still. We found that the early SEP (90–160 ms) was smaller when the platform was translated than when it remained stationary, revealing the existence of an interference phenomenon (i.e., when proprioceptive stimulation is preceded by the stimulation of different sensory modalities evoked by the platform translation). By contrast, the late SEP (550 ms post proprioceptive stimulation onset) was greater when the translation preceded the vibration compared to a condition without pre-stimulation (i.e., no translation). This suggests that restoring a body reference system which is impaired in microgravity allowed a greater proprioceptive cortical processing. Importantly, however, the late SEP was similarly increased when participants either produced a step or remained still. We propose that the absence of step-induced facilitation of proprioceptive cortical processing results from a decreased weight of proprioception in the absence of balance constraints in microgravity

Efficacy and Safety of Intravitreal Gene Therapy for Leber Hereditary Optic Neuropathy Treated within 6 Months of Disease Onset.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy of a single intravitreal injection of rAAV2/2-ND4 in subjects with visual loss from Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON). DESIGN: RESCUE is a multicenter, randomized, double-masked, sham-controlled, phase 3 clinical trial. PARTICIPANTS: Subjects with the m.11778G>A mitochondrial DNA mutation and vision loss ≤6 months from onset in 1 or both eyes were included. METHODS: Each subject's right eye was randomly assigned (1:1) to treatment with rAAV2/2-ND4 (single injection of 9 × 1010 viral genomes in 90 μl) or to sham injection. The left eye received the treatment not allocated to the right eye. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary end point was the difference of the change from baseline in best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) between rAAV2/2-ND4-treated and sham-treated eyes at week 48. Other outcome measures included contrast sensitivity, Humphrey visual field perimetry, retinal anatomic measures, and quality of life. Follow-up extended to week 96. RESULTS: Efficacy analysis included 38 subjects. Mean age was 36.8 years, and 82% were male. Mean duration of vision loss at time of treatment was 3.6 months and 3.9 months in the rAAV2/2-ND4-treated eyes and sham-treated eyes, respectively. Mean baseline logarithm of the minimum angle of resolution (logMAR) BCVA (standard deviation) was 1.31 (0.52) in rAAV2/2-ND4-treated eyes and 1.26 (0.62) in sham-treated eyes, with a range from -0.20 to 2.51. At week 48, the difference of the change in BCVA from baseline between rAAV2/2-ND4-treated and sham-treated eyes was -0.01 logMAR (P = 0.89); the primary end point of a -0.3 logMAR (15-letter) difference was not met. The mean BCVA for both groups deteriorated over the initial weeks, reaching the worst levels at week 24, followed by a plateau phase until week 48, and then an improvement of +10 and +9 Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study letters equivalent from the plateau level in the rAAV2/2-ND4-treated and sham-treated eyes, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: At 96 weeks after unilateral injection of rAAV2/2-ND4, LHON subjects carrying the m.11778G>A mutation treated within 6 months after vision loss achieved comparable visual outcomes in the injected and uninjected eyes

Transiting exoplanets from the CoRoT space mission VIII. CoRoT-7b: the first Super-Earth with measured radius

We report the discovery of very shallow (DF/F = 3.4 10-4), periodic dips in the light curve of an active V = 11.7 G9V star observed by the CoRoT satellite, which we interpret as due to the presence of a transiting companion. We describe the 3-colour CoRoT data and complementary ground-based observations that support the planetary nature of the companion. Methods. We use CoRoT color information, good angular resolution ground-based photometric observations in- and out- of transit, adaptive optics imaging, near-infrared spectroscopy and preliminary results from Radial Velocity measurements, to test the diluted eclipsing binary scenarios. The parameters of the host star are derived from optical spectra, which were then combined with the CoRoT light curve to derive parameters of the companion. We examine carefully all conceivable cases of false positives, and all tests performed support the planetary hypothesis. Blends with separation larger than 0.40 arcsec or triple systems are almost excluded with a 8 10-4 risk left. We conclude that, as far as we have been exhaustive, we have discovered a planetary companion, named CoRoT-7b, for which we derive a period of 0.853 59 +/- 3 10-5 day and a radius of Rp = 1.68 +/- 0.09 REarth. Analysis of preliminary radial velocity data yields an upper limit of 21 MEarth for the companion mass, supporting the finding. CoRoT-7b is very likely the first Super-Earth with a measured radius.Comment: Accepted in Astronomy and Astrophysics; typos and language corrections; version sent to the printer w few upgrade

The Protection of Animals through Human Rights. The Case-Law of the European Court of Human Rights

The chapter discusses the potential of a human rights framework to contribute to the growth and development of global animal law. It takes as example the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, and examine the major trends in the Court’s judgments and admissibility decisions that directly or indirectly concern the rights or welfare of animals. It is concluded that the Court is not indifferent to the welfare of animals, but that animal welfare is instrumentalised: it is understood not as a good in itself, but is instead valued for its implications for human welfare and rights. The chapter then considers the obstacles that the anthropocentrism of the human rights idea and the instrumentalisation of animal concerns present to the use of human rights frameworks to further the development of global animal law, as well as the opportunities that exist in the meeting of these paradigms. It concludes that although the telos of human rights law is different from that of animal law, nevertheless there exist many overlapping concerns within which mutually beneficial interactions are possible

Enhanced insulin sensitivity associated with provision of mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids in skeletal muscle cells involves counter modulation of PP2A

International audienceAims/Hypothesis: Reduced skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity is a feature associated with sustained exposure to excess saturated fatty acids (SFA), whereas mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids (MUFA and PUFA) not only improve insulin sensitivity but blunt SFA-induced insulin resistance. The mechanisms by which MUFAs and PUFAs institute these favourable changes remain unclear, but may involve stimulating insulin signalling by counter-modulation/repression of protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A). This study investigated the effects of oleic acid (OA; a MUFA), linoleic acid (LOA; a PUFA) and palmitate (PA; a SFA) in cultured myotubes and determined whether changes in insulin signalling can be attributed to PP2A regulation. Principal Findings: We treated cultured skeletal myotubes with unsaturated and saturated fatty acids and evaluated insulin signalling, phosphorylation and methylation status of the catalytic subunit of PP2A. Unlike PA, sustained incubation of rat or human myotubes with OA or LOA significantly enhanced Akt-and ERK1/2-directed insulin signalling. This was not due to heightened upstream IRS1 or PI3K signalling nor to changes in expression of proteins involved in proximal insulin signalling, but was associated with reduced dephosphorylation/inactivation of Akt and ERK1/2. Consistent with this, PA reduced PP2Ac demethylation and tyrosine 307 phosphorylation-events associated with PP2A activation. In contrast, OA and LOA strongly opposed these PA-induced changes in PP2Ac thus exerting a repressive effect on PP2A.Conclusions/Interpretation: Beneficial gains in insulin sensitivity and the ability of unsaturated fatty acids to oppose palmitate-induced insulin resistance in muscle cells may partly be accounted for by counter-modulation of PP2A

Gene silencing in tick cell lines using small interfering or long double-stranded RNA

Gene silencing by RNA interference (RNAi) is an important research tool in many areas of biology. To effectively harness the power of this technique in order to explore tick functional genomics and tick-microorganism interactions, optimised parameters for RNAi-mediated gene silencing in tick cells need to be established. Ten cell lines from four economically important ixodid tick genera (Amblyomma, Hyalomma, Ixodes and Rhipicephalus including the sub-species Boophilus) were used to examine key parameters including small interfering RNA (siRNA), double stranded RNA (dsRNA), transfection reagent and incubation time for silencing virus reporter and endogenous tick genes. Transfection reagents were essential for the uptake of siRNA whereas long dsRNA alone was taken up by most tick cell lines. Significant virus reporter protein knockdown was achieved using either siRNA or dsRNA in all the cell lines tested. Optimum conditions varied according to the cell line. Consistency between replicates and duration of incubation with dsRNA were addressed for two Ixodes scapularis cell lines; IDE8 supported more consistent and effective silencing of the endogenous gene subolesin than ISE6, and highly significant knockdown of the endogenous gene 2I1F6 in IDE8 cells was achieved within 48 h incubation with dsRNA. In summary, this study shows that gene silencing by RNAi in tick cell lines is generally more efficient with dsRNA than with siRNA but results vary between cell lines and optimal parameters need to be determined for each experimental system

Sensori-motor adaptation to knee osteoarthritis during stepping-down before and after total knee replacement

BACKGROUND: Stepping-down is preceded by a shift of the center of mass towards the supporting side and forward. The ability to control both balance and lower limb movement was investigated in knee osteoarthritis patients before and after surgery. It was hypothesized that pain rather than knee joint mobility affects the coordination between balance and movement control. METHODS: The experiment was performed with 25 adult individuals. Eleven were osteoarthritic patients with damage restricted to one lower limb (8 right leg and 3 left leg). Subjects were recruited within two weeks before total knee replacement by the same orthopedic surgeon using the same prosthesis and technics of surgery. Osteoarthritic patients were tested before total knee replacement (pre-surgery session) and then, 9 of the 11 patients were tested one year after the surgery when re-educative training was completed (post-surgery session). 14 adult individuals (men: n = 7 and women: n = 7) were tested as the control group. RESULTS: The way in which the center of mass shift forward and toward the supporting side is initiated (timing and amplitude) did not vary within patients before and after surgery. In addition knee joint range of motion of the leading leg remained close to normal before and after surgery. However, the relative timing between both postural and movement phases was modified for the osteoarthritis supporting leg (unusual strategy for stepping-down) before surgery. The "coordinated" control of balance and movement turned to be a "sequential" mode of control; once the body weight transfer has been completed, the movement onset is triggered. This strategy could be aimed at shortening the duration-time supporting on the painful limb. However no such compensatory response was observed. CONCLUSION: The change in the strategy used when supporting on the arthritis and painful limb could result from the action of nociceptors that lead to increased proprioceptor thresholds, thus gating the proprioceptive inputs that may be the critical afferents in controlling the timing of the coordination between balance and movement initiation control