Rediagnosis of the monotypic genus Lepadicyathus Prokofiev 2005 (Gobiesocidae: Diademichthyinae) and redescription of Lepadicyathus minor (Briggs 1955), new combination

Ichthyological Research - A revised diagnosis is provided for the poorly known clingfish genus Lepadicyathus Prokofiev 2005. The genus belongs to Diademichthyinae (sensu Conway et al.) and is...     

Albumin — vitamin D-binding protein haplotypes in Asian-Pacific populations

Summary We have determined the various haplotypic combinations between alleles as well as restriction fragment length polymorphisms of two linked genetic markers, albumin and vitamin D-binding protein or group-specific component, in a number of Asian-Pacific populations. Using the partial maximum likelihood method, we constructed a phylogenetic network from the haplotype frequencies to assess relationships among the populations sampled. No systematic linkage disequilibrium was detected between most of the combinations, suggesting a lack of operation of any selection pressure at the two loci. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed the known interrelationships among various populations in the Asian-Pacific region. The Australian aborigines clustered closely with the non-Austronesian-speaking highlanders from Papua New Guinea, as expected. Similarly, the Austronesian-speaking Polynesians, Micronesians, and the Southeast Asians branched off together as a separate group. The position of the Austronesian-speaking Tolais from New Britain with respect to other populations from the Southwest Pacific was anomalous. The Tolais revealed a strong affinity with the Australian aborigines, which is inexplicable. The populations from China formed a tight cluster with other populations from the Asian-Pacific region. Genetic interrelationships of these populations with the white Australians were remote, which is in accordance with the known affinities of various human racial groups.     

Biogeography of benthic macroinvertebrates in estuaries along the Gulf of Mexico and western Atlantic coasts1,2

A multimetric fish Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) was composed to assess the biotic integrity of Flandrian water bodies. As fish communities differ substantially between standing waters, running waters of the bream zone and running waters of the barbel zone, eight candidate metrics for each of these water types or zones were identified, representing three major classes of biological attributes. These are species richness and composition, fish condition and abundance, trophic composition. The metrics were tested and modified where needed. The IBI was applied throughout Flanders on 104 locations in standing waters, 500 locations in waters of the bream zone and 257 locations in waters of the barbel zone. Standing waters scored substantially different from running waters. Standing waters rarely contained no fish at all, but their fish communities were very often poor to very poor. Waters of the bream and barbel zone were often fishless (respectively 40% and 35% of all locations contain no fish), but the locations with fish usually scored reasonable to poor. Only 18.5% of all locations were classified as reasonable to excellent (IBI classes 4 or lower on a scale from 1 to 9) and were considered to satisfy the basic ecological quality demands. The Leie-, Dijle-, Dender- and Schelde-basins had a very poor quality (more than 50% of the locations contained no fish). The Maas-, Grote and Kleine Nete-basins scored rather well, with respectively, 44%, 48% and 68% of the locations achieving an IBI of 4 or lower. The IBI is a valuable and complementary tool to assess the ecological quality of water bodies as suggested in the proposal for a Water Framework Directive by the European Commission.     

The deubiquitinating enzyme USP37 enhances CHK1 activity to promote the cellular response to replication stress

The deubiquitinating enzyme USP37 is known to contribute to timely onset of S phase and progression of mitosis. However, it is not clear if USP37 is required beyond S-phase entry despite expression and activity of USP37 peaking within S phase. We have utilized flow cytometry and microscopy to analyze populations of replicating cells labeled with thymidine analogs and monitored mitotic entry in synchronized cells to determine that USP37-depleted cells exhibited altered S-phase kinetics. Further analysis revealed that cells depleted of USP37 harbored increased levels of the replication stress and DNA damage markers γH2AX and 53BP1 in response to perturbed replication. Depletion of USP37 also reduced cellular proliferation and led to increased sensitivity to agents that induce replication stress. Underlying the increased sensitivity, we found that the checkpoint kinase 1 is destabilized in the absence of USP37, attenuating its function. We further demonstrated that USP37 deubiquitinates checkpoint kinase 1, promoting its stability. Together, our results establish that USP37 is required beyond S-phase entry to promote the efficiency and fidelity of replication. These data further define the role of USP37 in the regulation of cell proliferation and contribute to an evolving understanding of USP37 as a multifaceted regulator of genome stability.     

Investigating connectivity and seasonal differences in wind assistance in the migration of Common Sandpipers

Many migratory bird species have undergone recent population declines, but there is considerable variation in trends between species and between populations employing different migratory routes. Understanding species-specific migratory behaviours is therefore of critical importance for their conservation. The Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos is an Afro-Palaearctic migratory bird species whose European populations are in decline. We fitted geolocators to individuals breeding in England or wintering in Senegal to determine their migration routes and breeding or non-breeding locations. We used these geolocator data in combination with previously published data from Scottish breeding birds to determine the distributions and migratory connectivity of breeding (English and Scottish) and wintering (Senegalese) populations of the Common Sandpiper, and used simulated random migrations to investigate wind assistance during autumn and spring migration. We revealed that the Common Sandpipers tagged in England spent the winter in West Africa, and that at least some birds wintering in Senegal bred in Scandinavia; this provides insights into the links between European breeding populations and their wintering grounds. Furthermore, birds tagged in England, Scotland and Senegal overlapped considerably in their migration routes and wintering locations, meaning that local breeding populations could be buffered against habitat change, but susceptible to large-scale environmental changes. These findings also suggest that contrasting population trends in England and Scotland are unlikely to be the result of population-specific migration routes and wintering regions. Finally, we found that birds used wind to facilitate their migration in autumn, but less so in spring, when the wind costs associated with their migrations were higher than expected at random. This was despite the wind costs of simulated migrations being significantly lower in spring than in autumn. Indeed, theory suggests that individuals are under greater time pressures in spring than in autumn because of the time constraints associated with reproduction.     

Pyrazole compound BPR1P0034 with potent and selective anti-influenza virus activity

Background

Influenza viruses are a major cause of morbidity and mortality around the world. More recently, a swine-origin influenza A (H1N1) virus that is spreading via human-to-human transmission has become a serious public concern. Although vaccination is the primary strategy for preventing infections, influenza antiviral drugs play an important role in a comprehensive approach to controlling illness and transmission. In addition, a search for influenza-inhibiting drugs is particularly important in the face of high rate of emergence of influenza strains resistant to several existing influenza antivirals.

Methods

We searched for novel anti-influenza inhibitors using a cell-based neutralization (inhibition of virus-induced cytopathic effect) assay. After screening 20,800 randomly selected compounds from a library from ChemDiv, Inc., we found that BPR1P0034 has sub-micromolar antiviral activity. The compound was resynthesized in five steps by conventional chemical techniques. Lead optimization and a structure-activity analysis were used to improve potency. Time-of-addition assay was performed to target an event in the virus life cycle.

Results

The 50% effective inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) of BPR1P0034 was 0.42 ± 0.11 μM, when measured with a plaque reduction assay. Viral protein and RNA synthesis of A/WSN/33 (H1N1) was inhibited by BPR1P0034 and the virus-induced cytopathic effects were thus significantly reduced. BPR1P0034 exhibited broad inhibition spectrum for influenza viruses but showed no antiviral effect for enteroviruses and echovirus 9. In a time-of-addition assay, in which the compound was added at different stages along the viral replication cycle (such as at adsorption or after adsorption), its antiviral activity was more efficient in cells treated with the test compound between 0 and 2 h, right after viral infection, implying that an early step of viral replication might be the target of the compound. These results suggest that BPR1P0034 targets the virus during viral uncoating or viral RNA importation into the nucleus.

Conclusions

To the best of our knowledge, BPR1P0034 is the first pyrazole-based anti-influenza compound ever identified and characterized from high throughput screening to show potent (sub-μM) antiviral activity. We conclude that BPR1P0034 has potential antiviral activity, which offers an opportunity for the development of a new anti-influenza virus agent.     

The breeding productivity of dark-bellied brent geese and curlew sandpipers in relation to changes in the numbers of arctic foxes and lemmings on the Taimyr Peninsula, Siberia —

There were about three-year cycles in the populations of arctic foxes, and the breeding productivities of brent geese and curlew sandpipers on the Taimyr Peninsula, Russia, The populations of arctic foxes and lemmings changed in synchrony. The breeding productivities of the birds tended to be good when the arctic foxes were increasing in numbers and poor when the arctic foxes were decreasing. There was a negative relationship between arctic fox numbers (or occupied lairs) and the breeding productivity of brent geese in the following year. Although there was evidence of wide-spread synchrony In the lemming cycle across the Taimyr Peninsula, some localities showed differences, However, such sites would still have been influenced by the general pattern of fox abundance in the typical tundra zone of the Taimyr Peninsula, where most of the arctic foxes breed and from which extensive movements of foxes occur after a decline in lemming numbers. The results support a prey-switching hypothesis (also known as the alternative prey hypothesis) whereby arctic foxes, and other predators, feed largely on lemmings when these are abundant or increasing, but switch to birds when the lemming population is small or declining. The relationships between arctic foxes, lemmings and brent geese may be further influenced by snowny owls which create fox-exclusion zones around their nests, thus providing safe nesting areas for the geese.