Session E2: The Rhine Sturgeon Project: A Brief Overview and a Look into the Future

Abstract: Once the Rhine was one of the key areas for the European sturgeon. In 2010, WWF the Netherlands and ARK Nature started with the Rhine Sturgeon Project in close cooperation with other organizations. Now, ARK Nature, the Royal Dutch Angling Association, Rotterdam Zoo and WWF the Netherlands would like to make the river Rhine part of the habitat of A. sturio again. A lot of work is done over the last years. The first releases of sturgeons in the Rhine in 2012 generated a lot of positive attention. We were able to inform a large audience and gained support. We concluded that one of the next best steps is a repetition of the experimental releases. It is very important to continue with the experimental releases. Not only to obtain more scientific research and results, but also to keep the attention and the focus on the project in the society and of policy makers. A long term investment leading to a formal re-introduction is the final goal. Therefore the experimental releases are accompanied by a process to gain more support for sturgeon conservation and protection in the Rhine system in the Netherlands and in Germany as well as in the coastal fishery. Support and approval from the Dutch government and the implication of the German counterparts is very important, for a long term project like this is. During this presentation we would like to present a brief overview of the work that is done last year to gain more attention for the sturgeon conservation in the Netherlands and Europe. But also we would like share our experiences off setting up a new reintroduction project for a highly protected species in Europe

1-Aminocyclopropane-1-Carboxylic Acid Oxidase (ACO): The Enzyme That Makes the Plant Hormone Ethylene

The volatile plant hormone ethylene regulates many plant developmental processes and stress responses. It is therefore crucial that plants can precisely control their ethylene production levels in space and time. The ethylene biosynthesis pathway consists of two dedicated steps. In a first reaction, S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) is converted into 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) by ACC-synthase (ACS). In a second reaction, ACC is converted into ethylene by ACC-oxidase (ACO). Initially, it was postulated that ACS is the rate-limiting enzyme of this pathway, directing many studies to unravel the regulation of ACS protein activity, and stability. However, an increasing amount of evidence has been gathered over the years, which shows that ACO is the rate-limiting step in ethylene production during certain dedicated processes. This implies that also the ACO protein family is subjected to a stringent regulation. In this review, we give an overview about the state-of-the-art regarding ACO evolution, functionality and regulation, with an emphasis on the transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and post-translational control. We also highlight the importance of ACO being a prime target for genetic engineering and precision breeding, in order to control plant ethylene production levels

Outmigration Pathways of Stocked Juvenile European Sturgeon (Acipenser Sturio L., 1758) in the Lower Rhine River, as Revealed by Telemetry

International audienceWorking towards a future Rhine Sturgeon Action Plan the outmigration pathways of stocked juvenile European sturgeon (Acipenser sturio L., 1758) were studied in the River Rhine in 2012 and 2015 using the NEDAP Trail system. A total of 87 sturgeonof 3 to 5 years old (n = 43 in 2012, n = 44 in 2015) were implanted with transponders and released in May and June in the river Rhine at the Dutch‐German border, approximately 160 km from the sea. In total three sturgeons (3%) were found dead on river banks within seven days after the release. Based upon their wounds these sturgeons were likely hit by ship‐propellers. Tracking results were obtained from 57 (66%) of the sturgeons, of which 39 (45%) indicated movement into the Port of Rotterdam. Here the sturgeons remained for an average of two weeks, which suggests they spent time to acclimatize to higher salinities before entering the North Sea. Of the 45 (52%) sturgeons that were confirmed to have entered the North Sea, ten (22%) were recaptured (mainly by shrimpers and gill‐nets) close to the Dutch coastline; nine were alive and were released. From the results we obtained the preferred outmigration pathways, movement speeds and an indication of impacting factors (i.e. ship propellers and bycatch). Bycatches provided also localisations information in the coastal area. A next step to complete this work would be to assess habitat selection in freshwater and downstream migration of young of the year (YOY sturgeons) in the Lower Rhine

The impact of late treatment-toxicity on generic health-related quality of life in head and neck cancer patients after radiotherapy

SummaryTo examine the impact of late treatment-related xerostomia and dysphagia on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients after radiotherapy. A multi-center cross-sectional survey was performed. Patients with a follow-up of at least 6months after curative radiotherapy, without evidence of recurrent disease were eligible for inclusion. The Euroqol-5D questionnaire (EQ-5D) was filled out and toxicity was scored and converted to the RTOG scale. The EQ-5D measures generic HRQOL in terms of utility and visual analogue scale (VAS) scores. Missing data on the EQ-5D were imputed using multiple imputation. HRQOL was compared between subgroups of patients with and without toxicity. Subsequently, the impact of xerostomia and dysphagia on HRQOL was analyzed using multivariate regression analyses. Both analyses were performed separately for utility scores and VAS scores. The study population was composed of 396 HNC patients. The average utility and VAS scores were 0.85 (scale 0–1) and 75 (scale 0–100). Subgroups of patients with xerostomia and/or dysphagia showed statistically significantly lower utility and VAS scores (P=0.000–0.022). The multivariate regression model showed that xerostomia and dysphagia were negative predictors of both utility and VAS scores. Other factors which influenced HRQOL in at least one of the two regression models were: sex, tumor location and the addition of surgery to radiotherapy. Xerostomia and dysphagia diminish generic HRQOL. Moreover dysphagia affects patients’ HRQOL stronger than xerostomia

Implicit measures of “wanting” and “liking” in humans

Incentive Sensitization Theory (IST; e.g., Robinson and Berridge, 1993. Brain Res. Rev., 18, 291; Robinson and Berridge, 2003 Trends Neurosci., 26, 507) suggests that a common dopamine system that deals with incentive salience attribution is affected by different types of drugs. Repeated drug use will sensitize this neural system, which means that drugs increasingly trigger the experience of incentive salience or "wanting". Importantly, Robinson and Berridge stress that there is a dissociation between drug "wanting" (the unconscious attribution of incentive salience) and drug "liking" (the unconscious hedonic experience when one consumes drugs). Whereas the former plays an essential role in the development and maintenance of drug addiction, the latter does not. Although this model was based mainly on research with non-human animals, more recently the dissociation between "wanting" and "liking" has been examined in humans as well. A widely used and promising means of studying these processes are behavioral implicit measures such as the Implicit Association Test (IAT), the Approach-Avoidance Task (AAT), different types of Stimulus-Response Compatibility (SRC) tasks, and Affective Simon Tasks (AST).IST makes the clear prediction that (1) there should be a positive correlation between indices of "wanting" (e.g., drug consumption) and implicit "wanting" scores. Similarly, there should be a positive correlation between indices of "liking" (e.g., various expressions of subjective pleasure) and implicit "liking" scores; (2) there should be higher "wanting" scores in substance abusers or frequent substance users compared to non-users or infrequent users, and there should be no differences in "liking" between these groups (or even less "liking" in frequent substance users); (3) manipulations of "wanting" should affect implicit "wanting" scores whereas manipulations of "liking" should affect implicit "liking" scores. However, studies that tested these hypotheses did not produce equivocal results. To shed light on these discrepancies, we first discuss the different definitions of "wanting" and "liking" and the different tests that have been used to assess these processes. Then, we discuss whether it is reasonable to assume that these tests are valid measures of "wanting" and "liking" and we review correlational, quasi-experimental, and experimental studies that inform us about this issue. Finally, we discuss the future potential of implicit measures in research on IST and make several recommendations to improve both theory and methodology

Europeanen versus Amerikanen

ARK Natuurontwikkeling, het Wereld Natuurfonds en Sportvisserij Nederland werken samen aan het herstel van de steur in de Rijn. De aanpak volgt de richtlijnen van de IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature and natural resources) en kent een internationale samenwerking met Franse en Duitse overheden en onderzoeksinstituten. Bij de kweek van deze oerdieren in Duitsland staan twee nauw verwante steursoorten in de schijnwerpers. In Frankrijk ‘slechts’ een

1-Aminocyclopropane-1-Carboxylic Acid Oxidase (ACO): The Enzyme That Makes the Plant Hormone Ethylene

The volatile plant hormone ethylene regulates many plant developmental processes and stress responses. It is therefore crucial that plants can precisely control their ethylene production levels in space and time. The ethylene biosynthesis pathway consists of two dedicated steps. In a first reaction, S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) is converted into 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) by ACC-synthase (ACS). In a second reaction, ACC is converted into ethylene by ACC-oxidase (ACO). Initially, it was postulated that ACS is the rate-limiting enzyme of this pathway, directing many studies to unravel the regulation of ACS protein activity, and stability. However, an increasing amount of evidence has been gathered over the years, which shows that ACO is the rate-limiting step in ethylene production during certain dedicated processes. This implies that also the ACO protein family is subjected to a stringent regulation. In this review, we give an overview about the state-of-the-art regarding ACO evolution, functionality and regulation, with an emphasis on the transcriptional, post-transcriptional, and post-translational control. We also highlight the importance of ACO being a prime target for genetic engineering and precision breeding, in order to control plant ethylene production levels.status: Published onlin

Session D6: Restoration of the Haringvliet

Abstract: The Haringvliet estuary, just south of Rotterdam, used to connect the North Sea to the Rhine and Meuse rivers, until it was closed for water safety reasons by the Haringvliet dam in 1970. With the closure, the dynamic tidal ecosystem turned into a stagnant freshwater lake. Fish such as salmon and eel could no longer move between river and sea and largely disappeared from the rivers. In 2011 the Dutch government approved a plan to open partly the sluices in the Haringvliet dam to allow salt water to enter a part of the estuary and open up a route for migratory fish to reach their spawning grounds upstream. When this happens in 2018, matters will improve for fish migration. However, much more effort is needed to restore the natural estuarine dynamics and bring back life, ecological and economical, to the delta. January 2015, WWF-Netherlands, Natuurmonumenten, Sportvisserij Nederland, ARK Natuurontwikkeling, Staatbosbeheer and Vogelbescherming Nederland were awarded a 13.5 million Euro grant by the Dutch Post Code Lottery to realise an ambitious restoration of the tidal landscape of the Haringvliet. The programme will aim for restoring the tidal landscape of channels, shoals and sandbanks to host salmon and trout, as well as dolphins, porpoises and water birds. Special attention is given to the European sturgeon, which disappeared from the rivers as a result of pollution and overfishing. A rearing station and reintroduction programme will bring back this majestic fish. There will be special attention to reducing the threats of professional fisheries in the Haringvliet estuary and around the dam in specific. Options are to change to different fishing methodologies and to develop fish free zones around the dam. The Haringvliet delta is not only in need of an ecological boost, but also an economic one. Public access to restored nature is part of the wider plan. This approach will provide lots of opportunity for sustainable economic development in the region