Suchergebnisse

Este artículo contiene 8 páginas, 6 figuras, 1 tabla. ; Interactions among species are essential in shaping ecological communities, although it is not always clear under what conditions they can persist when the number of species involved is higher than two. Here we describe a three-species assemblage involving the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa, the pen shell Pinna nobilis and the herbivore sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus, and we explore the mechanisms allowing its persistence through field obser vations and manipulative experiments. The abundance of pen shells was higher in seagrass beds than in bare sand, suggesting a recruitment facilitation. The presence of sea urchins, almost exclusively attached or around pen shells, indicated habitat facilitation for sea urchins, which overgrazed the meadow around the pen shells forming seagrass-free halos. Our results suggest that this system persists thanks to: (i) the behavioral reluctance of sea urchins to move far from pen shells, making their impact on seagrass strictly local, (ii) the sparse distri bution of pen shells and (iii) the plant's resistance mechanisms to herbivory. Unpacking these mechanisms allows a better understanding of how ecological communities are assembled. ; This study received financial support from the Spanish Government (project UM BRAL CTM2017-86695-C3-1R; CTM2017-86695-C3-3R). The Spanish National Research Council supported R. Arthur's visitorship with the Memorandum of Understanding between CEAB-NCF. ; Peer reviewed

The major challenges in diagnosing small ruminant lentivirus (SRLV) infection include early detection and genotyping of strains of epidemiological interest. A longitudinal study was carried out in Rasa Aragonesa sheep experimentally infected with viral strains of genotypes A or B from Spanish neurological and arthritic SRLV outbreaks, respectively. Sera were tested with two commercial ELISAs, three based on specific peptides and a novel combined peptide ELISA. Three different PCR assays were used to further assess infection status.The kinetics of anti-viral antibody responses were variable, with early diagnosis dependent on the type of ELISA used. Peptide epitopes of SRLV genotypes A and B combined in the same ELISA well enhanced the overall detection rate, whereas single peptides were useful for genotyping the infecting strain (A vs. B). The results of the study suggest that a combined peptide ELISA can be used for serological diagnosis of SRLV infection, with single peptide ELISAs useful for subsequent serotyping. ; Funded by CICYT (AGL2010-22341-C04-01 and AGL2013-49137-C3-1R) and Navarra's Government (IIQ010449.RI1 and IIQ14064.RI1). L. Sanjosé was a FPI-fellow of the Spanish MINECO and R. Reina had a contract of the Public University of Navarra. ; Peer Reviewed

RNA transcripts of the B7 family molecule (CD80) are diminished in blood leukocytes from animals clinically affected with Visna/Maedi virus (VMV) infection. This work investigates whether the use of B7 genes enhances immune responses and protection in immunization-challenge approaches. Sheep were primed by particle-mediated epidermal bombardment with VMV gag and env gene recombinant plasmids together with plasmids encoding both CD80 and CD86 or CD80 alone, boosted with gag and env gene recombinant modified vaccinia Ankara virus and challenged intratracheally with VMV. Immunization in the presence of one or both of the B7 genes resulted in CD4+ T cell activation and antibody production (before and after challenge, respectively), but only immunization with CD80 and CD86 genes together, and not CD80 alone, resulted in a reduced number of infected animals and increased early transient cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) responses. Post-mortem analysis showed an immune activation of lymphoid tissue in challenge-target organs in those animals that had received B7 genes compared to unvaccinated animals. Thus, the inclusion of B7 genes helped to enhance early cellular responses and protection (diminished proportion of infected animals) against VMV infection. © 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. ; This study was supported by grants from Spanish CICYT (AGL2003-08977-C03-01 and AGL2007-66874-C04) and European Union (QLK2-CT-2002-00617). Ximena de Andrés was supported by a fellowship FPI from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Education. ; Peer reviewed

Este artículo contiene 9 páginas, 5 figuras, 1 tabla. ; Seagrass meadows, key ecosystems supporting fisheries, carbon sequestration and coastal protection, are globally threatened. In Europe, loss and recovery of seagrasses are reported, but the changes in extent and density at the continental scale remain unclear. Here we collate assessments of changes from 1869 to 2016 and show that 1/3 of European seagrass area was lost due to disease, deteriorated water quality, and coastal development, with losses peaking in the 1970s and 1980s. Since then, loss rates slowed down for most of the species and fast rowing species recovered in some locations, making loss rate in seagrass area experience a reversal in the 2000s, while density metrics improved or remained stable in most sites. Our results demonstrate that decline is not the generalised state among seagrasses nowadays in Europe, in contrast with global assessments, and that deceleration and reversal of declining trends is possible, expectingly bringing back the services they provide. ; This research was supported by the COST Action ES0906. C.B.d.l.S. acknowledges the support by the Short-Term Scientific Missions (COST-STSM-ES0906-06377, -06441 and -06419) and the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT) fellowship (SFRH/BPD/119344/2016). C.B.d.l.S. and R.S. acknowledge the support of FCT through the projects UID/Multi/04326/2013 and FCT UID/MAR/00350/2018. N.M. was supported by Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (MedShift, CGL2015-71809-P), by the European Union (M&M's, EVK3-CT-2000–00044 and WISER 226273), by the Fundación BBVA (Proyecto Praderas), and the Spanish Government (MEDEIG. CTM2009–07013). King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) supported C.M.D. through baseline funding. J.M.R. acknowledges the project Monitoring network of Posidonia oceanica meadows and global climate change of the Murcia Region funded by the Autonomous Government of the Murcia Region (General Directorate of Livestock and Fishery), the European Fishery Fund (EFF 2007–2013), and European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF 2014–2020). ; Peer reviewed