Genetic variability, cryptic species and phylogenetic relationship of six cyathostomin species based on mitochondrial and nuclear sequences

Cyathostomins are important intestinal nematode parasites of equines and include 50 accepted species. Their taxonomy has been frequently revised and the presence of cryptic species suggested. Furthermore, usually molecular- and morphology-based phylogenetic analyses give divergent results. In this study, the nucleotide sequences of the nuclear second internal transcribed spacer (ITS-2) and the mitochondrial partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) were determined for adults of six cyathostomin species (Coronocyclus coronatus, Coronocyclus labiatus, Cylicocyclus nassatus, Cylicostephanus calicatus, Cylicostephanus longibursatus, Cylicostephanus minutus) collected from different equine species within two geographic regions. Maximum likelihood trees were calculated for ITS-2, COI, and concatenated data. No obvious differentiation was observed between geographic regions or equine host species. As previously reported, Coronocyclus coronatus and Cylicostephanus calicatus revealed a close relationship. Cryptic species were detected in Cylicostephanus minutus and Cylicostephanus calicatus. Cylicocyclus nassatus and Coronocyclus labiatus showed diverse mitochondrial and nuclear haplotypes occurring in different combinations, while Cylicostephanus longibursatus was comparatively homogenous. In conclusion, a combined analysis of nuclear and mitochondrial haplotypes improved resolution of the phylogeny and should be applied to the remaining cyathostomin species and across additional equine host species and geographic regions

Comparison of two molecular barcodes for the study of equine strongylid communities with amplicon sequencing

Basic knowledge on the biology and epidemiology of equine strongylid species still needs to be improved to contribute to the design of better parasite control strategies. Nemabiome metabarcoding is a convenient tool to quantify and identify species in bulk samples that could overcome the hurdle that cyathostomin morphological identification represents. To date, this approach has relied on the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2) of the ribosomal RNA gene, with a limited investigation of its predictive performance for cyathostomin communities. Using DNA pools of single cyathostomin worms, this study aimed to provide the first elements to compare performances of the ITS-2 and a cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) barcode newly developed in this study. Barcode predictive abilities were compared across various mock community compositions of two, five and 11 individuals from distinct species. The amplification bias of each barcode was estimated. Results were also compared between various types of biological samples, i.e., eggs, infective larvae or adults. Bioinformatic parameters were chosen to yield the closest representation of the cyathostomin community for each barcode, underscoring the need for communities of known composition for metabarcoding purposes. Overall, the proposed COI barcode was suboptimal relative to the ITS-2 rDNA region, because of PCR amplification biases, reduced sensitivity and higher divergence from the expected community composition. Metabarcoding yielded consistent community composition across the three sample types. However, imperfect correlations were found between relative abundances from infective larvae and other life-stages for Cylicostephanus species using the ITS-2 barcode. While the results remain limited by the considered biological material, they suggest that additional improvements are needed for both the ITS-2 and COI barcodes

Presence of Equine and Bovine Coronaviruses, Endoparasites, and Bacteria in Fecal Samples of Horses with Colic

Acute abdominal pain (colic) is one of the major equine health threats worldwide and often necessitates intensive veterinary medical care and surgical intervention. Equine coronavirus (ECoV) infections can cause colic in horses but are rarely considered as a differential diagnosis. To determine the frequency of otherwise undetected ECoV infections in horses with acute colic, fresh fecal samples of 105 horses with acute colic and 36 healthy control horses were screened for viruses belonging to the Betacoronavirus 1 species by RT-PCR as well as for gastrointestinal helminths and bacteria commonly associated with colic. Horses with colic excreted significantly fewer strongyle eggs than horses without colic. The prevalence of anaerobic, spore-forming, gram-positive bacteria (Clostridium perfringens and Clostridioides difficile) was significantly higher in the feces of horses with colic. Six horses with colic (5.7%) and one horse from the control group (2.8%) tested positive for Betacoronaviruses. Coronavirus-positive samples were sequenced to classify the virus by molecular phylogeny (N gene). Interestingly, in three out of six coronavirus-positive horses with colic, sequences closely related to bovine coronaviruses (BCoV) were found. The pathogenic potential of BCoV in horses remains unclear and warrants further investigation

Molecular characterization of Miraflores peach variety and relatives using SSRs

The definitive version is published in: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/03044238Some traditional peach varieties, originated from the region of Aragón (Spain), were analysed by SSRs (Simple Sequence Repeats). The aim of this research was to characterize 19 clones related to ‘Miraflores’ variety, with unknown pedigrees, to assess their genetic diversity and to elucidate their possible relationships with 10 traditional peach varieties. Twenty SSR primer pairs with high levels of polymorphism, which have been previously developed for peach, were used in this study. A total of 46 alleles were obtained for all the microsatellites studied, ranging from one to six alleles per locus, with a mean value of 2.3 alleles per locus. Fourteen SSRs were polymorphic in the set of varieties studied and permitted to distinguish 16 different genotypes out of the 30 initially studied, although fourteen ‘Miraflores’ clones showed identical gel profiles. The genetic distance matrix was used to construct Neighbor joining cluster and to perform principal coordinate analysis which allowed the arrangement of all the genotypes according to their genetic relationships. The genetic relationships among these traditional peach varieties, and in particular among ‘Miraflores’ clones are discussed. The obtained results confirm that microsatellite markers are very useful for these purposes.We are thankful to T.N. Zhebentyayeva and G.L. Reighard for helpful comments on the manuscript. This research was funded by CICYT (Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología, AGL2002-04219 and AGL 2005-05533), INIA (Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentación, RF03-014-C2), Bilateral Spain-France (HF03-273) and DGA (A28, A44) projects and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. M. Bouhadida was supported by a fellowship from the AECI (Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional) of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Peer reviewe

ReSurveyGermany: Vegetation-plot time-series over the past hundred years in Germany

Vegetation-plot resurvey data are a main source of information on terrestrial biodiversity change, with records reaching back more than one century. Although more and more data from re-sampled plots have been published, there is not yet a comprehensive open-access dataset available for analysis. Here, we compiled and harmonised vegetation-plot resurvey data from Germany covering almost 100 years. We show the distribution of the plot data in space, time and across habitat types of the European Nature Information System (EUNIS). In addition, we include metadata on geographic location, plot size and vegetation structure. The data allow temporal biodiversity change to be assessed at the community scale, reaching back further into the past than most comparable data yet available. They also enable tracking changes in the incidence and distribution of individual species across Germany. In summary, the data come at a level of detail that holds promise for broadening our understanding of the mechanisms and drivers behind plant diversity change over the last century

Habitat properties are key drivers of Borrelia burgdorferi (s.l.) prevalence in Ixodes ricinus populations of deciduous forest fragments

Background: The tick Ixodes ricinus has considerable impact on the health of humans and other terrestrial animals because it transmits several tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) such as B. burgdorferi (sensu lato), which causes Lyme borreliosis (LB). Small forest patches of agricultural landscapes provide many ecosystem services and also the disservice of LB risk. Biotic interactions and environmental filtering shape tick host communities distinctively between specific regions of Europe, which makes evaluating the dilution effect hypothesis and its influence across various scales challenging. Latitude, macroclimate, landscape and habitat properties drive both hosts and ticks and are comparable metrics across Europe. Therefore, we instead assess these environmental drivers as indicators and determine their respective roles for the prevalence of B. burgdorferi in I. ricinus. Methods: We sampled I. ricinus and measured environmental properties of macroclimate, landscape and habitat quality of forest patches in agricultural landscapes along a European macroclimatic gradient. We used linear mixed models to determine significant drivers and their relative importance for nymphal and adult B. burgdorferi prevalence. We suggest a new prevalence index, which is pool-size independent. Results: During summer months, our prevalence index varied between 0 and 0.4 per forest patch, indicating a low to moderate disservice. Habitat properties exerted a fourfold larger influence on B. burgdorferi prevalence than macroclimate and landscape properties combined. Increasingly available ecotone habitat of focal forest patches diluted and edge density at landscape scale amplified B. burgdorferi prevalence. Indicators of habitat attractiveness for tick hosts (food resources and shelter) were the most important predictors within habitat patches. More diverse and abundant macro- and microhabitat had a diluting effect, as it presumably diversifies the niches for tick-hosts and decreases the probability of contact between ticks and their hosts and hence the transmission likelihood.[br/] Conclusions: Diluting effects of more diverse habitat patches would pose another reason to maintain or restore high biodiversity in forest patches of rural landscapes. We suggest classifying habitat patches by their regulating services as dilution and amplification habitat, which predominantly either decrease or increase B. burgdorferi prevalence at local and landscape scale and hence LB risk. Particular emphasis on promoting LB-diluting properties should be put on the management of those habitats that are frequently used by humans. In the light of these findings, climate change may be of little concern for LB risk at local scales, but this should be evaluated further

Digitalisierung beruflicher Lern- und Arbeitsprozesse. Impulse aus der Bauwirtschaft und anderen gewerblich-technischen Sektoren

Der Sammelband stellt aktuelle Ansätze zum digital unterstützten beruflichen Lernen dar. Die Beiträge geben Einblicke in die dynamische Entwicklung der Schnittstellen von Erwerbsarbeit und beruflicher Aus-, Fort- und Weiterbildung im Kontext der Digitalisierung Arbeits- und Lernmitteln. Der Band schließt damit an die 2019 ebenfalls im Universitätsverlag der Technischen Universität Berlin erschienene Publikation „Berufsbildung am Bau digital“ (hrsg. von Bernd Mahrin und Johannes Meyser) an. Das erste Kapitel erörtert grundsätzliche didaktische Fragen zu digital unterstütztem Lernen und Arbeiten einschließlich der Rahmenbedingungen. Im zweiten Kapitel schließen sich Beiträge zur Kapazitätsentwicklung, zu Standards und zu digitalen Werkzeugen an. Das dritte Kapitel widmet sich konkreten Einzellösungen mit starkem Praxisbezug und hohem Transferpotenzial zum digitalisierten Arbeiten und Lernen im Bausektor und im Metallbereich. Das abschließende vierte Kapitel präsentiert übergreifend nutzbare und frei zugängliche Online-Angebote wie einen Medienpool für Bildungszwecke, eine Lernmedien-Datenbank und ein hybrides Lernsystem mit virtuellem 3D-Gebäudemodell. Das Buch ist entstanden im Rahmen des durch das Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung und den Europäischen Sozialfonds geförderten Projektes DigiBAU – Digitales Bauberufliches Lernen und Arbeiten. (DIPF/Orig.)The anthology presents current approaches to digitally supported professional learning. The articles provide insights into the dynamic development of the interfaces between gainful employment and vocational training and further education in the context of digitization of work and learning aids. The volume is thus connected to the publication “Berufsbildung am Bau digital” (edited by Bernd Mahrin and Johannes Meyser), which was published in 2019 by the University Press of the Technische Universität Berlin. The first chapter discusses fundamental didactic questions about digitally supported learning and working, including the framework conditions. The second chapter picks contributions on capacity development, standards, and digital tools out as central themes. The third chapter is dedicated to concrete specific solutions with strong practical relevance and high transfer potential for digitized work and learning in the construction sector and in the metal sector. The final fourth chapter presents comprehensive and freely accessible online offers such as a media pool for educational purposes, a learning media database and a hybrid learning system with a virtual 3D building model. The book was created as part of the DigiBAU project - digital vocational learning and working in the field of construction - funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the European Social Fund. (DIPF/Orig.

GrassPlot - a database of multi-scale plant diversity in Palaearctic grasslands

GrassPlot is a collaborative vegetation-plot database organised by the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) and listed in the Global Index of Vegetation-Plot Databases (GIVD ID EU-00-003). GrassPlot collects plot records (releves) from grasslands and other open habitats of the Palaearctic biogeographic realm. It focuses on precisely delimited plots of eight standard grain sizes (0.0001; 0.001;... 1,000 m(2)) and on nested-plot series with at least four different grain sizes. The usage of GrassPlot is regulated through Bylaws that intend to balance the interests of data contributors and data users. The current version (v. 1.00) contains data for approximately 170,000 plots of different sizes and 2,800 nested-plot series. The key components are richness data and metadata. However, most included datasets also encompass compositional data. About 14,000 plots have near-complete records of terricolous bryophytes and lichens in addition to vascular plants. At present, GrassPlot contains data from 36 countries throughout the Palaearctic, spread across elevational gradients and major grassland types. GrassPlot with its multi-scale and multi-taxon focus complements the larger international vegetationplot databases, such as the European Vegetation Archive (EVA) and the global database " sPlot". Its main aim is to facilitate studies on the scale-and taxon-dependency of biodiversity patterns and drivers along macroecological gradients. GrassPlot is a dynamic database and will expand through new data collection coordinated by the elected Governing Board. We invite researchers with suitable data to join GrassPlot. Researchers with project ideas addressable with GrassPlot data are welcome to submit proposals to the Governing Board