Comparison of mosquito and fly derived DNA as a tool for sampling vertebrate biodiversity in suburban forests in Berlin, Germany

The use of invertebrate‐derived DNA (iDNA) is a promising non‐invasive tool to monitor wildlife. While most studies have been carried out in dense tropical and sub‐tropical forests and have focused on the use of a single category of invertebrates, this study compares the use of flies and mosquitoes‐derived DNA to assess vertebrate diversity in semi‐urban environments. We conducted our sampling in four different forest plots in Berlin, Germany. Pools of flies and non‐bloodfed mosquitoes were metabarcoded using 108‐bp vertebrate‐specific 12 S rRNA (12 S‐V5) and 94‐bp mammal‐specific 16 S rRNA (16Smam) mitochondrial markers, and individual bloodfed mosquitoes were sequenced using the 340‐bp vertebrate‐specific 12 S rRNA fragment (Mam‐12 S‐340). Most sequencing was only successful for mammal species. From the fly pools, we detected 10 mammal species using 16Smam, and six species using 12 S‐V5. From the non‐bloodfed mosquito pools, we only amplified putative contaminant DNA, indicating that mosquito females without visual signs of a blood meal carry no traces of vertebrate DNA. Finally, in the bloodfed mosquitoes, we identified four mammal species. We did not find significant differences in the proportion of mammal species detected regarding the total available number of species between sampling localities. Fly samples were easier to obtain and more abundant over the sampled localities compared to mosquito samples. We conclude that, while there are a few advantages in using mosquito blood meals, the use of flies in the detection of wildlife in a suburban environment is more effective in terms of collection of samples and detection of vertebrates, although this technique is limited to few mammal species in the urban environment

Computational Kinetic Study for the Unimolecular Decomposition of Cyclopentanone

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Synthèse et caractérisation de polyphosphintes de métaux modifiés

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Synthesis, structural characterization and properties of aluminum (III) meso-tetraphenylporphyrin complexes axially bonded to phosphinate anions

International audienceAluminum (III) meso-tetraphenylporphyrins axially bonded to phosphinate anions have been synthesized and characterized by NMR and UV-visible spectroscopy, single crystal X-ray diffraction and FAB+ mass spectrometry. According to the solvent, these compounds are able to self-assemble in two different manners

Ligands axiaux de type phosphinate/phosphonate sur des porphyrines d'aluminium (III). Synthèse et organisation à l'état solide

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Self-assembly properties of metalloporphyrins axially bonded to phosphinate anions

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GENOME FLEXIBILITY ACROSS DIFFERENT STRAINS OF THE HEXACHLOROCYCLANE-DEGRADING BACTERIUM SPHINGOBIUM FRANCENSE SP+ IDENTIFIED BY A GLOBAL APPROACH OF GENOME SEQUENCING AND MICROARRAY COMPARATIVE GENOMIC HYBRIDIZATION

International audiencePhenotypic and genomic dynamics enable bacteria to adapt quickly to various ecological niches and environmental fluctuations such as the presence of xenobiotic compounds. We explored the different adaptive mechanisms in the bacterium Sphingobium francense, which is able to degrade lindane, a chlorinated xenobiotic compound historically used in agricultural and medicine. Previous studies demonstrated the association of mobile genetic elements with lin genes implicated in lindane catabolic pathways. We also observed that the wildtype, sp+, a lindane degrading strain, produces mutants (at a rate of 4 percent per replating) unable to degrade lindane. In order to study the role of mobile genetic elements in the adaptability of this bacterium, we developed an original strategy based on the pyrosequencing data obtained for the genome of Sphingobium francense sp+ and microarray comparative genomic hybridizations. This approach uses a two-color process to estimate the different types of genomic rearrangements that occurred in a mutant genome in comparison to the reference strain sp+ genome. For this study, five non-lindane degrading mutants and one revertant, which recovered the capacity to degrade lindane, were characterized. Analyzes of each microarray showed that the nonlindane degrading mutants underwent large genomic rearrangements and the selected mutants were genetically different. Moreover, we established the proximity between some environmental genes and mobile genetic elements. Some of these regions were deleted in the mutants reinforcing the observation that mobile genetic elements play an important role in bacterial adaptation to environmental perturbation. Thus, all the data obtained confirms the extraordinary plasticity of the Sphingobium genome linked to the presence of multiple mobile genetic elements, which are involved in the instability of lindane degradation capability and other environmental functional genes

New insights into oxygenated biofuels oxidation: Experimental and kinetic modeling studies

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