Trace Metal Bioaccumulation in Feral Pigeons ( f. ) and Rooks () Residing in the Urban Environment of Iasi City, Romania.

Nowadays trace metal contamination within urban atmospheres is a significant and concerning global issue. In the present study, two synanthropic bird species, namely, the feral pigeon ( f. ) and the rook (), were employed as bioindicators to assess the atmospheric trace metal pollution in Iasi City, Romania.

Effects of COVID-19 lockdown on the observed density of coral reef fish along coastal habitats of Moorea, French Polynesia.

Unlabelled: During the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, levels of coastal activities such as subsistence fishing and marine tourism declined rapidly throughout French Polynesia. Here, we examined whether the reduction in coastal use led to changes in fish density around the island of Moorea. Two natural coastal marine habitats (bare sand and mangrove) and one type of man-made coastal structure (embankment) were monitored on the west coast of the island before and after the first COVID-19 lockdown.

Targeted census of lionfishes (Scorpaenidae) reveals high densities in their native range.

Indo-Pacific lionfishes generally exhibit cryptic behaviours and so can be missed when conducting non-targeted surveys. Here, the authors report the results from targeted surveys of lionfish at Moorea, French Polynesia. Lionfish from three species (Pterois antennata, Pterois radiata, Dendrochirus biocellatus) were observed at a mean density of 267 individuals ha .

Developing and adult reef fish show rapid light-induced plasticity in their visual system.

The visual capabilities of fish are optimized for their ecology and light environment over evolutionary time. Similarly, fish vision can adapt to regular changes in light conditions within their lifetime, e.g.

Development of dim-light vision in the nocturnal reef fish family Holocentridae. I: Retinal gene expression.

Developmental changes to the visual systems of animals are often associated with ecological shifts. Reef fishes experience a change in habitat between larval life in the shallow open ocean to juvenile and adult life on the reef. Some species also change their lifestyle over this period and become nocturnal.

Development of dim-light vision in the nocturnal reef fish family Holocentridae. II: Retinal morphology.

Ontogenetic changes in the habitats and lifestyles of animals are often reflected in their visual systems. Coral reef fishes start life in the shallow open ocean but inhabit the reef as juveniles and adults. Alongside this change in habitat, some species also change lifestyles and become nocturnal.

Effects of Asparagopsis taxiformis metabolites on the feeding behaviour of post-larval Acanthurus triostegus.

Our study highlights the effect of the macroalgae Asparagopsis taxiformis on the feeding behaviour of the tropical surgeonfish Acanthurus triostegus. The presence of A. taxiformis chemical cues reduced A.

Expression of exogenous mRNAs to study gene function in echinoderm embryos.

With the completion of the genome sequencing projects, a new challenge for developmental biologists is to assign a function to the thousands of genes identified. Expression of exogenous mRNAs is a powerful, versatile and rapid technique that can be used to study gene function during development of the sea urchin. This chapter describes how this technique can be used to analyze gene function in echinoderm embryos, how it can be combined with cell transplantation to perform mosaic analysis and how it can be applied to identify downstream targets genes of transcription factors and signaling pathways.

Boat noise prevents soundscape-based habitat selection by coral planulae.

Understanding the relationship between coral reef condition and recruitment potential is vital for the development of effective management strategies that maintain coral cover and biodiversity. Coral larvae (planulae) have been shown to use certain sensory cues to orient towards settlement habitats (e.g.

Exposure to agricultural pesticide impairs visual lateralization in a larval coral reef fish.

Lateralization, i.e. the preferential use of one side of the body, may convey fitness benefits for organisms within rapidly-changing environments, by optimizing separate and parallel processing of different information between the two brain hemispheres.

Consistency in the supply of larval fishes among coral reefs in French Polynesia.

For marine fishes with a bipartite life cycle, pelagic larval dispersal can shape the distribution, connectivity, composition and resilience of adult populations. Numerous studies of larval dispersal, and associated settlement and recruitment processes, have examined the relationship between population connectivity and oceanographic features. However, relatively little is known about spatial and temporal variation in the abundance of larvae settling among different reefs and the extent to which the species assemblage of larvae settling at one location is reflective of the assemblage in neighbouring areas.

Frizzled1/2/7 signaling directs β-catenin nuclearisation and initiates endoderm specification in macromeres during sea urchin embryogenesis.

In sea urchins, the nuclear accumulation of β-catenin in micromeres and macromeres at 4th and 5th cleavage activates the developmental gene regulatory circuits that specify all of the vegetal tissues (i.e. skeletogenic mesoderm, endoderm and non-skeletogenic mesoderm).

Localized VEGF signaling from ectoderm to mesenchyme cells controls morphogenesis of the sea urchin embryo skeleton.

During development, cell migration plays an important role in morphogenetic processes. The construction of the skeleton of the sea urchin embryo by a small number of cells, the primary mesenchyme cells (PMCs), offers a remarkable model to study cell migration and its involvement in morphogenesis. During gastrulation, PMCs migrate and become positioned along the ectodermal wall following a stereotypical pattern that determines skeleton morphology.

The genome of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus.

We report the sequence and analysis of the 814-megabase genome of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, a model for developmental and systems biology. The sequencing strategy combined whole-genome shotgun and bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) sequences. This use of BAC clones, aided by a pooling strategy, overcame difficulties associated with high heterozygosity of the genome.

RTK and TGF-beta signaling pathways genes in the sea urchin genome.

The Receptor Tyrosine kinase (RTK) and TGF-beta signaling pathways play essential roles during development in many organisms and regulate a plethora of cellular responses. From the genome sequence of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, we have made an inventory of the genes encoding receptor tyrosine kinases and their ligands, and of the genes encoding cytokines of the TGF-beta superfamily and their downstream components. The sea urchin genome contains at least 20 genes coding for canonical receptor tyrosine kinases.

A genome-wide survey of the evolutionarily conserved Wnt pathways in the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus.

The Wnt pathways are evolutionarily well-conserved signal transduction pathways that are known to play important roles in all Metazoans investigated to date. Here, we examine the Wnt pathway genes and target genes present in the genome of the echinoderm Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. Analysis of the Wnt genes revealed that eleven of the thirteen reported Wnt subfamilies are represented in sea urchin, with the intriguing identification of a Wnt-A ortholog thought to be absent in deuterostomes.

Nemo-like kinase (NLK) acts downstream of Notch/Delta signalling to downregulate TCF during mesoderm induction in the sea urchin embryo.

Studies in Caenorhabditis elegans and vertebrates have established that the MAP kinase-related protein NLK counteracts Wnt signalling by downregulating the transcription factor TCF. Here, we present evidence that during early development of the sea urchin embryo, NLK is expressed in the mesodermal precursors in response to Notch signalling and directs their fate by downregulating TCF. The expression pattern of nlk is strikingly similar to that of Delta and the two genes regulate the expression of each other.

Frizzled5/8 is required in secondary mesenchyme cells to initiate archenteron invagination during sea urchin development.

Wnt signaling pathways play key roles in numerous developmental processes both in vertebrates and invertebrates. Their signals are transduced by Frizzled proteins, the cognate receptors of the Wnt ligands. This study focuses on the role of a member of the Frizzled family, Fz5/8, during sea urchin embryogenesis.

Expression of exogenous mRNAs to study gene function in the sea urchin embryo.

Expression of exogenous mRNAs has become part of the standard approach to studying gene function during development of the sea urchin. The method is simple and reliable, protocols for the preparation of synthetic mRNAs are well described, and the technique to transfer them into eggs is efficient. The protein encoded by these mRNAs can be designed to address a variety of biological questions and their DNA matrices are easily constructed by standard molecular biology techniques.

Using reporter genes to study cis-regulatory elements.

This chapter summarizes four powerful assays for analyzing gene expression in cis-regulatory studies. The enzymatic assays (CAT, luciferase, lacZ) are currently limited by their application to embryo homogenates or fixed samples, but offer more robust analysis of gene activity than GFP. Assays based on CAT enzymatic activity or on CAT mRNA detection by WMISH are laborious but are well established for accurately quantifying gene expression and to determine spatial patterns at defined timepoints during development.

Coquillette, a sea urchin T-box gene of the Tbx2 subfamily, is expressed asymmetrically along the oral-aboral axis of the embryo and is involved in skeletogenesis.

Transcription factors of the T-domain family regulate many developmental processes. We have isolated from the sea urchin a new member of the Tbx2 subfamily: coquillette. Coquillette has a late zygotic expression whose localization is dynamic: at the blastula stage it is restricted to the aboral side of most of the presumptive ectoderm and endoderm territories and from gastrulation on, to the aboral-most primary mesenchyme cells.

In vivo priming of HIV-specific CTLs determines selective cross-reactive immune responses against poorly immunogenic HIV-natural variants.

Degeneracy of the TCR repertoire might allow for cross-recognition of epitope variants. However, it is unclear how the first encounter with HIV Ags determines recognition of emerging epitope variants. This question remains crucial in the choice of HIV vaccine sequences given the virus variability.