Effects of psychostimulant withdrawal on latent inhibition of conditioned active avoidance and prepulse inhibition of the acoustic startle response

Abstract.: Rationale: Chronic intermittent administration of amphetamine and cocaine can precipitate psychotic episodes in humans and produce persistent behavioral changes (i.e. increased locomotion, stereotypy) in the rat. The psychostimulant sensitization model of psychosis holds that the repeated administration of drugs such as amphetamine and cocaine induces long-lasting neuroadaptations and behavioral outcomes in animals that parallel aspects of the schizophrenic condition. Objectives: In the present study, we attempted to validate this model further by examining the effects of short-term withdrawal from repeated administration of cocaine and amphetamine on performance in two animal behavioral models of cognitive deficits found in schizophrenia: latent inhibition and prepulse inhibition. Reductions in both of these behavioral phenomena have been reported in schizophrenic patients and in acutely amphetamine-treated rats. Methods: Animals were tested after 4 days of withdrawal from 5 days of daily systemic 20mg/kg cocaine or 1.5mg/kg amphetamine injections for either latent inhibition of two-way active avoidance acquisition or prepulse inhibition of an acoustic startle response. Results: Our results indicate that, rather than reducing the expression of these behaviors, withdrawal from either cocaine or amphetamine enhanced the expression of latent inhibition of the active avoidance response while having no effect on prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle. Conclusions: These data indicate that although the sensitized response to amphetamine and cocaine administration may model some aspects of schizophrenic psychosis, behaviors exhibited by sensitized animals in the absence of an acute drug challenge are not consistent with models of the positive symptoms of schizophreni

Use of passive acoustic monitoring to fill knowledge gaps of fish global conservation status

peer reviewed1. Knowledge of the ecology, spatial distribution and conservation status of fish populations is achieved by fishery-dependent techniques, and by more recently developed non-invasive fishery-independent techniques. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is a fishery-independent method that provides remote sensing of soniferous species, populations, communities and ecosystems by recording soundscapes and their components. 2. A case study is presented to demonstrate how PAM can contribute to a dynamic understanding of fish distribution, ecological preferences and conservation status. This case study refers to the cusk-eel Ophidion rochei (Ophidiiformes), a nocturnal, behaviourally cryptic, soniferous fish species, described as uncommon and rare in the scientific literature, and listed as Data Deficient in the IUCN Red List. 3. A systematized literature review was carried out using Ophidion+rochei as the search term, and by grouping records into two main categories: (i) traditional techniques (including all fishery-dependent techniques and underwater visual census); and (ii) PAM. 4. This review highlights how PAM has provided new sightings of O. rochei at a rate three times higher than all other monitoring techniques combined. In contrast with the knowledge achieved to date by fishery-dependent techniques, the reported acoustic mass phenomena indicate that this species can be very abundant. Ophidion rochei was found to inhabit a wide range of depths and ecosystems, at least throughout the Mediterranean basin. 5. This paper supports the urgency and the importance of relying on the integration of different fishery-independent techniques for multidisciplinary monitoring, in line with the Goal 14 requirements of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development

An acoustic Odyssey: Characterisation of the vocal fish community inhabiting Neptune seagrass meadows across the Mediterranean Sea.

Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) uses hydrophones to record all components of underwater soundscapes, including fish calls. Several studies have used PAM to investigate different aspects of vocal fish species, such as presence, distribution, relative abundance, diel, lunar and seasonal cycle of activity as well as for delimitating spawning areas and for studying wild fish spawning behaviour. A recent study conducted in Mediterranean rocky reefs has proved that the analysis of vocal fish communities provides high discrimination potential of species assemblages. Aside from this study, most investigations to date have considered fish species in isolation, and there is a general paucity of data addressing acoustic communication of fishes living in natural communities. We present a preliminary characterisation of vocal fish communities over a geographical and environmental gradient in Mediterranean Posidonia oceanica meadows and adjacent areas. We compared abundance and diversity of fish sounds recorded during the peak of fish vocal season in Posidonia oceanica meadows (-20 m) along a longitudinal axis (Mallorca, Corsica and Crete). These results are discussed in a framework that highlights the investment of different vocal fish species in partitioning their active acoustic space (in terms of both frequency and time) over small- and large-scale gradients. Our study supports the potential of PAM to provide high resolution information on fish population dynamics

Acoustic complexity of vocal fish communities: A field and controlled validation

The Acoustic Complexity Index (ACI) is increasingly applied to the study of biodiversity in aquatic habitats. However, it remains unknown which types of acoustic information are highlighted by this index in underwater environments. This study explored the robustness of the ACI to fine variations in fish sound abundance (i.e. number of sounds) and sound diversity (i.e. number of sound types) in field recordings and controlled experiments. The ACI was found to be sensitive to variations in both sound abundance and sound diversity, making it difficult to discern between these variables. Furthermore, the ACI was strongly dependent on the settings used for its calculation (i.e. frequency and temporal resolution of the ACI algorithm, amplitude filter). Care should thus be taken when comparing ACI absolute values between studies, or between sites with site-specific characteristics (e.g. species diversity, fish vocal community composition). As the use of ecoacoustic indices presents a promising tool for the monitoring of vulnerable environments, methodological validations like those presented in this paper are of paramount importance in understanding which biologically important information can be gathered by applying acoustic indices to Passive Acoustic Monitoring data.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Visual and passive acoustic observations of blue whale trios from two distinct populations

© The Author(s), 2019. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Schall, E., Di Iorio, L., Berchok, C., Filun, D., Bedrinana-Romano, L., Buchan, S. J., Van Opzeeland, I., Sears, R., & Hucke-Gaete, R. Visual and passive acoustic observations of blue whale trios from two distinct populations. Marine Mammal Science, (2019): 1-10, doi:10.1111/mms.12643.Blue whale populations from both hemispheres are thought to undertake annual migrations between high latitude feeding grounds and low latitude breeding grounds (Mackintosh, 1966). For individuals of some populations these predetermined movements to and from wintering areas where calving occurs have been confirmed through photo‐identification, satellite‐tracking, and passive acoustic monitoring (Burtenshaw et al., 2004; Mate, Lagerquist, & Calambokidis, 1999; Sears & Perrin, 2002; Stafford, Nieukirk, & Fox, 1999a). However, for many blue whale populations no clear migratory behavior has been reported and locations of respective breeding grounds remain unclear (e.g., Hucke‐Gaete, Osman, Moreno, Findlay, & Ljungblad, 2004; Samaran et al., 2013; Stafford, Chapp, Bohnenstiel, & Tolstoy, 2011; Thomisch et al., 2016). On feeding grounds in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and along the coast of California, blue whales have been observed to form female–male pairs during summer, which can remain stable up to over several weeks, with the number of pairs increasing towards the end of summer (Sears & Perrin, 2002; Calambokidis, unpublished data;1 RS, unpublished data). These pairs are sometimes joined by a second male, forming a blue whale trio, which often is observed to engage in surface active behaviors lasting several minutes (Sears & Perrin, 2002; RS, unpublished data). The formation of blue whale trios is probably related to reproductive competition between male escorts and female choice (RS, unpublished data). Blue whale males produce population‐specific songs likely functioning as reproductive advertisement (Edds‐Walton, 1997; Oleson et al. 2007a; Stafford, Fox, & Clark, 1998). Several studies have reported song year‐round in low‐, mid‐, and high‐latitude waters, frequently with high song production rates during summer on the feeding grounds (e.g., Barlow et al., 2018; Buchan, Stafford, & Hucke‐Gaete, 2015; Samaran, Adam, & Guinett, 2010; Širović et al., 2004; Stafford, Nieukirk, & Fox, 1999b; Thomisch et al., 2016). Therefore, breeding activities in blue whales may be more opportunistic, i.e., not restricted to the breeding season or to a specific habitat.ES thanks Prof. Dr. Per J. Palsbøll for the supervision of the initial Master research project, the Marco Polo fund, and the University Groningen for covering travel expenses. We thank the Melimoyu Ecosystem Research Institute, SNP Patagonia Sur, and the company Teledyne Reson for partially funding the acoustic data collection in southern Chile. RHG is thankful to WWF‐Germany/Chile for partially funding fieldwork through grants to Centro Ballena Azul. CLB thanks the team of the Mingan Island Cetacean Study for their logistical support of boats and lodging, access to the North Atlantic blue whale database, and field assistance; Yvon Bélanger for opening his home to her and RS's field crews; for financial support from the National Science Foundation (Graduate Fellowship), National Defense Industrial Association, American Museum of Natural History (Lerner Gray Fund for Marine Research Grant), Penn State Applied Research Laboratory, and private donors Jeff and Lynn Kraus; and graduate advisors at Penn State University David L. Bradley, Thomas B. Gabrielson, and Diana McCammon. LDI thanks the Croisières du Grand Héron and Center Mériscope for allowing and supporting fieldwork, the Animal Behavior Department of the University of Zurich (Switzerland), the Bioacoustics Research Program at Cornell University (USA) and Prof. M. Manser and C. W. Clark for supervising LDI's Ph.D. The work was supported by grants to LDI for her PhD from the Forschungskommission der Universität Zürich, Züricher Tierschutz, Basler Stiftung für Biologische Forschung, SCNAT, Zangger‐Weber‐Stiftung, SSVA. SJB thanks the Center for Oceanographic Research COPAS Sur‐Austral, CONICYT PIA PFB31, the Office of Naval Research Global (awards N62909‐16‐2214 and N00014‐17‐2606), and a grant to the Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Zonas Áridas from Programa Regional CONICYT R16A10003 for support during manuscript writing. We would like to thank the field crews (F. Viddi, J. Ruiz, A. Carpentier, M. Lessard, A. Liebschner, C. Ramp, S. Angel, K. Aucrenaz, T. Doniol‐Valcroze, J. LeBreus, B. Kot, and J. Puschock) for their immense commitment to blue whale research

Fish biophony in a Mediterranean submarine canyon: a preliminary investigation using Static Acoustic Monitoring and gliders

Submarine canyons are key structures for ecosystem functioning in the Mediterranean Sea. This study was conducted in the canyon of Calvi (North-West Corsica, France) by using a combination of Static Acoustic Monitoring (SAM) and hydrophone integrated gliders (Seaexplorer, Alseamar). During summer 2016 and 2017, three SAM campaigns (-125 m to -150 m, 3 kilometers from coastline) and one gliders mission (-900 m to -60 m, 6 kilometers to 3 kilometers from coastline) were here conducted. A total of 194 hours of recordings were analysed for fish sound diversity (i.e. number of sound types) and for fish sound abundance (number of sounds per sound type and per unit of time). Biological sounds were detected in 37% of the recorded audio files. Besides for the presence of marine mammals clicks and whistles, at least 9 sound types (for a total of more than 8.000 sounds) with characteristics similar to those emitted by known vocal fish species were characterised; for one of these, emitter identity could be inferred at the genus level (Ophidion sp.). Furthermore, an increase in Sea Ambient Noise between 10 and 15 dB re 1 µPa was observed during daytime hours due to boat traffic. The vastness of the deep-sea and, in particular, the heterogeneity of submarine canyons, their high biodiversity and level of fauna specificity, together with the very localized character of observations carried out to date fully justify the use of an holistic monitoring approach such as PAM, especially when a combination of methods is used (e.g. SAM and gliders). Our study demonstrate that PAM can provide novel information about the ecoacoustics and the distribution of vocal fish species in these pivotal Mediterranean environments and can assess the contribution of anthropogenic sound and their adverse effects (such as masking) on fishes

Listening forward: approaching marine biodiversity assessments using acoustic methods

© The Author(s), 2020. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Mooney, T. A., Di Iorio, L., Lammers, M., Lin, T., Nedelec, S. L., Parsons, M., Radford, C., Urban, E., & Stanley, J. Listening forward: approaching marine biodiversity assessments using acoustic methods. Royal Society Open Science, 7(8), (2020): 201287, doi:10.1098/rsos.201287.Ecosystems and the communities they support are changing at alarmingly rapid rates. Tracking species diversity is vital to managing these stressed habitats. Yet, quantifying and monitoring biodiversity is often challenging, especially in ocean habitats. Given that many animals make sounds, these cues travel efficiently under water, and emerging technologies are increasingly cost-effective, passive acoustics (a long-standing ocean observation method) is now a potential means of quantifying and monitoring marine biodiversity. Properly applying acoustics for biodiversity assessments is vital. Our goal here is to provide a timely consideration of emerging methods using passive acoustics to measure marine biodiversity. We provide a summary of the brief history of using passive acoustics to assess marine biodiversity and community structure, a critical assessment of the challenges faced, and outline recommended practices and considerations for acoustic biodiversity measurements. We focused on temperate and tropical seas, where much of the acoustic biodiversity work has been conducted. Overall, we suggest a cautious approach to applying current acoustic indices to assess marine biodiversity. Key needs are preliminary data and sampling sufficiently to capture the patterns and variability of a habitat. Yet with new analytical tools including source separation and supervised machine learning, there is substantial promise in marine acoustic diversity assessment methods.Funding for development of this article was provided by the collaboration of the Urban Coast Institute (Monmouth University, NJ, USA), the Program for the Human Environment (The Rockefeller University, New York, USA) and the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research. Partial support was provided to T.A.M. from the National Science Foundation grant OCE-1536782

Low-protein diets for chronic kidney disease patients: The Italian experience

open20Nutritional treatment has always represented a major feature of CKD management. Over the decades, the use of nutritional treatment in CKD patients has been marked by several goals. The first of these include the attainment of metabolic and fluid control together with the prevention and correction of signs, symptoms and complications of advanced CKD. The aim of this first stage is the prevention of malnutrition and a delay in the commencement of dialysis. Subsequently, nutritional manipulations have also been applied in association with other therapeutic interventions in an attempt to control several cardiovascular risk factors associated with CKD and to improve the patient's overall outcome. Over time and in reference to multiple aims, the modalities of nutritional treatment have been focused not only on protein intake but also on other nutrients.openBellizzi, Vincenzo; Cupisti, Adamasco; Locatelli, Francesco; Bolasco, Piergiorgio; Brunori, Giuliano; Cancarini, Giovanni; Caria, Stefania; De Nicola, Luca; Di Iorio, Biagio R; Di Micco, Lucia; Fiaccadori, Enrico; Garibotto, Giacomo; Mandreoli, Marcora; Minutolo, Roberto; Oldrizzi, Lamberto; Piccoli, Giorgina B; Quintaliani, Giuseppe; Santoro, Domenico; Torraca, Serena; Viola, Battista FBellizzi, Vincenzo; Cupisti, Adamasco; Locatelli, Francesco; Bolasco, Piergiorgio; Brunori, Giuliano; Cancarini, Giovanni; Caria, Stefania; De Nicola, Luca; Di Iorio, Biagio R; Di Micco, Lucia; Fiaccadori, Enrico; Garibotto, Giacomo; Mandreoli, Marcora; Minutolo, Roberto; Oldrizzi, Lamberto; Piccoli, Giorgina B; Quintaliani, Giuseppe; Santoro, Domenico; Torraca, Serena; Viola, Battista F

Sounding the call for a global library of underwater biological sounds

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Parsons, M., Lin, T.-H., Mooney, T., Erbe, C., Juanes, F., Lammers, M., Li, S., Linke, S., Looby, A., Nedelec, S., Van Opzeeland, I., Radford, C., Rice, A., Sayigh, L., Stanley, J., Urban, E., & Di Iorio, L. Sounding the call for a global library of underwater biological sounds. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution, 10, (2022): 810156, https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2022.810156.Aquatic environments encompass the world’s most extensive habitats, rich with sounds produced by a diversity of animals. Passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) is an increasingly accessible remote sensing technology that uses hydrophones to listen to the underwater world and represents an unprecedented, non-invasive method to monitor underwater environments. This information can assist in the delineation of biologically important areas via detection of sound-producing species or characterization of ecosystem type and condition, inferred from the acoustic properties of the local soundscape. At a time when worldwide biodiversity is in significant decline and underwater soundscapes are being altered as a result of anthropogenic impacts, there is a need to document, quantify, and understand biotic sound sources–potentially before they disappear. A significant step toward these goals is the development of a web-based, open-access platform that provides: (1) a reference library of known and unknown biological sound sources (by integrating and expanding existing libraries around the world); (2) a data repository portal for annotated and unannotated audio recordings of single sources and of soundscapes; (3) a training platform for artificial intelligence algorithms for signal detection and classification; and (4) a citizen science-based application for public users. Although individually, these resources are often met on regional and taxa-specific scales, many are not sustained and, collectively, an enduring global database with an integrated platform has not been realized. We discuss the benefits such a program can provide, previous calls for global data-sharing and reference libraries, and the challenges that need to be overcome to bring together bio- and ecoacousticians, bioinformaticians, propagation experts, web engineers, and signal processing specialists (e.g., artificial intelligence) with the necessary support and funding to build a sustainable and scalable platform that could address the needs of all contributors and stakeholders into the future.Support for the initial author group to meet, discuss, and build consensus on the issues within this manuscript was provided by the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research, Monmouth University Urban Coast Institute, and Rockefeller Program for the Human Environment. The U.S. National Science Foundation supported the publication of this article through Grant OCE-1840868 to the Scientific Committee on Oceanic Research