East African cichlid fishes

Cichlid fishes are a very diverse and species-rich family of teleost fishes that inhabit lakes and rivers of India, Africa, and South and Central America. Research has largely focused on East African cichlids of the Rift Lakes Tanganyika, Malawi, and Victoria that constitute the biodiversity hotspots of cichlid fishes. Here, we give an overview of the study system, research questions, and methodologies. Research on cichlid fishes spans many disciplines including ecology, evolution, physiology, genetics, development, and behavioral biology. In this review, we focus on a range of organismal traits, including coloration phenotypes, trophic adaptations, appendages like fins and scales, sensory systems, sex, brains, and behaviors. Moreover, we discuss studies on cichlid phylogenies, plasticity, and general evolutionary patterns, ranging from convergence to speciation rates and the proximate and ultimate mechanisms underlying these processes. From a methodological viewpoint, the last decade has brought great advances in cichlid fish research, particularly through the advent of affordable deep sequencing and advances in genetic manipulations. The ability to integrate across traits and research disciplines, ranging from developmental biology to ecology and evolution, makes cichlid fishes a fascinating research system.Peer reviewe

Rapid Experimental Evolution of Pesticide Resistance in C. elegans Entails No Costs and Affects the Mating System

Pesticide resistance is a major concern in natural populations and a model trait to study adaptation. Despite the importance of this trait, the dynamics of its evolution and of its ecological consequences remain largely unstudied. To fill this gap, we performed experimental evolution with replicated populations of Caenorhabditis elegans exposed to the pesticide Levamisole during 20 generations. Exposure to Levamisole resulted in decreased survival, fecundity and male frequency, which declined from 30% to zero. This was not due to differential susceptibility of males. Rather, the drug affected mobility, resulting in fewer encounters, probably leading to reduced outcrossing rates. Adaptation, i.e., increased survival and fecundity, occurred within 10 and 20 generations, respectively. Male frequency also increased by generation 20. Adaptation costs were undetected in the ancestral environment and in presence of Ivermectin, another widely-used pesticide with an opposite physiological effect. Our results demonstrate that pesticide resistance can evolve at an extremely rapid pace. Furthermore, we unravel the effects of behaviour on life-history traits and test the environmental dependence of adaptation costs. This study establishes experimental evolution as a powerful tool to tackle pesticide resistance, and paves the way to further investigations manipulating environmental and/or genetic factors underlying adaptation to pesticides

Mapping epigenetic divergence in the massive radiation of Lake Malawi cichlid fishes.

Epigenetic variation modulates gene expression and can be heritable. However, knowledge of the contribution of epigenetic divergence to adaptive diversification in nature remains limited. The massive evolutionary radiation of Lake Malawi cichlid fishes displaying extensive phenotypic diversity despite extremely low sequence divergence is an excellent system to study the epigenomic contribution to adaptation. Here, we present a comparative genome-wide methylome and transcriptome study, focussing on liver and muscle tissues in phenotypically divergent cichlid species. In both tissues we find substantial methylome divergence among species. Differentially methylated regions (DMR), enriched in evolutionary young transposons, are associated with transcription changes of ecologically-relevant genes related to energy expenditure and lipid metabolism, pointing to a link between dietary ecology and methylome divergence. Unexpectedly, half of all species-specific DMRs are shared across tissues and are enriched in developmental genes, likely reflecting distinct epigenetic developmental programmes. Our study reveals substantial methylome divergence in closely-related cichlid fishes and represents a resource to study the role of epigenetics in species diversification

Qualidade de vida do idoso na comunidade: aplicação da Escala de Flanagan

The aim of this study was to evaluate the satisfaction degree of the elderly people regarding their quality of life. Data were obtained by a questionnaire characterizing the sample with a scale of quality proposed by Flanagan, using the interview technique. Among 128 elderly people, authors verified a insufficient degree of satisfaction. The dimensions of the quality of life pointed out by the Flanagan's scale were: personal development and fulfillment; family relations; social participation; welfare and material support; learning and friendship. The authors concluded that the Flanagan's scale presents limitations as a result of the subjectivity of the concept of quality.Este estudio pretendió valorar la satisfacción de los ancianos en relación a su calidad de vida. Los datos fueron obtenidos por medio de un cuestionario que caracterizaba la muestra y la escala de calidad de vida de Flanagan, utilizando la técnica de entrevista. La muestra fue constituida por 128 ancianos. En los resultados, comprobamos que la satisfacción de estos ancianos fue regular. Las dimensiones de la calidad de vida apuntadas en escala de Flanagan fueron: desarrollo personal y realización, relaciones con familiares, participación social, bienestar físico y material, amistad y aprendizaje. Concluimos que esta escala presenta limitaciones en virtud del carácter subjetivo del concepto de calidad.Esse estudo objetivou avaliar a satisfação de idosos em relação à sua qualidade de vida. Os dados foram obtidos através de questionário que caracterizava a amostra e a Escala de Qualidade de Vida de Flanagan, utilizando-se a técnica de entrevista. A amostra foi constituída por 128 idosos. Nos resultados, verificamos que a satisfação desses idosos mostrou-se regular. As dimensões da qualidade de vida apontadas na escala de Flanagan foram: desenvolvimento pessoal e realização; relações com familiares; participação social; bem-estar físico e material; amizade e aprendizagem. Concluímos que essa Escala apresenta limitações em virtude do caráter subjetivo do conceito de qualidade

Comparative transcriptomics of anal fin pigmentation patterns in cichlid fishes

Abstract Background: Understanding the genetic basis of novel traits is a central topic in evolutionary biology. Two novel pigmentation phenotypes, egg-spots and blotches, emerged during the rapid diversification of East African cichlid fishes. Egg-spots are circular pigmentation markings on the anal fins of hundreds of derived haplochromine cichlids species, whereas blotches are patches of conspicuous anal fin pigmentation with ill-defined boundaries that occur in few species that belong to basal cichlid lineages. Both traits play an important role in the breeding behavior of this group of fishes. Knowledge about the origin, homology and underlying genetics of these pigmentation traits is sparse. Results: Here, we present a comparative transcriptomic and differential gene expression analysis of egg-spots and blotches. We first conducted an RNA sequencing experiment where we compared egg-spot tissue with the remaining portion of egg-spot-free fin tissue using six individuals of Astatotilapia burtoni. We identified 1229 differentially expressed genes between the two tissue types. We then showed that rates of evolution of these genes are higher than average estimated on whole transcriptome data. Using quantitative real-time PCR, we found that 29 out of a subset of 46 differentially expressed genes showed an analogous expression pattern in another haplochromine species' egg-spots, Cynotilapia pulpican, strongly suggesting that these genes are involved in the egg-spot phenotype. Among these are the previously identified egg-spot gene fhl2a, two known patterning genes (hoxC12a and bmp3) as well as other pigmentation related genes such as asip. Finally, we analyzed the expression patterns of the same gene subset in two species that feature blotches instead of egg-spots, one haplochromine species (Pseudocrenilabrus philander) and one ectodine species (Callochromis macrops), revealing that the expression patterns in blotches and egg-spots are rather distinct. Conclusions: We identified several candidate genes that will serve as an important and useful resource for future research on the emergence and diversification of cichlid fishes' egg-spots. Only a limited degree of conservation of gene expression patterns was detected between the egg-spots of the derived haplochromines and blotches from ancestral haplochromines, as well as between the two types of blotches, suggesting an independent origin of these traits. Keywords: Pigmentation, Diversity, Egg-spot, Blotches, East African cichlids, Gene expression Abbreviations: Bp, Base pairs; CDS, Coding sequences; CT, Threshold cycle; DE, Differentially expressed; dN/dS, Ratio of non-synonymous substitutions over synonymous substitutions; FDR, False discovery rate; GLM, Generalized linear model; GO, Gene ontology; qPCR, Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction; RNAseq, RNA sequencing; RSEM, RNA-Seq by Expectation-Maximization; UTR, Untranslated regio

Lateral line system diversification during the early stages of ecological speciation in cichlid fish

Background: The mechanosensory lateral line system is an important sensory modality in fishes, informing multiple behaviours related to survival including finding food and navigating in dark environments. Given its ecological importance, we may expect lateral line morphology to be under disruptive selection early in the ecological speciation process. Here we quantify the lateral line system morphology of two ecomorphs of the cichlid fish Astatotilapia calliptera in crater Lake Masoko that have diverged from common ancestry within the past 1,000 years. Results: Based on geometric morphometric analyses of CT scans, we show that the zooplanktivorous benthic ecomorph that dominates the deeper waters of the lake has large cranial lateral line canal pores, relative to those of the nearshore invertebrate-feeding littoral ecomorph found in the shallower waters. In contrast, fluorescence imaging revealed no evidence for divergence between ecomorphs in the number of either superficial or canal neuromasts. We illustrate the magnitude of the variation we observe in Lake Masoko A. calliptera in the context of the neighbouring Lake Malawi mega-radiation that comprises over 700 species. Conclusions: These results provide the first evidence of divergence in this often-overlooked sensory modality in the early stages of ecological speciation, suggesting that it may have a role in the broader adaptive radiation process

A dor da queimadura: terrível para quem sente, estressante para quem cuida

The goals of the study were to understand the cultural meaning that the nursing team and burn patients attribute to burn pain. Participant observations were carried out during one year at a Burn Unit. Semi-structured interviews with four nurses, five nursing auxiliaries and 12 patients were recorded. The burn pain is understood by nurses as physical and emotional pain. For professionals and patients, bath and dressing changes are stressful. For patients, burn pain is terrible and they can not explain it. However, they feel they should hold it up.Los objetivos de este estudio fueron identificar los significados culturales que el equipo de enfermería atribuye a las manifestaciones de dolor expresadas por los pacientes portadores de quemadura e identificar las percepciones de los mismos frente al dolor provocado por la quemadura y la atención de enfermería prestada en estas condiciones. Fueron realizadas observaciones participantes y entrevistados cuatro enfermeros, cinco auxiliares y 12 pacientes en una Unidad de Quemados. El dolor de la quemadura fue comprendido por los enfermeros como: física y emocional. Para todos los profesionales y pacientes el baño y la curación son procedimientos estresantes. Para los pacientes el dolor es terrible y no consiguen explicarlo, pero deben soportarlo.Os objetivos deste foram identificar os significados culturais atribuídos pela equipe de enfermagem às manifestações de dor apresentadas pelos pacientes portadores de queimaduras e identificar as percepções dos pacientes frente à dor provocada pela queimadura e à assistência de enfermagem prestada nestas situações. Foram realizadas observações participantes e entrevistados quatro enfermeiros, cinco auxiliares e 12 pacientes, em uma unidade de queimados. A dor da queimadura foi compreendida pelos enfermeiros como: física e emocional. Para todos os profissionais o banho e curativo são procedimentos estressantes. Para os pacientes a dor é terrível e não pode ser explicada, mas necessita ser suportada

O PROJETO “PEDAGOGIA NA QUARENTENA”: CONTEXTOS E CONTRASTES EDUCATIVOS EM MEIO À PANDEMIA

O presente artigo tem por objetivo trazer o relato da construção, execução e vivências do projeto de extensão Pedagogia na Quarentena, advindo da urgência do curso de Pedagogia da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro resistir mediante a um momento delicado, sensível e complexo que é a necessidade de isolamento social. Com a divulgação e organização de dois ciclos de atividades ao longo do ano de 2020, o projeto buscou trazer ao debate os desafios impostos à educação, aos professores e alunos com o fechamento de todas as instituições de ensino a partir da crise ocasionada pelo novo coronavírus. Sendo assim, pretendemos nessa reflexão apresentar especificamente as atividades desempenhadas ao longo do segundo ciclo, momento em que o evento passou a estar atrelado a extensão universitária, como Evento de Extensão. Na segunda parte trataremos da execução do evento on-line, seus marcos e desafios. Encerraremos o artigo trazendo relatos de experiências dos extensionistas e como essa vivência, mesmo distanciada, foi relevante na formação e reformulação de nossas práticas como futuros docentes