Genetic variation in resistance and high fecundity impede viral biocontrol of invasive fish

Common carp Cyprinus carpio is one of the top global invasive vertebrates and can cause significant ecological damage. The Australian Government's National Carp Control Program (NCCP) proposes to release Koi herpesvirus (KHV) to eradicate feral carp in one of the largest ecological interventions ever attempted. Ecological and human health risks have been highlighted regarding the release of a highly pathogenic viral biocontrol for an aquatic species. The efficacy of KHV has also been questioned, and it has not been demonstrated to produce lasting population reductions. We developed an individual-based model (IBM) to examine the ecological and evolutionary response of a carp population after KHV release. This simulated the interaction between fish life history, viral epidemiology, host genetic resistance and population demography to critically evaluate the impact of KHV release under optimal conditions and a ‘best-case scenario’ for disease transmission. KHV will rarely result in prolonged reductions or population extinctions. Crucially, realistic scenarios result in a rapidly rebounding population of resistant individuals. Additional measures aimed to reduce carp population recovery rate (e.g. with genetic engineering) require rapid efficacy to significantly reduce carp numbers alongside KHV. Fish fecundity has an overwhelming influence on viral efficacy as a biocontrol agent when combined with genetic resistance within a population. A high probability of population extinction is only met when carp fecundity is reduced to 1% of biological observations. Synthesis and applications. We use an individual-based model to evaluate the efficacy of Koi herpesvirus biocontrol in Common Carp, and find that high host fecundity combined with genetic resistance results in rapid population rebound after initial large fish kills. Biocontrol approaches relying on natural selection lose efficacy over successive generations as resistance genes increase in frequency. Given the intense logistical effort and risks to ecosystems and human health associated with large fish kills after viral release, we suggest that sustained manual removal, alongside ecological restoration to favour recovery of native species, provides a risk-free approach to reducing populations

Parasite diversity and ecology in a model species, the guppy (Poecilia reticulata) in Trinidad

The guppy (Poecilia reticulata) is a model species in ecology and evolution. Many studies have examined effects of predators on guppy behaviour, reproduction, survival strategies, feeding and other life-history traits, but few have studied variation in their parasite diversity. We surveyed parasites of 18 Trinidadian populations of guppy, to provide insight on the geographical mosaic of parasite variability, which may act as a source of natural selection acting on guppies. We found 21 parasite species, including five new records for Trinidad. Spatial variation in parasite diversity was significantly higher than that of piscine predators, and significant variation in parasite richness among individuals and populations was correlated with: (i) host size, (ii) snail species richness, and (iii) the distance between populations. Differences in parasite species richness are likely to play an important, yet underestimated role in the biology of this model species of vertebrate ecology and evolution

Prospectus Surveys of Economic Studies

sGSL Winter Skate Gene Ontogeny Terms for Down-regulated genes <-1 Fold Change in RPK

Genetic assimilation of ancestral plasticity during parallel adaptation to Zinc contamination in Silene uniflora

Phenotypic plasticity in ancestral populations is hypothesized to facilitate adaptation, but evidence is piecemeal and often contradictory. Further, whether ancestral plasticity increases the probability of parallel adaptive changes has not been explored. The most general finding is that ancestral responses to a new environment are reversed following adaptation (known as reversion). We investigated the contribution of ancestral plasticity to adaptive evolution of gene expression in two independently evolved lineages of zinc-tolerant Silene uniflora. We found that the general pattern of reversion is driven by the absence of a widespread stress response in zinc-adapted plants compared with zinc-sensitive plants. We show that ancestral plasticity that moves expression closer to the optimum value in the new environment influences the evolution of gene expression among genes that are likely to be involved in adaptation and increases the chance that genes are recruited repeatedly during adaptation. However, despite convergence in gene expression levels between independently adapted lineages, ancestral plasticity does not influence how similar expression values of adaptive genes become. Surprisingly, we also observed that ancestral plasticity that increases fitness often becomes genetically determined and fixed, that is, genetically assimilated. These results emphasize the important role of ancestral plasticity in parallel adaptation

Evaluation of genetic isolation within an island flora reveals unusually widespread local adaptation and supports sympatric speciation

It is now recognized that speciation can proceed even when divergent natural selection is opposed by gene flow. Understanding the extent to which environmental gradients and geographical distance can limit gene flow within species can shed light on the relative roles of selection and dispersal limitation during the early stages of population divergence and speciation. On the remote Lord Howe Island (Australia), ecological speciation with gene flow is thought to have taken place in several plant genera. The aim of this study was to establish the contributions of isolation by environment (IBE) and isolation by community (IBC) to the genetic structure of 19 plant species, from a number of distantly related families, which have been subjected to similar environmental pressures over comparable time scales. We applied an individual-based, multivariate, model averaging approach to quantify IBE and IBC, while controlling for isolation by distance (IBD). Our analyses demonstrated that all species experienced some degree of ecologically driven isolation, whereas only 12 of 19 species were subjected to IBD. The prevalence of IBE within these plant species indicates that divergent selection in plants frequently produces local adaptation and supports hypotheses that ecological divergence can drive speciation in sympatry

Biocontrol of common carp in Australia poses risks to biosecurity

The Australian government is considering employing the koi herpesvirus (KHV) for biocontrol of invasive common carp (Cyprinus carpio) in the Murray–Darling river system of southeast Australia in 20181,2. KHV is on the World Organisation of Animal Health (OIE) list of notifiable diseases3, yet the biocontrol programme has been framed as a safe and manageable proposition1,2. Previous reports highlight that viruses have been successfully employed in the biocontrol of terrestrial vertebrates1, including cats on Marion Island, and feral rabbits in Australia and New Zealand. However, compared with the biocontrol of terrestrial vertebrates, the biocontrol of large, highly fecund aquatic animals such as carp adds novel risks

Annotated mitochondrial genome assemblies for two sand lances (genus: Ammodytes) from the northwest Atlantic

Complete mitochondrial genomes of two northwest Atlantic sand lances (Ammodytes americanus and Ammodytes dubius) were sequenced, assembled, and annotated. Both genomes were 16 519 bp in length and were differentiated by a genetic distance of only 0.01. Furthermore, mitochondrial gene annotations were identical for both species. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that divergence between the two species was shallow, relative to other members of the genus

Scotial Shelf Winter Skate transcriptome Consensus Annotation

Scotial Shelf Winter Skate transcriptome Consensus Annotation in a genebank-like forma

Long Distance Linkage Disequilibrium and Limited Hybridization Suggest Cryptic Speciation in Atlantic Cod

Hybrid zones provide unprecedented opportunity for the study of the evolution of reproductive isolation, and the extent of hybridization across individuals and genomes can illuminate the degree of isolation. We examine patterns of interchromosomal linkage disequilibrium (ILD) and the presence of hybridization in Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua, in previously identified hybrid zones in the North Atlantic. Here, previously identified clinal loci were mapped to the cod genome with most (,70%) occurring in or associated with (,5 kb) coding regions representing a diverse array of possible functions and pathways. Despite the observation that clinal loci were distributed across three linkage groups, elevated ILD was observed among all groups of clinal loci and strongest in comparisons involving a region of low recombination along linkage group 7. Evidence of ILD supports a hypothesis of divergence hitchhiking transitioning to genome hitchhiking consistent with reproductive isolation. This hypothesis is supported by Bayesian characterization of hybrid classes present and we find evidence of common F1 hybrids in several regions consistent with frequent interbreeding, yet little evidence of F2 or backcrossed individuals. This work suggests that significant barriers to hybridization and introgression exist among these co-occurring groups of cod either through strong selection against hybrid individuals, or genetic incompatibility and intrinsic barriers to hybridization. In either case, the presence of strong clinal trends, and little gene flow despite extensive hybridization supports a hypothesis of reproductive isolation and cryptic speciation in Atlantic cod. Further work is required to test the degree and nature of reproductive isolation in this species

Damages caused to European monuments by air pollution: assessment and preventive measures

One of the main problems affecting urban monuments is the production of SO2, and particulate matter, which are involved in the decay and blackening of buildings. Although SO2 levels have decreased in recent decades, those of particulate matter are still considerable, and continue to be an aggression against monuments in urban areas.This study was prepared for the Scientific and Technological Options Assessment Office (STOA), European Parliament, project Nº EP/IV/B/STOA/95/MONUMENTS/02.Peer reviewe