Splitting or Lumping? A Conservation Dilemma Exemplified by the Critically Endangered Dama Gazelle (Nanger dama)

Managers of threatened species often face the dilemma of whether to keep populations separate to conserve local adaptations and minimize the risk of outbreeding, or whether to manage populations jointly to reduce loss of genetic diversity and minimise inbreeding. In this study we examine genetic relatedness and diversity in three of the five last remaining wild populations of dama gazelle and a number of captive populations, using mtDNA control region and cytochrome b data. Despite the sampled populations belonging to the three putative subspecies, which are delineated according to phenotypes and geographical location, we find limited evidence for phylogeographical structure within the data and no genetic support for the putative subspecies. In the light of these data we discuss the relevance of inbreeding depression, outbreeding depression, adaptive variation, genetic drift, and phenotypic variation to the conservation of the dama gazelle and make some recommendations for its future conservation management. The genetic data suggest that the best conservation approach is to view the dama gazelle as a single species without subspecific divisions

Mythbusters: unravelling the pollutant uptake processes in mosses for air quality biomonitoring

Terrestrial mosses have been used for more than 50 years to monitor air pollution. We argue, however, that their value as biomonitors is based on two widespread but partially erroneous assumptions concerning their morphological structure (the structural myth) and physicochemical characteristics (the physicochemical myth). The structural myth consists of the oversimplification of the moss morphological structure. The physicochemical myth recognizes their high cation exchange capacity (CEC) as the only pathway for pollutant uptake. Here, we gather and discuss the evidence demonstrating that these assumptions are misleading and focus the discussion on the aspects that make mosses good biomonitors of air pollution. First, we show that these plants (i) do have a cuticle, whose structure and composition differs among species, (ii) can have epidermal cells, that differ in shape and thickness from other cell types, (iii) have a vascular system, whose degree of development is lineage- and species-specific, and (iv) have rhizoids, that can absorb water, nutrients and pollutants. The effect of these traits in the pollutant uptake processes has been understudied in biomonitoring studies. Second, we show that mosses (i) do not concentrate as much pollutants as they could according to their high CEC, (ii) can retain large amounts of particles containing atmospheric pollutants in their surfaces, and (iii) in many contexts, the spatial structure of the concentrations of pollutants in mosses depicts the pattern expected for atmospherically deposited particles. Thus, the quality of these organisms as biomonitors of air pollution also lies in their high capacity to retain particles. We do call for more research on how moss structural and physiological traits affect pollutant uptake dynamics and recommend researchers using mosses as air quality biomonitors to face critically to inaccurate or insufficiently demonstrated assumptions in this contextThe research of J. M-A and E. N-O has been supported by the grant PGC2018-093824-B-C42 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by “ERDF A way of making Europe”S

Splitting or lumping? A conservation dilemma exemplified by the critically endangered Dama Gazelle (Nanger dama)

Managers of threatened species often face the dilemma of whether to keep populations separate to conserve local adaptations and minimize the risk of outbreeding, or whether to manage populations jointly to reduce loss of genetic diversity and minimise inbreeding. In this study we examine genetic relatedness and diversity in three of the five last remaining wild populations of dama gazelle and a number of captive populations, using mtDNA control region and cytochrome b data. Despite the sampled populations belonging to the three putative subspecies, which are delineated according to phenotypes and geographical location, we find limited evidence for phylogeographical structure within the data and no genetic support for the putative subspecies. In the light of these data we discuss the relevance of inbreeding depression, outbreeding depression, adaptive variation, genetic drift, and phenotypic variation to the conservation of the dama gazelle and make some recommendations for its future conservation management. The genetic data suggest that the best conservation approach is to view the dama gazelle as a single species without subspecific divisions

Spanish guidelines for the use of targeted deep sequencing in myelodysplastic syndromes and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia

The landscape of medical sequencing has rapidly changed with the evolution of next generation sequencing (NGS). These technologies have contributed to the molecular characterization of the myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML), through the identification of recurrent gene mutations, which are present in >80% of patients. These mutations contribute to a better classification and risk stratification of the patients. Currently, clinical laboratories include NGS genomic analyses in their routine clinical practice, in an effort to personalize the diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of MDS and CMML. NGS technologies have reduced the cost of large-scale sequencing, but there are additional challenges involving the clinical validation of these technologies, as continuous advances are constantly being made. In this context, it is of major importance to standardize the generation, analysis, clinical interpretation and reporting of NGS data. To that end, the Spanish MDS Group (GESMD) has expanded the present set of guidelines, aiming to establish common quality standards for the adequate implementation of NGS and clinical interpretation of the results, hoping that this effort will ultimately contribute to the benefit of patients with myeloid malignancies

Influencia de la latitud y el grado de maduración en el perfil fenólico de hollejos de "vitis vinifera" cv. Pinot noir

Berries of Vitis vinifera cv. Pinot Noir were sampled in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) and Logrono (La Rioja), and in three maturity levels. In addition, environmental data related to global and ultraviolet (UV) radiation, temperature and water availability, were collected. In berry skins, the total content of several phenolic groups, the content of 29 individual phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity were measured. The content of phenolic compounds varied greatly with latitude and its associated environmental factors. Skins in Jerez had higher antioxidant capacity and contents of most of the phenolic groups measured. The radiation doses (both global and UV) received in the 10 days prior to harvest seemed to be the main determinant of these changes. The effect of the maturity level was much lower than that of the latitude, and mainly affected flavonols, which increased with increasing maturity level, in contrast to the flavanols. These results indicate that certain viticultural practices leading to increase sun exposure of berries right before harvest would be useful to promote the synthesis of specific phenolic compounds.Se muestrearon bayas de Vitis vinifera cv. Pinot Noir en Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) y Logroño (La Rioja), y en tres niveles de maduración diferentes. Además se recogieron datos ambientales relacionados con la radiación global y ultravioleta (UV), la temperatura y la disponibilidad de agua. En los hollejos se midió tanto el contenido total de varios grupos fenólicos, como el de 29 compuestos individuales y la capacidad antioxidante. El perfil fenólico vario en gran medida con la latitud y sus factores ambientales asociados. Los hollejos de Jerez tenían mayor capacidad antioxidante, y más cantidad global de la mayoría de los grupos fenólicos estudiados, pudiendo ser la dosis de radiación (tanto global como UV) de los diez días antes de la vendimia el factor más determinante de estos cambios. El efecto del grado de maduración fue mucho menor que el de la latitud, y afecto fundamentalmente a los flavonoles, que aumentaban en las bayas más maduras, al contrario que los flavanoles. Estos resultados indican que ciertas prácticas de manejo aumentando la exposición de las bayas a la radiación justo antes de la vendimia, podrían promover la síntesis de determinados compuestos fenólico

Influencia de la latitud y el grado de maduración en el perfil fenólico de hollejos de "vitis vinifera" cv. Pinot noir

Berries of Vitis vinifera cv. Pinot Noir were sampled in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) and Logrono (La Rioja), and in three maturity levels. In addition, environmental data related to global and ultraviolet (UV) radiation, temperature and water availability, were collected. In berry skins, the total content of several phenolic groups, the content of 29 individual phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity were measured. The content of phenolic compounds varied greatly with latitude and its associated environmental factors. Skins in Jerez had higher antioxidant capacity and contents of most of the phenolic groups measured. The radiation doses (both global and UV) received in the 10 days prior to harvest seemed to be the main determinant of these changes. The effect of the maturity level was much lower than that of the latitude, and mainly affected flavonols, which increased with increasing maturity level, in contrast to the flavanols. These results indicate that certain viticultural practices leading to increase sun exposure of berries right before harvest would be useful to promote the synthesis of specific phenolic compounds.Se muestrearon bayas de Vitis vinifera cv. Pinot Noir en Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) y Logroño (La Rioja), y en tres niveles de maduración diferentes. Además se recogieron datos ambientales relacionados con la radiación global y ultravioleta (UV), la temperatura y la disponibilidad de agua. En los hollejos se midió tanto el contenido total de varios grupos fenólicos, como el de 29 compuestos individuales y la capacidad antioxidante. El perfil fenólico vario en gran medida con la latitud y sus factores ambientales asociados. Los hollejos de Jerez tenían mayor capacidad antioxidante, y más cantidad global de la mayoría de los grupos fenólicos estudiados, pudiendo ser la dosis de radiación (tanto global como UV) de los diez días antes de la vendimia el factor más determinante de estos cambios. El efecto del grado de maduración fue mucho menor que el de la latitud, y afecto fundamentalmente a los flavonoles, que aumentaban en las bayas más maduras, al contrario que los flavanoles. Estos resultados indican que ciertas prácticas de manejo aumentando la exposición de las bayas a la radiación justo antes de la vendimia, podrían promover la síntesis de determinados compuestos fenólico

Mutations in the DNA methylation pathway and number of driver mutations predict response to azacitidine in myelodysplastic syndromes

We evaluated the association of mutations in 34 candidate genes and response to azacitidine in 84 patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), with 217 somatic mutations identified by next-generation sequencing. Most patients (93%) had ≥1 mutation (mean=2.6/patient). The overall response rate to azacitidine was 42%. No clinical characteristic was associated with response to azacitidine. However, total number of mutations/patient was negatively associated with overall drug response (odds ratio [OR]: 0.56, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.33–0.94; p=0.028), and a positive association was found for having ≥1 mutation in a DNA methylation-related gene: TET2, DNMT3A, IDH1 and/or IDH2 (OR: 4.76, 95%CI: 1.31–17.27; p=0.017). Mutations in TP53 (hazard ratio [HR]: 3.88; 95%CI: 1.94–7.75) and EZH2 (HR: 2.50; 95%CI: 1.23–5.09) were associated with shorter overall survival. Meta-analysis of 6 studies plus present data (n=815 patients) allowed assessment of the association of drug response with mutations in 9 candidate genes: ASXL1, CBL, EZH2, SF3B1, SRSF2, TET2, DNMT3A, IDH1/2 and TP53. TET2 mutations predicted a more favorable drug response compared with ‘wild-type’ peers (pooled OR: 1.67, 95%CI: 1.14–2.44; p=0.01). In conclusion, mutations in the DNA methylation pathway, especially TET2 mutations, and low number of total mutations are associated with a better response to azacitidine.Sin financiaciónNo data JCR 20171.942 SJR (2017) Q1, 58/378 OncologyNo data IDR 2017UE

Bar chart of control region haplotypes (A–O & R) found at different sampling sites in this study.

<p>Sites are enumerated by collecting locality (see <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0098693#pone-0098693-t001" target="_blank">Table 1</a>) and putative subspecies; R (<i>N. d. ruficollis)</i>, D (<i>N. d.</i> dama), M (<i>N. d. mhorr</i>). Wild and captive populations are separated by a red line. Particularly striking, but not unexpected, is the higher haplotype diversity in the samples from wild populations (OROA_R, MANGA_R,TERMIT_D) than in samples from captive and captive-derived <i>mhorr</i> populations (Ain_M, EEP_M, SEN_M, SAF_M) and captive <i>ruficollis</i> populations (Ain_R, Mar_R). No haplotypes are shared between wild populations, or between wild and captive populations.</p