A 5-micron-bright spot on Titan: evidence for surface diversity

Observations from the Cassini Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer show an anomalously bright spot on Titan located at 80 degrees W and 20 degrees S. This area is bright in reflected light at all observed wavelengths, but is most noticeable at 5 microns. The spot is associated with a surface albedo feature identified in images taken by the Cassini Imaging Science Subsystem. We discuss various hypotheses about the source of the spot, reaching the conclusion that the spot is probably due to variation in surface composition, perhaps associated with recent geophysical phenomena.     

Attitudes of European citizens towards pig production systems

The objective of the study is to map citizen attitudes towards pig meat production systems, and to investigate whether these attitudes associate with pork and pork product consumption. A conjoint experiment was carried out with empirical data collected from 1931 individuals in four European countries with higher-than-average per capita meat consumption (Belgium, Denmark, Poland and Germany). The experiment was based on the following pig farming characteristics: herd size, housing and floor type, efforts to reduce the impact of the production system on the environment, animal feed designed for producing pork with specific fat content, and finally the preferred quality characteristics of the pork end-product. The results of the conjoint analysis were used for a subsequent cluster analysis in order to identify European citizen clusters. Respondents' socio-demographic profile, attitudes towards issues that are expected to influence the way people evaluate pig meat production systems, and consumption frequency of various pork products are used as background information to identify segment profiles. Pork appears to play a substantial role as a part of the diet for most respondents in the four countries of this study. The results of the conjoint experiment at the sample level show that people assigned most importance to animal and environmental well-being as criteria to discriminate between “good” and “bad” pig production practices, despite the fact that their attitudes towards environmental protection, animal welfare and industrial food production were only moderately strong. Moreover, the results of the cluster analysis allowed small-sized, clear-cut clusters of citizens to appear, which pay attention to specific pig farming attributes. In conclusion, attitudes towards environment and nature, animal welfare and the need for an environment-friendly food production were indeed related to citizens' specific attitudes towards pig farming at the cluster level. However, the relationship between citizenship and consumption behaviour was found to be weak. What people think in their role as citizens related to pig production did not appear to significantly influence their pork consumption choices.     

Vitellogenin of the Chilean flounder <Emphasis Type="Italic">Paralichthys adspersus</Emphasis> as a biomarker of endocrine disruption along the marine coast of the South Pacific. Part I: induction,purification, and identification

We sought to provide a useful indicator of the presence of endocrine-disrupting contaminants along the marine coast of the South Pacific using Chilean flounder (Paralichthys adspersus). In light of the lack of information on vitellogenin for this species, we induced, purified, and identified the plasma vitellogenin of Chilean flounder inhabiting the Chilean coast. Vitellogenin (Vg) from Chilean flounder was purified by size exclusion and ion-exchange chromatography using plasma from juvenile males induced by injecting 17β-estradiol. The Vg was detected by SDS–PAGE and Western blot analyses using an antibody against turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) vitellogenin. These analyses revealed a protein band of 205 kDa and three minor bands of 120, 90, and 68 kDa. These proteins were identified as Vg by means of mass spectrometry (LCQ Duo ESI-IT-MS), matching sequences of tryptic peptides to known sequences for several other fish species. The matches showed the presence of vitellogenin (VgI, VgII, Vg A and Vg B) in Chilean flounder, similar to species such as mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus), Japanese medaka (Oryzias latipes), and white perch (Morone americana). These results are discussed in terms of identifying Vg in Paralichthys adspersus with the antibody to turbot Vg. Moreover, we compare the molecular size of Vg from Chilean flounder (large) with that of other flatfish species. Finally, we discuss the potential use of this molecule as a biomarker for the presence of xeno-estrogenic compounds along the Chilean coastline.     

The dynamism fish-plant association: Ontogenetic variations in assemblage attributes in neotropical floodplain lakes

Structural habitat complexity provided by macrophytes is expected to increase richness and abundance of fish species. However, this topic is rarely investigated simultaneously at different periods of fish development. We sampled fish within macrophyte stands and in non-vegetated areas at floodplain lakes and tested the hypothesis that the presence of macrophytes increases abundance and species richness of fish, in addition to changes in species composition, at different periods of fish development. Our findings demonstrated that, in different period of fish development, the highest values of fish species richness and abundance were found at sites colonised by macrophytes. Similarly, changes in fish species composition were observed between habitats colonised by macrophytes and non-vegetated areas. Therefore, the results demonstrate that macrophyte presence plays an important role in regulating fish community structure at different periods of fish development.