Genetic diversity of Prochilodus lineatus stocks using in the stocking program of Tietê River, Brazil

ABSTRACT Objective. Assess the genetic diversity in four brood stocks and one juvenile stock of curimba Prochilodus lineatus in a Hydropower plant in São Paulo - Brazil, using the Tietê River stocking program. Materials and methods. Five RAPD primers were used to amplify the extracted DNA from 150 fin-clip samples. Results. Fifty-nine fragments were polymorphic, 52 had frequencies with significant differences (p<0.05), 45 had low frequencies, 54 were excluded, and two were fixed fragments. High values for polymorphic fragments (71.19% to 91.53%) and Shannon index (0.327 to 0.428) were observed. The genetic divergence values within each stock were greater than 50%. Most of the genetic variation was found within the groups through the AMOVA analysis, which was confirmed by the results of the identity and genetic distance. High ancestry levels (FST) among the groups value indicated high and moderate genetic differentiation. The estimates of number of migrants by generation (Nm) indicated low levels of gene flow. High and moderate genetic divergence between groups (0.58 to 0.83) was observed. Conclusions. The results indicate high variability within the stocks, and genetic differentiation among them. The fish stocks analyzed represent a large genetic base that will allow the fish technicians to release juveniles without genetic risks to wild populations present in the river. These genetic procedures may be used as models for other migratory species, including those threatened by extinction

Genetic diversity of Prochilodus lineatus stocks using in the stocking program of Tietê River, Brazil

Objective. Assess the genetic diversity in four brood stocks and one juvenile stock of curimba Prochilodus lineatus in a Hydropower plant in São Paulo - Brazil, using the Tietê River stocking program. Materials and methods. Five RAPD primers were used to amplify the extracted DNA from 150 fin-clip samples. Results. Fifty-nine fragments were polymorphic, 52 had frequencies with significant differences (p<0.05), 45 had low frequencies, 54 were excluded, and two were fixed fragments. High values for polymorphic fragments (71.19% to 91.53%) and Shannon index (0.327 to 0.428) were observed. The genetic divergence values within each stock were greater than 50%. Most of the genetic variation was found within the groups through the AMOVA analysis, which was confirmed by the results of the identity and genetic distance. High ancestry levels (FST) among the groups value indicated high and moderate genetic differentiation. The estimates of number of migrants by generation (Nm) indicated low levels of gene flow. High and moderate genetic divergence between groups (0.58 to 0.83) was observed. Conclusions. The results indicate high variability within the stocks, and genetic differentiation among them. The fish stocks analyzed represent a large genetic base that will allow the fish technicians to release juveniles without genetic risks to wild populations present in the river. These genetic procedures may be used as models for other migratory species, including those threatened by extinction.Objetivo. Evaluar la diversidad genética de cuatro lotes de reproductores y un lote de juveniles de curimba Prochilodus lineatus en una hidroeléctrica en São Paulo - Brasil, utilizados en el programa de repoblamiento del río Tietê. Materiales y métodos. Cinco primers RAPD se utilizaron para amplificar el ADN extraído de 150 muestras de aleta. Resultados. Cincuenta y nueve fragmentos fueron polimórficos, 52 tuvieron frecuencias con diferencias significativas (p<0.05), 45 tuvieron bajas frecuencias, 54 fueron excluidos, y dos fueron fragmentos limitantes. Se observaron altos valores de fragmentos polimórficos (71.19% a 91.53%) y de índice de Shannon (0.327 a 0.428). Los valores de divergencia genética dentro de cada lote fueron mayores al 50%. La mayor variación genética se encontró dentro de los grupos a través del análisis de AMOVA, el cual fue confirmado con los resultados de identidad y distancia genética. Los altos niveles de descendencia (FST) entre los grupos indicaron una alta y moderada diferenciación genética. Los cálculos del número de emigrantes por generación (Nm) indicaron bajos niveles de flujo génico. Se observó alta y moderada divergencia genética entre los grupos (0.58 a 0.83). Conclusiones. Los resultados indicaron una alta variabilidad dentro de los lotes y baja diferenciación entre ellos. Los lotes de peces analizados representan una amplia base genética que permitirá a los productores liberar juveniles sin riesgos genéticos para las poblaciones naturales presentes en el río. Estos procedimientos genéticos pueden ser utilizados como modelos para otras especies migratorias, inclusive en aquellas en peligro de extinción

Dimensionality reduction for the quantitative evaluation of a smartphone-based Timed Up and Go test

The Timed Up and Go is a clinical test to assess mobility in the elderly and in Parkinson's disease. Lately instrumented versions of the test are being considered, where inertial sensors assess motion. To improve the pervasiveness, ease of use, and cost, we consider a smartphone's accelerometer as the measurement system. Several parameters (usually highly correlated) can be computed from the signals recorded during the test. To avoid redundancy and obtain the features that are most sensitive to the locomotor performance, a dimensionality reduction was performed through principal component analysis (PCA). Forty-nine healthy subjects of different ages were tested. PCA was performed to extract new features (principal components) which are not redundant combinations of the original parameters and account for most of the data variability. They can be useful for exploratory analysis and outlier detection. Then, a reduced set of the original parameters was selected through correlation analysis with the principal components. This set could be recommended for studies based on healthy adults. The proposed procedure could be used as a first-level feature selection in classification studies (i.e. healthy-Parkinson's disease, fallers-non fallers) and could allow, in the future, a complete system for movement analysis to be incorporated in a smartphone