Do lemurs know when they could be wrong? An investigation of information seeking in three species of lemur (<i>Lemur catta, Eulemur rubriventer, </i>and<i> Varecia variegata</i>)

Sixteen lemurs, including representatives from three species (Lemur catta, Eulemur rubriventer, Varecia variegata), were presented with a food seeking task where information about the rewards location, in one of two plastic tubes, was either known or not known. We evaluated whether lemurs would first look into the tube prior to making a choice. This information-seeking task aimed to assess whether subjects would display memory awareness, seeking additional information when they became aware they lacked knowledge of the rewards location. We predicted lemurs would be more likely to look into the tube when they had insufficient knowledge about the rewards position. Lemurs successfully gained the reward on most trials. However, they looked on the majority of trials regardless of whether they had all the necessary information to make a correct choice. The minimal cost to looking may have resulted in checking behaviour both to confirm what they already knew and to gain knowledge they did not have. When the cost of looking increased (elevating end of tube requiring additional energy expenditure to look inside - Experiment 2), lemurs still looked into tubes on both seen and unseen trials; however, the frequency of looking increased when opaque tubes were used (where they could not see the rewards location after baiting). This could suggest they checked more when they were less sure of their knowledge state

Effect of training and familiarity on responsiveness to human cues in domestic dogs (<i>Canis familiaris</i>)

Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) seem to possess an evolved competency to follow human-given cues, often out-performing their wild progenitor the wolf (Canis lupus) on cue-following tasks. However, domestication may not be solely responsible for the socio-cognitive skills of dogs, with ontogenetic experience also playing a role. This research evaluated the effects of intensive training on cue-following behaviour using an unreinforced object-choice paradigm. The responses of dogs that were trained to competitive levels were compared to those of pet dogs with only basic training, and dogs living in an animal shelter that demonstrated no or only rudimentary following of basic commands. Using a cue-following task where three types of cues were presented by familiar and unfamiliar human partners, the number of cues followed by each training group were recorded. All dogs found cues where gesture was combined with a congruent head and eye movement easier to follow than either gesture or eye gaze alone. Whether the cue-giver was familiar or not had a significant effect on number of cues followed in homed dogs, and the performance of shelter dogs was comparable to the other groups when faced with an unfamiliar cue-giver. Contrary to predictions, level of training did not improve performance on the cue-following task. This work does provide support for the presence of an evolved adaptation to exploit social cues provided by humans that can be augmented by familiarity with the cue giver. However, additional joint activity as experienced in an intensive training regime does not seem to increase accuracy in following human-given cues

Transcriptomes of parents identify parenting strategies and sexual conflict in a subsocial beetle

This work was funded by UK NERC grants to M.G.R. and A.J.M. an NERC studentship to D.J.P. the University of Georgia and a US NSF grant to A.J.M. and M.G.R.Parenting in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides is complex and, unusually, the sex and number of parents that can be present is flexible. Such flexibility is expected to involve specialized behaviour by the two sexes under biparental conditions. Here, we show that offspring fare equally well regardless of the sex or number of parents present. Comparing transcriptomes, we find a largely overlapping set of differentially expressed genes in both uniparental and biparental females and in uniparental males including vitellogenin, associated with reproduction, and takeout, influencing sex-specific mating and feeding behaviour. Gene expression in biparental males is similar to that in non-caring states. Thus, being ‘biparental’ in N. vespilloides describes the family social organization rather than the number of directly parenting individuals. There was no specialization; instead, in biparental families, direct male parental care appears to be limited with female behaviour unchanged. This should lead to strong sexual conflict.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Multiple emergences of genetically diverse amphibian-infecting chytrids include a globalized hypervirulent recombinant lineage

Batrachochytriumdendrobatidis (Bd) is a globally ubiquitous fungal infection that has emerged to become a primary driver of amphibian biodiversity loss. Despite widespread effort to understand the emergence of this panzootic, the origins of the infection, its patterns of global spread, and principle mode of evolution remain largely unknown. Using comparative population genomics, we discovered three deeply diverged lineages of Bd associated with amphibians. Two of these lineages were found in multiple continents and are associated with known introductions by the amphibian trade.We found that isolates belonging to one clade, the global panzootic lineage (BdGPL) have emerged across at least five continents during the 20th century and are associated with the onset of epizootics in North America, Central America, the Caribbean, Australia, and Europe. The two newly identified divergent lineages, Cape lineage (BdCAPE) and Swiss lineage (BdCH), were found to differ in morphological traits when compared against one another and BdGPL, and we show that BdGPL is hypervirulent. BdGPL uniquely bears the hallmarks of genomic recombination, manifested as extensive intergenomic phylogenetic conflict and patchily distributed heterozygosity. Wepostulate that contact between previously genetically isolated allopatric populations of Bd may have allowed recombination to occur, resulting in the generation, spread, and invasion of the hypervirulent BdGPL leading to contemporary disease-driven losses in amphibian biodiversity.Peer Reviewe

Metagenomic study of the viruses of African straw-coloured fruit bats: detection of a chiropteran poxvirus and isolation of a novel adenovirus

Viral emergence as a result of zoonotic transmission constitutes a continuous public health threat. Emerging viruses such as SARS coronavirus, hantaviruses and henipaviruses have wildlife reservoirs. Characterising the viruses of candidate reservoir species in geographical hot spots for viral emergence is a sensible approach to develop tools to predict, prevent, or contain emergence events. Here, we explore the viruses of Eidolon helvum, an Old World fruit bat species widely distributed in Africa that lives in close proximity to humans. We identified a great abundance and diversity of novel herpes and papillomaviruses, described the isolation of a novel adenovirus, and detected, for the first time, sequences of a chiropteran poxvirus closely related with Molluscum contagiosum. In sum, E. helvum display a wide variety of mammalian viruses, some of them genetically similar to known human pathogens, highlighting the possibility of zoonotic transmission

Research feasibility and ethics in Scottish new-born blood spot archive.

Objectives There were two objectives to this study: 1) to gauge public opinion on the use of Guthrie card-derived blood samples for epidemiological and biological research; and 2) to evaluate the feasibility of recovering meaningful molecular data from these samples. Approach To address the first objective, a 2-day Citizens’ Jury was conducted in partnership with Ipsos MORI, comprising a diverse adult sample in terms of age, sex, working status and social grade (n=20). Jurors were asked whether research access to Guthrie card blood tests would be in the public interest. To address the second objective, DNA methylation (DNAm) was profiled from samples from 58 Generation Scotland participants, whose Guthrie cards had been stored from birth for between 32 and 38 years. Analyses were performed on Guthrie DNAm samples to determine whether previously-reported associations with perinatal maternal smoking behaviours were detectable. Results The Citizens’ Jury yielded an overall positive response towards data sharing for health research. Concerns were raised about data protection and security, control and oversight, and commercial use. The overall verdict was that access to Guthrie card data would be in the public interest, conditional on the purpose of the research, regulated access procedures, ethical oversight and provision of opportunities for participants to opt out. DNAm detection rates from Guthrie samples were lower than from samples stored in tubes. However, it was possible to confirm linkage to the correct individuals in Generation Scotland using DNAm-derived estimates of genotype and sex. A significant association was observed between a DNAm-based score for smoking and perinatal maternal smoking status derived from the baseline Generation Scotland questionnaire. Conclusion We showed that: 1) public support exists for using Guthrie samples in research, conditional on certain safeguards; 2) DNAm can be profiled from cards stored for up to 38 years and can predict maternal smoking behaviour. Guthrie cards are a potentially valuable resource for epidemiological studies and predicting health outcomes

Predictors of severe relapse in pregnant women with psychotic or bipolar disorders

Pregnancy in women with severe mental illness is associated with adverse outcomes for mother and infant. There are limited data on prevalence and predictors of relapse in pregnancy. A historical cohort study using anonymised comprehensive electronic health records from secondary mental health care linked with national maternity data was carried out. Women with a history of serious mental illness who were pregnant (2007–2011), and in remission at the start of pregnancy, were studied; severe relapse was defined as admission to acute care or self-harm. Predictors of relapse were analysed using random effects logistic regression to account for repeated measures in women with more than one pregnancy in the study period. In 454 pregnancies (389 women) there were 58 (24%) relapses in women with non-affective psychoses and 25 (12%) in women with affective psychotic or bipolar disorders. Independent predictors of relapse included non-affective psychosis (adjusted OR = 2.03; 95% CI = 1.16–3.54), number of recent admissions (1.37; 1.03–1.84), recent self-harm (2.24; 1.15–4.34), substance use (2.15; 1.13–4.08), smoking (2.52; 1.26–5.02) and non-white ethnicity (black ethnicity: 2.37; 1.23,4.57, mixed/other ethnicity: 2.94; 1.32,6.56). Women on no regular medication throughout first trimester were also at greater risk of relapse in pregnancy (1.99; 1.05–3.75). There was no interaction between severity of illness and medication status as relapse predictors. Therefore, women with non-affective psychosis and higher number of recent acute admissions are at significant risk of severe relapse in pregnancy. Continuation of medication in women with severe mental illness who become pregnant may be protective

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Feasibility and ethics of using data from the Scottish newborn blood spot archive for research

Background: Newborn heel prick blood spots are routinely used to screen for inborn errors of metabolism and life-limiting inherited disorders. The potential value of secondary data from newborn blood spot archives merits ethical consideration and assessment of feasibility for public benefit. Early life exposures and behaviours set health trajectories in childhood and later life. The newborn blood spot is potentially well placed to create an unbiased and cost-effective population-level retrospective birth cohort study. Scotland has retained newborn blood spots for all children born since 1965, around 3 million in total. However, a moratorium on research access is currently in place, pending public consultation. Methods: We conducted a Citizens’ Jury as a first step to explore whether research use of newborn blood spots was in the public interest. We also assessed the feasibility and value of extracting research data from dried blood spots for predictive medicine. Results: Jurors delivered an agreed verdict that conditional research access to the newborn blood spots was in the public interest. The Chief Medical Officer for Scotland authorised restricted lifting of the current research moratorium to allow a feasibility study. Newborn blood spots from consented Generation Scotland volunteers were retrieved and their potential for both epidemiological and biological research demonstrated. Conclusions: Through the Citizens’ Jury, we have begun to identify under what conditions, if any, should researchers in Scotland be granted access to the archive. Through the feasibility study, we have demonstrated the potential value of research access for health data science and predictive medicine