Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Tae-June Choi, Seung-Min Han, Adeel Malik, Chang-Bae Kim
Summary: Two Korean D. galeata genotypes exhibited phenotypic variations related to reproduction and growth under predation stress, with some transcripts potentially explaining the differences in life-history traits between the genotypes.
Article
Ecology
Lei Gu, Luc De Meester, Zhou Yang
Summary: Predators can impact population and community dynamics through direct predation and nonconsumptive effects, such as changes in prey species traits. However, little is known about how kairomones act on prey across diverse aquatic ecosystems. This study explored how predator and prey identity and species composition influenced the expression of inducible defenses in water fleas.
Article
Ecology
Patricia Diel, Max Rabus, Christian Laforsch
Summary: Prey organisms, such as Daphnia in freshwater ecosystems, exhibit phenotypic plasticity in defensive traits in response to variable and unpredictable predation risks, developing inducible morphological defenses to reduce susceptibility to predators.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Jerker Vinterstare, Christer Bronmark, P. Anders Nilsson, R. Brian Langerhans, Pallavi Chauhan, Bengt Hansson, Kaj Hulthen
Summary: Inducible defences allow prey to increase survival chances when predators are present. In crucian carp, sexual dimorphism and gene expression patterns are linked to morphological defence expression, suggesting that sex-specific responses play a role in inter-individual variation.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Ali Serhan Tarkan, Oguzcan Mol, Sadi Aksu, Esengul Kose, Irmak Kurtul, Sercan Baskurt, Phillip J. Haubrock, Paride Balzani, Emre Cinar, J. Robert Britton, Pinar Oztopcu-Vatan, Ozgur Emiroglu
Summary: The establishment of introduced fishes can be inhibited by the biotic resistance from specific piscivorous fishes. Prey fish population responses to predation pressure include morphological changes, as seen in the crucian carp. This study tests whether introduced gibel carp populations also respond to the presence of piscivorous fishes by altering their body shape and trophic ecology.
Article
Ecology
Phillip B. Fenberg, Rodrigo Beas-Luna, Boris Igic, Moira A. Maclean, David A. Paz-Garcia, Peter T. Raimondi, Jacqueline L. Sones, Karolina M. Zarzyczny, Eric Sanford
Summary: The biogeography of predator-induced defences is understudied. This study found that the bent morphs of a temperate barnacle are primarily present in areas where they co-occur with range-expanding warm-water predators, and they exhibit size-structure.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Liisa Hamalainen, Hannah M. Rowland, Johanna Mappes, Rose Thorogood
Summary: Social information transmission plays a crucial role in predator-prey interactions and may alter selection pressures for prey defenses at each stage of predation. Research suggests that social transmission among predators influences the outcome of different predation stages and plays a significant role in species coevolution.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Malgorzata Grzesiuk, Eva Gryglewicz, Piotr Bentkowski, Joanna Pijanowska
Summary: The contamination of freshwater environments by pharmaceuticals, such as fluoxetine, can disrupt the predation behavior of fish and the growth of their prey, water fleas. This study found that exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of fluoxetine resulted in larger water fleas but altered hunting behavior in fish, with shorter reaction distance and slower feeding rate. These effects occurred regardless of water flea size and treatment regime.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Collin W. Ahrens, Alexander Watson-Lazowski, Guomin Huang, David T. Tissue, Paul D. Rymer
Summary: Local adaptation is a driver of biological diversity, with species developing analogous or alternative solutions to ecological challenges. This study found that divergent evolution dominates the adaptation of different species, even under similar ecological conditions.
PLANT CELL AND ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Benjamin A. Belgrad, William Knudson, Sarah H. Roney, William C. Walton, Jessica Lunt, Delbert L. Smee
Summary: Prey species can adjust morphology to reduce predation risk by responding to predator cues. A study on oysters showed that they grew stronger shells and had increased survivorship when raised with cues from common predator species. The findings highlight the potential of using predator cues to enhance the survival of target species and control pest-based mortality.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Shane L. Hogle, Iina Hepolehto, Lasse Ruokolainen, Johannes Cairns, Teppo Hiltunen, Jonathan Chase
Summary: Modifying intraspecific trait diversity can alter competitive hierarchies between different species, leading to competitive exclusion. This competitive outcome is driven by foraging traits and has significant impacts on prey community assembly.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Thalita Massaro Malheiros Ferreira, Jaire Alves Ferreira Filho, Andre Pereira Leao, Carlos Antonio Ferreira de Sousa, Manoel Teixeira Souza
Summary: This study aimed to select, annotate, and validate stress-inducible genes differentially expressed in the leaves of oil palm plants under saline stress. Through transcriptome analysis and validation using qRT-PCR, 14 genes were selected, annotated, and their expression profiles were examined. The analysis revealed that some of these genes are orthologs of salt resistance genes in other species, coding for proteins involved in salt transport, transcriptional regulation, and stomata opening and closing. The study also identified various cis-acting elements in the promoter sequences of these genes, some of which are known to be involved in abiotic stress. The results provide valuable information for gene selection, promoter sequence analysis, and molecular-genetics-assisted breeding programs.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Gergely Boros, Nora Boross
Summary: This study aimed to investigate whether the zooplankter Daphnia magna could differentiate between the kairomones of planktivorous and omnivorous fish and found that only the kairomones of the planktivorous fish triggered detectable responses in D. magna.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Keonho Kim, Derek J. Taylor
Summary: This study investigated the thermal plasticity of Daphnia galeata, a freshwater zooplankton, focusing on the rigid setae of its second limb. The results showed that temperature had a significant effect on the length ratios of the rigid setae, indicating thermal plasticity. Allometry, the relationship between body size and setae length, also differed significantly among different temperatures. The study concluded that rapid thermal plasticity in non-filtering limbs is more important than previously thought for Daphnia.
JOURNAL OF PLANKTON RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Emily Tetrault, John Swenson, Ben Ben Aaronson, Chelsea Marcho, R. Craig Albertson
Summary: Adaptive phenotypes are influenced by genetic and environmental factors, but the interplay between them is not well understood. This study uses the oral jaw apparatus of cichlid fish to investigate the gene-by-environment effects. Gene expression analysis revealed differences between species and environments, with more pronounced species differences in response to different foraging modes. The findings suggest a role of genetic assimilation and implicate specific genes in shaping the jaw across species and environments.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Christopher B. Ball, Mrutyunjaya Parida, Juan F. Santana, Benjamin M. Spector, Gustavo A. Suarez, David H. Price
Summary: This study investigates the functional characterization of Gdown1 in human cells. It is found that Gdown1 predominantly resides in the cytoplasm of interphase cells and enters the nucleus at the onset of mitosis. Depletion of Gdown1 is associated with de-repression of mitotic transcription, aberrant mitoses, and activation of the p53 pathway.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Stacey L. Peek, Peter J. Bosch, Ethan Bahl, Brianna J. Iverson, Mrutyunjaya Parida, Preeti Bais, J. Robert Manak, Jacob J. Michaelson, Robert W. Burgess, Joshua A. Weiner
Summary: Akirin2 is critical for maintaining healthy neurons during cortical maturation, with p53 pathways identified as mediators of its functions. Reduction of Trp53 can rescue neurodegeneration caused by Akirin2 loss.
Article
Virology
Christopher B. Ball, Mrutyunjaya Parida, Ming Li, Benjamin M. Spector, Gustavo A. Suarez, Jeffery L. Meier, David H. Price
Summary: This study examines the impact of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection on host genome transcription. The results demonstrate that infection induces the rapid expression of innate immune response genes and promotes the release of paused RNA polymerase II into productive elongation. Additionally, HCMV infection affects the transcription of RNA polymerase I and III, with increased Pol I transcription and altered Pol III transcription of tRNA genes. The effects are partially dependent on viral genome replication and may be related to changes in chromatin state.
Article
Microbiology
Christopher B. Ball, Ming Li, Mrutyunjaya Parida, Qiaolin Hu, Deniz Ince, Geoffrey S. Collins, Jeffery L. Meier, David H. Price
Summary: The IE2 protein controls viral gene transcription during late HCMV infection in three distinct ways, including forming repressive complexes to block PIC assembly, interacting with nucleosomes and TBP at the major immediate-early promoter region, and serving as a direct roadblock to transcription elongation.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Sebastian Kruppert, Martin Horstmann, Linda C. Weiss, Elena Konopka, Nadja Kubitza, Simon Poppinga, Anna S. Westermeier, Thomas Speck, Ralph Tollrian
Summary: Every ecosystem has multiple levels of species interactions, mainly classified as competition and consumption. The modes of consumption vary, depending on the nature and extent of the consumed organism. Water fleas are important species in lentic ecosystems and have evolved various inducible defenses against animal predators. The carnivorous bladderwort is a plant predator that triggers inducible defenses in coexisting water fleas.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Helmut Stremmel, Linda Weiss, Gema Parra, Eloisa Ramos-Rodriguez, Cristiano V. M. Araujo
Summary: This study investigated the effects of fluoxetine on Daphnia magna, finding that it may have harmful effects on survival, behavior, and reproduction. It was revealed that fluoxetine did not have multigenerational effects on reproduction and behavior at environmentally relevant concentrations, but showed lethal effects at higher concentrations. Additionally, fluoxetine concentrations were found to promote the reproduction of D. magna. This study highlights the potential hazards for aquatic biota due to the increasing use of fluoxetine.
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Anke Schneeweiss, Noel P. D. Juvigny-Khenafou, Stephen Osakpolor, Andreas Scharmueller, Sebastian Scheu, Verena C. Schreiner, Roman Ashauer, Beate Escher, Florian Leese, Ralf B. Schaefer
Summary: The increasing production, use and emission of synthetic chemicals into the environment is a major driver of global change. Recent advances in biomolecular and computational methods show promise for improving our capacity to predict the effects of these chemicals. However, the complexity of the chemicals, limited knowledge on exposure patterns and effects, and the lack of data covering different levels of biological organization pose challenges to prediction.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Annette Graeve, Joshua Huster, Deria Goerl, Ioanna Ioannidou, Rocio Gomez, Linda C. Weiss
Summary: The cellular mechanisms underlying morphological defense expression in Daphnia, particularly the development of defensive crests, have been investigated. The study found that cell division is delayed in favor of cell growth, leading to crest formation. The defense development starts in the ventral region and extends towards the cranial and dorsal directions. These cellular changes begin as early as 2 hours after predator exposure.
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Kamil Hupalo, Denis Copilas-Ciocianu, Florian Leese, Martina Weiss
Article
Microbiology
Sheila Roitman, Andrey Rozenberg, Tali Lavy, Corina P. D. Brussaard, Oded Kleifeld, Oded Beja
Summary: Isolation and characterization of a virophage-like element, Gezel-14T, that co-infects a polar algae, Phaeocystis globosa, with a partner virus, PgV-14T, is reported. This co-infection reduces the fitness of the viral host by decreasing burst sizes of PgV-14T. Genomic screens reveal the integration of Gezel-14T-like elements into Phaeocystis genomes, suggesting the capability of these widespread viruses to integrate into cellular host genomes.
NATURE MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marie V. V. Brasseur, Jan Martini, Olivia Wilfling, Remo Wuethrich, Emil Birnstiel, Rebecca Oester, Vera M. A. Zizka, Gabriel Singer, Florian Leese, Simon Vitecek
Summary: Reliable biodiversity data are crucial for environmental research and management. DNA metabarcoding has accelerated biodiversity data generation. However, in the process of metabarcoding, specimens are usually destroyed, precluding later specimen-based analyses.
Article
Ecology
Rinat Bar-Shalom, Andrey Rozenberg, Matan Lahyani, Babak Hassanzadeh, Gobardhan Sahoo, Markus Haber, Ilia Burgsdorf, Xinyu Tang, Valeria Squatrito, Laura Gomez-Consarnau, Oded Beja, Laura Steindler
Summary: Rhodopsin photosystems convert light energy into electrochemical gradients used by the cell to produce ATP or for other energy-demanding processes. In this study, it was found that more than 7% of Verrucomicrobiota genomes contain different types of rhodopsins, and two rhodopsin-containing strains were cultivated to characterize their physiology. The study suggests that rhodopsin phototrophy in Verrucomicrobiota may support motility and organic material degradation, and enable nutrient uptake.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ariel Chazan, Ishita Das, Takayoshi Fujiwara, Shunya Murakoshi, Andrey Rozenberg, Ana Molina-Marquez, Fumiya K. Sano, Tatsuki Tanaka, Patricia Gomez-Villegas, Shirley Larom, Alina Pushkarev, Partha Malakar, Masumi Hasegawa, Yuya Tsukamoto, Tomohiro Ishizuka, Masae Konno, Takashi Nagata, Yosuke Mizuno, Kota Katayama, Rei Abe-Yoshizumi, Sanford Ruhman, Keiichi Inoue, Hideki Kandori, Rosa Leon, Wataru Shihoya, Susumu Yoshizawa, Mordechai Sheves, Osamu Nureki, Oded Beja
Summary: Light-harvesting carotenoids, such as zeaxanthin and lutein, transfer energy to the retinal chromophore of xanthorhodopsins and proteorhodopsins, indicating their potential role in rhodopsin phototrophy in lakes, seas, and oceans.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marie Brasseur, Florian Leese, Ralf B. Schafer, Verena C. Schreiner, Christoph Mayer
Summary: Pesticides are major stressors for freshwater species, disrupting their ecosystems and functions. The specific effects of the widely-used insecticide chlorantraniliprole on aquatic non-target taxa are poorly understood.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2023)