Relationships between inner ear and sagitta growth during ontogenesis of three <i>Carapini</i> species, and consequences of life-history events on the otolith microstructure

Three species of Carapidae have in common a tenuis larval stage, during which they settle in the lagoon and take refuge in the same species of holothuroid. From the juvenile stage, Carapus homei and C. boraborensis are commensal, whereas Encheliophis gracilis is parasitic. The aims of this study were to analyse to what extent the ontogenetic changes of the otic capsule affected the shape of the inner ear and how environmental cues, due to the above-mentioned life history and the style, could influence the structure of the sagitta. Sagittal sections revealed a three-dimensional asymmetry with a nucleus close to the proximal surface. Observations of the growth axis of the sagitta suggest it has a morphogenetic impact on the otic cavity. Each sagitta contains three main zones related to the life stages of the fish. Bands and checks were observed in the third zone in C. homei and C. boraborensis, but this pattern was less discernible in E. gracilis. These structural differences in zone 3 could be related to the commensal and parasitic life styles of these fishes. Further studies dealing with otosac features and otolith functions are suggested

The great melting pot. Common sole population connectivity assessed by otolith and water fingerprints

Quantifying the scale and importance of individual dispersion between populations and life stages is a key challenge in marine ecology. The common sole (Solea solea), an important commercial flatfish in the North Sea, Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, has a marine pelagic larval stage, a benthic juvenile stage in coastal nurseries (lagoons, estuaries or shallow marine areas) and a benthic adult stage in deeper marine waters on the continental shelf. To date, the ecological connectivity among these life stages has been little assessed in the Mediterranean. Here, such an assessment is provided for the first time for the Gulf of Lions, NW Mediterranean, based on a dataset on otolith microchemistry and stable isotopic composition as indicators of the water masses inhabited by individual fish. Specifically, otolith Ba/Ca and Sr/Ca profiles, and delta C-13 and delta O-18 values of adults collected in four areas of the Gulf of Lions were compared with those of young-of-the-year collected in different coastal nurseries. Results showed that a high proportion of adults (>46%) were influenced by river inputs during their larval stage. Furthermore Sr/Ca ratios and the otolith length at one year of age revealed that most adults (similar to 70%) spent their juvenile stage in nurseries with high salinity, whereas the remainder used brackish environments. In total, data were consistent with the use of six nursery types, three with high salinity (marine areas and two types of highly saline lagoons) and three brackish (coastal areas near river mouths, and two types of brackish environments), all of which contributed to the replenishment of adult populations. These finding implicated panmixia in sole population in the Gulf of Lions and claimed for a habitat integrated management of fisherie

Revisiting in vivo staining with alizarin red S - a valuable approach to analyse zebrafish skeletal mineralization during development and regeneration

Background The correct evaluation of mineralization is fundamental for the study of skeletal development, maintenance, and regeneration. Current methods to visualize mineralized tissue in zebrafish rely on: 1) fixed specimens; 2) radiographic and μCT techniques, that are ultimately limited in resolution; or 3) vital stains with fluorochromes that are indistinguishable from the signal of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-labelled cells. Alizarin compounds, either in the form of alizarin red S (ARS) or alizarin complexone (ALC), have long been used to stain the mineralized skeleton in fixed specimens from all vertebrate groups. Recent works have used ARS vital staining in zebrafish and medaka, yet not based on consistent protocols. There is a fundamental concern on whether ARS vital staining, achieved by adding ARS to the water, can affect bone formation in juvenile and adult zebrafish, as ARS has been shown to inhibit skeletal growth and mineralization in mammals. Results Here we present a protocol for vital staining of mineralized structures in zebrafish with a low ARS concentration that does not affect bone mineralization, even after repetitive ARS staining events, as confirmed by careful imaging under fluorescent light. Early and late stages of bone development are equally unaffected by this vital staining protocol. From all tested concentrations, 0.01 % ARS yielded correct detection of bone calcium deposits without inducing additional stress to fish. Conclusions The proposed ARS vital staining protocol can be combined with GFP fluorescence associated with skeletal tissues and thus represents a powerful tool for in vivo monitoring of mineralized structures. We provide examples from wild type and transgenic GFP-expressing zebrafish, for endoskeletal development and dermal fin ray regeneration

Common Sole Larvae Survive High Levels of Pile-Driving Sound in Controlled Exposure Experiments

In view of the rapid extension of offshore wind farms, there is an urgent need to improve our knowledge on possible adverse effects of underwater sound generated by pile-driving. Mortality and injuries have been observed in fish exposed to loud impulse sounds, but knowledge on the sound levels at which (sub-)lethal effects occur is limited for juvenile and adult fish, and virtually non-existent for fish eggs and larvae. A device was developed in which fish larvae can be exposed to underwater sound. It consists of a rigid-walled cylindrical chamber driven by an electro-dynamical sound projector. Samples of up to 100 larvae can be exposed simultaneously to a homogeneously distributed sound pressure and particle velocity field. Recorded pile-driving sounds could be reproduced accurately in the frequency range between 50 and 1000 Hz, at zero to peak pressure levels up to 210 dB re 1µPa2 (zero to peak pressures up to 32 kPa) and single pulse sound exposure levels up to 186 dB re 1µPa2s. The device was used to examine lethal effects of sound exposure in common sole (Solea solea) larvae. Different developmental stages were exposed to various levels and durations of pile-driving sound. The highest cumulative sound exposure level applied was 206 dB re 1µPa2s, which corresponds to 100 strikes at a distance of 100 m from a typical North Sea pile-driving site. The results showed no statistically significant differences in mortality between exposure and control groups at sound exposure levels which were well above the US interim criteria for non-auditory tissue damage in fish. Although our findings cannot be extrapolated to fish larvae in general, as interspecific differences in vulnerability to sound exposure may occur, they do indicate that previous assumptions and criteria may need to be revised

Tissus durs et âge individuel des vertébrés

L'utilisation des otolithes pour estimer l'âge des larves de poissons se heurte aux propriétés inhérentes à leur microstructure. Les principales difficultés viennent d'une définition insuffisante des premiers accroissements, dès que la croissance est lente, et des accroissements sub-journaliers. L'introduction d'une métrique au traitement numérique des images permet des lectures plus justes et apporte des informations complémentaires. (Résumé d'auteur

An Efficient Gaussian-Accelerated Molecular Dynamics (GaMD) Multilevel Enhanced Sampling Strategy: Application to Polarizable Force Fields Simulations of Large Biological Systems.

International audienceWe detail a novel multi-level enhanced sampling strategy grounded on Gaussian accelerated Molecular Dynamics (GaMD). First, we propose a GaMD multi-GPUs accelerated implementation within the Tinker-HP molecular dynamics package. We then introduce the new "dual-water" mode and its use with the flexible AMOEBA polarizable force field. By adding harmonic boosts to the water stretching and bonding terms, it accelerates the solvent-solute interactions while enabling speedups thanks to the use of fast multiple–timestep integrators. To further reduce time-to-solution, we couple GaMD to Umbrella Sampling (US). The GaMD—US/dual–water approach is tested on the 1D Potential of Mean Force (PMF) of the CD2–CD58 system (168000 atoms) allowing the AMOEBA PMF to converge within 1 kcal/mol of the experimental value. Finally, Adaptive Sampling (AS) is added enabling AS–GaMD capabilities but also the introduction of the new Adaptive Sampling–US–GaMD (ASUS–GaMD) scheme. The highly parallel ASUS–GaMD setup decreases time to convergence by respectively 10 and 20 compared to GaMD–US and US