Cryobanking European Mink () Mesenchymal Stem Cells and Oocytes.

The European mink () is one of Europe's most endangered species, and it is on the brink of extinction in the Iberian Peninsula. The species' precarious situation requires the application of new ex situ conservation methodologies that complement the existing ex situ and in situ conservation measures. Here, we report for the first time the establishment of a biobank for European mink mesenchymal stem cells (emMSC) and oocytes from specimens found dead in the Iberian Peninsula, either free or in captivity.

Women in the European Virus Bioinformatics Center.

Viruses are the cause of a considerable burden to human, animal and plant health, while on the other hand playing an important role in regulating entire ecosystems. The power of new sequencing technologies combined with new tools for processing "Big Data" offers unprecedented opportunities to answer fundamental questions in virology. Virologists have an urgent need for virus-specific bioinformatics tools.

Reconceptualizing the hyporheic zone for nonperennial rivers and streams.

Nonperennial streams dominate global river networks and are increasing in occurrence across space and time. When surface flow ceases or the surface water dries, flow or moisture can be retained in the subsurface sediments of the hyporheic zone, supporting aquatic communities and ecosystem processes. However, hydrological and ecological definitions of the hyporheic zone have been developed in perennial rivers and emphasize the mixing of water and organisms, respectively, from both the surface stream and groundwater.

Mesenchymal Stem Cells in Embryo-Maternal Communication under Healthy Conditions or Viral Infections: Lessons from a Bovine Model.

Bovine mesenchymal stem cells are a relevant cell population found in the maternal reproductive tract that exhibits the immunomodulation capacity required to prevent embryo rejection. The phenotypic plasticity showed by both endometrial mesenchymal stem cells (eMSC) and embryonic trophoblast through mesenchymal to epithelial transition and epithelial to mesenchymal transition, respectively, is essential for embryo implantation. Embryonic trophoblast maintains active crosstalk via EVs and soluble proteins with eMSC and peripheral blood MSC (pbMSC) to ensure the retention of eMSC in case of pregnancy and induce the chemotaxis of pbMSC, critical for successful implantation.

Possible Impact of a 12-Month Web- and Smartphone-Based Program to Improve Long-term Physical Activity in Patients Attending Spa Therapy: Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Lack of physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviors are leading risk factors for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Web- and smartphone-based interventions are effective in increasing PA in older adults and in patients with NCD. In many countries, spa therapy, commonly prescribed to patients with NCD, represents an ideal context to initiating lifestyle changes.

Vaccinia Virus Attenuation by Codon Deoptimization of the A24R Gene for Vaccine Development.

Poxviruses have large DNA genomes, and they are able to infect multiple vertebrate and invertebrate animals, including humans. Despite the eradication of smallpox, poxvirus infections still remain a significant public health concern. Vaccinia virus (VV) is the prototypic member in the family and it has been used extensively for different prophylactic applications, including the generation of vaccines against multiple infectious diseases and/or for oncolytic treatment.

Oviductal epithelial cells transcriptome and extracellular vesicles characterization during thermoneutral and heat stress conditions in dairy cows.

In this study, the transcriptome of oviductal epithelial cells and certain characteristics of their extracellular vesicles of dairy cows were described under thermoneutral and heat stress conditions. Twenty cows were compared in springtime at THI = 65.6 ± 0.

New Aspects of Corpus Luteum Regulation in Physiological and Pathological Conditions: Involvement of Adipokines and Neuropeptides.

The corpus luteum is a small gland of great importance because its proper functioning determines not only the appropriate course of the estrous/menstrual cycle and embryo implantation, but also the subsequent maintenance of pregnancy. Among the well-known regulators of luteal tissue functions, increasing attention is focused on the role of neuropeptides and adipose tissue hormones-adipokines. Growing evidence points to the expression of these factors in the corpus luteum of women and different animal species, and their involvement in corpus luteum formation, endocrine function, angiogenesis, cells proliferation, apoptosis, and finally, regression.

Global patterns in the predator satiation effect of masting: A meta-analysis.

SignificanceMasting, or synchronous production of large seed crops, is widespread among plants. The predator satiation hypothesis states that masting evolved to overwhelm seed predators with an excess of food. Yet, this popular explanation faced few rigorous tests.

Can Artificial Intelligence Help in the Study of Vegetative Growth Patterns from Herbarium Collections? An Evaluation of the Tropical Flora of the French Guiana Forest.

A better knowledge of tree vegetative growth phenology and its relationship to environmental variables is crucial to understanding forest growth dynamics and how climate change may affect it. Less studied than reproductive structures, vegetative growth phenology focuses primarily on the analysis of growing shoots, from buds to leaf fall. In temperate regions, low winter temperatures impose a cessation of vegetative growth shoots and lead to a well-known annual growth cycle pattern for most species.

The Role of Aquaporin 7 in the Movement of Water and Cryoprotectants in Bovine In Vitro Matured Oocytes.

Aquaglyceroporins are known as channel proteins, and are able to transport water and small neutral solutes. In this study, we evaluate the effect of exposure of in vitro matured bovine oocytes to hyperosmotic solutions containing ethylene glycol (EG), dimethyl sulfoxide (MeSO) or sucrose on the expression levels of AQP3, AQP7 and AQP9. Moreover, we studied whether artificial protein expression of AQP7 in bovine oocytes increases their permeability to water and cryoprotectants.

Population Structure of in the Main Cacao Producing Departments of Colombia.

The witches' broom () is considered as one of the main threats for cacao production and, consequently, for chocolate production worldwide. In this work, the genetic diversity and population structure of were analyzed for 59 isolates collected in five departments of Colombia and using 10 microsatellite markers. Analyses revealed 35 multilocus genotypes and clonal populations structure according to linkage disequilibrium analysis.

Machine Learning Undercounts Reproductive Organs on Herbarium Specimens but Accurately Derives Their Quantitative Phenological Status: A Case Study of .

Machine learning (ML) can accelerate the extraction of phenological data from herbarium specimens; however, no studies have assessed whether ML-derived phenological data can be used reliably to evaluate ecological patterns. In this study, 709 herbarium specimens representing a widespread annual herb, were scored both manually by human observers and by a mask R-CNN object detection model to (1) evaluate the concordance between ML and manually-derived phenological data and (2) determine whether ML-derived data can be used to reliably assess phenological patterns. The ML model generally underestimated the number of reproductive structures present on each specimen; however, when these counts were used to provide a quantitative estimate of the phenological stage of plants on a given sheet (i.

Bioinformatic Analysis of Lytic Polysaccharide Monooxygenases Reveals the Pan-Families Occurrence of Intrinsically Disordered C-Terminal Extensions.

Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) are monocopper enzymes secreted by many organisms and viruses. LPMOs catalyze the oxidative cleavage of different types of polysaccharides and are today divided into eight families (AA9-11, AA13-17) within the Auxiliary Activity enzyme class of the CAZy database. LPMOs minimal architecture encompasses a catalytic domain, to which can be appended a carbohydrate-binding module.

Physicochemical, Functional, Fatty Acids Profile, Health Lipid Indices, Microstructure and Sensory Characteristics of Walnut-Processed Cheeses.

In the present study, processed cheeses fortified with walnut paste (a high source of omega-3 fatty acids) were developed and characterized. In order to identify the best cheese formulation, the effects of different proportions of walnut paste (0, 5, 10, and 15%) on cheese physicochemical, functional, fatty acids profile, health lipid indices (atherogenic and thrombogenic), microstructure, and sensorial characteristics were studied. Results showed that walnut-added samples had significantly ( 0.

A complete check-up of European eel after eight years of restocking in an upland river: Trends in growth, lipid content, sex ratio and health status.

By combining field research and careful laboratory analysis of samples over the course of an eight-year study, we met the challenge of assessing the life history traits and health status of eels restocked in freshwater ecosystems. We found that restocked eels exhibited good growth performance; moreover, the stocks were female-dominated, showed a good Fulton's condition factor (K) and lipid stores and had high survival probability estimated using the best model of Jolly-Seber stock assessment method for open populations. A necropsy revealed the absence of internal lesions.

Elementary calcium release events in the skeletal muscle cells of the honey bee Apis mellifera.

Calcium sparks are involved in major physiological and pathological processes in vertebrate muscles but have never been characterized in invertebrates. Here, dynamic confocal imaging on intact skeletal muscle cells isolated enzymatically from the adult honey bee legs allowed the first spatio-temporal characterization of subcellular calcium release events (CREs) in an insect species. The frequency of CREs, measured in x-y time lapse series, was higher than frequencies usually described in vertebrates.

Biotic threats for 23 major non-native tree species in Europe.

For non-native tree species with an origin outside of Europe a detailed compilation of enemy species including the severity of their attack is lacking up to now. We collected information on native and non-native species attacking non-native trees, i.e.

Scalable Sparse Testing Genomic Selection Strategy for Early Yield Testing Stage.

To enable a scalable sparse testing genomic selection (GS) strategy at preliminary yield trials in the CIMMYT maize breeding program, optimal approaches to incorporate genotype by environment interaction (GEI) in genomic prediction models are explored. Two cross-validation schemes were evaluated: CV1, predicting the genetic merit of new bi-parental populations that have been evaluated in some environments and not others, and CV2, predicting the genetic merit of half of a bi-parental population that has been phenotyped in some environments and not others using the coefficient of determination (CDmean) to determine optimized subsets of a full-sib family to be evaluated in each environment. We report similar prediction accuracies in CV1 and CV2, however, CV2 has an intuitive appeal in that all bi-parental populations have representation across environments, allowing efficient use of information across environments.

Lineage Differentiation Markers as a Proxy for Embryo Viability in Farm Ungulates.

Embryonic losses constitute a major burden for reproductive efficiency of farm animals. Pregnancy losses in ungulate species, which include cattle, pigs, sheep and goats, majorly occur during the second week of gestation, when the embryo experiences a series of cell differentiation, proliferation, and migration processes encompassed under the term conceptus elongation. Conceptus elongation takes place following blastocyst hatching and involves a massive proliferation of the extraembryonic membranes trophoblast and hypoblast, and the formation of flat embryonic disc derived from the epiblast, which ultimately gastrulates generating the three germ layers.

Culture Medium and Sex Drive Epigenetic Reprogramming in Preimplantation Bovine Embryos.

Assisted reproductive technologies impact transcriptome and epigenome of embryos and can result in long-term phenotypic consequences. Whole-genome DNA methylation profiles from individual bovine blastocysts in vivo- and in vitro-derived (using three sources of protein: reproductive fluids, blood serum and bovine serum albumin) were generated. The impact of in vitro culture on DNA methylation was analyzed, and sex-specific methylation differences at blastocyst stage were uncovered.