Past exploitation of california sea lions did not lead to a genetic bottleneck in the Gulf of California | La explotación histórica del lobo marino de california no causó un cuello de botella genético en el Golfo de California

Human exploitation can lead to genetic bottlenecks associated with reduced genetic variability and lower fitness. The population of California sea lions (Zalophus californianus) in the Gulf of California, Mexico, was hunted during the 19th and 20th centuries, potentially leading to a genetic bottleneck; however, even exploitation that leads to low population sizes does not always cause genetic bottlenecks. Understanding the genetic consequences of past sea lion hunts is critical to the conservation of the Gulf of California sea lion population, which is currently declining and is genetically distinct from other populations. We used available data from 10 amplified polymorphic microsatellite loci in 355 individuals from six Mexican colonies. Microsatellite data were analyzed using diverse approaches (BOTTLENECK and M-ratio) to determine if a genetic bottleneck had occurred. Our results indicate that human exploitation did not cause a genetic bottleneck in the sea lion population of the Gulf of California. Simulation analyses revealed that a reduction in genetic variability would have been detected if fewer than 100 individuals had remained after exploitation. We conclude that past exploitation was not as severe as previously thought and did not cause a genetic bottleneck in the Gulf of California sea lion population. Nevertheless, historical hunts specifically targeted adult males and this sexbiased exploitation may have influenced the population dynamics and overall fitness.Peer Reviewe

Extracellular vesicle and soluble fractions of adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells secretome induce inflammatory cytokines modulation in an in vitro model of discogenic pain

.BACKGROUND CONTEXT: Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) secretome or conditioned medium (CM) is a complex cocktail of different molecules, some of which, particularly those con- tained in extracellular vesicles, already have proven therapeutic applications. PURPOSE: CM may well represent promising therapy for discogenic pain and the intention of this work is to assess its therapeutic potential using an in vitro model of this condition. STUDY DESIGN: This is an experimental study. METHODS: Our in vitro model comprised Nucleus Pulposus (NP) and Annulus Fibrosus (AF) cells inflamed with TNF. To assess the potential therapeutic value of CM and its components, extracellular vesicles (EVs) and soluble culture fraction (SF), cell inflammation took place under 3 different conditions: either in the presence of whole CM, isolated EVs or SF, and concentrations of pro-inflammatory cytokines, metalloproteinases (MMPs) and neurotrophic factors produced in all 3 cases were compared. RESULTS: In the presence of whole CM, both in vitro gene expression by the NP and AF test cells and analysis of their protein content showed high modulatory effects on inflammation and MMP inhibition. The presence of EVs and SF showed similar but much smaller effects, and this was par- ticularly marked in the case of NP cells. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that, compared to EVs and SF, the presence of whole CM has the greatest positive effect on the modulation of pro-inflammatory and catabolic factors. These observations suggest that CM could protect against inflammation and the resulting intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration that leads to discogenic pain. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Many patients' expectations are not met by current non-operative and surgical treatments for discogenic low back pain. We propose the use of the MSCs secretomeS

Soil and water pollution in a banana production region in tropical Mexico

The effects of abundant Mancozeb (Mn, Zn— bisdithiocarbamate) applications (2.5 kg ha-1week-1 for 10 years) on soil and surface-, subsurface- and groundwater pollution were monitored in a banana production region of tropical Mexico. In soils, severe manganese accumulation was observed, wheras the main metabolite ethylenethiourea was near the detection limit. Surface and subsurface water was highly polluted with ethylenethiourea, the main metabolite of Mancozeb (22.5 and 4.3 lg L-1, respectively), but not with manganese. In deep ground water, no ethylenethiourea was detected. The level of pollution in the region presents a worrisome risk for aquatic life and for human health

When it is not primary progressive aphasia: A scoping review of spoken language impairment in other neurodegenerative dementias

BACKGROUND: Progressive difficulties with spoken language occur across the spectrum of degenerative dementia. When not a primary presenting and dominant symptom, language difficulties may be overlooked in favor of more prominent cognitive, behavior, or motor deficits. The aim of this scoping review is to examine the extent and nature of the research evidence describing (1) the spoken language impairments found in non-language led dementias, (2) their impact on everyday living, and (3) the reported language interventions. METHODS: We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, OVID-EMBASE, PsycINFO, and SpeechBITE using terms related to spoken language for the following dementia types: Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), cortico-basal syndrome (CBS), behavior variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD), early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD), posterior cortical atrophy (PCA), and motor neuron disease associated with FTD (MND+FTD). Risk of bias was assessed with the QualSyst tool. RESULTS: Seventy-three eligible studies were included. A wide range of spoken language impairments were reported, involving both linguistic (e.g., syntactic processing) and other cognitive (e.g., sustained attention) underlying mechanisms. Although the severity of these deficits was scarcely reported, in some cases they manifested as non-fluent, dynamic, and global aphasias. No papers in the review described either the impact of these language impairments on everyday living or language therapies to treat them. DISCUSSION: There is a need to understand better the level of disability produced by language impairment in people living with non–language-led dementias. Our findings suggest three calls for action: (1) research studies should assess the clinical relevance of any spoken language deficits examined, (2) both linguistic and cognitive underlying mechanisms should be fully described (to inform the design of effective language and behavioral interventions), and (3) trials of language therapy should be conducted in those groups of individuals where significant language impairment is proved

Non-primary progressive language impairment in neurodegenerative conditions: protocol for a scoping review

BACKGROUND: Progressive language difficulties arise in many neurodegenerative conditions, causing significant impact upon patients and families. This occurs most obviously in primary progressive aphasia (PPA) but can also occur within other forms of progressive disease. In these cases, language decline may be significant, but as they are not the presenting or dominant symptom, may be overlooked in favour of more prominent cognitive, behaviour or motor deficits. To date, there has been no systematic investigation into non-primary progressive aphasia. This scoping review aims to describe the currently reported language impairments found in non-language-led dementias and identify their clinical relevance, defined as the impact on everyday living. It also seeks to identify the reported interventions for language impairment in this patient group to-date. METHOD: We will conduct a scoping review of published studies that have assessed and/or treated aphasia in people diagnosed with a neurodegenerative condition other than primary progressive aphasia. The systematic search will include the electronic databases PubMed, MEDLINE, OVID-EMBASE, PsycINFO, and speechBITE, using search terms for specific non-language-led dementia subtypes. Findings will be mapped and described according to the type of language difficulties identified and rehabilitation approaches employed. Intervention studies will be evaluated for their methodological rigour using validated scales. DISCUSSION: This scoping review will provide an overview of the types of aphasia found in neurodegenerative conditions where language dysfunction is not the primary focus. Current treatment approaches (and gaps in the provision of treatment) will be identified

Polar Field Reversal Observations with Hinode

We have been monitoring yearly variation in the Sun's polar magnetic fields with the Solar Optical Telescope aboard {\it Hinode} to record their evolution and expected reversal near the solar maximum. All magnetic patches in the magnetic flux maps are automatically identified to obtain the number density and magnetic flux density as a function of th total magnetic flux per patch. The detected magnetic flux per patch ranges over four orders of magnitude ($10^{15}$ -- $10^{20}$ Mx). The higher end of the magnetic flux in the polar regions is about one order of magnitude larger than that of the quiet Sun, and nearly that of pores. Almost all large patches ($\geq 10^{18}$ Mx) have the same polarity, while smaller patches have a fair balance of both polarities. The polarity of the polar region as a whole is consequently determined only by the large magnetic concentrations. A clear decrease in the net flux of the polar region is detected in the slow rising phase of the current solar cycle. The decrease is more rapid in the north polar region than in the south. The decrease in the net flux is caused by a decrease in the number and size of the large flux concentrations as well as the appearance of patches with opposite polarity at lower latitudes. In contrast, we do not see temporal change in the magnetic flux associated with the smaller patches ($< 10^{18}$ Mx) and that of the horizontal magnetic fields during the years 2008--2012.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in Ap

ODEval: a Tool for Evaluating RDF(S), DAML+OIL, and OWL Concept Taxonomies

Ontologies implemented in RDF(S), DAML+OIL, and OWL should be evaluated from the point of view of knowledge representation before using them in Semantic Web applications. Several language-dependent ontology validation tools and ontology platforms, such as OilEd with FaCT, can be used in order to evaluate RDF(S), DAML+OIL and OWL ontologies. This paper offers two main contributions. The first of these exams whether previous ontology tools detect knowledge representation problems in RDF(S), DAML+OIL, and OWL concept taxonomies. Indeed, such tools do not focus on detecting inconsistencies and redundancies in concept taxonomies. The second contribution is ODEval, a language-dependent tool for evaluating, from the point of view of knowledge representation, concept taxonomies in ontologies implemented in such languages. ODEval complements previous ontology tools when we want to evaluate RDF(S), DAML+OIL, and OWL concept taxonomie