New Cernotina caddisflies from the Ecuadorian Amazon (Trichoptera: Polycentropodidae)
Two new species of the caddisfly genus Cernotina Ross, 1938 (Polycentropodidae) are described from the lowland Amazon basin of Ecuador, Cernotina tiputini, new species, and Cernotina waorani, new species. These represent the first new species described from this region. We also record from Ecuador for the first time Cernotina hastilis Flint, previously known from Tobago, and present new Ecuadorian locality records for C. cygnea Flint, and C. lobisomem Santos & Nessimian. The homology of the intermediate appendage of the male genitalia of this genus is established. The region surveyed is under severe environmental threat from logging, mining, and crude oil extraction, making the description of the biodiversity of the region imperative.
Camargos et al. (2017) New Cernotina caddisflies from the Ecuadorian Amazon (Trichoptera: Polycentropodidae). PeerJ 5:e3960 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3960
Skin and fur bacterial diversity and community structure on American southwestern bats: effects of habitat, geography and bat traits
Microorganisms that reside on and in mammals, such as bats, have the potential to influence their host’s health and to provide defenses against invading pathogens. However, we have little understanding of the skin and fur bacterial microbiota on bats, or factors that influence the structure of these communities. The southwestern United States offers excellent sites for the study of external bat bacterial microbiota due to the diversity of bat species, the variety of abiotic and biotic factors that may govern bat bacterial microbiota communities, and the lack of the newly emergent fungal disease in bats, white-nose syndrome (WNS), in the southwest. To test these variables, we used 16S rRNA gene 454 pyrosequencing from swabs of external skin and fur surfaces from 163 bats from 13 species sampled from southeastern New Mexico to northwestern Arizona. Community similarity patterns, random forest models, and generalized linear mixed-effects models show that factors such as location (e.g., cave-caught versus surface-netted) and ecoregion are major contributors to the structure of bacterial communities on bats. Bats caught in caves had a distinct microbial community compared to those that were netted on the surface. Our results provide a first insight into the distribution of skin and fur bat bacteria in the WNS-free environment of New Mexico and Arizona. More importantly, it provides a baseline of bat external microbiota that can be explored for potential natural defenses against pathogens.
Winter et al. (2017) Skin and fur bacterial diversity and community structure on American southwestern bats: effects of habitat, geography and bat traits. PeerJ 5:e3944 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3944
Inferring microevolution from museum collections and resampling: lessons learned from Cepaea
Natural history collections are an important and largely untapped source of long-term data on evolutionary changes in wild populations. Here, we utilize three large geo-referenced sets of samples of the common European land-snail Cepaea nemoralis stored in the collection of Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden, the Netherlands. Resampling of these populations allowed us to gain insight into changes occurring over 95, 69, and 50 years. Cepaea nemoralis is polymorphic for the colour and banding of the shell; the mode of inheritance of these patterns is known, and the polymorphism is under both thermal and predatory selection. At two sites the general direction of changes was towards lighter shells (yellow and less heavily banded), which is consistent with predictions based on on-going climatic change. At one site no directional changes were detected. At all sites there were significant shifts in morph frequencies between years, and our study contributes to the recognition that short-term changes in the states of populations often exceed long-term trends. Our interpretation was limited by the few time points available in the studied collections. We therefore stress the need for natural history collections to routinely collect large samples of common species, to allow much more reliable hind-casting of evolutionary responses to environmental change.
Ożgo et al. (2017) Inferring microevolution from museum collections and resampling: lessons learned from Cepaea. PeerJ 5:e3938 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3938
Augmented cartilage regeneration by implantation of cellular versus acellular implants after bone marrow stimulation: a systematic review and meta-analysis of animal studies
Bone marrow stimulation may be applied to regenerate focal cartilage defects, but generally results in transient clinical improvement and formation of fibrocartilage rather than hyaline cartilage. Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine strive to develop new solutions to regenerate hyaline cartilage tissue. This systematic review and meta-analysis provides a comprehensive overview of current literature and assesses the efficacy of articular cartilage regeneration by implantation of cell-laden versus cell-free biomaterials in the knee and ankle joint in animals after bone marrow stimulation. PubMed and EMBASE (via OvidSP) were systematically searched using tissue engineering, cartilage and animals search strategies. Included were primary studies in which cellular and acellular biomaterials were implanted after applying bone marrow stimulation in the knee or ankle joint in healthy animals. Study characteristics were tabulated and outcome data were collected for meta-analysis for studies applying semi-quantitative histology as outcome measure (117 studies). Cartilage regeneration was expressed on an absolute 0–100% scale and random effects meta-analyses were performed. Implantation of cellular biomaterials significantly improved cartilage regeneration by 18.6% compared to acellular biomaterials. No significant differences were found between biomaterials loaded with stem cells and those loaded with somatic cells. Culture conditions of cells did not affect cartilage regeneration. Cartilage formation was reduced with adipose-derived stem cells compared to other cell types, but still improved compared to acellular scaffolds. Assessment of the risk of bias was impaired due to incomplete reporting for most studies. Implantation of cellular biomaterials improves cartilage regeneration compared to acellular biomaterials.
Pot et al. (2017) Augmented cartilage regeneration by implantation of cellular versus acellular implants after bone marrow stimulation: a systematic review and meta-analysis of animal studies. PeerJ 5:e3927 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3927
Novel mesostructured inclusions in the epidermal lining of Artemia franciscana ovisacs show optical activity
Background Biomineralization, e.g., in sea urchins or mollusks, includes the assembly of mesoscopic superstructures from inorganic crystalline components and biopolymers. The resulting mesocrystals inspire biophysicists and material scientists alike, because of their extraordinary physical properties. Current efforts to replicate mesocrystal synthesis in vitro require understanding the principles of their self-assembly in vivo. One question, not addressed so far, is whether intracellular crystals of proteins can assemble with biopolymers into functional mesocrystal-like structures. During our electron microscopy studies into Artemia franciscana (Crustacea: Branchiopoda), we found initial evidence of such proteinaceous mesostructures. Results EM preparations with high-pressure freezing and accelerated freeze substitution revealed an extraordinary intracellular source of mesostructured inclusions in both the cyto-and nucleoplasm of the epidermal lining of ovisacs of A. franciscana. Confocal reflection microscopy not only confirmed our finding; it also revealed reflective, light dispersing activity of these flake-like structures, their positioning and orientation with respect to the ovisac inside. Both the striation of alternating electron dense and electron-lucent components and the sharp edges of the flakes indicate self-assembly of material of yet unknown origin under supposed participation of crystallization. However, selected area electron diffraction could not verify the status of crystallization. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis measured a marked increase in nitrogen within the flake-like inclusion, and the almost complete absence of elements that are typically involved in inorganic crystallization. This rise in nitrogen could possibility be related to higher package density of proteins, achieved by mesostructure assembly. Conclusions The ovisac lining of A. franciscana is endowed with numerous mesostructured inclusions that have not been previously reported. We hypothesize that their self-assembly was from proteinaceous polycrystalline units and carbohydrates. These mesostructured flakes displayed active optical properties, as an umbrella-like, reflective cover of the ovisac, which suggests a functional role in the reproduction of A. franciscana. In turn, studies into ovisac mesostructured inclusions could help to optimizing rearing Artemia as feed for fish farming. We propose Artemia ovisacs as an in vivo model system for studying mesostructure formation.
Hollergschwandtner et al. (2017) Novel mesostructured inclusions in the epidermal lining of Artemia franciscana ovisacs show optical activity. PeerJ 5:e3923 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3923
Comparative demography of two common scleractinian corals: Orbicella annularis and Porites astreoides
Background Studies directed at understanding the demography and population dynamics of corals are relatively scarce. This limits our understanding of both the dynamics of coral populations and our capacity to develop management and conservation initiatives directed at conserving such ecosystems. Methods From 2012 to 2014, we collected data on the growth, survival, and recruitment rates of two common Caribbean coral species, the stress-tolerant Orbicella annularis and the weedy Porites astreoides. A set of size-based population matrix model was developed for two localities in Northeastern Puerto Rico and used to estimate population growth rates (λ) and determine the life cycle transition(s) that contribute the most to spatiotemporal differences in λs. The model was parameterized by following the fate of 100 colonies of each species at the two sites for two years. Results Our data indicate that spatial variability in vital rates of both species was higher than temporal variability. During the first year, populations of O. annularis exhibited λs below equilibrium at Carlos Rosario (0.817) and Palomino (0.694), followed by a considerable decline at both sites during the second year (0.700 and 0.667). Populations of P. astreoides showed higher λs than O. annularis during the first census period at Carlos Rosario (0.898) and Palomino (0.894) with a decline at one of the sites (0.681 and 0.893) during the second census period. Colony fate in both species exhibited a significant interaction with respect to location but not to time (G2 = 20.96; df = 3 for O. annularis and G2 = 9.55; df = 3 for P. astreoides). Discussion The similar variability of λs as well as the similar survival rates for both species during the two-year census period (2012–2014) show similar variability on demographic patterns in space and time. Our results suggest that location rather than time is important for the resiliency in coral colonies. Also, P. astreoides will show higher resistance to disturbance in the future than O. annularis.
Soto-Santiago et al. (2017) Comparative demography of two common scleractinian corals: Orbicella annularis and Porites astreoides. PeerJ 5:e3906 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3906
Multivariate ordination identifies vegetation types associated with spider conservation in brassica crops
Conservation biological control emphasizes natural and other non-crop vegetation as a source of natural enemies to focal crops. There is an unmet need for better methods to identify the types of vegetation that are optimal to support specific natural enemies that may colonize the crops. Here we explore the commonality of the spider assemblage—considering abundance and diversity (H)—in brassica crops with that of adjacent non-crop and non-brassica crop vegetation. We employ spatial-based multivariate ordination approaches, hierarchical clustering and spatial eigenvector analysis. The small-scale mixed cropping and high disturbance frequency of southern Chinese vegetation farming offered a setting to test the role of alternate vegetation for spider conservation. Our findings indicate that spider families differ markedly in occurrence with respect to vegetation type. Grassy field margins, non-crop vegetation, taro and sweetpotato harbour spider morphospecies and functional groups that are also present in brassica crops. In contrast, pumpkin and litchi contain spiders not found in brassicas, and so may have little benefit for conservation biological control services for brassicas. Our findings also illustrate the utility of advanced statistical approaches for identifying spatial relationships between natural enemies and the land uses most likely to offer alternative habitats for conservation biological control efforts that generates testable hypotheses for future studies.
Saqib et al. (2017) Multivariate ordination identifies vegetation types associated with spider conservation in brassica crops. PeerJ 5:e3795 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3795
Ancient divergence time estimates in Eutropis rugifera support the existence of Pleistocene barriers on the exposed Sunda Shelf
Episodic sea level changes that repeatedly exposed and inundated the Sunda Shelf characterize the Pleistocene. Available evidence points to a more xeric central Sunda Shelf during periods of low sea levels, and despite the broad land connections that persisted during this time, some organisms are assumed to have faced barriers to dispersal between land-masses on the Sunda Shelf. Eutropis rugifera is a secretive, forest adapted scincid lizard that ranges across the Sunda Shelf. In this study, we sequenced one mitochondrial (ND2) and four nuclear (BRCA1, BRCA2, RAG1, and MC1R) markers and generated a time-calibrated phylogeny in BEAST to test whether divergence times between Sundaic populations of E. rugifera occurred during Pleistocene sea-level changes, or if they predate the Pleistocene. We find that E. rugifera shows pre-Pleistocene divergences between populations on different Sundaic land-masses. The earliest divergence within E. rugifera separates the Philippine samples from the Sundaic samples approximately 16 Ma; the Philippine populations thus cannot be considered conspecific with Sundaic congeners. Sundaic populations diverged approximately 6 Ma, and populations within Borneo from Sabah and Sarawak separated approximately 4.5 Ma in the early Pliocene, followed by further cladogenesis in Sarawak through the Pleistocene. Divergence of peninsular Malaysian populations from the Mentawai Archipelago occurred approximately 5 Ma. Separation among island populations from the Mentawai Archipelago likely dates to the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary approximately 3.5 Ma, and our samples from peninsular Malaysia appear to coalesce in the middle Pleistocene, about 1 Ma. Coupled with the monophyly of these populations, these divergence times suggest that despite consistent land-connections between these regions throughout the Pleistocene E. rugifera still faced barriers to dispersal, which may be a result of environmental shifts that accompanied the sea-level changes.
Karin et al. (2017) Ancient divergence time estimates in Eutropis rugifera support the existence of Pleistocene barriers on the exposed Sunda Shelf. PeerJ 5:e3762 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3762
Inorganic, organic, and encapsulated minerals in vegetable meal based diets for Sparus aurata (Linnaeus, 1758)
Substituting fishmeal (FM) with vegetable meal (VM) can markedly affect the mineral composition of feeds, and may require additional mineral supplementation. Their bioavailability and optimal supplementation levels depend also on the form of delivery of minerals. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of different delivery forms of three major trace elements (Zn, Mn and Se) in a marine teleost. Gilthead sea bream juveniles of 22.5 g were fed a VM-based diet for 12 weeks that was either not supplemented with these minerals or supplemented with inorganic, organic, or encapsulated inorganic forms of minerals in triplicate and compared to a FM-based diet. Our results showed that mineral delivery form significantly affected the biochemical composition and morphology of posterior vertebrae. Supplementation of VM-based diets with inorganic forms of the target minerals significantly promoted growth, increased the vertebral weight and content of ash and Zn, enhanced bone mineralization and affected the vertebral shape. Conversely, encapsulation of inorganic minerals reduced fish growth and vertebral mineral content, whereas supplementation of organic minerals, enhanced bone osteogenesis by upregulating bone morphogenetic protein 2 (bmp2) gene and produced vertebrae with a larger length in relation to height. Furthermore, organic mineral forms of delivery downregulated the expression of oxidative stress related genes, such as Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Cu/Zn sod) and glutathione peroxidase 1 (gpx-1), suggesting thus that dietary minerals supplemented in the organic form could be reasonably considered more effective than the inorganic and encapsulated forms of supply.
Domínguez et al. (2017) Inorganic, organic, and encapsulated minerals in vegetable meal based diets for Sparus aurata (Linnaeus, 1758). PeerJ 5:e3710 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3710
Work-related stress, associated comorbidities and stress causes in French community pharmacies: a nationwide cross-sectional study
Background Like other health professionals, community pharmacists are exposed to stress factors (being efficient, avoiding mistakes and bearing emotional load), but they are also under the pressure of entrepreneurial responsibilities. The main objective was to assess the level of work-related stress in French community pharmacies. The other objectives of the study were to assess the associated comorbidities and causes of work-related stress. Methods This observational cross-sectional study was sent to all French community pharmacies by email. The survey was anonymous and designed to collect the following items: socio-demographic factors, professional status, characteristics of community pharmacy, work-related stress (visual analogic scale—VAS), fatigue (VAS), sleep disturbances (questions), anxiety and depression symptoms (hospital anxiety and depression scale), medical consultation for work-related stress, medication use for work related stress, psychoactive drug-use and causes of work-related stress. Participants were included in the survey if they were pharmacists (owner or assistant) or pharmacy technicians working in a community pharmacy at the time of the survey. Exclusion criteria were defined as follows: pharmacy students or other professionals involved in a community pharmacy (e.g. dietician, beautician) and lack of professional status information. There was no age limitation. Results After three months of data collection, 1,339 participants answered the survey and 1,272 participants were included in conformity with the inclusion and exclusion criteria, and to avoid missing data on the primary endpoint. Work-related stress was detected in 32.8% (417/1,272) of individuals (scores ≥70/100). Men were significantly more affected than women and there was no difference between professional statuses and no relation with the age of the participants. Work-related stress was significantly associated with anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disturbances, medical consultations, medication use, alcohol consumption above the WHO recommendations for men and psychoactive drug use. Three causes of stress were clearly identified and related to stress levels, workload, working atmosphere and deterioration of work quality. However, causes of work-related stress were significantly different among professionals, for example: entrepreneurial burden for pharmacists-in-charge and workload for employees (assistant pharmacists and pharmacy technicians). Discussion Work-related stress has a very strong impact in French community pharmacies. This stress was associated with several comorbidities and induces health resource consumption. Several causes of work-related stress have been identified such as workload, working atmosphere and deterioration of work quality; however, these causes could be detected and managed to improve stress levels. We recommend developing individual and organizational stress management in French community pharmacies.
Balayssac et al. (2017) Work-related stress, associated comorbidities and stress causes in French community pharmacies: a nationwide cross-sectional study. PeerJ 5:e3973 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3973