On the relevance of regional collections

Biological collections are the basis of the Earth’s biodiversity knowledge and most of them are regional collections. Here we present two collections from the Federal University of Espírito Santo—Mammal Collection (UFES-MAM) and the associated Animal Tissue Collection (UFES-CTA)—which have been the main repository for mammal specimens collected in Espírito Santo, mostly georeferenced (~ 90%), and available in public databases. Thus, our objective with this essay was to point out the contributions of these collections to the knowledge of the diversity of mammals in the Atlantic Forest. At the same time, we present the contributions they return to society and the scientific community, highlighting the main obstacles and challenges those regional collections face. Despite being regional, UFES-MAM and UFES-CTA stand out nationally for having biological material from a wide variety of species—mainly rodents, marsupials, and bats—also counting on a series of primate tissues collected during the outbreak of wild yellow fever in Southeastern Brazil from 2017 to 2018. These collecting efforts contributed to 42 new mammal species records for Espírito Santo, and 25 species that had already been registered in the state but were listed only in out-of-state collections or reported in literature without voucher specimens. We hope that the information reported here are examples of good practices and increase knowledge and visibility of the rich collection that these regional collections house.

Expanding the Repertoire of Spongian-16-One Derivatives in Australian Nudibranchs of the Genus Goniobranchus and Evaluation of Their Anatomical Distribution

Extracts of the mantle and viscera of the Indo-Pacific nudibranchs Goniobranchus aureopurpureus and Goniobranchus sp. 1 afforded 11 new diterpenoids (1–11), all of which possess a tetracyclic spongian-16-one scaffold with extensive oxidation at C-6, C-7, C-11, C-12, C-13, and/or C-20. The structures and relative configuration were investigated by NMR experiments, while X-ray crystallography provided the absolute configuration of 1, including a 2′S configuration for the 2-methylbutanoate substituent located at C-7. Dissection of animal tissue revealed that the mantle and viscera tissues differed in their metabolite composition with diterpenes 1–11 present in the mantle tissue of the two nudibranch species.

Tissue extraction from whole caterpillars v1

This protocol is designed for extracting DNA from Lepidopteran larvae but it will work on most animal tissue with some modifications to tube volumes and homogenisation settings.

Thermal processing reduces PFAS concentrations in blue food – A systematic review and meta-analysis

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are ubiquitous in the environment and often ingested with food. PFAS exposure in people can have detrimental health consequences. Therefore, reducing PFAS burdens in food items is of great importance to public health. Here, we investigated whether cooking reduces PFAS concentrations in animal-derived food products by synthesizing experimental studies. Further, we examined the moderating effects of the following five variables: cooking time, liquid / food item ratio, cooking temperature, carbon chain length of PFAS and the cooking category (oil-based, water-based & no-liquid cooking). In our systematic review searches (including the grey literature), we obtained 512 effect sizes from 10 relevant studies. These studies exclusively explored changes in PFAS concentrations in cooked seafood and freshwater fish. Our phylogenetically controlled multilevel-meta-analysis has revealed that, on average, cooking reduced PFAS concentrations by 28%, although heterogeneity among effect sizes was very high (I2 = 94.65%). Our five moderators cumulatively explained 36% of the observed heterogeneity. Specifically, an increase in cooking time and liquid / animal tissue ratio, as well as shorter carbon chain length of PFAS (when cooked with oil) were associated with significant reductions in PFAS concentrations. The effects of different ways of cooking depended on the other moderators, while the effect of cooking temperature itself was not significant. Overall, cooking can reduce PFAS concentrations in blue food (seafood and freshwater fish). However, it is important to note that complete PFAS elimination requires unrealistically long cooking times and large liquid / animal tissue ratios. Currently, literature on the impact of cooking of terrestrial animal produce on PFAS concentrations is lacking, which limits the inference and generalisation of our meta-analysis. However, our work represents the first step towards developing guidelines to reduce PFAS in food via cooking exclusively with common kitchen items and techniques.

Chelex DNA extraction Protocol v1

Laboratory protocol for DNA extraction from animal tissue with Chelex.

Evaluation of lead (Pb) concentration in animal tissue, soil, and water samples from grazing pasture near mining industry in southern part of Mongolia

Lead (Pb) is a substance that can cause serious damage to the brain and kidneys, soften bones, adverse effect to the reproductive system, and can be fatal. Long-term exposure to the substance can damage not only children, but also adults' nervous systems. Lead does not belong into the category of toxic substances due to its effects on the human body. It is considered as a harmful substance. In this study, we analyzed lead concentration in liver and kidney of cattle, horse, sheep, and goat from the mining areas located in the Ulaanbadrakh, Zuunbayan, and Airag soums of Dornogovi province. As a result, the level of lead in the liver of sheep and goat Zuunbayan soum of Dornogovi province was slightly higher than in other soums. The content of heavy metals in water and soil samples did not exceed the international standard average.

814 No Animals Were Harmed in The Making of This Microsurgical Model. A Novel Microsurgery Practice Model

Introduction Microsurgery forms the cornerstone of plastic and reconstructive surgery. Traditionally this is taught and practiced using anaesthetised rats or the chicken leg model. Whilst these models described provide useful training opportunities for surgeons, they present their own logistical difficulties. The rat model requires a license to utilise animal tissue. There are potential infection risks of using raw chicken for microsurgery practice We present a novel model to overcome the problems discussed above and allow microsurgery practice. Method A surgical glove is gently stretched over a gallipot. Two parallel longitudinal incisions are made using a scalpel. The warmup stage involves tubularising the section of surgical glove. The created tube is then divided, and anastomosis is performed. Multiple anastomoses can be performed along the length of the tube. Results The model has been used for warm up and anastomosis practice. It removes the barriers that make regular microsurgery practice difficult - namely access to anaesthetised animals (licensed facility required) and raw chicken (messy and potential infection risk) Conclusions We introduce a novel and accessible microsurgical practice model. It is used for learning and maintaining microsurgical skills and circumvents the barriers of previously described models.

Bisphenol A Effects in Aqueous Environment on Lemna minor

The link between different plastic waste pollutants and their impact on the natural aquatic environment and food chain remains a constant and growing issue. Bisphenol A (BPA), a known endocrine disruptor produced in large quantities primarily in the industry of polycarbonate plastics, can accumulate in vegetal and animal tissue, thus magnifying through trophic levels. In this study we exposed viable specimens of the aquatic plant Lemna minor under controlled conditions to 50, 100 and 200 ppm BPA levels in order to partially observe the toxic effects of BPA. Colonies ceased to form during the exposure and chlorosis was present especially in the 100 ppm group. Interestingly enough, a high density formation of non-fermenting bacteria as well as coliforms was also observed in the BPA exposed cultures but not in the control groups. The levels of Malondialdehyde (MDA) in the vegetal tissue indicated cellular insults and severe damage, results that were correlated with the HPLC BPA determined concentrations of 0.1%, 0.2% and 0.4%.