Genomic Characterization of Quality Wool Traits in Spanish Merino Sheep.

The native Spanish Merino breed was the founder of all the other Merino and Merino-derived breeds worldwide. Despite the fact that this breed was created and improved to produce the highest quality fine wool, the global wool market crisis led to the wholescale crossing of most of the herds with breeds for meat purposes. Nevertheless, there are still some purebred animals with a high potential for producing quality wool.

Interspecific variability in plastic ingested by Procellariiformes off the Uruguayan coast.

We assessed the interspecific variability in plastic ingested by albatrosses and petrels using bycaught birds from fisheries of the Southwest Atlantic. From 107 stomachs examined, 4.17 % of the albatrosses and 62.

Diving into the vertical dimension of elasmobranch movement ecology.

Knowledge of the three-dimensional movement patterns of elasmobranchs is vital to understand their ecological roles and exposure to anthropogenic pressures. To date, comparative studies among species at global scales have mostly focused on horizontal movements. Our study addresses the knowledge gap of vertical movements by compiling the first global synthesis of vertical habitat use by elasmobranchs from data obtained by deployment of 989 biotelemetry tags on 38 elasmobranch species.

Selected Metabolites Found in Equine Oviductal Fluid do not Modify the Parameters Associated to Capacitation of the Frozen-thawed Equine Spermatozoa In Vitro.

In the horse, a repeatable protocol for in vitro fertilization has not been developed, possibly due to incomplete sperm capacitation. We have previously identified the metabolites present in equine oviductal fluid (OF). We aimed to test the effects of different metabolites found in equine oviductal fluid on quality parameters of frozen-thawed spermatozoa.

Trade-offs between bycatch and target catches in static versus dynamic fishery closures.

While there have been recent improvements in reducing bycatch in many fisheries, bycatch remains a threat for numerous species around the globe. Static spatial and temporal closures are used in many places as a tool to reduce bycatch. However, their effectiveness in achieving this goal is uncertain, particularly for highly mobile species.

New records and range extension of the Portuguese dogfish Centroscymnus coelolepis in the south-western Atlantic Ocean, with comments on its morphology.

The Portuguese dogfish Centroscymnus coelolepis is a wide-ranging deep-water shark and a common by-catch component of the catches of several mid- to deep-water fisheries. In the present study, two new records from the south-western Atlantic Ocean are reported based on specimens caught by bottom-longline fishing vessels operating in the Argentinean-Uruguayan Common Fishing Zone. Species identification based on morphology and detailed morphometrics, as well as molecular data are presented for one of the specimens.

Effectiveness of tori line use to reduce seabird bycatch in pelagic longline fishing.

Industrial longline fisheries cause the death of large numbers of seabirds annually. Various mitigation measures have been proposed, including the use of tori lines. In this study the efficiency of a single tori line to reduce seabird bycatch was tested on pelagic longline vessels (25-37m length).

The use of mesoscale eddies by juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in the southwestern Atlantic.

Marine animals, such as turtles, seabirds and pelagic fishes, are observed to travel and congregate around eddies in the open ocean. Mesoscale eddies, large swirling ocean vortices with radius scales of approximately 50-100 km, provide environmental variability that can structure these populations. In this study, we investigate the use of mesoscale eddies by 24 individual juvenile loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in the Brazil-Malvinas Confluence region.

New Nuclear SNP Markers Unravel the Genetic Structure and Effective Population Size of Albacore Tuna (Thunnus alalunga).

In the present study we have investigated the population genetic structure of albacore (Thunnus alalunga, Bonnaterre 1788) and assessed the loss of genetic diversity, likely due to overfishing, of albacore population in the North Atlantic Ocean. For this purpose, 1,331 individuals from 26 worldwide locations were analyzed by genotyping 75 novel nuclear SNPs. Our results indicated the existence of four genetically homogeneous populations delimited within the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean.

Marine debris ingestion by albatrosses in the southwest Atlantic Ocean.

Plastics and other marine debris affect wildlife through entanglement and by ingestion. We assessed the ingestion of marine debris by seven albatross species in the southwest Atlantic by analyzing stomach contents of birds killed in fisheries. Of the 128 specimens examined, including four Diomedea species (n=78) and three Thalassarche species (n=50), 21 (16.

Comparative population genetics and evolutionary history of two commonly misidentified billfishes of management and conservation concern.

Background: Misidentifications between exploited species may lead to inaccuracies in population assessments, with potentially irreversible conservation ramifications if overexploitation of either species is occurring. A notable showcase is provided by the realization that the roundscale spearfish (Tetrapturus georgii), a recently validated species, has been historically misidentified as the morphologically very similar and severely overfished white marlin (Kajikia albida) (IUCN listing: Vulnerable). In effect, no information exists on the population status and evolutionary history of the enigmatic roundscale spearfish, a large, highly vagile and broadly distributed pelagic species.

Atlantic leatherback migratory paths and temporary residence areas.

Background: Sea turtles are long-distance migrants with considerable behavioural plasticity in terms of migratory patterns, habitat use and foraging sites within and among populations. However, for the most widely migrating turtle, the leatherback turtle Dermochelys coriacea, studies combining data from individuals of different populations are uncommon. Such studies are however critical to better understand intra- and inter-population variability and take it into account in the implementation of conservation strategies of this critically endangered species.

Levels of DKK1 in patients with acute myocardial infarction and response to atorvastatin.

The Wnt-LPR5 signalling pathway plays an important role in skeletal homeostasis, especially in regulating osteoblastic activity. Activation of this pathway is regulated by various inhibitors, including DKK1. The objective of this study was to evaluate DKK1 levels in patients with ischemic heart disease, the response to atorvastatin and the relationship with bone mass.