Cardiovascular oxygen transport and peripheral oxygen extraction capacity contribute to acute heat tolerance in European seabass.

This study evaluated whether different parameters describing cardiovascular function, energy metabolism, oxygen transport and oxidative stress were related to the critical thermal maximum (CT) of European seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax) and if there were differential changes in these parameters during and after heat shock in animals with different CT in order to characterize which physiological features make seabass vulnerable to heat waves. Seabass (n = 621) were tested for CT and the physiological parameters were measured in individuals with good or poor temperature tolerance before and after a heat shock (change in temperature from 15 °C to 28 °C in 1.5 h).

Effect of Bioprocessing on Techno-Functional Properties of Climate-Resilient African Crops, Sorghum and Cowpea.

Sorghum and cowpea are very compatible for intercropping in hot and dry environments, and they also have complementary nutritional compositions. Thus, the crops have the potential to improve food security in regions threatened by climate change. The aim of this study was to investigate different enzymes (carbohydrate-degrading, proteases and phytases) and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) fermentation to improve the techno-functional properties of sorghum and cowpea flours.

Functional Genomics of Fish Erythrocytes.

Fish red blood cells contain nucleus and therefore carry on active transcription throughout their life. As the steady state level of mRNA depends both on the production and breakdown of the mRNA, it is important to pay attention to sampling, cell separation, mRNA extraction, and transcript stability to conduct a comprehensive erythrocyte genomics study. In addition, particular attention should be made to tie the transcriptional changes to corresponding protein activities, as only those would impact cellular functions.

Effect of pH and temperature on fibrous structure formation of plant proteins during high-moisture extrusion processing.

This study investigated the effect of pH on fibrous structure formation (protein alignment) during high-moisture extrusion processing of gluten, rice protein, as well as pea protein concentrate, and isolate. The pH of the raw material was shifted to 5 and 7 in water suspension with an acid or base and freeze-dried, after which, conductivity, solubility, water-holding capacity, particle size, and pH were measured. The pH-shifted raw materials were extruded at various temperatures (95-160 °C) and the extrudates were analysed for protein alignment (macro and microstructure), tensile strength, free thiol groups, and cooking properties.

Copper exposure improves the upper thermal tolerance in a sex-specific manner, irrespective of fish thermal history.

Ectotherms can respond to climate change via evolutionary adaptation, usually resulting in an increase of their upper thermal tolerance. But whether such adaptation influences the phenotypic plasticity of thermal tolerance when encountering further environmental stressors is not clear yet. This is crucial to understand because organisms experience multiple stressors, besides warming climate, in their natural environment and pollution is one of those.

The role of rye bran acidification and in situ dextran formation on structure and texture of high fibre extrudates.

High insoluble dietary fibre content causes challenges with structure and texture in extrusion. This paper focused on studying the structure of extrudate enriched with rye bran modified in different ways. Fermentation of rye bran with dextran-producing Weissella confusa (with 10 g/100 g, 5 g/100 g and 0 g/100 g added sucrose as substrate for dextran production), in situ enzymatic production of dextran in the bran and chemical acidification of bran with lactic acid were compared in extrusion trials.

Environmentally driven changes in Baltic salmon oxidative status during marine migration.

The fitness and recruitment of fish stocks can be markedly affected by environmental disturbances including global warming, eutrophication and contamination. Understanding the effects of environmental stressors on salmon physiology during marine residence is of a global concern as marine survival has decreased. We present a unique combination of physiological responses - antioxidant defence and oxidative damage biomarkers, stable isotopes and contaminant exposure biomarkers - measured from adult Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) collected at the Baltic Sea and studied in relation to environmental variables and fitness estimates.

Hsp70s transcription-translation relationship depends on the heat shock temperature in zebrafish.

Virtually all organisms respond to heat shock by transcription of genes encoding for heat shock proteins (HSPs), but the mechanisms behind post-transcriptional regulation are not known in detail. When we exposed zebrafish to 5 and 7 °C above normal rearing temperature for 30 min, hsp70 mRNA expression was 28 and 150 -fold higher than in control, respectively. Protein expression, on the other hand, showed no significant change at the +5 °C and a 2-fold increase at the +7 °C exposure.

Environmental regulation of the function of circulating erythrocytes via changes in age distribution in teleost fish: Possible mechanisms and significance.

The blood of fish has a continuous age distribution of erythrocytes. The properties of young and old erythrocytes differ with young erythrocytes being functionally much more versatile than old erythrocytes, which have higher haemoglobin content. Factors which affect the formation and breakdown of erythrocytes are reviewed.

Regulation of erythrocyte function: Multiple evolutionary solutions for respiratory gas transport and its regulation in fish.

Gas transport concepts in vertebrates have naturally been formulated based on human blood. However, the first vertebrates were aquatic, and fish and tetrapods diverged hundreds of millions years ago. Water-breathing vertebrates live in an environment with low and variable O levels, making environmental O an important evolutionary selection pressure in fishes, and various features of their gas transport differ from humans.

Water-soluble fraction of crude oil affects variability and has transgenerational effects in Daphnia magna.

The importance of interindividual variability in environmental responses has been little studied, although the available information suggests that, e.g., changes in environmental temperature may be associated with changes in variability.

Individual variation in aquatic toxicology: Not only unwanted noise.

The mean value of any parameter and its changes are usually discussed, when ecotoxicological studies are carried out. However, also the variation of any parameter and its changes can be important components of the responses to environmental contamination. Although the homogeneity of variances is commonly tested, testing is done for the use of correct statistical methods, not because of exploring the possibility that variability and its changes could be important components of environmental responses.

Alternative respiratory chain enzymes: Therapeutic potential and possible pitfalls.

The alternative respiratory chain (aRC), comprising the alternative NADH dehydrogenases (NDX) and quinone oxidases (AOX), is found in microbes, fungi and plants, where it buffers stresses arising from restrictions on electron flow in the oxidative phosphorylation system. The aRC enzymes are also found in species belonging to most metazoan phyla, including some chordates and arthropods species, although not in vertebrates or in Drosophila. We postulated that the aRC enzymes might be deployed to alleviate pathological stresses arising from mitochondrial dysfunction in a wide variety of disease states.

Circadian rhythms and environmental disturbances - underexplored interactions.

Biological rhythms control the life of virtually all organisms, impacting numerous aspects ranging from subcellular processes to behaviour. Many studies have shown that changes in abiotic environmental conditions can disturb or entrain circadian (∼24 h) rhythms. These expected changes are so large that they could impose risks to the long-term viability of populations.

Cold temperature represses daily rhythms in the liver transcriptome of a stenothermal teleost under decreasing day length.

The climate-change-driven increase in temperature is occurring rapidly and decreasing the predictability of seasonal rhythms at high latitudes. It is therefore urgent to understand how a change in the relationship between photoperiod and temperature can affect ectotherms in these environments. We tested whether temperature affects daily rhythms of transcription in a cold-adapted salmonid using high-throughput RNA sequencing.

Transcriptomic Analysis of Young and Old Erythrocytes of Fish.

Understanding gene expression changes over the lifespan of cells is of fundamental interest and gives important insights into processes related to maturation and aging. This study was undertaken to understand the global transcriptome changes associated with aging in fish erythrocytes. Fish erythrocytes retain their nuclei throughout their lifetime and they are transcriptionally and translationally active.

Systemic Hypoxia Increases Circulating Concentration of Apelin in Humans.

Unlabelled: Heinonen, Ilkka, Olli Vuolteenaho, Juha Koskenvuo, Olli Arjamaa, and Mikko Nikinmaa. Systemic hypoxia increases circulating concentration of apelin in humans. High Alt Med Biol.

In vitro study on the regulation of cellular mRNA levels by changes in transcription rate and transcript stability in fish red blood cells.

The interplay of transcriptional and post-transcriptional processes in the regulation of gene expression has been extensively studied in mammals but little is known in other vertebrates so far. Most non-mammalian vertebrates are faced with environmental cues and stressors distinct from those experienced by mammals and thus it is likely that the gene expression strategies differ from those of mammals. Here we performed experiments to study in vitro the various levels of gene expression regulation in nucleated fish red blood cells.

Influence of crude oil exposure on cardiac function and thermal tolerance of juvenile rainbow trout and European sea bass.

Oil spills pose a threat to aquatic organisms. However, the physiological effects of crude oil on cardiac function and on thermal tolerance of juvenile fish are still poorly understood. Consequently, in this paper, we will present results of two separate experiments where we exposed juvenile rainbow trout and European sea bass to crude oil and made cardiac thermal tolerances and maximum heart rate (f ) measurements after 1 week (rainbow trout) and 6-month recovery (sea bass).

Different Relationship between mRNA and hsp70 Levels in the Heat Shock Response of Two Salmonids with Dissimilar Temperature Preference.

The heat shock response (HSR) refers to the rapid production of heat shock proteins (hsps) in response to a sudden increase in temperature. Its regulation by heat shock factors is a good example of how gene expression is transcriptionally regulated by environmental stresses. In contrast, little is known about post-transcriptional regulation of the response.

Regulatory Architecture of Gene Expression Variation in the Threespine Stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus.

Much adaptive evolutionary change is underlain by mutational variation in regions of the genome that regulate gene expression rather than in the coding regions of the genes themselves. An understanding of the role of gene expression variation in facilitating local adaptation will be aided by an understanding of underlying regulatory networks. Here, we characterize the genetic architecture of gene expression variation in the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus), an important model in the study of adaptive evolution.

Hypoxia exposure and B-type natriuretic peptide release from Langendorff heart of rats.

Aim: We studied whether available oxygen without induced mechanical stretch regulates the release of the biologically active B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) from Langendorff heart.

Methods: Rat hearts were isolated and perfused with a physiological Krebs-Henseleit solution at a constant hydrostatic pressure in Langendorff set-up. The basal O level of perfusate (24.

DNA Barcoding Marine Biodiversity: Steps from Mere Cataloguing to Giving Reasons for Biological Differences.

DNA barcoding has become a useful tool in many contexts and has opened up a completely new avenue for taxonomy. DNA barcoding has its widest application in biodiversity and ecological research to detect and describe diversity whenever morphological discrimination is difficult or impossible (e.g.