Climate change alters fish community size‐structure,requiring adaptive policy targets

Size‐based indicators are used worldwide in research that supports the management of commercially exploited wild fish populations, because of their responsiveness to fishing pressure. Observational and experimental data, however, have highlighted the deeply rooted links between fish size and environmental conditions that can drive additional, interannual changes in these indicators. Here, we have used biogeochemical and mechanistic niche modelling of commercially exploited demersal fish species to project time series to the end of the 21st century for one such indicator, the large fish indicator (LFI), under global CO₂ emissions scenarios. Our modelling results, validated against survey data, suggest that the LFI's previously proposed policy target may be unachievable under future climate change. In turn, our results help to identify what may be achievable policy targets for demersal fish communities experiencing climate change. While fisheries modelling has grown as a science, climate change modelling is seldom used specifically to address policy aims. Studies such as this one can, however, enable a more sustainable exploitation of marine food resources under changes unmanageable by fisheries control. Indeed, such studies can be used to aid resilient policy target setting by taking into account climate‐driven effects on fish community size‐structure.     

Influence of Boron on Sunflower Yield and Nutritional Status

Sunflower has been mentioned in the literature as a plant that requires large amounts of boron (B) to achieve a successful crop. This study aimed at evaluating the influence of sunflower fertilization with boron on the soil nutrient concentration, index leaf, seed yield, fatty acids’ composition of sunflower oil, and oil content. Cultivar M734 was selected for boron fertilization at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 kg ha^?1 rates. The maximum economic return was obtained with 3.13 kg ha^?1. Neither oil content nor fatty acid composition was affected by boron. With proper irrigation, the M734 cultivar was able to absorb boron in the 0 ? 40-cm layer, ultimately producing about 3000 kg ha^?1 of seeds in soils with only 0.30 mg kg^?1 of boron. Based on these results, it is suggested that the boron fertilization program be expanded to include the soil strata at 0?20 cm and 20?40 cm.     

Digestive enzyme activity in juvenile Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus, L) submitted to different dietary levels of shrimp protein hydrolysate

The effect of different dietary concentrations of shrimp protein hydrolysate (SPH) on digestive enzyme activity of Nile tilapia juveniles was evaluated. SPH concentrations in diets were 0, 15, 30 and 60 g kg^?1 (treatments SPH0, SPH15, SPH30 and SPH60, respectively). Hemoglobin, azocasein, BApNA (Nα-benzoyl-dl-arginine-p-nitroanilide), SApNA (Suc-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe p-nitroanilide), aminoacyl of β-naphthylamide and starch were used as substrates for enzyme activity determinations. The activity of total alkaline protease was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in fish under SPH15 and SPH60 treatments than in the control (SPH0). However, the effect was not dose-dependent. Substrate-SDS-PAGE was also performed to evaluate changes in the profile of Nile tilapia digestive proteases caused by SPH. Substrate-SDS-PAGE revealed 12 active proteolytic bands, eight of which responded to SPH dietary incorporation. Inhibition substrate-SDS-PAGE indicated a decrease in the activity of three enzymes, with trypsin activity decreasing with the increase of SPH concentration, whereas the opposite occurred for two aminopeptidases. Distinct protease profiles were also found for each treatment, suggesting adaptability of digestive proteases from Nile tilapia to the different diets.     

Narrow row spacing and high plant population to short height castor genotypes in two cropping seasons

Castor plant (Ricinus communis L.) produces a very important oil for chemical and biofuel industries. However, doubts remain about what the best plant arrangement is to obtain the maximum yield of seeds and oil from short height castor genotypes cultivated in higher plant population. This study evaluated two castor genotypes (FCA-PB and IAC 2028) in 5 plant arrangements (row spacing × in-row spacing): 0.90 m × 0.44 m (traditional), 0.90 m × 0.20 m, 0.75 m × 0.24 m, 0.60 × 0.30 m, and 0.45 m × 0.40 m, in spring-summer and fall-winter cropping seasons in Botucatu, São Paulo State, southeastern Brazil. The traditional plant arrangement comprised an initial plant population of 25,000 plants ha⁻¹, while the others comprised 55,000 plants ha⁻¹. The IAC 2028 genotype presented the greatest plant height, first raceme insertion height, basal stem diameter, number of fruits per raceme and 100 seed weight; however, seed yield and seed oil content were equal between genotypes. Wider stems and higher number of racemes per plant and fruits per raceme were observed with a 0.90 m × 0.44 m plant arrangement, but due to the lowest plant population (25,000 plants ha⁻¹) in this plant arrangement, the higher values of the yield components mentioned above did not result in higher yield. The higher plant population (55,000 plants ha⁻¹) by narrower row spacings (0.45 or 0.60 m) combination produced a higher castor seed yield. The effect of plant arrangement was more intense in the spring-summer cropping season.     

Inhibition of Bladder Tumor Growth by Chitooligosaccharides in an Experimental Carcinogenesis Model

Urinary bladder cancer is one of the most common cancers worldwide, with the highest incidence in industrialized countries. Patients with cancer commonly use unconventional and complementary therapy including nutraceuticals. In this study we evaluated the efficacy of chitooligosaccharides (in orange juice) in rat bladder cancer chemoprevention and as therapeutic agent, on a rat model of urinary bladder carcinogenesis induced with N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl) nitrosamine. Results indicate that chitooligosaccharides may have a preventive effect on bladder cancer development and a curative effect upon established bladder tumors, dependent on the concentration ingested 500 mg/kg b.w., every three days, showed capacity to inhibit and prevent the proliferation of bladder cancer; however, this was associated with secondary effects such as hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia. The use of lower doses (50 and 250 mg/kg b.w.) showed only therapeutic effects. It is further suggested that this antitumor effect might be due to its expected anti-inflammatory action, as well as by mechanisms not directly dependent of COX-2 inhibition, such as cellular proliferation control and improvement in antioxidant profile.     

Air-breathing behavior and physiological responses to hypoxia and air exposure in the air-breathing loricariid fish, Pterygoplichthys anisitsi

Hypoxic water and episodic air exposure are potentially life-threatening conditions that fish in tropical regions can face during the dry season. This study investigated the air-breathing behavior, oxygen consumption, and respiratory responses of the air-breathing (AB) armored catfish Pterygoplichthys anisitsi. The hematological parameters and oxygen-binding characteristics of whole blood and stripped hemoglobin and the intermediate metabolism of selected tissue in normoxia, different hypoxic conditions, and after air exposure were also examined. In normoxia, this species exhibited high activity at night and AB behavior (2–5 AB h^?1). The exposure to acute severe hypoxia elicited the AB behavior (4 AB h^?1) during the day. Under progressive hypoxia without access to the water surface, the fish were oxyregulators with a critical O₂ tension, calculated as the inspired water O₂ pressure, as 47 ± 2 mmHg. At water O₂ tensions lower than 40 mmHg, the fish exhibited continuous apnea behavior. The blood exhibited high capacity for transporting O₂, having a cathodic hemoglobin component with a high Hb–O₂ affinity. Under severe hypoxia, the fish used anaerobic metabolism to maintain metabolic rate. Air exposure revealed physiological and biochemical traits similar to those observed under normoxic conditions.     

Sows’ activity classification device using acceleration data - A resource constrained approach

This paper discusses the main architectural alternatives and design decisions in order to implement a sows’ activity classification model on electronic devices. The different possibilities are analyzed in practical and technical aspects, focusing on the implementation metrics, like cost, performance, complexity and reliability. The target architectures are divided into: server based, where the main processing element is a central computer; and embedded based, where the processing is distributed on devices attached to the animals. The initial classification model identifies the activities performed by the sows using a multi-process Kalman filter having, as input, 3-axes data from accelerometers. However, the power demanding hardware resources to run the filters require frequent battery recharges, making its use unsuitable in the current state-of-the-art. It motivated the development of a heuristic classification approach, focusing on the resource constrained characteristics of embedded systems. The new approach classifies the activities performed by the sows with accuracy close to 90%. It was implemented as a hardware module that can easily be instantiated to provide preprocessed information to models in order to detect important situations in the sows’ life, e.g. the onset of farrowing.     

Fragmentation and spatial genetic structure in Tabebuia ochracea (Bignoniaceae) a seasonally dry Neotropical tree

In this study we investigate the effect of fragmentation and disturbance on the spatial genetic structure, heterozygosity and inbreeding in Tabebuia ochracea (Bignoniaceae) in a seasonally Neotropical dry forest in the medium São Francisco River basin, Centre-East Brazil, based on the polymorphism at seven microsatellite loci. Four populations with different histories of disturbance and fragmentation were sampled: two continuous population (CP1 and CP2), with no history of recent disturbance and two fragmented and isolated population (FP1 and FP2), with recent history of disturbance due to logging for pasture establishment. Fragmented and continuous populations did not differ in any estimated parameter. However, all populations showed low levels of polymorphism and genetic diversity and high levels of inbreeding. Also, no spatial genetic structure was detected for populations using SPAGeDI software and no differentiation between these four populations was detected by Bayesian analyses performed with STRUCTURE software (K = 1). Differentiation measure by Wright's θ (0.032) and Hedrick G_ST (0.032) were significant but low. Our results strongly suggest that continuous populations are seed sources for the fragmented populations and that fragmentation and disturbance have been affecting these populations of T. ochracea in the Centre-East Brazil, leading to low levels of polymorphism and genetic diversity, and high inbreeding. Therefore, conservation efforts should increase in this region, with a reduction of agriculture expansion and the remove of cultivated areas and cattle from the Mata Seca and Lagoa do Cajueiro State Parks.