Systematik, Taxonomie, Phylogenie und Zoogeographie des Capoeta damascina-Artenkomplexes (Pisces: Teleostei: Cyprinidae) auf der Grundlage vergleichend-morphologischer und molekulargenetischer Untersuchungen

Der Damaskus-Weißling Capoeta damascina (Pisces: Teleostei: Cyprinidae) kommt in der Levante, in Mesopotamien und in Teilen der Türkei und des Iran vor. Dort ist er eine der häufigsten Fischarten. Aufgrund der Trockenheit dieser Region besteht der Lebensraum dieser Art aus vielen von einander isolierten Gewässern. Vor der hier vorgelegten Studie war nicht klar, ob es sich bei C. damascina um eine Art handelt, oder aber um einen Komplex nah verwandter Arten, die sich durch hohe intraspezifische und geringe interspezifische Variabilität auszeichnen. Ziel der vorliegenden Untersuchungen war es, anhand morphologischer und molekulargenetischer Daten die phylogenetische Position des C. damascina-Artenkomplexes zu ermitteln und die Verwandtschaftsbeziehungen der Arten untereinander zu klären. Um die Arten gegeneinander abzugrenzen und wichtige diagnostische Merkmale zu ermitteln, wurden Fischsammlungen großer europäischer Museen vergleichend-morphologisch untersucht. Dabei galt den Typen der nominellen Arten dieses Komplexes besonderes Augenmerk. Zur Klärung der Verwandtschaftsbeziehungen wurden Sequenzen der mitochondrialen Cytochrom-c-Oxidase (COI, n = 103) und der zwei benachbarten variablen Regionen (D1-D2) des nukleären 28S-rRNA-Gens (LSU, n = 65) mit Hilfe unterschiedlicher phylogenetischer Rekonstruktionsalgorithmen ausgewertet. Als Ergebnis werden innerhalb des C. damascina-Artenkomplexes die folgenden sechs Arten als gültig anerkannt: Capoeta buhsei, C. caelestis, C. damascina, C. saadii, C. umbla und die bisher unbeschriebene Art Capoeta sp. 1. Die Analyse der morphometrischen und meristischen Daten zeigt ein hohes Maß an phenotypischer Variabilität zwischen den unterschiedlichen Populationen derselben Art, sowie zwischen den verschiedenen Arten. Dieses Phänomen ist genetischen Faktoren, dem Einfluss von Umweltbedingungen bzw. einer Kombination aus beidem zu erklären. Die phylogenetischen Analysen zeigen zwei genetische Linien innerhalb des C. damascina-Artenkomplexes: eine westliche Linie mit den Arten C. caelestis, C. damascina und C. umbla; so wie eine östliche Linie mit den Arten C. buhsei, C. saadii und Capoeta sp. 1. Die enge Verwandtschaft zwischen C. damascina und C. umbla zeigt sich unter anderem dadurch, dass ein Exemplar von C. damascina aus dem Euphrat den selben COI-Haplotypen aufweist wie ein Exemplar von C. umbla aus dem Tigris. Hierfür gibt es drei mögliche Erklärungen: Mitochondriale Introgression, nahe zurückliegende Artbildung oder eine Kombination aus beidem. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass es sich bei den sechs genannten Taxa um junge Arten handelt und ihre Entstehung und heutige Verbreitung im Wesentlichen durch pleistozäne Ereignisse geprägt wurde. Die Besiedlung des Iran erfolgte vermutlich während einer der früheren pleistozänen Meeresspiegeltiefstände und führte zur Abspaltung der östlichen Linie von der mesopotamischen Ausgangspopulation. Die östliche Linie konnte in humiden Phasen des Pleistozäns die verschiedenen Flusssysteme des südlichen und zentralen Iran besiedeln wo sich die Arten C. buhsei, C. saadii und Capoeta sp. 1 bildeten. Nach der Abspaltung der östlichen Linie breitete sich die westliche Linie von Mesopotamien in die Levante aus. Dies geschah ebenfalls während des Pleistozäns, als die Oberläufe der westlichen Zuflüsse des Euphrats mit dem Ceyhan verbunden waren. Vom Ceyhan aus erfolgte die Ausbreitung in die Flüsse der südlichen Türkei, die zu Perioden niedriger Meeresspiegelstände über die verlängerten Unterläufe miteinander verbunden waren. Auf diese Weise wurde der Seyhan/Göksu besiedelt und die Art C. caelestis entstand. Die Schwesterpopulation differenzierte sich in die Arten C. damascina und C. umbla. Sehr wahrscheinlich besiedelte C. damascina während des späten Pleistozäns die Levante und die südliche Türkei. Dies wird durch die geringe genetische Differenzierung der Art belegt. Direkte Süßwasserverbindungen, die als Ausbreitungsroute für C. damascina zwischen den Gewässersystemen der Levante dienten, existierten zu Zeiten niedriger Meeresspiegelstände. Die hier vorgelegte Arbeit beinhaltet eine detaillierte Neubewertung des taxonomischen Status der behandelten Arten. Sechs nah verwandte Arten werden als gültig anerkannt. Das rezente Verbreitungsmuster dieser Arten wird vor dem Hintergrund der geologischen Entwicklung des Verbreitungsgebietes, ökologischer Faktoren so wie der Verwandtschaftsbeziehungen zwischen den Arten und ihrer Evolutionsgeschichte erklärt.Capoeta damascina (Teleostei: Cyprinidae) is one of the most common freshwater fish species, found throughout the Levant, Mesopotamia, Turkey and Iran. According to the state of knowledge prior to this study, C. damascina, which is distributed over a wide range of isolated water bodies, was not a well-defined species. It was questionable whether it represents a single species or a complex of closely related species with high intraspecific and comparatively low interspecific variability. The goal of this study was to investigate the taxonomy, systematic position of the C. damascina species complex and the phylogenetic relationships among its members, based on morphological features as well as molecular phylogeny. Samples obtained from throughout the geographic range of this species complex were subjected to comparative morphological analyses in order to define, properly diagnose and separate species within the C. damascina complex. To elucidate phylogenetic relationships among members of the C. damascina species complex, samples were subjected to genetic analyses, using two molecular markers targeting the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI, n = 103) and the two adjacent divergence regions (D1-D2) of the nuclear 28S rRNA genes (LSU, n = 65). Based on morphological and molecular genetic data, six closely related species were recognized within the C. damascina complex: C. buhsei, C. caelestis, C. damascina, C. saadii, C. umbla and an undescribed species, Capoeta sp.1. Analyses of the morphometric and meristic data obtained in this study revealed phenotypic variability among the various populations within a species and among the different species. Such differences in morphological characters reflect genetic differences, environmentally induced phenotypic variation or both, as the meristic phenotype of fish is sometimes a consequence of environmental parameters acting on the genotype. Based on phylogenetic analyses, two main lineages were identified within the C. damascina species complex: a western lineage represented by C. caelestis, C. damascina and C. umbla and an eastern lineage represented by C. buhsei, C. saadii and Capoeta sp.1. The close phylogenetic relationships between C. damascina and C. umbla and the sharing of same haplotypes between one specimen of C. damascina from Euphrates and another of C. umbla from Tigris reflect one of three possibilites: recent speciation, mitochondrial introgression or a combination of both. The results obtained in this study indicate that speciation of the above-mentioned six taxa is quite recent and that their dispersal and present-day distribution can be related to Pleistocene events. The drying out of the Persian Gulf, probably during one of the first glacials of the Pleistocene, led the ancestor of the C. damascina species complex in Mesopotamia to reach the rivers of the Gulf and of Hormuz basins and differentiate there, giving rise to the eastern lineage (ancestor of C. buhsei, C. saadii and Capoeta sp.1). As connections presumably existed among the different river drainages and basins in Iran during the wet periods of the Pleistocene, the ancestor of C. buhsei, C. saadii and Capoeta sp.1 was subsequently able to colonize the various Iranian drainages and differentiate there, giving rise to C. buhsei, C. saadii and Capoeta sp.1. After the separation from the eastern lineage, the western lineage, represented by the ancestor of C. damascina, C. umbla and C. caelestis, most likely reached the Levant from the Tigris-Euphrates system during the Pleistocene glacials, when river connections existed in the regions of the upper courses of Ceyhan Nehri (southern Turkey) and some western affluents to the Euphrates. From Ceyhan Nehri, it dispersed into other rivers in southern Turkey during Pleistocene periods of low sea levels until it reached Göksu Nehri and evolved into C. caelestis. The sister population differentiated into C. damascina and C. umbla. Based on the results obtained in this study, it is likely that C. damascina colonized the Levant and southern Turkey during the Pleistocene glacials. This is well supported by the low genetic variability among the C. damascina populations. Direct connections existed among the river drainages in the Levant during the Pleistocene periods of low sea level, thus serving as a pathway for the dispersal of C. damascina. The results of this study provide a coherent picture of the taxonomic position, phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary history of the C. damascina species complex and explain present patterns of distribution considering paleogeographic events

The effect of maternal iron status and intake during pregnancy on cardiovascular disease risk in the offspring

Iron is an important micronutrient essential in carrying oxygen and maintaining the function of many body enzymes. It is of particular importance during gestation as body demands increase leading to iron deficiency in women with inadequate iron stores at the start of pregnancy. Animal studies have shown that iron deficiency in pregnancy leads to offspring with adverse cardiovascular risk profiles compared to offspring of iron replete mothers. This thesis aimed to examine the association of maternal iron intake and status in pregnancy with short and long term birth outcomes that are considered cardiovascular risk indicators later in life. Analysis of data from three cohorts and one Mendelian randomisation study was included in this thesis. Total maternal iron intake in early, but not late, pregnancy was positively associated with birth size. There was no evidence of association between taking iron-containing supplements in pregnancy and size at birth. However, taking multivitamin-mineral supplements, which contain iron, in late pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of preterm birth. Also taking iron supplements up to 32 weeks gestation was associated with lower offspring systolic blood pressure at 10 years. Maternal iron deficiency and anaemia in early pregnancy were associated with an increased risk of giving birth to a SGA baby. Infant brachio-femoral PWV measured at 2-6 weeks of age was found to be higher in women who were anaemic in early pregnancy, but not in those who were only iron deficient. Finally, using a Mendelian randomisation design, maternal iron status measured by serum ferritin with C282Y mutation as an instrumental variable, was not found to be associated with adult offspring BP and adiposity. In conclusion, maternal iron intake and status in early pregnancy seem to be associated with short term birth outcomes like size at birth, while associations with long term offspring cardiovascular indicators were not detected in this thesis

Maternal iron status in early pregnancy and birth outcomes : insights from the Baby's Vascular health and Iron in Pregnancy study

Date of Acceptance: 16/03/2015 Acknowledgements N. A. A. was funded by a Wellcome Trust Research Training Fellowship (WT87789). H. J. M. and H. E. H. are supported by the Scottish Government’s Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services. N. A. B. S. is supported by Cerebra. The authors’ contributions are as follows: N. A. A. was responsible for organising the study conduct, data collection and database management, performed the statistical analysis, interpreted the results and drafted the paper. N. A. A., N. A. B. S., J. E. C., H. J. M. and D. C. G. contributed to the study concept and design, and interpretation of results. H. J. M. and H. E. H. analysed the laboratory samples. J. E. C. and D. C. G. provided advice on statistical strategy and analysis. All authors have fully participated in the reporting stage and have critically reviewed and approved the final draft of the paper. The authors declare no conflict of interestPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Why the Patient-Made Term 'Long Covid' is needed

The patient-made term ‘Long Covid’ is, we argue, a helpful and capacious term that is needed to address key medical, epidemiological and socio-political challenges posed by diverse symptoms persisting beyond four weeks after symptom onset suggestive of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). An international movement of patients (which includes all six authors) brought the persistence and heterogeneity of long-term symptoms to widespread visibility. The same grassroots movement introduced the term ‘Long Covid’ (and the cognate term ‘long-haulers’) to intervene in relation to widespread assumptions about disease severity and duration. Persistent symptoms following severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection are now one of the most pressing clinical and public health phenomena to address: their cause(s) is/are unknown, their effects can be debilitating, and the percentage of patients affected is unclear, though likely significant. The term ‘Long Covid’ is now used in scientific literature, the media, and in interactions with the WHO. Uncertainty regarding its value and meaning, however, remains. In this Open Letter, we explain the advantages of the term ‘Long Covid’ and bring clarity to some pressing issues of use and definition. We also point to the importance of centring patient experience and expertise in relation to ‘Long Covid’ research, as well as the provision of care and rehabilitation.</ns4:p

Formative evaluation of the usability and acceptability of myfood24 among adolescents: a UK online dietary assessments tool

BackgroundMyfood24 is a new online 24 h dietary assessment tool developed for use among the UK population. Limited information is available on the usability and acceptability of such tools. Hence this study aims to determine the usability and acceptability of myfood24 among British adolescents (11-18y) before and after making the improvements.MethodsA total of 84 adolescents were involved in two stages. In stage-I (beta-version of myfood24), 14 adolescents were recruited, 7 of whom (group-1) were asked to enter standardized tasks in a testing room with screen capture software. The remaining 7-adolescents (group-2) were asked to report their previous food intake using myfood24 at home. All participants then completed a usability and acceptability questionnaire. Stage-II was carried out after making amendments to the live-version of myfood24 in which 70 adolescents were asked to enter their food intake for two days and then complete the same questionnaire. Thematic analysis was conducted of observer comments and open-ended questions.ResultsNavigation, presentation errors and failure to find functions were the main usability issues identified in the beta-version. Significant improvements were found in the usability and acceptability of most functions after implementing certain features like a spell checker, auto-fill option, and adding ‘mouse hover’ to help with the use of some functions. Adolescents’ perceptions of searching food items, selecting food portion sizes and making a list function were significantly improved in the live-version. The mean completion time of myfood24 reduced from 31 (SD?=?6) minutes in the beta-version to 16 (SD?=?5) minutes in the live-version. The mean system usability score (SUS) of myfood24 improved from 66/100 (95 % CI 60, 73) in the beta-version to 74/100 (95 % CI 71, 77) in the live-version, which is considered as ‘good’. Of the adolescents in stage-II, 41 % preferred using myfood24 to the interviewer-administered 24 h recall because myfood24 was quicker, easier to use and provided the adolescents with privacy when reporting dietary intake.ConclusionConsidering adolescents’ feedback has helped in improving the usability and acceptability of the final-version of myfood24. myfood24 appears to support adolescents’ need in reporting their dietary intake, which may potentially improve the overall quality of adolescents’ self-reported dietary information

Systematic Review of the Prevalence of Long COVID

BACKGROUND: Long COVID occurs in those infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) whose symptoms persist or develop beyond the acute phase. We conducted a systematic review to determine the prevalence of persistent symptoms, functional disability, or pathological changes in adults or children at least 12 weeks postinfection. METHODS: We searched key registers and databases from January 1, 2020 to November 2, 2021, limited to publications in English and studies with at least 100 participants. Studies in which all participants were critically ill were excluded. Long COVID was extracted as prevalence of at least 1 symptom or pathology, or prevalence of the most common symptom or pathology, at 12 weeks or later. Heterogeneity was quantified in absolute terms and as a proportion of total variation and explored across predefined subgroups (PROSPERO ID CRD42020218351). RESULTS: One hundred twenty studies in 130 publications were included. Length of follow-up varied between 12 weeks and 12 months. Few studies had low risk of bias. All complete and subgroup analyses except 1 had I2 ≥90%, with prevalence of persistent symptoms range of 0%-93% (pooled estimate [PE], 42.1%; 95% prediction interval [PI], 6.8% to 87.9%). Studies using routine healthcare records tended to report lower prevalence (PE, 13.6%; PI, 1.2% to 68%) of persistent symptoms/pathology than self-report (PE, 43.9%; PI, 8.2% to 87.2%). However, studies systematically investigating pathology in all participants at follow up tended to report the highest estimates of all 3 (PE, 51.7%; PI, 12.3% to 89.1%). Studies of hospitalized cases had generally higher estimates than community-based studies. CONCLUSIONS: The way in which Long COVID is defined and measured affects prevalence estimation. Given the widespread nature of SARS-CoV-2 infection globally, the burden of chronic illness is likely to be substantial even using the most conservative estimates

Risk of new-onset Long Covid following reinfection with SARS-CoV-2: community-based cohort study

Background: Little is known about the risk of Long Covid following reinfection with SARS-CoV-2. We estimated the likelihood of new-onset, self-reported Long Covid after a second SARS-CoV-2 infection, and compared to a first infection. // Methods: We included UK COVID-19 Infection Survey participants who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 between 1 November 2021 and 8 October 2022. The primary outcome was self-reported Long Covid 12 to 20 weeks after each infection. Separate analyses were performed for those <16 years and ≥16 years. We estimated adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for new-onset Long Covid using logistic regression, comparing second to first infections, controlling for socio-demographic characteristics and calendar date of infection, plus vaccination status in those ≥16 years. // Results: Overall, Long Covid was reported by those ≥16 years after 4.0% and 2.4% of first and second infections, respectively; the corresponding estimates among those <16 years were 1.0% and 0.6%. The aOR for Long Covid after second compared to first infections was 0.72 (95% confidence interval: 0.63–0.81) for those ≥16 years and 0.93 (0.57–1.53) for those <16 years. // Conclusions: The risk of new-onset Long Covid after a second SARS-CoV-2 infection is lower than that after a first infection for those ≥16 years, though there is no evidence of a difference in risk for those <16 years. However, there remains some risk of new-onset Long Covid after a second infection, with around 1 in 40 of those ≥16 years and 1 in 165 of those <16 years reporting Long Covid after a second infection

The role of parity in the relationship between endometriosis and pregnancy outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Endometriosis is a chronic and debilitating condition which can affect the entire reproductive life course of women with a potentially detrimental effect on pregnancy. Pregnancy (and increasing parity) can affect endometriosis by modulating disease severity and suppressing symptoms. Multiparous women could be less likely to suffer from endometriosisrelated pregnancy complications than primiparous women. We aimed to systematically review the evidence examining the role of parity in the relationship between pregnancy outcomes and endometriosis. A systematic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library was performed from inception to May 2022. We searched for experimental and observational studies. Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation was used to assess the quality of evidence with the risk of bias in non-randomised studies of interventions tool incorporated. Eleven studies were included in the meta-analysis. Primiparous women with endometriosis had almost double the risk of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (OR: 1.99, 95% CI: 1.50–2.63, P < 0.001) compared to multiparous women with endometriosis. Primiparous women with endometriosis were at significantly increased risk of preterm delivery, caesarean delivery, and placenta praevia compared to primiparous women without endometriosis. There were no significant differences in outcomes when multiparous women with endometriosis were compared to multiparous women without endometriosis. There is limited evidence to suggest that primiparous women with endometriosis may be at higher risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes compared to multiparous women. The modulatory role of parity in the pathophysiology of endometriosis and its impact on pregnancy outcomes should be investigated

Evaluation of public awareness and performance toward the safe use of household disinfectants-cleaners to prevent COVID-19 in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi

IntroductionDisinfection is one of the most effective hygienic practices that would limit the spread of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) through deactivating the coronavirus on contaminated skin, supplies, and surfaces. However, the type and concentration of disinfectants should be carefully selected to avoid damaging surfaces and to limit the side effects of these chemicals on household members and users. The aim of this study is to assess the public levels of awareness and performance concerning the safe use of household cleaning products and disinfectants during the spread of COVID-19 in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.MethodsThe cross-sectional study was conducted between October and December 2021 among 750 residents of Abu Dhabi, Al Dhafrah, and Al-Ain regions. A google survey was distributed electronically for the online recruitment of the general population. Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to determine whether significant differences exist in the levels of awareness and performance with regard to gender, region, education level, and diagnosis with COVID-19. Spearman correlation was used to test if any correlation existed between levels of awareness and performance. Kruskal-Wallis test was also used to check if significant differences exist in the mean score of performance with respect to irritation-to-poisoning symptoms.ResultsThe study population recorded a lower mean score of awareness (5.37 out of 12) than performance (11.75 out of 16). The majority of the study population claimed a minimum of one irritation-to-poisoning symptom during the handling of household cleaners and disinfectants. Significant differences exist in the awareness and performance mean scores among various educational levels (P &lt; 0.001). The level of awareness was statistically significant with regard to infection with SARS-CoV-2 (P &lt; 0.05). Also, the level of performance was significantly different between males and females (P &lt; 0.001). Kruskal-Wallis test showed that the mean score of performance is statistically significant with all the studied irritation-to poisoning symptoms (P &lt; 0.05).ConclusionsAwareness campaigns and training programs are recommended to address the safe use of household cleaning products and disinfectants in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)