Four new species of Hexanchorus Sharp from Ecuador (Coleoptera, Elmidae) with DNA barcoding and notes on the distribution of the genus

The riffle beetle genus Hexanchorus Sharp, 1882 is distributed from Mexico to Argentina, forming an important component of the freshwater invertebrate fauna of Latin America. With 21 described species, Hexanchorus represents one of the most speciose Larainae genera, but its real diversity is likely much higher. We analysed material from a relatively small area in Ecuador, resulting in the first record of H. cordillierae for Ecuador and discovery of four new species and one subspecies: Hexanchorus virilis sp. n., Hexanchorus rostratus sp. n., Hexanchorus shepardi sp. n., Hexanchorus onorei sp. n. and Hexanchorus onorei sagittatus ssp. n. For delimiting and characterizing species, both morphological and molecular (mtCOI DNA barcodes) data were used. A distribution map of Hexanchorus species is provided based on published records

Current stocking program of the sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus, L.) can negatively shape its genetic variability in the Middle Danube

The Danube River was originally inhabited by six native sturgeon species, but currently, the sterlet (Acipenser ruthenus L.) is the only native sturgeon species still occupying the Slovak–Hungarian stretch of the Middle Danube. All sturgeon species are facing extinction, suffering from overfishing, water pollution, illegal fishing, poaching or other negative impacts. Urgent and proper actions are needed to prevent their extinction, and evaluating its genetic diversity is one of the essential tools of conservation programs. Since the management actions are primarily local in nature, we first focused on comparing and analysing local sources of fish for population recovery and natural (wild) population in the adjacent stretch of the Danube River. We used 2 fragments of mitochondrial DNA and 12 microsatellites to analyse the genotype of the three groups of sterlets, i.e. wild, broodstock and stocked individuals from Slovak part of the Danube. Mitochondrial markers of all groups were diversified similarly to populations from other parts of the Danube. This confirmed that broodstock and stocked fish belong to the original Danube population. Microsatellites revealed very similar patterns among groups compared, but we detected possible negative trends reflected in losing polymorphism in a few loci in broodstock and stocked individuals

Ancyronyx clisteri, a new spider riffle beetle species from Borneo, redescription of A. sarawacensis Jäch including a description of the larva and new distribution data for A. procerus Jäch using DNA barcodes (Coleoptera, Elmidae)

Ancyronyx clisteri sp. nov. (Coleoptera, Elmidae) a new spider riffle beetle discovered from northern Borneo (Brunei; Sabah and Sarawak, Malaysia) and the larva of Ancyronyx sarawacensis Jäch are described. Illustrations of the habitus and diagnostic characters of the new species and the similar and highly variable A. sarawacensis are presented. Differences to closely related species, based on DNA barcodes and morphological characters, are discussed. Association of the larva and the imago of A. sarawacensis, and the occurrence of Ancyronyx procerus Jäch in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah are confirmed by using COI mtDNA sequences

Functionalized porous silica&maghemite core-shell nanoparticles for applications in medicine: design, synthesis, and immunotoxicity

Aim To determine cytotoxicity and effect of silica-coated magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) on immune response, in particular lymphocyte proliferative activity, phagocytic activity, and leukocyte respiratory burst and in vitro production of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and 8 (IL-8), interferon-gamma (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF). Methods Maghemite was prepared by coprecipitation of iron salts with ammonia, oxidation with NaOCl and modified by tetramethyl orthosilicate and aminosilanes. Particles were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Cytotoxicity and lymphocyte proliferative activity were assessed using [3H]-thymidine incorporation into DNA of proliferating human peripheral blood cells. Phagocytic activity and leukocyte respiratory burst were measured by flow cytometry; cytokine levels in cell supernatants were determined by ELISA. Results γ-Fe2O3&SiO2-NH2 MNPs were 13 nm in size. According to TEM, they were localized in the cell cytoplasm and extracellular space. Neither cytotoxic effect nor significant differences in T-lymphocyte and T-dependent Bcell proliferative response were found at particle concentrations 0.12-75 μg/cm2 after 24, 48, and 72 h incubation. Significantly increased production of IL-6 and 8, and GMCSF cytokines was observed in the cells treated with 3, 15, and 75 μg of particles/cm2 for 48 h and stimulated with pokeweed mitogen (PHA). No significant changes in TNF-α and IFN-γ production were observed. MNPs did not affect phagocytic activity of monocytes and granulocytes when added to cells for 24 and 48 h. Phagocytic respiratory burst was significantly enhanced in the cultures exposed to 75 μg MNPs/cm2 for 48 h. Conclusions The cytotoxicity and in vitro immunotoxicity were found to be minimal in the newly developed porous core-shell γ-Fe2O3&SiO2-NH2 magnetic nanoparticles

MULTIDISCIPLINARY EVALUATION OF THE FUNCTION AND IMPORTANCE OF THE SMALL WATER RESERVOIRS: THE BIODIVERSITY ASPECT

ABSTRACT Small water reservoirs are the very important landscape elements for effective water management. Although these man-made artificial biotopes change the proportion of lotic and lentic habitats and thus influence the species community structure, them secondarily offer a broader scale of microhabitats and, in general, can significantly influence the fauna's sustainable development. The evaluation of the function and importance of small water reservoirs in the biodiversity development on all levels is still unappreciated. In this case, preliminary results of the study on six small water reservoirs in West Slovakia are presented. The research has covered the major species groups (phytobentos, macrophytes, benthic and pelagic invertebrates, mollusks, fish and birds). As the first step, we are focusing on the description of the biodiversity patterns within the particular water reservoirs followed by the analyses of species links to the environmental variables using the multidimensional methods (neural networks, ordination methods and generalized linear methods) as the second step. The third step covers the compilation of obtained results and evaluation of the function and importance of the small water reservoirs. The major benefits of this study are as follows: (i) significant improvement of the knowledge on the biodiversity of aquatic ecosystems influenced by small water reservoirs, (ii) implementation of the innovative methods of the multidisciplinary ecological research, (iii) support for sustainable development of the biodiversity in artificial biotopes, development of the multidisciplinary network of researchers and experts from the applied sphere, (iv) effective application of outputs in the ecological management oriented to the sustainable development of the artificial aquatic ecosystems in combination with their primary use and implementation of the results gained at the international scale. L. Pekárik et al. -Multidisciplinary evaluation of small water reservoirs: the biodiversity aspect (105 ~ 112) 106 RÉSUMÉ: Evaluation multidisciplinaire de la fonction et de l'importance des étangs. L'aspect de la biodiversité. Les petits corps d'eau sont des éléments de paysage très importants pour la gestion efficace de l'eau. Même si ces biotopes artificiels changent les proportions des habitats lotiques et lentiques, elles offrent également une échelle plus large de microhabitats et, généralement, elles peuvent influencer de manière signifiante le développement durable de la faune. L'évaluation de la fonction et de l'importance des étangs dans le développement de la biodiversité à tous niveaux est encore sous appréciée. Dans ce cas, nous présentons les résultats préliminaires d'une étude effectuée sur 6 étangs anthropiques de l'Ouest de la Slovakie. La recherche a compris les groupes spécifiques majeurs (phytobentos, macrophytes, invertébrés benthiques et pélagiques, mollusques, poissons et oiseaux). En première étape, nous nous sommes concentrés sur la description des modèles de biodiversité de ces étangs suivie, en deuxième étape, par l'analyse des relations entre les espèces et les variables de l'environnement en utilisant des méthodes multidimensionnelles (des réseaux neuronaux, des méthodes d'ordination et des méthodes linéaires généralisées); la troisième étape comprend la compilation des résultats obtenus et l'évaluation de la fonction et de l'importance des étangs. Les bénéfices majeures de cette étude sont les suivantes: (i) amélioration significative de la connaissance de la biodiversité des écosystèmes aquatiques sous l'influence des étangs, (ii) l'implémentation des méthodes nouvelles dans la recherche écologique multidisciplinaire, (iii) un support pour le développement durable de la biodiversité dans les biotopes artificiels, le développement des réseaux multidisciplinaires des chercheurs et d'experts de la sphère appliquée, (iv) l'application effective des résultats dans la gestion écologique orientée vers le développement durable des écosystèmes aquatiques artificielles combinée à leur utilisation primaire et l'implémentation à l'échelle internationale des résultats obtenus. REZUMAT: Evaluare multidisciplinară a funcţiei şi importanţei iazurilor: aspectul biodiversităţii. Iazurile şi heleşteele sunt elemente peisagistice foarte importante pentru gestiunea eficientă a apei. Deşi aceste biotopuri artificiale modifică proporţiile habitatelor lotice şi lentice şi influenţează astfel structura comunităţilor biologice, ele oferă secundar o gamă mai largă de microhabitate, în general, pot influenţa de manieră semnificativă dezvoltarea durabilă a faunei. Evaluarea funcţiei şi importanţei iazurilor în dezvoltarea biodiversităţii la toate nivelurile este încă neglijată. În acest caz, sunt prezentate rezultatele preliminare ale unui studiu pe şase iazuri mici, din vestul Slovaciei. Cercetările au acoperit grupele majore de specii (fitobentos, macrofite, nevertebrate bentice şi pelagice, moluşte, peşti şi păsări). Într-o primă etapă, ne-am concentrat pe descrierea modelelor de biodiversitate, aplicate la iazurile studiate, apoi am efectuat analiza relaţiilor interspecifice cu ajutorul metodelor multidimensionale (reţele neuronale, metode de ordonare şi metode liniare generalizate) care au constituit a doua etapă a studiului. A treia etapă a acoperit compilarea datelor obţinute şi evaluarea funcţiei şi importanţei iazurilor. Beneficiile principale ale studiului sunt următoarele: (i) ameliorarea semnificativă a cunoaşterii biodiversităţii ecosistemelor acvatice sub influenţa iazurilor, (ii) implementarea de metode noi, inovatoare în cercetarea ecologică multidisciplinară, (iii) suport pentru dezvoltarea durabilă a biodiversităţii în biotopurile artificiale, dezvoltarea de reţele multidisciplinare de cercetători şi experţi din sfera aplicată, (iv) aplicarea efectivă a rezultatelor gestiunii ecologice, orientate spre dezvoltare durabilă a ecosistemelor acvatice artificiale, în paralel cu utilizarea lor primară şi implementarea rezultatelor obţinute la scară internaţională. Transylv. Rev. Syst. Ecol. Res. 8, (2009), "The Wetlands Diversity" 107 INTRODUCTION Small water reservoirs The artificial small water reservoirs were built on small streams in the first place for the purpose of their potential for irrigation and as flood protection. But also their contribution to the nature protection through the water self-purification is not negligible Small water reservoirs are very important landscape elements for effective water management. Although these man-made artificial ponds change the proportion of lotic and lenitic habitats and thus influence the species community structure, secondarily offer a broader scale of microhabitats and, in general, can significantly influence the fauna sustainable development. The evaluation of the function and also of the importance of the small water reservoirs on the biodiversity development on all levels is still unappreciated. Ertl The aim of the project SAV-FM-EHP-2008-03-04 is to identify the function of small water reservoirs in the system of aquatic biotopes of the Slovakia in respect to preservation and development of water biota diversity. The results should enable to model the development of the biodiversity for the purpose of reservoir management with the respect of ecological value of the reservoirs. Management should involve the primary purposes of reservoirs together with effective protection of the nature. This paper brings first results of limnology of selected six reservoirs of the west Slovakia

DNA barcode reference libraries for the monitoring of aquatic biota in Europe: Gap-analysis and recommendations for future work

Effective identification of species using short DNA fragments (DNA barcoding and DNA metabarcoding) requires reliable sequence reference libraries of known taxa. Both taxonomically comprehensive coverage and content quality are important for sufficient accuracy. For aquatic ecosystems in Europe, reliable barcode reference libraries are particularly important if molecular identification tools are to be implemented in biomonitoring and reports in the context of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). We analysed gaps in the two most important reference databases, Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD) and NCBI GenBank, with a focus on the taxa most frequently used in WFD and MSFD. Our analyses show that coverage varies strongly among taxonomic groups, and among geographic regions. In general, groups that were actively targeted in barcode projects (e.g. fish, true bugs, caddisflies and vascular plants) are well represented in the barcode libraries, while others have fewer records (e.g. marine molluscs, ascidians, and freshwater diatoms). We also found that species monitored in several countries often are represented by barcodes in reference libraries, while species monitored in a single country frequently lack sequence records. A large proportion of species (up to 50%) in several taxonomic groups are only represented by private data in BOLD. Our results have implications for the future strategy to fill existing gaps in barcode libraries, especially if DNA metabarcoding is to be used in the monitoring of European aquatic biota under the WFD and MSFD. For example, missing species relevant to monitoring in multiple countries should be prioritized for future collaborative programs. We also discuss why a strategy for quality control and quality assurance of barcode reference libraries is needed and recommend future steps to ensure full utilisation of metabarcoding in aquatic biomonitoring.This paper is a deliverable of the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) Action DNAqua-Net (CA15219) Working Group 1, led by Torbjørn Ekrem and Fedor Čiampor. Thanks to the University of Minho and University of Pécs for hosting workshops and working group meetings. We also thank staff at National Environment Agencies and others that provided national checklists of taxa used in biomonitoring, and otherwise assisted with checklist proof-reading: Jarmila Makovinská and Emília Mišíková Elexová (Slovakia); Steinar Sandøy and Dag Rosland (Norway); Mišel Jelič (Croatia); Marlen Vasquez (Cyprus); Adam Petrusek (Czech Republic); Kristel Panksep (Estonia); Panagiotis Kaspiditis (Greece); Matteo Montagna (Italy); Marija Katarzyte (Lithuania); Ana Rotter (Slovenia); Rosa Trabajo (Spain); Florian Altermatt (Switzerland); Kristian Meissner (Finland), Rigers Bakiu (Albania), Valentina Stamenkovic and Jelena Hinic (Macedonia); Patricia Mergen (Belgium); Gael Denys & the French Biodiversity Agency (France); Mary Kelly-Quinn (Ireland); Piotr Panek and Andrzej Zawal (Poland); Cesare Mario Puzzi (Italy); Carole Fitzpatrick (United Kingdom); Simon Vitecek (Austria); Ana Filipa Filipe (Portugal); Peter Anton Stæhr & Anne Winding (Denmark); Michael Monaghan (Germany); Alain Dohet, Lionel L'Hoste, Nora Welschbillig & Luc Ector (Luxembourg), Lujza Keresztes, (Romania). The authors also want to thank Dirk Steinke for providing the original European ERMS list for marine taxa and Florian Malard for comments on the manuscript. The preparation of the AMBI checklist was carried out in the scope of a Short-term Scientific Mission (ECOST-STSM-CA15219-150217- 082111) granted to SD visiting AZTI, Spain. ZC was supported by grants EFOP-3.6.1.-16-2016-00004 and 20765-3/2018/FEKUTSTRAT. TE was supported by the NorBOL-grant (226134/F50) from the Research Coun cil of Norway. BR, FL and MFG contributed through support from the GBOL project, which is generously funded by the German Federal Min istry of Education and Research (FKZ 01LI1101 and 01LI1501). MG contributed through support of the Polish National Science Centre, grants N N303 5794 39 and 2014/15/B/NZ8/00266. SF was funded by the project PORBIOTA - Portuguese E-Infrastructure for Information and Research on Biodiversity (POCI-01-0145-FEDER-022127), supported by Operational Thematic Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization (POCI), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER)

How genomics can help biodiversity conservation

The availability of public genomic resources can greatly assist biodiversity assessment, conservation, and restoration efforts by providing evidence for scientifically informed management decisions. Here we survey the main approaches and applications in biodiversity and conservation genomics, considering practical factors, such as cost, time, prerequisite skills, and current shortcomings of applications. Most approaches perform best in combination with reference genomes from the target species or closely related species. We review case studies to illustrate how reference genomes can facilitate biodiversity research and conservation across the tree of life. We conclude that the time is ripe to view reference genomes as fundamental resources and to integrate their use as a best practice in conservation genomics.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The era of reference genomes in conservation genomics

Progress in genome sequencing now enables the large-scale generation of reference genomes. Various international initiatives aim to generate reference genomes representing global biodiversity. These genomes provide unique insights into genomic diversity and architecture, thereby enabling comprehensive analyses of population and functional genomics, and are expected to revolutionize conservation genomics

The era of reference genomes in conservation genomics

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The era of reference genomes in conservation genomics

Progress in genome sequencing now enables the large-scale generation of reference genomes. Various international initiatives aim to generate reference genomes representing global biodiversity. These genomes provide unique insights into genomic diversity and architecture, thereby enabling comprehensive analyses of population and functional genomics, and are expected to revolutionize conservation genomics