Diverse Animal Research Articles

Delineating the functional activity of antibodies with cross-reactivity to SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1 and related sarbecoviruses.

The recurring spillover of pathogenic coronaviruses and demonstrated capacity of sarbecoviruses, such SARS-CoV-2, to rapidly evolve in humans underscores the need to better understand immune responses to this virus family. For this purpose, we characterized the functional breadth and potency of antibodies targeting the receptor binding domain (RBD) of the spike glycoprotein that exhibited cross-reactivity against SARS-CoV-2 variants, SARS-CoV-1 and sarbecoviruses from diverse clades and animal origins with spillover potential. One neutralizing antibody, C68.61, showed remarkable neutralization breadth against both SARS-CoV-2 variants and viruses from different sarbecovirus clades. C68.61, which targets a conserved RBD class 5 epitope, did not select for escape variants of SARS-CoV-2 or SARS-CoV-1 in culture nor have predicted escape variants among circulating SARS-CoV-2 strains, suggesting this epitope is functionally constrained. We identified 11 additional SARS-CoV-2/SARS-CoV-1 cross-reactive antibodies that target the more sequence conserved class 4 and class 5 epitopes within RBD that show activity against a subset of diverse sarbecoviruses with one antibody binding every single sarbecovirus RBD tested. A subset of these antibodies exhibited Fc-mediated effector functions as potent as antibodies that impact infection outcome in animal models. Thus, our study identified antibodies targeting conserved regions across SARS-CoV-2 variants and sarbecoviruses that may serve as therapeutics for pandemic preparedness as well as blueprints for the design of immunogens capable of eliciting cross-neutralizing responses.

Advancing Pain Understanding and Drug Discovery: Insights from Preclinical Models and Recent Research Findings

Despite major advancements in our understanding of its fundamental causes, pain—both acute and chronic—remains a serious health concern. Various preclinical investigations utilizing diverse animal, cellular, and alternative models are required and frequently demanded by regulatory approval bodies to bridge the gap between the lab and the clinic. Investigating naturally occurring painful disorders can speed up medication development at the preclinical and clinical levels by illuminating molecular pathways. A wide range of animal models related to pain have been developed to elucidate pathophysiological mechanisms and aid in identifying novel targets for treatment. Pain sometimes drugs fail clinically, causing high translational costs due to poor selection and the use of preclinical tools and reporting. To improve the study of pain in a clinical context, researchers have been creating innovative models over the past few decades that better represent pathological pain conditions. In this paper, we provide a summary of traditional animal models, including rodents, cellular models, human volunteers, and alternative models, as well as the specific characteristics of pain diseases they model. However, a more rigorous approach to preclinical research and cutting-edge analgesic technologies may be necessary to successfully create novel analgesics. The research highlights from this review emphasize new opportunities to develop research that includes animals and non-animals using proven methods pertinent to comprehending and treating human suffering. This review highlights the value of using a variety of modern pain models in animals before human trials. These models can help us understand the different mechanisms behind various pain types. This will ultimately lead to the development of more effective pain medications.

Exploring riverine aquatic animal diversity and establishing aquatic ecological monitoring approaches tailored to the Qinling region via eDNA technology.

This study thoroughly examines biodiversity and aquatic ecosystems across 14 sampled sites within the Shitou River basin by utilizing environmental DNA technology. Through integrated analysis and high-throughput sequencing, the study elucidates a diverse array of biodiversity, encompassing 27 fish species and 341 freshwater benthic macroinvertebrates (FBM) species. Using various biodiversity indices, we found significant differences in diversity and stability across different environments. Regions with more complex habitats had higher species richness and evenness. Further analyses showed complex relationships between diversity metrics for FBM and fish, indicating potential interactions between these groups. The standardized mean score (SMS) was developed to aid in the assessment of water quality. Specifically, SMS scoring revealed that sites STH3, STH4, and STH14 excelled across multiple dimensions, earning an "Excellent" rating, while site STH12 was rated as "Poor" due to subpar performance across several metrics. This project not only enhances current understanding regarding aquatic ecological dynamics but also establishes a strong foundation for detailed environmental evaluation and monitoring, aligned with the priorities of contemporary ecological management and caution.

Sequential migrations of diverse fish community provide seasonally prolonged and stable nutrient inputs to a river.

Animal migrations transport resources among spatially separate ecosystems, effectively linking them. In freshwater ecosystems, numerous fish species migrate between mainstream rivers or lakes and their tributaries, providing resources and nutrients during their spawning migrations. Multiple migratory species travel to the same destinations and contribute such nutrients, but knowledge remains limited about how the diversity of migratory animals influences the recipient ecosystem. We investigated how migrations of diverse fish community from Lake Biwa, Japan contribute to nutrient inputs in one of the lake's tributary rivers and how they influence the ecosystem. Sequential migration of six fish species continued for 8 months of a year, causing high-level nutrient concentration and primary production. The fish-derived resources were taken up by diverse members of the river community. Our results emphasize the extent to which migrations of diverse animals seasonally extend and stabilize the resource subsidy and how they extend pronounced effects on the recipient ecosystems.

Factors Influencing the Faunal Recolonization of Restored Thornscrub Forest Habitats

Tamaulipan thornscrub forests (thornforests) have high ecological and economic values, yet over 90% of these forests have been lost, and they remain threatened, making them a conservation hotspot. For decades, federal, state, NGO, and corporate entities have been acquiring land and actively or passively restoring these forests, but results have been mixed and seldom monitored. This study characterized and quantified faunal communities of restored thornforest habitats in south Texas and examined the relationships between restored faunal communities and key site characteristics and environmental factors. We surveyed and analyzed mammal, bird, Lepidoptera, and herptile communities within 12 restored sites in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of southernmost Texas, USA. The site and environmental factors that influenced animal community composition, richness, diversity, and abundance varied widely among taxa. Time since restoration began and method of restoration influenced many community metrics, whereas patch size and extent of isolation influenced few. Several aspects of restored plant communities were influential, especially ground layer diversity, and high invasive plant cover negatively impacted many animal community metrics. If actively restoring a site, efforts to control invasive plants, foster native plant diversity, and provide a nearby water source are likely the most effective ways to promote faunal recolonization.

The curious case of the Dana platypus and what it can teach us about how lead shotgun pellets behave in fluid preserved museum specimens and may limit their scientific value.

Fluid preserved animal specimens in the collections of natural history museums constitute an invaluable archive of past and present animal diversity. Well-preserved specimens have a shelf-life spanning centuries and are widely used for e.g. anatomical, taxonomical and genetic studies. The way specimens were collected depended on the type of animal and the historical setting. As many small mammals and birds were historically collected by shooting, large quantities of heavy metal residues, primarily lead, may have been introduced into the sample in the form of lead shot pellets. Over time, these pellets may react with tissue fluids and/or the fixation and preservation agents and corrode into lead salts. As these chemicals are toxic, they could constitute a health issue to collection staff. Additionally, heavy element chemicals interfere with several imaging technologies increasingly used for non-invasive studies, and may confound anatomical and pathological investigations on affected specimens. Here we present a case-study based on platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) and other small mammals containing lead pellets from the collection of The Natural History Museum of Denmark.

Soil animal communities demonstrate simplification without homogenization along an urban gradient.

Urbanization profoundly impacts biodiversity and ecosystem function, exerting an immense ecological filter on the flora and fauna that inhabit it, oftentimes leading to simplistic and homogenous ecological communities. However, the response of soil animal communities to urbanization remains underexplored, and it is unknown whether their response to urbanization is like that of aboveground organisms. This study investigated the influence of urbanization on soil animal communities in 40 public parks along an urbanization gradient. We evaluated soil animal abundance, diversity, and community composition and related these measures to urban and soil characteristics at each park. The most urbanized parks exhibited reduced animal abundance, richness, and Shannon diversity. These changes were influenced by many variables underscoring the multifaceted influence of urbanization on ecological communities. Notably, contrary to our expectation, urbanization did not lead to community homogenization; instead, it acted stochastically, creating unique soil animal assemblages. This suggests that urban soil animal communities are concomitantly shaped by deterministic and stochastic ecological processes in urban areas. Our study highlights the intricate interplay between urbanization and soil animal ecology, challenging the notion of urban homogenization in belowground ecosystems and providing insight for managing and preserving belowground communities in urban areas.

Machine vision based frailty assessment for genetically diverse mice.

1Frailty indexes (FIs) capture health status in humans and model organisms. To accelerate our understanding of biological aging and carry out scalable interventional studies, high-throughput approaches are necessary. We previously introduced a machine vision-based visual frailty index (vFI) that uses mouse behavior in the open field to assess frailty using C57BL/6J (B6J) data. Aging trajectories are highly genetic and are frequently modeled in genetically diverse animals. In order to extend the vFI to genetically diverse mouse populations, we collect frailty and behavior data on a large cohort of aged Diversity Outbred (DO) mice. Combined with previous data, this represents one of the largest video-based aging behavior datasets to date. Using these data, we build accurate predictive models of frailty, chronological age, and even the proportion of life lived. The extension of automated and objective frailty assessment tools to genetically diverse mice will enable better modeling of aging mechanisms and enable high-throughput interventional aging studies.

Socio-Economic Characteristics of Producers and Economic Size Classes of Enterprises According To Typologies and Risk Attitudes in TR21 Region

The aim of this study was to determine the typologies of agricultural enterprises operating in the TR21 Region according to the Farm Accounting Data Network methodology and the risk attitudes of the producers. According to the typologies and risk attitudes of the enterprises, the socio-economic characteristics of the producers and the economic size classes of the enterprises were determined. As a result of sampling based on a 95% confidence interval and a 10% margin of error, the number of enterprises surveyed was determined as 334. While 63.77% of the enterprises were specialized in field crops, 25.45% engaged in mixed livestock and plant production. Additionally, 7.49% were specialized in pasture livestock and 3.29% were in the perennial plant farming group. In the enterprises examined, 55.09% of the producers were classified as risk-averse and 44.91% as risk-lover. Of the average land holdings, 71.25% was property and 28.75% was rented land. It was noteworthy that the land rental rate in risk-lover enterprises was higher than in risk-averse enterprises. It was concluded that risk-lover enterprises had higher production value in both plant production and animal production, and risk-averse enterprises were engaged with product and animal diversity as they avoided taking risks. On average, in risk-lover enterprises, 53.64% of the operating expenses were vegetative special expenses and 46.36% were animal special expenses. In risk-averse enterprises, the share of vegetative special expenses in total expenses was 47.15%, and the share of animal special expenses was 52.85%. Compared to the average of enterprises and all enterprise typologies, standard gross profit was found to be higher in risk-lover enterprises. In enterprise typology groups, the average ESU values of the enterprises varied between 10.88 and 33.80 ESU. According to enterprise typologies, risk-averse agricultural enterprises in specialized field crop farming and perennial plant farming were in the below-medium enterprise class, while other enterprise groups were in the above-medium enterprise class.

The Effects of Spatial Structure and Development Intensity of the Urban Landscape on Bird Biodiversity in Anhui Province

Exploring the factors that drive changes in biodiversity is a hot and critically important topic in landscape ecology and biogeography. In this study, semi-structured citizen science data and bird distribution maps were employed to gather data from 2015 to 2020 for the calculation of bird species richness, the Shannon index, and the Pielou index in Anhui Province. These metrics were utilized to assess avian biodiversity and to elucidate the spatial patterns of biodiversity distribution across the region. In this research, a structural equation model (SEM) was utilized to investigate the relationships between the three dimensions of landscape spatial structure, urban development intensity, and environmental factors on bird biodiversity, and a conceptual framework was established to identify the key driving factors. The validity, reliability, and fit of the hypothesized model were substantiated through rigorous testing, demonstrating its reasonableness. The results indicate the following: (1) In landscape spatial structure, landscape composition and configuration play crucial roles in influencing bird diversity. An increased proportion of cultivated land negatively impacts bird diversity, whereas the expansion of forested areas promotes it. At the configuration level, the Largest Patch Index (LPI) significantly enhances bird diversity, serving as the primary driving force. Landscape spatial structure affects bird diversity both directly, through its composition, and indirectly, through its configuration. (2) The dimension of urban development intensity generally shows significant negative impacts; among these, GDP has the greatest comprehensive impact and shows a significant negative impact. (3) Topography has the greatest overall impact on bird diversity among the environmental factors, with a predominantly direct positive effect. (4) Overall, urban landscape spatial structure and urban development intensity are the main driving forces of bird diversity in Anhui Province, the greatest of which is the direct effect of the urban development intensity. These results provide an important scientific basis for landscape planning and ecological protection and provide inspiration for assessing the driving factors of animal and plant diversity in other regions.

Vertebrate endocrine disruptors induce sex-reversal in blue mussels

Mollusks are the second most diverse animal phylum, yet little is known about their endocrinology or how they respond to endocrine disrupting compound (EDC) pollution. Characteristic effects of endocrine disruption are reproductive impairment, skewed sex ratios, development of opposite sex characteristics, and population decline. However, whether classical vertebrate EDCs, such as steroid hormone-like chemicals and inhibitors of steroidogenesis, exert effects on mollusks is controversial. In the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis, EDC exposure is correlated with feminized sex ratios in wild and laboratory mussels, but sex reversal has not been confirmed. Here, we describe a non-destructive qPCR assay to identify the sex of M. edulis allowing identification of males and females prior to experimentation. We exposed male mussels to 17α-ethinylestradiol and female mussels to ketoconazole, EDCs that mimic vertebrate steroid hormones or inhibit their biosynthesis. Both chemicals changed the sex of individual mussels, interfered with gonadal development, and disrupted gene expression of the sex differentiation pathway. Impacts from ketoconazole treatment, including changes in steroid levels, confirmed a role for steroidogenesis and steroid-like hormones in mollusk endocrinology. The present study expands the possibilities for laboratory and field monitoring of mollusk species and provides key insights into endocrine disruption and sexual differentiation in bivalves.

Avian and Mammalian Diversity and Abundance in Jhalana Reserve Forest, Jaipur, India.

We utilized camera traps to evaluate animal diversity, relative abundance, and the extent of anthropogenic activities in the Jhalana Reserve Forest (JRF), located in Jaipur, with a population of 3.9 million people. Between November 2017 and November 2019, camera traps were strategically deployed in the tourist zone and peripheral areas, capturing 16,328 photos. This study represents the first comprehensive baseline assessment of animal diversity in the JRF, documenting 39 species, including 18 bird species, 14 mammals, and 6 domestic species, alongside human activity. Among the 14 mammal species, 7 were carnivores. Notably, we identified 25 individual Indian leopards (Panthera pardus fusca) during 2017-2018, comprising 8 males and 17 females, highlighting the leopard as the apex predator in the JRF. Concurrently, domestic animals accompanied by humans were observed within the JRF. However, rigorous conservation efforts and patrols by the Rajasthan Forest Department resulted in a notable decline in human activity, from 28.04% in 2017-2018 to 3.92% in 2018-2019, with domestic animal activity reaching zero in the latter period. Consequently, the relative abundance of wildlife species increased during the study period of 2018-2019, underscoring the positive impact of conservation strategies implemented by authorities. Our findings establish that camera-trapping methodology collates definitive baseline data, assesses mammal diversity, and evaluates relative abundance in reserve forests within human-dominated landscapes. We strongly recommend a further study to assess the avifauna diversity. This study provides critical insights to inform the development and implementation of conservation strategies in similar protected areas.

Evolution of Sensory Receptors.

Sensory receptors are at the interface between an organism and its environment and thus represent key sites for biological innovation. Here, we survey major sensory receptor families to uncover emerging evolutionary patterns. Receptors for touch, temperature, and light constitute part of the ancestral sensory toolkit of animals, often predating the evolution of multicellularity and the nervous system. In contrast, chemoreceptors exhibit a dynamic history of lineage-specific expansions and contractions correlated with the disparate complexity of chemical environments. A recurring theme includes independent transitions from neurotransmitter receptors to sensory receptors of diverse stimuli from the outside world. We then provide an overview of the evolutionary mechanisms underlying sensory receptor diversification and highlight examples where signatures of natural selection are used to identify novel sensory adaptations. Finally, we discuss sensory receptors as evolutionary hotspots driving reproductive isolation and speciation, thereby contributing to the stunning diversity of animals.

Daily Activity Rhythms of Animals in the Southwest Mountains, China: Influences of Interspecific Relationships and Seasons

Temporal and spatial factors regulate the interactions between apex predators, mesocarnivores, and herbivores. Prey adjust their activity patterns and spatial utilization based on predator activities; in turn, predators also adapt to the activities of their prey. To elucidate the factors influencing the daily activity rhythms of animals, 115 camera traps were established from September 2019 to June 2023 to assess the influences of interspecific relationships and seasons on the daily activity rhythms of animals in the southwest mountains of China. The species captured by the cameras included six Carnivora (such as Panthera pardus and Lynx lynx), six Artiodactyla (such as Moschus spp. and Rusa unicolor), one Primate (Macaca mulatta), and two Galliformes (Crossoptilon crossoptilon, Ithaginis cruentus). The results demonstrated that the 15 species exhibited different activity rhythms and peak activities to reduce intense resource competition. There were differences in the species’ activity rhythms in different seasons, with competition among different species being more intense in the cold season than in the warm season. In predation relationships, the overlap coefficient in the cold season exceeded that of the warm season, possibly due to the abundant resources in summer and food scarcity in winter. In competitive relationships, 15 pairs of species exhibited significantly higher overlap coefficients in the cold season compared to the warm season, possibly due to increased demands for energy during the cold period or seasonal changes in predatory behavior. By analyzing the daily and seasonal activity patterns of dominant species in the study area, temporal niche overlaps were established to compare the competition levels between species. These findings indicate that the activity rhythms of the animals in this area not only result from evolutionary adaptation but are also influenced by season, food resources, and interspecific relationships (predation and competition). Thus, efforts should be made to reduce human interference, protect food resources in the winter, and monitor animals’ interspecific relationships to protect animal diversity and maintain the stability of the ecosystem in this biodiversity hotspot in China.

Functional and evolutionary analysis of key enzymes triacylglycerol lipase, glycogen hydrolases in the glycerol and glucose biosynthesis pathway and cellular chaperones for freeze-tolerance of the Rice stem borer, Chilo suppressalis

Freeze-tolerance is an important physiological trait for terrestrial environmental adaptation and intraspecific geographic-lineage diversification in ectothermic animals, yet there remains a lack of systematic studies on its underlying genetic mechanisms and evolution. To address this problem, we employed the widely distributed rice pest, the Chilo suppressalis, as a model to explore the genetic mechanisms and evolutionary history of freeze-tolerance. First, we systematically characterized its antifreeze mechanisms by performing functional validation of potential key genes in laboratory-reared lines. This revealed the functional roles of glycerol biosynthesis in freeze-tolerance, including the triacylglycerol-originated pathway via triacylglycerol lipase (Tgl) hydrolysis and the glycogen-originated pathway via α-amylase (Aa) and maltase (Ma) hydrolysis, as well as the roles of the cellular chaperones Hsc70 and Hsf1. Then, we investigated the evolution of freeze-tolerance by collecting representative geographical samples and performing population genetic analyses, which suggested differentiated strategies of cold adaptation in different geographic populations. Taken together, our findings demonstrate the functional basis of cold resistance in Chilo suppressalis and reveal the evolutionary history of freeze-tolerance in natural populations, providing insights into organismal freeze-tolerance and clues for pest control.

Adaptive evolution and functional significance of the PPARGC1A gene across diverse animal species.

Codon-based analyses of the PPARGC1A gene across 38 vertebrate species were deployed to elucidate patterns of evolutionary change. Employing maximum likelihood assessments through MEGA, we scrutinized 447 codon positions addressing the entire coding region, excluding positions mired by gaps or missing data. Distinct codons manifested variance in selection pressures, particularly codons 4, 11, 66, and 123, which exhibited positive dN-dS values suggestive of positive selection. Codon 137 displayed the most pronounced dN-dS value, signifying intensified selective advantage. Meanwhile, codons 30 and 90 portrayed near-neutral scores, indicative of purifying selection. Complementary computational methods (IFEL, REL, FUBAR, and SLAC) confirmed positive selection at specific codon sites, with varying degrees of corroboration. The integration of mixed-effect modeling (MEME) identified episodic diversifying selection, pinpointing codons that underwent selection episodes in certain lineages. Refined codon model selection lent insight into substitution rates, revealing nuanced degrees of evolutionary conservation among different codons. Supporting these genetic insights, the phylogenetic analysis highlighted relationships among the PPARGC1A sequences and domain analysis confirmed conserved features across species, while protein-protein interaction networks suggested a complex web of functional interdependencies. These findings advance our understanding of the PPARGC1A gene's evolutionary trajectory and underscore the gene's potential adaptive significance within diverse vertebrate lineages.

Ediacaran-type non-mineralized tube-dwelling organisms persisted into the early Cambrian (Terreneuvian) in Baltica

The Ediacaran taxon Conotubus hemiannulatus has been discovered in the Terreneuvian blue clays of Estonia. Alongside Conotubus, Gaojiashania-like tubes are also found in these clays. These tubes are fully compressed and pyritized. The well-developed peristomes of Conotubus might have provided stability if the living worm was partially buried in the soft sea floor, suggesting that Conotubus was a sessile suspension feeder. The presence of the archaic Conotubus hemiannulatus in the Fortunian of Estonia indicates that the tube morphology of some cloudinids did not change between the Ediacaran and the Terreneuvian. The existence of these old-fashioned cloudinids in the Terreneuvian suggests either that the early Cambrian ecosystem in Baltica was not significantly different from that of the Ediacaran, or that cloudinids with organic tubes were more resilient to ecological changes than previously thought. Most Terreneuvian faunas originate from lower latitudes, whereas Baltica, during the Terreneuvian, was located at middle-high latitudes and experienced a cold climate. We hypothesize that the cold climate zone ecosystem was more archaic in the Fortunian than the tropical ecosystem, providing a final refuge for the Ediacaran non-mineralized tubicolous organisms. The increased competition pressure from diverse modern animals in the tropics could have driven Ediacaran-type non-mineralized tubicolous organisms to seek refuge in the colder regions of the ocean, where the competition from more advanced animals was less intense.

Study of Brunner's Glands Using Histology and Histochemistry in Various Age Groups of Cats, Dogs, and Goats

The purpose of this research is to clarify what Brunner's glands are and how they are distributed in the duodenum of three different dietaryly diverse animals: cats, dogs, and goats. Each species had a total of 20 individuals, which were then divided into four groups of five animals each. The animals were categorized according to their age, which spans from one day to sixty days. After collecting samples from several locations in the duodenum and preserving them with formalin, they were later analyzed histologically. The sections were stained with various dyes, including hematoxylin and eosin, Masson's trichrome, Periodic acid Schiff, Alcian blue PH 2.5, and a mixture of the two stains. All of the species included in the study exhibited an abundance of vacuolated columnar cells in their epithelium-lining villi at the one-day mark. Short and uneven, with intervals in between, were the villi. Except in canines, where the crypts were plainly apparent, the bases of the villi did not have crypts in the lamina propria, but they did contain clusters of immature cells. Also, the muscularis mucosa did not remain constant from one age group to the next. Furthermore, with the exception of goats, a Brunner's gland vanished from the submucosa in as little as one day. It wasn't until the animal was twenty days old, though, that this happened. The muscularis mucosa did not have a completely matured circular layer, but the mucosa contained thin cylindrical villi. During histogenesis, Brunner's glands and the crypts both grew. The villi changed into their mature form in forty days, the crypts were visibly expanding, and the muscularis mucosa formed a circular layer with more Brunner's glands in the submucosa. The mucosa developed mature villi resembling leaves after sixty days. An advanced circular muscular layer covered the muscularis mucosa, and the crypts were more along in their development. Goats have a mix of gland types, in contrast to canines and cats whose duodenal glands are mucous-based. Within the submucosa, the glands were composed of closely packed acini. Positive reactions were detected in dogs and cats only with Periodic acid Schiff, but in goats, they were seen with Alcian blue, Periodic acid Schiff, and a mix of the two. The villi's morphology, crypt count, and gland count were all greatly affected by the age and diet of the subject. Furthermore, this study used a number of morphometrical analyses to show how the lining changed with time.

Identification and characterization of multiple novel viruses in fecal samples of ruddy shelducks using viral metagenomics methods

The viral metagenomics approach is an effective technique for investigating and analysing both existing and emerging viruses in humans and diverse animal samples. The ruddy shelduck, a nationally protected secondary key species of wild animals, has become the predominant species among overwintering waterbirds in Qinghai Lake. Viruses carried by ruddy shelducks can potentially infect humans or other animals; however, limited research on the faecal virome of ruddy shelducks is currently available. In the present study, faecal samples of ruddy shelducks collected from Saga County, Shigatse City, Tibet, China, were subjected to viral metagenomic analysis. The predominant viral families identified in ruddy shelduck samples were Picornaviridae, Parvoviridae, Microviridae, Vilyaviridae, Astroviridae, and Caliciviridae. Among these, two picornavirus genomes have been identified as new strains of the genus Megrivirus in the family Parvoviridae. In addition, viruses that infect parasites and bacteria have been identified and characterised. The present study enhances our comprehension of the composition of the viral community in ruddy shelducks faeces and highlights the dynamic nature of viral evolution and the significance of continuous monitoring to assess potential risks to wildlife and public health.

Comment on, "Hypoxia preconditioning protects neuronal cells against traumatic brain injury through stimulation of glucose transport mediated by HIF-1α/GLUTs signaling pathway in rat".

Wu et al. (2021) investigated the neuroprotective effects of hypoxia preconditioning (HPC) in a rat model of traumatic brain injury (TBI). The study demonstrated that HPC enhances brain resilience to TBI by upregulating glucose transporters GLUT1 and GLUT3 through the HIF-1α signaling pathway. Comprehensive molecular and histological analyses confirmed increased expression of these transporters, correlating with reduced neuronal apoptosis and cerebral edema. The robust methodology, including rigorous statistical validation and time-course assessments, underscores HPC's potential therapeutic role in mitigating neuronal loss and improving glucose transport post-injury. However, the study could be strengthened by incorporating additional preconditioning controls, comparative analyses with other neuroprotective strategies, and exploring downstream metabolic effects in greater detail. Furthermore, expanding the research to include diverse animal models and examining sex-dependent responses would enhance the generalizability and translational relevance of the findings. Future studies should also integrate metabolic flux analysis and advanced imaging techniques to further elucidate HPC's mechanisms of action.