Manipulating multi-level selection in a fungal entomopathogen reveals social conflicts and a method for improving biocontrol traits

Changes in parasite virulence are commonly expected to lead to trade-offs in other life history traits that can affect fitness. Understanding these trade-offs is particularly important if we want to manipulate the virulence of microbial biological control agents. Theoretically, selection across different spatial scales, i.e. between- and within-hosts, shapes these trade-offs. However, trade-offs are also dependent on parasite biology. Despite their applied importance the evolution of virulence in fungal parasites is poorly understood: virulence can be unstable in culture and commonly fails to increase in simple passage experiments. We hypothesized that manipulating selection intensity at different scales would reveal virulence trade-offs in a fungal pathogen of aphids, Akanthomyces muscarius. Starting with a genetically diverse stock we selected for speed of kill, parasite yield or infectivity by manipulating competition within and between hosts and between-populations of hosts over 7 rounds of infection. We characterized ancestral and evolved lineages by whole genome sequencing and by measuring virulence, growth rate, sporulation and fitness. While several lineages showed increases in virulence, we saw none of the trade-offs commonly found in obligately-killing parasites. Phenotypically similar lineages within treatments often shared multiple single-nucleotide variants, indicating strong convergent evolution. The most dramatic phenotypic changes were in timing of sporulation and spore production in vitro. We found that early sporulation led to reduced competitive fitness but could increase yield of spores on media, a trade-off characteristic of social conflict. Notably, the selection regime with strongest between-population competition and lowest genetic diversity produced the most consistent shift to early sporulation, as predicted by social evolution theory. Multi-level selection therefore revealed social interactions novel to fungi and showed that these biocontrol agents have the genomic flexibility to improve multiple traits—virulence and spore production—that are often in conflict in other parasites

The “Who?” Question in the Hate Speech Debate: Part 1: Consistency, Practical, and Formal Approaches

This two-part article addresses the “Who?” question in the hate speech debate: namely, which characteristics, social identities or statuses should or should not be treated as protected characteristics within a body of hate speech laws? Using United Kingdom incitement to hatred laws as a focal point, the article outlines and critically appraises five broad approaches to specification. Part 1 deals with consistency specification, which highlights norms of consistency both within incitement to hatred law itself and in relation to other laws, practical specification, which focuses on the ostensible goals or apparent aims of incitement to hatred laws, and formal specification, which looks at the formal qualities of the characteristics themselves and to the different forms of people’s relationships with those characteristics. And Part 2 considers functional specification, which concentrates on the underlying or real functions, purposes or objectives of incitement to hatred laws, and democratic specification, which appeals to democratic procedures as well as to democratic values, norms and principles that speak to the proper scope of incitement to hatred laws. Along the way I shall also critically assess a range of substantive arguments about which particular characteristics should or should not be covered by incitement to hatred laws given the aforementioned approaches. My main conclusion shall be that each of the approaches has its strengths and weakness and that, partly because of this, no single approach is adequate by itself as a tool for specifying the proper scope of incitement to hatred laws, but also, by the same token, no approach should be ruled out entirely. Instead, the best strategy is one that combines together all five approaches in reasonable ways given the law, the characteristic and the context

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Controlling insecticide resistant clones of the aphid, Myzus persicae, using the entomopathogenic fungus Akanthomyces muscarius : fitness cost of resistance under pathogen challenge

BACKGROUND Biological control is a cornerstone of integrated pest management and could also play a key role in managing the evolution of insecticide resistance. Ecological theory predicts that the fitness cost of insecticide resistance can be increased under exposure to invertebrate natural enemies or pathogens, and can therefore increase the value of integrating biological control into pest management. In this study of the peach potato aphid, Myzus persicae, we aimed to identify whether insecticide resistance affected fitness and vulnerability of different aphid clones to the entomopathogenic fungus Akanthomyces muscarius. RESULTS Insecticide resistant clones were found to be slightly less susceptible to the pathogen than susceptible clones. However, this pattern could also be explained by the influence of length of laboratory culture, which was longer in susceptible clones and was positively correlated with susceptibility to fungi. Furthermore, resistance status did not affect aphid development time or intrinsic rate of increase of aphids. Finally, in a cage trial the application of fungus did not increase the competitive fitness of insecticide resistant clone ‘O’. CONCLUSION We found no fitness cost in reproductive rate or pathogen susceptibility associated with chemical resistance in M. persicae. In contrast, some susceptible clones, particularly those subject to decades of laboratory rearing, showed enhanced susceptibility to a fungal pathogen, but not reduced reproductive fitness, an observation consistent with down-regulation of costly immune functions in culture. Overall, fungal pathogen control is compatible with insecticides and should not increase the selection pressure for resistance of M. persicae to chemical insecticides

Novel approaches to drug-placebo difference calculation: evidence from short-term antidepressant drug-trials

The calculation of antidepressant-placebo difference (50% - 30% = 20%) in drug trials is based on the postulate that all placebo responders should be 'automatically' antidepressant responders, an assumption that has been never been specifically investigated and substantiated. However, some studies show that a clinically significant part of placebo responders are also antidepressant nonresponders. The traditional calculation of antidepressant-placebo difference seems, therefore, to be wrong because of an inherent fundamental bias resulting in a marked overestimation of the placebo effect. If the mechanism of action of antidepressant and placebo are independent (unrelated) and the randomization results in two identical (homogenous) groups of patients, then the two basic principles by which the evaluation of potentially useful drugs are based on, such as the relationship between antidepressant response and placebo response rates, would also be independent. In this case, only 50% of placebo responders are antidepressant responders (and another 50% of them are antidepressant nonresponders) and the antidepressant-placebo difference would be 50% - 15% = 35%, instead of 50% - 30% = 20%, as calculated by the traditional method. For real interpretation, decisions that have been made on traditional drug-placebo difference evaluation should be recalculated and reviewed, not only in major depression but also in other psychiatric and medical disorders where the drug-placebo difference is in the same magnitude. Copyright (C) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Association between affective temperaments and season of birth in a general student population

Background: Several studies indicate a significant association between birth season and personality and neuropsychiatric disorders. The aim of our present study was to investigate the association between affective temperaments and season of birth in a nonclinical sample. Methods: 366 university students completed the standardized Hungarian version of the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego-Auto-questionnaire (TEMPS-A). Ordinary Least Squares regression was applied to explain the relationship between TEMPS-A subscale and birth season of the respondents. Results: We found a significant association between temperament scores and birth season in the case of the Hyperthymic, Cyclothymic, Irritable and Depressive temperaments, while no significant results emerged for the Anxious temperament. Limitations: The relatively small sample size, especially in the case of seasonal and monthly subsamples limits generalization of our results. Conclusions: Our results support the evidence that there is a strong association between season of birth and personality, extending the results to affective temperaments as well. Furthermore, our results are in line with clinical observations concerning the seasonal variation of onset and hospitalization due to affective episodes. This is especially important, since affective temperaments are conceived as the subaffective and subclinical manifestations of major and minor affective disorders indicating a risk for the development of these disorders and also exerting a possible pathoplastic effect, thus our results also have clinical significance. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

The edge of two worlds: A new review and synthesis on Eurasian forest-steppes

Peter, Torok/0000-0002-4428-3327; Anenkhonov, Oleg/0000-0001-8633-7154; Batori, Zoltan/0000-0001-9915-5309; Magnes, Martin/0000-0002-5453-5735WOS: 000442660900001AimsEurasian forest-steppes are among the most complex non-tropical terrestrial ecosystems. Despite their considerable scientific, ecological and economic importance, knowledge of forest-steppes is limited, particularly at the continental scale. Here we provide an overview of Eurasian forest-steppes across the entire zone: (a) we propose an up-to-date definition of forest-steppes, (b) give a short physiogeographic outline, (c) delineate and briefly characterize the main forest-steppe regions, (d) explore forest-steppe biodiversity and conservation status, and (e) outline forest-steppe prospects under predicted climate change. LocationEurasia (29 degrees-56 degrees N, 16 degrees-139 degrees E). Results and ConclusionsForest-steppes are natural or near-natural vegetation complexes of arboreal and herbaceous components (typically distributed in a mosaic pattern) in the temperate zone, where the co-existence of forest and grassland is enabled primarily by the semi-humid to semi-arid climate, complemented by complex interactions of biotic and abiotic factors operating at multiple scales. This new definition includes lowland forest-grassland macromosaics (e.g. in Eastern Europe), exposure-related mountain forest-steppes (e.g. in Inner Asia), fine-scale forest-grassland mosaics (e.g. in the Carpathian Basin) and open woodlands (e.g. in the Middle East). Using criteria of flora, physiognomy, relief and climate, nine main forest-steppe regions are identified and characterized. Forest-steppes are not simple two-phase systems, as they show a high level of habitat diversity, with forest and grassland patches of varying types and sizes, connected by a network of differently oriented edges. Species diversity and functional diversity may also be exceptionally high in forest-steppes. Regarding conservation, we conclude that major knowledge gaps exist in determining priorities at the continental, regional, national and local levels, and in identifying clear target states and optimal management strategies. When combined with other threats, climate change may be particularly dangerous to forest-steppe survival, possibly resulting in compositional changes, rearrangement of the landscape mosaic or even the latitudinal or altitudinal shift of forest-steppes.Orszagos Tudomanyos Kutatasi AlapprogramokOrszagos Tudomanyos Kutatasi Alapprogramok (OTKA) [K 119 225, PD 116114]; Hungarian Government [EFOP-3.6.1-16-2016-00014]; National Youth Excellence Scholarship [NTP-NFTO-16-0623]; NKFIH [K 124796, K 119225]; Russian Federal Budget [AAAA-A17-117011810036-3]Orszagos Tudomanyos Kutatasi Alapprogramok, Grant/Award Number: K 119 225 and PD 116114; Hungarian Government, Grant/Award Number: EFOP-3.6.1-16-2016-00014; National Youth Excellence Scholarship, Grant/Award Number: NTP-NFTO-16-0623; NKFIH, Grant/Award Number: K 124796 and K 119225; Russian Federal Budget, Grant/Award Number: AAAA-A17-117011810036-

Modification of the existing maximum residue level for flonicamid in various crops

Abstract In accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, the applicant Dienstleistungszentrum Ländlicher Raum submitted a request to the competent national authority in Germany to modify the existing maximum residue level (MRL) for the active substance flonicamid in radishes. Furthermore, in accordance with Article 6 of Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, the applicant ISK Biosciences Europe N.V. submitted a request to the competent national authority in the Netherlands to modify the existing MRLs for the active substance flonicamid in strawberries, cane fruits, other small fruits and berries, lettuces and other salad plants, and pulses (dry beans, lentils, peas, lupins). The data submitted in support of the request were found to be sufficient to derive MRL proposals for strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, other small fruits and berries, radishes, lettuces and other salad plants, and pulses (dry beans, lentils, peas and lupins). Adequate analytical methods for enforcement are available to control the residues of flonicamid on in the commodities under consideration. Based on the risk assessment results, EFSA concluded that the short‐term and long‐term intake of residues resulting from the use of flonicamid according to the reported agricultural practices is unlikely to present a risk to consumer health