scholarly journals Plastic, nutrition and pollution; relationships between ingested plastic and metal concentrations in the livers of two Pachyptila seabirds

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren Roman ◽  
Farzana Kastury ◽  
Sophie Petit ◽  
Rina Aleman ◽  
Chris Wilcox ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Hazard ◽  
Dietary Exposure ◽  
The Body ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Seabird Species ◽  
Significant Relationships ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Plastic Metal ◽  
Liver Concentration ◽  
New Evidence

Abstract Naturally occurring metals and metalloids [metal(loid)s] are essential for the physiological functioning of wildlife; however, environmental contamination by metal(loid) and plastic pollutants is a health hazard. Metal(loid)s may interact with plastic in the environment and there is mixed evidence about whether plastic ingested by wildlife affects metal(loid) absorption/assimilation and concentration in the body. We examined ingested plastic and liver concentration of eleven metal(loid)s in two seabird species: fairy (Pachyptila turtur) and slender-billed prions (P. belcheri). We found significant relationships between ingested plastic and the concentrations of aluminium (Al), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in the liver of prions. We investigated whether the pattern of significant relationships reflected plastic-metal(loid) associations predicted in the scientific literature, including by transfer of metals from ingested plastics or malnutrition due to dietary dilution by plastics in the gut. We found some support for both associations, suggesting that ingested plastic may be connected with dietary dilution / lack of essential nutrients, especially iron, and potential transfer of zinc. We did not find a relationship between plastic and non-essential metal(loid)s, including lead. The effect of plastic was minor compared to that of dietary exposure to metal(oid)s, and small plastic loads (< 3 items) had no discernible link with metal(loid)s. This new evidence shows a relationship between plastic ingestion and liver metal(loid) concentrations in free-living wildlife.

scholarly journals Two new xylophile cytheroid ostracods (Crustacea) from Kuril-Kamchatka Trench, with remarks on the systematics and phylogeny of the family Keysercytheridae, Limnocytheridae, and Paradoxostomatidae

2021 ◽  
Vol 79 ◽  
pp. 171-188
Author(s):  
Hayato Tanaka ◽  
Hyunsu Yoo ◽  
Huyen Thi Minh Pham ◽  
Ivana Karanovic
Keyword(s):  
Deep Sea ◽  
18S Rrna Gene ◽  
The Body ◽  
Northwestern Pacific ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
The Family ◽  
Close Relationship ◽  
Wood Boring

Abstract Keysercythere reticulatasp. nov. and Redekea abyssalissp. nov., collected from the wood fall submerged in the Kuril-Kamchatka Trench (Northwestern Pacific), are only the second records of the naturally occurring, wood-associated ostracod fauna from a depth of over 5000 m. At the same time, K. reticulata is the second and R. abyssalis is the third representative of their respective genera. While Keysercythere Karanovic and Brandão, 2015 species are free-living, deep-sea taxa, all Redekea de Vos, 1953 live symbiotically on the body surface of wood-boring isopods, Limnoria spp. Since R. abyssalis is the only genus representative found in the deep sea, we hypothesize that its ancestor colonized this ecosystem as a result of the symbiotic relationship. Newly collected material enabled us to update molecular phylogeny of Cythreoidea based on 18S rRNA gene sequences, especially to clarify the current systematics of the families Keysercytheridae, Limnocytheridae, and Paradoxostomatidae. The resulting phylogenetic tree supports a close relationship between Keysercythere and Redekea and a distant relationship between two Limnocytheridae lineages, Timiriaseviinae and Limnocytherinae. Consequently, we propose a transfer of Redekea from Paradoxostomatidae to Keysercytheridae, and erecting of the two limnocytherid subfamilies onto the family level. The phylogenetic analysis also implies a close relationship between the nominal Limnocytherinae genus and Keysercythere+Redekea clade, albeit with a low posterior probability, requiring further studies to clarify this.

Stress management: Corpus-based insights into vernacular interpretations of stress

2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-93
Author(s):  
Laurel Smith Stvan
Keyword(s):  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
American English ◽  
Physical Symptom ◽  
The Body ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
The Past ◽  
Academic Texts ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Semantic Shift

Examination of the term stress in naturally occurring vernacular prose provides evidence of three separate senses being conflated. A corpus analysis of 818 instances of stress from non-academic texts in the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) and the Corpus of American Discourses on Health (CADOH) shows a negative prosody for stress, which is portrayed variously as a source outside the body, a physical symptom within the body and an emotional state. The data show that contemporary speakers intermingle the three senses, making more difficult a discussion between doctors and patients of ways to ‘reduce stress’, when stress might be interpreted as a stressor, a symptom, or state of anxiety. This conflation of senses reinforces the impression that stress is pervasive and increasing. In addition, a semantic shift is also refining a new sense for stress, as post-traumatic stress develops as a specific subtype of emotional stress whose use has increased in circulation in the past 20 years.

Viruses and Water: Problems, Detection, and Control

1993 ◽  
Vol 27 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 127-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Dizer ◽  
J. Dürkop ◽  
A. Grohmann ◽  
H. Kopecka ◽  
J. M. López-Pila
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Membrane Filtration ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Health Hazard ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Detection Methods ◽  
Secondary Effluent ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Water Problems

Secondary effluent of wastewater treatment plants contains a high number of viruses and other pathogens, which pose a health risk to the population, (especially when receiv ng waters are used for bathing and swimming, or for growing shellfish. In areas with a high density of population, where drinking water supply is dependent on surface waters and contaminated rivers are the primary source of drinking water, failure of the filtration or of the disinfection step, or of any other “barriers” supposed to warrant safe potable water, will increase the risk of health hazard for the consumer. We have compared the efficiency of viral elimination in secondary effluent by flocculation, uv rradiation and membrane filtration taking naturally occurring, or additionally seeded f2 phages, as indicator for viruses. Flocculation decreased the number of phages present in secondary effluent by more than two logs. If combined with uv irradiation, the elimination reached five additional logs. Membrane filtration eliminated essentially all naturally occurring phages. Improvement of the quality of surface waters calls for a refinement of detection methods for viruses. We have found that the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) might be used for detecting viruses in surface waters.

Invariance of Wearing Location of Omron-BI Pedometers: A Validation Study

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 706-717 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weimo Zhu ◽  
Miyoung Lee
Keyword(s):  
Validation Study ◽  
Absolute Error ◽  
Activity Monitor ◽  
Error Rates ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
The Body ◽  
Validity And Reliability ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Climbing Stairs ◽  
Free Living Conditions

Background:The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity and reliability evidences of the Omron BI pedometer, which could count steps taken even when worn at different locations on the body.Methods:Forty (20 males and 20 females) adults were recruited to walk wearing 5 sets, 1 set at a time, of 10 BI pedometers during testing, 1 each at 10 different locations. For comparison, they also wore 2 Yamax Digi-Walker SW-200 pedometers and a Dynastream AMP 331 activity monitor. The subjects walked in 3 free-living conditions: a fat sidewalk, stairs, and mixed conditions.Results:Except for a slight decrease in accuracy in the pant pocket locations, Omron BI pedometers counted steps accurately across other locations when subjects walked on the fat sidewalk, and the performance was consistent across devices and trials. When the subjects climbed up stairs, however, the absolute error % of the pant pocket locations increased significantly (P < .05) and similar or higher error rates were found in the AMP 331 and SW-200s.Conclusions:The Omron BI pedometer can accurately count steps when worn at various locations on the body in free-living conditions except for front pant pocket locations, especially when climbing stairs.

Exploitation of plant and archaeal viruses in bionanotechnology

2009 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 665-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Evans
Keyword(s):  
The Body ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Archaeal Virus ◽  
Sulfolobus Islandicus ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Archaeal Viruses ◽  
Nanobuilding Blocks ◽  
Multiple Copies ◽  
Site Selective ◽  
Virion Surface

CPMV (cowpea mosaic virus), a plant virus, is a naturally occurring sphere-like nanoparticle, and is used as a synthon and/or template in bionanoscience. The virions formed by CPMV can be regarded as programmable nanobuilding blocks with a diameter of ∼30 nm. A range of molecules have been attached to this viral nanoscaffold, yielding stable nanoparticles that display multiple copies of the desired molecule. It has been shown that, in addition to surface amine groups, surface carboxy groups are also addressable, and a procedure has been developed that enables introduction of reactive thiols at the virion surface that avoids virus aggregation. Furthermore, the virions can be functionalized to form electroactive nanoparticles. Methods for the construction of arrays and multilayers, using a layer-by-layer approach, have been established. As proof of concept, for example, CPMV particles have been immobilized on surfaces and arranged in defined layers. Engineered variants of CPMV can be used as templates for mineralization with, for example, silica to give monodisperse robust silica nanoparticles of ∼32 nm. SIRV2 (Sulfolobus islandicus rod-shaped virus 2), is a robust archaeal virus, resistant to high temperature and low pH. SIRV2 can act as a template for site-selective and spatially controlled chemical modification. Both the ends and the body of the virus, or the ends only, can be chemically addressed; SIRV2 can be regarded as a structurally unique nanobuilding block.

Water-tunnel studies of heat balance in swimming mako sharks

2001 ◽  
Vol 204 (23) ◽  
pp. 4043-4054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Bernal ◽  
Chugey Sepulveda ◽  
Jeffrey B. Graham
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Heat Balance ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
The Body ◽  
Morphological Properties ◽  
Water Tunnel ◽  
Vascular Networks ◽  
Red Muscle ◽  
Counter Current ◽  
New Evidence

SUMMARY The mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) has specialized vascular networks (retia mirabilia) forming counter-current heat exchangers that allow metabolic heat retention in certain regions of the body, including the aerobic, locomotor red muscle and the viscera. Red muscle, white muscle and stomach temperatures were measured in juvenile (5–13.6 kg) makos swimming steadily in a water tunnel and exposed to stepwise square-wave changes in ambient temperature (Ta) to estimate the rates of heat transfer and to determine their capacity for the activity-independent control of heat balance. The rates of heat gain of red muscle during warming were significantly higher than the rates of heat loss during cooling, and neither the magnitude of the change in Ta nor the direction of change in Ta had a significant effect on red muscle latency time. Our findings for mako red muscle are similar to those recorded for tunas and suggest modulation of retial heat-exchange efficiency as the underlying mechanism controlling heat balance. However, the red muscle temperatures measured in swimming makos (0.3–3°C above Ta) are cooler than those measured previously in larger decked makos. Also, the finding of non-stable stomach temperatures contrasts with the predicted independence from Ta recorded in telemetry studies of mako and white sharks. Our studies on live makos provide new evidence that, in addition to the unique convergent morphological properties between makos and tunas, there is a strong functional similarity in the mechanisms used to regulate heat transfer.

scholarly journals Can't tell the caterpillars from the trees: countershading enhances survival in a woodland

2008 ◽  
Vol 275 (1651) ◽  
pp. 2539-2545 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah M Rowland ◽  
Innes C Cuthill ◽  
Ian F Harvey ◽  
Michael P Speed ◽  
Graeme D Ruxton
Keyword(s):  
Visual Cues ◽  
Field Experiments ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Shape From Shading ◽  
The Body ◽  
Colour Pattern ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Background Matching ◽  
Lepidopteran Larvae ◽  
Beech Tree

Perception of the body's outline and three-dimensional shape arises from visual cues such as shading, contour, perspective and texture. When a uniformly coloured prey animal is illuminated from above by sunlight, a shadow may be cast on the body, generating a brightness contrast between the dorsal and ventral surfaces. For animals such as caterpillars, which live among flat leaves, a difference in reflectance over the body surface may degrade the degree of background matching and provide cues to shape from shading. This may make otherwise cryptic prey more conspicuous to visually hunting predators. Cryptically coloured prey are expected to match their substrate in colour, pattern and texture (though disruptive patterning is an exception), but they may also abolish self-shadowing and therefore either reduce shape cues or maintain their degree of background matching through countershading: a gradation of pigment on the body of an animal so that the surface closest to illumination is darker. In this study, we report the results from a series of field experiments where artificial prey resembling lepidopteran larvae were presented on the upper surfaces of beech tree branches so that they could be viewed by free-living birds. We demonstrate that countershading is superior to uniform coloration in terms of reducing attack by free-living predators. This result persisted even when we fixed prey to the underside of branches, simulating the resting position of many tree-living caterpillars. Our experiments provide the first demonstration, in an ecologically valid visual context, that shadowing on bodies (such as lepidopteran larvae) provides cues that visually hunting predators use to detect potential prey species, and that countershading counterbalances shadowing to enhance cryptic protection.

scholarly journals Could radical pairs play a role in xenon-induced general anesthesia?

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Smith ◽  
Hadi Zadeh Haghighi ◽  
Christoph Simon
Keyword(s):  
General Anesthesia ◽  
Radical Pair ◽  
The Body ◽  
Radical Pair Mechanism ◽  
General Anesthetic ◽  
Radical Pairs ◽  
Naturally Occurring ◽  
Isotopic Dependence ◽  
Anesthetic Potency ◽  
Recombination Dynamics

ABSTRACTUnderstanding the mechanisms underlying anesthesia would be a key step towards understanding consciousness. The process of xenon-induced general anesthesia has been shown to involve electron transfer, and the potency of xenon as a general anesthetic exhibits isotopic dependence. We propose that these observations can be explained by a mechanism in which the xenon nuclear spin influences the recombination dynamics of a naturally occurring radical pair of electrons. We develop a simple model inspired by the body of work on the radical-pair mechanism in cryptochrome in the context of avian magnetoreception, and we show that our model can reproduce the observed isotopic dependence of the general anesthetic potency of xenon in mice. Our results are consistent with the idea that radical pairs of electrons with entangled spins could be important for consciousness.

scholarly journals Excretion of Heavy Metals and Glyphosate in Urine and Hair Before and After Long-Term Fasting in Humans

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franziska Grundler ◽  
Gilles-Eric Séralini ◽  
Robin Mesnage ◽  
Vincent Peynet ◽  
Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Environmental Pollutants ◽  
Dietary Exposure ◽  
The Body ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Obese People ◽  
Clinical Trial Registration ◽  
Reduced Body ◽  
Before And After

Background: Dietary exposure to environmental pollutants in humans is an important public health concern. While long-term fasting interrupts the dietary exposure to these substances, fat mobilization as an energy source may also release bioaccumulated substances. This was, to our knowledge, only investigated in obese people decades ago. This study explored the effects of 10-days fasting on the excretion of heavy metals and glyphosate.Methods: Urinary levels of arsenic, chromium, cobalt, lead, nickel, mercury and glyphosate were measured before and after 10 fasting days in 109 healthy subjects. Additionally, hair analysis was done before and ten weeks after fasting in 22 subjects.Results: Fasting caused a decrease in body weight, and in urinary arsenic (by 72%) and nickel (by 15%) concentrations. A decrease in lead hair concentrations (by 30%) was documented. Urinary mercury levels were unchanged for chromium, cobalt and glyphosate, which were undetectable in most of the subjects. Additionally, fatigue, sleep disorders, headache and hunger were reduced. Body discomfort symptoms diminished four weeks after food reintroduction.Conclusions: The results of this study provide the first insights into the changes in heavy metal excretion caused by long-term fasting. Further studies focusing on the kinetics of efflux between different compartments of the body are needed.Clinical Trial Registration:https://www.drks.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=trial.HTML&amp;TRIAL_ID=DRKS00016657, identifier: DRKS00016657.

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