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Barazandeh M, Kriti D, Fickel J, Nislow C. The Addis Ababa Lions: Whole-Genome Sequencing of a Rare and Precious Population. Genome Biol Evol 2024; 16:evae021. [PMID: 38302110 PMCID: PMC10871700 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evae021] [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: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Lions are widely known as charismatic predators that once roamed across the globe, but their populations have been greatly affected by environmental factors and human activities over the last 150 yr. Of particular interest is the Addis Ababa lion population, which has been maintained in captivity at around 20 individuals for over 75 yr, while many wild African lion populations have become extinct. In order to understand the molecular features of this unique population, we conducted a whole-genome sequencing study on 15 Addis Ababa lions and detected 4.5 million distinct genomic variants compared with the reference African lion genome. Using functional annotation, we identified several genes with mutations that potentially impact various traits such as mane color, body size, reproduction, gastrointestinal functions, cardiovascular processes, and sensory perception. These findings offer valuable insights into the genetics of this threatened lion population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjan Barazandeh
- Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Divya Kriti
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Jörns Fickel
- Institute for Biochemistry and Biology, University Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Research Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW), Berlin, Germany
| | - Corey Nislow
- Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Tozaki T, Ohnuma A, Kikuchi M, Ishige T, Kakoi H, Hirota KI, Nagata SI. Construction of an individual identification panel for horses using insertion and deletion markers. J Equine Sci 2023; 34:83-92. [PMID: 37781568 PMCID: PMC10534061 DOI: 10.1294/jes.34.83] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/21/2023] [Indexed: 10/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Individual identification and paternity testing are important for avoiding inbreeding in the management of small populations of wild and domestic animals. In horse racing industries, they are extremely important for identifying and registering individuals and doping control to ensure fair competition. In this study, we constructed an individual identification panel for horses by using insertion and deletion (INDEL) markers. The panel included 39 INDEL markers selected from a whole-genome INDEL database. Genotyping of 89 Thoroughbreds showed polymorphisms with minor allele frequencies (MAFs) of 0.180-0.489 in all markers. The total probability of exclusion for paternity testing, power of discrimination, and probability of identity were 0.9994271269, >0.9999999999, and 0.9999999987, respectively. The panel was applied to 13 trios (sires, dams, and foals), and no contradictions were observed in genetic inheritance among the trios. When this panel was applied to the trios (52 trios) containing false fathers, an average of 7.3 markers excluded parentage relationships. In addition, genomic DNA extracted from the urine of six horses was partially genotyped for 39 markers, and 6-28 markers were successfully genotyped. The newly constructed panel has two advantages: a low marker mutation rate compared with short tandem repeats and a genotyping procedure that is as simple as short tandem repeat typing compared with single nucleotide variant typing. This panel can be applied for individual identification, paternity determination, and urine-sample identification in Thoroughbred horses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teruaki Tozaki
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Aoi Ohnuma
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Mio Kikuchi
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Taichiro Ishige
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Hironaga Kakoi
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Kei-ichi Hirota
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
| | - Shun-ichi Nagata
- Genetic Analysis Department, Laboratory of
Racing Chemistry, Tochigi 320-0851, Japan
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Loveridge AJ, Sousa LL, Cushman S, Kaszta Ż, Macdonald DW. Where have all the lions gone? Establishing realistic baselines to assess decline and recovery of African lions. DIVERS DISTRIB 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.13637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J. Loveridge
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
| | - Lara L. Sousa
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
| | - Samuel Cushman
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
- US Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station Flagstaff Arizona USA
| | - Żaneta Kaszta
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
| | - David W. Macdonald
- Wildlife Conservation Research Unit, Recanati‐Kaplan Centre, Department of Zoology University of Oxford Oxford UK
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De R, Nigam P, Williams AC, Goyal SP. Beyond consensus genotyping: a case study on the Asian elephant Elephas maximus. CONSERV GENET RESOUR 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12686-022-01287-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Kleemann S, Sandow D, Stevens M, Schultz DJ, Taggart DA, Croxford A. Non-invasive monitoring and reintroduction biology of the brush-tailed rock-wallaby (. AUST J ZOOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1071/zo21009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Thirty-nine endangered brush-tailed rock-wallabies (Petrogale penicillata) were reintroduced to Grampians National Park, western Victoria, between 2008 and 2012. Subsequent high mortality, low breeding, and no recruitment were linked to fox predation and physical disturbance during monitoring. From 2014 to 2017, the colony was left undisturbed and monitored only by remote camera. Five adult animals were identified across this period (1 ♂ and 3 ♀s – all tagged; and one untagged female), and an average of 0.7 pouch young were birthed per tagged female per year. In 2019, camera-monitoring and non-invasive genetic monitoring (faecal) were used to identify colony members, genetic diversity, and breeding. Camera monitoring in 2019 identified the same five individuals, whereas genetic monitoring using 12 microsatellites identified eight individuals (two male and six female genotypes). Genetic diversity within the colony was moderate (expected heterozygosity (He) = 0.655, observed heterozygosity (Ho) = 0.854). Leaving the colony undisturbed after 2013 correlated with improved adult survival, increased breeding, and successful recruitment of young to the population. Recommendations for the Grampians colony include continuation of regular camera- and scat monitoring to improve our understanding of the reintroduction biology of P. penicillata and other marsupials in open, unfenced landscapes.
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Curry CJ, Davis BW, Bertola LD, White PA, Murphy WJ, Derr JN. Spatiotemporal Genetic Diversity of Lions Reveals the Influence of Habitat Fragmentation across Africa. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:48-57. [PMID: 32667997 PMCID: PMC8480188 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msaa174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Direct comparisons between historical and contemporary populations allow for detecting changes in genetic diversity through time and assessment of the impact of habitat fragmentation. Here, we determined the genetic architecture of both historical and modern lions to document changes in genetic diversity over the last century. We surveyed microsatellite and mitochondrial genome variation from 143 high-quality museum specimens of known provenance, allowing us to directly compare this information with data from several recently published nuclear and mitochondrial studies. Our results provide evidence for male-mediated gene flow and recent isolation of local subpopulations, likely due to habitat fragmentation. Nuclear markers showed a significant decrease in genetic diversity from the historical (HE = 0.833) to the modern (HE = 0.796) populations, whereas mitochondrial genetic diversity was maintained (Hd = 0.98 for both). Although the historical population appears to have been panmictic based on nDNA data, hierarchical structure analysis identified four tiers of genetic structure in modern populations and was able to detect most sampling locations. Mitogenome analyses identified four clusters: Southern, Mixed, Eastern, and Western and were consistent between modern and historically sampled haplotypes. Within the last century, habitat fragmentation caused lion subpopulations to become more geographically isolated as human expansion changed the African landscape. This resulted in an increase in fine-scale nuclear genetic structure and loss of genetic diversity as lion subpopulations became more differentiated, whereas mitochondrial structure and diversity were maintained over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin J Curry
- Interdisciplinary Program in Genetics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
| | - Brian W Davis
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
| | - Laura D Bertola
- Department of Biology, City College of New York, New York, NY
| | - Paula A White
- Center for Tropical Research, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - William J Murphy
- Interdisciplinary Program in Genetics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
| | - James N Derr
- Interdisciplinary Program in Genetics, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
- Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX
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Curry CJ, Derr JN. Development of Lion MiniSTRs for Use with Modern and Historical DNA Samples. AFRICAN JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2019. [DOI: 10.3957/056.049.0064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin J. Curry
- Interdisciplinary Program of Genetics, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, U.S.A
| | - James N. Derr
- Interdisciplinary Program of Genetics, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, U.S.A
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Soso SB, Koziel JA. Characterizing the scent and chemical composition of Panthera leo marking fluid using solid-phase microextraction and multidimensional gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-olfactometry. Sci Rep 2017; 7:5137. [PMID: 28698649 PMCID: PMC5506057 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-04973-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2016] [Accepted: 05/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Lions (Panthera leo) use chemical signaling to indicate health, reproductive status, and territorial ownership. To date, no study has reported on both scent and composition of marking fluid (MF) from P. leo. The objectives of this study were to: 1) develop a novel method for simultaneous chemical and scent identification of lion MF in its totality (urine + MF), 2) identify characteristic odorants responsible for the overall scent of MF as perceived by human panelists, and 3) compare the existing library of known odorous compounds characterized as eliciting behaviors in animals in order to understand potential functionality in lion behavior. Solid-phase microextraction and simultaneous chemical-sensory analyses with multidimensional gas-chromatography-mass spectrometry-olfactometry improved separating, isolating, and identifying mixed (MF, urine) compounds versus solvent-based extraction and chemical analyses. 2,5-Dimethylpyrazine, 4-methylphenol, and 3-methylcyclopentanone were isolated and identified as the compounds responsible for the characteristic odor of lion MF. Twenty-eight volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from MF were identified, adding a new list of compounds previously unidentified in lion urine. New chemicals were identified in nine compound groups: ketones, aldehydes, amines, alcohols, aromatics, sulfur-containing compounds, phenyls, phenols, and volatile fatty acids. Twenty-three VOCs are known semiochemicals that are implicated in attraction, reproduction, and alarm-signaling behaviors in other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone B Soso
- Iowa State University, Environmental Science Graduate Program, Ames, IA, 50011, United States of America.,Iowa State University, Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Ames, IA, 50011, United States of America
| | - Jacek A Koziel
- Iowa State University, Environmental Science Graduate Program, Ames, IA, 50011, United States of America. .,Iowa State University, Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Ames, IA, 50011, United States of America.
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Singh SK, Aspi J, Kvist L, Sharma R, Pandey P, Mishra S, Singh R, Agrawal M, Goyal SP. Fine-scale population genetic structure of the Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) in a human-dominated western Terai Arc Landscape, India. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0174371. [PMID: 28445499 PMCID: PMC5405937 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0174371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2016] [Accepted: 03/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite massive global conservation strategies, tiger populations continued to decline until recently, mainly due to habitat loss, human-animal conflicts, and poaching. These factors are known to affect the genetic characteristics of tiger populations and decrease local effective population sizes. The Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) at the foothills of the Himalaya is one of the 42 source sites of tigers around the globe. Therefore, information on how landscape features and anthropogenic factors affect the fine-scale spatial genetic structure and variation of tigers in TAL is needed to develop proper management strategies for achieving long-term conservation goals. We document, for the first time, the genetic characteristics of this tiger population by genotyping 71 tiger samples using 13 microsatellite markers from the western region of TAL (WTAL) of 1800 km2. Specifically, we aimed to estimate the genetic variability, population structure, and gene flow. The microsatellite markers indicated that the levels of allelic diversity (MNA = 6.6) and genetic variation (Ho = 0.50, HE = 0.64) were slightly lower than those reported previously in other Bengal tiger populations. We observed moderate gene flow and significant genetic differentiation (FST= 0.060) and identified the presence of cryptic genetic structure using Bayesian and non-Bayesian approaches. There was low and significantly asymmetric migration between the two main subpopulations of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve and the Corbett Tiger Reserve in WTAL. Sibship relationships indicated that the functionality of the corridor between these subpopulations may be retained if the quality of the habitat does not deteriorate. However, we found that gene flow is not adequate in view of changing land use matrices. We discuss the need to maintain connectivity by implementing the measures that have been suggested previously to minimize the level of human disturbance, including relocation of villages and industries, prevention of encroachment, and banning sand and boulder mining in the corridors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sujeet Kumar Singh
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
- Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun, India
| | - Jouni Aspi
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Laura Kvist
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Reeta Sharma
- Population and Conservation Genetics, Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência, Oeiras, Portugal
| | - Puneet Pandey
- Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun, India
| | | | - Randeep Singh
- Department of Wildlife Sciences, Amity University, Noida, India
| | - Manoj Agrawal
- Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun, India
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Beukes BO, Radloff FG, Ferreira SM. Estimating African Lion Abundance in the Southwestern Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. AFRICAN JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH 2017. [DOI: 10.3957/056.047.0010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
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Curry CJ, White PA, Derr JN. Mitochondrial Haplotype Diversity in Zambian Lions: Bridging a Gap in the Biogeography of an Iconic Species. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143827. [PMID: 26674533 PMCID: PMC4686026 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Analysis of DNA sequence diversity at the 12S to 16S mitochondrial genes of 165 African lions (Panthera leo) from five main areas in Zambia has uncovered haplotypes which link Southern Africa with East Africa. Phylogenetic analysis suggests Zambia may serve as a bridge connecting the lion populations in southern Africa to eastern Africa, supporting earlier hypotheses that eastern-southern Africa may represent the evolutionary cradle for the species. Overall gene diversity throughout the Zambian lion population was 0.7319 +/- 0.0174 with eight haplotypes found; three haplotypes previously described and the remaining five novel. The addition of these five novel haplotypes, so far only found within Zambia, nearly doubles the number of haplotypes previously reported for any given geographic location of wild lions. However, based on an AMOVA analysis of these haplotypes, there is little to no matrilineal gene flow (Fst = 0.47) when the eastern and western regions of Zambia are considered as two regional sub-populations. Crossover haplotypes (H9, H11, and Z1) appear in both populations as rare in one but common in the other. This pattern is a possible result of the lion mating system in which predominately males disperse, as all individuals with crossover haplotypes were male. The determination and characterization of lion sub-populations, such as done in this study for Zambia, represent a higher-resolution of knowledge regarding both the genetic health and connectivity of lion populations, which can serve to inform conservation and management of this iconic species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin J. Curry
- Interdisciplinary Program of Genetics, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States of America
| | - Paula A. White
- Center for Tropical Research, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States of America
| | - James N. Derr
- Interdisciplinary Program of Genetics, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States of America
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Tende T, Bensch S, Ottosson U, Hansson B. Dual phylogenetic origins of Nigerian lions (Panthera leo). Ecol Evol 2014; 4:2668-74. [PMID: 25077018 PMCID: PMC4113291 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2013] [Revised: 04/16/2014] [Accepted: 04/23/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Lion fecal DNA extracts from four individuals each from Yankari Game Reserve and Kainji-Lake National Park (central northeast and west Nigeria, respectively) were Sanger-sequenced for the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene. The sequences were aligned against 61 lion reference sequences from other parts of Africa and India. The sequence data were analyzed further for the construction of phylogenetic trees using the maximum-likelihood approach to depict phylogenetic patterns of distribution among sequences. Our results show that Nigerian lions grouped together with lions from West and Central Africa. At the smaller geographical scale, lions from Kainji-Lake National Park in western Nigeria grouped with lions from Benin (located west of Nigeria), whereas lions from Yankari Game Reserve in central northeastern Nigeria grouped with the lion populations in Cameroon (located east of Nigeria). The finding that the two remaining lion populations in Nigeria have different phylogenetic origins is an important aspect to consider in future decisions regarding management and conservation of rapidly shrinking lion populations in West Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talatu Tende
- A. P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute P.O. Box 13404, Jos, Nigeria ; Department of Biology, Lund University Ecology Building, Lund, SE-223 62, Sweden
| | - Staffan Bensch
- Department of Biology, Lund University Ecology Building, Lund, SE-223 62, Sweden
| | - Ulf Ottosson
- A. P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute P.O. Box 13404, Jos, Nigeria
| | - Bengt Hansson
- Department of Biology, Lund University Ecology Building, Lund, SE-223 62, Sweden
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