| 1. |
- Nilsson, R. Henrik, 1976, et al.
(author)
-
Introducing guidelines for publishing DNA-derived occurrence data through biodiversity data platforms
- 2022
-
In: Metabarcoding and Metagenomics. - : Pensoft Publishers. - 2534-9708. ; 6
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- DNA sequencing efforts of environmental and other biological samples disclose unprecedented and largely untapped opportunities for advances in the taxonomy, ecology, and geographical distributions of our living world. To realise this potential, DNA-derived occurrence data (notably sequences with dates and coordinates) – much like traditional specimens and observations – need to be discoverable and interpretable through biodiversity data platforms. The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) recently headed a community effort to assemble a set of guidelines for publishing DNA-derived data. These guidelines target the principles and approaches of exposing DNA-derived occurrence data in the context of broader biodiversity data. They cover a choice of terms using a controlled vocabulary, common pitfalls, and good practices, without going into platform-specific details. Our hope is that they will benefit anyone interested in better exposure of DNA-derived occurrence data through general biodiversity data platforms, including national biodiversity portals. This paper provides a brief rationale and an overview of the guidelines, an up-to-date version of which is maintained at https://doi.org/10.35035/doc-vf1a-nr22. User feedback and interaction are encouraged as new techniques and best practices emerge.
|
|
| 2. |
- Hassellöv, Ida-Maja, et al.
(author)
-
Effekter på havsmiljön av att flytta över transporter från vägtrafik till sjöfart
- 2019
-
Reports (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Antagandet av en nationell godstransportstrategi 2018 innebär att Sverige strävar efter att ”främja en överflyttning av godstransporter från väg till järnväg och sjöfart”. Ett delmål är att minska negativ miljöpåverkan från godstransporter. Men, om en överflyttning av gods från väg till sjöfart innebär ökat antal fartyg, eller ökad tillryggalagd distans med fartyg, innebär överflyttningen en ökad belastning på havsmiljön. Här föreligger därför en målkonflikt mellan transportpolitiska mål och flera miljömål. Tillståndet i havsmiljön runt Sveriges kuster uppnår idag inte god miljöstatus med avseende på exempelvis näringsämnen, miljögifter och främmande arter; för samtliga dessa belastningar bidrar sjöfarten till den negativa situationen. För att nå god miljöstatus behöver istället den totala belastningen på den marina miljön minska. Vid en eventuell överflyttning av godstransport från väg till sjöfart, är det därför angeläget att säkerställa att den ökade belastningen på den marina miljön minimeras. Ett sätt är att visa geografisk hänsyn genom att undvika sjöfart inom miljömässigt känsliga havsområden. Ett annat sätt är att ställa hårdare krav på fartygens prestanda. Miljöpåverkan från fartyg varierar framför allt mellan, men också inom, olika fartygstyper. Men att skapa nya regelverk med syfte att förbättra fartygens prestanda är en långsam process eftersom sjöfarten primärt regleras genom internationella konventioner där tillämpning av regionala eller nationella särregler undviks. Några förslag till åtgärder för att säkerställa att havsmiljön kring Sverige inte försämras till följd av överflyttning av godstransporter från väg till sjöfart är: Tillse att det skapas högkvalitativt och jämförbart underlag för sjö- och landtransporters påverkan på havsmiljön. Analysera och kommunicera samtliga typer av utsläpp, inte bara utsläpp av koldioxid. Utsläppsmängder och påverkan bör anges och jämföras i absoluta tal och relevanta enheter. Minimera antalet transporter genom att öka fyllnadsgraden. Optimera fartygens hastighet för att minimera drivmedelsförbrukningen och emissioner. Dagens fartygstrafik i Sveriges mest känsliga och skyddade havsområden måste minska. När- och kustsjöfart bör kanaliseras bort från havs- och kustområden med höga naturvärden. Skapa tydliga incitament så att fraktköpare enbart anlitar fartyg som har högsta miljöprestanda avseende såväl utsläpp av växthusgaser som av andra förorenande eller övergödande ämnen till luft och vatten. Säkerställ att införandet av ett NECA (kvävekontrollområde) i Östersjön och Nordsjön innebär att fler fartyg installerar kväverening och att införandet inte leder till att fler äldre fartyg utan regelstadgad effektiv kväverening trafikerar området. • Stärk samordningen mellan myndigheter så att framtidsfrågor som rör sjöfart och dess miljöpåverkan behandlas och åtgärdas i linje med ekosystembaserad förvaltning. Relaterat till sjöfartens striktare svavelregler som träder i kraft 2020-01-01: Förbjud utsläpp av skrubbervatten till havet då utsläppen innebär en stor risk för försämrad miljöstatus och överskridna miljökvalitetsnormer enligt vattendirektivet, med avseende på exempelvis koppar och zink. Utred konsekvenserna av den förväntade ökade användningen av lågsvavliga hybridoljor som fartygsbränsle. Då befintlig saneringsutrustning är mindre effektiv för hybridoljor innebär detta en ökad risk vid kommande olyckor och oljeutsläpp.
|
|
| 3. |
- Andersson, Martin O., et al.
(author)
-
Molecular detection of Babesia capreoli and Babesia venatorum in wild Swedish roe deer, Capreolus capreolus
- 2016
-
In: Parasites & Vectors. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1756-3305. ; 9:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background: The epidemiology of the zoonotic tick-transmitted parasite Babesia spp. and its occurrence in wild reservoir hosts in Sweden is unclear. In European deer, several parasite species, including Babesia capreoli and the zoonotic B. venatorum and B. divergens has been reported previously. The European roe deer, Capreolus capreolus, is an important and common part of the indigenous fauna in Europe, as well as an important host for Ixodes ricinus ticks, the vector of several Babesia spp. in Europe. Here, we aimed to investigate the occurrence of Babesia spp. in roe deer in Sweden. Findings: Roe deer (n = 77) were caught and sampled for blood. Babesia spp. was detected with a PCR assay targeting the 18S rRNA gene. The prevalence of Babesia spp. was 52 %, and two species were detected; B. capreoli and B. venatorum in 44 and 7.8 % of the individuals, respectively. Infection occurred both in summer and winter. Conclusions: We showed that roe deer in Sweden, close to the edge of their northern inland distributional range, are infected with Babesia spp. The occurrence of B. venatorum in roe deer imply that it is established in Sweden and the zoonotic implication of this finding should be regarded to a greater extent in future.
|
|
| 4. |
- Svensson, Glenn, et al.
(author)
-
Should I stay or should I go? Modelling dispersal strategies in saproxylic insects based on pheromone capture and radio telemetry: a case study on the threatened hermit beetle Osmoderma eremita
- 2011
-
In: Biodiversity and Conservation. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0960-3115 .- 1572-9710. ; 20:13, s. 2883-2902
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- To predict how organisms cope with habitat fragmentation we must understand their dispersal biology, which can be notoriously difficult. We used a novel, multi-pronged approach to study dispersal strategies in the endangered saproxylic hermit beetle Osmoderma eremita, exploiting its pheromone system to intercept high numbers of dispersing individuals, which is not possible with other methods. Mark-release-recapture, using unbaited pitfall traps inside oak hollows and pheromone-baited funnel traps suspended from tree branches, was combined with radio telemetry (in females only) to record displacements. Dispersal, modelled as a probability distribution of net displacement, did not differ significantly between sexes (males versus females recaptured), observation methods (females recaptured versus radio-tracked), or sites of first capture (pitfall trap in tree versus pheromone trap – distance from original dispersal point unknown). A model including all observed individuals yielded a mean displacement of 82 m with 1% dispersing1 km. Differences in body length were small between individuals captured in pitfall versus pheromone traps, indicating that dispersal is rarely a condition-dependent response in O. eremita. Individuals captured in pheromone traps were consistently lighter, indicating that most dispersal events occur relatively late in life, which agrees with trap catch data. In addition, most (79%) females captured in pheromone traps were mated, showing that females typically mate before leaving their natal tree. Our data show that integrating odour attractants into insect conservation biology provides a means to target dispersing individuals and could greatly improve our knowledge of dispersal biology in threatened species.
|
|
| 5. |
- Sköld, Helen Nilsson, et al.
(author)
-
Hormonal regulation of female nuptial coloration in a fish.
- 2008
-
In: Hormones and behavior. - : Elsevier BV. - 1095-6867 .- 0018-506X. ; 54:4, s. 549-56
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Physiological color change in camouflage and mating is widespread among fishes, but little is known about the regulation of such temporal changes in nuptial coloration and particularly concerning female coloration. To better understand regulation of nuptial coloration we investigated physiological color change in female two-spotted gobies (Gobiusculus flavescens). Females of this species develop an orange belly that acts as an ornament. The orange color is caused by the color of the gonads combined with the chromathophore based pigmentation and transparency of the skin. Often during courtship and female-female competition, a rapid increase in orange coloration, in combination with lighter sides and back that increases skin and body transparency, gives the belly an intense 'glowing' appearance. To understand how this increased orange coloration can be regulated we analysed chromatic and transparency effects of neurohumoral agents on abdominal skin biopsies in vitro. We found prolactin and alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH) to increase orange coloration of the skin. By contrast, melatonin and noradrenaline increased skin transparency, but had a negative effect on orange coloration. However, mixtures of melatonin and MSH, or melatonin and prolactin, increased both orange coloration and transparency. This effect mimics the chromatic 'glow' effect that commonly takes place during courtship and intra sexual aggression. Notably, not only epidermal chromatophores but also internal chromatophores lining the peritoneum responded to hormone treatments. There were no chromatic effects of the sex steroids 17beta-estradiol, testosterone or 11-ketotestosterone. We hypothesize that similar modulation of nuptial coloration by multiple hormones may be widespread in nature.
|
|
| 6. |
- Zhao, Tao, 1969-, et al.
(author)
-
Fungal associates of the tree-killing bark beetle, Ips typographus, vary in virulence, ability to degrade conifer phenolics and influence bark beetle tunning behavior
- 2019
-
In: Fungal ecology. - Amsteradam : Elsevier. - 1754-5048 .- 1878-0083. ; 38, s. 71-79
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The bark beetle Ips typographus carries numerous fungi that could be assisting the beetle in colonizing live Norway spruce (Picea abies) trees. Phenolic defenses in spruce phloem are degraded by the beetle's major tree-killing fungus Endoconidiophora polonica, but it is unknown if other beetle associates can also catabolize these compounds. We compared the ability of five fungi commonly associated with I. typographus to degrade phenolic compounds in Norway spruce phloem. Grosmannia penicillata and Grosmannia europhioides were able to degrade stilbenes and flavonoids faster than E. polonica and grow on minimal growth medium with spruce bark constituents as the only nutrients. Furthermore, beetles avoided medium amended with phenolics but marginally preferred medium colonized by fungi. Taken together our results show that different bark beetle-associated fungi have complementary roles in degrading host metabolites and thus might improve this insect's persistence in well defended host tissues.
|
|
| 7. |
- Capo, Eric, et al.
(author)
-
Oxygen-deficient water zones in the Baltic Sea promote uncharacterized Hg methylating microorganisms in underlying sediments
- 2022
-
In: Limnology and Oceanography. - : Wiley. - 1939-5590 .- 0024-3590. ; 67:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Human-induced expansion of oxygen-deficient zones can have dramatic impacts on marine systems and its resident biota. One example is the formation of the potent neurotoxic methylmercury (MeHg) that is mediated by microbial methylation of inorganic divalent Hg (HgII) under oxygen-deficient conditions. A negative consequence of the expansion of oxygen-deficient zones could be an increase in MeHg production due to shifts in microbial communities in favor of microorganisms methylating Hg. There is, however, limited knowledge about Hg-methylating microbes, i.e., those carrying hgc genes critical for mediating the process, from marine sediments. Here, we aim to study the presence of hgc genes and transcripts in metagenomes and metatranscriptomes from four surface sediments with contrasting concentrations of oxygen and sulfide in the Baltic Sea. We show that potential Hg methylators differed among sediments depending on redox conditions. Sediments with an oxygenated surface featured hgc-like genes and transcripts predominantly associated with uncultured Desulfobacterota (OalgD group) and Desulfobacterales (including Desulfobacula sp.) while sediments with a hypoxic-anoxic surface included hgc-carrying Verrucomicrobia, unclassified Desulfobacterales, Desulfatiglandales, and uncharacterized microbes. Our data suggest that the expansion of oxygen-deficient zones in marine systems may lead to a compositional change of Hg-methylating microbial groups in the sediments, where Hg methylators whose metabolism and biology have not yet been characterized will be promoted and expand.
|
|
| 8. |
- Lankinen, Åsa, et al.
(author)
-
Allocation to pollen competitive ability versus seed production in Viola tricoloras an effect of plant size, soil nutrients and presence of a root competitor
- 2012
-
In: Oikos. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0030-1299 .- 1600-0706. ; 122:5, s. 779-789
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In hermaphroditic plants, the effect of a social environment on sex allocation has not been studied to our knowledge, while in hermaphroditic animals such effects are known to be common. In recent years, studies on root competition beyond the effects of nutrients have shown that plants can respond to their conspecific root competitors (social environment), making it interesting to ask if these effects could also influence sex allocation in addition to more commonly studied factors, such as plant size or resources. In this study on hermaphroditic Viola tricolor, we investigated how plant size, soil nutrients and presence of a root competitor influenced allocation to pollen competitive ability versus seed production, i.e. male and female reproductive functions. We allowed plants to grow in pairs with partly intermingled or separate roots in the same amount of soil. In additional treatments with intermingled roots (as part of the same experiment) one of the two competitors was given combinations of nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P) and micro nutrients. We found that pollen performance but not seed production increased when plants were in contact in the soil. Additionally, pollen performance was negatively correlated to plant size across fertilisation treatments. For seed production, the opposite relation to plant size was seen, indicating that large, fertilized plants invest relatively more in the female function. In conclusion, in violets, sex allocation appears to be size-dependent and influenced by both the presence of a root competitor and by nutrients. These results suggest that social environment can influence sex allocation in plants as well as in animals, indicating that such effects are important to consider in sex allocation studies across taxa.
|
|
| 9. |
|
|
| 10. |
- Broman, Elias, 1985-, et al.
(author)
-
Cyanophage Diversity and Community Structure in Dead Zone Sediments
- 2021
-
In: mSphere. - : American Society for Microbiology. - 2379-5042. ; 6:2
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Up to 20% of prokaryotic organisms in the oceans are estimated to die every day due to viral infection and lysis. Viruses can therefore alter microbial diversity, community structure, and biogeochemical processes driven by these organisms. Cyanophages are viruses that infect and lyse cyanobacterial cells, adding bioavailable carbon and nutrients into the environment. Cyanobacteria are photosynthesizing bacteria, with some species capable of N-2 fixation, which are known to form large blooms as well as resistant resting cells known as akinetes. Here, we investigated cyanophage diversity and community structure plus cyanobacteria in dead zone sediments. We sampled surface sediments and sequenced DNA and RNA, along an oxygen gradient-representing oxic, hypoxic, and anoxic conditions-in one of the world's largest dead zones located in the Baltic Sea. Cyanophages were detected at all stations and, based on partial genome contigs, had a higher alpha diversity and different beta diversity in the hypoxic-anoxic sediments, suggesting that cyanobacteria in dead zone sediments and/or environmental conditions select for specific cyanophages. Some of these cyanophages can infect cyanobacteria with potential consequences for gene expression related to their photosystem and phosphate regulation. Top cyanobacterial genera detected in the anoxic sediment included Dolichospermum/Anabaena, Synechococcus, and Cyanobium. RNA transcripts classified to cyanobacteria were associated with numerous pathways, including anaerobic carbon metabolism and N-2 fixation. Cyanobacterial blooms are known to fuel oxygen-depleted ecosystems with phosphorus (so-called internal loading), and our cyanophage data indicate the potential for viral lysis of cyanobacteria which might explain the high nutrient turnover in these environments. IMPORTANCE Cyanophages are viruses that target cyanobacteria and directly control their abundance via viral lysis. Cyanobacteria are known to cause large blooms in water bodies, substantially contributing to oxygen depletion in bottom waters resulting in areas called dead zones. Our knowledge of cyanophages in dead zones is very scarce, and so far, no studies have assembled partial cyanophage genomes and investigated their associated cyanobacteria in these dark and anoxic sediments. Here, we present the first study using DNA and RNA sequencing to investigate in situ diversity of cyanophages and cyanobacteria in dead zones. Our study shows that dead zone sediments contain different cyanophages compared to oxic sediments and suggest that these viruses are able to affect cyanobacterial photosystem and phosphate regulation. Furthermore, cyanophage-controlled lysis of cyanobacteria might also increase the turnover of carbon, phosphorus, and nitrogen in these oxygen-free environments at the bottom of the sea.
|
|
