Predicting the impacts of climate change on a globally distributed species: the case of the loggerhead turtle

© Company of Biologists. Post print version deposited in accordance with SHERPA RoMEO guidelines. The definitive version is available at: http://jeb.biologists.org/content/213/6/901.shortMarine turtles utilise terrestrial and marine habitats and several aspects of their life history are tied to environmental features that are altering due to rapid climate change. We overview the likely impacts of climate change on the biology of these species, which are likely centred upon the thermal ecology of this taxonomic group. Then, focusing in detail on three decades of research on the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta L.), we describe how much progress has been made to date and how future experimental and ecological focus should be directed. Key questions include: what are the current hatchling sex ratios from which to measure future climate-induced changes? What are wild adult sex ratios and how many males are necessary to maintain a fertile and productive population? How will climate change affect turtles in terms of their distribution

Gene expression profiling in the Cynomolgus macaque Macaca fascicularis shows variation within the normal birth range

BACKGROUND: Although an adverse early-life environment has been linked to an increased risk of developing the metabolic syndrome, the molecular mechanisms underlying altered disease susceptibility as well as their relevance to humans are largely unknown. Importantly, emerging evidence suggests that these effects operate within the normal range of birth weights and involve mechanisms of developmental palsticity rather than pathology. METHOD: To explore this further, we utilised a non-human primate model Macaca fascicularis (Cynomolgus macaque) which shares with humans the same progressive history of the metabolic syndrome. Using microarray we compared tissues from neonates in the average birth weight (50-75(th )centile) to those of lower birth weight (5-25(th )centile) and studied the effect of different growth trajectories within the normal range on gene expression levels in the umbilical cord, neonatal liver and skeletal muscle. RESULTS: We identified 1973 genes which were differentially expressed in the three tissue types between average and low birth weight animals (P < 0.05). Gene ontology analysis identified that these genes were involved in metabolic processes including cellular lipid metabolism, cellular biosynthesis, cellular macromolecule synthesis, cellular nitrogen metabolism, cellular carbohydrate metabolism, cellular catabolism, nucleotide and nucleic acid metabolism, regulation of molecular functions, biological adhesion and development. CONCLUSION: These differences in gene expression levels between animals in the upper and lower percentiles of the normal birth weight range may point towards early life metabolic adaptations that in later life result in differences in disease risk

Acceptability of novel lifelogging technology to determine context of sedentary behaviour in older adults

<strong>Objective:</strong> Lifelogging, using body worn sensors (activity monitors and time lapse photography) has the potential to shed light on the context of sedentary behaviour. The objectives of this study were to examine the acceptability, to older adults, of using lifelogging technology and indicate its usefulness for understanding behaviour.<strong> </strong><strong>Method:</strong> 6 older adults (4 males, mean age: 68yrs) wore the equipment (ActivPAL^TM and Vicon Revue^TM/SenseCam^TM) for 7 consecutive days during free-living activity. The older adults’ perception of the lifelogging technology was assessed through semi-structured interviews, including a brief questionnaire (Likert scale), and reference to the researcher&#39;s diary. <strong>Results:</strong> Older adults in this study found the equipment acceptable to wear and it did not interfere with privacy, safety or create reactivity, but they reported problems with the actual technical functioning of the camera. <strong>Conclusion:</strong> This combination of sensors has good potential to provide lifelogging information on the context of sedentary behaviour

Evaluating the landscape of fear between apex predatory sharks and mobile sea turtles across a large dynamic seascape

The ‘‘landscape of fear’’ model has been proposed as a unifying concept in ecology, describing, in part, how animals behave and move about in their environment. The basic model predicts that as an animal’s landscape changes from low to high risk of predation, prey species will alter their behavior to risk avoidance. However, studies investigating and evaluating the landscape of fear model across large spatial scales (tens to hundreds of thousands of square kilometers) in dynamic, open, aquatic systems involving apex predators and highly mobile prey are lacking. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated predator–prey relationships between tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) and loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta) in the North Atlantic Ocean. This included the use of satellite tracking to examine shark and turtle distributions as well as their surfacing behaviors under varying levels of home range overlap. Our findings revealed patterns that deviated from our a priori predictions based on the landscape of fear model. Specifically, turtles did not alter their surfacing behaviors to risk avoidance when overlap in shark–turtle core home range was high. However, in areas of high overlap with turtles, sharks exhibited modified surfacing behaviors that may enhance predation opportunity. We suggest that turtles may be an important factor in determining shark distribution, whereas for turtles, other life history trade-offs may play a larger role in defining their habitat use. We propose that these findings are a result of both biotic and physically driven factors that independently or synergistically affect predator–prey interactions in this system. These results have implications for evolutionary biology, community ecology, and wildlife conservation. Further, given the difficulty in studying highly migratory marine species, our approach and conclusions may be applied to the study of other predator–prey systems.Bald Head Island ConservancyBritish Chelonia GroupNatural Environmental Research CouncilWAVE Foundation/Newport Aquarium CincinnatiPADI project AWARESEATURTLE.ORGWhitener Foundation (NC); an Endangered Species Act Section 6 Cooperative Agreement with NOAA Fisheries and the Grays Reef National Marine Sanctuary (South Carolina and Georgia)Batchelor FoundationDinsey Conservation Fun

CD8⁺ T Cell Activation Leads to Constitutive Formation of Liver Tissue-Resident Memory T Cells that Seed a Large and Flexible Niche in the Liver

Liver tissue-resident memory T (Trm) cells migrate throughout the sinusoids and are capable of protecting against malaria sporozoite challenge. To gain an understanding of liver Trm cell development, we examined various conditions for their formation. Although liver Trm cells were found in naive mice, their presence was dictated by antigen specificity and required IL-15. Liver Trm cells also formed after adoptive transfer of in vitro-activated but not naive CD8+ T cells, indicating that activation was essential but that antigen presentation within the liver was not obligatory. These Trm cells patrolled the liver sinusoids with a half-life of 36 days and occupied a large niche that could be added to sequentially without effect on subsequent Trm cell cohorts. Together, our findings indicate that liver Trm cells form as a normal consequence of CD8+ T cell activation during essentially any infection but that inflammatory and antigenic signals preferentially tailor their development. Holz et al. demonstrate that tissue-resident memory T (Trm) cells routinely develop in the liver after T cell activation. Within the liver, IL-15, antigen, and inflammation aid Trm cell formation, but only IL-15 is essential. Newly formed Trm cells do not displace existing populations, demonstrating a flexible liver niche

Search for gamma-ray emission from magnetars with the Fermi Large Area Telescope

We report on the search for 0.1-10 GeV emission from magnetars in 17 months of Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) observations. No significant evidence for gamma-ray emission from any of the currently-known magnetars is found. The most stringent upper limits to date on their persistent emission in the Fermi-LAT energy range are estimated between ~10^{-12}-10^{-10} erg/s/cm2, depending on the source. We also searched for gamma-ray pulsations and possible outbursts, also with no significant detection. The upper limits derived support the presence of a cut-off at an energy below a few MeV in the persistent emission of magnetars. They also show the likely need for a revision of current models of outer gap emission from strongly magnetized pulsars, which, in some realizations, predict detectable GeV emission from magnetars at flux levels exceeding the upper limits identified here using the Fermi-LAT observations.Comment: ApJ Letters in press; Corresponding authors: Caliandro G. A., Hadasch D., Rea N., Burnett

Improved eradication of Clostridium difficile spores from toilets of hospitalized patients using an accelerated hydrogen peroxide as the cleaning agent

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p><it>C. difficle </it>spores in the environment of patients with <it>C. difficile </it>associated disease (CDAD) are difficult to eliminate. Bleach (5000 ppm) has been advocated as an effective disinfectant for the environmental surfaces of patients with CDAD. Few alternatives to bleach for non-outbreak conditions have been evaluated in controlled healthcare studies.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study was a prospective clinical comparison during non-outbreak conditions of the efficacy of an accelerated hydrogen peroxide cleaner (0.5% AHP) to the currently used stabilized hydrogen peroxide cleaner (0.05% SHP at manufacturer recommended use-dilution) with respect to spore removal from toilets in a tertiary care facility. The toilets used by patients who had diarrhea with and without <it>C. difficile </it>associated disease (CDAD) were cultured for <it>C. difficile </it>and were monitored using an ultraviolet mark (UVM) to assess cleaning compliance on a daily basis 5 days per week. A total of 243 patients and 714 samples were analysed. The culture results were included in the analysis only if the UVM audit from the same day confirmed that the toilet had been cleaned.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Our data demonstrated that the efficacy of spore killing is formulation specific and cannot be generalized. The Oxivir_TB^®AHP formulation resulted in statistically significantly (p = 0.0023) lower levels of toxigenic <it>C. difficile </it>spores in toilets of patients with CDAD compared to the SHP formulation that was routinely being used (28% vs 45% culture positive). The background level of toxigenic <it>C. difficile </it>spores was 10% in toilets of patients with diarrhea not due to CDAD. The UVM audit indicated that despite the enhanced twice-daily cleaning protocol for CDAD patients cleaning was not achieved on approximately 30 - 40% of the days tested.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our data indicate that the AHP formulation evaluated that has some sporicidal activity was significantly better than the currently used SHP formulation. This AHP formulation provides a one-step process that significantly lowers the <it>C. difficile </it>spore level in toilets during non-outbreak conditions without the workplace safety concerns associated with 5000 ppm bleach.</p

Detection of Gamma-Ray Emission from the Starburst Galaxies M82 and NGC 253 with the Large Area Telescope on Fermi

We report the detection of high-energy gamma-ray emission from two starburst galaxies using data obtained with the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. Steady point-like emission above 200 MeV has been detected at significance levels of 6.8 sigma and 4.8 sigma respectively, from sources positionally coincident with locations of the starburst galaxies M82 and NGC 253. The total fluxes of the sources are consistent with gamma-ray emission originating from the interaction of cosmic rays with local interstellar gas and radiation fields and constitute evidence for a link between massive star formation and gamma-ray emission in star-forming galaxies.Comment: Submitted to ApJ Letter