Strategic Habitat Conservation for Declining Grassland Wildlife Populations in the Oaks and Prairies Joint Venture

Degradation and conversion of functioning grassland ecosystems in North America has driven significant declines in grassland wildlife populations across multiple taxa. In an effort to address declines in the grasslands of Oklahoma and Texas, a number of governmental agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations have partnered to form the Oaks and Prairies Joint Venture (OPJV) to more strategically and collaboratively deliver conservation actions in this region. With northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) as the flagship species, OPJV has worked to implement a fully integrated Strategic Habitat Conservation framework that works at multiple scales to conduct biological planning, landscape conservation design, habitat tracking and population monitoring in support of conservation efforts aimed at restoring not just northern bobwhite, but a variety of bird and pollinator species that depend on healthy grasslands. The signature conservation delivery program of this effort was the Grassland Restoration Incentive Program (GRIP) which has improved habitat for grassland wildlife on over 24,300 hectares of working lands in focus areas throughout the OPJV geography since it was created in 2013. The Grassland Restoration Incentive Program was accompanied by a full complement of conservation delivery programs that support prescribed burning associations and other landowner cooperatives, utilize market-based conservation delivery strategies, and implement strategic outreach and communications. The conservation efforts were supported by over 4,500 point counts annually in National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative Coordination Implementation Program focal areas as well as 7 focal regions, each comprising clusters of 2-8 counties. Combining the efforts of multiple partners ties the range-wide population and habitat objectives with on-the-ground conservation actions for quail, other grassland birds, butterflies, and grassland pollinators

Genome-wide Analyses Identify KIF5A as a Novel ALS Gene

To identify novel genes associated with ALS, we undertook two lines of investigation. We carried out a genome-wide association study comparing 20,806 ALS cases and 59,804 controls. Independently, we performed a rare variant burden analysis comparing 1,138 index familial ALS cases and 19,494 controls. Through both approaches, we identified kinesin family member 5A (KIF5A) as a novel gene associated with ALS. Interestingly, mutations predominantly in the N-terminal motor domain of KIF5A are causative for two neurodegenerative diseases: hereditary spastic paraplegia (SPG10) and Charcot-Marie-Tooth type 2 (CMT2). In contrast, ALS-associated mutations are primarily located at the C-terminal cargo-binding tail domain and patients harboring loss-of-function mutations displayed an extended survival relative to typical ALS cases. Taken together, these results broaden the phenotype spectrum resulting from mutations in KIF5A and strengthen the role of cytoskeletal defects in the pathogenesis of ALS.Peer reviewe

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Lymphedema following gynecological cancer: results from a prospective, longitudinal cohort study on prevalence, incidence and risk factors

Cancer-related lymphedema is a debilitating condition that adversely influences function, health and quality of life. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence, incidence, and risk factors of lower-limb lymphedema pre- through to 24months post-surgery for gynecological cancer

Mapping Habitats and Developing Baselines in Offshore Marine Reserves with Little Prior Knowledge: A Critical Evaluation of a New Approach

<div><p>The recently declared Australian Commonwealth Marine Reserve (CMR) Network covers a total of 3.1 million km² of continental shelf, slope, and abyssal habitat. Managing and conserving the biodiversity values within this network requires knowledge of the physical and biological assets that lie within its boundaries. Unfortunately very little is known about the habitats and biological assemblages of the continental shelf within the network, where diversity is richest and anthropogenic pressures are greatest. Effective management of the CMR estate into the future requires this knowledge gap to be filled efficiently and quantitatively. The challenge is particularly great for the shelf as multibeam echosounder (MBES) mapping, a key tool for identifying and quantifying habitat distribution, is time consuming in shallow depths, so full coverage mapping of the CMR shelf assets is unrealistic in the medium-term. Here we report on the results of a study undertaken in the Flinders Commonwealth Marine Reserve (southeast Australia) designed to test the benefits of two approaches to characterising shelf habitats: (i) MBES mapping of a continuous (~30 km²) area selected on the basis of its potential to include a range of seabed habitats that are potentially representative of the wider area, versus; (ii) a novel approach that uses targeted mapping of a greater number of smaller, but spatially balanced, locations using a Generalized Random Tessellation Stratified sample design. We present the first quantitative estimates of habitat type and sessile biological communities on the shelf of the Flinders reserve, the former based on three MBES analysis techniques. We contrast the quality of information that both survey approaches offer in combination with the three MBES analysis methods. The GRTS approach enables design based estimates of habitat types and sessile communities and also identifies potential biodiversity hotspots in the northwest corner of the reserve’s IUCN zone IV, and in locations close to shelf incising canyon heads. Design based estimates of habitats, however, vary substantially depending on the MBES analysis technique, highlighting the challenging nature of the reserve’s low profile reefs, and improvements that are needed when acquiring MBES data for small GRTS locations. We conclude that the two survey approaches are complementary and both have their place in a successful and flexible monitoring strategy; the emphasis on one method over the other should be considered on a case by case basis, taking into account the survey objectives and limitations imposed by the type of vessel, time available, size and location of the region where knowledge is required.</p></div

The estimated percentage of each substrate across the continuously mapped area.

<p>The estimated percentage of each substrate across the continuously mapped area.</p

MBES data over continuously mapped area.

<p>(A) Hillshade of the bathymetry, (B) probability of hardness derived from the ARC analysis, (C) classification of substrate using GEOBIA, (D) classification of substrate using hand digitization.</p

Summary of results of Phase I of the Flinders survey.

<p>A) The substratum classification of 40 GRTS sites based on examination of drop camera footage, B) an example of GRTS Site number 36 that has been analysed using GEOBIA, and C) the continuously mapped area classified using GEOBIA.</p

Strip chart of percentage cover of sessile biological communities (grouped to CATAMI level 4) from 10 images from each of the 11 GRTS cells, broken down by mixed and sand habitat.

<p>Strip chart of percentage cover of sessile biological communities (grouped to CATAMI level 4) from 10 images from each of the 11 GRTS cells, broken down by mixed and sand habitat.</p

The estimated percentage of each substrate across the shelf.

<p>The numbers in brackets are the lower and upper 95% confidence intervals based on GRTS survey estimates.</p