Changing winter climate and snow conditions induce various transcriptional stress responses in Scots pine seedlings.

In northern boreal forests the warming winter climate leads to more frequent snowmelt, rain-on-snow events and freeze-thaw cycles. This may be harmful or even lethal for tree seedlings that spend even a half of the year under snow. We conducted a snow cover manipulation experiment in a natural forest to find out how changing snow conditions affect young Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) seedlings. The ice encasement (IE), absence of snow (NoSNOW) and snow compaction (COMP) treatments affected ground level temperature, ground frost and subnivean gas concentrations compared to the ambient snow cover (AMB) and led to the increased physical damage and mortality of seedlings. The expression responses of 28 genes related to circadian clock, aerobic and anaerobic energy metabolism, carbohydrate metabolism and stress protection revealed that seedlings were exposed to different stresses in a complex way depending on the thickness and quality of the snow cover. The IE treatment caused hypoxic stress and probably affected roots which resulted in reduced water uptake in the beginning of the growing season. Without protective snowpack in NoSNOW seedlings suffered from cold and drought stresses. The combination of hypoxic and cold stresses in COMP evoked unique transcriptional responses including oxidative stress. Snow cover manipulation induced changes in the expression of several circadian clock related genes suggested that photoreceptors and the circadian clock system play an essential role in the adaptation of Scots pine seedlings to stresses under different snow conditions. Our findings show that warming winter climate alters snow conditions and consequently causes Scots pine seedlings various abiotic stresses, whose effects extend from overwintering to the following growing season.

Effects of Nature-Based Intervention in Occupational Health Care on Stress - A Finnish Pilot Study Comparing Stress Evaluation Methods.

Purpose: To assess methodology and its limitations for measuring effects of nature-based intervention (NBI). Patients and Methods: Participants were 11 middle-aged female health care workers with lowered capacity to work. NBI included six group appointments in six months study period. Heart rate variability (HRV) and self-reported pain and work exhaustion were measured pre-post study period. Salivary α-amylase samples were collected immediately before and after three individual interventions. Salivary cortisol samples were collected on the same three interventions, on three consecutive days starting from the day of intervention, to assess (a) month effect (pre-post study period) and (b) day effect (intervention day vs non-intervention day). Results: Individual interventions resulted in increase in α-amylase activity. However, the average fold increase decreased from the 3.05 ± 1.20 of the first intervention to 1.91 ± 1.00 and 1.46 ± 0.77 in the second and third intervention, respectively (p < 0.001). Cortisol concentrations were lower on intervention days vs non-intervention days, the difference being indicative (p = 0.050). Pain and work exhaustion decreased during the study period, as well as HRV, although any of these changes was not statistically significant. Conclusion: For a large-scale study, it would be ideal to select assays for both major pathways: hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis can be measured by cortisol, whereas response via autonomic nervous system can be measured by HRV, when roles of sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems can be pinpointed separately. Salivary α-amylase can be used when continuous monitoring is not possible. Psychological well-being of participants should be surveyed, as well as their activities and moods on sampling days recorded.

Calf/female ratio and population dynamics of wild forest reindeer in relation to wolf and moose abundances in a managed European ecosystem.

BACKGROUND: The alternative prey hypothesis describes the mechanism for apparent competition whereby the mortality of the secondary prey species increases (and population size decreases decreases) by the increased predation by the shared predator if the population size of the primary prey decreases. Apparent competition is a process where the abundance of two co-existing prey species are negatively associated because they share a mutual predator, which negatively affects the abundance of both prey Here, we examined whether alternative prey and/or apparent competition hypothesis can explain the population dynamics and reproductive output of the secondary prey, wild forest reindeer (Rangifer tarandus fennicus) in Finland, in a predator-prey community in which moose (Alces alces) is the primary prey and the wolf (Canis lupus) is the generalist predator. METHODS: We examined a 22-year time series (1996-2017) to determine how the population size and the calf/female ratio of wild forest reindeer in Eastern Finland were related to the abundances of wolf and moose. Only moose population size was regulated by hunting. Summer predation of wolves on reindeer focuses on calves. We used least squares regression (GLS) models (for handling autocorrelated error structures and resulting pseudo-R2s) and generalized linear mixed (GLMs) models (for avoidance of negative predictions) to determine the relationships between abundances. We performed linear and general linear models for the calf/female ratio of reindeer. RESULTS AND SYNTHESIS: The trends in reindeer population size and moose abundance were almost identical: an increase during the first years and then a decrease until the last years of our study period. Wolf population size in turn did not show long-term trends. Change in reindeer population size between consecutive winters was related positively to the calf/female ratio. The calf/female ratio was negatively related to wolf population size, but the reindeer population size was related to the wolf population only when moose abundance was entered as another independent variable. The wolf population was not related to moose abundance even though it is likely to consist the majority of the prey biomass. Because reindeer and moose populations were positively associated, our results seemed to support the alternative prey hypothesis more than the apparent competition hypothesis. However, these two hypotheses are not mutually exclusive and the primary mechanism is difficult to distinguish as the system is heavily managed by moose hunting. The recovery of wild forest reindeer in eastern Finland probably requires ecosystem management involving both habitat restoration and control of species abundances.

Modelling the effect of moose Alces alces population density and regional forest structure on the amount of damage in forest seedling stands.

BACKGROUND: Moose (Alces alces L.) populations and moose damage in forests are debated in Nordic countries with dense moose populations. Moose populations and food resources vary greatly, both spatially and temporally, and reliable data covering both variables simultaneously at the same scale have seldom been available. We modelled the effect of moose population density and forest resources on the area of moose damage at regional scale, referring to moose management areas (MMA). Forest data and moose damage data originated from the Finnish National Forest Inventory, and the moose population data came from a Bayesian moose model. For modelling, average values of moose population, damage and forest variables were calculated for the periods 2004-2008 and 2009-2013 for each MMA. The MMAs were further classified into one of four larger geographical zones. The area of moose damage was used as a dependent variable, and the proportions of different types of forests and moose population densities per land area or area of seedling stands as explanatory variables. The relationships were modelled with a linear mixed-effects model with an exponential spatial correlation structure. RESULTS: The area of moose damage was best explained by total forest area, proportions of plantations and mature forests, and moose population density per land area or the proportion of plantations. There were differences among the biogeographical zones in how different variables explained the amount of damage. CONCLUSION: The results provide tools for analyzing the regional effects of moose population density and the amount of food resources on the amount of moose damage. This information can be used in reconciling sustainable moose population levels and the amount of damage.

Can only poorer European countries afford large carnivores?

BACKGROUND: One of the classic approaches in environmental economics is the environmental Kuznets curve, which predicts that when a national economy grows from low to medium levels, threats to biodiversity conservation increase, but they decrease when the economy moves from medium to high. We evaluated this approach by examining how population densities of the brown bear (Ursus arctos), gray wolf (Canis lupus), and Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) were related to the national economy in 24 European countries. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We used forest proportions, the existence of a compensation system, and country group (former socialist countries, Nordic countries, other countries) as covariates in a linear model with the first- and the second-order polynomial terms of per capita gross domestic product (GDP). Country group was treated as a random factor, but remained insignificant and was ignored. All models concerning brown bear and wolf provided evidence that population densities decreased with increasing GDP, but densities of lynx were virtually independent of GDP. Models for the wolf explained >80% of the variation in densities, without a difference between the models with all independent variables and the model with only GDP. For the bear, the model with GDP alone accounted for 10%, and all three variables 33%, of the variation in densities. CONCLUSIONS: Wolves exhibit a higher capacity for dispersal and reproduction than bear or lynx, but still exists at the lowest densities in wealthy European countries. We are aware that several other factors, not available for our models, influenced large carnivore densities. Based on the pronounced differences among large carnivore species in their countrywide relationships between densities and GDP, and a strikingly high relationship for the gray wolf, we suggest that our results reflected differences in political history and public acceptance of these species among countries. The compensation paid for the damages caused by the carnivores is not a key to higher carnivore densities, but might be necessity for the presence of large carnivores to be accepted in countries with high GDP.

Fusarium mycotoxin enniatin B: Cytotoxic effects and changes in gene expression profile.

The mycotoxin enniatin B, a cyclic hexadepsipeptide produced by the plant pathogen Fusarium, is prevalent in grains and grain-based products in different geographical areas. Although enniatins have not been associated with toxic outbreaks, they have caused toxicity in vitro in several cell lines. In this study, the cytotoxic effects of enniatin B were assessed in relation to cellular energy metabolism, cell proliferation, and the induction of apoptosis in Balb 3T3 and HepG2 cells. The mechanism of toxicity was examined by means of whole genome expression profiling of exposed rat primary hepatocytes. Enniatin B altered cellular energy metabolism and reduced cell proliferation in Balb 3T3 and HepG2 cell lines. Furthermore, the proportion of apoptotic cell populations of Balb 3T3 cells slightly increased. On the other hand, enniatin B caused necrotic cell death in primary hepatocytes. Gene expression studies revealed the alteration of energy metabolism due to effects on mitochondrial organization and function and the assembly of complex I of the electron transport chain.

Use of decision analysis interviews to support the sustainable use of the forests in Finnish Upper Lapland.

Controversy between alternative uses of forests in Finnish Upper Lapland has been going on for decades, and in recent years it has been escalated to a serious conflict. The core of the conflict is the adverse impacts of forestry on old forests which are important grazing areas for reindeer and which are regarded as intact nature and wilderness areas. This paper describes the experiences of applying multi-criteria decision analysis interview approach on this conflict. The approach provides tools for structuring the problem and preferences of the stakeholders as well as for analyzing the effects of different alternatives in a common framework. We focus on the practical experiences gained from the application of this approach in this context. Multi-criteria decision analysis was found to be a useful approach to evaluate the economic, ecological and cultural aspects of this intense conflict. The obtained experiences also support the view that the approach works best when tightly integrated into the planning process.