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Peña Pascucci I, Pernas Mozas S, Garrido Sánchez L. Osteolytic Lesions in a Sub-Adult Loggerhead Sea Turtle ( Caretta caretta): A Case Report. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:1317. [PMID: 38731321 PMCID: PMC11083253 DOI: 10.3390/ani14091317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Osteolytic lesions in loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) during rehabilitation are attributed to multiple causes, including gas embolism, hypothermia, and osteomyelitis due to bacterial or fungal infection. This study reports the appearance of osteolytic lesions in a sub-adult loggerhead sea turtle with involvement of the right fore and hind flippers, visible swelling of the elbow and knee joints, and accompanied by lameness after 45 days of rehabilitation. Radiographs and computed tomography revealed multiple lytic bone lesions. This was the fourth rehabilitation admission of the turtle after being accidentally captured by trawler ships (bycatch) in 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023. Potential causes were dysbaric osteonecrosis due to a past decompression sickness event and hypothermia with osteomyelitis from bacterial infection. Blood cultures and antibiotic susceptibility testing led to the isolation of Ewingella americana responsive to enrofloxacin. This study investigates extensive fore and hind flipper involvement in a sub-adult loggerhead turtle, aiming to determine causes and risk factors. The pathogenesis and significance of these lesions is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ignacio Peña Pascucci
- Fundación para la Conservación y Recuperación de Animales Marinos (CRAM), El Prat de Llobregat, 08820 Barcelona, Spain; (S.P.M.); (L.G.S.)
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2
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Guo B, Sun Y, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Zheng Y, Xu S, Yang G, Ren W. Evolutionary genetics of pulmonary anatomical adaptations in deep-diving cetaceans. BMC Genomics 2024; 25:339. [PMID: 38575860 PMCID: PMC10993460 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-024-10263-9] [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: 11/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/06/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cetaceans, having experienced prolonged adaptation to aquatic environments, have undergone evolutionary changes in their respiratory systems. This process of evolution has resulted in the emergence of distinctive phenotypic traits, notably the abundance of elastic fibers and thickened alveolar walls in their lungs, which may facilitate alveolar collapse during diving. This structure helps selective exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, while minimizing nitrogen exchange, thereby reducing the risk of DCS. Nevertheless, the scientific inquiry into the mechanisms through which these unique phenotypic characteristics govern the diving behavior of marine mammals, including cetaceans, remains unresolved. RESULTS This study entails an evolutionary analysis of 42 genes associated with pulmonary fibrosis across 45 mammalian species. Twenty-one genes in cetaceans exhibited accelerated evolution, featuring specific amino acid substitutions in 14 of them. Primarily linked to the development of the respiratory system and lung morphological construction, these genes play a crucial role. Moreover, among marine mammals, we identified eight genes undergoing positive selection, and the evolutionary rates of three genes significantly correlated with diving depth. Specifically, the SFTPC gene exhibited convergent amino acid substitutions. Through in vitro cellular experiments, we illustrated that convergent amino acid site mutations in SFTPC contribute positively to pulmonary fibrosis in marine mammals, and the presence of this phenotype can induce deep alveolar collapse during diving, thereby reducing the risk of DCS during diving. CONCLUSIONS The study unveils pivotal genetic signals in cetaceans and other marine mammals, arising through evolution. These genetic signals may influence lung characteristics in marine mammals and have been linked to a reduced risk of developing DCS. Moreover, the research serves as a valuable reference for delving deeper into human diving physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boxiong Guo
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Yixuan Sun
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Yuehua Wang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Ya Zhang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Yu Zheng
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Shixia Xu
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Guang Yang
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China
| | - Wenhua Ren
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Bioaffiliationersity and Biotechnology, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Normal University, 210023, Nanjing, China.
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Bernieri EM, Medeiros LS, Lopes UH, Vilas Boas FG, Santos SMD, Marques OKDL, Macêdo GRD, Lustosa R, Franke CR. Patterns and spatial distribution of sea turtle strandings in Alagoas, Brazil. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 201:116127. [PMID: 38412794 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 02/03/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
This study makes a descriptive analysis of necropsied sea turtles registered in the Biota Conservation Institute database between May 2018 and May 2022 on the coast of Alagoas, Brazil. During this period, 79 animals of four species were necropsied: 87.4 % (69) Chelonia mydas, 6.3 % (5) Caretta caretta, 3.8 % (3) Lepidochelys olivacea and 2.5 % (2) Eretmochelys imbricata. C. mydas was the most frequent species, mainly juvenile females. In 29.1 % (23/79) evidence of anthropogenic interactions was found (e.g., fishing net marks, plastic waste in the digestive tract, trauma from collisions with boats). Cutaneous tumors suggestive of fibropapillomatosis in 35.4 % (28/79), in C. mydas and E. imbricata, half were in an area of high eutrophication, close to the capital. Endoparasites were found in 46.8 % (37/79) individuals. Information on strandings in the region is essential for understanding the use of the area and the impacts to which these animals are exposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eliane Macedo Bernieri
- Federal University of Bahia - UFBA, Av. Milton Santos, 500, Ondina, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, CEP: 40170-110; Biota Institute of Conservation, Rua Padre Odilon Lôbo, n° 5900 Guaxuma, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil, CEP 57038-770.
| | - Luciana Santos Medeiros
- Biota Institute of Conservation, Rua Padre Odilon Lôbo, n° 5900 Guaxuma, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil, CEP 57038-770
| | - Uylla Hipper Lopes
- Biota Institute of Conservation, Rua Padre Odilon Lôbo, n° 5900 Guaxuma, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil, CEP 57038-770
| | - Francielly Gomes Vilas Boas
- Biota Institute of Conservation, Rua Padre Odilon Lôbo, n° 5900 Guaxuma, Maceió, Alagoas, Brazil, CEP 57038-770
| | | | | | | | - Ricardo Lustosa
- Federal University of Western Bahia, Barra Multidisciplinary Center, Av. 23 de Agosto, SN, Assunção, Barra, Bahia, Brazil, CEP: 47100-000
| | - Carlos Roberto Franke
- Federal University of Bahia - UFBA, Av. Milton Santos, 500, Ondina, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, CEP: 40170-110
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Fahlman A. Cardiorespiratory adaptations in small cetaceans and marine mammals. Exp Physiol 2024; 109:324-334. [PMID: 37968859 PMCID: PMC10988691 DOI: 10.1113/ep091095] [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: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
The dive response, or the 'master switch of life', is probably the most studied physiological trait in marine mammals and is thought to conserve the available O2 for the heart and brain. Although generally thought to be an autonomic reflex, several studies indicate that the cardiovascular changes during diving are anticipatory and can be conditioned. The respiratory adaptations, where the aquatic breathing pattern resembles intermittent breathing in land mammals, with expiratory flow exceeding 160 litres s-1 has been measured in cetaceans, and where exposure to extreme pressures results in alveolar collapse (atelectasis) and recruitment upon ascent. Cardiorespiratory coupling, where breathing results in changes in heart rate, has been proposed to improve gas exchange. Cardiorespiratory coupling has also been reported in marine mammals, and in the bottlenose dolphin, where it alters both heart rate and stroke volume. When accounting for this respiratory dependence on cardiac function, several studies have reported an absence of a diving-related bradycardia except during dives that exceed the duration that is fuelled by aerobic metabolism. This review summarizes what is known about the respiratory physiology in marine mammals, with a special focus on cetaceans. The cardiorespiratory coupling is reviewed, and the selective gas exchange hypothesis is summarized, which provides a testable mechanism for how breath-hold diving vertebrates may actively prevent uptake of N2 during routine dives, and how stress results in failure of this mechanism, which results in diving-related gas emboli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Global Diving Research SLValenciaSpain
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad ValencianaValenciaSpain
- Kolmården Wildlife ParkKolmårdenSweden
- IFMLinköping UniversityLinköpingSweden
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5
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Goins M, Puggioni A, Hoey S. Incidental findings of soft tissue gas in canine and feline thoracic computed tomographic examinations. Vet Radiol Ultrasound 2024; 65:4-9. [PMID: 38009233 DOI: 10.1111/vru.13314] [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: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/01/2023] [Indexed: 11/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Computed tomography (CT) is a commonly used modality in small animal veterinary medicine. Anecdotally, gas bubbles are frequently identified in small animals undergoing thoracic CT examination. The aim of this retrospective observational study was to record the occurrence and prevalence of vascular and extravascular gas in routine thoracic CT examinations in dogs and cats. Patients with any clinical signs of diseases related to soft tissue gas were excluded. A total of 84 canine studies and 90 feline studies were included, detecting gas in 66.7% of all studies, with gas more likely to be detected in canine studies (75.0%) than in feline cases (58.9%) (P = 0.009). Canine studies were more likely to have gas detected in postcontrast studies than in precontrast studies (P = 0.016). Intravascular gas was detected in 65.5% of all included studies (75% canine and 56.7% feline). Extravascular gas was detected in 13.8% of all studies (14.3% canine, 13.3% feline), with gas detected in the vertebral canal of 8.62% of all studies (canine 11.9%, feline 5.56%) and within fascial planes in 5.75% of all studies (canine 2.38%, feline 8.89%). In conclusion, gas bubbles were identified in the majority of canine and feline thoracic CT studies without clinical evidence of a pathologic etiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matt Goins
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Antonella Puggioni
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Seamus Hoey
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
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6
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Suárez-Pérez A, Orós J. Iatrogenic gas embolism in a juvenile loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta). J Comp Pathol 2024; 208:50-53. [PMID: 38194723 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpa.2023.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 09/03/2023] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
A mild pneumocoelom was diagnosed by computed tomography in a stranded juvenile loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta). After gas extraction by ultrasound-guided puncture, the animal did not improve and was subjected to hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). After HBOT, the turtle developed marked subcutaneous emphysema and was found dead the following morning. Gross lesions included a distended right atrium with numerous gas bubbles within the epicardium, gas bubbles in the hepatic, gastric and mesenteric veins, a small gas-filled bulla in the left lung and diffuse haemorrhages in the encephalon. Histological lesions included gas-like emboli in the lumen of the right atrium with myocardial necrosis, gas-like emboli in the lumina of intestinal, pulmonary and renal blood vessels and severe meningeal haemorrhages. From a forensic pathology perspective, the subcutaneous emphysema of immediate onset after HBOT and the greater severity of the histological lesions in blood vessels, heart, lung and brain differentiate this case from other cases of gas embolism in turtles due to incidental capture. Two factors contributed to this outcome: the existence of a probably unresolved pneumocoelom and the application of HBOT without an initial diagnosis that accurately indicated its use. Therefore, as in human medicine, the use of HBOT in sea turtles with lung lesions and pneumocoelom is discouraged. This is the first description of an iatrogenic gas embolism in a sea turtle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Suárez-Pérez
- Tafira Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, Tafira Baja, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
| | - Jorge Orós
- Department of Morphology, Veterinary Faculty, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Trasmontana s/n. 35413 Arucas, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
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7
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Velázquez-Wallraf A, Caballero MJ, Fernández A, Betancor MB, Saavedra P, Hemingway HW, Bernaldo de Quirós Y. Biomarkers related to gas embolism: Gas score, pathology, and gene expression in a gas bubble disease model. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0288659. [PMID: 37440588 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0288659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/01/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Fish exposed to water supersaturated with dissolved gas experience gas embolism similar to decompression sickness (DCS), known as gas bubble disease (GBD) in fish. GBD has been postulated as an alternative to traditional mammals' models on DCS. Gas embolism can cause mechanical and biochemical damage, generating pathophysiological responses. Increased expression of biomarkers of cell damage such as the heat shock protein (HSP) family, endothelin 1 (ET-1) or intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1) has been observed, being a possible target for further studies of gas embolism. The GBD model consisted of exposing fish to supersaturation in water with approximately 170% total dissolved gas (TDG) for 18 hours, producing severe gas embolism. This diagnosis was confirmed by a complete histopathological exam and the gas score method. HSP70 showed a statistically significant upregulation compared to the control in all the studied organs (p <0.02). Gills and heart showed upregulation of HSP90 with statistical significance (p = 0.015 and p = 0.02, respectively). In addition, HSP70 gene expression in gills was positively correlated with gas score (p = 0.033). These results suggest that gas embolism modify the expression of different biomarkers, with HSP70 being shown as a strong marker of this process. Furthermore, gas score is a useful tool to study the abundance of gas bubbles, although individual variability always remains present. These results support the validity of the GBD model in fish to study gas embolism in diseases such as DCS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Velázquez-Wallraf
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Maria José Caballero
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Antonio Fernández
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Mónica B Betancor
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling, United Kingdom
| | - Pedro Saavedra
- Department of Mathematics, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Holden W Hemingway
- Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States of America
| | - Yara Bernaldo de Quirós
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
- Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States of America
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8
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Garcia-Parraga D, Crespo-Picazo JL, Sterba-Boatwright B, Marco V, Muñoz-Baquero M, Robinson NJ, Stacy B, Fahlman A. New insights into risk variables associated with gas embolism in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta) caught in trawls and gillnets. CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 11:coad048. [PMID: 37425482 PMCID: PMC10326834 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coad048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Tissue and blood gas embolism (GE) associated with fisheries bycatch are likely a widespread, yet underestimated, cause of sea turtle mortality. Here, we evaluated risk factors associated with tissue and blood GE in loggerhead turtles caught incidentally by trawl and gillnet fisheries on the Valencian coastline of Spain. Of 413 turtles (303 caught by trawl, 110 by gillnet fisheries), 54% (n = 222) exhibited GE. For sea turtles caught in trawls, the probability and severity of GE increased with trawl depth and turtle body mass. In addition, trawl depth and the GE score together explained the probability of mortality (P[mortality]) following recompression therapy. Specifically, a turtle with a GE score of 3 caught in a trawl deployed at 110 m had a P[mortality] of ~50%. For turtles caught in gillnets, no risk variables were significantly correlated with either the P[GE] or GE score. However, gillnet depth or GE score, separately, explained P[mortality], and a turtle caught at 45 m or with a GE score between 3 and 4 had a P[mortality] of 50%. Differences in the fishery characteristics precluded direct comparison of GE risk and mortality between these gear types. Although P[mortality] is expected to be significantly higher in untreated turtles released at sea, our findings can improve estimates of sea turtle mortality associated with trawls and gillnets, and help guide associate conservation efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Garcia-Parraga
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Jose Luis Crespo-Picazo
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | | | - Vicente Marco
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Marta Muñoz-Baquero
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Nathan J Robinson
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, Spanish National Research Council - Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Barcelona 08003, Spain
| | - Brian Stacy
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, University of Florida (Duty Station), PO Box 110885, 2187 Mowry Road, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
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Omedes S, Crespo-Picazo JL, García-Párraga D, Sole M. B-esterase measurements and other blood related biomarkers in loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) as indicators of health status. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 879:163040. [PMID: 36965720 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.163040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2023] [Revised: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) has been selected as sentinel species by the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) descriptor 10 in relation to marine litter. In this, and other protected species, there is a need to develop conservative pollution biomarkers equally informative of chemical exposures to those traditionally carried out in metabolic organs, such as the liver. With this aim, plasma from turtles undergoing rehabilitation at the Fundació Oceanogràfic rescue centre (Arca del Mar) were selected and tested for B-esterase measurements. Hydrolysis rates of acetylcholinesterase (AChE), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) and carboxylesterases (CEs) using four commercial substrates were undertaken on 191 plasma samples. Results indicated that acetylthiocholine was the most adequate substrate of cholinesterases and butyrate esters for CE measures. The correlation of these parameters with well-established blood biochemistry measurements was analysed. B-esterase measures in wild specimens were discussed in relation to age group, pathology on admission to the rescue centre and season; moreover, contrasts with long-term resident turtles were also made. Although this study provides baseline data on B-esterase measures in a large sample size for this species, more complementary information is still needed in terms of population genetics, chemical exposures, and in relation to other biochemical parameters before they can be confidently applied in wild specimens within the regulatory MSFD.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Omedes
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC, Psg. Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - J L Crespo-Picazo
- Fundació Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 València, Spain
| | - D García-Párraga
- Fundació Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 València, Spain
| | - M Sole
- Institut de Ciències del Mar, CSIC, Psg. Marítim de la Barceloneta 37-49, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
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Willette M, Rosenhagen N, Buhl G, Innis C, Boehm J. Interrupted Lives: Welfare Considerations in Wildlife Rehabilitation. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:1836. [PMID: 37889738 PMCID: PMC10252006 DOI: 10.3390/ani13111836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2023] [Revised: 05/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Each year in the United States, thousands of sick, injured, or displaced wild animals are presented to individuals or organizations who have either a federal or state permit that allows them to care for these animals with the goal of releasing them back to the wild. The purpose of this review is to demonstrate the complexity of considerations rehabilitators and veterinarians face while trying to optimize the welfare of wild animals in need of care and rehabilitation. The process of rehabilitation is inherently stressful for wildlife. Maintaining an animal's welfare during the rehabilitation process-from initial contact and tria+ge to the animal's euthanasia, release, or captive placement-requires deliberate, timely and humane decision making. The welfare of wild animals can be improved by preventing human-related causes of admission, providing resources and support for wildlife rehabilitation (almost all rehabilitation in the United States is privately funded and access to veterinary care is often limited); further developing evidence-based wildlife rehabilitation methods and welfare measures, attracting more veterinary professionals to the field, harmonizing regulatory oversight with standards of care, training, and accountability, and increasing public education.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Gail Buhl
- The Raptor Center, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA;
| | | | - Jeff Boehm
- The Marine Mammal Center, Sausalito, CA 94965, USA;
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11
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Câmara N, Fernández A, Herráez P, Arbelo M, Andrada M, Suárez-Santana CM, Sierra E. Microscopic Findings in the Cardiac Muscle of Stranded Extreme Deep-Diving Cuvier's Beaked Whales ( Ziphius cavirostris). MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF MICROSCOPY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, MICROBEAM ANALYSIS SOCIETY, MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 2022; 28:1-8. [PMID: 35467498 DOI: 10.1017/s1431927622000605] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Considerable information has been gained over the last few decades on several disease processes afflicting free-ranging cetaceans from a pathologist's point of view. Nonetheless, there is still a dearth of studies on the hearts of these species. For this reason, we aimed to improve our understanding of cardiac histological lesions occurring in free-ranging stranded cetaceans and, more specifically, in deep-diving Cuvier's beaked whales. The primary cardiac lesions that have been described include vascular changes, such as congestion, edema, hemorrhage, leukocytosis, and intravascular coagulation; acute degenerative changes, which consist of contraction band necrosis, wavy fibers, cytoplasmic hypereosinophilia, and perinuclear vacuolization; infiltration of inflammatory cells; and finally, the presence and/or deposition of different substances, such as interstitial myoglobin globules, lipofuscin pigment, polysaccharide complexes, and intra- and/or extravascular gas emboli and vessel dilation. This study advances our current knowledge about the histopathological findings in the cardiac muscle of cetaceans, and more specifically, of Cuvier's beaked whales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nakita Câmara
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
- Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias (PLOCAN), Carretera de Taliarte s/n, Telde, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35214, Spain
- Loro Parque Foundation, Avenida Loro Parque s/n, Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife38400, Spain
| | - Antonio Fernández
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
| | - Pedro Herráez
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
| | - Manuel Arbelo
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
| | - Marisa Andrada
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
| | - Cristian M Suárez-Santana
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
| | - Eva Sierra
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas of Gran Canaria, Campus Universitario Cardones de Arucas, Trasmontaña s/n, Arucas, Las Palmas, Gran Canaria35413, Spain
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Velázquez-Wallraf A, Fernández A, Caballero MJ, Arregui M, González Díaz Ó, Betancor MB, Bernaldo de Quirós Y. Establishment of a fish model to study gas-bubble lesions. Sci Rep 2022; 12:6592. [PMID: 35449183 PMCID: PMC9023494 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-10539-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Decompression sickness (DCS) is a clinical syndrome caused by the formation of systemic intravascular and extravascular gas bubbles. The presence of these bubbles in blood vessels is known as gas embolism. DCS has been described in humans and animals such as sea turtles and cetaceans. To delve deeper into DCS, experimental models in terrestrial mammals subjected to compression/decompression in a hyperbaric chamber have been used. Fish can suffer from gas bubble disease (GBD), characterized by the formation of intravascular and extravascular systemic gas bubbles, similarly to that observed in DCS. Given these similarities and the fact that fish develop this disease naturally in supersaturated water, they could be used as an alternative experimental model for the study of the pathophysiological aspect of gas bubbles. The objective of this study was to obtain a reproducible model for GBD in fish by an engineering system and a complete pathological study, validating this model for the study of the physiopathology of gas related lesions in DCS. A massive and severe GBD was achieved by exposing the fish for 18 h to TDG values of 162-163%, characterized by the presence of severe hemorrhages and the visualization of massive quantities of macroscopic and microscopic gas bubbles, systemically distributed, circulating through different large vessels of experimental fish. These pathological findings were the same as those described in small mammals for the study of explosive DCS by hyperbaric chamber, validating the translational usefulness of this first fish model to study the gas-bubbles lesions associated to DCS from a pathological standpoint.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Velázquez-Wallraf
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Antonio Fernández
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - María José Caballero
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain.
| | - Marina Arregui
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Óscar González Díaz
- Physical and Chemical Instrumental Center for the Development of Applied Research Technology and Scientific Estate, Institute for Environmental Studies and Natural Resources (I-UNAT), University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Las Palmas, Spain
| | - Mónica B Betancor
- Institute of Aquaculture, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling, UK
| | - Yara Bernaldo de Quirós
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Canary Islands, Spain
- Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
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13
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Nero RW, Cook M, Reneker JL, Wang Z, Schultz EA, Stacy BA. Decomposition of Kemp’s ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) and green (Chelonia mydas) sea turtle carcasses and its application to backtrack modeling of beach strandings. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2022. [DOI: 10.3354/esr01164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
When a sea turtle dies, it typically sinks to the bottom, begins decomposing, and floats to the surface once sufficient internal gases have accumulated to produce positive buoyancy. This process is poorly characterized and is essential to understanding where and when sea turtles found on shore may have died. We conducted decomposition studies with detailed time-temperature histories using carcasses of cold-stunned sea turtles (22 Kemp’s ridleys Lepidochelys kempii and 15 green sea turtles Chelonia mydas) at temperatures of 14-32°C and depths of 2.2-9.5 m. We found strong depth/pressure-related effects; carcasses took longer to float when incubated at greater depths than shallower depths at similar temperatures. Furthermore, carcasses incubated at colder temperatures (~15°C) took 8 times longer to float than those at 32°C at the same depth. We applied accumulated degree hours (ADH; hourly sum of ambient temperatures a carcass experienced) to characterize environmental conditions associated with different stages of decomposition and key events, including buoyancy and sinking. A formula for temperature-correction of ADH was calculated to fit a non-linear increase in decomposition at higher temperatures. These data were then used to improve an existing backtracking model by incorporating water temperature, depth (pressure), bathymetry, and postmortem condition. Heat maps of the probable mortality locations from the model agreed well with carcass and effigy drift experiments, demonstrating the overall reliability of the enhanced model. Our method can be used to estimate at-sea locations where sea turtles found washed ashore in the northern Gulf of Mexico likely died and may help inform similar efforts in other regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- RW Nero
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Building 1021, Stennis Space Center, Mississippi 39529, USA
| | - M Cook
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Pascagoula, Mississippi 39567, USA
| | - JL Reneker
- Riverside Technologies Inc., Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Pascagoula, Mississippi 39567, USA
| | - Z Wang
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Centers for Environmental Information, Stennis Space Center, Mississippi 39529, USA
- Northern Gulf Institute, Mississippi State University, Stennis Space Center, Mississippi 39529, USA
| | - EA Schultz
- Riverside Technologies Inc., Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Pascagoula, Mississippi 39567, USA
| | - BA Stacy
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine (duty station), Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
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14
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Braun CD, Arostegui MC, Thorrold SR, Papastamatiou YP, Gaube P, Fontes J, Afonso P. The Functional and Ecological Significance of Deep Diving by Large Marine Predators. ANNUAL REVIEW OF MARINE SCIENCE 2022; 14:129-159. [PMID: 34416123 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-marine-032521-103517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Many large marine predators make excursions from surface waters to the deep ocean below 200 m. Moreover, the ability to access meso- and bathypelagic habitats has evolved independently across marine mammals, reptiles, birds, teleost fishes, and elasmobranchs. Theoretical and empirical evidence suggests a number of plausible functional hypotheses for deep-diving behavior. Developing ways to test among these hypotheses will, however, require new ways to quantify animal behavior and biophysical oceanographic processes at coherent spatiotemporal scales. Current knowledge gaps include quantifying ecological links between surface waters and mesopelagic habitats and the value of ecosystem services provided by biomass in the ocean twilight zone. Growing pressure for ocean twilight zone fisheries creates an urgent need to understand the importance of the deep pelagic ocean to large marine predators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camrin D Braun
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA;
- School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA
| | - Martin C Arostegui
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA;
- Air-Sea Interaction and Remote Sensing Department, Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, USA
| | - Simon R Thorrold
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA;
| | - Yannis P Papastamatiou
- Institute of Environment, Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida 33181, USA
| | - Peter Gaube
- Air-Sea Interaction and Remote Sensing Department, Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, USA
| | - Jorge Fontes
- Okeanos and Institute of Marine Research, University of the Azores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
| | - Pedro Afonso
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA;
- Okeanos and Institute of Marine Research, University of the Azores, 9901-862 Horta, Portugal
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15
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Analysis of risk factors associated with gas embolism and evaluation of predictors of mortality in 482 loggerhead sea turtles. Sci Rep 2021; 11:22693. [PMID: 34811412 PMCID: PMC8608947 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-02017-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Sea turtles that are entrapped in static and towed nets may develop gas embolism which can lead to severe organ injury and death. Trawling characteristics, physical and physiologic factors associated with gas-embolism and predictors of mortality were analysed from 482 bycaught loggerheads. We found 204 turtles affected by gas-embolism and significant positive correlations between the presence of gas-embolism and duration, depth, ascent rate of trawl, turtle size and temperature, and between mortality and ascent time, neurological deficits, significant acidosis and involvement of > 12 cardiovascular sites and the left atrium and sinus venosus-right atrium. About 90% turtles with GE alive upon arrival at Sea Turtle Clinic recovered from the disease without any supportive drug therapy. Results of this study may be useful in clinical evaluation, prognostication, and management for turtles affected by gas-embolism, but bycatch reduction must become a priority for major international organizations. According to the results of the present study the measures to be considered to reduce the catches or mortality of sea turtles for trawling are to be found in the modification of fishing nets or fishing operations and in greater awareness and education of fishermen.
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Robinson NJ, García-Párraga D, Stacy BA, Costidis AM, Blanco GS, Clyde-Brockway CE, Haas HL, Harms CA, Patel SH, Stacy NI, Fahlman A. A Baseline Model For Estimating the Risk of Gas Embolism in Sea Turtles During Routine Dives. Front Physiol 2021; 12:678555. [PMID: 34539425 PMCID: PMC8440993 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.678555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Sea turtles, like other air-breathing diving vertebrates, commonly experience significant gas embolism (GE) when incidentally caught at depth in fishing gear and brought to the surface. To better understand why sea turtles develop GE, we built a mathematical model to estimate partial pressures of N2 (PN2), O2 (PO2), and CO2 (PCO2) in the major body-compartments of diving loggerheads (Caretta caretta), leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea), and green turtles (Chelonia mydas). This model was adapted from a published model for estimating gas dynamics in marine mammals and penguins. To parameterize the sea turtle model, we used values gleaned from previously published literature and 22 necropsies. Next, we applied this model to data collected from free-roaming individuals of the three study species. Finally, we varied body-condition and cardiac output within the model to see how these factors affected the risk of GE. Our model suggests that cardiac output likely plays a significant role in the modulation of GE, especially in the deeper diving leatherback turtles. This baseline model also indicates that even during routine diving behavior, sea turtles are at high risk of GE. This likely means that turtles have additional behavioral, anatomical, and/or physiologic adaptions that serve to reduce the probability of GE but were not incorporated in this model. Identifying these adaptations and incorporating them into future iterations of this model will further reveal the factors driving GE in sea turtles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan J. Robinson
- Department of Research, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Valencia, Spain
| | - Daniel García-Párraga
- Department of Research, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Valencia, Spain
| | - Brian A. Stacy
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, University of Florida (duty station), Washington, DC, United States
| | | | - Gabriela S. Blanco
- Instituto de Biología de Organismos Marinos (IBIOMAR-CCT CONICET-CENPAT), Puerto Madryn, Argentina
| | | | - Heather L. Haas
- Northeast Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Woods Hole, MA, United States
| | - Craig A. Harms
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Center for Marine Sciences and Technology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United States
| | - Samir H. Patel
- Coonamessett Farm Foundation, East Falmouth, MA, United States
| | - Nicole I. Stacy
- Department of Comparative, Diagnostic, and Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Andreas Fahlman
- Department of Research, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Valencia, Spain
- Global Diving Research, Inc., Ottawa, ON, Canada
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17
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Velázquez-Wallraf A, Fernández A, Caballero MJ, Møllerløkken A, Jepson PD, Andrada M, Bernaldo de Quirós Y. Decompressive Pathology in Cetaceans Based on an Experimental Pathological Model. Front Vet Sci 2021; 8:676499. [PMID: 34169109 PMCID: PMC8218990 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.676499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Decompression sickness (DCS) is a widely known clinical syndrome in human medicine, mainly in divers, related to the formation of intravascular and extravascular gas bubbles. Gas embolism and decompression-like sickness have also been described in wild animals, such as cetaceans. It was hypothesized that adaptations to the marine environment protected them from DCS, but in 2003, decompression-like sickness was described for the first time in beaked whales, challenging this dogma. Since then, several episodes of mass strandings of beaked whales coincidental in time and space with naval maneuvers have been recorded and diagnosed with DCS. The diagnosis of human DCS is based on the presence of clinical symptoms and the detection of gas embolism by ultrasound, but in cetaceans, the diagnosis is limited to forensic investigations. For this reason, it is necessary to resort to experimental animal models to support the pathological diagnosis of DCS in cetaceans. The objective of this study is to validate the pathological results of cetaceans through an experimental rabbit model wherein a complete and detailed histopathological analysis was performed. Gross and histopathological results were very similar in the experimental animal model compared to stranded cetaceans with DCS, with the presence of gas embolism systemically distributed as well as emphysema and hemorrhages as primary lesions in different organs. The experimental data reinforces the pathological findings found in cetaceans with DCS as well as the hypothesis that individuality plays an essential role in DCS, as it has previously been proposed in animal models and human diving medicine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Velázquez-Wallraf
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Antonio Fernández
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Maria José Caballero
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Andreas Møllerløkken
- Faculty of Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Paul D Jepson
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Marisa Andrada
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
| | - Yara Bernaldo de Quirós
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Atlantic Center for Cetacean Research, University Institute of Animal Health and Food Safety (IUSA), Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Islands, Spain
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18
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Diagnostic Imaging of the Respiratory Tract of the Reptile Patient. Vet Clin North Am Exot Anim Pract 2021; 24:293-320. [PMID: 33892889 DOI: 10.1016/j.cvex.2021.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Detailed information is given about technique and image interpretation of radiography and computed tomography of the respiratory tract in reptiles. MRI and sonography are mentioned when supporting differential diagnoses. Various diseases and imaging pitfalls are described with multiple figures and graphics. One focus is on lung compression in chelonians, which may be misinterpreted as pneumonia in dyspneic patients without the help of imaging tools.
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19
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Harms CA, Boylan SM, Stacy BA, Beasley JF, García-Párraga D, Godfrey MH. Gas embolism and massive blunt force trauma to sea turtles entrained in hopper dredges in North and South Carolina, USA. DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS 2020; 142:189-196. [PMID: 33331286 DOI: 10.3354/dao03542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Decompression sickness (DCS) has been described mainly in loggerhead turtles Caretta caretta bycaught in trawls and gillnets. Here we present cases of gas emboli (GE) in 8 green turtles Chelonia mydas and 2 Kemp's ridleys Lepidochelys kempii entrained in hopper dredges that were working at 8.8-15.2 m depths during shipping channel maintenance or beach renourishment activities. Turtle weights ranged from 2.2 to 6.7 kg. All were found alive with blunt force injuries from passage through the dredge and were taken to rehabilitation facilities. Four green turtles died or were euthanized within 24 h. Six turtles survived. Radiographic or ultrasonographic evidence of GE was detected in 4 turtles, including 3 mortalities. Computed tomography (CT) revealed perirenal and cervical GE in 4 turtles, including 1 mortality. No GE were detected in 2 of the survivors. Upon necropsy, GE were found in mesenteric vessels, the right atrium, and kidneys. Histopathology confirmed that tissues were in a good state of preservation without evidence of bacterial overgrowth or putrefactive gas formation. Death likely resulted primarily from massive tissue trauma from the dredge, but moderate GE could have led to DCS and complicated recovery. The surviving turtles weighed less than those that did not survive. Besides hypothesized stress/exercise-induced circulatory changes of blood through the lungs and pressure reduction of forced surfacing from depth, drastic pressure change within the dredge pipes before and after the pump could contribute to GE. Hopper dredge entrainment is an additional cause of GE and potential DCS in sea turtles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig A Harms
- North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Clinical Sciences, and Center for Marine Sciences and Technology, Morehead City, North Carolina 28557, USA
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20
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Mashkour N, Jones K, Kophamel S, Hipolito T, Ahasan S, Walker G, Jakob-Hoff R, Whittaker M, Hamann M, Bell I, Elliman J, Owens L, Saladin C, Crespo-Picazo JL, Gardner B, Loganathan AL, Bowater R, Young E, Robinson D, Baverstock W, Blyde D, March D, Eghbali M, Mohammadi M, Freggi D, Giliam J, Hale M, Nicolle N, Spiby K, Wrobel D, Parga M, Mobaraki A, Rajakaruna R, Hyland KP, Read M, Ariel E. Disease risk analysis in sea turtles: A baseline study to inform conservation efforts. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0230760. [PMID: 33095793 PMCID: PMC7584443 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0230760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The impact of a range of different threats has resulted in the listing of six out of seven sea turtle species on the IUCN Red List of endangered species. Disease risk analysis (DRA) tools are designed to provide objective, repeatable and documented assessment of the disease risks for a population and measures to reduce these risks through management options. To the best of our knowledge, DRAs have not previously been published for sea turtles, although disease is reported to contribute to sea turtle population decline. Here, a comprehensive list of health hazards is provided for all seven species of sea turtles. The possible risk these hazards pose to the health of sea turtles were assessed and "One Health" aspects of interacting with sea turtles were also investigated. The risk assessment was undertaken in collaboration with more than 30 experts in the field including veterinarians, microbiologists, social scientists, epidemiologists and stakeholders, in the form of two international workshops and one local workshop. The general finding of the DRA was the distinct lack of knowledge regarding a link between the presence of pathogens and diseases manifestation in sea turtles. A higher rate of disease in immunocompromised individuals was repeatedly reported and a possible link between immunosuppression and environmental contaminants as a result of anthropogenic influences was suggested. Society based conservation initiatives and as a result the cultural and social aspect of interacting with sea turtles appeared to need more attention and research. A risk management workshop was carried out to acquire the insights of local policy makers about management options for the risks relevant to Queensland and the options were evaluated considering their feasibility and effectiveness. The sea turtle DRA presented here, is a structured guide for future risk assessments to be used in specific scenarios such as translocation and head-starting programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Narges Mashkour
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Karina Jones
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
- College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Sara Kophamel
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Teresa Hipolito
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Shamim Ahasan
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
- Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Science, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science & Technology University, Dinjapur, Rangpur, Bangladesh
| | - Grant Walker
- North East Sea Turtles, Charlotteville, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
- Institute of Biodiversity Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland
| | - Richard Jakob-Hoff
- New Zealand Centre for Conservation Medicine, Auckland Zoo, Auckland, New Zealand
- School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Australia
| | - Maxine Whittaker
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Mark Hamann
- College of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Ian Bell
- Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Jennifer Elliman
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Leigh Owens
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Claire Saladin
- Reserve Naturelle de Saint Barthelemy, Gustavia, Saint Barthelemy
- FWI/Reserve Naturelle de Saint Martin, Saint Martin, French West Indies
| | - Jose Luis Crespo-Picazo
- Veterinary Services & Research Department, Fundación Oceanogràfic, Avanqua Oceanogràfic-Ágora, Valencia, Spain
| | - Brett Gardner
- Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital, Beerwah, Queensland, Australia
- Two Oceans Aquarium, Cape Town, South Africa
| | | | - Rachel Bowater
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Erina Young
- Conservation Medicine Program School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine Murdoch University, Perth, Western Australia
| | - David Robinson
- The Aquarium & Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project, Burj Al Arab, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
| | - Warren Baverstock
- The Aquarium & Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project, Burj Al Arab, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
| | - David Blyde
- Sea World, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
| | - Duan March
- National Marine Science Centre & Centre for Coastal Biogeochemistry Research, School of Environment, Science and Engineering, Southern Cross University, Coffs Harbour, NSW, Australia
- Dolphin Marine Rescue Animal Rehab Trust, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Maryam Eghbali
- Ideh no doostdar_E- Hormozgan Ecotourism and NGO group, Iran
| | | | | | - Jane Giliam
- The Ark Animal Hospital, Northern Territory, Australia
| | - Mike Hale
- Yuku Baja Muliku Ranger Base, Archer Point, Australia
| | | | - Kevin Spiby
- Two Oceans Aquarium, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Daphne Wrobel
- Fundação Pró-TAMAR, Rua Professor Ademir Francisco s/n–Barra da Lagoa, Florianópolis–SC, Brazil
| | - Mariluz Parga
- SUBMON—Marine Environmental Services, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Asghar Mobaraki
- Department of the Environment, Wildlife and Aquatic Affairs Bureau, Tehran, Iran
| | | | | | - Mark Read
- Field Management Unit, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, Queensland, Australia
| | - Ellen Ariel
- College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
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21
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Arango BG, Harfush-Meléndez M, Marmolejo-Valencia JA, Merchant-Larios H, Crocker DE. Blood oxygen stores of olive ridley sea turtles, Lepidochelys olivacea are highly variable among individuals during arribada nesting. J Comp Physiol B 2020; 191:185-194. [PMID: 33064209 DOI: 10.1007/s00360-020-01321-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2020] [Revised: 09/14/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Sea turtles dive with a full lung of air and these O2 stores are supplemented by O2 stored in blood and muscle. Olive ridley sea turtles exhibit polymorphic nesting behavior, mass nesting behavior called arribada, where thousands of turtles will nest at once, and solitary nesting behavior. The potential physiological differences between the individuals using these strategies are not well understood. We measured blood volume and associated variables, including blood hemoglobin content and hematocrit, to estimate total blood O2 stores. There were no significant differences in mean values between nesting strategies, but arribada nesting individuals were more variable than those performing solitary nesting. Mass-specific plasma volume was relatively invariant among individuals but mass specific blood volume and blood oxygen stores varied widely, twofold and threefold, respectively. Blood O2 stores represented 32% of total body O2 stores. Under typical mean diving conditions of 26 °C and high levels of activity, blood stores confer ~ 14 min to aerobic dive times and are likely critical for the long duration, deep diving exhibited by the species. Individual differences in blood O2 stores strongly impact estimated aerobic dive limits and may constrain the ability of individuals to respond to changes on ocean climate.
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Affiliation(s)
- B Gabriela Arango
- Biology Department, Sonoma State University, 1801 East Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park, CA, 94928, USA.
| | | | | | - Horacio Merchant-Larios
- Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico, Mexico
| | - Daniel E Crocker
- Biology Department, Sonoma State University, 1801 East Cotati Ave, Rohnert Park, CA, 94928, USA
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22
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Favilla AB, Costa DP. Thermoregulatory Strategies of Diving Air-Breathing Marine Vertebrates: A Review. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.555509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Santos-Costa PC, Duarte-Benvenuto A, Groch KR, Catão-Dias JL, Díaz-Delgado J. Pathological Findings in Leatherback Sea Turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) During an Unusual Mortality Event in São Paulo, Brazil, in 2016. J Comp Pathol 2020; 178:50-55. [PMID: 32800109 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpa.2020.06.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Revised: 04/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The leatherback sea turtle (LST; Dermochelys coriacea) is highly migratory and is primarily distributed throughout tropical and subtropical regions. The LST populations found in Brazil are critically endangered. An unusual mortality event occurred between August and November 2016 with 23 LSTs stranded along a 100 km coastal segment in Iguape, Ilha Comprida and Ilha do Cardoso in southern São Paulo state. This study investigated the pathological findings and most likely causes of death of 10 LSTs. Male (n = 9) and adult (n = 9) animals predominated. All but one animal was in good body condition and all were found dead. The most prevalent gross findings were suggestive of bycatch, namely cutaneous erosions, abrasions and/or lacerations around the neck and flippers (n = 9), generalized congestion (n = 8) and pulmonary oedema (n = 6). Other prevalent gross findings were: cutaneous epibiosis by Stomatolepas elegans (n = 7); ileocecal diverticulitis (n = 7); distal oesophagitis (n = 5); and fibrinous coelomitis (n = 5). Microscopically, the most prevalent findings were: hepatic melanomacrophage centre hypertrophy or hyperplasia (n = 9); interstitial pneumonia (n = 8); multisystemic congestion (n = 6); pulmonary oedema with or without aspirated material (n = 5); adrenal coccidiosis (n = 5) with variable multiorgan involvement; and multiorgan bacterial disease (n = 5). Five animals had food ingesta (cnidarians, crustaceans) in the oesophagus or stomach; only one had evident plastic foreign bodies. Asphyxia due to entanglement in nets was the most frequently identified cause of death (n = 8); a cause of death was not identified in two animals. Our findings provide evidence of the severe negative impact of entanglement in fishing nets in LSTs, raising concerns for conservation. These findings also contribute to knowledge of the pathology of LSTs in South American populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- P C Santos-Costa
- Instituto de Pesquisas Cananéia - IPeC, Cananéia, Brazil; Laboratório de Patologia Comparada de Animais Selvagens (LAPCOM), Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
| | - A Duarte-Benvenuto
- Laboratório de Patologia Comparada de Animais Selvagens (LAPCOM), Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - K R Groch
- Laboratório de Patologia Comparada de Animais Selvagens (LAPCOM), Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - J L Catão-Dias
- Laboratório de Patologia Comparada de Animais Selvagens (LAPCOM), Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - J Díaz-Delgado
- Laboratório de Patologia Comparada de Animais Selvagens (LAPCOM), Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil; Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, Texas, USA
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24
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On-board study of gas embolism in marine turtles caught in bottom trawl fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean. Sci Rep 2020; 10:5561. [PMID: 32221339 PMCID: PMC7101392 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-62355-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2019] [Accepted: 02/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Decompression sickness (DCS) was first diagnosed in marine turtles in 2014. After capture in net fisheries, animals typically start showing clinical evidence of DCS hours after being hauled on-board, often dying if untreated. These turtles are normally immediately released without any understanding of subsequent clinical problems or outcome. The objectives of this study were to describe early occurrence and severity of gaseous embolism (GE) and DCS in marine turtles after incidental capture in trawl gear, and to provide estimates of on-board and post-release mortality. Twenty-eight marine turtles were examined on-board fishing vessels. All 20 turtles assessed by ultrasound and/or post-mortem examination developed GE, independent of season, depth and duration of trawl and ascent speed. Gas emboli were obvious by ultrasound within 15 minutes after surfacing and worsened over the course of 2 hours. Blood data were consistent with extreme lactic acidosis, reduced glomerular filtration, and stress. Twelve of 28 (43%) animals died on-board, and 3 of 15 (20%) active turtles released with satellite tags died within 6 days. This is the first empirically-based estimate of on-board and post-release mortality of bycaught marine turtles that has until now been unaccounted for in trawl fisheries not equipped with turtle excluder devices.
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25
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Gabler-Smith MK, Westgate AJ, Koopman HN. Fatty acid composition and N 2 solubility in triacylglycerol-rich adipose tissue: the likely importance of intact molecular structure. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2020; 223:jeb.216770. [PMID: 32001545 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.216770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 01/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Diving tetrapods (sea turtles, seabirds and marine mammals) are a biologically diverse group, yet all are under similar constraints: oxygen limitation and increased hydrostatic pressure at depth. Adipose tissue is important in the context of diving because nitrogen gas (N2) is five times more soluble in fat than in blood, creating a potential N2 sink in diving animals. Previous research demonstrates that unusual lipid composition [waxes and short-chained fatty acids (FA)] in adipose tissue of some whales leads to increased N2 solubility. We evaluated the N2 solubility of adipose tissue from 12 species of diving tetrapods lacking these unusual lipids to explore whether solubility in this tissue can be linked to lipid structure. Across all taxonomic groups, the same eight FA accounted for 70-80% of the entire lipid profile; almost all adipose tissues were dominated by monounsaturated FA (40.2-67.4 mol%). However, even with consistent FA profiles, there was considerable variability in N2 solubility, ranging from 0.051±0.003 to 0.073±0.004 ml N2 ml-1 oil. Interestingly, differences in N2 solubility could not be attributed to taxonomic group (P=0.06) or FA composition (P>0.10). These results lead to two main conclusions: (1) in triacylglycerol-only adipose tissues, the FA pool itself may not have a strong influence on N2 solubility; and (2) samples with similar FA profiles can have different N2 solubility values, suggesting that 3D arrangement of individual FA within a triacylglycerol molecule may have important roles in determining N2 solubility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly K Gabler-Smith
- University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA .,Harvard Museum of Comparative Zoology, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Andrew J Westgate
- University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Heather N Koopman
- University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
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26
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López-Mendilaharsu M, Giffoni B, Monteiro D, Prosdocimi L, Vélez-Rubio GM, Fallabrino A, Estrades A, Santos AS, Lara PH, Pires T, Tiwari M, Bolten AB, Marcovaldi MÂ. Multiple-threats analysis for loggerhead sea turtles in the southwest Atlantic Ocean. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2020. [DOI: 10.3354/esr01025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Priority-setting approaches for widely distributed and long-lived species can be challenging. This is especially true for sea turtles, which are species of conservation concern. The aim of this study was to conduct a detailed analysis of threats to identify, quantify and prioritize the main impacts to the loggerhead Caretta caretta population in the southwest Atlantic (SWA) region. A matrix of relative threats was constructed. Threats were identified and classified for 8 different life stages (nesting females, eggs, hatchlings, swim-frenzy transitional stage, juveniles-neritic, juveniles-oceanic, adults-neritic, adults-oceanic) and for 3 ecosystems inhabited by sea turtles (terrestrial, neritic and oceanic). Results indicated that fisheries bycatch represents a major threat for loggerheads in the SWA. The trawl fishery was identified as the main source of mortality for neritic juvenile and adult turtles, whereas juveniles in oceanic areas are mostly impacted by surface longlines. In terrestrial environments, eggs and hatchlings are mainly affected by habitat alteration and by native and exotic predators. Loggerheads have shown a positive nesting trend at their main nesting beaches in the SWA, probably due to long-term conservation efforts to reduce mortality of the different life stages within the terrestrial zone. However, the high mortality rates of juveniles and sub-adults documented at some known foraging grounds represent a reason for concern, as this may affect the overall population trend in the future. This threat analysis provides a tool to review the goals of national action plans, prioritize actions and optimize the allocation of management resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- M López-Mendilaharsu
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
| | - B Giffoni
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
| | - D Monteiro
- Núcleo de Educação e Monitoramento Ambiental - NEMA, Rua Maria Araújo 450, 96207-480 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
- Laboratório de Ecologia e Conservação da Megafauna Marinha, EcoMega, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, FURG, 96203-900 Rio Grande, RS, Brazil
| | - L Prosdocimi
- Programa Regional de Investigación y Conservación de Tortugas Marinas de la Argentina (PRICTMA), 1609 Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - GM Vélez-Rubio
- Karumbé NGO, Zoo Villa Dolores, 11600 Montevideo, Uruguay
- Centro Universitario Regional del Este (CURE), Universidad de la República, 27000 Rocha, Uruguay
| | - A Fallabrino
- Karumbé NGO, Zoo Villa Dolores, 11600 Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - A Estrades
- Karumbé NGO, Zoo Villa Dolores, 11600 Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - AS Santos
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
| | - PH Lara
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
| | - T Pires
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
| | - M Tiwari
- NOAA-National Marine Fisheries Service, Marine Turtle Ecology & Assessment Program, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, La Jolla, California 92034, USA
| | - AB Bolten
- Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research and Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - MÂ Marcovaldi
- Fundação Pró-Tamar, Rua Rubens Guelli 134/ 307, Itaigara - Salvador, CEP: 41815-135 Bahia, Brazil
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27
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Bernaldo de Quirós Y, Fernandez A, Baird RW, Brownell RL, Aguilar de Soto N, Allen D, Arbelo M, Arregui M, Costidis A, Fahlman A, Frantzis A, Gulland FMD, Iñíguez M, Johnson M, Komnenou A, Koopman H, Pabst DA, Roe WD, Sierra E, Tejedor M, Schorr G. Advances in research on the impacts of anti-submarine sonar on beaked whales. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 286:20182533. [PMID: 30963955 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.2533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Mass stranding events (MSEs) of beaked whales (BWs) were extremely rare prior to the 1960s but increased markedly after the development of naval mid-frequency active sonar (MFAS). The temporal and spatial associations between atypical BW MSEs and naval exercises were first observed in the Canary Islands, Spain, in the mid-1980s. Further research on BWs stranded in association with naval exercises demonstrated pathological findings consistent with decompression sickness (DCS). A 2004 ban on MFASs around the Canary Islands successfully prevented additional BW MSEs in the region, but atypical MSEs have continued in other places of the world, especially in the Mediterranean Sea, with examined individuals showing DCS. A workshop held in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, in September 2017 reviewed current knowledge on BW atypical MSEs associated with MFAS. Our review suggests that the effects of MFAS on BWs vary among individuals or populations, and predisposing factors may contribute to individual outcomes. Spatial management specific to BW habitat, such as the MFAS ban in the Canary Islands, has proven to be an effective mitigation tool and mitigation measures should be established in other areas taking into consideration known population-level information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Bernaldo de Quirós
- 1 Institute of Animal Health, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Veterinary School , C/Transmontaña s/n, 35416, Arucas, Las Palmas , Spain
| | - A Fernandez
- 1 Institute of Animal Health, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Veterinary School , C/Transmontaña s/n, 35416, Arucas, Las Palmas , Spain
| | - R W Baird
- 2 Cascadia Research Collective , 218½ W. 4th Avenue, Olympia, WA 98501 , USA
| | - R L Brownell
- 3 NOAA Fisheries, Southwest Fisheries Science Center , Monterey, CA 93940 , USA
| | - N Aguilar de Soto
- 4 BIOECOMAC. Dept. Animal Biology, Geology and Edaphology, University of La Laguna , Tenerife , Spain
| | - D Allen
- 5 US Marine Mammal Commission , 4340 East-West Highway, Suite 700, Bethesda, MD 20814 , USA
| | - M Arbelo
- 1 Institute of Animal Health, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Veterinary School , C/Transmontaña s/n, 35416, Arucas, Las Palmas , Spain
| | - M Arregui
- 1 Institute of Animal Health, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Veterinary School , C/Transmontaña s/n, 35416, Arucas, Las Palmas , Spain
| | - A Costidis
- 6 Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center Stranding Response Program , 717 General Booth Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA 23451 , USA
| | - A Fahlman
- 7 Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana , Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia , Spain
| | - A Frantzis
- 8 Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute , Terpsichoris 21, 16671 Vouliagmeni , Greece
| | - F M D Gulland
- 5 US Marine Mammal Commission , 4340 East-West Highway, Suite 700, Bethesda, MD 20814 , USA.,9 The Marine Mammal Center , 2000 Bunker Road, Sausalito, CA 94965 , USA
| | - M Iñíguez
- 10 Fundación Cethus and WDC , Cap J. Bermúdez 1598, (1636), Olivos, Prov. Buenos Aires , Argentina
| | - M Johnson
- 11 Sea Mammal Research Unit, University of St Andrews , St Andrews , UK
| | - A Komnenou
- 12 School of Veterinary Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki , Thessaloniki , Greece
| | - H Koopman
- 13 Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington , Wilmington, NC 28403 , USA
| | - D A Pabst
- 13 Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington , Wilmington, NC 28403 , USA
| | - W D Roe
- 14 Massey University , Palmerston North, PN4222 , New Zealand
| | - E Sierra
- 1 Institute of Animal Health, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Veterinary School , C/Transmontaña s/n, 35416, Arucas, Las Palmas , Spain
| | - M Tejedor
- 15 Canary Islands Stranding Network , Irlanda 7, Playa Blanca, 35580, Lanzarote , Spain
| | - G Schorr
- 16 Marine Ecology & Telemetry Research , 2468 Camp McKenzie Tr NW, Seabeck, WA 98380 , USA
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28
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Arkwright AC, Archibald E, Fahlman A, Holton MD, Crespo-Picazo JL, Cabedo VM, Duarte CM, Scott R, Webb S, Gunner RM, Wilson RP. Behavioral Biomarkers for Animal Health: A Case Study Using Animal-Attached Technology on Loggerhead Turtles. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2019.00504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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29
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Burggren W, Filogonio R, Wang T. Cardiovascular shunting in vertebrates: a practical integration of competing hypotheses. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2019; 95:449-471. [PMID: 31859458 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2019] [Revised: 10/30/2019] [Accepted: 11/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
This review explores the long-standing question: 'Why do cardiovascular shunts occur?' An historical perspective is provided on previous research into cardiac shunts in vertebrates that continues to shape current views. Cardiac shunts and when they occur is then described for vertebrates. Nearly 20 different functional reasons have been proposed as specific causes of shunts, ranging from energy conservation to improved gas exchange, and including a plethora of functions related to thermoregulation, digestion and haemodynamics. It has even been suggested that shunts are merely an evolutionary or developmental relic. Having considered the various hypotheses involving cardiovascular shunting in vertebrates, this review then takes a non-traditional approach. Rather than attempting to identify the single 'correct' reason for the occurrence of shunts, we advance a more holistic, integrative approach that embraces multiple, non-exclusive suites of proposed causes for shunts, and indicates how these varied functions might at least co-exist, if not actually support each other as shunts serve multiple, concurrent physiological functions. It is argued that deposing the 'monolithic' view of shunting leads to a more nuanced view of vertebrate cardiovascular systems. This review concludes by suggesting new paradigms for testing the function(s) of shunts, including experimentally placing organ systems into conflict in terms of their perfusion needs, reducing sources of variation in physiological experiments, measuring possible compensatory responses to shunt ablation, moving experiments from the laboratory to the field, and using cladistics-related approaches in the choice of experimental animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Warren Burggren
- Department of Biological Sciences, Developmental Integrative Biology Cluster, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, 76203-5220, U.S.A
| | - Renato Filogonio
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Federal University of São Carlos, São Carlos, SP, 13565-905, Brazil
| | - Tobias Wang
- Zoophysiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, 8000, Denmark.,Aarhus Institute of Advanced Sciences (AIAS), Aarhus University, Aarhus C, 8000, Denmark
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30
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Fahlman A, Miedler S, Rocho-Levine J, Jabois A, Arenarez J, Marti-Bonmati L, García-Párraga D, Cauture F. Re-evaluating the significance of the dive response during voluntary surface apneas in the bottlenose dolphin, Tursiops truncatus. Sci Rep 2019; 9:8613. [PMID: 31197193 PMCID: PMC6565721 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-45064-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The dive response is well documented for marine mammals, and includes a significant reduction in heart rate (fH) during submersion as compared while breathing at the surface. In the current study we assessed the influence of the Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia (RSA) while estimating the resting fH while breathing. Using transthoracic echocardiography we measured fH, and stroke volume (SV) during voluntary surface apneas at rest up to 255 s, and during recovery from apnea in 11 adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus, 9 males and 2 females, body mass range: 140–235 kg). The dolphins exhibited a significant post-respiratory tachycardia and increased SV. Therefore, only data after this RSA had stabilized were used for analysis and comparison. The average (±s.d.) fH, SV, and cardiac output (CO) after spontaneous breaths while resting at the surface were 44 ± 6 beats min−1, 179 ± 31 ml, and 7909 ± 1814 l min−1, respectively. During the apnea the fH, SV, and CO decreased proportionally with the breath-hold duration, and after 255 s they, respectively, had decreased by an average of 18%, 1–21%, and 12–37%. During recovery, the fH, SV, and CO rapidly increased by as much as 117%, 34%, and 190%, respectively. Next, fH, SV and CO rapidly decreased to resting values between 90–110 s following the surface apnea. These data highlight the necessity to define how the resting fH is estimated at the surface, and separating it from the RSA associated with each breath to evaluate the significance of cardiorespiratory matching during diving.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Fahlman
- Research Group on Biomedical Imaging (GIBI230), Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria la Fe, 46026, Valencia, Spain. .,Departamento de Investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain.
| | - S Miedler
- Departamento de Investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain.,Veterinary Cardiology, Plaza Mayor 7/10, 46120 Alboraya, Valencia, Spain
| | | | - A Jabois
- Departamento de Biología, Avanqua-Oceanográfic SL, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
| | - J Arenarez
- Departamento de Biología, Avanqua-Oceanográfic SL, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
| | - L Marti-Bonmati
- Research Group on Biomedical Imaging (GIBI230), Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria la Fe, 46026, Valencia, Spain
| | - D García-Párraga
- Departamento de Investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain.,Departamento de Biología, Avanqua-Oceanográfic SL, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
| | - F Cauture
- Departamento de Investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
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31
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Williams CL, Sato K, Ponganis PJ. Activity, not submergence, explains diving heart rates of captive loggerhead sea turtles. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 222:jeb.200824. [PMID: 30936271 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.200824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2019] [Accepted: 03/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Marine turtles spend their life at sea and can rest on the seafloor for hours. As air-breathers, the breath-hold capacity of marine turtles is a function of oxygen (O2) stores, O2 consumption during dives and hypoxia tolerance. However, some physiological adaptations to diving observed in mammals are absent in marine turtles. This study examined cardiovascular responses in loggerhead sea turtles, which have even fewer adaptations to diving than other marine turtles, but can dive for extended durations. Heart rates (f H) of eight undisturbed loggerhead turtles in shallow tanks were measured using self-contained ECG data loggers under five conditions: spontaneous dives, resting motionless on the tank bottom, resting in shallow water with their head out of water, feeding on squid, and swimming at the surface between dives. There was no significant difference between resting f H while resting on the bottom of the tank, diving or resting in shallow water with their head out of water. f H rose as soon as turtles began to move and was highest between dives when turtles were swimming at the surface. These results suggest cardiovascular responses in captive loggerhead turtles are driven by activity and apneic f H is not reduced by submergence under these conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cassondra L Williams
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Katsufumi Sato
- Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8564, Japan
| | - Paul J Ponganis
- Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, 8655 Kennel Way, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
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32
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Fahlman A, Brodsky M, Miedler S, Dennison S, Ivančić M, Levine G, Rocho-Levine J, Manley M, Rocabert J, Borque-Espinosa A. Ventilation and gas exchange before and after voluntary static surface breath-holds in clinically healthy bottlenose dolphins, Tursiops truncatus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 222:jeb.192211. [PMID: 30760549 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.192211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 02/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
We measured respiratory flow (V̇), breathing frequency (f R), tidal volume (V T), breath duration and end-expired O2 content in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) before and after static surface breath-holds ranging from 34 to 292 s. There was considerable variation in the end-expired O2, V T and f R following a breath-hold. The analysis suggests that the dolphins attempt to minimize recovery following a dive by altering V T and f R to rapidly replenish the O2 stores. For the first breath following a surface breath-hold, the end-expired O2 decreased with dive duration, while V T and f R increased. Throughout the recovery period, end-expired O2 increased while the respiratory effort (V T, f R) decreased. We propose that the dolphins alter respiratory effort following a breath-hold according to the reduction in end-expired O2 levels, allowing almost complete recovery after 1.2 min.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Departamento de investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain .,Departamento de Zoología, Grupo de Investigación Biomédica en Imagen GIBI230, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria La Fe, Av. Fernando Abril Martorell 106, 46026 Valencia, Spain
| | - Micah Brodsky
- Micah Brodsky, V.M.D. Consulting, 1287 NE 96th Street, Miami Shores, FL 33138, USA
| | - Stefan Miedler
- Departamento de investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Sophie Dennison
- TeleVet Imaging Solutions, PLLC, PO BOX 3344, Oakton, VA 22124, USA
| | - Marina Ivančić
- Chicago Zoological Society, 3300 Golf Road, Brookfield, IL 60513, USA
| | - Gregg Levine
- Dolphin Quest, Oahu, 5000 Kahala Ave, Honolulu, HI 96816, USA
| | | | - Mercy Manley
- Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat, The Mirage, Las Vegas, NV 89109, USA
| | - Joan Rocabert
- Mellow Design, C/ Bany dels pavesos 3, 46001 Valencia, Spain
| | - Alicia Borque-Espinosa
- Departamento de investigación, Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunitat Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain.,Departamento de Zoología, Grupo de Investigación Biomédica en Imagen GIBI230, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria La Fe, Av. Fernando Abril Martorell 106, 46026 Valencia, Spain.,Universidad de Valencia, Av. de Blasco Ibáñez, 13, 46010 Valencia, Spain
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33
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García-Párraga D, Lorenzo T, Wang T, Ortiz JL, Ortega J, Crespo-Picazo JL, Cortijo J, Fahlman A. Deciphering function of the pulmonary arterial sphincters in loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 221:jeb.179820. [PMID: 30348649 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.179820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/14/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
To provide new insight into the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying gas emboli (GE) in bycaught loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), we investigated the vasoactive characteristics of the pulmonary and systemic arteries, and the lung parenchyma (LP). Tissues were opportunistically excised from recently dead animals for in vitro studies of vasoactive responses to four different neurotransmitters: acetylcholine (ACh; parasympathetic), serotonin (5HT), adrenaline (Adr; sympathetic) and histamine. The significant amount of smooth muscle in the LP contracted in response to ACh, Adr and histamine. The intrapulmonary and systemic arteries contracted under both parasympathetic and sympathetic stimulation and when exposed to 5HT. However, proximal extrapulmonary arterial (PEPA) sections contracted in response to ACh and 5HT, whereas Adr caused relaxation. In sea turtles, the relaxation in the pulmonary artery was particularly pronounced at the level of the pulmonary artery sphincter (PASp), where the vessel wall was highly muscular. For comparison, we also studied tissue response in freshwater sliders turtles (Trachemys scripta elegans). Both PEPA and LP from freshwater sliders contracted in response to 5HT, ACh and also Adr. We propose that in sea turtles, the dive response (parasympathetic tone) constricts the PEPA, LP and PASp, causing a pulmonary shunt and limiting gas uptake at depth, which reduces the risk of GE during long and deep dives. Elevated sympathetic tone caused by forced submersion during entanglement with fishing gear increases the pulmonary blood flow causing an increase in N2 uptake, potentially leading to the formation of blood and tissue GE at the surface. These findings provide potential physiological and anatomical explanations on how these animals have evolved a cardiac shunt pattern that regulates gas exchange during deep and prolonged diving.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel García-Párraga
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marques del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Teresa Lorenzo
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marques del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Tobias Wang
- Zoophysiology, Department of Biosciences, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Jose-Luis Ortiz
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Valencia, 46010 Valencia, Spain
| | - Joaquín Ortega
- Patología y Sanidad Animal, Departamento PASAPTA, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad CEU-Cardenal Herrera, CEU Universities, Moncada, 46018 Valencia, Spain
| | - Jose-Luis Crespo-Picazo
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marques del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain
| | - Julio Cortijo
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Valencia, 46010 Valencia, Spain
| | - Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marques del Turia 19, 46005 Valencia, Spain.,Department of Life Science, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, USA
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Casale P, Broderick AC, Camiñas JA, Cardona L, Carreras C, Demetropoulos A, Fuller WJ, Godley BJ, Hochscheid S, Kaska Y, Lazar B, Margaritoulis D, Panagopoulou A, Rees AF, Tomás J, Türkozan O. Mediterranean sea turtles: current knowledge and priorities for conservation and research. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2018. [DOI: 10.3354/esr00901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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Fahlman A, McHugh K, Allen J, Barleycorn A, Allen A, Sweeney J, Stone R, Faulkner Trainor R, Bedford G, Moore MJ, Jensen FH, Wells R. Resting Metabolic Rate and Lung Function in Wild Offshore Common Bottlenose Dolphins, Tursiops truncatus, Near Bermuda. Front Physiol 2018; 9:886. [PMID: 30065656 PMCID: PMC6056772 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2018.00886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2018] [Accepted: 06/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Diving mammals have evolved a suite of physiological adaptations to manage respiratory gases during extended breath-hold dives. To test the hypothesis that offshore bottlenose dolphins have evolved physiological adaptations to improve their ability for extended deep dives and as protection for lung barotrauma, we investigated the lung function and respiratory physiology of four wild common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) near the island of Bermuda. We measured blood hematocrit (Hct, %), resting metabolic rate (RMR, l O2 ⋅ min-1), tidal volume (VT, l), respiratory frequency (fR, breaths ⋅ min-1), respiratory flow (l ⋅ min-1), and dynamic lung compliance (CL, l ⋅ cmH2O-1) in air and in water, and compared measurements with published results from coastal, shallow-diving dolphins. We found that offshore dolphins had greater Hct (56 ± 2%) compared to shallow-diving bottlenose dolphins (range: 30–49%), thus resulting in a greater O2 storage capacity and longer aerobic diving duration. Contrary to our hypothesis, the specific CL (sCL, 0.30 ± 0.12 cmH2O-1) was not different between populations. Neither the mass-specific RMR (3.0 ± 1.7 ml O2 ⋅ min-1 ⋅ kg-1) nor VT (23.0 ± 3.7 ml ⋅ kg-1) were different from coastal ecotype bottlenose dolphins, both in the wild and under managed care, suggesting that deep-diving dolphins do not have metabolic or respiratory adaptations that differ from the shallow-diving ecotypes. The lack of respiratory adaptations for deep diving further support the recently developed hypothesis that gas management in cetaceans is not entirely passive but governed by alteration in the ventilation-perfusion matching, which allows for selective gas exchange to protect against diving related problems such as decompression sickness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marques del Turia, Valencia, Spain.,Department of Life Sciences, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Corpus Christi, TX, United States.,Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, United States
| | - Katherine McHugh
- Chicago Zoological Society's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL, United States
| | - Jason Allen
- Chicago Zoological Society's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL, United States
| | - Aaron Barleycorn
- Chicago Zoological Society's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL, United States
| | - Austin Allen
- Duke University Marine Lab, Beaufort, NC, United States
| | | | - Rae Stone
- Dolphin Quest, Waikoloa, HI, United States
| | | | - Guy Bedford
- Wildlife Consulting Service, Currumbin, QLD, Australia
| | - Michael J Moore
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, United States
| | - Frants H Jensen
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, United States.,Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Randall Wells
- Chicago Zoological Society's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL, United States
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Fahlman A, Jensen FH, Tyack PL, Wells RS. Modeling Tissue and Blood Gas Kinetics in Coastal and Offshore Common Bottlenose Dolphins, Tursiops truncatus. Front Physiol 2018; 9:838. [PMID: 30072907 PMCID: PMC6060447 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2018.00838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2018] [Accepted: 06/14/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) are highly versatile breath-holding predators that have adapted to a wide range of foraging niches from rivers and coastal ecosystems to deep-water oceanic habitats. Considerable research has been done to understand how bottlenose dolphins manage O2 during diving, but little information exists on other gases or how pressure affects gas exchange. Here we used a dynamic multi-compartment gas exchange model to estimate blood and tissue O2, CO2, and N2 from high-resolution dive records of two different common bottlenose dolphin ecotypes inhabiting shallow (Sarasota Bay) and deep (Bermuda) habitats. The objective was to compare potential physiological strategies used by the two populations to manage shallow and deep diving life styles. We informed the model using species-specific parameters for blood hematocrit, resting metabolic rate, and lung compliance. The model suggested that the known O2 stores were sufficient for Sarasota Bay dolphins to remain within the calculated aerobic dive limit (cADL), but insufficient for Bermuda dolphins that regularly exceeded their cADL. By adjusting the model to reflect the body composition of deep diving Bermuda dolphins, with elevated muscle mass, muscle myoglobin concentration and blood volume, the cADL increased beyond the longest dive duration, thus reflecting the necessary physiological and morphological changes to maintain their deep-diving life-style. The results indicate that cardiac output had to remain elevated during surface intervals for both ecotypes, and suggests that cardiac output has to remain elevated during shallow dives in-between deep dives to allow sufficient restoration of O2 stores for Bermuda dolphins. Our integrated modeling approach contradicts predictions from simple models, emphasizing the complex nature of physiological interactions between circulation, lung compression, and gas exchange.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Global Diving Research, Ottawa, ON, Canada
- Fundación Oceanografic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Valencia, Spain
| | - Frants H. Jensen
- Aarhus Institute of Advanced Studies, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Peter L. Tyack
- Sea Mammal Research Unit, Scottish Oceans Institute, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
| | - Randall S. Wells
- Chicago Zoological Society's Sarasota Dolphin Research Program, Mote Marine Laboratory, Sarasota, FL, United States
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Garcia Párraga D, Moore M, Fahlman A. Pulmonary ventilation-perfusion mismatch: a novel hypothesis for how diving vertebrates may avoid the bends. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20180482. [PMID: 29695441 PMCID: PMC5936736 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.0482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2018] [Accepted: 03/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Hydrostatic lung compression in diving marine mammals, with collapsing alveoli blocking gas exchange at depth, has been the main theoretical basis for limiting N2 uptake and avoiding gas emboli (GE) as they ascend. However, studies of beached and bycaught cetaceans and sea turtles imply that air-breathing marine vertebrates may, under unusual circumstances, develop GE that result in decompression sickness (DCS) symptoms. Theoretical modelling of tissue and blood gas dynamics of breath-hold divers suggests that changes in perfusion and blood flow distribution may also play a significant role. The results from the modelling work suggest that our current understanding of diving physiology in many species is poor, as the models predict blood and tissue N2 levels that would result in severe DCS symptoms (chokes, paralysis and death) in a large fraction of natural dive profiles. In this review, we combine published results from marine mammals and turtles to propose alternative mechanisms for how marine vertebrates control gas exchange in the lung, through management of the pulmonary distribution of alveolar ventilation ([Formula: see text]) and cardiac output/lung perfusion ([Formula: see text]), varying the level of [Formula: see text] in different regions of the lung. Man-made disturbances, causing stress, could alter the [Formula: see text] mismatch level in the lung, resulting in an abnormally elevated uptake of N2, increasing the risk for GE. Our hypothesis provides avenues for new areas of research, offers an explanation for how sonar exposure may alter physiology causing GE and provides a new mechanism for how air-breathing marine vertebrates usually avoid the diving-related problems observed in human divers.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michael Moore
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
| | - Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanogràfic, Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, 46013 Valencia, Spain
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38
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Bernaldo de Quirós Y, Hartwick M, Rotstein DS, Garner MM, Bogomolni A, Greer W, Niemeyer ME, Early G, Wenzel F, Moore M. Discrimination between bycatch and other causes of cetacean and pinniped stranding. DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS 2018; 127:83-95. [PMID: 29384478 DOI: 10.3354/dao03189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
The challenge of identifying cause of death in discarded bycaught marine mammals stems from a combination of the non-specific nature of the lesions of drowning, the complex physiologic adaptations unique to breath-holding marine mammals, lack of case histories, and the diverse nature of fishing gear. While no pathognomonic lesions are recognized, signs of acute external entanglement, bulging or reddened eyes, recently ingested gastric contents, pulmonary changes, and decompression-associated gas bubbles have been identified in the condition of peracute underwater entrapment (PUE) syndrome in previous studies of marine mammals. We reviewed the gross necropsy and histopathology reports of 36 cetaceans and pinnipeds including 20 directly observed bycaught and 16 live stranded animals that were euthanized between 2005 and 2011 for lesions consistent with PUE. We identified 5 criteria which present at significantly higher rates in bycaught marine mammals: external signs of acute entanglement, red or bulging eyes, recently ingested gastric contents, multi-organ congestion, and disseminated gas bubbles detected grossly during the necropsy and histologically. In contrast, froth in the trachea or primary bronchi, and lung changes (i.e. wet, heavy, froth, edema, congestion, and hemorrhage) were poor indicators of PUE. This is the first study that provides insight into the different published parameters for PUE in bycatch. For regions frequently confronted by stranded marine mammals with non-specific lesions, this could potentially aid in the investigation and quantification of marine fisheries interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yara Bernaldo de Quirós
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Biology Department, Woods Hole, Massachusetts 02543, USA
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Portugues C, Crespo-Picazo JL, García-Párraga D, Altimiras J, Lorenzo T, Borque-Espinosa A, Fahlman A. Impact of gas emboli and hyperbaric treatment on respiratory function of loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta). CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2018; 6:cox074. [PMID: 29340152 PMCID: PMC5765562 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/cox074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2017] [Revised: 11/18/2017] [Accepted: 11/24/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Fisheries interactions are the most serious threats for sea turtle populations. Despite the existence of some rescue centres providing post-traumatic care and rehabilitation, adequate treatment is hampered by the lack of understanding of the problems incurred while turtles remain entrapped in fishing gears. Recently it was shown that bycaught loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) could experience formation of gas emboli (GE) and develop decompression sickness (DCS) after trawl and gillnet interaction. This condition could be reversed by hyperbaric O2 treatment (HBOT). The goal of this study was to assess how GE alters respiratory function in bycaught turtles before recompression therapy and measure the improvement after this treatment. Specifically, we assessed the effect of DCS on breath duration, expiratory and inspiratory flow and tidal volume (VT), and the effectiveness of HBOT to improve these parameters. HBOT significantly increased respiratory flows by 32-45% while VT increased by 33-35% immediately after HBOT. Repeated lung function testing indicated a temporal increase in both respiratory flow and VT for all bycaught turtles, but the changes were smaller than those seen immediately following HBOT. The current study suggests that respiratory function is significantly compromised in bycaught turtles with GE and that HBOT effectively restores lung function. Lung function testing may provide a novel means to help diagnose the presence of GE, be used to assess treatment efficacy, and contribute to sea turtle conservation efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cyril Portugues
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
- AVIAN Behavioral Genomics and Physiology, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology,Linköping University, Linköping 581 83, Sweden
| | - Jose Luis Crespo-Picazo
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
| | - Daniel García-Párraga
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
| | - Jordi Altimiras
- AVIAN Behavioral Genomics and Physiology, Department of Physics, Chemistry and Biology,Linköping University, Linköping 581 83, Sweden
| | - Teresa Lorenzo
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
| | - Alicia Borque-Espinosa
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
- Marine Biology Laboratory, Zoology Department, University of Valencia. Doctor Moliner n° 50, 46100 Valencia, Spain
- Grupo de Investigación Biomédica en Imagen GIBI230, Radiology Department, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Av. Bulevard Sur, 46026 Valencia, Spain
| | - Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005Valencia, Spain
- Grupo de Investigación Biomédica en Imagen GIBI230, Radiology Department, Hospital Universitario y Politécnico La Fe, Av. Bulevard Sur, 46026 Valencia, Spain
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Abstract
Diving air-breathing vertebrates have long been considered protected against decompression sickness (DCS) through anatomical, physiological, and behavioural adaptations. However, an acute systemic gas and fat embolic syndrome similar to DCS in human divers was described in beaked whales that stranded in temporal and spatial association with military exercises involving high-powered sonar. More recently, DCS has been diagnosed in bycaught sea turtles. Both cases were linked to human activities. Two Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) out of 493 necropsied cetaceans stranded in the Canary Islands in a 16-year period (2000-2015), had a severe acute decompression sickness supported by pathological findings and gas analysis. Deadly systemic, inflammatory, infectious, or neoplastic diseases, ship collision, military sonar, fisheries interaction or other type of lethal inducing associated trauma were ruled out. Struggling with a squid during hunting is discussed as the most likely cause of DCS.
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Carlsen AW. Frequency of decompression illness among recent and extinct mammals and "reptiles": a review. Naturwissenschaften 2017; 104:56. [PMID: 28656350 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-017-1477-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2017] [Revised: 05/30/2017] [Accepted: 06/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
The frequency of decompression illness was high among the extinct marine "reptiles" and very low among the marine mammals. Signs of decompression illness are still found among turtles but whales and seals are unaffected. In humans, the risk of decompression illness is five times increased in individuals with Patent Foramen Ovale; this condition allows blood shunting from the venous circuit to the systemic circuit. This right-left shunt is characteristic of the "reptile" heart, and it is suggested that this could contribute to the high frequency of decompression illness in the extinct reptiles.
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Cibis T, McEwan A, Sieber A, Eskofier B, Lippmann J, Friedl K, Bennett M. Diving Into Research of Biomedical Engineering in Scuba Diving. IEEE Rev Biomed Eng 2017; 10:323-333. [PMID: 28600260 DOI: 10.1109/rbme.2017.2713300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
The physiologic response of the human body to different environments is a complex phenomenon to ensure survival. Immersion and compressed gas diving, together, trigger a set of responses. Monitoring those responses in real time may increase our understanding of them and help us to develop safety procedures and equipment. This review outlines diving physiology and diseases and identifies physiological parameters worthy of monitoring. Subsequently, we have investigated technological approaches matched to those in order to evaluated their capability for underwater application. We focused on wearable biomedical monitoring technologies, or those which could be transformed to wearables. We have also reviewed current safety devices, including dive computers and their underlying decompression models and algorithms. The review outlines the necessity for biomedical monitoring in scuba diving and should encourage research and development of new methods to increase diving safety.
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Fahlman A, Crespo-Picazo JL, Sterba-Boatwright B, Stacy BA, Garcia-Parraga D. Defining risk variables causing gas embolism in loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) caught in trawls and gillnets. Sci Rep 2017; 7:2739. [PMID: 28572687 PMCID: PMC5453929 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-02819-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Incidental capture, or 'bycatch' in fishing gear is a major global threat to sea turtle populations. A recent study showed that underwater entrapment in fishing gear followed by rapid decompression may cause gas bubble formation within the blood stream (embolism) and tissues leading to organ injury, impairment, and even mortality in some bycaught individuals. We analyzed data from 128 capture events using logistic and ordinal regression to examine risk factors associated with gas embolism in sea turtles captured in trawls and gillnets. Likelihood of fatal decompression increases with increasing depth of gear deployment. A direct relationship was found between depth, risk and severity of embolism, which has not been previously demonstrated in any breath-hold diving species. For the trawl fishery in this study, an average trawl depth of 65 m was estimated to result in 50% mortality in by-caught turtles throughout the year. This finding is critical for a more accurate estimation of sea turtle mortality rates resulting from different fisheries and for devising efforts to avoid or minimize the harmful effects of capture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain.
| | - Jose Luis Crespo-Picazo
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
| | | | - Brian A Stacy
- National Marine Fisheries Service, Office of Protected Resources, University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine (duty station), Post Office Box 110885, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Daniel Garcia-Parraga
- Fundación Oceanogràfic de la Comunidad Valenciana, Gran Vía Marqués del Turia 19, 46005, Valencia, Spain
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Lucchetti A, Vasapollo C, Virgili M. An interview-based approach to assess sea turtle bycatch in Italian waters. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3151. [PMID: 28462017 PMCID: PMC5408728 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2016] [Accepted: 03/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta, Linnaeus, 1758) is the most abundant sea turtle species in the Mediterranean Sea, where commercial fishing appears to be the main driver of mortality. So far, information on sea turtle bycatch in Italy is limited both in space and time due to logistical problems in data collected through onboard observations and on a limited number of vessels involved. In the present study, sea turtle bycatch in Italian waters was examined by collecting fishermen’s information on turtle bycatch through an interview-based approach. Their replies enabled the identification of bycatch hotspots in relation to area, season and to the main gear types. The most harmful fishing gears resulted to be trawl nets, showing the highest probabilities of turtle bycatch with a hotspot in the Adriatic Sea, followed by longlines in the Ionian Sea and in the Sicily Channel. Estimates obtained by the present results showed that more than 52,000 capture events and 10,000 deaths occurred in Italian waters in 2014, highlighting a more alarming scenario than earlier studies. The work shows that in case of poor data from other sources, direct questioning of fishermen and stakeholders could represent a useful and cost-effective approach capable of providing sufficient data to estimate annual bycatch rates and identify high-risk gear/location/season combinations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Lucchetti
- Institute of Marine Sciences (ISMAR), National Research Council (CNR), Ancona, Italy
| | - Claudio Vasapollo
- Institute of Marine Sciences (ISMAR), National Research Council (CNR), Ancona, Italy
| | - Massimo Virgili
- Institute of Marine Sciences (ISMAR), National Research Council (CNR), Ancona, Italy
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45
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Rees AF, Alfaro-Shigueto J, Barata PCR, Bjorndal KA, Bolten AB, Bourjea J, Broderick AC, Campbell LM, Cardona L, Carreras C, Casale P, Ceriani SA, Dutton PH, Eguchi T, Formia A, Fuentes MMPB, Fuller WJ, Girondot M, Godfrey MH, Hamann M, Hart KM, Hays GC, Hochscheid S, Kaska Y, Jensen MP, Mangel JC, Mortimer JA, Naro-Maciel E, Ng CKY, Nichols WJ, Phillott AD, Reina RD, Revuelta O, Schofield G, Seminoff JA, Shanker K, Tomás J, van de Merwe JP, Van Houtan KS, Vander Zanden HB, Wallace BP, Wedemeyer-Strombel KR, Work TM, Godley BJ. Are we working towards global research priorities for management and conservation of sea turtles? ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2016. [DOI: 10.3354/esr00801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 175] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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46
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Bernaldo de Quirós Y, Saavedra P, Møllerløkken A, Brubakk AO, Jørgensen A, González-Díaz O, Martín-Barrasa JL, Fernández A. Differentiation at necropsy between in vivo gas embolism and putrefaction using a gas score. Res Vet Sci 2016; 106:48-55. [PMID: 27234535 DOI: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2016.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2015] [Revised: 02/19/2016] [Accepted: 03/07/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Gas bubble lesions consistent with decompression sickness in marine mammals were described for the first time in beaked whales stranded in temporal and spatial association with military exercises. Putrefaction gas is a post-mortem artifact, which hinders the interpretation of gas found at necropsy. Gas analyses have been proven to help differentiating putrefaction gases from gases formed after hyperbaric exposures. Unfortunately, chemical analysis cannot always be performed. Post-mortem computed tomography is used to study gas collections, but many different logistical obstacles and obvious challenges, like the size of the animal or the transport of the animal from the stranding location to the scanner, limit its use in stranded marine mammals. In this study, we tested the diagnostic value of an index-based method for characterizing the amount and topography of gas found grossly during necropsies. For this purpose, putrefaction gases, intravenously infused atmospheric air, and gases produced by decompression were evaluated at necropsy with increased post-mortem time in New Zealand White Rabbits using a gas score index. Statistical differences (P<0.001) were found between the three experimental models immediately after death. Differences in gas score between in vivo gas embolism and putrefaction gases were found significant (P<0.05) throughout the 67h post-mortem. The gas score-index is a new and simple method that can be used by all stranding networks, which has been shown through this study to be a valid diagnostic tool to distinguish between fatal decompression, iatrogenic air embolism and putrefaction gases at autopsies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yara Bernaldo de Quirós
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Department of Morphology, Institute of Animal Health, Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Trasmontaña s/n, 35416 Arucas, Las Palmas, Spain.
| | - Pedro Saavedra
- Department of Mathematics, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Campus de Tafira s/n, 35017, Las Palmas, Spain.
| | - Andreas Møllerløkken
- Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Alf O Brubakk
- Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Arve Jørgensen
- Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway; Department of Diagnostic Imaging, St. Olavs University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Oscar González-Díaz
- Physical and Chemical Instrumental Center for the Development of Applied Research Technology and Scientific estate, Edificio Polivalente 1, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Campus de Tafira s/n, 35017, Las Palmas, Spain.
| | - Jose L Martín-Barrasa
- Multidisciplinary Organ Dysfunction Evaluation Research Network, Research Unit, Hospital Universitario de Gran Canaria, Dr. Negrín, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Las Palmas, Spain; Infectious Diseases and Fish Pathology, Institute of Animal Health, Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Trasmontaña s/n, 35416 Arucas, Las Palmas, Spain.
| | - Antonio Fernández
- Veterinary Histology and Pathology, Department of Morphology, Institute of Animal Health, Veterinary School, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Trasmontaña s/n, 35416 Arucas, Las Palmas, Spain.
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Fahlman A, Moore MJ, Trites AW, Rosen DAS, Haulena M, Waller N, Neale T, Yang M, Thom SR. Dive, food, and exercise effects on blood microparticles in Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus): exploring a biomarker for decompression sickness. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2016; 310:R596-601. [PMID: 26843583 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00512.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2015] [Accepted: 02/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Recent studies of stranded marine mammals indicate that exposure to underwater military sonar may induce pathophysiological responses consistent with decompression sickness (DCS). However, DCS has been difficult to diagnose in marine mammals. We investigated whether blood microparticles (MPs, measured as number/μl plasma), which increase in response to decompression stress in terrestrial mammals, are a suitable biomarker for DCS in marine mammals. We obtained blood samples from trained Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus, 4 adult females) wearing time-depth recorders that dove to predetermined depths (either 5 or 50 meters). We hypothesized that MPs would be positively related to decompression stress (depth and duration underwater). We also tested the effect of feeding and exercise in isolation on MPs using the same blood sampling protocol. We found that feeding and exercise had no effect on blood MP levels, but that diving caused MPs to increase. However, blood MP levels did not correlate with diving depth, relative time underwater, and presumed decompression stress, possibly indicating acclimation following repeated exposure to depth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Fahlman
- Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, Texas; Oceanografíc Research Department, C/ Eduardo Primo Yúfera 1B, Valencia, Spain
| | - Michael J Moore
- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts
| | - Andrew W Trites
- Marine Mammal Research Unit, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - David A S Rosen
- Marine Mammal Research Unit, Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Martin Haulena
- Vancouver Aquarium, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; and
| | - Nigel Waller
- Vancouver Aquarium, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; and
| | - Troy Neale
- Vancouver Aquarium, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; and
| | - Ming Yang
- Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland; and
| | - Stephen R Thom
- Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland; and
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Lonati GL, Westgate AJ, Pabst DA, Koopman HN. Nitrogen solubility in odontocete blubber and mandibular fats in relation to lipid composition. J Exp Biol 2015; 218:2620-30. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.122606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Understanding toothed whale (odontocete) diving gas dynamics is important given the recent atypical mass strandings of odontocetes (particularly beaked whales) associated with mid-frequency naval sonar. Some stranded whales have exhibited gas emboli (pathologies resembling decompression sickness) in their specialized intramandibular and extramandibular fat bodies used for echolocation and hearing. These tissues have phylogenetically unique, endogenous lipid profiles with poorly understood biochemical properties. Current diving gas dynamics models assume an Ostwald nitrogen (N2) solubility of 0.07 ml N2 ml−1 oil in odontocete fats, although solubility in blubber from many odontocetes exceeds this value. The present study examined N2 solubility in the blubber and mandibular fats of seven species across five families, relating it to lipid composition. Across all species, N2 solubility increased with wax ester content and was generally higher in mandibular fats (0.083±0.002 ml N2 ml−1 oil) than in blubber (0.069±0.007 ml N2 ml−1 oil). This effect was more pronounced in mandibular fats with higher concentrations of shorter, branched fatty acids/alcohols. Mandibular fats of short-finned pilot whales, Atlantic spotted dolphins and Mesoplodon beaked whales had the highest N2 solubility values (0.097±0.005, 0.081±0.007 and 0.080±0.003 ml N2 ml−1 oil, respectively). Pilot and beaked whales may experience high N2 loads during their relatively deeper dives, although more information is needed about in vivo blood circulation to mandibular fats. Future diving models should incorporate empirically measured N2 solubility of odontocete mandibular fats to better understand N2 dynamics and potential pathologies from gas/fat embolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gina L. Lonati
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Andrew J. Westgate
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - D. Ann Pabst
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
| | - Heather N. Koopman
- Department of Biology and Marine Biology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC 28403, USA
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Miedler S, Fahlman A, Valls Torres M, Alvaro Alvarez T, Garcia-Parraga D. Evaluating cardiac physiology through echocardiography in bottlenose dolphins: using stroke volume and cardiac output to estimate systolic left ventricular function during rest and following exercise. J Exp Biol 2015; 218:3604-10. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.131532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2015] [Accepted: 09/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Heart-rate (fH) changes during diving and exercise are well documented for marine mammals, but changes in stroke volume (SV) and cardiac output (CO) are much less known. We hypothesized that both SV and CO are also modified following intense exercise. Using transthoracic ultrasound Doppler at the level of the aortic valve, we compared blood flow velocities in the left ventricle and cardiac frequencies during rest and at 1, 3 and 4 min after a bout of exercise in 13 adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus, six male and seven female, body mass range: 143-212 kg). Aortic cross sectional area and ventricle blood velocity at the aortic valve were used to calculate SV, which together with fH, provided estimates of left CO at rest and following exercise. The fH and SV stabilized approximately 4-7 sec following the post-respiratory tachycardia, so only data after the fH had stabilized were used for analysis and comparison. There were significant increases in fH, SV, and CO associated with each breath. At rest, fH, SV, and CO were uncorrelated with body mass, and averaged 41±8 beats min−1, 136±19 ml, and 5513±1182 l min−1, respectively. One minute following high intensity exercise, the cardiac variables had increased by 104±43%, 63±11%, and 234±84%, respectively. All variables remained significantly elevated in all animals for at least 4 min after the exercise. These baseline values provide the first data on stroke volume and cardiac output in awake and unrestrained cetaceans in water.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. Miedler
- Oceanografic, Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, 46013, Valencia Spain
| | - A. Fahlman
- Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, 6300 Ocean Drive, Corpus Christi, TX, 78412, USA
| | - M. Valls Torres
- Oceanografic, Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, 46013, Valencia Spain
| | - T. Alvaro Alvarez
- Oceanografic, Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, 46013, Valencia Spain
| | - D. Garcia-Parraga
- Oceanografic, Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias, 46013, Valencia Spain
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Exertional Myopathy in a Juvenile Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) Entangled in a Large Mesh Gillnet. Case Rep Vet Med 2015. [DOI: 10.1155/2015/604320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A juvenile female green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) was found entangled in a large mesh gillnet in Pamlico Sound, NC, and was weak upon presentation for treatment. Blood gas analysis revealed severe metabolic acidosis and hyperlactatemia. Plasma biochemistry analysis showed elevated aspartate aminotransferase and creatine kinase, marked hypercalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, and hyperkalemia. Death occurred within 24 hours of presentation despite treatment with intravenous and subcutaneous fluids and sodium bicarbonate. Necropsy revealed multifocal to diffuse pallor of the superficial and deep pectoral muscles. Mild, multifocal, and acute myofiber necrosis was identified by histopathological examination. While histological changes in the examined muscle were modest, the acid-base, mineral, and electrolyte abnormalities were sufficiently severe to contribute to this animal’s mortality. Exertional myopathy in reptiles has not been well characterized. Sea turtle mortality resulting from forced submergence has been attributed to blood gas derangements and seawater aspiration; however, exertional myopathy may also be an important contributing factor. If possible, sea turtles subjected to incidental capture and entanglement that exhibit weakness or dull mentation should be clinically evaluated prior to release to minimize the risk of delayed mortality. Treatment with appropriate fluid therapy and supportive care may mitigate the effects of exertional myopathy in some cases.
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