Social control is associated with increased reproductive skew in a wild mammal.

In group-living species, reproductive variation among individuals of the same sex is widespread. By identifying the mechanisms underlying this reproductive skew, we gain fundamental insights into the evolution and maintenance of sociality. A common mechanism, social control, is typically studied by quantifying dominance, which is one of many attributes of sociality that describes how individuals exert influence on others and is an incomprehensive measure of social control as it accounts only for direct relationships. Here, we use the global reaching centrality (GRC), which quantifies the degree of hierarchy in a social network by accounting for both direct and indirect social relationships. Using a wild, free-living population of adult female yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventris), we found a positive relationship between the reproductive skew index and GRC: more despotic social groups have higher reproductive skew. The GRC was stronger predictor for skew than traditional measures of social control (i.e. dominance). This allows deeper insights into the diverse ways individuals control other group members' reproduction, a core component in the evolution of sociality. Future studies of skew across taxa may profit by using more comprehensive, network-based measures of social control.

Emergent social structure is typically not associated with survival in a facultatively social mammal.

For social animals, group social structure has important consequences for disease and information spread. While prior studies showed individual connectedness within a group has fitness consequences, less is known about the fitness consequences of group social structure for the individuals who comprise the group. Using a long-term dataset on a wild population of facultatively social yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventer), we showed social structure had largely no relationship with survival, suggesting consequences of individual social phenotypes may not scale to the group social phenotype. An observed relationship for winter survival suggests a potentially contrasting direction of selection between the group and previous research on the individual level; less social individuals, but individuals in more social groups experience greater winter survival. This work provides valuable insights into evolutionary implications across social phenotypic scales.

Social behavior: Male and female lions age differently.

Social aging - the change in social behavior across an individual's lifespan - has been found in many animals. A new study in African lions shows that female and male lions differ in their pattern of social aging.

Surface dielectric resonator for in vivo EPR measurements.

This research report describes a novel surface dielectric resonator (SDR) with a flexible connector for in vivo electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. Contrary to the conventional cavity or surface loop-gap resonators, the newly developed SDR is constructed from a ceramic dielectric material, and it is tuned to operate at the L-band frequency band (1.15 GHz) in continuous-wave mode. The SDR is designed to be critically coupled and capable of working with both very lossy samples, such as biological tissues, and non-lossy materials. The SDR was characterized using electromagnetic field simulations, assessed for sensitivity with a B1 field-perturbation method, and validated with tissue phantoms using EPR measurements. The results showed remarkably higher sensitivity in lossy tissue phantoms than the previously reported multisegment surface-loop resonators. The new SDR can provide potential new insights for advancements in the application of in vivo EPR spectroscopy for biological measurements, including clinical oximetry.

The social microbiome: gut microbiome diversity and abundance are negatively associated with sociality in a wild mammal.

The gut microbiome has a well-documented relationship with host fitness. Greater microbial diversity and abundance of specific microbes have been associated with improved fitness outcomes. Intestinal microbes also may be associated with patterns of social behaviour. However, these associations have been largely studied in captive animal models; we know less about microbiome composition as a potential driver of individual social behaviour and position in the wild. We used linear mixed models to quantify the relationship between fecal microbial composition, diversity and social network traits in a wild population of yellow-bellied marmots (Marmota flaviventer). We focused our analyses on microbes previously linked to sociability and neurobehavioural alterations in captive rodents, primates and humans. Using 5 years of data, we found microbial diversity (Shannon-Wiener and Faith's phylogenetic diversity) has a modest yet statistically significant negative relationship with the number of social interactions an individual engaged in. We also found a negative relationship between Streptococcus spp. relative abundance and two social network measures (clustering coefficient and embeddedness) that quantify an individual's position relative to others in their social group. These findings highlight a potentially consequential relationship between microbial composition and social behaviour in a wild social mammal.

Recurrence risk of occult micrometastases and isolated tumor cells in early stage endometrial cancer: A case control study.

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether previously undetected occult micrometastasis (MM) or isolated tumor cells (ITC) is associated with increased recurrence odds in stage I-II endometrioid adenocarcinoma. METHODS: Women with recurrent stage I/II EC who had complete pelvic and para-aortic were identified as the outcome of interest. A case-control study was designed with the exposure defined as occult MM/ITC not seen on original nodal pathology. Controls were found by frequency-matching in a 1:2 case control ratio. Original nodal slides were re-reviewed, stained and tested with immunohistochemical to detect occult MM/ITC and the odds of associated recurrence was calculated. RESULTS: Of 153 included, 50 with and 103 without recurrence, there was no difference in age (p = 0.46), race (p = 0.24), stage (p = 0.75), FIGO grade (p = 0.64), lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI); p = 1.00, or GOG 99 high-intermediate risk (HIR) criteria (p = 0.35). A total of 18 ITC (11.8%) and 3 MM (2.0%) not previously identified were found in 19 patients. Finding occult MM/ITC was not associated with more lymph nodes (LN) removed (p = 0.67) or tumor grade (p = 0.48) but was significantly associated with stage (p < 0.01). LVSI (p = 0.09) and meeting high-intermediate risk criteria (p = 0.09), were closely associated but not statistically significant. Isolated ITC were not associated with increased odds for recurrence (OR 0.71, CL: 0.20 - 2.22, p = 0.57), recurrence free survival (RFS) (p = 0.85) or overall survival (OS) (p = 0.92). CONCLUSIONS: In early-stage EC, identification of occult MM or ITC is uncommon and associated with stage. The presence of ITC was not associated with increased odds of recurrence. Adjusting stage or treatment may avoided based on ITC alone. Isolated MM were rare in our population, and further investigation is warranted.

Potential Therapeutic Targets for Combination Antibody Therapy against Pseudomonas aeruginosa Infections.

Despite advances in antimicrobial therapy and even the advent of some effective vaccines, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) remains a significant cause of infectious disease, primarily due to antibiotic resistance. Although P. aeruginosa is commonly treatable with readily available therapeutics, these therapies are not always efficacious, particularly for certain classes of patients (e.g., cystic fibrosis (CF)) and for drug-resistant strains. Multi-drug resistant P. aeruginosa infections are listed on both the CDC's and WHO's list of serious worldwide threats. This increasing emergence of drug resistance and prevalence of P. aeruginosa highlights the need to identify new therapeutic strategies. Combinations of monoclonal antibodies against different targets and epitopes have demonstrated synergistic efficacy with each other as well as in combination with antimicrobial agents typically used to treat these infections. Such a strategy has reduced the ability of infectious agents to develop resistance. This manuscript details the development of potential therapeutic targets for polyclonal antibody therapies to combat the emergence of multidrug-resistant P. aeruginosa infections. In particular, potential drug targets for combinational immunotherapy against P. aeruginosa are identified to combat current and future drug resistance.

Gene conversion between murine class II major histocompatibility complex loci. Functional and molecular evidence from the bm 12 mutant.

The experiments presented in this study define the molecular basis of the bm 12 mutation. Initial characterization of an alloreactive T cell clone, 4.1.4, showed this clone to recognize an allodeterminant present on the E beta b and A beta bm12 chains, but not on the bm 12 parent A beta b chain. To define the extent of sequence shared between the I-E beta product and the mutant I-A beta product, we isolated a cDNA clone of the E beta b gene and determined its nucleotide sequence. Comparison of the nucleotide sequences of E beta b, A beta b, and A beta bm12 shows the the A beta bm12 gene to be identical to the E beta b gene in the region where it differs from its A beta b parent. We predict that the bm 12 mutation arose by gene conversion of this region, which spans 14 nucleotides between amino acid residues 67-71 of the mature A beta chain, from the E beta b locus to the corresponding position at the A beta b locus. Recognition of this region, which spans one of the previously defined E beta allelic "hypervariable" regions, by an alloreactive T cell clone provides the first direct evidence of the functional importance of these hypervariable regions in T cell stimulation. The identification of a gene conversion event involving one of these allelic variable regions implicates conversion as a mechanism that acts on class II beta genes to create sequence diversity in regions of Ia molecules that interact with foreign antigen or a T cell receptor, regions where protein sequence polymorphism would presumably be selected for by the expanded ability it affords the organism to mount effective immune responses against a wider variety of foreign antigens.

Syntaxin is required for cell division.

We recently identified a single family member homologue of syntaxin in the sea urchin. Syntaxin is present throughout development, and in rapidly dividing cleavage stage embryos it is present on numerous vesicles at the cell cortex. We hypothesized that syntaxin mediates essential membrane fusion events during early embryogenesis, reasoning that the vesicles and/or their contents are important for development. Here we show that functional inactivation of syntaxin with either Botulinum neurotoxin C1, which specifically proteolyzes syntaxin, or antibodies against syntaxin results in an inhibition of cell division. These observations suggest that syntaxin is essential for membrane fusion events critical for cell division.

The effect of social group size on feather corticosterone in the co-operatively breeding Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani): An assay validation and analysis of extreme social living.

Living closely with others can provide a myriad of fitness benefits, from shared territory defense to co-operative resource acquisition. Costs of social aggregation are not absent, however, and likely influence optimal and observed groups' sizes in a social species. Here, we explored optimal group size in a joint-nesting cuckoo species (the Smooth-billed Ani, Crotophaga ani) using endocrine markers of stress physiology (corticosterone, or CORT). Smooth-billed Anis exhibit intense reproductive competition that is exacerbated in atypically large groups. We therefore hypothesized that intra-group competition (measured by social group size) mediates the desirability and physiological cost of social group membership in this species. To test this hypothesis, we captured 47 adult Smooth-billed Anis (31 males, 16 females) during the breeding seasons of 2012-2014 in south-western Puerto Rico, and documented social group sizes. Tail feathers were sampled and used to quantify CORT (pg/mg) in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) (n = 50). Our analyses show significant differences in feather-CORT of adults between categorical group sizes, with individuals from atypically large social groups (≥ x + 1SD) having highest mean concentrations (33.319 pg/mg), and individuals from atypically small social groups (≤ x - 1SD) having lowest mean concentrations (8.969 pg/mg). Whether reproductive competition or effort is responsible for elevated CORT in atypically large social groups, however, remains unclear. Our results suggest that living in atypically large groups is physiologically expensive and may represent an evolutionarily unstable strategy. To our knowledge, this is the first study to explore a correlation between stress physiology and group size in a joint-nesting species.

Additions to Philippine Slender Skinks of the Brachymeles bonitae Complex (Reptilia: Squamata: Scincidae) I: a new species from Lubang Island.

A new species of slender skink is described from the Philippines. The species is endemic to Lubang Island, and is assigned to the Brachymeles bonitae Complex based on phenotypic and genetic data. Specimens were collected from Lubang Island between 1991 and 2012, and were examined based on morphological data (qualitative traits, meristic counts, and mensural measurements). Published genetic sequence data from phylogenetic studies of the genus reveal the new species to be highly divergent from congeners. Brachymeles ligtas sp. nov. is differentiated from other members of the genus based on a number of distinct morphological features, including small body size (SVL 60.7-79.6 mm), bidactyl fore-limbs, digitless hind limbs, high number of presacral vertebrae (50), and the absence of auricular openings. Additionally, the new species has diagnostic, distinct dorsal head scale patterns. This new species becomes the only member of the genus known to occur on the deep-ocean island of Lubang.

The biology of cortical granules.

An egg-that took weeks to months to make in the adult-can be extraordinarily transformed within minutes during its fertilization. This review will focus on the molecular biology of the specialized secretory vesicles of fertilization, the cortical granules. We will discuss their role in the fertilization process, their contents, how they are made, and the molecular mechanisms that regulate their secretion at fertilization. This population of secretory vesicles has inherent interest for our understanding of the fertilization process. In addition, they have import because they enhance our understanding of the basic processes of secretory vesicle construction and regulation, since oocytes across species utilize this vesicle type. Here, we examine diverse animals in a comparative approach to help us understand how these vesicles function throughout phylogeny and to establish conserved themes of function.

A molecular basis for glycosylation-induced conformational switching.

BACKGROUND: Asparagine-linked glycosylation has the capacity to greatly influence the structure and function of glycoproteins. In most cases, however, it is unclear specifically how the carbohydrate moiety interacts with the protein to influence its conformation. RESULTS: A series of glycosylation based on the critical A285 glycosylation site of the hemagglutinin glycoprotein from influenza from influenza virus was used as a model system to study the effects of asparagine-linked glycosylation. Derivatization of this peptide with a family of short carbohydrates reveals that subtle changes in the structure of the carbohydrate have a dramatic impact on peptide conformation. Modification of the hemagglutinin glycopeptide with a truncated version of the native carbohydrate induces a beta-turn structure similar to the structure found in the native protein. Replacement of the C2 and C2' N-acetyl groups of the carbohydrates with hydroxyl moieties results in a less well-ordered peptide conformation. CONCLUSIONS: It is likely that the N-acetyl groups of the carbohydrates have a critical role in promoting the more compact beta-turn conformation through steric interactions with the peptide. This study has demonstrated that relatively small changes in carbohydrate composition can have dramatic ramifications on glycopeptide conformation.

Spontaneous germinal matrix and intraventricular hemorrhage in prematurely born rabbits.

Spontaneous hemorrhage into the ventricles in premature babies is a major problem, and neither its cause nor its pathogenesis is understood. A model is presented for the study of germinal matrix and intraventricular hemorrhage in the preterm rabbit. This animal is particularly suitable because, like the human, 1) the maximal growth of the brain occurs perinatally; 2) there is an abundant germinal matrix near term, and by birth this is substantially reduced; 3) there is no rete mirabile; 4) the blood flow to the brain is via the internal carotid and vertebral arteries; 5) the maturation of the lungs is completed just before term; and 6) the rabbit pup can maintain a separate existence from the dam when delivered prematurely. Eight of 64 such animals were found to have developed spontaneous germinal matrix hemorrhage with or without rupture into the ventricles. Several physiological and chemical features characteristic of the premature rabbit are presented. The hemorrhage in the lagomorph might be a paradigm of that in infants, and its study may aid in the understanding of the pathogenesis of the process.

LL-E19020 alpha and beta, animal growth promoting antibiotics: taxonomy, fermentation and biological activity.

Antibacterial antibiotics LL-E19020 alpha and beta were isolated from the fermentation broth of an actinomycete strain. Based on cultural and physiological characteristics, culture LL-E19020 was identified as a new subspecies of Streptomyces lydicus. The LL-E19020 alpha and beta antibiotics were found to possess a very narrow antibacterial spectrum against human pathogens. In studies in chickens, LL-E19020 alpha demonstrated excellent growth promoting activity.

Respiratory syncytial virus: a nursing perspective.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common winter illness, is most devastating in infants with underlying pulmonary and cardiovascular disease. Ribavirin aerosol is an effective treatment when used with appropriate nursing management.