Spatial and Size Distribution of Red Drum Caught and Released in Tampa Bay, Florida, and Factors Associated with Post-Release Hooking Mortality

The recreational fishery for red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) in Florida is unusual in that most red drum targeted are immature and caught within estuarine waters. Current state regulations rely exclusively on bag and size limits, resulting in the release of a large proportion of captured individuals. This study employed hook-and-line sampling conducted monthly in Tampa Bay, Florida and catch-and-release mortality experiments to determine the spatial and size distribution of red drum and the mortality rate of released fish, respectively. Of the 1,405 red drum collected, more than 70% were smaller than the minimum legal size (457 mm standard length (SL)). Size structure of red drum varied spatially and reflected ontogenetic patterns of habitat use. Data collected during catch-and-release mortality experiments were analyzed to identify factors associated with mortality. A total of 251 red drum (203-618 mm SL) were caught and held for 48 h during 9 experiments, with an overall mortality rate of 5.6%. Higher water temperature and anatomical hook position were significantly correlated with mortality; lip-hooked fish had the lowest mortality rate, while throat-hooked fish had the highest. Although hook type was not correlated with mortality, it did influence whether a fish was deep-hooked. Fish caught by J-hooks were more likely to be deep-hooked than those caught by circle hooks. Catch-and-release fishing is an effective management tool for reducing take but may contribute to short-term mortality, especially in warm, subtropical estuaries

DMTs and Covid-19 severity in MS: a pooled analysis from Italy and France

We evaluated the effect of DMTs on Covid-19 severity in patients with MS, with a pooled-analysis of two large cohorts from Italy and France. The association of baseline characteristics and DMTs with Covid-19 severity was assessed by multivariate ordinal-logistic models and pooled by a fixed-effect meta-analysis. 1066 patients with MS from Italy and 721 from France were included. In the multivariate model, anti-CD20 therapies were significantly associated (OR = 2.05, 95%CI = 1.39–3.02, p < 0.001) with Covid-19 severity, whereas interferon indicated a decreased risk (OR = 0.42, 95%CI = 0.18–0.99, p = 0.047). This pooled-analysis confirms an increased risk of severe Covid-19 in patients on anti-CD20 therapies and supports the protective role of interferon

Association of Brain Age, Lesion Volume, and Functional Outcome in Patients With Stroke

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Functional outcomes after stroke are strongly related to focal injury measures. However, the role of global brain health is less clear. In this study, we examined the impact of brain age, a measure of neurobiological aging derived from whole-brain structural neuroimaging, on poststroke outcomes, with a focus on sensorimotor performance. We hypothesized that more lesion damage would result in older brain age, which would in turn be associated with poorer outcomes. Related, we expected that brain age would mediate the relationship between lesion damage and outcomes. Finally, we hypothesized that structural brain resilience, which we define in the context of stroke as younger brain age given matched lesion damage, would differentiate people with good vs poor outcomes. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional observational study using a multisite dataset of 3-dimensional brain structural MRIs and clinical measures from the ENIGMA Stroke Recovery. Brain age was calculated from 77 neuroanatomical features using a ridge regression model trained and validated on 4,314 healthy controls. We performed a 3-step mediation analysis with robust mixed-effects linear regression models to examine relationships between brain age, lesion damage, and stroke outcomes. We used propensity score matching and logistic regression to examine whether brain resilience predicts good vs poor outcomes in patients with matched lesion damage. RESULTS: We examined 963 patients across 38 cohorts. Greater lesion damage was associated with older brain age (β = 0.21; 95% CI 0.04-0.38, DISCUSSION: We provide evidence that younger brain age is associated with superior poststroke outcomes and modifies the impact of focal damage. The inclusion of imaging-based assessments of brain age and brain resilience may improve the prediction of poststroke outcomes compared with focal injury measures alone, opening new possibilities for potential therapeutic targets

Isotope-Based Methods for Evaluating Fish Trophic Geographies

Data on the movement and diets of fish during a variety of life stages are important inputs to fisheries stock assessments and marine ecosystem models. Stable isotopes may provide previously inaccessible information on movement and diet of a variety of managed and forage fish species. Here I used several novel means of interpretation for stable isotope data to infer diets and movements of several important fisheries species over both short (weeks to months) and long (lifetime) timescales. To calculate a constant partitioning offset (CPO) between the δ15N of muscle and of liver tissue, I conducted a literature search of captive, diet-switch studies in marine teleosts. I found that δ15Nmuscle was uniformly higher than δ15Nliver across the literature. Mean (±SE) difference across all studies was δ15NM-L = 1.67 ± 0.14‰. I then compared the δ15NM-L values from 575 marine fishes representing eight species from continental shelf waters of Florida, USA to this CPO. I found that mean values of δ15NM-L for five of the eight species did not differ significantly from CPO, but mean values for three species were lower than CPO. These results suggest that the species at CPO were both stationary and consuming a diet of stationary prey. The species with δ15NM-L values far from CPO were either moving for consuming prey that was actively migrating through the area. For lifetime-scale studies, I used the δ13C and δ15N values in the fish eye-lenses. I used the isotopic values in the eye-lens core (inner-most lamina) to estimate geographic location and habitat use of postlarvae from four species common to the northern West Florida Shelf (WFS). I found that isotopic values differed among the four species, suggesting different habitat by the postlarvae of each species. Relative isotopic values corresponded with relative geographies assessed through traditional fisheries demographic studies. In addition, correlation between eye-lens core isotope values and the parameters of eye-lens diameter or catch location each indicated that while some species move inshore during the postlarval period, others move little or move alongshore during this period. I compared the eye-lens isotopic (δ13C and δ15N) profiles of two benthic-modifying species from the WFS to assess degree of habitat and diet stability in each species. Traditional fisheries data suggests that Tilefish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) shows high site fidelity and diet stability over the lifetime. Values of δ13C and δ15N in sequential eye-lens laminae were strongly correlated across the lifetime with increases in both profiles over time. These results suggest that Tilefish are highly stationary throughout the lifetime. Red Grouper (Epinephelus morio) are known for a sedentary lifestyle during the adult phase. However, as larvae and juveniles there is evidence that the species crosses the WFS to shallow water, and back to deeper areas. Eye-lens isotope profiles for adults showed low values of correlation between δ13C and δ15N. While δ15N increased steadily over the lifetime, δ13C did not. These results suggest much lower rates of both site fidelity and diet stability for Red Grouper than for Tilefish. I used eye-lens stable isotope profiles combined with catch data and stomach content analysis to construct an in-depth depiction of Red Grouper diet and movement histories over the lifetime. I found that fish spawned on the WFS had isotopically distinct eye-lens cores from fish spawned in other regions. However, eye-lens core values were relatively consistent between juveniles and adults, suggesting a consistent region of postlarval habitat within the WFS system. Finally, I found that 60 to 66% of Red Grouper from WFS displayed a unique feature of the δ13C profile, whereby values peaked then decreased, completing the cycle before the end of the first year. Despite similarities in diet for individuals from the Florida Reef Tract and Campeche Bank, few had similar δ13C profiles. Combined with catch data and stomach content data, these isotopic data suggest ontogenetic cross-shelf movement along with a continually shifting diet over the first year of life. The tools developed and tested here can provide additional data for interpreting movement and diets of important fisheries species for current single-species stock assessments. Using the difference between δ15N in the muscle and liver tissue of a single fish can provide information about the movement of fish over the preceding few months. Analyzing the δ13C and δ15N values in the eye-lens cores of individual fishes can indicate movement and diet during the earliest weeks of life using a historical approach. The whole eye-lens isotope profiles of δ13C and δ15N can suggest lifetime movement and combining the isotope profile data with traditional fisheries data may provide additional insight into the movement and diet of a species. These isotopic and statistical techniques will be invaluable as fisheries stock assessment continues to move to a more ecosystem-based approach

Spawning Origins and Ontogenetic Movements for Demersal Fishes: An Approach Using Eye-lens Stable Isotopes

The larval to postlarval period (the period between egg and juvenile) of many continental-shelf fish species lasts only a few weeks but has been shown to be critical to survival. During this period, individuals may travel long distances from spawning to juvenile habitats and are often difficult to locate. Fish eye lenses, which are constructed sequentially with minimal tissue turnover, record successive isotopic values for the entire lifespan. We present a widely applicable method of using the isotope values from the inner-most eye lens lamina (core: representing the larval to postlarval period) as a historical record of early life movement and location. By correlating the eye-lens core δ13C and δ15N values with juvenile capture location (i.e. settlement habitat) or with core size (i.e., growth during the first few weeks of life), we interpreted variability within the isotope values of a species as geographic origin and movement. We then evaluated the method using four northeastern Gulf of Mexico reef-fish species. Gag isotope values indicated movement inshore during the postlarval period. Red Grouper values suggested movement in both the inshore and alongshore directions. Black Seabass isotope values indicated a widely distributed early life with potential southward movement. Red Snapper isotope values suggested that larvae and postlarvae are widely distributed along the outer continental shelf, but do not move far from spawning origins in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Bulk isotope values in fish eye lens cores can strengthen early life origin and movement data for many species of marine fishes, including those for which little early-life information exists

Isotopic Characterization of Lifetime Movement by Two Demersal Fishes from the Northeastern Gulf of Mexico

An understanding of lifetime trophic changes and ontogenetic habitat shifts is essential to the preservation of marine fish species. We used carbon and nitrogen stable isotope values (δ13C and δ15N) recorded within the laminar structure of fish eye lenses, reflecting both diet and location over time, to compare the lifetime trends of 2 demersal mesopredators. Tilefish Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps inhabit burrows on the outer continental shelf, which results in exceptional site fidelity. Red grouper Epinephelus morio are spawned on the middle to outer continental shelf, move to the inner shelf for the juvenile period, and return offshore upon sexual maturity. Both species inhabit the eastern Gulf of Mexico, a region with a distinctive offshore-inshore gradient in background δ13C values. Within individual tilefish (n = 36), sequences of δ13C values and δ15N values had strong, positive correlations with eye-lens diameter, and strong correlations between the 2 isotopes (mean Spearman r = 0.86), reflecting an increase in trophic position with growth and little lifetime movement. In red grouper (n = 30), δ15N values positively correlated with eye-lens diameter, but correlations between δ15N and δ13C were weak (mean Spearman r = 0.29), suggesting cross-shelf ontogenetic movements. Linear mixed model results indicated strong relationships between δ15N and δ13C values in tilefish eye lenses but no convergence in the red grouper model. Collectively, these results are consistent with previously established differences in the life histories of the 2 species, demonstrating the potential utility of eye-lens isotope records, particularly for investigating the life histories of lesser-known species

known as Love Your Data in 2016 - 2017

All pages from the Love Data Week event website are archived here in PDF. Love Data Week was established in 2016 as Love Your Data week. Originally created in the USA, it quickly grew to an international event in which a wide range of institutions, organizations, scholars, students, and other data lovers could celebrate their data. Coordinated by Heather Coates, the planning committee developed themes, wrote, curated content, developed activities, all to celebrate data in all its forms, promote good research data management strategies, ask hard questions about the role of data in our lives, and share data success and horror stories. Though the website is defunct, the event lives on, driven by the community