Recording primate vocalizations

Ornithologists have been exploring the possibilities and the methodology of recording and archiving animal sounds for many decades. Primatologists, however, have only relatively recently become aware that recordings of primate sound may be just as valuable as traditional scientific specimens such as skins or skeletons, and should be preserved for posterity (Fig. 16.1). Audio recordings should be fully documented, archived and curated to ensure proper care and accessibility. As natural populations disappear, sound archives will become increasingly important (Bradbury et al., 1999). Studying animal vocal communication is also relevant from the perspective of behavioural ecology. Vocal communication plays a central role in animal societies. Calls are believed to provide various types and amounts of information. These may include, among other things: (1) information about the sender's identity (e.g. species, sex, age class, group membership or individual identity); (2) information about the sender's status andmood (e.g. dominance, fear or aggressive motivation, fitness); and (3) information about relevant events or discoveries in the sender's environment (e.g. predators, food location). When studying acoustic communication, sound recordings are usually required to analyse the spectral and temporal structure of vocalizations or to perform playback experiments (Chapter 11)...

Investigating death among vulnerable and marginalised populations

As criminologists we are already very aware of the ways in which prejudice and moral panics can influence how criminal justice personnel engage certain populations in the criminal justice system (Hudson 2008). What may be less well-known is how similar ways of thinking and acting also occur in non-suspicious coronial death investigations. This is because these systems have a lot in common. Similar populations are over-represented in both and this tends to mean that the same populations come to the attention of police, magistrates and pathologists as offenders in the criminal justice system and when their families are victims in the coronial system (Carpenter and Tait 2009; Cuneen 2006). It is also the case that a criminal lens can pervade non-criminal death investigations especially when the experience and training of many coronial professionals is in the criminal justice system (Carpenter, Tait and Quadrelli 2013). This can mean that similar strategies are relied upon by personnel when dealing with families when they are both victims and offenders.

Extinction risk analysis of exploited green turtle stocks in the Indo-Pacific

In parts of the Indo-Pacific, large-scale exploitation of the green turtle Chelonia mydas continues to pose a serious threat to the persistence of this species; yet very few studies have assessed the pattern and extent of the impact of such harvests. We used demographic and genetic data in an age-based model to investigate the viability of an exploited green turtle stock from Aru, south-east Indonesia. We found that populations are decreasing under current exploitation pressures. The effects of increasingly severe exploitation activities at foraging and nesting habitat varied depending on the migratory patterns of the stock. Our model predicted a rapid decline of the Aru stock in Indonesia under local exploitation pressure and a shift in the genetic composition of the stock. We used the model to investigate the influence of different types of conservation actions on the persistence of the Aru stock. The results show that local management actions such as nest protection and reducing harvests of adult nesting and foraging turtles can have considerable conservation outcomes and result in the long-term persistence of genetically distinct management units. © 2010 The Authors. Animal Conservation © 2010 The Zoological Society of London.

Managing moose harvests by the seat of your pants

Moose populations are managed for sustainable yield balanced against costs caused by damage to forestry or agriculture and collisions with vehicles. Optimal harvests can be calculated based on a structured population model driven by data on abundance and the composition of bulls, cows, and calves obtained by aerial-survey monitoring during winter. Quotas are established by the respective government agency and licenses are issued to hunters to harvest an animal of specified age or sex during the following autumn. Because the cost of aerial monitoring is high, we use a Management Strategy Evaluation to evaluate the costs and benefits of periodic aerial surveys in the context of moose management. Our on-the-fly "seat of your pants" alternative to independent monitoring is management based solely on the kill of moose by hunters, which is usually sufficient to alert the manager to declines in moose abundance that warrant adjustments to harvest strategies. Harvests are relatively cheap to monitor; therefore, data can be obtained each year facilitating annual adjustments to quotas. Other sources of "cheap" monitoring data such as records of the number of moose seen by hunters while hunting also might be obtained, and may provide further useful insight into population abundance, structure and health. Because conservation dollars are usually limited, the high cost of aerial surveys is difficult to justify when alternative methods exist. © 2012 Elsevier Inc.

Associations between ghrelin and ghrelin receptor polymorphisms and cancer in Caucasian populations: A meta-analysis

Background There is growing evidence that the ghrelin axis, including ghrelin (GHRL) and its receptor, the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR), play a role in cancer progression. Ghrelin gene and ghrelin receptor gene polymorphisms have been reported to have a range of effects in cancer, from increased risk, to protection from cancer, or having no association. In this study we aimed to clarify the role of ghrelin and ghrelin receptor polymorphisms in cancer by performing a meta-analysis of published case–control studies. We conducted searches of the literature published up to January 2013 in MEDLINE using the PubMed search engine. Individual data on 8,430 cases and 14,008 controls from six case–control studies of an all Caucasian population were evaluated for three ghrelin gene (GHRL; rs696217, rs4684677, rs2075356) and one ghrelin receptor (GHSR; rs572169) polymorphism in breast cancer, esophageal cancer, colorectal cancer and non-Hodgkins lymphoma. Results In the overall analysis, homozygous and recessive associations indicated that the minor alleles of rs696217 and rs2075356 GHRL polymorphisms conferred reduced cancer risk (odds ratio [OR] 0.61-0.78). The risk was unchanged for breast cancer patients when analysed separately (OR 0.73-0.83). In contrast, the rs4684677 GHRL and the rs572169 GHSR polymorphisms conferred increased breast cancer risk (OR 1.97-1.98, p = 0.08 and OR 1.42-1.43, p = 0.08, respectively). All dominant and co-dominant effects showed null effects (OR 0.96-1.05), except for the rs572169 co-dominant effect, with borderline increased risk (OR 1.08, p = 0.05). Conclusions This study suggests that the rs696217 and rs2075356 ghrelin gene (GHRL) polymorphisms may protect carriers against breast cancer, and the rs4684677 GHRL and rs572169 GHSR polymorphisms may increase the risk among carriers. In addition, larger studies are required to confirm these findings.

Opsin clines in butterflies suggest novel roles for insect photopigments

Opsins are ancient molecules that enable animal vision by coupling to a vitamin-derived chromophore to form lightsensitive photopigments. The primary drivers of evolutionary diversification in opsins are thought to be visual tasks related to spectral sensitivity and color vision. Typically, only a few opsin amino acid sites affect photopigment spectral sensitivity. We show that opsin genes of the North American butterfly Limenitis arthemis have diversified along a latitudinal cline, consistent with natural selection due to environmental factors. We sequenced single nucleotide(SNP) polymorphisms in the coding regions of the ultraviolet (UVRh), blue (BRh), and long-wavelength (LWRh) opsin genes from ten butterfly populations along the eastern United States and found that a majority of opsin SNPs showed significant clinal variation. Outlier detection and analysis of molecular variance indicated that many SNPs are under balancing selection and show significant population structure. This contrasts with what we found by analysing SNPs in the wingless and EF-1 alpha loci, and from neutral amplified fragment length polymorphisms, which show no evidence of significant locus-specific or genome-wide structure among populations. Using a combination of functional genetic and physiological approaches, including expression in cell culture, transgenic Drosophila, UV-visible spectroscopy, and optophysiology, we show that key BRh opsin SNPs that vary clinally have almost no effect on spectral sensitivity. Our results suggest that opsin diversification in this butterfly is more consistent with natural selection unrelated to spectral tuning. Some of the clinally varying SNPs may instead play a role in regulating opsin gene expression levels or the thermostability of the opsin protein. Lastly, we discuss the possibility that insect opsins might have important, yet-to-be elucidated, adaptive functions in mediating animal responses to abiotic factors, such as temperature or photoperiod.

Predicting intentions and behaviours in populations with or at-risk of diabetes: A systematic review

Purpose To systematically review the Theory of Planned Behaviour studies predicting self-care intentions and behaviours in populations with and at-risk of diabetes. Methods A systematic review using six electronic databases was conducted in 2013. A standardised protocol was used for appraisal. Studies eligibility included a measure of behaviour for healthy eating, physical activity, glucose monitoring, medication use (ii) the TPB variables (iii) the TPB tested in populations with diabetes or at-risk. Results Sixteen studies were appraised for testing the utility of the TPB. Studies included cross-sectional (n=7); prospective (n=5) and randomised control trials (n=4). Intention (18% – 76%) was the most predictive construct for all behaviours. Explained variance for intentions were similar across cross-sectional (28 -76%); prospective (28 -73%); and RCT studies (18 - 63%). RCTs (18 - 43%) provided slightly stronger evidence for predicting behaviour. Conclusions Few studies tested predictability of the TPB in populations with or at-risk of diabetes. This review highlighted differences in the predictive utility of the TPB suggesting that the model is behaviour and population specific. Findings on key determinants of specific behaviours contribute to a better understanding of mechanisms of behaviour change and are useful in designing targeted behavioural interventions for different diabetes populations.

Mechanisms underlying the effect of acupuncture on cognitive improvement: A systematic review of animal studies

Acupuncture has been reported to be beneficial in treating cognitive impairment in various pathological conditions. This review describes the effort to understand the signaling pathways that underlie the acupunctural therapeutic effect on cognitive function. We searched the literature in 12 electronic databases from their inception to November 2013, with full text available and language limited to English. Twenty-three studies were identified under the selection criteria. All recruited animal studies demonstrate a significant positive effect of acupuncture on cognitive impairment. Findings suggest acupuncture may improve cognitive function through modulation of signaling pathways involved in neuronal survival and function, specifically, through promoting cholinergic neural transmission, facilitating dopaminergic synaptic transmission, enhancing neurotrophin signaling, suppressing oxidative stress, attenuating apoptosis, regulating glycometabolic enzymes and reducing microglial activation. However, the quality of reviewed studies has room for improvement. Further high-quality animal studies with randomization, blinding and estimation of sample size are needed to strengthen the recognition of group differences.

Importance of animal models in schizophrenia research

Objective This review aims to summarize the importance of animal models for research on psychiatric illnesses, particularly schizophrenia. Method and Results Several aspects of animal models are addressed, including animal experimentation ethics and theoretical considerations of different aspects of validity of animal models. A more specific discussion is included on two of the most widely used behavioural models, psychotropic drug-induced locomotor hyperactivity and prepulse inhibition, followed by comments on the difficulty of modelling negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Furthermore, we emphasize the impact of new developments in molecular biology and the generation of genetically modified mice, which have generated the concept of behavioural phenotyping. Conclusions Complex psychiatric illnesses, such as schizophrenia, cannot be exactly reproduced in species such as rats and mice. Nevertheless, by providing new information on the role of neurotransmitter systems and genes in behavioural function, animal 'models' can be an important tool in unravelling mechanisms involved in the symptoms and development of such illnesses, alongside approaches such as post-mortem studies, cognitive and psychophysiological studies, imaging and epidemiology.

Neurodevelopmental animal models of schizophrenia: Effects on prepulse inhibition

Epidemiological studies have shown increased incidence of schizophrenia in patients subjected to different forms of pre- or perinatal stress. However, as the onset of schizophrenic illness does not usually occur until adolescence or early adulthood, it is not yet fully understood how disruption of early brain development may ultimately lead to malfunction years later. In order to elucidate a possible role for neurodevelopmental factors in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and to highlight potential new treatments, animal models are needed. Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is a model of sensorimotor gating mechanisms in the brain. It is disrupted in schizophrenia patients and the disruption can be reversed with atypical antipsychotics. It has been widely used in animal studies to explore central mechanisms possibly involved in schizophrenia. There has been a recent surge of behavioural and neurochemical animal studies on neurodevelopmental models, particularly on the effects of postweaning isolation, maternal separation and neonatal lesions of the hippocampus. In these models, long lasting alterations in behaviour and/or molecular changes in specific brain regions are observed, comparable to those seen in schizophrenia. The aim of this article is to critically review the available literature on such neurodevelopmental animal models with special focus on the effects on PPI and brain regions that are putatively involved in regulation of PPI.

Designing 'other' citizens into the city: Investigating perceptions of architectural opportunities for wildlife habitat in the Brisbane CBD

Traditional perceptions of the human-animal relationship in the urban context typically see the spatial rejection of wildlife from the built environment and limiting of biodiversity conservation programs to areas of natural reserve. As urban growth places further spatial demands on natural habitat and contributes to continued global biodiversity loss, the recently introduced conservation approach of reconciliation ecology makes a call promoting ecological stewardship through embedding wildlife habitat within human dominated areas. Coinciding with this, the architectural sphere has seen a recent trend of design investigation addressing artificial animal habitat as features of the built environment. Although these precedents are currently a niche and scattered trend they show potential to address the human-animal dualism challenging the framework of reconciliation ecology. This research explores the role design plays in influencing perceptions of urban wildlife habitat, particularly considering the need to create and communicate value around wildlife biodiversity as a component of urban cultural place-making and ecological literacy. The study purpose sets out to establish a set of approaches and cultural preferences with which to direct further classification and development of this architectural trend. Brisbane is utilised as a case study city, as a locale containing proximities of relatively high wildlife and human populations in an urban setting and an established legislative biodiversity heritage and ethic. Through use of a qualitative and quantitative questionnaire targeting Brisbane residents, the research methodology established that although respondents perceptions generally aligned with traditional prejudice against wildlife around human buildings, artificial habitat intervention would be supported within the CBD provided it allowed for adequate distancing of humans from wildlife and conformed with contextual surroundings, or otherwise addressed habitat through redevelopment at an urban scale. As such further research directions for artificial habitat should focus on integration of artificial habitat as a component of façade design or green infrastructure programs.

Comparison of human and animal Chlamydia pneumoniae responses to interferon gamma and penicillin treatment

This thesis has made a significant contribution to future chlamydial research by uncovering the chlamydial pathogenic mechanisms which will potentially help in the development of targeted vaccine against the pathogen. This thesis has made important new contributions to our understanding of Chlamydia pneumoniae specific adaptations to stress responses and has provided new perspectives on the survival of this successful pathogen. This thesis has used two well established microbial stressors and has identified major differences in stress responses between human and animal Chlamydia pneumoniae isolates.

A commonly carried genetic variant in the delta opioid receptor gene, OPRD1, is associated with smaller regional brain volumes: Replication in elderly and young populations

Delta opioid receptors are implicated in a variety of psychiatric and neurological disorders. These receptors play a key role in the reinforcing properties of drugs of abuse, and polymorphisms in OPRD1 (the gene encoding delta opioid receptors) are associated with drug addiction. Delta opioid receptors are also involved in protecting neurons against hypoxic and ischemic stress. Here, we first examined a large sample of 738 elderly participants with neuroimaging and genetic data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. We hypothesized that common variants in OPRD1 would be associated with differences in brain structure, particularly in regions relevant to addictive and neurodegenerative disorders. One very common variant (rs678849) predicted differences in regional brain volumes. We replicated the association of this single-nucleotide polymorphism with regional tissue volumes in a large sample of young participants in the Queensland Twin Imaging study. Although the same allele was associated with reduced volumes in both cohorts, the brain regions affected differed between the two samples. In healthy elderly, exploratory analyses suggested that the genotype associated with reduced brain volumes in both cohorts may also predict cerebrospinal fluid levels of neurodegenerative biomarkers, but this requires confirmation. If opiate receptor genetic variants are related to individual differences in brain structure, genotyping of these variants may be helpful when designing clinical trials targeting delta opioid receptors to treat neurological disorders.

Discovery and replication of dopamine-related gene effects on caudate volume in young and elderly populations (N1198) using genome-wide search

The caudate is a subcortical brain structure implicated in many common neurological and psychiatric disorders. To identify specific genes associated with variations in caudate volume, structural magnetic resonance imaging and genome-wide genotypes were acquired from two large cohorts, the Alzheimer's Disease NeuroImaging Initiative (ADNI; N=734) and the Brisbane Adolescent/Young Adult Longitudinal Twin Study (BLTS; N=464). In a preliminary analysis of heritability, around 90% of the variation in caudate volume was due to genetic factors. We then conducted genome-wide association to find common variants that contribute to this relatively high heritability. Replicated genetic association was found for the right caudate volume at single-nucleotide polymorphism rs163030 in the ADNI discovery sample (P=2.36 × 10 -6) and in the BLTS replication sample (P=0.012). This genetic variation accounted for 2.79 and 1.61% of the trait variance, respectively. The peak of association was found in and around two genes, WDR41 and PDE8B, involved in dopamine signaling and development. In addition, a previously identified mutation in PDE8B causes a rare autosomal-dominant type of striatal degeneration. Searching across both samples offers a rigorous way to screen for genes consistently influencing brain structure at different stages of life. Variants identified here may be relevant to common disorders affecting the caudate.