Invasion genetics of the Eurasian spiny waterflea: evidence for bottlenecks and gene flow using microsatellites

The Eurasian spiny waterflea (Bythotrephes longimanus) is a predacious zooplankter that has increased its range in Europe and is rapidly invading inland water-bodies throughout North America's Great Lakes region. To examine the genetics of these invasions, we isolated five microsatellite DNA loci with between 5 and 19 alleles per locus. We sampled three populations where B. longimanus has been historically present (Switzerland, Italy, and Finland) as well as an introduced European population (the Netherlands) and three North American populations (Lakes Erie, Superior, Shebandowan). Consistent with a bottleneck during colonization (i.e. founder effect), average heterozygosities of the four European populations ranged from 0.310 to 0.599, and were higher than that of three North American populations (0.151-0.220). Pairwise F(ST) estimates among North American populations (0.002-0.063) were not significantly different from zero and were much lower than among European populations (0.208-0.474). This is consistent with a scenario of high gene flow among North American populations relative to that of European ones. Contrary to an invasion bottleneck, however, Erie and Superior populations contained similar numbers of rare alleles as European populations. Assignment tests identified several migrant genotypes in all introduced populations (the Netherlands, Erie, Superior, Shebandowan), but rarely in native ones (Switzerland, Italy and Finland). A large number of genotypes from North America were assigned to our Italian population suggesting a second, previously unidentified, invasion source somewhere in the region of northern Italy. Together, our results support an invasion bottleneck for North American populations that has been largely offset by gene flow from multiple native sources, as well as gene flow among introduced populations.     

Autoimmune-associated PTPN22 R620W Variation Reduces Phosphorylation of Lymphoid Phosphatase on an Inhibitory Tyrosine Residue

A missense C1858T single nucleotide polymorphism in the PTPN22 gene recently emerged as a major risk factor for human autoimmunity. PTPN22 encodes the lymphoid tyrosine phosphatase (LYP), which forms a complex with the kinase Csk and is a critical negative regulator of signaling through the T cell receptor. The C1858T single nucleotide polymorphism results in the LYP-R620W variation within the LYP-Csk interaction motif. LYP-W620 exhibits a greatly reduced interaction with Csk and is a gain-of-function inhibitor of signaling. Here we show that LYP constitutively interacts with its substrate Lck in a Csk-dependent manner. T cell receptor-induced phosphorylation of LYP by Lck on an inhibitory tyrosine residue releases tonic inhibition of signaling by LYP. The R620W variation disrupts the interaction between Lck and LYP, leading to reduced phosphorylation of LYP, which ultimately contributes to gain-of-function inhibition of T cell signaling.     

ProNGF\NGF imbalance triggers learning and memory deficits,neurodegeneration and spontaneous epileptic-like discharges in transgenic mice

ProNGF, the precursor of mature nerve growth factor (NGF), is the most abundant form of NGF in the brain. ProNGF and mature NGF differ significantly in their receptor interaction properties and in their bioactivity. ProNGF increases markedly in the cortex of Alzheimer''s disease (AD) brains and proNGF\NGF imbalance has been postulated to play a role in neurodegeneration. However, a direct proof for a causal link between increased proNGF and AD neurodegeneration is lacking. In order to evaluate the consequences of increased levels of proNGF in the postnatal brain, transgenic mice expressing a furin cleavage-resistant form of proNGF, under the control of the neuron-specific mouse Thy1.2 promoter, were derived and characterized. Different transgenic lines displayed a phenotypic gradient of neurodegenerative severity features. We focused the analysis on the two lines TgproNGF#3 and TgproNGF#72, which shared learning and memory impairments in behavioral tests, cholinergic deficit and increased Aβ-peptide immunoreactivity. In addition, TgproNGF#3 mice developed Aβ oligomer immunoreactivity, as well as late diffuse astrocytosis. Both TgproNGF lines also display electrophysiological alterations related to spontaneous epileptic-like events. The results provide direct evidence that alterations in the proNGF/NGF balance in the adult brain can be an upstream driver of neurodegeneration, contributing to a circular loop linking alterations of proNGF/NGF equilibrium to excitatory/inhibitory synaptic imbalance and amyloid precursor protein (APP) dysmetabolism.     

Identification and characterisation of seed storage protein transcripts from Lupinus angustifolius

Background  

In legumes, seed storage proteins are important for the developing seedling and are an important source of protein for humans and animals. Lupinus angustifolius (L.), also known as narrow-leaf lupin (NLL) is a grain legume crop that is gaining recognition as a potential human health food as the grain is high in protein and dietary fibre, gluten-free and low in fat and starch.     

First record of planktonic crustaceans in Sardinian reservoirs

Sardinian man-made lakes are reservoirs of species richness, hosting zooplankton taxa from the Mediterranean region and North Africa. To provide a first record of the taxa composition and diversity of zooplankton communities, we sampled 15 reservoirs during 2008–2009, from the north of the island to the south, representative of a range of size, depth, renewal time, and trophy. The survey was complemented by seasonal sampling in one of the largest lakes studied. Water samples collected from surface to bottom provided data on hydrochemistry and trophy. Crustacean dormant stages were inspected from sediments of the richest, and most diverse, Lake Sos Canales. RDA suggested that productivity, water depth, renewal time and altitude were the main variables related to taxa composition. The ubiquitous Copidodiaptomus numidicus, and its persistence in the water column, resulted from the production of subitaneous eggs throughout the year, an adaptive strategy in perennial water bodies. Genetic analyses of DNA sequences of the diagnostic gene ND5 placed the Sardinian Daphnia pulex in the North American group. Moreover, the ND5 sequence found in Sardinia was identical with that of an asexual hybrid clone between the American D. pulex and American D. pulicaria that replaced native D. pulex throughout Africa. The presence of this ND5 haplotype in Sardinia shows that this invasive clone also poses an invasive threat to native populations in Europe.     

Mitochondrial Capture Misleads about Ecological Speciation in the Daphnia pulex Complex

The North American ecological species Daphnia pulicaria and Daphnia pulex are thought to have diverged from a common ancestor by adaptation to sympatric but ecologically distinct lake and pond habitats respectively. Based on mtDNA relationships, European D . pulicaria is considered a different species only distantly related to its North American counterpart, but both species share a lactate dehydrogenase (Ldh) allele F supposedly involved in lake adaptation in North America, and the same allele is also carried by the related Holarctic Daphnia tenebrosa . The correct inference of the species’ ancestral relationships is therefore critical for understanding the origin of their adaptive divergence. Our species tree inferred from unlinked nuclear loci for D . pulicaria and D . pulex resolved the European and North American D . pulicaria as sister clades, and we argue that the discordant mtDNA gene tree is best explained by capture of D . pulex mtDNA by D . pulicaria in North America. The Ldh gene tree shows that F-class alleles in D . pulicaria and D . tenebrosa are due to common descent (as opposed to introgression), with D . tenebrosa alleles paraphyletic with respect to D . pulicaria alleles. That D . tenebrosa still segregates the ancestral and derived amino acids at the two sites distinguishing the pond and lake alleles suggests that D . pulicaria inherited the derived states from the D . tenebrosa ancestry. Our results suggest that some adaptations restricting the gene flow between D . pulicaria and D . pulex might have evolved in response to selection in ancestral environments rather than in the species’ current sympatric habitats. The Arctic ( D . tenebrosa ) populations are likely to provide important clues about these issues.     

Reticulate evolution of the Daphnia pulex complex as revealed by nuclear markers

The study of species complexes is of particular interest to understand how evolutionary young species maintain genomic integrity. The Daphnia pulex complex has been intensively studied as it includes species that dominate freshwater environments in the Northern hemisphere and as it is the sole North American complex that shows transitions to obligate parthenogenesis. Past studies using mitochondrial markers have revealed the presence of 10 distinct lineages in the complex. This study is the first to examine genetic relationships among seven species of the complex at nuclear markers (nine microsatellite loci and one protein-coding gene). Clones belonging to the seven species of the Daphnia pulex complex were characterized at the mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase (ND5) gene and at the Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) locus. K-means, principal coordinate analyses and phylogenetic network analyses on the microsatellite data all separated European D. pulicaria, D. tenebrosa, North American D. pulex, D. pulicaria and their hybrids into distinct clusters. The hybrid cluster was composed of diploid and polyploid hybrids with D. pulex mitochondria and some clones with D. pulicaria mitochondria. By contrast, the phylogeny of the D. pulex complex using Rab4 was not well resolved but still showed clusters consisting mostly of D. pulex alleles and others of D. pulicaria alleles. Incomplete lineage sorting and hybridization may obscure genetic relationships at this locus. This study shows that hybridization and introgression have played an important role in the evolution of this complex.     

Functional and computer modelling studies of haemoglobin from horse. The haemoglobin system of the Sardinian wild dwarf horse.

A study was made of the haemoglobin (Hb) system from the Sardinian dwarf horse (Equus caballus jara), one of the last surviving wild horse species in Europe. The oxygen binding properties of the whole haemolysate and of the four different horse Hbs, separated by ion-exchange chromatography, were studied with special regard to the effect of chloride, 2,3-diphosphoglycerate and lactate. Results indicate that no significant functional differences exist between the four Hb components of horse haemolysate. Moreover, the molecular basis of the intrinsically low oxygen affinity and of the weak interaction of horse Hb with 2,3-diphosphoglycerate is discussed in the light of the primary structure of the molecule and of the results of a computer modelling approach. On these bases, it is suggested that the A1 (Thr-->Ser) and A2 (Pro-->Gly) substitutions observed in the beta chains from horse Hb may be responsible for the displacement of the A helix that is known to be a key structural feature of those Hbs that display an altered interaction with 2,3-diphosphoglycerate as compared with human Hb.     

Characterization of a <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lactobacillus plantarum</Emphasis> Strain Able to Produce Tyramine and Partial Cloning of a Putative Tyrosine Decarboxylase Gene

The aim of this article was to analyze the ability of wine Lactobacillus plantarum strains to form tyramine. Preliminary identification of L. plantarum strains was performed by amplification of the recA gene. Primers pREV and PlanF, ParaF and PentF were used respectively as reverse and forward primers in the polymerase chain reaction tests as previously reported. Furthermore, the gene encoding for the tyrosine decarboxylase (TDC) was partially cloned from one strain identified as L. plantarum. The strain was further analyzed by 16S rDNA sequence and confirmed as belonging to L. plantarum species. The tyrosine decarboxylase activity was investigated and tyramine was determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography method. Moreover, a negative effect of sugars such as glucose and fructose and L-malic acid on tyrosine decarboxylase activity was observed. The results suggest that, occasionally, L. plantarum is able to produce tyramine in wine and this ability is apparently confined only to L. plantarum strains harboring the tdc gene.     

Concentrations of free radicals and beta-endorphins in repeat breeder cows

Repeat breeding (RB) is one of the major problems that affect the reproductive efficiency and economy of milk production in dairy animals. So far, the etiopathogenesis of this pathology has not been defined completely.

Stress has been hypothesized to be a cause of impaired reproductive efficiency. Stress may cause an overproduction of beta-endorphins and free radicals; in particular, reactive oxygen species (ROS). The aim of this work is to determine the concentrations of these substances in RB cows and to evaluate the correlation with the serum level of progesterone. The study was performed on 60 dairy cows: 26 RB and 34 control cows. Blood samples were collected on day 12 and day 16, after artificial insemination (AI) in all subjects, in order to assess the concentrations of progesterone, free radicals and beta-endorphins. The stressors, free radicals and beta-endorphins, that we considered, were higher in repeat breeders (day 12, 93.32(±1.91) UCarr and 0.50(±0.03) ng/ml; day 16, 94.42(±1.91) UCarr and 0.61(±0.03) ng/ml), with a lower level of progesterone, which probably is responsible for failure to conceive. The stress factors (free radicals and beta-endorphins) may actually enhance each other and induce an inhibition of progesterone synthesis in repeat breeders.