Bioavailability of trace metals and rare earth elements (REE) from the tropical soils of a coal mining area.

In order to assess the environmental risks related to mining activities in Southern Brazil, the transfer of trace metals and rare earth elements (REE) from soils to soybeans was evaluated in a U-rich area associated with coal mining. In some samples, As, Ba, Co, Cu and Ni were higher than the guidelines proposed by the Brazilian environmental agency. Soil, coal, ash, tailings and soybean were systematically sampled so that the chemical fractionation/speciation of the elements could be related to their bioavailability. In addition to total concentrations quantified by ICP-MS after microwave digestion, elemental measurements were made following different evaluations of the bioavailable metal, including chemical extractions (10 mM Ca(NO3)2 and 3-step sequential extraction), diffusive gradient in thin films technique (DGT) and chemical modeling (WHAM-free ion). Lower pH and higher clay and organic matter content were reflected by higher metal assimilation by the plants, especially by the roots and leaves. The bioaccumulation factor (BF) was generally higher for the leaves (e.g. Cu, Mn, Sr, Zn, Ba, REE with exception of Tm and Yb) and roots (e.g. Cd, Th and U). The results revealed that for Ba, Cd, Sr, Pb, U and most of the REE, the free ion concentration was strongly correlated with the metal content in the plants, especially for the grains. Values obtained by DGT were also correlated with the bioavailable portion of Ba, Mn, Sr, Zn, Pb, U and REE. Measurements obtained from Ca extractions correlated well with the bioavailable metals for Ba, Cd, Sr, Rb, Pb and Th. The free or extractable metal fractions gave much better correlations of the bioavailable fractions than did the total metal concentrations from the soils, especially for the REE. The paper validates some simplified means of estimating the risks associated with metals and REE in tropical soils affected by mining activities.

Neotropical carnivores: a data set on carnivore distribution in the Neotropics

Mammalian carnivores are considered a key group in maintaining ecological health and can indicate potential ecological integrity in landscapes where they occur. Carnivores also hold high conservation value and their habitat requirements can guide management and conservation plans. The order Carnivora has 84 species from 8 families in the Neotropical region: Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Otariidae; Phocidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae. Herein, we include published and unpublished data on native terrestrial Neotropical carnivores (Canidae; Felidae; Mephitidae; Mustelidae; Procyonidae; and Ursidae). NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES is a publicly available data set that includes 99,605 data entries from 35,511 unique georeferenced coordinates. Detection/non‐detection and quantitative data were obtained from 1818 to 2018 by researchers, governmental agencies, non‐governmental organizations, and private consultants. Data were collected using several methods including camera trapping, museum collections, roadkill, line transect, and opportunistic records. Literature (peerreviewed and grey literature) from Portuguese, Spanish and English were incorporated in this compilation. Most of the data set consists of detection data entries (n = 79,343; 79.7%) but also includes non‐detection data (n = 20,262; 20.3%). Of those, 43.3% also include count data (n = 43,151). The information available in NEOTROPICAL CARNIVORES will contribute to macroecological, ecological, and conservation questions in multiple spatio‐temporal perspectives. As carnivores play key roles in trophic interactions, a better understanding of their distribution and habitat requirements are essential to establish conservation management plans and safeguard the future ecological health of Neotropical ecosystems. Our data paper, combined with other largescale data sets, has great potential to clarify species distribution and related ecological processes within the Neotropics. There are no copyright restrictions and no restriction for using data from this data paper, as long as the data paper is cited as the source of the information used. We also request that users inform us of how they intend to use the data.

IL-1ß Is Involved with the Generation of Pain in Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis.

Pain is one of the main symptoms of multiple sclerosis, a demyelinating disease of the central nervous system that affects millions of people worldwide. The experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) is considered an experimental model of multiple sclerosis, and besides motor weakness, hypernociception is one of the clinical signs of animals with EAE. In this study, we investigated the influence of some cytokines in the generation of the hypernociceptive response in a mouse model of EAE using MOG35-55. We measured some cytokines in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG), an important anatomical structure involved in pain. We found increased levels of the cytokines TNF-α, IL-1ß, and Kc in DRGs of animals with EAE. We used the antibody IL-1ra to antagonize the effects of IL-1ß, and animals presented a decrease in the hypernociceptive response. Thus, our results suggest that hypernociception in this experimental model of EAE may be a consequence of the increase in some cytokines in DRGs, especially IL-1ß.

Complete chloroplast genome of the orchid Cattleya crispata (Orchidaceae:Laeliinae), a Neotropical rupiculous species.

A partial genome dataset was sequenced for the orchid Cattleya crispata using both Illumina and 454 technologies. The chloroplast genome was assembled using iterative runs of MIRA software that yielded a circular molecule with 148,343 bp in length and deposited in GenBank database (Accession Number KP168671). The plastid genome conserved the quadripartite structure present in most Orchidaceae chloroplasts and was composed by 79 protein-coding genes, 39 tRNAs and 8 rRNAs. Genome structure, gene order and orientation were similar to previously described chloroplasts for Cymbidium orchids, differing in gene order for petN and psbM genes. Data described here contain the first report of a complete chloroplast for the Neotropical subtribe Laeliinae and may contribute to improve the phylogenetic resolution and allow the development of new molecular markers for population genetic studies of orchids.

Genetic structure is associated with phenotypic divergence in floral traits and reproductive investment in a high-altitude orchid from the Iron Quadrangle, southeastern Brazil.

Knowledge of the role of Neotropical montane landscapes in shaping genetic connectivity and local adaptation is essential for understanding the evolutionary processes that have shaped the extraordinary species diversity in these regions. In the present study, we examined the landscape genetics, estimated genetic diversity, and explored genetic relationships with morphological variability and reproductive strategies in seven natural populations of Cattleya liliputana (Orchidaceae). Nuclear microsatellite markers were used for genetic analyses. Spatial Bayesian clustering and population-based analyses revealed significant genetic structuring and high genetic diversity (He = 0.733 ± 0.03). Strong differentiation was found between populations over short spatial scales (FST = 0.138, p < 0.001), reflecting the landscape discontinuity and isolation. Monmonier´s maximum difference algorithm, Bayesian analysis on STRUCTURE and principal component analysis identified one major genetic discontinuity between populations. Divergent genetic groups showed phenotypic divergence in flower traits and reproductive strategies. Increased sexual reproductive effort was associated with rock outcrop type and may be a response to adverse conditions for growth and vegetative reproduction. Here we discuss the effect of restricted gene flow, local adaptation and phenotypic plasticity as drivers of population differentiation in Neotropical montane rock outcrops.