Multiple environmental gradients shape the functional structure of macrobenthic communities across the Pacific Arctic shelf.

The Pacific Arctic shelf is undergoing significant environmental changes that are expected to impact the functioning of Arctic benthic ecosystem. By utilizing trait-based methods, we can better understand the effects of environmental changes on the functional structure of macrobenthic communities, offering a more detailed interpretation that complements traditional biodiversity assessments based on community structure. Using Biological Trait Analysis (BTA), we investigated shifts in the functional composition of macrobenthic communities across the subarctic to Arctic regions of the Pacific Arctic shelf, examining how these communities are responding to various environmental gradients. The study analyzed data from 14 environmental variables and 355 taxa, using 13 functional traits coded with 51 modalities collected from 78 boxcore stations. Multivariate statistics, including fuzzy correspondence analysis (FCA) and RLQ/fourth-corner combined analysis, were utilized. We find that the northern Bering Sea (NB) and southeastern Chukchi Sea (SEC) shelves exhibit shared functional similarities (e.g., small, chitinous skeletons, gregarious behavior, and low body flexibility) and significant regional differences from other subregions. The analysis revealed that sediment characteristics and sea ice cover influenced macrobenthic trait composition. The ongoing retreat of sea ice is expected to lead to rapid functional shifts in the Pacific Arctic shelves, potentially causing the migration of smaller, deposit-feeding, shorter-lived taxa to the Arctic seas. This could result in structural transformation in Arctic communities characterized by greater longevity, suspension-feeding, and larger size. These findings can inform future polar environmental management and help develop adaptive management strategies.

Description of a new Promastobranchus species (Annelida, Capitellidae) from Chinese coasts, with molecular evidence for intraspecific variation in the number of thoracic chaetigers.

Promastobranchus Gallardo, 1968 is a small genus in the polychaete family Capitellidae, and the available records are largely reported from the Indo-West Pacific region. Although Gallardo (1968) and Green (2002) noted that Promastobranchus species had intraspecific variation in the number of thoracic chaetigers when they described the two previously known species, this variation has not been corroborated using molecular evidence. In this study, a new Promastobranchus species, Promastobranchusvariabilissp. nov., is described based on 29 specimens collected from the Beibu Gulf, South China Sea. The new species is mainly characterized by having a tessellated epithelium in the anterior thorax, nine teeth in three rows above the main fang in the abdominal hooks, four pairs of genital pores located on the intersegmental grooves between chaetigers 9 and 13, and its unique methyl green staining pattern. Comparisons of multiple gene markers (16S, 18S, 28S, and H3) revealed no genetic divergence (K2P < 0.003) among these type specimens with 9-13 thoracic chaetigers. In other words, the new species exhibited morphological variability in the number of thoracic chaetigers during ontogeny, and this character was unsuitable to differentiate Promastobranchus species as the ranges overlap among Promastobranchus species. This is the third Promastobranchus species known in the world, and it is now recorded along the Fujian coast.

Two new species of Sabatieria de Rouville, 1903 (Nematoda: Araeolaimida: Comesomatidae) from the Southern Ocean.

Two new free-living marine nematode species of the genus Sabatieria de Rouville, 1903 are described from the Southern Ocean using morphological and molecular data. Sabatieria brevicaudata sp. nov. is characterized by body length 14761740 m, short cephalic setae, 1324% corresponding body diameter long, lateral differentiation of body cuticle with only slightly coarser punctations, spiral amphidial fovea with 3 turns, spicules arcuated and 1.31.6 cloacal body diameter long, slightly arcuated gubernacular apophyses, and twelve precloacal supplements, in the form of small pores. Sabatieria multipora sp. nov. is characterized by body length 21392324 m, short cephalic setae (47 m long, 3040% corresponding body diameter long), cuticle with lateral differentiation of distinctly coarser punctations extending from anterior edge of amphidial fovea to anterior of intestine and in the tail region, spiral amphidial fovea with 3 turns, males with spicules 1.92.0 cloacal body diameter long, seventeen fine tubular precloacal supplements with distance between adjacent supplements increasing towards anterior, and with curved gubernacular apophyses. We obtained 18S rDNA and 28S rDNA sequences from the two new species, which are both closely related to other species of Sabatieria. Our analyses also show that several genera of Comesomatidae Filipjev, 1918 do not form monophyletic clades.

Spatio-temporal variation of microplastic pollution in the sediment from the Chukchi Sea over five years.

Sediment has been considered as an important sink for microplastics (MPs), but there are limited reports about the spatial and temporal variability of MPs in sediment from the Arctic Ocean. Furthermore, understanding is lacking on the correlation between Arctic sea ice variation and MP abundance in sediment. This study aimed to assess the MP contamination in the sediment from the Chukchi Sea over five years through three voyages (in 2016, 2018, and 2020). The MP abundances in the sediments from the Chukchi Plateau and Chukchi Shelf over five years ranged from 33.66 ± 15.08 to 104.54 ± 28.07 items kg-1 dry weight (DW) and 20.63 ± 6.71 to 55.64 ± 22.61 items kg-1 DW, respectively. The MP levels from the Chukchi Sea were lower than those from the Eastern Arctic Ocean. Our findings suggest that the Chukchi Plateau is an accumulation zone for fibers related to fishing gear and textiles under the dual influence of the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean currents. However, the reduction of these fibers in the sediment from the Chukchi Shelf might be related to bottom currents, sediment resuspension, and biomass. Moreover, the MP abundance in the sediment from the Chukchi Sea was positively correlated with the reduction of Arctic sea ice, suggesting that the melting sea ice contributes to the increase in MP levels in the sediment. The increase in blue MPs from the Chukchi Plateau over time might be attributed to melting sea ice or intense fishing activity, whereas the increase of the smallest MPs in this region could be owing to the breakdown of larger plastics during long-distance transport or the easier settlement of smaller MPs. Further time-series investigations are urgently required to improve the understanding of the environmental fate and transport of MPs among the different Arctic environmental compartments.

Structure-activity relationship study of a series of caspase inhibitors containing γ-amino acid moiety for treatment of cholestatic liver disease.

A series of caspase inhibitors containing γ-amino acid moiety have been synthesized. A systemic study on their structure-activity relationship of anti-apoptotic cellular activity is presented. These efforts led to the discovery of compound 20o as a potent caspase inhibitor, which demonstrated preclinical ameliorating total bilirubin efficacy with a significantly improved pharmacokinetic profile.

Structure-activity relationship study of E6 as a novel necroptosis inducer.

Necroptosis inducers represent a promising potential treatment for drug-resistant cancer. We herein describe the structure modification of E6, which was identified recently as a potent and selective necroptosis inducer. The studies described herein demonstrate for the first time that functionalized biphenyl derivatives possess necroptosis inducer activity. Furthermore, these studies have led to the identification of two promising compounds (5h and 5j) that can be used for further optimization studies as well as mechanism of action investigations.