Slave to the rhythm: seasonal signals in otolith microchemistry reveal age of eastern Baltic cod (Gadus morhua)

Annual growth zones in cod otoliths from the eastern Baltic stock are less discrete than in other cod stocks leading to biased age reading, which recently led to a failure of age-based assessment in the eastern Baltic cod stock. In this study, we explored the applicability of minor and trace element patterns in cod otoliths for age determination. By first identifying elements of interest in a stock without ageing problems, western Baltic cod, we then tested their applicability on another stock without ageing problems, North Sea cod, and finally applied this knowledge to estimate age of eastern Baltic cod. In western Baltic cod, matching patterns with respect to occurrence of minima and maxima in both otolith opacity and element concentrations were found for Cu, Zn, and Rb, and inverse patterns with Mg and Mn. No match was found for Pb, Ba, and Sr. In the test stock, the North Sea cod, the same patterns in Cu, Zn, Rb, Mg, and Mn signals occurred. All eastern Baltic cod with low visual contrast between growth zones exhibited clearly defined synchronous cycles in Cu, Zn, Rb and Pb. Using a combined finite differencing method and structural break models approach, the statistical significance of the local profile minima were identified, based on which their age could be estimated. Despite extensive environmental differences between the three areas examined, the element concentrations of Cu, Zn, and Rb were strongly correlated in all individuals with similar correlations in all three areas, suggesting that the incorporation mechanisms are the same for these elements and independent of environmental concentrations

Suitability of otolith microchemistry for stock separation of Baltic cod

Microchemical otolith analyses have been shown to provide valuable information on the life history, dispersal and stock characteristics of teleost fish. In the present study, the suitability of this technique for identifying the origin and distribution of Atlantic cod Gadus morhua L. from the Baltic Sea was examined using laser ablation-ICPMS. The capacity to distinguish individuals from different Baltic Sea stocks and from the adjacent North Sea stock based on incoporation of stock-specific elemental fingerprints along otolith growth axes was investigated. It was further tested if different origins led to spawning-site specific element concentrations in otolith cores. The results indicate that microchemical analyses of Baltic cod otoliths are applicable for differentiating individuals of different stocks. Analyses of similarities including 12 element/calcium ratios resulted in significant differences between individuals from the eastern and the western Baltic Sea and between North Sea and Baltic Sea samples. Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca, Y/Ca, Mg/Ca, Zr/Ca and Mn/Ca ratios had the strongest discriminatory power. A further separation of individuals caught in 3 different spawning grounds of the eastern Baltic, however, was not possible. Elemental compositions from the core regions of otoliths from young of the year cod caught in eastern and western Baltic Sea spawning grounds showed significant differences in Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca and Mg/Ca concentrations. Analyses of similarities again showed significant differences between these areas for juveniles. This study demonstrates the potential of otolith microchemical analyses to provide important information about the stock structure and connectivity of G. morhua in the Baltic Sea

Agro-ecology, resource endowment and indigenous knowledge interactions modulate soil fertility in mixed farming systems in central and western Ethiopia

Open Access Article; Published online: 14 Feb 2021Site‐specific soil fertility management requires a fundamental understanding of factors that modulate soil fertility variability in the local context. To verify this assumption, this study hypothesized that soil fertility variability across two regions in Central and Western Ethiopia is determined by inter‐related effects of agro‐ecological zones and farmers’ resource endowment (‘wealthy’ versus ‘poor’ farmers). Mid‐infrared spectroscopy coupled to partial least squares regression (midDRIFTS‐PLSR) and wet‐laboratory analyses were used to assess the soil fertility (soil pH, total soil carbon [TC] and nitrogen [TN], plant‐available phosphorous [Pav] and potassium [Kav]) across four agro‐ecological zones: ‘High‐Dega’ (HD), ‘Dega’ (D), ‘Weina‐Dega’ (WD) and ‘Kola’ (K). MidDRIFTS peak area analysis of spectral frequencies (2,930 [aliphatic C‐H], 1,620 [aromatic C = C], 1,159 [C‐O poly‐alcoholic and ether groups] cm‐1) was applied to characterize soil organic carbon (SOC) quality and to calculate the SOC stability index (1,620:2,930). Higher TC in HD, as well as higher TN and Kav contents in K were found in fields of wealthy compared with poor farmers. Resource endowment dependent soil fertility management options revealed SOC of higher quality in wealthy compared with poor farms in D. Agro‐ecological zones distinctions contributed to these soil fertility differences. Farmers distinguished visually fertile and less fertile fields based on soil colour. Higher pH in K and WD as well as Pav in K and HD were found in fertile (brown/black) than less fertile (red) soils. To conclude, tailor‐made soil fertility management in the local context must consider agro‐ecological zones and resource endowment interactions along with farmers’ indigenous knowledge

Dietary effects on multi-element composition of European eel (Anguilla anguilla) otoliths

Otolith microchemistry is widely used as a tool to track individual migration pathways of diadromous fish under the assumption that the elemental composition of fish otoliths is directly influenced by the physicochemical properties of the surrounding water. Nevertheless, several endogenous factors are reported to affect element incorporation into fish otoliths and might lead to misinterpretations of migration studies. This study experimentally examined the influence of eight different diets on the microchemical composition of European eel (Anguilla anguilla) otoliths using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Seven natural prey types and one artificial diet were fed during 8 weeks in freshwater circuits. Results show for the first time that food has no significant influence on the incorporation of Na, Sr, Ba, Mg, Mn, Cu and Y into European eel otoliths. This indicates that the incorporation of elements usually chosen for migration studies is not affected by diet and that individual feeding behaviour of A. anguilla will not lead to any misinterpretation of migration pathways

Shigella isolates from the global enteric multicenter study inform vaccine development.

BACKGROUND: Shigella, a major diarrheal disease pathogen worldwide, is the target of vaccine development. The Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS) investigated burden and etiology of moderate-to-severe diarrheal disease in children aged <60 months and matched controls without diarrhea during 3 years at 4 sites in Africa and 3 in Asia. Shigella was 1 of the 4 most common pathogens across sites and age strata. GEMS Shigella serotypes are reviewed to guide vaccine development. METHODS: Subjects' stool specimens/rectal swabs were transported to site laboratories in transport media and plated onto xylose lysine desoxycholate and MacConkey agar. Suspect Shigella colonies were identified by biochemical tests and agglutination with antisera. Shigella isolates were shipped to the GEMS Reference Laboratory (Baltimore, MD) for confirmation and serotyping of S. flexneri; one-third of isolates were sent to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for quality control. RESULTS: Shigella dysenteriae and S. boydii accounted for 5.0% and 5.4%, respectively, of 1130 Shigella case isolates; S. flexneri comprised 65.9% and S. sonnei 23.7%. Five serotypes/subserotypes comprised 89.4% of S. flexneri, including S. flexneri 2a, S. flexneri 6, S. flexneri 3a, S. flexneri 2b, and S. flexneri 1b. CONCLUSIONS: A broad-spectrum Shigella vaccine must protect against S. sonnei and 15 S. flexneri serotypes/subserotypes. A quadrivalent vaccine with O antigens from S. sonnei, S. flexneri 2a, S. flexneri 3a, and S. flexneri 6 can provide broad direct coverage against these most common serotypes and indirect coverage against all but 1 (rare) remaining subserotype through shared S. flexneri group antigens

Neurologic Involvement in Children and Adolescents Hospitalized in the United States for COVID-19 or Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome

This article is made available for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.Importance Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) affects the nervous system in adult patients. The spectrum of neurologic involvement in children and adolescents is unclear. Objective To understand the range and severity of neurologic involvement among children and adolescents associated with COVID-19. Setting, Design, and Participants Case series of patients (age <21 years) hospitalized between March 15, 2020, and December 15, 2020, with positive severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 test result (reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and/or antibody) at 61 US hospitals in the Overcoming COVID-19 public health registry, including 616 (36%) meeting criteria for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children. Patients with neurologic involvement had acute neurologic signs, symptoms, or diseases on presentation or during hospitalization. Life-threatening involvement was adjudicated by experts based on clinical and/or neuroradiologic features. Exposures Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Main Outcomes and Measures Type and severity of neurologic involvement, laboratory and imaging data, and outcomes (death or survival with new neurologic deficits) at hospital discharge. Results Of 1695 patients (909 [54%] male; median [interquartile range] age, 9.1 [2.4-15.3] years), 365 (22%) from 52 sites had documented neurologic involvement. Patients with neurologic involvement were more likely to have underlying neurologic disorders (81 of 365 [22%]) compared with those without (113 of 1330 [8%]), but a similar number were previously healthy (195 [53%] vs 723 [54%]) and met criteria for multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (126 [35%] vs 490 [37%]). Among those with neurologic involvement, 322 (88%) had transient symptoms and survived, and 43 (12%) developed life-threatening conditions clinically adjudicated to be associated with COVID-19, including severe encephalopathy (n = 15; 5 with splenial lesions), stroke (n = 12), central nervous system infection/demyelination (n = 8), Guillain-Barré syndrome/variants (n = 4), and acute fulminant cerebral edema (n = 4). Compared with those without life-threatening conditions (n = 322), those with life-threatening neurologic conditions had higher neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratios (median, 12.2 vs 4.4) and higher reported frequency of D-dimer greater than 3 μg/mL fibrinogen equivalent units (21 [49%] vs 72 [22%]). Of 43 patients who developed COVID-19–related life-threatening neurologic involvement, 17 survivors (40%) had new neurologic deficits at hospital discharge, and 11 patients (26%) died. Conclusions and Relevance In this study, many children and adolescents hospitalized for COVID-19 or multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children had neurologic involvement, mostly transient symptoms. A range of life-threatening and fatal neurologic conditions associated with COVID-19 infrequently occurred. Effects on long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes are unknown

On statistical information of extreme order statistics, local extreme value alternatives, and poisson point processes

The aim of the present paper is to clarify the rôle of extreme order statistics in general statistical models. This is done within the general setup of statistical experiments in LeCam's sense. Under the assumption of monotone likelihood ratios, we prove that a sequence of experiments is asymptotically Gaussian if, and only if, a fixed number of extremes asymptotically does not contain any information. In other words: A fixed number of extremes asymptotically contains information iff the Poisson part of the limit experiment is non-trivial. Suggested by this result, we propose a new extreme value model given by local alternatives. The local structure is described by introducing the space of extreme value tangents. It turns out that under local alternatives a new class of extreme value distributions appears as limit distributions. Moreover, explicit representations of the Poisson limit experiments via Poisson point processes are found. As a concrete example nonparametric tests for Fréchet type distributions against stochastically larger alternatives are treated. We find asymptotically optimal tests within certain threshold models.Extreme order statistics statistical information Gaussian experiments Poisson experiments Poisson point processes local extreme value alternatives extreme value tangents Frechet distribution intensity model hazard rate model