Conservation Research Is Not Happening Where It Is Most Needed

Target 19, set by the Convention on Biological Diversity, seeks to improve the knowledge, science base, and technologies relating to biodiversity. We will fail to achieve this target unless prolific biases in the field of conservation science are addressed. We reveal that comparatively less research is undertaken in the world’s most biodiverse countries, the science conducted in these countries is often not led by researchers based in-country, and these scientists are also underrepresented in important international fora. Mitigating these biases requires wide-ranging solutions: reforming open access publishing policies, enhancing science communication strategies, changing author attribution practices, improving representation in international processes, and strengthening infrastructure and human capacity for research in countries where it is most needed.In the environmental sciences, the scientific process generates evidence for policies and practices. Published evidence indicates that the quality standards associated with peer review have been met. Publishing also provides others with access to the evidence being shared, and increasingly, to the data and methodological processes underlying it. There are, however, strong biases in the peer-reviewed literature.Biodiversity and the threats to its persistence are not uniformly distributed across the globe and therefore some areas demand comparatively greater scientific attention. If research is biased away from the most biodiverse areas, then this will accentuate the impacts of the global biodiversity crisis and reduce our capacity to protect and manage the natural ecosystems that underpin human well-being. Target 19 of the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) states that “By 2020, knowledge, the science base, and technologies relating to biodiversity, its values, functioning, status and trends, and the consequences of its loss, are improved, widely shared and transferred, and applied” [1]. Biases in conservation science will prevent us from achieving this target.We conducted the first comprehensive analysis of publishing trends of the conservation science literature. We identified all publications from 2014 on the topic of “conservation” in the research areas of environmental sciences, ecology, biodiversity conservation, plant sciences, zoology, and geography. We searched both the Thomson Reuters Zoological Records and Web of Science Core Collection databases, which returned 10,036 scientific publications (from 1,061 journals), after the duplicate, unrelated, and incomplete records were removed. For a subset of these publications (n = 7,593, or 81%), we manually identified at least one topic country, and we determined the relative conservation importance of these countries for mammal conservation [2] as well as a broader definition of conservation importance that considers richness of vascular plants, endemic species, and functional species [3].The countries for which knowledge is sparse coincide with where research is most urgently needed. The top five countries, ranked according to relative importance for mammal conservation (i.e, Indonesia, Madagascar, Peru, Mexico, and Australia), were represented in 11.9% of the publications (Fig 1). If we consider the broader definition of conservation importance that reflects the richness of vascular plants, endemic species, and functional species, then the top five countries (i.e., Ecuador, Costa Rica, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Papua New Guinea) are the focus of only 1.6% of publications (4,5], will continue to be populated with biased data.Open in a separate windowFig 1Global distribution of publications on biodiversity conservation (S1 Data).

Table 1

Publishing trends and representation in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Specialist Groups or the Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) for (A) the countries ranked highest in terms of importance for mammal conservation [2], (B) the countries ranked highest in terms of biodiversity [3], and (C) the United States and United Kingdom, for the purposes of comparison (S1 Data).

Follistatin Protein Enhances Satellite Cell Counts in Reinnervated Muscle

Background Muscle recovery following peripheral nerve repair is sup-optimal. Follistatin (FST), a potent muscle stimulant, enhances muscle size and satellite cell counts following reinnervation when administered as recombinant FST DNA via viral vectors. Local administration of recombinant FST protein, if effective, would be more clinically translatable but has yet to be investigated following muscle reinnervation. Objective  The aim of this study is to assess the effect of direct delivery of recombinant FST protein on muscle recovery following muscle reinnervation. Materials and Methods  In total, 72 Sprague-Dawley rats underwent temporary (3 or 6 months) denervation or sham denervation. After reinnervation, rats received FST protein (isoform FS-288) or sham treatment via a subcutaneous osmotic pump delivery system. Outcome measures included muscle force, muscle histomorphology, and FST protein quantification. Results  Follistatin treatment resulted in smaller muscles after 3 months denervation ( p  = 0.019) and reduced force after 3 months sham denervation ( p  < 0.001). Conversely, after 6 months of denervation, FST treatment trended toward increased force output ( p  = 0.066). Follistatin increased satellite cell counts after denervation ( p  < 0.001) but reduced satellite cell counts after sham denervation ( p  = 0.037). Conclusion  Follistatin had mixed effects on muscle weight and force. Direct FST protein delivery enhanced satellite cell counts following reinnervation. The positive effect on the satellite cell population is intriguing and warrants further investigation.     

Bone Morphogenetic Protein 15 in the Pro-Mature Complex Form Enhances Bovine Oocyte Developmental Competence

Developmental competence of in vitro matured (IVM) oocytes needs to be improved and this can potentially be achieved by adding recombinant bone morphogenetic protein 15 (BMP15) or growth differentiation factor (GDF9) to IVM. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of a purified pro-mature complex form of recombinant human BMP15 versus the commercially available bioactive forms of BMP15 and GDF9 (both isolated mature regions) during IVM on bovine embryo development and metabolic activity. Bovine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs) were matured in vitro in control medium or treated with 100 ng/ml pro-mature BMP15, mature BMP15 or mature GDF9 +/− FSH. Metabolic measures of glucose uptake and lactate production from COCs and autofluorescence of NAD(P)H, FAD and GSH were measured in oocytes after IVM. Following in vitro fertilisation and embryo culture, day 8 blastocysts were stained for cell numbers. COCs matured in medium +/− FSH containing pro-mature BMP15 displayed significantly improved blastocyst development (57.7±3.9%, 43.5±4.2%) compared to controls (43.3±2.4%, 28.9±3.7%) and to mature GDF9+FSH (36.1±3.0%). The mature form of BMP15 produced intermediate levels of blastocyst development; not significantly different to control or pro-mature BMP15 levels. Pro-mature BMP15 increased intra-oocyte NAD(P)H, and reduced glutathione (GSH) levels were increased by both forms of BMP15 in the absence of FSH. Exogenous BMP15 in its pro-mature form during IVM provides a functional source of oocyte-secreted factors to improve bovine blastocyst development. This form of BMP15 may prove useful for improving cattle and human artificial reproductive technologies.     

Addition of Signal Leader Sequences to the N-Termini of Olfactory Receptor Proteins Enhances Their Expression in Xenopus Oocyte

Several recent papers have reported the difficulties in expressing olfactory receptor proteins (ORs) in heterologous systems, and proposed that some sequences in ORs have negative effects on their efficient expression. To obtain an efficient expression system of ORs, we modified N-terminal sequences of ORs through the addition of exogenous sequences. Three kinds of sequences, designated as 5HT, V, and VL, were used. 5HT and V corresponded to the signal leader (SL) sequences of 5HT₃R and VIPR, respectively. VL corresponded to the first extracellular region of VIPR containing the SL sequence and three potential asparagine- (Asn-) linked glycosylation sites. The myc epitope was also added to the C-termini of the sequences. Several ORs including I7 of rat, GUST43 of rat, Y1 of medaka, FOR1-3 of pufferfish, 47E of carp, and ODR-10 of nematode were subjected to the modifications, and the RNAs encoding modified ORs were injected into Xenopus oocytes. The membrane fraction of the oocytes were analyszed by Western blotting to examine the expression of the proteins. In the cases of ORs modified with 5HT and V, only ODR-10 and 47E, both of which have more than two Asn-linked glycosylation sites in their extracellular regions, were detected as the bands of predicted molecular weights. On the other hand, most of the ORs modified with VL showed the bands of predicted molecular weights. These results suggest that SL sequences together with potential Asn-linked glycosylation sites have positive effects on the expression of ORs in heterologous systems.     

外周血白细胞计数对肥胖者发生代谢综合征的预测价值

目的:探讨正常范围内外周血白细胞计数(peripheral white blood cell counts,WBCC)对肥胖者发生代谢综合征(metabolic syndrome,MS)的预测价值.方法:收集湖南省人民医院体检中心2006年4月～2010年1月体检人群共4067例,排除资料不全者,共2830例纳入研究.其中1367例于l～3年后再次来我院体检.肥胖诊断标准按照2000年国际肥胖工作组规定的亚太地区肥胖标准,其中共有肥胖者1120例.代谢综合征诊断标准采用2004年中华医学会糖尿病学分会关于MS的定义.将325例WBCC正常的肥胖者进行四分位数分组(Q1～Q4),随访1～3年后,比较不同WBCC组别发生MS的风险.结果:1.在1120例肥胖体检人群中,肥胖伴MS者352例,占31.43％.2.325例WBCC正常的肥胖者进行四分位数分组(QI～Q4),随访1～3年后,Q4组发生MS的风险明显增高(25.32％ vs 11.11％,OR=2.712;95％ CI:1.149-6.400,P＜0.05).结论:1).肥胖人群中,肥胖伴MS者占31.43％.2).正常范围内WBCC的升高可预测肥胖者MS的发生.     

Costs Associated with Malaria in Pregnancy in the Brazilian Amazon,a Low Endemic Area Where Plasmodium vivax Predominates

BackgroundInformation on costs associated with malaria in pregnancy (MiP) in low transmission areas where Plasmodium vivax predominates is so far missing. This study estimates health system and patient costs of MiP in the Brazilian Amazon.ConclusionDespite being an area of low risk malaria transmission, MiP is responsible for a significant economic burden in Manaus. Especially when multiple infections are considered, costs associated with P. vivax are higher than costs associated with P. falciparum. The information generated may help health policy decisions for the current control and future elimination of malaria in the area.     

Optimizing IVF with sexed sperm in cattle

Sperm-sorting by flow cytometry separates X-sperm from Y-sperm with an accuracy as high as 90% or more. This technology offers farmers and the livestock industry the potential to nearly double productivity, by producing the desired sex to optimize breeding programs. Sorting speed and fertility variation of sorted sperm, however, remain limiting factors for widespread application, particularly in traditional AI programs. Alternatively, in vitro fertilization is a feasible and efficient means to increase the fertilization efficiency of sex-sorted sperm in cattle. Procedures to increase fertilization rate and improve embryo quality include optimizing heparin concentrations for semen of each bull, reducing fertilization drop size to increase sperm concentration, use of fructose instead of glucose in culture media, and use of vitrification protocols with extremely rapid cooling and warming rates.     

Risk Models and Scoring Systems for Predicting the Prognosis in Critically Ill Cirrhotic Patients with Acute Kidney Injury: A Prospective Validation Study

Background

Cirrhotic patients with acute kidney injury (AKI) admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) show extremely high mortality rates. We have proposed the MBRS scoring system, which can be used for assessing patients on the day of admission to the ICU; this new system involves determination of mean arterial pressure (MAP) and bilirubin level and assessment of respiratory failure and sepsis. We had used this scoring system to analyze the prognosis of ICU cirrhotic patients with AKI in 2008, and the current study was an external validation of this scoring system.

Methods

A total of 190 cirrhotic patients with AKI were admitted to the ICU between March 2008 and February 2011. We prospectively analyzed and recorded the data for 31 demographic parameters and some clinical characteristic variables on day 1 of admission to the ICU; these variables were considered as predictors of mortality.

Results

The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 73.2% (139/190), and the 6-month mortality rate was 83.2% (158/190). Hepatitis B viral infection (43%) was observed to be the cause of liver disease in most of the patients. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that the MBRS and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation III (ACPACHE III) scores determined on the first day of admission to the ICU were independent predictors of in-hospital mortality in patients. In the analysis of the area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) curves, the MBRS scores showed good discrimination (AUROC: 0.863±0.032, p<0.001) in predicting in-hospital mortality.

Conclusion

On the basis of the results of this external validation, we conclude that the MBRS scoring system is a reproducible, simple, easy-to-apply evaluation tool that can increase the prediction accuracy of short-term prognosis in critically ill cirrhotic patients with AKI.     

Oocyte Maturation in Starfish: Sequential Changes of Oocyte Shape Induced by 1-Methyladenine Associated with Germinal Vesicle Breakdown

Observation of the early events of starfish oocyte maturation revealed a sequential change of the oocyte shape induced by 1-methyladenine (1-MeAde). The lengths of two diameters of the whole oocyte, one parallel to the egg axis (a–v diameter) and the other which is perpendicular to a–v diameter (e diameter) were measured by taking photographs successively. About 10 min after 1–MeAde administration, a sudden decrease of the a–v diameter (shortening of oocyte) occurred followed by a sudden increase (elongation of oocyte). Germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) occurred when the a–v diameter suddenly increased. The change of the oocyte shape occurred differentially in the animal and vegital halves i.e. when the egg-axis diameter shortened the surface of the vegital pole side shrank and the surface of the animal pole side expanded. GVBD was suppressed under hypertonic conditions and facilitated under hypotonic conditions. Cytological examination of the process of GVBD revealed (1) separation of the nuclear membrane from the granular cytoplasmic mass, (2) depression of several parts of the nuclear membrane and the increase of amorphous matrix on the outside of the nuclear membrane, and (3) disappearance (fragmentation) of nuclear membrane. The morphological changes were not the same along the egg-axis temporally and spacially. These observations suggest firstly that the cytoplasm, which has been in a certain quiescent state with a certain rigidity before 1–MeAde administration, not only undergoes a decrease in stiffness but also acquires a contractile property after 1–MeAde administration, and secondly that contractile or cytoskeletal components do not evenly function or are not evenly arranged in the animal and vegital halves.     

Predicting live birth chances for women with multiple consecutive failing IVF cycles: a simple and accurate prediction for routine medical practice

Background

Women having experienced several consecutive failing IVF cycles constitute a critical and particular subset of patients, for which growing perception of irremediable failure, increasing costs and IVF treatment related risks necessitate appropriate decision making when starting or not a new cycle. Predicting chances of LB might constitute a useful tool for discussion between the patient and the clinician. Our essential objective was to dispose of a simple and accurate prediction model for use in routine medical practice. The currently available predictive models applicable to general populations cannot be considered as accurate enough for this purpose.

Methods

Patients with at least four consecutive Failing cycles (CFCs) were selected. We constructed a predictive model of LB occurrence during the last cycle, by using a stepwise logistic regression, using all the baseline patient characteristics and intermediate stage variables during the four first cycles.

Results

On as set of 151 patients, we identified five determinant predictors: the number of previous cycles with at least one gestational sac (NGS), the mean number of good-quality embryos, age, male infertility (MI) aetiology and basal FSH. Our model was characterized by a much higher discrimination as the existing models (C-statistics=0.76), and an excellent calibration.

Conclusions

Couples having experienced multiple IVF failures need precise and appropriate information to decide to resume or interrupt their fertility project. Our essential objective was to dispose of a simple and accurate prediction model to allow a routine practice use. Our model is adapted to this purpose: It is very simple, combines five easily collected variables in a short calculation; it is more accurate than existing models, with a fair discrimination and a well calibrated prediction.     

PRMT1 Is Recruited via DNA-PK to Chromatin Where It Sustains the Senescence-Associated Secretory Phenotype in Response to Cisplatin

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Cyclosporine A Enhances Th2 Bias at the Maternal-Fetal Interface in Early Human Pregnancy with Aid of the Interaction between Maternal and Fetal Cells

Our previous study has demonstrated that cyclosporine A (CsA) administration in vivo induces Th2 bias at the maternal-fetal interface, leading to improved murine pregnancy outcomes. Here, we investigated how CsA treatment in vitro induced Th2 bias at the human maternal-fetal interface in early pregnancy. The cell co-culture in vitro in different combination of component cells at the maternal-fetal interface was established to investigate the regulation of CsA on cytokine production from the interaction of these cells. It was found that interferon (IFN)-γ was produced only by decidual immune cells (DICs), and not by trophoblasts or decidual stromal cells (DSCs); all these cells secreted interleukin (IL)-4, IL-10, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α. Treatment with CsA completely blocked IFN-γ production in DICs and inhibited TNF-α production in all examined cells. CsA increased IL-10 and IL-4 production in trophoblasts co-cultured with DSCs and DICs although CsA treatment did not affect IL-10 or IL-4 production in any of the cells when cultured alone. These results suggest that CsA promotes Th2 bias at the maternal-fetal interface by increasing Th2-type cytokine production in trophoblasts with the aid of DSCs and DICs, while inhibiting Th1-type cytokine production in DICs and TNF-α production in all investigated cells. Our study might be useful in clinical therapeutics for spontaneous pregnancy wastage and other pregnancy complications.     

Development and Validation of a Clinical Scoring System for Predicting Risk of HCC in Asymptomatic Individuals Seropositive for Anti-HCV Antibodies

Background

The development of a risk assessment tool for long-term hepatocellular carcinoma risk would be helpful in identifying high-risk patients and providing information of clinical consultation.

Methods

The model derivation and validation cohorts consisted of 975 and 572 anti-HCV seropositives, respectively. The model included age, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), the ratio of aspirate aminotransferase to ALT, serum HCV RNA levels and cirrhosis status and HCV genotype. Two risk prediction models were developed: one was for all-anti-HCV seropositives, and the other was for anti-HCV seropositives with detectable HCV RNA. The Cox''s proportional hazards models were utilized to estimate regression coefficients of HCC risk predictors to derive risk scores. The cumulative HCC risks in the validation cohort were estimated by Kaplan-Meier methods. The area under receiver operating curve (AUROC) was used to evaluate the performance of the risk models.

Results

All predictors were significantly associated with HCC. The summary risk scores of two models derived from the derivation cohort had predictability of HCC risk in the validation cohort. The summary risk score of the two risk prediction models clearly divided the validation cohort into three groups (p<0.001). The AUROC for predicting 5-year HCC risk in the validation cohort was satisfactory for the two models, with 0.73 and 0.70, respectively.

Conclusion

Scoring systems for predicting HCC risk of HCV-infected patients had good validity and discrimination capability, which may triage patients for alternative management strategies.     

Treatment with the Proteasome Inhibitor MG132 during the End of Oocyte Maturation Improves Oocyte Competence for Development after Fertilization in Cattle

Maturation of the oocyte involves nuclear and cytoplasmic changes that include post-translational processing of proteins. The objective was to investigate whether inhibition of proteasomes during maturation would alter competence of the bovine oocyte for fertilization and subsequent development. Cumulus-oocyte complexes were cultured in the presence or absence of the proteasomal inhibitor MG132 from either 0–6 h or 16–22 h after initiation of maturation. Treatment with MG132 early in maturation prevented progression to meiosis II and reduced fertilization rate and the proportion of oocytes and cleaved embryos that became blastocysts. Conversely, treatment with MG132 late in maturation improved the percentage of oocytes and cleaved embryos that became blastocysts without affecting nuclear maturation or fertilization rate. Optimal results with MG132 were achieved at a concentration of 10 µM – effects were generally not observed at lower or higher concentrations. Using proteomic analysis, it was found that MG132 at the end of maturation increased relative expression of 6 proteins and decreased relative expression of 23. Among those increased by MG132 that are potentially important for oocyte competence are GAPDH, involved in glycolysis, TUBA1C, needed for organellar movement, and two proteins involved in protein folding (P4HB and HYOU1). MG132 decreased amounts of several proteins that exert anti-apoptotic actions including ASNS, HSP90B1, PDIA3 and VCP. Another protein decreased by MG132, CDK5, can lead to apoptosis if aberrantly activated and one protein increased by MG132, P4HB, is anti-apoptotic. Finally, the pregnancy rate of cows receiving embryos produced from oocytes treated with MG132 from 16–22 h of maturation was similar to that for control embryos, suggesting that use of MG132 for production of embryos in vitro does not cause a substantial decrease in embryo quality.     

Plants Know Where It Hurts: Root and Shoot Jasmonic Acid Induction Elicit Differential Responses in Brassica oleracea

Plants respond to herbivore attack by rapidly inducing defenses that are mainly regulated by jasmonic acid (JA). Due to the systemic nature of induced defenses, attack by root herbivores can also result in a shoot response and vice versa, causing interactions between above- and belowground herbivores. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying these interactions. We investigated whether plants respond differently when roots or shoots are induced. We mimicked herbivore attack by applying JA to the roots or shoots of Brassica oleracea and analyzed molecular and chemical responses in both organs. In shoots, an immediate and massive change in primary and secondary metabolism was observed. In roots, the JA-induced response was less extensive and qualitatively different from that in the shoots. Strikingly, in both roots and shoots we also observed differential responses in primary metabolism, development as well as defense specific traits depending on whether the JA induction had been below- or aboveground. We conclude that the JA response is not only tissue-specific but also dependent on the organ that was induced. Already very early in the JA signaling pathway the differential response was observed. This indicates that both organs have a different JA signaling cascade, and that the signal eliciting systemic responses contains information about the site of induction, thus providing plants with a mechanism to tailor their responses specifically to the organ that is damaged.     

Pregnancy in women with pulmonary hypertension

Women with pulmonary hypertension have a high risk of morbidity and mortality during pregnancy. The inability to increase cardiac output leads to heart failure while further risks are introduced with hypercoagulability and decrease in systemic vascular resistance. There is no proof that new advanced therapies for pulmonary hypertension decrease the risk, though some promising results have been reported. However, pregnancy should still be regarded as contraindicated in women with pulmonary hypertension. When pregnancy occurs and termination is declined, pregnancy and delivery should be managed by multidisciplinary services with experience in the management of both pulmonary hypertension and high-risk pregnancies.