scholarly journals Wild Zebrafish Sentinels: Biological Monitoring of Site Differences Using Behavior and Morphology

Toxics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 165
Author(s):  
Jeffrey R. Kelly ◽  
Sierra G. Shelton ◽  
Danita K. Daniel ◽  
Anuradha Bhat ◽  
Rubina Mondal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Health ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Rapid Assessment ◽  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
Plastic Pollution ◽  
Phenotypic Differences ◽  
Hypoxic Conditions ◽  
Body Shapes ◽  
Detection Evaluation ◽  
Phenotypic Responses

Environmental change poses a devastating risk to human and environmental health. Rapid assessment of water conditions is necessary for monitoring, evaluating, and addressing this global health danger. Sentinels or biological monitors can be deployed in the field using minimal resources to detect water quality changes in real time, quickly and cheaply. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are ideal sentinels for detecting environmental changes due to their biomedical tool kit, widespread geographic distribution, and well-characterized phenotypic responses to environmental disturbances. Here, we demonstrate the utility of zebrafish sentinels by characterizing phenotypic differences in wild zebrafish between two field sites in India. Site 1 was a rural environment with flowing water, low-hypoxic conditions, minimal human-made debris, and high iron and lead concentrations. Site 2 was an urban environment with still water, hypoxic conditions, plastic pollution, and high arsenic, iron, and chromium concentrations. We found that zebrafish from Site 2 were smaller, more cohesive, and less active than Site 1 fish. We also found sexually dimorphic body shapes within the Site 2, but not the Site 1, population. Advancing zebrafish sentinel research and development will enable rapid detection, evaluation, and response to emerging global health threats.

Body size and diet–related morphological variation of bats over the past 65 years in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinke Yue ◽  
Alice C Hughes ◽  
Kyle W Tomlinson ◽  
Shangwen Xia ◽  
Song Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Isotope Composition ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Length Change ◽  
Nitrogen Stable Isotope ◽  
Carbon And Nitrogen ◽  
The Past ◽  
Latitudinal Range ◽  
Forearm Length ◽  
Phenotypic Responses

Abstract We examined both historical (1960s) and recent (2017) specimens of an insectivorous bat species (Hipposideros armiger) and a phytophagous bat (Rousettus leschenaultii) from the same latitudinal range to explore phenotypic responses to environmental change in China over the past 65 years. Hipposideros armiger exhibited significant increases in forearm length and three diet-related cranial traits, as well as carbon and nitrogen stable isotope composition, suggesting that modern H. armiger must travel farther for food and may now use different food resources. In contrast, R. leschenaultii showed no change in forearm length but displayed significant increases in diet-related cranial traits. This study provides evidence for differential responses to recent environmental changes in bat species with different diets. The changes in diet-related traits of the two species and the forearm length change on the insectivorous bats suggest that recent phenotypic changes may be adaptions to land-use changes rather than to climate change.

scholarly journals Microbial insurgency: Theorizing global health in the Anthropocene

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Hirschfeld
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Global Health ◽  
20Th Century ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
International Health ◽  
Health Trends ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Cold War

Several recent international health crises have revealed significant vulnerabilities in global pandemic preparedness. The 2014 Ebola fever epidemic expanded into an international threat far more quickly than experts anticipated, and the 2018 Ebola fever epidemic continues to expand, even with new technological innovations designed to control the disease. The 2015 yellow fever outbreak in Angola exhausted global vaccine supplies and put millions of people at risk. This article argues that global health authorities failed to anticipate the magnitude of these outbreaks because the field has not been updated to address the ways recent changes in international political economy are combining with environmental instabilities of the Anthropocene to increase epidemiological risks. Many public health textbooks and teaching materials continue to rely on variants of 20th-century modernization theory to explain and predict global health trends. Since the end of the Cold War, however, there has been a dramatic reconfiguration of governance in many parts of the world, and these macro-level changes are accelerating ecological destruction and fueling armed conflict in ways that will reduce the range and effectiveness of public health methods and prevention technologies that were successful during the 20th century. The combined effect of these institutional and environmental changes will increase global pandemic risks in the Anthropocene, even for infectious diseases that are easily preventable today.

scholarly journals RAPID CREATION OF VEHICLE LINE-UPS BY EIGENSPACE PROJECTIONS FOR STYLE TRANSFER

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 867-876 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Friedrich ◽  
S. Schmitt ◽  
S. Menzel
Keyword(s):  
Product Development ◽  
Spectral Methods ◽  
Rapid Assessment ◽  
User Interaction ◽  
Product Line ◽  
Style Transfer ◽  
Automated Generation ◽  
Automotive Body ◽  
Mesh Processing ◽  
Body Shapes

AbstractIn product development, an automated generation of shape variations enables a rapid assessment of potentially appealing design directions. We present a framework for computing a product line-up of automotive body shapes based on spectral methods for mesh processing. We calculate the eigenspace projections of 3D vehicle meshes and identify the relevant style as well as content components based on the eigenvalues. The style of a model is then transferred to arbitrary prototype content car shapes, which allows for a rapid portfolio generation of various car types with minimal user interaction.

scholarly journals Body shape diversification along the benthic–pelagic axis in marine fishes

2020 ◽  
Vol 287 (1931) ◽  
pp. 20201053
Author(s):  
S. T. Friedman ◽  
S. A. Price ◽  
K. A. Corn ◽  
O. Larouche ◽  
C. M. Martinez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Shape ◽  
Marine Fishes ◽  
Shape Evolution ◽  
Teleost Fishes ◽  
Marine Teleost ◽  
Linear Measurements ◽  
Body Shapes ◽  
Average Body ◽  
High Diversity ◽  
Phenotypic Responses

Colonization of novel habitats can result in marked phenotypic responses to the new environment that include changes in body shape and opportunities for further morphological diversification. Fishes have repeatedly transitioned along the benthic–pelagic axis, with varying degrees of association with the substrate. Previous work focusing on individual lineages shows that these transitions are accompanied by highly predictable changes in body form. Here, we generalize expectations drawn from this literature to study the effects of habitat on body shape diversification across 3344 marine teleost fishes. We compare rates and patterns of evolution in eight linear measurements of body shape among fishes that live in pelagic, demersal and benthic habitats. While average body shape differs between habitats, these differences are subtle compared with the high diversity of shapes found within each habitat. Benthic living increases the rate of body shape evolution and has led to numerous lineages evolving extreme body shapes, including both exceptionally wide bodies and highly elongate, eel-like forms. By contrast, we find that benthic living is associated with the slowest diversification of structures associated with feeding. Though we find that habitat can serve as an impetus for predictable trait changes, we also highlight the diversity of responses in marine teleosts to opportunities presented by major habitats.

scholarly journals Preferences for Sexually Dimorphic Body Characteristics Revealed in a Large Sample of Speed Daters

2020 ◽  
pp. 194855061988292
Author(s):  
Morgan J. Sidari ◽  
Anthony J. Lee ◽  
Sean C. Murphy ◽  
James M. Sherlock ◽  
Barnaby J. W. Dixson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Round Robin ◽  
Reproductive Value ◽  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
Body Dimensions ◽  
Large Sample ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Pictorial Stimuli ◽  
Body Shapes

While hundreds of studies have investigated the indices that make up attractive body shapes, these studies were based on preferences measured in the laboratory using pictorial stimuli. Whether these preferences translate into real-time, face-to-face evaluations of potential partners is unclear. Here, 539 (275 female) participants in 75 laboratory-based sessions had their body dimensions measured before engaging in round-robin speed dates. After each date, they rated each other’s body, face, personality, and overall attractiveness and noted whether they would go on a date with the partner. Women with smaller waists and lower waist-to-hip ratios were found most attractive, and men with broader shoulders and higher shoulder-to-waist (or hips) ratios were found most attractive. Taller individuals were preferred by both sexes. Our results show that body dimensions associated with greater health, reproductive value (in women), and formidability (in men) influence face-to-face evaluations of attractiveness, consistent with a role of intersexual selection in shaping human bodies.

scholarly journals Assessing proxy signatures of temperature, salinity, and hypoxia in the Baltic Sea through foraminifera-based geochemistry and faunal assemblages

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-429 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeroen Groeneveld ◽  
Helena L. Filipsson ◽  
William E. N. Austin ◽  
Kate Darling ◽  
David McCarthy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Baltic Sea ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Environmental Parameters ◽  
The Baltic Sea ◽  
Traditional Use ◽  
Geochemical Composition ◽  
Faunal Assemblages ◽  
The Past ◽  
Hypoxic Conditions ◽  
The Baltic

Abstract. Current climate and environmental changes strongly affect shallow marine and coastal areas like the Baltic Sea. This has created a need for a context to understand the severity and potential outcomes of such changes. The context can be derived from paleoenvironmental records during periods when comparable events happened in the past. In this study, we explore how varying bottom water conditions across a large hydrographic gradient in the Baltic Sea affect benthic foraminiferal faunal assemblages and the geochemical composition of their calcite tests. We have conducted both morphological and molecular analyses of the faunas and we evaluate how the chemical signatures of the bottom waters are recorded in the tests of several species of benthic foraminifera. We focus on two locations, one in the Kattegat (western Baltic Sea) and one in Hanö Bay (southern Baltic Sea). We show that seawater Mn∕Ca, Mg∕Ca, and Ba∕Ca (Mn∕Casw, Mg∕Casw, and Ba∕Casw) variations are mainly controlled by dissolved oxygen concentration and salinity. Their respective imprints on the foraminiferal calcite demonstrate the potential of Mn∕Ca as a proxy for hypoxic conditions, and Ba∕Ca as a proxy for salinity in enclosed basins such as the Baltic Sea. The traditional use of Mg∕Ca as a proxy to reconstruct past seawater temperatures is not recommended in the region, as it may be overprinted by the large variations in salinity (specifically on Bulimina marginata), Mg∕Casw, and possibly also the carbonate system. Salinity is the main factor controlling the faunal assemblages: a much more diverse fauna occurs in the higher-salinity (∼32) Kattegat than in the low-salinity (∼15) Hanö Bay. Molecular identification shows that only Elphidium clavatum occurs at both locations, but other genetic types of both genera Elphidium and Ammonia are restricted to either low- or high-salinity locations. The combination of foraminiferal geochemistry and environmental parameters demonstrates that in a highly variable setting like the Baltic Sea, it is possible to separate different environmental impacts on the foraminiferal assemblages and therefore use Mn∕Ca, Mg∕Ca, and Ba∕Ca to reconstruct how specific conditions may have varied in the past.

scholarly journals Mild drought induces phenotypic and DNA methylation plasticity but no transgenerational effects in Arabidopsis

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom JM Van Dooren ◽  
Amanda Bortolini Silveira ◽  
Elodie Gilbault ◽  
José M. Jiménez-Gómez ◽  
Antoine Martin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Trait Variation ◽  
Heritable Trait ◽  
Genome Bisulfite Sequencing ◽  
Successive Generations ◽  
Induced Changes ◽  
Heritable Effects ◽  
Mild Drought ◽  
Phenotypic Responses

SummaryWhether environmentally induced changes in phenotypes can be heritable is a topic with revived interest, in part because of observations in plants that heritable trait variation can occur without DNA sequence mutations. This other system of inheritance, called transgenerational epigenetics, typically involves differences in DNA methylation that are stable across multiple generations. However, it remains unknown if such a system responds to environmental changes and if it could therefore provide a rapid way for plants to generate adaptive heritable phenotypic variation. Here, we used a well-controlled phenotyping platform and whole-genome bisulfite sequencing to investigate potential heritable effects of mild drought applied over two successive generations in Arabidopsis thaliana. Plastic phenotypic responses were observed in plants exposed to drought. After an intervening generation without stress, descendants of stressed and non-stressed plants were phenotypically indistinguishable, except for very few trait-based parental effects, and irrespective of whether they were grown in control conditions or under water deficit. Moreover, while mild drought induced changes to the DNA methylome of exposed plants, DNA methylation variants were not inherited. These findings add to the growing body of evidence indicating that transgenerational epigenetics is not a common response of plants to environmental changes.

scholarly journals Climate Change and the New Normal for Cardiorespiratory Disease

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim K Takaro ◽  
Sarah B Henderson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Air Pollution ◽  
Seasonal Variation ◽  
Global Health ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Health Impacts ◽  
Fossil Energy ◽  
The World ◽  
Potential Link ◽  
Climate Interactions

Climate change is already affecting the cardiorespiratory health of populations around the world, and these impacts are expected to increase. The present overview serves as a primer for respirologists who are concerned about how these profound environmental changes may affect their patients. The authors consider recent peer-reviewed literature with a focus on climate interactions with air pollution. They do not discuss in detail cardiorespiratory health effects for which the potential link to climate change is poorly understood. For example, pneumonia and influenza, which affect >500 million people per year, are not addressed, although clear seasonal variation suggests climate-related effects. Additionally, large global health impacts in low-resource countries, including migration precipitated by environmental change, are omitted. The major cardiorespiratory health impacts addressed are due to heat, air pollution and wildfires, shifts in allergens and infectious diseases along with respiratory impacts from flooding. Personal and societal choices about carbon use and fossil energy infrastructure should be informed by their impacts on health, and respirologists can play an important role in this discussion.

scholarly journals APLICAÇÃO DE UM PROTOCOLO DE AVALIAÇÃO AMBIENTAL RÁPIDA EM DOIS RESERVATÓRIOS DO SEMIÁRIDO BRASILEIRO

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
MAIARA TÁBATHA DA SILVA BRITO ◽  
SILVANO LIMA DO NASCIMENTO FILHO ◽  
GIRLENE FÁBIA SEGUNDO VIANA ◽  
MAURO MELO JÚNIOR
Keyword(s):  
Arid Region ◽  
Riparian Vegetation ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Rapid Assessment ◽  
Water Volume ◽  
Monitoring Tool ◽  
Assessment Protocol ◽  
Semi Arid Region ◽  
Artificial Reservoirs ◽  
Semi Arid

In the semi-arid region of Brazil, artificial reservoirs are ecosystems of extremely important ecological and social. Due to pressures caused by long periods of pluviometric irregularity, the reservoirs Cachoeira I and Barra, located in the interior of Pernambuco, have been subject to very significant changes, marked mainly by the reduction of stored water volume, seasonal changes in the abiotic parameters, reduction of riparian vegetation and absence of macrophytes. All these changes were observed in this study through the use of an auxiliary monitoring tool, a rapid assessment protocol adapted for lentic ecosystems of semiarid, capable of detecting numerous types of environmental changes, assisting in monitoring these springs.

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