Adipose triglyceride lipase regulates eicosanoid production in activated human mast cells

Human mast cells (MCs) contain TG-rich cytoplasmic lipid droplets (LDs) with high arachidonic acid (AA) content. Here, we investigated the functional role of adipose TG lipase (ATGL) in TG hydrolysis and the ensuing release of AA as substrate for eicosanoid generation by activated human primary MCs in culture. Silencing of ATGL in MCs by siRNAs induced the accumulation of neutral lipids in LDs. IgE-dependent activation of MCs triggered the secretion of the two major eicosanoids, prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) and leukotriene C4 (LTC4). The immediate release of PGD2 from the activated MCs was solely dependent on cyclooxygenase (COX) 1, while during the delayed phase of lipid mediator production, the inducible COX-2 also contributed to its release. Importantly, when ATGL-silenced MCs were activated, the secretion of both PGD2 and LTC4 was significantly reduced. Interestingly, the inhibitory effect on the release of LTC4 was even more pronounced in ATGL-silenced MCs than in cytosolic phospholipase A₂-silenced MCs. These data show that ATGL hydrolyzes AA-containing TGs present in human MC LDs and define ATGL as a novel regulator of the substrate availability of AA for eicosanoid generation upon MC activation.     

Calling at the highway: The spatiotemporal constraint of road noise on Pacific chorus frog communication

Loss of acoustic habitat due to anthropogenic noise is a key environmental stressor for vocal amphibian species, a taxonomic group that is experiencing global population declines. The Pacific chorus frog (Pseudacris regilla) is the most common vocal species of the Pacific Northwest and can occupy human‐dominated habitat types, including agricultural and urban wetlands. This species is exposed to anthropogenic noise, which can interfere with vocalizations during the breeding season. We hypothesized that Pacific chorus frogs would alter the spatial and temporal structure of their breeding vocalizations in response to road noise, a widespread anthropogenic stressor. We compared Pacific chorus frog call structure and ambient road noise levels along a gradient of road noise exposures in the Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA. We used both passive acoustic monitoring and directional recordings to determine source level (i.e., amplitude or volume), dominant frequency (i.e., pitch), call duration, and call rate of individual frogs and to quantify ambient road noise levels. Pacific chorus frogs were unable to change their vocalizations to compensate for road noise. A model of the active space and time (“spatiotemporal communication”) over which a Pacific chorus frog vocalization could be heard revealed that in high‐noise habitats, spatiotemporal communication was drastically reduced for an individual. This may have implications for the reproductive success of this species, which relies on specific call repertoires to portray relative fitness and attract mates. Using the acoustic call parameters defined by this study (frequency, source level, call rate, and call duration), we developed a simplified model of acoustic communication space–time for this species. This model can be used in combination with models that determine the insertion loss for various acoustic barriers to define the impact of anthropogenic noise on the radius of communication in threatened species. Additionally, this model can be applied to other vocal taxonomic groups provided the necessary acoustic parameters are determined, including the frequency parameters and perception thresholds. Reduction in acoustic habitat by anthropogenic noise may emerge as a compounding environmental stressor for an already sensitive taxonomic group.     

Comparative analysis of complete chloroplast genome sequences of two subtropical trees, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phoebe sheareri</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phoebe omeiensis</Emphasis> (Lauraceae)

Phoebe is an economically important genus from the family Lauraceae. It is widely distributed in tropical and subtropical Asia, but systematics of the genus is unclear, and currently there is no species-level phylogeny. Here, we determined the complete chloroplast genome sequences of two species with long-range PCR and next genome sequencing technologies, and identified mutation sites and highly variable regions. These highly variable sites were used to reconstruct the phylogeny. The plastomes of Phoebe sheareri and P. omeiensis were 152, 876, and 152, 855 bp, respectively. Comparative genomic analysis indicated that there are 222 mutation sites including 146 substitutions, 73 indels, and 3 microinversions in both plastomes. Fifty-six single-nucleotide changes were identified in gene-coding regions, and 45 microsatellite sites were found for use in species identification. Fourteen divergence hotspots of 38 variable regions were located. Phylogeny was reconstructed using a Bayesian and maximum likelihood approach for 12 Phoebe species and other five related Lauraceae based on 15 of the highly variable regions including accD-psaI, atpB-rbcL, ndhC-trnV, ndhF-rpl32, petA-psbJ, psaA, psbA-trnH, rbcL, rps8-rpl14, rps16-trnQ, rpl32-trnL, trnC-petN, trnL-trnF, trnS-trnG, and ycf1 indicated that variability in the chloroplast regions proposed as variable is enough to detect divergence events among 12 taxa of Phoebe, and that maybe also useful to help to elucidate further relationships among other taxa of the genus.     

The Prevalence of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trypanosoma cruzi</Emphasis>, the Causal Agent of Chagas Disease,in Texas Rodent Populations

Rodent species were assessed as potential hosts of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiologic agent of Chagas disease, from five sites throughout Texas in sylvan and disturbed habitats. A total of 592 rodents were captured, resulting in a wide taxonomic representation of 11 genera and 15 species. Heart samples of 543 individuals were successfully analyzed by SybrGreen-based quantitative PCR (qPCR) targeting a 166 bp fragment of satellite DNA of T. cruzi. Eight rodents representing six species from six genera and two families were infected with T. cruzi. This is the first report of T. cruzi in the pygmy mouse (Baiomys taylori) and the white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) for the USA. All infected rodents were from the southernmost site (Las Palomas Wildlife Management Area). No differences in pathogen prevalence existed between disturbed habitats (5 of 131 tested; 3.8%) and sylvan habitats (3 of 40 tested; 7.5%). Most positives (n = 6, 16% prevalence) were detected in late winter with single positives in both spring (3% prevalence) and fall (1% prevalence). Additionally, 30 Triatoma insects were collected opportunistically from sites in central Texas. Fifty percent of these insects, i.e., 13 T. gerstaeckeri (68%), and two T. lecticularia (100%) were positive for T. cruzi. Comparative sequence analyses of 18S rRNA of samples provided identical results with respect to detection of the presence or absence of T. cruzi and assigned T. cruzi from rodents collected in late winter to lineage TcI. T. cruzi from Triatoma sp. and rodents from subsequent collections in spring and fall were different, however, and could not be assigned to other lineages with certainty.     

Speciation in a keystone plant genus is driven by elevation: a case study in New Guinean Ficus

Much of the world's insect and plant biodiversity is found in tropical and subtropical ‘hotspots’, which often include long elevational gradients. These gradients may function as ‘diversity pumps’ and contribute to both regional and local species richness. Climactic conditions on such gradients often change rapidly along short vertical distances and may result in local adaptation and high levels of population genetic structure in plants and insects. We investigated the population genetic structure of two species of Ficus (Moraceae) along a continuously forested elevational gradient in Papua New Guinea. This speciose plant genus is pollinated by tiny, species‐specific and highly coevolved chalcid wasps (Agaonidae) and represented by at least 73 species at our study gradient. We present results from two species of Ficus sampled from six elevations between 200 m and 2700 m a.s.l. (almost the entire elevational range of the genus) and 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci. These results show that strong barriers to gene flow exist between 1200 m and 1700 m a.s.l. Whereas lowland populations are panmictic across distances over 70 km, montane populations can be disjunct over 4 km, despite continuous forest cover. We suggest that the limited gene flow between populations of these two species of montane Ficus may be driven by environmental limitations on pollinator or seed dispersal in combination with local adaptation of Ficus populations. Such a mechanism may have wider implications for plant and pollinator speciation across long and continuously forested elevational gradients if generalist insect pollinators and vertebrate seed dispersers also form populations based on elevation.     

Dynamic Lung Tumor Tracking for Stereotactic Ablative Body Radiation Therapy

Physicians considering stereotactic ablative body radiation therapy (SBRT) for the treatment of extracranial cancer targets must be aware of the sizeable risks for normal tissue injury and the hazards of physical tumor miss. A first-of-its-kind SBRT platform achieves high-precision ablative radiation treatment through a combination of versatile real-time imaging solutions and sophisticated tumor tracking capabilities. It uses dual-diagnostic kV x-ray units for stereoscopic open-loop feedback of cancer target intrafraction movement occurring as a consequence of respiratory motions and heartbeat. Image-guided feedback drives a gimbaled radiation accelerator (maximum 15 x 15 cm field size) capable of real-time ±4 cm pan-and-tilt action. Robot-driven ±60° pivots of an integrated ±185° rotational gantry allow for coplanar and non-coplanar accelerator beam set-up angles, ultimately permitting unique treatment degrees of freedom. State-of-the-art software aids real-time six dimensional positioning, ensuring irradiation of cancer targets with sub-millimeter accuracy (0.4 mm at isocenter). Use of these features enables treating physicians to steer radiation dose to cancer tumor targets while simultaneously reducing radiation dose to normal tissues. By adding respiration correlated computed tomography (CT) and 2-[¹⁸F] fluoro-2-deoxy-ᴅ-glucose (¹⁸F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) images into the planning system for enhanced tumor target contouring, the likelihood of physical tumor miss becomes substantially less¹. In this article, we describe new radiation plans for the treatment of moving lung tumors.     

Lifestyle and Ice: The Relationship between Ecological Specialization and Response to Pleistocene Climate Change

Major climatic changes in the Pleistocene had significant effects on marine organisms and the environments in which they lived. The presence of divergent patterns of demographic history even among phylogenetically closely-related species sharing climatic changes raises questions as to the respective influence of species-specific traits on population structure. In this work we tested whether the lifestyle of Antarctic notothenioid benthic and pelagic fish species from the Southern Ocean influenced the concerted population response to Pleistocene climatic fluctuations. This was done by a comparative analysis of sequence variation at the cyt b and S7 loci in nine newly sequenced and four re-analysed species. We found that all species underwent more or less intensive changes in population size but we also found consistent differences between demographic histories of pelagic and benthic species. Contemporary pelagic populations are significantly more genetically diverse and bear traces of older demographic expansions than less diverse benthic species that show evidence of more recent population expansions. Our findings suggest that the lifestyles of different species have strong influences on their responses to the same environmental events. Our data, in conjunction with previous studies showing a constant diversification tempo of these species during the Pleistocene, support the hypothesis that Pleistocene glaciations had a smaller effect on pelagic species than on benthic species whose survival may have relied upon ephemeral refugia in shallow shelf waters. These findings suggest that the interaction between lifestyle and environmental changes should be considered in genetic analyses.