Seminal plasma proteins as modulators of the sperm function and their application in sperm biotechnologies

Seminal plasma (SP) is known to play an important role in mammalian fertilization. However, the variability found in its composition among species, males and even fractions of the same ejaculate has made difficult to completely understand its effect in sperm function. Proteins are one of the major SP components that modulate sperm functionality. During the last years, intensive work has been performed to characterize the role of these proteins. They have been found to influence sperm capacitation, formation of the oviductal sperm reservoir and sperm-oocyte interaction. Sperm biotechnologies, such as sperm cryopreservation and flow cytometric sex-sorting, that involve a substantial dilution of the SP are detrimental to sperm quality. Attempts to improve the outcome of these biotechnologies include the restoration of SP, which has produced contradictory results. To overcome this variability, different research groups have proposed the application of isolated SP proteins. Herein, we will review the current knowledge in the role of the major SP proteins as modulators of sperm functionality. Furthermore, we will discuss the possible applications of the SP proteins in sperm cryopreservation and flow cytometric sex-sorting.     

Factors Affecting Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. savastanoi Plant Inoculations and Their Use for Evaluation of Olive Cultivar Susceptibility

ABSTRACT Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. savastanoi causes olive knot disease, which is present in most countries where olive trees are grown. Although the use of cultivars with low susceptibility may be one of the most appropriate methods of disease control, little information is available from inoculation assays, and cultivar susceptibility assessments have been limited to few cultivars. We have evaluated the effects of pathogen virulence, plant age, the dose/response relationship, and the induction of secondary tumors in olive inoculation assays. Most P. savastanoi pv. savastanoi strains evaluated were highly virulent to olive plants, but interactions between cultivars and strains were found. The severity of the disease in a given cultivar was strongly dependent of the pathogen dose applied at the wound sites. Secondary tumors developed in noninoculated wounds following inoculation at another position on the stem, suggesting the migration of the pathogen within olive plants. Proportion and weight of primary knots and the presence of secondary knots were evaluated in 29 olive cultivars inoculated with two pathogen strains at two inoculum doses, allowing us to rate most of the cultivars as having either high, medium, or low susceptibility to olive knot disease. None of the cultivars were immune to the disease.     

Eocene El Niño: evidence for robust tropical dynamics in the "hothouse"

Much uncertainty surrounds the interactions between the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and long-term global change. Past periods of extreme global warmth, exemplified by the Eocene (55 to 35 million years ago), provide a good testing ground for theories for this interaction. Here, we compare Eocene coupled climate model simulations with annually resolved variability records preserved in lake sediments. The simulations show Pacific deep-ocean and high-latitude surface warming of approximately 10 degrees C but little change in the tropical thermocline structure, atmosphere-ocean dynamics, and ENSO, in agreement with proxies. This result contrasts with theories linking past and future "hothouse" climates with a shift toward a permanent El Ni?o-like state.     

Geospatial genetics: Integrating genetics into marine protection and spatial planning

1. The protection of evolutionary processes and maintenance of genetic diversity is necessary for the persistence of biodiversity and ecosystem resilience. The importance of genetic diversity has been reflected in a range of marine policy mechanisms, and the genetic ‘toolbox’ has great potential to support marine protection and marine spatial planning (MSP) at multiple scales. Despite scientific advances in the application of genetics in marine protection and management, systematic integration of genetic information has been generally lacking, primarily due to a knowledge and communication disconnect between geneticists and the marine policy and management community.
2. To meet these outstanding needs, a ‘geospatial genetics’ approach to spatially map species-specific genetic data and associated information in a way that can be readily integrated by practitioners into marine protection and MSP decisions was developed. Techniques to derive geospatial genetic data layers, which can be viewed and mapped alongside other kinds of spatial data commonly used by conservation practitioners, hold promise for increasing the accessibility of genetic data to support policy decisions more fully.
3. While applicable to many mobile and sessile taxa, an initial focus was placed on marine mammals, and the approach was developed and refined through a series of international meetings and published papers, as well as the development of interactive, expert-reviewed case studies hosted on the MSP tool SeaSketch.
4. Outcomes of the work to date are currently serving in the policy arena by informing the identification of Important Marine Mammal Areas, an initiative led by the IUCN Marine Mammal Protected Areas Task Force to apply criteria to identify marine mammal habitats across the world's ocean, seas and relevant inland waters through a standardized process.
5. It has become clear that geospatial genetics has great potential to foster increased collaboration among an intersectional community of geneticists, spatial ecologists, and practitioners. This increased opportunity for dialogue and cooperation will help ensure that evolutionary processes are factored into marine protection and MSP processes, and potentially for freshwater and terrestrial systems.

     

Histological alterations in the liver of sea bream, Sparus aurata L., caused by short- or long-term feeding with vegetable oils. Recovery of normal morphology after feeding fish oil as the sole lipid source

This study evaluated the effects of fish oil (FO) replacement by vegetable oils [soybean oil (SO), rapeseed oil (RO), linseed oil (LO)] and subsequent feeding with FO on the liver morphology of sea bream. A short-term trial (3 months) and long-term trial (6 months) were carried out feeding sea bream with the following experimental diets: FO100%; SO60% + FO40%; RO60% +FO40%; LO60% + FO40%; SO + RO +LO60% + FO40%. Finally, all groups from the long-term trial were fed with FO100% for 95 days (washout period). Liver samples were taken for histological and biochemical studies. In both the short- and long-term trials, livers of sea bream fed LO60% and SO + RO + LO60% showed a similar hepatic morphology to that observed in fish fed FO100%. In contrast, sea bream fed SO60% showed an intense steatosis, with foci of swollen hepatocytes containing numerous lipid vacuoles. After the washout period, a considerable reduction of the cytoplasmic vacuolation and the lipid vacuole accumulation were observed in the livers of fish fed the different experimental diets. The results of this study suggested that the type of non-essential fatty acid, characteristic of vegetable oils, induces the appearance of steatosis in the following order: linoleic acid > linolenic acid > oleic acid. However, the liver alterations found during the experimental periods with vegetable oils are reversible when the fish are re-fed with a balanced diet (FO100%), indicating the non-pathological character of these histological changes.     

Morphophysiological variation in some Mexican species of vegetable Amaranthus: evolutionary tendencies under domestication

Summary Amaranth (Amaranthus spp.) is an important food resource for indigenous peoples of México. Grain-producing species are mostly cultivated plants, while the species used as vegetables are commonly encouraged in maize plots. Notable biological differences exist between these two types of amaranths. This study analyzes the morphophysiological variation in some Mexican species of Amaranthus and its relationship to the use and management of this taxa. A sample of individuals grown from 14 field collections representing 3 species and putative hybrid derivatives were grown in experimental plots and 18 morphological and physiological characters were measured. A statistical multivariate analysis was performed on these data. The results show that the grain-producing plants tend to allocate a high proportion of energy to the production of inflorescences while the plants used as vegetables allocate a higher proportion of biomass to the foliage. This suggests thatdomestication of Mexican species of Amaranthus have taken two different evolutionary paths depending upon the form of use and management by humans.     

Neutralization of African swine fever virus by sera from African swine fever-resistant pigs

Sera from African swine fever-resistant pigs with infection-inhibitory activity decreased virus replication in infected porcine buffy coat cultures. This same effect was observed even after virus was adsorbed. The infection-inhibition was not reversed by removing the immune serum from the assay cultures. Reduction of African swine fever virus replication by immune sera was demonstrated by fluorescent focus assay on MS cell line cultures. Virus-neutralization tests showed a persistent fraction of non-neutralized virus, which was not demonstrable by infection-inhibition tests. One hypothesis for explaining this difference is proposed.     

The Value of the Determination of Anti‐Aspergillus IgG in the Serodiagnosis of Canine Aspergillosis: Comparison with Galactomannan Detection

Diagnosis of canine aspergillosis is difficult using currently available methods. It often passes unnoticed or is diagnosed in the later phases of the disease. We developed an ELISA technique to detect anti‐Aspergillus antibodies in canine serum using an Aspergillus antigenic mycelial extract, which could then be used for the diagnosis of canine aspergillosis. We used a cut‐off of X + 3SD obtained from 20 control sera. The test was performed on 46 dogs with lesions indicating possible aspergillosis and gave nine positive results: one systemic mycosis, two discospondylitis, one uveitis, two bronchopulmonary processes and three rhinitis. We compared this methodology with the PLATELIA technique in the follow‐up of the affected dogs, obtaining the same limitations as in the diagnosis of human aspergillosis. We consider our ELISA technique using sera samples a speedy, safe and reliable method which enables us to follow up the evolution of the disease and the efficacy of the therapy chosen. A definitive diagnosis must still take into account the results of other tests such as clinical examination, radiographic studies, endoscopy and biopsy.     

Stakeholder interactions in Castile-La Mancha,Spain’s cereal-sheep system

Large tracts of European rural land, mostly in the less favored areas (LFA), are devoted to low-inputs and large scale grazing systems (LSGS) with potential environmental and social functions. Although these LSGS may provide harbor for a good part of European nature values, their continuity is facing contrasting threats of intensification and abandonment. These areas, however, may be characterized by particular grazing structures and social dynamics of change that should be unveiled prior to attempts to devise rural development strategies or to adapt policy frameworks in general. To wit, stakeholder interactions and legal and institutional processes are described and analyzed for the cereal-sheep system of Castile-La Mancha (CLM) in the central Iberian plain. Farmers and pastoralists still share the use of the land, but their roles and interests have changed over time, and particularly in the last 50 years. Arable farming, mainly cereal cropping, has followed an intensification path, partially tempered by the environmental constraints of the Castilian plain. Extensive pastoralism is still a secondary option of land use; in the main, sheep farmers depend on, and look to, the management practices of arable farmers. A mixed cereal and sheep operation may deliver environmental and economic benefits, but successful implementation of this strategy is only possible when the system serves the needs of both types of stakeholders. Paradoxically, the main drivers of change in the countryside overall are arrayed against this sensible and traditional agricultural system. We argue that the recent legal and institutional frameworks do not favor social cohesion and that policy-support schemes of the European Union (EU) have been, and continue to be, devised without taking into account the particular structures and social dynamic of the farming system.