The ethics, applications, and contributions of cadaver testing in injury prevention research.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to establish best practices and guidelines to ensure that experimental research utilizing Postmortem Human Subjects (PMHS) for injury prevention adheres to relevant ethical principles, which are also commonly accepted in research involving human tissues and living subjects. Furthermore, it reviews existing literature to underscore the pivotal role of PMHS testing in evaluating the efficacy of safety systems, with a particular focus on airbag performance. METHODS: This paper conducts an examination of the primary ethical principles governing human subject research as outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki (1965) and traces their evolution up to the latest framework proposed by the Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) in 2002. Input was solicited from international experts and laboratories experienced in PMHS testing to understand how these ethical principles are implemented in practice. This is complemented by a comprehensive review of literature that assesses the contribution of PMHS testing to airbag performance enhancements in frontal impacts. RESULTS: The findings underscore the importance of informed consent from donors or their next-of-kin, as highlighted in CIOMS declarations, to ensure the ethical integrity of the donation process in line with international standards. The study also finds it customary for an independent review board to evaluate the research methodology and the necessity of employing PMHS tissue over alternative methods, such as computational models or crash test dummies. Despite various national regulations on human subject participation and living tissue research, no specific legal framework governing PMHS tissue use was identified. The systematic literature review revealed that PMHS testing has been crucial in identifying potential injury mechanisms not detected by Anthropomorphic Test Devices (ATD), significantly contributing to the enhancement of computer human body models and the biofidelity of crash test dummies. CONCLUSION: The International Council on the Biomechanics of Injury (IRCOBI) recognizes the need to provide guidance for research involving human cadaveric tissue to be conducted with the highest ethical standards. This study proposes five recommendations to ensure adherence to these ethical principles in PMHS testing, highlighting the paramount importance of obtaining informed consent and securing independent committee approval. Moreover, IRCOBI emphasizes that until a thorough understanding of tissue damage tolerance levels is achieved and human surrogates, such as ATDs or Human Body Models (HBM), reach full biofidelity, the use of human cadavers remains indispensable for developing effective injury prevention strategies and measures.

Response of Cymodocea nodosa to ocean acidification and warming in the Canary Islands: Direct and indirect effects.

As detected in warming and ocean acidification, global change can have profound impact on marine life. Its effects on seagrasses are becoming increasingly well-known, since several studies have focused on the responses of these species to global change conditions. However a few studies have assessed the combined effect of temperature and acidification on seagrasses. Overall in this study, the combined effects of increased ocean temperature and pH levels expected at the end of this century (+5 °C and pH 7.5) on Cymodocea nodosa from Canary Islands, were evaluated for one month through manipulative laboratory experiments. Growth, net production, respiration, gross primary production, chlorophyll-a concentration and its vulnerability to herbivory were quantified. Results showed a positive effect of decreased pH on growth and gross primary production, as well as greater vulnerability to consumption by the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. In contrast, increased temperature limited net and gross primary production. This study shows than in future scenarios, C. nodosa from the Canary Islands may be a losing species in the global change stakes.

Content of lead and cadmium in barred hogfish, Bodianus scrofa, island grouper, Mycteroperca fusca, and Portuguese dogfish, Centroscymnus coelolepis, from Canary Islands, Spain.

Concentration of lead and cadmium has been analyzed in Bodianus scrofa and Mycteroperca fusca captured in the Canary Islands coast. Concentration of Pb ranged from 2.53 to 306.40 and 4.97 to 792.00 microg kg(-1) respectively, while that of Cd ranged from 1.75 to 1854.50 and 6.78 to 656.00 microg kg(-1). The same metals have been analyzed in muscles, liver and skin of Centroscymnus coelolepis from Canary Islands, with contents of Pb and Cd ranged between 24.18-96.12 microg kg(-1) and 32.00-3266.58 microg kg(-1) respectively, and in the Azores Archipelago, with concentrations of Pb and Cd ranged as follow: 18.41-38.99 microg kg(-1) and 5.23-4179.87 microg kg(-1) respectively. Percentage of contribution of both metals to the PTWIs, has also been calculated for both fishes.

Restructuring of the 'Macaronesia' biogeographic unit: A marine multi-taxon biogeographical approach.

The Azores, Madeira, Selvagens, Canary Islands and Cabo Verde are commonly united under the term "Macaronesia". This study investigates the coherency and validity of Macaronesia as a biogeographic unit using six marine groups with very different dispersal abilities: coastal fishes, echinoderms, gastropod molluscs, brachyuran decapod crustaceans, polychaete annelids, and macroalgae. We found no support for the current concept of Macaronesia as a coherent marine biogeographic unit. All marine groups studied suggest the exclusion of Cabo Verde from the remaining Macaronesian archipelagos and thus, Cabo Verde should be given the status of a biogeographic subprovince within the West African Transition province. We propose to redefine the Lusitanian biogeographical province, in which we include four ecoregions: the South European Atlantic Shelf, the Saharan Upwelling, the Azores, and a new ecoregion herein named Webbnesia, which comprises the archipelagos of Madeira, Selvagens and the Canary Islands.

Marine reserves: size and age do matter.

Marine reserves are widely used throughout the world to prevent overfishing and conserve biodiversity, but uncertainties remain about their optimal design. The effects of marine reserves are heterogeneous. Despite theoretical findings, empirical studies have previously found no effect of size on the effectiveness of marine reserves in protecting commercial fish stocks. Using 58 datasets from 19 European marine reserves, we show that reserve size and age do matter: Increasing the size of the no-take zone increases the density of commercial fishes within the reserve compared with outside; whereas the size of the buffer zone has the opposite effect. Moreover, positive effects of marine reserve on commercial fish species and species richness are linked to the time elapsed since the establishment of the protection scheme. The reserve size-dependency of the response to protection has strong implications for the spatial management of coastal areas because marine reserves are used for spatial zoning.

Cheetahs of the deep sea: deep foraging sprints in short-finned pilot whales off Tenerife (Canary Islands).

1. Empirical testing of optimal foraging models for breath-hold divers has been difficult. Here we report data from sound and movement recording DTags placed on 23 short-finned pilot whales off Tenerife to study the foraging strategies used to catch deep-water prey. 2. Day and night foraging dives had a maximum depth and duration of 1018 m and 21 min. Vocal behaviour during dives was consistent with biosonar-based foraging, with long series of echolocation clicks interspersed with buzzes. Similar buzzes have been associated with prey capture attempts in other echolocating species. 3. Foraging dives seemed to adapt to circadian rhythms. Deep dives during the day were deeper, but contained fewer buzzes (median 1), than night-time deep dives (median 5 buzzes). 4. In most deep (540-1019 m) daytime dives with buzzes, a downward directed sprint reaching up to 9 m s(-1) occurred just prior to a buzz and coincided with the deepest point in the dive, suggestive of a chase after escaping prey. 5. A large percentage (10-36%) of the drag-related locomotion cost of these dives (15 min long) is spent in sprinting (19-79 s). This energetic foraging tactic focused on a single or few prey items has not been observed previously in deep-diving mammals but resembles the high-risk/high-gain strategy of some terrestrial hunters such as cheetahs. 6. Deep sprints contrast with the expectation that deep-diving mammals will swim at moderate speeds optimized to reduce oxygen consumption and maximize foraging time at depth. Pilot whales may have developed this tactic to target a deep-water niche formed by large/calorific/fast moving prey such as giant squid.

The key role of the sea urchin Diadema aff. antillarum in controlling macroalgae assemblages throughout the Canary Islands (eastern subtropical Atlantic): an spatio-temporal approach.

Diadema aff. antillarum performs a key role in organizing and structuring rocky macroalgae assemblages in the Canary Islands. Densities of D. aff. antillarum higher than 2 individuals m(-2) are found to drastically reduce non-crustose macroalgal cover to below 30% and wave exposure appears as a major factor determining sea urchin density, which decreases with exposure level. Substrates containing >20% sand limit urchin to under 1 individual m(-2) but high relief rocky habitats show higher density. Moreover, several anthropogenic factors (number of islanders and tourists per coastal perimeter, and number of operational fishing boats) were positively correlated with urchin abundance. A trend of increasing urchin density through time was found, although well structured marine systems found at Mar de Las Calmas Marine Protected Area and at the no-take area of La Graciosa Marine Protected Area do not seem to follow this general trend.

Effects of ocean acidification on algae growth and feeding rates of juvenile sea urchins.

The recent decrease in seawater pH has stimulated a great deal of research on the effects of ocean acidification on various organisms. Most of these studies have mainly focused on the direct effects of acidification on organisms. However, the effects on ecological interactions have been poorly studied. In this paper we have focused on determining the effects of acidification on feeding rates of two species of sea urchins, Paracentrotus lividus and Diadema africanum through laboratory experiments. Nine algae species were reared under two pH treatmens (ph = 8.1 vs. pH = 7.6) for 10 days. We evaluated possible changes in calcification rates, growth and internal structure. Then these algae were offered to juvenile sea urchins for 7 days, evaluating the consumption rates of juvenile sea urchins under these different pH conditions. The algae reared in the control treatment showed higher growth rates and concentration of calcium carbonate, however no internal structural changes were observed in any algae. Juvenile Paracentrotus lividus showed higher consumption rates on algae previously subjected to pH 7.6 than on algae reared under control conditions and between algae species in low pH.The algae most consumed were C. liebetruthii, C. abies-marina and C. elongata by P. lividus juveniles from low pH treatment. However in D. africanum the feeding rates were similar between treatments. This study demonstrated the negative effects of low pH on various species of algae in growth, and indirectly the increase in herbivory rates of juvenile sea urchins on algae reared under low pH.

Farming-up coastal fish assemblages through a massive aquaculture escape event.

We investigated the changes on the mean trophic level of fish assemblages across different spatiotemporal scales, before and after a massive escape event occurred off La Palma (Canary Islands), which resulted in the release of 1.5 million fish (mostly Dicentrarchus labrax) into the wild. The presence of escaped fish altered significantly the mean trophic level of fish assemblages in shallow coastal waters. This alteration was exacerbated by the massive escape. A nearby marine protected area buffered the changes in mean trophic level but exhibited the same temporal patterns as highly fished areas. Moreover, escaped fish exploited natural resources according to their total length and possibly, time since escapement. New concerns arise as a "farming up" process is detected in shallow coastal fish assemblages where marine aquaculture is established.

Following a foraging fish-finder: diel habitat use of Blainville's beaked whales revealed by echolocation.

Simultaneous high resolution sampling of predator behavior and habitat characteristics is often difficult to achieve despite its importance in understanding the foraging decisions and habitat use of predators. Here we tap into the biosonar system of Blainville's beaked whales, Mesoplodon densirostris, using sound and orientation recording tags to uncover prey-finding cues available to echolocating predators in the deep-sea. Echolocation sounds indicate where whales search and encounter prey, as well as the altitude of whales above the sea-floor and the density of organisms around them, providing a link between foraging activity and the bio-physical environment. Tagged whales (n = 9) hunted exclusively at depth, investing most of their search time either in the lower part of the deep scattering layer (DSL) or near the sea-floor with little diel change. At least 43% (420/974) of recorded prey-capture attempts were performed within the benthic boundary layer despite a wide range of dive depths, and many dives included both meso- and bentho-pelagic foraging. Blainville's beaked whales only initiate searching when already deep in the descent and encounter prey suitable for capture within 2 min of the start of echolocation, suggesting that these whales are accessing prey in reliable vertical strata. Moreover, these prey resources are sufficiently dense to feed the animals in what is effectively four hours of hunting per day enabling a strategy in which long dives to exploit numerous deep-prey with low nutritional value require protracted recovery periods (average 1.5 h) between dives. This apparent searching efficiency maybe aided by inhabiting steep undersea slopes with access to both the DSL and the sea-floor over small spatial scales. Aggregations of prey in these biotopes are located using biosonar-derived landmarks and represent stable and abundant resources for Blainville's beaked whales in the otherwise food-limited deep-ocean.

Genetic divergence in the Atlantic-Mediterranean Montagu's blenny, Coryphoblennius galerita (Linnaeus 1758) revealed by molecular and morphological characters.

Coryphoblennius galerita is a small intertidal fish with a wide distribution and limited dispersal ability, occurring in the northeastern Atlantic and Mediterranean. In this study, we examined Atlantic and Mediterranean populations of C. galerita to assess levels of genetic divergence across populations and to elucidate historical and contemporary factors underlying the distribution of the genetic variability. We analyse three mitochondrial and one nuclear marker and 18 morphological measurements. The combined dataset clearly supports the existence of two groups of C. galerita: one in the Mediterranean and another in the northeastern Atlantic. The latter group is subdivided in two subgroups: Azores and the remaining northeastern Atlantic locations. Divergence between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean can be the result of historical isolation between the populations of the two basins during the Pleistocene glaciations. Present-day barriers such as the Gibraltar Strait or the 'Almeria-Oran jet' are also suggested as responsible for this isolation. Our results show no signs of local extinctions during the Pleistocene glaciations, namely at the Azores, and contrast with the biogeographical pattern that has been observed for Atlantic-Mediterranean warm-water species, in which two groups of populations exist, one including the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast of western Europe, and another encompassing the western tropical coast of Africa and the Atlantic islands of the Azores, Madeira and Canaries. Species like C. galerita that tolerate cooler waters, may have persisted during the Pleistocene glaciations in moderately affected locations, thus being able to accumulate genetic differences in the more isolated locations such as the Azores and the Mediterranean. This study is one of the first to combine morphological and molecular markers (mitochondrial and nuclear) with variable rates of molecular evolution to the study of the relationships of the Atlantic and Mediterranean populations of a cool-water species.

Historical population dynamics and demography of the Eastern Atlantic pomacentrid Chromis limbata (Valenciennes, 1833).

Recent studies have focused on the relationship between the marine fauna of the Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea, but within the Atlantic, little is known about genetic relationships between populations of the Macaronesian islands. In this study, we tested whether the paleo-climatology and paleo-oceanography of the region could predict the genetic relationships among three Eastern Atlantic populations (Azores, Madeira, and Canaries) of a damselfish, Chromis limbata, and compared our results with its Mediterranean and adjacent Atlantic sister species, Chromis chromis. We combined phylogeographic and coalescent approaches using the fast evolving mitochondrial control region gene. No population structure was found for the three archipelagos. The coalescence time estimated for C. limbata (0.857-1.17 Mya) was much greater than that estimated for C. chromis. We propose that this difference reflects differences in glaciating extents in the Northeastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Diversity indexes (Hd and genetic distances) together with historical demographic parameters of C. limbata (Theta and g) revealed a more stable population history when compared to C. chromis. Our results suggest that the Macaronesian populations of C. limbata have probably been less affected by the last glaciation than the Mediterranean populations of C. chromis. Migration across the three archipelagos was estimated and a prevailing northwest trend was detected. This result supports the idea of a colonization of the Azores by warm water fish from Madeira or the westernmost Canary islands which acted as major glacial refugia for the tropical and subtropical marine fauna during the glaciations.

Obtención de metacercarias de Fasciola hepatica en Lymnaea cubensis y relación parásito-hospedero en ratas Wistar y ratones Balb/c / Fasciola hepatica metacercarie collection in Lymnaea cubensis, and parasite-host-relation in Winstar rats an Balb/c mice

Fueron realizados dos experimentos, en experimento I con dos métodos (necropsia y bolsa de polietileno) para colectar y comparar las metacercarias obtenidas, el experimento II que fue desarrollado para determinar la potencia invasiva de las metacercarias obtenidas en un biotipo artificial, usando ratas Wistard y ratones Balb/c inoculados con 20 y 5-10 metacercarias, respectivamente. Se encontró que el número de metacercarias obtenidas con el uso de las bolsas de polietileno es considerablemente superior (P< 0.01) a las obtenidas por disección con un total de 1 442 metacercarias y una media de 12.87 por hospederos, mientras que en el método de las bolsas de polietileno la media fue de 29.31 y el total de 3 313. La potencia invasiva (PI) y la extensión de la invasión (EI) en las ratas fue más alta en la tercera semana (PI, 23 por ciento; EI, 80 por ciento), similar a los ratones inoculados con 10 metacercarias (PI, 23 por ciento; EI, 80 por ciento). Hubo 100 por ciento de hígados afectados por ambas dosis en la tercera semana. Se concluye que el método de las bolsas de polietileno es más efectivo que la disección facilitando la obtención de gran número de formas invasivas con alta calidad, limpieza y fácil desprendimiento de las metacercarias desde la superficie de enquistamiento: así como el hecho de que la potencia invasiva y la extensión de la invasión obtenida valida su uso en las investigaciones con modelos de Fasciola hepatica en ratas y ratones con dosis apropiadas de 20 y 10 metacercarias por ratas y ratones, respectivamente