Strategies for rapid assessment of fungal diversity

The problems of estimating fungal diversity are considerable, due especially to the large numbers of species even in small study sites, only a small proportion of which are adequately characterized, and the lack of trained staff and appropriate identification manuals. These difficulties are multiplied in the tropics. Strategies for providing preliminary assessments of fungal diversity which can be carried out within short time-frames are discussed, which will allow initial site valuations to be made for conservation purposes. The necessity of identifying all species discovered is considered, and the need emphasized for strictly defined sampling protocols which allow proper comparison between sites. The advantages and disadvantages of preliminary diversity analyses involving different taxonomic and ecological groups, fungus/plant associations, spatial sampling, soil and litter analysis, molecular methods and indirect assessment are considered.     

Are research efforts on Animalia in the South Pacific associated with the conservation status or population trends?

Analyses of knowledge gaps can highlight imbalances in research, encouraging greater proportionality in the distribution of research efforts. In this research we used generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) with the aim to determine if research efforts for the period 2005–2015 for terrestrial vertebrates of Amphibia, Aves, Mammalia and Reptilia in the South Pacific region were correlated with conservation status (critically endangered (CR), endangered (EN), vulnerable (VU), least concern (LC) and near threatened (NT)) or population trends (increasing, stable, decreasing and unknown) through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) database. Our results showed that research distribution was uneven across different classes. Out of 633623 investigated papers, the average number of publications per species was 43.7, 306.7, 717.6 and 115.3 for Amphibia (284 species), Aves (1306 species), Mammalia (243 species) and Reptilia (400 species), respectively. Consistently, the lower publication effort on Amphibia compared to other taxonomic classes was revealed as significant by GLMM analysis. There was no significant differences in research effort among levels of conservation status. However, we found significantly different publication efforts among population trends of all examined species in that species with “unknown” population trends gained significantly lower researchers’ attention compared to species with “decreasing” trend. Results also indicated that, although it was not significant, the highest attention is given to species with “increasing” population trend over all taxonomic classes. Using the Information Theoretic approach we also generated a set of competing models to identify most important factors influencing research efforts, revealing that the highest ranked model included taxonomic class and population trend.     

Identifying high value areas for conservation: Accounting for connections among terrestrial,freshwater, and marine habitats in a tropical island system

Functional ecosystems depend on biotic and abiotic connections among different environmental realms, including terrestrial, freshwater, and marine habitats. Accounting for such connections is increasingly recognized as critical for conservation of ecosystems, especially given growing understanding of the way in which anthropogenic landscape disturbances can degrade both freshwater and marine habitats. This need may be paramount in conservation planning for tropical island ecosystems, as habitats across realms are often in close proximity, and because endemic organisms utilize multiple habitats to complete life histories. In this study, we used Marxan analysis to develop conservation planning scenarios across the five largest islands of Hawaii, in one instance accounting for and in another excluding habitat connectivity between inland and coastal habitats. Native vegetation, perennial streams, and areas of biological significance along the coast were used as conservation targets in analysis. Cost, or the amount of effort required for conservation, was estimated using an index that integrated degree and intensity of anthropogenic landscape disturbances. Our results showed that when connectivity is accounted for among terrestrial, freshwater, and marine habitats, areas identified as having high conservation value are substantially different compared to results when connectivity across realms is not considered. We also showed that the trade-off of planning conservation across realms was minimal and that cross-realm planning had the unexpected benefit of selecting areas with less habitat degradation, suggesting less effort for conservation. Our cross-realm planning approach considers biophysical interactions and complexity within and across ecosystems, as well as anthropogenic factors that may influence habitats outside of their physical boundaries, and we recommend implementing similar approaches to achieve integrated conservation efforts.     

Can the problem of hybridization in threatened species be evaluated using a fieldwork research? A case study in snapdragons

Hybridization, natural or artificial, is considered disadvantageous for species biodiversity when it threatens the population integrity of endangered species. Frequently, studies investigating whether hybridization poses a legitimate risk to rare species are based on genetic data obtained in molecular biology laboratories. In this study, we used field research to approach the problem that hybridization could cause for the viability of a population of a rare species and to be able to propose the most appropriate initial conservation strategy. Specifically, using the model genus Antirrhinum, the reproductive barriers between the rare A. pulverulentum and its common congener A. litigiosum have been analysed under the reproductive isolation index (RI). A. pulverulentum had a high value of total RI, indicating that there are barriers to gene flow from A. litigiosum towards this species, and also had a high value for the intrinsic RI, reflecting a low inherent capacity for production of hybrid plants; in addition, the possibility of successful backcrosses between this species with hybrids produced from A. litigiosum ovules were low, given the high intrinsic RI of A. litigiosum. These data indicate the current existence of strong and permanent barriers to hybridization between the two species, suggesting that hybridization does not seem to be a serious problem for the conservation of A. pulverulentum in the studied population, nor for the near future. This study shows how the RI index can provide useful information for conservation purposes and proposes different management recommendations.     

Why is biodiversity data-deficiency an ongoing conservation dilemma in Africa?

Recent reports illustrate deficiencies in knowledge about current conditions and long-term trends in population sizes of hundreds of African plants and animals’ species. In this commentary, I discuss the lack of standardized data for assessing and monitoring biodiversity in Africa. I present my own views on the causes for these knowledge and data gaps, their consequences for conservation, and future directions that could improve the current situation.There are many reasons for lack of standardized data including; ongoing conflicts and political instability in many biodiversity-rich countries; absence of regular and policy-driven monitoring programs; weak facilities; and irregular or insufficient funding. Existing biodiversity monitoring initiatives are often short-term, poorly-designed surveys, largely dependent on volunteer researchers or international partners, biased towards large “charismatic” animal species, and published in difficult-to-access outlets. Consequently, up-to-date and rigorous reports about conditions and trends of African biodiversity are limited, and conservation planning, comparative studies and accurate valuation of ecosystem services continue to be difficult.Urgent actions include: 1) commitments and support of local governments to implement effective conservation monitoring programs; 2) establishment of a network of carefully designed long-term and continent-wide monitoring initiatives for endangered species and biodiversity; and 3) involvement of universities, research centers, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and local communities in such monitoring efforts. Such actions could stimulate further in-depth studies and systematic analysis of the root causes and solutions for the decades-long African biodiversity knowledge gap. Examples of highly needed systematic analysis and documentation in the coming efforts towards filling up the biodiversity data gap in Africa should clearly define biodiversity data-deficiency by taxonomic groups and by countries.     

Landscape structural analysis of the Lençóis Maranhenses national park: implications for conservation

Our work evaluated the anthropic effects on the landscape structure of the Lençóis Maranhenses National Park (LMNP) and its Buffer Zone, and proposed strategies for the region’s conservation. LMNP is an important protected area in Brazilian north coast which protects a unique wetland ecosystem composed of sand dunes fields and a coastal vegetation called restinga. Supervised mapping of LMNP and a surrounding buffer of 3 km was carried out through high resolution and fine scale (1:5000) satellite images. The mapped area was subdivided in 1000 ha hexagonal Analysis Units (AU) and the following landscape metrics were calculated for each one of them: cover area (CA) of each soil cover class - dune fields (CA-DUNES), water bodies (CA-WATER), dense restinga (CADENSE), scattered restinga (CA-SCATTER), grassland (CA-SANDY), mangroves (CA-MANG), anthropogenic activity (CA-ANTRO) and, secondary vegetation (CA-SECOND); Landscape Shannon Diversity Index (SHDI), and; percentage of native vegetation cover (NV−COV). Pearson correlations were performed between the CA of each class and SHDI to identify the classes most correlated to CA-ANTRO. Our results showed that anthropic classes (crops, trails, and villages) had a stronger correlation (Pearson Correlation, r ≈ 0.65) with phytophysiognomies of dense restinga, secondary vegetation and SHDI, thus indicating that the land use conversion occurs in dense restinga areas and promotes vegetation secondarization, as well as increasing fragmentation. At least, 42% of the dense restinga habitats was destroyed due to human activities. Five conservation and restoration strategies were proposed in a local scale depending on the percentage of native vegetation cover on each AU, from the most to less conserved: (a) only conservation; (b) conservation with management; (c) management; (d) management and restoration; and, (e) restoration. The implementation of Agroforestry Systems with agro-successional restoration goals was recommended as an alternative for land use.     

DNA binding studies of antibiotic drug cephalexin using spectroscopic and molecular docking techniques

The purpose of this study was to explore an accurate characterization of the binding interaction of antibiotic drug cephalexin with calf thymus DNA (CT-DNA) as a relevant biological target by using UV absorption, fluorescence spectroscopy and circular dichroism (CD) in vitro under simulated physiological conditions (pH = 7.4) and also through a molecular modeling study. The results showed that the drug interacts with the DNA helix via a minor groove binding mode. The thermodynamic parameters were calculated and showed that the reaction between the drug and CT-DNA was exothermic. In addition, the drug enforced traceable changes in the viscosity of DNA. The molecular modeling results indicated that cephalexin forcefully binds to the minor groove of DNA with a relative binding energy of ?21.02?kJ mol^?1. The obtained theoretical results were in good agreement with those obtained from experimental studies.     

Genetic diversity and structure of the epiphytic foliose lichen Lobaria pindarensis in the Himalayas depends on elevation

The epiphytic lichen Lobaria pindarensis is a Himalayan endemic species with little information on distribution, genetic diversity and structural complexity. During an intensive survey in the Nepal Himalayas, we collected 1256 thallus fragments from 45 phorophyte species to study their distribution and population genetics along an elevational gradient. We quantified genetic diversity and population structure of each symbiont at 17 fungus specific and 9 alga specific microsatellite loci. The Bayesian clustering identified three and two distinct gene pools for mycobiont and photobiont. We found that genetic diversity, allelic richness and gene pool composition and distribution were significantly influenced by elevation. We discovered both clonally and sexually reproduced repeated genotypes of the symbionts.     

广西恩城保护区黑叶猴种群数量和保护现状

黑叶猴是栖息于喀斯特石山地区的珍稀濒危灵长类动物,由于非法捕杀和栖息地丧失,种群数量急剧减少。2017年10-12月,我们采用样方法调查恩城国家级自然保护区及其周边地区黑叶猴的种群分布、数量及保护现状,分析其致危因素,为制定有效管理行动计划提供理论依据。本次调查共记录到黑叶猴夜宿地89处,其中有43处夜宿地下方有新鲜排泄物。结合本次调查和访问,确定黑叶猴的种群数量为18群100~105只,包括1只全白化黑叶猴成年雌性个体;其中11群分布在保护区内,7群分布在保护区外。猴群由3~12只个体组成。栖息地破碎化和退化是威胁恩城保护区黑叶猴种群生存的主要因素。     

精细化管理在病理学技术质量控制中的应用

精准医疗是近年来医学的发展方向,精准医疗依赖于精准的诊断,而精准诊断则需要高质量病理学切片技术作为支撑。武汉大学人民医院病理科将精细化管理理念融入病理学技术质控和管理工作的每一环节,通过采用不同颜色包埋框对组织分类、时间梯度法调控出片时间、根据人员资质及医疗风险对病理学技术人员分级授权、专人专机负责制、信息化管理、PDCA循环法持续改进等管理措施为精准病理学诊断打好基础,大大提高了诊断准确率和及时率,为临床病理学诊断提供了可靠的技术支撑。