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Walden MA, Loope KJ, Hunter EA, Divers SJ, Comolli JR, Esque TC, Shoemaker KT. Testosterone identifies hatchling sex for Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii). Sci Rep 2023; 13:14818. [PMID: 37684318 PMCID: PMC10491821 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-41677-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) exhibits temperature-dependent sex determination, and individuals appear externally sexually monomorphic until sexual maturity. A non-surgical sex identification method that is suitable for a single in situ encounter with hatchlings is essential for minimizing handling of wild animals. We tested (1) whether plasma testosterone quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay differentiated males from females in 0-3 month old captive hatchlings, and (2) whether an injection of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) differentially elevates testosterone in male hatchlings to aid in identifying sex. We validated sex by ceolioscopic (laparoscopic) surgery. We then fit the testosterone concentrations to lognormal distributions and identified the concentration below which individuals are more likely female, and above which individuals are more likely male. Using a parametric bootstrapping procedure, we estimated a 0.01-0.04% misidentification rate for naïve testosterone samples, and a 1.26-1.39% misidentification rate for challenged (post-FSH injection) testosterone samples. Quantification of plasma testosterone concentration from small volume (0.1 mL) blood samples appears to be a viable, highly accurate method to identify sex of 0-3 month old hatchlings and could be a valuable tool for conservation measures and investigation of trends and variation in sex ratios for in situ wild nests.
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Affiliation(s)
- M A Walden
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV, USA.
- Department of Fisheries Biology, California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt, Arcata, CA, USA.
| | - Kevin J Loope
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
- Department of Biology, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Hunter
- U.S. Geological Survey, Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
| | - Stephen J Divers
- Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Jessica R Comolli
- Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Department of Veterinary Services, Miami Seaquarium, Key Biscayne, FL, USA
| | - Todd C Esque
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Boulder City, NV, USA
| | - Kevin T Shoemaker
- Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Science, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV, USA
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Car C, Gilles A, Goujon E, Muller MLD, Camoin L, Frelon S, Burraco P, Granjeaud S, Baudelet E, Audebert S, Orizaola G, Armengaud J, Tenenhaus A, Garali I, Bonzom JM, Armant O. Population transcriptogenomics highlights impaired metabolism and small population sizes in tree frogs living in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. BMC Biol 2023; 21:164. [PMID: 37525144 PMCID: PMC10391870 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-023-01659-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/02/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individual functional modifications shape the ability of wildlife populations to cope with anthropogenic environmental changes. But instead of adaptive response, human-altered environments can generate a succession of deleterious functional changes leading to the extinction of the population. To study how persistent anthropogenic changes impacted local species' population status, we characterised population structure, genetic diversity and individual response of gene expression in the tree frog Hyla orientalis along a gradient of radioactive contamination around the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. RESULTS We detected lower effective population size in populations most exposed to ionizing radiation in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone that is not compensated by migrations from surrounding areas. We also highlighted a decreased body condition of frogs living in the most contaminated area, a distinctive transcriptomics signature and stop-gained mutations in genes involved in energy metabolism. While the association with dose will remain correlational until further experiments, a body of evidence suggests the direct or indirect involvement of radiation exposure in these changes. CONCLUSIONS Despite ongoing migration and lower total dose rates absorbed than at the time of the accident, our results demonstrate that Hyla orientalis specimens living in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone are still undergoing deleterious changes, emphasizing the long-term impacts of the nuclear disaster.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clément Car
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France
| | - André Gilles
- UMR 1467 RECOVER, Aix-Marseille Université, INRAE, Centre Saint-Charles, Marseille, France.
| | - Elen Goujon
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France
- Laboratoire Des Signaux Et Systèmes, Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, CentraleSupélec, 91190, Gif-Sur-Yvette, France
| | - Marie-Laure Delignette Muller
- Laboratoire de Biométrie Et Biologie Evolutive, UMR 5558, Université de Lyon, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, VetAgro Sup, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Luc Camoin
- Aix-Marseille University, Inserm, CNRS, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, CRCM, Marseille Proteomics, Marseille, France
| | - Sandrine Frelon
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France
| | - Pablo Burraco
- Animal Ecology, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Evolutionary Centre, Uppsala University, 75236, Uppsala, Sweden
- Doñana Biological Station (CSIC), Seville, Spain
| | - Samuel Granjeaud
- Aix-Marseille University, Inserm, CNRS, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, CRCM, Marseille Proteomics, Marseille, France
| | - Emilie Baudelet
- Aix-Marseille University, Inserm, CNRS, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, CRCM, Marseille Proteomics, Marseille, France
| | - Stéphane Audebert
- Aix-Marseille University, Inserm, CNRS, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, CRCM, Marseille Proteomics, Marseille, France
| | - Germán Orizaola
- Animal Ecology, Department of Ecology and Genetics, Evolutionary Centre, Uppsala University, 75236, Uppsala, Sweden
- IMIB-Biodiversity Research Institute, University of Oviedo, 33600, Mieres-Asturias, Spain
- Zoology Unit, Department of Biology of Organisms and Systems, University of Oviedo, 33071, Oviedo-Asturias, Spain
| | - Jean Armengaud
- Département Médicaments Et Technologies Pour La Santé (DMTS), Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, INRAE, SPI, Bagnols-Sur-Cèze, France
| | - Arthur Tenenhaus
- Laboratoire Des Signaux Et Systèmes, Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, CentraleSupélec, 91190, Gif-Sur-Yvette, France
| | - Imène Garali
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France
| | - Jean-Marc Bonzom
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France
| | - Olivier Armant
- Institut de Radioprotection Et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), PSE-ENV/SRTE/LECO, Cadarache, France.
- PSE-SANTE/SESANE/LRTox, Fontenay Aux Roses, France.
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Immunity in Sea Turtles: Review of a Host-Pathogen Arms Race Millions of Years in the Running. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13040556. [PMID: 36830343 PMCID: PMC9951749 DOI: 10.3390/ani13040556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The immune system of sea turtles is not completely understood. Sea turtles (as reptiles) bridge a unique evolutionary gap, being ectothermic vertebrates like fish and amphibians and amniotes like birds and mammals. Turtles are ectotherms; thus, their immune system is influenced by environmental conditions like temperature and season. We aim to review the turtle immune system and note what studies have investigated sea turtles and the effect of the environment on the immune response. Turtles rely heavily on the nonspecific innate response rather than the specific adaptive response. Turtles' innate immune effectors include antimicrobial peptides, complement, and nonspecific leukocytes. The antiviral defense is understudied in terms of the diversity of pathogen receptors and interferon function. Turtles also mount adaptive responses to pathogens. Lymphoid structures responsible for lymphocyte activation and maturation are either missing in reptiles or function is affected by season. Turtles are a marker of health for their marine environment, and their immune system is commonly dysregulated because of disease or contaminants. Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is a tumorous disease that afflicts sea turtles and is thought to be caused by a virus and an environmental factor. We aim, by exploring the current understanding of the immune system in turtles, to aid the investigation of environmental factors that contribute to the pathogenesis of this disease and provide options for immunotherapy.
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Blood-based gene expression as non-lethal tool for inferring salinity-habitat history of European eel (Anguilla anguilla). Sci Rep 2022; 12:22142. [PMID: 36550161 PMCID: PMC9780358 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26302-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The European eel is a facultative catadromous species, meaning that it can skip the freshwater phase or move between marine and freshwater habitats during its continental life stage. Otolith microchemistry, used to determine the habitat use of eel or its salinity history, requires the sacrifice of animals. In this context, blood-based gene expression may represent a non-lethal alternative. In this work, we tested the ability of blood transcriptional profiling to identify the different salinity-habitat histories of European eel. Eels collected from different locations in Norway were classified through otolith microchemistry as freshwater residents (FWR), seawater residents (SWR) or inter-habitat shifters (IHS). We detected 3451 differentially expressed genes from blood by comparing FWR and SWR groups, and then used that subset of genes in a machine learning approach (i.e., random forest) to the extended FWR, SWR, and IHS group. Random forest correctly classified 100% of FWR and SWR and 83% of the IHS using a minimum of 30 genes. The implementation of this non-lethal approach may replace otolith-based microchemistry analysis for the general assessment of life-history tactics in European eels. Overall, this approach is promising for the replacement or reduction of other lethal analyses in determining certain fish traits.
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Bowen L, Manlove K, Roug A, Waters S, LaHue N, Wolff P. Using transcriptomics to predict and visualize disease status in bighorn sheep ( Ovis canadensis). CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2022; 10:coac046. [PMID: 35795016 PMCID: PMC9252122 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coac046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2021] [Revised: 02/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Increasing risk of pathogen spillover coupled with overall declines in wildlife population abundance in the Anthropocene make infectious disease a relevant concern for species conservation worldwide. While emerging molecular tools could improve our diagnostic capabilities and give insight into mechanisms underlying wildlife disease risk, they have rarely been applied in practice. Here, employing a previously reported gene transcription panel of common immune markers to track physiological changes, we present a detailed analysis over the course of both acute and chronic infection in one wildlife species where disease plays a critical role in conservation, bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis). Differential gene transcription patterns distinguished between infection statuses over the course of acute infection and differential correlation (DC) analyses identified clear changes in gene co-transcription patterns over the early stages of infection, with transcription of four genes-TGFb, AHR, IL1b and MX1-continuing to increase even as transcription of other immune-associated genes waned. In a separate analysis, we considered the capacity of the same gene transcription panel to aid in differentiating between chronically infected animals and animals in other disease states outside of acute disease events (an immediate priority for wildlife management in this system). We found that this transcription panel was capable of accurately identifying chronically infected animals in the test dataset, though additional data will be required to determine how far this ability extends. Taken together, our results showcase the successful proof of concept and breadth of potential utilities that gene transcription might provide to wildlife disease management, from direct insight into mechanisms associated with differential disease response to improved diagnostic capacity in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kezia Manlove
- Department of Wildland Resources and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT, 84322, USA
| | - Annette Roug
- Centre for Veterinary Wildlife Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - Shannon Waters
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Nate LaHue
- Nevada Department of Wildlife, Reno, NV, 89512, USA
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Martin KR, Mansfield KL, Savage AE. Adaptive evolution of major histocompatibility complex class I immune genes and disease associations in coastal juvenile sea turtles. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:211190. [PMID: 35154791 PMCID: PMC8825991 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Characterizing polymorphism at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes is key to understanding the vertebrate immune response to disease. Despite being globally afflicted by the infectious tumour disease fibropapillomatosis (FP), immunogenetic variation in sea turtles is minimally explored. We sequenced the α 1 peptide-binding region of MHC class I genes (162 bp) from 268 juvenile green (Chelonia mydas) and 88 loggerhead (Caretta caretta) sea turtles in Florida, USA. We recovered extensive variation (116 alleles) and trans-species polymorphism. Supertyping analysis uncovered three functional MHC supertypes corresponding to the three well-supported clades in the phylogeny. We found significant evidence of positive selection at seven amino acid sites in the class I exon. Random forest modelling and risk ratio analysis of Ch. mydas alleles uncovered one allele weakly associated with smooth FP tumour texture, which may be associated with disease outcome. Our study represents the first characterization of MHC class I diversity in Ch. mydas and the largest sample of sea turtles used to date in any study of adaptive genetic variation, revealing tremendous genetic variation and high adaptive potential to viral pathogen threats. The novel associations we identified between MHC diversity and FP outcomes in sea turtles further highlight the importance of evaluating genetic predictors of disease, including MHC and other functional markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine R. Martin
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
| | - Katherine L. Mansfield
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
| | - Anna E. Savage
- Department of Biology, University of Central Florida, 4110 Libra Drive, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
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7
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Álvarez-Varas R, Rojas-Hernández N, Heidemeyer M, Riginos C, Benítez HA, Araya-Donoso R, Reséndiz E, Lara-Uc M, Godoy DA, Muñoz-Pérez JP, Alarcón-Ruales DE, Alfaro-Shigueto J, Ortiz-Alvarez C, Mangel JC, Vianna JA, Véliz D. Green, yellow or black? Genetic differentiation and adaptation signatures in a highly migratory marine turtle. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20210754. [PMID: 34229490 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.0754] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Marine species may exhibit genetic structure accompanied by phenotypic differentiation related to adaptation despite their high mobility. Two shape-based morphotypes have been identified for the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) in the Pacific Ocean: the south-central/western or yellow turtle and north-central/eastern or black turtle. The genetic differentiation between these morphotypes and the adaptation of the black turtle to environmentally contrasting conditions of the eastern Pacific region has remained a mystery for decades. Here we addressed both questions using a reduced-representation genome approach (Dartseq; 9473 neutral SNPs) and identifying candidate outlier loci (67 outlier SNPs) of biological relevance between shape-based morphotypes from eight Pacific foraging grounds (n = 158). Our results support genetic divergence between morphotypes, probably arising from strong natal homing behaviour. Genes and enriched biological functions linked to thermoregulation, hypoxia, melanism, morphogenesis, osmoregulation, diet and reproduction were found to be outliers for differentiation, providing evidence for adaptation of C. mydas to the eastern Pacific region and suggesting independent evolutionary trajectories of the shape-based morphotypes. Our findings support the evolutionary distinctness of the enigmatic black turtle and contribute to the adaptive research and conservation genomics of a long-lived and highly mobile vertebrate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rocío Álvarez-Varas
- Departamento de Ciencias Ecológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.,Núcleo Milenio de Ecología y Manejo Sustentable de Islas Oceánicas (ESMOI), Departamento de Biología Marina, Universidad Católica del Norte, Coquimbo, Chile.,Qarapara Tortugas Marinas Chile NGO, Santiago, Chile
| | - Noemi Rojas-Hernández
- Departamento de Ciencias Ecológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Maike Heidemeyer
- Centro de Investigación en Biología Celular y Molecular (CIBCM), Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Cynthia Riginos
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Hugo A Benítez
- Laboratorio de Ecología y Morfometría Evolutiva, Centro de Investigación de Estudios Avanzados del Maule, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | | | - Eduardo Reséndiz
- Departamento Académico de Ciencias Marinas y Costeras, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur, Mexico
| | - Mónica Lara-Uc
- Departamento Académico de Ciencias Marinas y Costeras, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California Sur, Mexico
| | - Daniel A Godoy
- Coastal-Marine Research Group, Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Juan Pablo Muñoz-Pérez
- Galapagos Science Center GSC (Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ-University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill UNC), Isla San Cristobal, Galápagos, Ecuador.,University of the Sunshine Coast USC, 90 Sippy Downs Dr, Sippy Downs, Queensland 4556, Australia
| | - Daniela E Alarcón-Ruales
- Galapagos Science Center GSC (Universidad San Francisco de Quito USFQ-University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill UNC), Isla San Cristobal, Galápagos, Ecuador
| | - Joanna Alfaro-Shigueto
- ProDelphinus, Lima, Peru.,Facultad de Biología Marina, Universidad Científica del Perú, Lima, Peru
| | | | | | - Juliana A Vianna
- Departamento de Ecosistemas y Medio Ambiente, Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - David Véliz
- Departamento de Ciencias Ecológicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.,Núcleo Milenio de Ecología y Manejo Sustentable de Islas Oceánicas (ESMOI), Departamento de Biología Marina, Universidad Católica del Norte, Coquimbo, Chile
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