Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Christina Pei Pei Choy, Benjamin J. Wainwright
Summary: Shark fin soup is a popular dish consumed by Asian communities worldwide, driving the demand for shark fins and leading to a decline in shark populations by up to 70%. This research used molecular techniques to identify shark species in bowls of soup collected in Singapore and found endangered species with high levels of mercury. The consumption of shark fin soup likely exposes consumers to unsafe levels of mercury and further contributes to the decline of global shark populations.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
V. M. F. da Silva, P. M. Silva, F. Schlichta, N. A. S. do Carmo, G. L. Olson, B. G. Hintermayer, M. C. Araujo, A. R. Martin
Summary: Recent observations of male Amazon river dolphins attacking conspecific calves show that infanticide occurs in this species but not all attacked calves are killed. Mortality might be an inadvertent consequence of the behavior rather than the primary motive. Males committing infanticide are unlikely to gain direct fitness benefits, and the evidence does not support the sexual selection hypothesis. Aggression towards calves may serve as a socio-sexual display or be a form of social pathology.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Daniela M. D. de Mello, Fabiana A. de Melo, Vera M. F. da Silva
Summary: Blood values of wild Amazon river dolphins varied among different age groups, with serum calcium related to bone growth, and levels of creatinine and urea increasing with body weight. Prolonged storage of frozen samples may alter certain analytes, emphasizing the need to consider age classes, stress levels, and sample storage conditions in clinical or physiological interpretations.
MARINE MAMMAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
A. R. Martin, V. M. F. da Silva
Summary: Riverine cetaceans are globally threatened by increasing anthropogenic impacts, with the Yangtze river dolphin already extinct and the Amazon river dolphin facing endangerment due to drowning in gillnets and being hunted for fish bait. A long-term study in Brazil showed a sustained decline in the Amazon river dolphin population, with predictions of 95% loss within 50 years based on population viability analysis. Unless human pressures leading to accidental and deliberate killing of the species are reduced rapidly, the Amazon river dolphin is likely to face extinction like its Yangtze counterpart.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Helena Exposto Novoselecki, Jose Luiz Catao-Dias, Ana Carolina Ewbank, Pedro Enrique Navas-Suarez, Aricia Duarte-Benvenuto, Henrique Christino Lial, Samira Costa Silva, Angelica Maria Sanchez-Sarmiento, Waleska Gravena, Vera Maria Ferreira da Silva, Vitor L. Carvalho, Miriam Marmontel, Carolina P. Bertozzi, Vanessa Lanes Ribeiro, Rodrigo del Rio do Valle, Juliana Marigo, Carlos G. das Neves, Fernando Esperon, Carlos Sacristan
Summary: The study revealed two types of herpesviruses in Bolivian river dolphins, while Amazon river dolphins were found to be negative for herpesviruses. A new gamma-herpesvirus was discovered in franciscanas, marking the first record of herpesvirus in Pontoporiidae.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yun-He Wu, Shao-Bing Hou, Zhi-Yong Yuan, Ke Jiang, Ru-Yi Huang, Kai Wang, Qin Liu, Zhong-Bin Yu, Hai-Peng Zhao, Bao-Lin Zhang, Jin-Min Chen, Li-Jun Wang, Bryan L. Stuart, E. Anne Chambers, Yu-Fan Wang, Wei Gao, Da-Hu Zou, Fang Yan, Gui-Gang Zhao, Zhong-Xiong Fu, Shao-Neng Wang, Ming Jiang, Liang Zhang, Jin-Long Ren, Ya-Yong Wu, Lu-Yang Zhang, Dian-Cheng Yang, Jie-Qiong Jin, Ting-Ting Yin, Jia-Tang Li, Wen-Ge Zhao, Robert W. Murphy, Song Huang, Peng Guo, Ya-Ping Zhang, Jing Che
Summary: DNA barcoding has provided a reliable tool for studying taxonomy, biodiversity, biological conservation, and ecology of Chinese snakes. The establishment of a comprehensive DNA barcoding library has revealed hidden diversity and provided a standardized tool for conservation management.
MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES
(2023)
Article
Zoology
Robin Casalla, H. Rudolf Scheffrahn, Judith Korb
Summary: A new species, Rugitermes ursulae sp. nov., has been described from a sample collected in a tropical dry forest on Colombia's Caribbean coast. The soldiers and imagoes of Rugitermes ursulae sp. nov. are the smallest among all Rugitermes species described so far. Soldier characters, such as the subflangular elevation and shape of the antennal sockets, are included in the description to aid in identification of samples lacking imagoes.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Cindy Bessey, Yuan Gao, Yen Bach Truong, Haylea Miller, Simon Neil Jarman, Oliver Berry
Summary: Passive collection is an emerging sampling method for environmental DNA (eDNA) in aquatic systems. This study compares the effectiveness of nine membrane materials for passively collecting fish eDNA and finds that most materials can collect comparable amounts of eDNA and species richness to that of conventional filtering within short periods of submersion. The collected eDNA particles show a diversity in size and structure. This passive approach is cost-effective, time-efficient, and suitable for biological surveys in remote areas or with limited equipment.
MOLECULAR ECOLOGY RESOURCES
(2022)
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Ancuta Cristina Raclariu-Manolica, Quentin Mauvisseau, Hugo J. de Boer
Summary: Although herbal medicines and preparations are widely used in healthcare systems globally, there are concerns about their quality and safety. The introduction of new herbal products under varying regulatory frameworks, with no global consensus on their definition or characterization, creates concerns about contamination and profit-driven adulteration. Collaboration between industry, academia, and regulatory bodies is necessary to develop innovative strategies for identification and authentication of botanicals and their preparations to ensure quality control.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Federico Mosquera-Guerra, Fernando Trujillo, Marcelo Oliveira-da-Costa, Miriam Marmontel, Paul Andre Van Damme, Nicole Franco, Leslie Cordova, Elizabeth Campbell, Joanna Alfaro-Shigueto, Jose Luis Mena, Jeffrey C. Mangel, Jose Saulo Usma Oviedo, Juan D. Carvajal-Castro, Hugo Mantilla-Meluk, Dolors Armenteras-Pascual
Summary: Studying the spatial ecology of endangered Amazon river dolphins through satellite tracking revealed their habitat preferences and movements across borders, highlighting the importance of aquatic landscape heterogeneity and spatial connectivity for effective conservation efforts. The research identified home ranges and core areas, and showed the significance of protected areas accounting for part of the core areas.
ENDANGERED SPECIES RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Zoology
Jessica Fernandes de Melo, Thiago Orion Simoes Amorim, Artur Andriolo
Summary: The study analyzed the acoustic behavior of a previously unstudied population of Amazon river dolphins at the Juami-Japura Ecological Station, and identified six types of narrowband pulsed sounds, with four being described for the first time. These pulsed sounds, with high frequencies, may play an important role in the social structure of boto dolphins.
Article
Plant Sciences
Fahimeh Koohdar, Masoud Sheidai
Summary: Medicinal plants are crucial for disease treatment in many countries, however, fraud and misconduct in sales centers can pose a threat to customer health. This study found that using internal transcribed spacer and chloroplast DNA sequences can effectively differentiate Melissa officinalis from other species.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Liling Lu, Xiao Han, Jingwen Lin, Yingxin Zhang, Minghao Qiu, Ying Chen, Meijin Li, Dianping Tang
Summary: By utilizing ultrathin MXenes as a fluorescence quencher and combining it with Exo III-assisted recycling strategy, a rapid and sensitive fluorometric bioanalysis platform for Hg2+ detection was innovatively developed. This platform showed a wide dynamic working range and a low limit of detection, showing potential in nucleic acid hybridization-based biosensing applications.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Max R. Brown, Peter M. Hollingsworth, Laura L. Forrest, Michelle L. Hart, Ilia J. Leitch, Laura Jones, Col Ford, Natasha de Vere, Alex D. Twyford
Summary: Natural hybridization can have significant evolutionary impacts, ranging from the extinction of rare taxa to the origin of new species. However, the factors that promote or prevent hybridization vary greatly among different lineages. A study on over 1,100 UK flowering plant species reveals that genetic factors, such as parental genetic distance, as well as phylogenetic position and ploidy, are key determinants of hybrid formation. Other factors like range overlap and genus size contribute less to the variation in hybrid formation. Overall, genetic factors play a crucial role in shaping the evolutionary and ecological consequences of natural hybridization in a plant flora.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Meng-Yue Zhou, Ran -Ran Xing, Ke-Han Liu, Yi-Qiang Ge, Ying Chen
Summary: This study aimed to develop a DNA barcoding method for the species identification of culinary spices. Five barcodes were evaluated to detect 19 culinary spices, but they could not definitively identify all the species. The combination of ITS2 and psbA-trnH barcodes improved the identification ability, successfully identifying all tested spices except for Cambodian cardamom. The method can be used to standardize labels on commercial culinary spices.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Oscar Serrano, Catherine E. Lovelock, Trisha B. Atwood, Peter I. Macreadie, Robert Canto, Stuart Phinn, Ariane Arias-Ortiz, Le Bai, Jeff Baldock, Camila Bedulli, Paul Carnell, Rod M. Connolly, Paul Donaldson, Alba Esteban, Carolyn J. Ewers Lewis, Bradley D. Eyre, Matthew A. Hayes, Pierre Horwitz, Lindsay B. Hutley, Christopher R. J. Kavazos, Jeffrey J. Kelleway, Gary A. Kendrick, Kieryn Kilminster, Anna Lafratta, Shing Lee, Paul S. Lavery, Damien T. Maher, Nuria Marba, Pere Masque, Miguel A. Mateo, Richard Mount, Peter J. Ralph, Chris Roelfsema, Mohammad Rozaimi, Radhiyah Ruhon, Cristian Salinas, Jimena Samper-Villarreal, Jonathan Sanderman, Christian J. Sanders, Isaac Santos, Chris Sharples, Andrew D. L. Steven, Toni Cannard, Stacey M. Trevathan-Tackett, Carlos M. Duarte
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2019)
Article
Ecology
Connor Gorham, Paul Lavery, Jeffrey J. Kelleway, Cristian Salinas, Oscar Serrano
Summary: This study investigated factors driving variability in carbon storage in temperate Western Australia tidal marshes, finding that soil C(org)stocks were significantly higher in fluvial and mid-estuary settings compared to marine counterparts, possibly due to higher preservation of soil C(org) in fine-grained sediments. Additionally, the contribution of tidal marsh plus supratidal vegetation in different geomorphic settings also influenced soil C(org)stocks.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Cristian Salinas, Carlos M. Duarte, Paul S. Lavery, Pere Masque, Ariane Arias-Ortiz, Javier X. Leon, David Callaghan, Gary A. Kendrick, Oscar Serrano
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Geography, Physical
Joeri Kaal, Paul S. Lavery, Antonio Martinez Cortizas, Olalla Lopez-Costas, Teresa Buchaca, Cristian Salinas, Oscar Serrano
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2020)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Micheli Duarte de Paula Costa, Catherine E. Lovelock, Nathan J. Waltham, Mary Young, Maria F. Adame, Catherine Bryant, Don Butler, David Green, Michael A. Rasheed, Cristian Salinas, Oscar Serrano, Paul H. York, Ashley A. Whitt, Peter Macreadie
Summary: This study estimated soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and their drivers in the coastal wetlands of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) catchments for the first time, finding that climatic variables contributed significantly to SOC stocks in mangroves while soil type played a key role in seagrass meadows. The total SOC stock in the GBR catchments was approximately 137 Tg C, representing a small percentage of both Australia's and global SOC stocks, with potential carbon gains due to landward migration resulting from projected sea level rise.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ines Mazarrasa, Paul Lavery, Carlos M. Duarte, Anna Lafratta, Catherine E. Lovelock, Peter Macreadie, Jimena Samper-Villarreal, Cristian Salinas, Christian J. Sanders, Stacey Trevathan-Tackett, Mary Young, Andy Steven, Oscar Serrano
Summary: Seagrass meadows are important organic carbon sinks, with variability in soil C-org stocks and composition observed across Australia. Large seagrass species meadows have higher stocks compared to meadows formed by smaller species. Soil C-org stocks are influenced by environmental factors, highlighting the need for site-specific estimates in Blue Carbon projects and greenhouse gases accounting.
GLOBAL BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Oscar Serrano, Diana Isabel Gomez-Lopez, Laura Sanchez-Valencia, Andres Acosta-Chaparro, Raul Navas-Camacho, Juan Gonzalez-Corredor, Cristian Salinas, Pere Masque, Cesar A. Bernal, Nuria Marba
Summary: Seagrass ecosystems, especially Thalassia testudinum meadows in the Colombian Caribbean, are highly efficient in storing carbon, with factors such as tropical climate, sediment runoff, and primary production contributing to their high carbon storage capacity. Variability in soil carbon storage among regions is mainly linked to differences in carbon sources and soil particle content.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)