Miniaturized data loggers and computer programming improve seabird risk and damage assessments for marine oil spills in Atlantic Canada

Obtaining useful information on marine birds that can aid in oil spill (and other hydrocarbon release) risk and damage assessments in offshore environments is challenging. Technological innovations in miniaturization have allowed archival data loggers to be deployed successfully on marine birds vulnerable to hydrocarbons on water. A number of species, including murres (both Common, Uria aalge, and Thick-billed, U. lomvia) have been tracked using geolocation devices in eastern Canada, increasing our knowledge of the seasonality and colony-specific nature of their susceptibility to oil on water in offshore hydrocarbon production areas and major shipping lanes. Archival data tags are starting to resolve questions around behaviour of vulnerable seabirds at small spatial scales relevant to oil spill impact modelling, specifically to determine the duration and frequency at which birds fly at sea. Advances in data capture methods using voice activated software have eased the burden on seabird observers who are collecting increasingly more detailed information on seabirds during ship-board and aerial transects. Computer programs that integrate seabird density and bird behaviour have been constructed, all with a goal of creating more credible seabird oil spill risk and damage assessments. In this paper, we discuss how each of these technological and computing innovations can help define critical inputs into seabird risk and damage assessments, and when combined, can provide a more realistic understanding of the impacts to seabirds from any hydrocarbon release

Employing Predictive Spatial Models to Inform Conservation Planning for Seabirds in the Labrador Sea

Seabirds are vulnerable to incidental harm from human activities in the ocean, and knowledge of their seasonal distribution is required to assess risk and effectively inform marine conservation planning. Significant hydrocarbon discoveries and exploration licenses in the Labrador Sea underscore the need for quantitative information on seabird seasonal distribution and abundance, as this region is known to provide important habitat for seabirds year-round. We explore the utility of density surface modeling (DSM) to improve seabird information available for regional conservation and management decision making. We, (1) develop seasonal density surface models for seabirds in the Labrador Sea using data from vessel-based surveys (2006–2014; 13,783 linear km of surveys), (2) present measures of uncertainty in model predictions, (3) discuss how density surface models can inform conservation and management decision making, and 4) explore challenges and potential pitfalls associated with using these modeling procedures. Models predicted large areas of high seabird density in fall over continental shelf waters (max. ~80 birds·km−2) driven largely by the southward migration of murres (Uria spp.) and dovekies (Alle alle) from Arctic breeding colonies. The continental shelf break was also highlighted as an important habitat feature, with predictions of high seabird densities particularly during summer (max. ~70 birds·km−2). Notable concentrations of seabirds overlapped with several significant hydrocarbon discoveries on the continental shelf and large areas in the vicinity of the southern shelf break, which are in the early stages of exploration. Some, but not all, areas of high seabird density were within current Ecologically and Biologically Significant Area (EBSA) boundaries. Building predictive spatial models required knowledge of Distance Sampling and GAMs, and significant investments of time and computational power—resource needs that are becoming more common in ecological modeling. Visualization of predictions and their uncertainty needed to be considered for appropriate interpretation by end users. Model uncertainty tended to be greater where survey effort was limited or where predictor covariates exceeded the range of those observed. Predictive spatial models proved useful in generating defensible estimates of seabird densities in many areas of interest to the oil and gas industry in the Labrador Sea, and will have continued use in marine risk assessments and spatial planning activities in the region and beyond

Female and male Leach\u27s Storm Petrels (Hydrobates leucorhous) pursue different foraging strategies during the incubation period

Reproduction in procellariiform birds is characterized by a single egg clutch, slow development, a long breeding season and obligate biparental care. Female Leach\u27s Storm Petrels Hydrobates leucorhous, nearly monomorphic members of this order, produce eggs that are between 20 and 25% of adult bodyweight. We tested whether female foraging behaviour differs from male foraging behaviour during the ~ 44-day incubation period across seven breeding colonies in the Northwest Atlantic. Over six breeding seasons, we used a combination of Global Positioning System and Global Location Sensor devices to measure characteristics of individual foraging trips during the incubation period. Females travelled significantly greater distances and went farther from the breeding colony than did males on individual foraging trips. For both sexes, the longer the foraging trip, the greater the distance. Independent of trip duration, females travelled farther, and spent a greater proportion of their foraging trips prospecting widely, as defined by behavioural categories derived from a hidden Markov Model. For both sexes, trip duration decreased with date. Sex differences in these foraging metrics were apparently not a consequence of morphological differences or spatial segregation. Our data are consistent with the idea that female foraging strategies differed from male foraging strategies during incubation in ways that would be expected if females were still compensating for egg formation

The Four types of Tregs in malignant lymphomas

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are a specialized subpopulation of CD4+ T cells, which act to suppress the activation of other immune cells. Tregs represent important modulators for the interaction between lymphomas and host microenvironment. Lymphomas are a group of serious and frequently fatal malignant diseases of lymphocytes. Recent studies revealed that some lymphoma T cells might adopt a Treg profile. Assessment of Treg phenotypes and genotypes in patients may offer prediction of outcome in many types of lymphomas including diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, follicular lymphoma, cutaneous T cell lymphoma, and Hodgkin's lymphoma. Based on characterized roles of Tregs in lymphomas, we can categorize the various roles into four groups: (a) suppressor Tregs; (b) malignant Tregs; (c) direct tumor-killing Tregs; and (d) incompetent Tregs. The classification into four groups is significant in predicting prognosis and designing Tregs-based immunotherapies for treating lymphomas. In patients with lymphomas where Tregs serve either as suppressor Tregs or malignant Tregs, anti-tumor cytotoxicity is suppressed thus decreased numbers of Tregs are associated with a good prognosis. In contrast, in patients with lymphomas where Tregs serve as tumor-killing Tregs and incompetent Tregs, anti-tumor cytotoxicity is enhanced or anti-autoimmune Tregs activities are weakened thus increased numbers of Tregs are associated with a good prognosis and reduced numbers of Tregs are associated with a poor prognosis. However, the mechanisms underlying the various roles of Tregs in patients with lymphomas remain unknown. Therefore, further research is needed in this regard as well as the utility of Tregs as prognostic factors and therapy strategies in different lymphomas

AXL-associated tumor inflammation as a poor prognostic signature in chemotherapy-treated triple-negative breast cancer patients

A subgroup of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) shows epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) features, which are sustained by the interaction between cancer cells and tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). In this study, the clinical relevance of 30 EMT-related kinases and the potential cross-talk with TAMs were investigated in a cohort of 203 TNBC patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. The prognostic value of the evaluated markers was validated in two independent cohorts of TNBC patients treated with adjuvant chemotherapy (N=95; N=137). In vitro, we investigated the potential synergism between cancer cells and TAMs. We found that the EMT-related kinase AXL showed the highest correlation with the frequency of CD163-positive macrophages (rS=0.503; P<0.0001). Relapsing TNBC patients presented high expression of AXL (P<0.0001) and CD163 (P<0.018), but only AXL retained independent prognostic significance in multivariate analysis (relapse-free survival, P=0.002; overall survival P=0.001). In vitro analysis demonstrated that AXL-expressing TNBC cells were able to polarize human macrophages towards an M2-like phenotype, and modulate a specific pattern of pro-tumor cytokines and chemokines. Selective AXL inhibition impaired the activity of M2-like macrophages, reducing cancer cell invasiveness, and restoring the sensitivity of breast cancer cells to chemotherapeutic drugs. These data suggest that the EMT-related kinase AXL overexpressed in cancer cells has prognostic significance, and contributes to the functional skewing of macrophage functions in TNBC. AXL inhibition may represent a novel strategy to target cancer cells, as well as tumor-promoting TAMs in TNBC

Estrogen Receptor Silencing Induces Epithelial to Mesenchymal Transition in Human Breast Cancer Cells

We propose the hypothesis that loss of estrogen receptor function which leads to endocrine resistance in breast cancer, also results in trans-differentiation from an epithelial to a mesenchymal phenotype that is responsible for increased aggressiveness and metastatic propensity. siRNA mediated silencing of the estrogen receptor in MCF7 breast cancer cells resulted in estrogen/tamoxifen resistant cells (pII) with altered morphology, increased motility with rearrangement and switch from a keratin/actin to a vimentin based cytoskeleton, and ability to invade simulated components of the extracellular matrix. Phenotypic profiling using an Affymetrix Human Genome U133 plus 2.0 GeneChip indicated geometric fold changes ≥3 in approximately 2500 identifiable unique sequences, with about 1270 of these being up-regulated in pII cells. Changes were associated with genes whose products are involved in cell motility, loss of cellular adhesion and interaction with the extracellular matrix. Selective analysis of the data also showed a shift from luminal to basal cell markers and increased expression of a wide spectrum of genes normally associated with mesenchymal characteristics, with consequent loss of epithelial specific markers. Over-expression of several peptide growth factors and their receptors are indicative of an increased contribution to the higher proliferative rates of pII cells as well as aiding their potential for metastatic activity. Signalling molecules that have been identified as key transcriptional drivers of epithelial to mesenchymal transition were also found to be elevated in pII cells. These data support our hypothesis that induced loss of estrogen receptor in previously estrogen/antiestrogen sensitive cells is a trigger for the concomitant loss of endocrine dependence and onset of a series of possibly parallel events that changes the cell from an epithelial to a mesenchymal type. Inhibition of this transition through targeting of specific mediators may offer a useful supplementary strategy to circumvent the effects of loss of endocrine sensitivity