Optimising coral early life stages, particularly larval settlement, remains a challenge for coral aquaculture. Settlement typically relies on biologically conditioned substrates, such as crustose coralline algae (CCA) or microbial films, which are difficult to scale for mass-production. To overcome this bottleneck, we evaluated chemical and physical alternatives that enable spatial control of directing larval settlement. Larval responses from 14 coral species were tested against known and potential chemical inducers, including neurotransmitters and neuropeptides. Next, we investigated the efficacy of a set of known chemical inducers and microtopography to direct larval settlement. The neuropeptide Hym-248 was the most effective, inducing settlement in seven acroporid species. Embedding soluble inducers (CCA extract and Hym-248) in agar hydrogels within ceramic cubes successfully induced and directed settlement of Acropora kenti. Similarly, CCA-conditioned ceramic protrusions, with and without microtopographic pores, achieved > 99% settlement on or adjacent to protrusions. These findings demonstrate that immobilised chemical cues can precisely localise larval settlement on unconditioned substrates and that conditioning only small, discrete 3-D printed features is as effective as conditioning entire tiles. This approach substantially reduces aquarium space and resource requirements, offering a scalable, cost-effective pathway to enhance the efficiency of sexually propagated coral aquaculture in reef restoration.

North American freshwater mussels (Order Unionida, Families Margaritiferidae and Unionidae) are a diverse group of invertebrates with many species threatened by extirpation or extinction. A deeper understanding of freshwater mussel ecology will enhance the effectiveness of conservation strategies. While older life stages of fishes have been studied as hosts for the parasitic life stage of unionids, larval fishes have received little attention. The aims of this study were to: (1) determine if larval Yellow Perch (Perca flavescens) support metamorphosis of Fatmucket (Lampsilis siliquoidea) larvae (glochidia) in the laboratory, and (2) measure the natural glochidia infection frequency on wild-caught stream and river larval fishes. Using standard methods (laboratory infection in a bath of suspended glochidia), we determined that metalarval Perca flavescens support Lampsilis siliquoidea glochidia metamorphosis, and describe low natural glochidia infection frequency among larval fishes living in Rice Creek and the St. Croix River. This study and others across three continents have demonstrated that larval fish can be naturally parasitized by glochidia; however, this study documents glochidial metamorphosis. These results suggest that fish larvae may be an important resource for unionid recruitment because larval fishes are much more abundant than older life stages in some habitats during the spring. Our observation of glochidia metamorphosis on metalarval fish shows that early life stages of fishes are not necessarily a ‘parasite sink’ or ‘ecological trap’ for glochidia. Larval fishes may be an unsuspected—but possibly not underutilized—host. As unionids are distributed globally, interactions between the young life stages of fishes and mussels may occur on a worldwide scale. Although the scope of our study is limited, the importance of larval fishes to unionid recruitment is unclear and should be studied further.

ABSTRACT Understanding the early life‐stage responses of tree species to climate change is critical for predicting forest regeneration success and guiding conservation and management efforts. We investigated the effects of temperature, cold stratification, and light on germination and early seedling performance of Abies nordmanniana subsp. equi‐trojani (Trojan fir), an endangered endemic tree from north‐western Anatolia (Türkiye). Germination was tested under fixed (10°C, 15°C, 20°C, 25°C, 30°C) and alternating (15°C/25°C, 20°C/30°C) incubation temperatures with and without cold stratification. Early seedlings were monitored for 10 days under controlled, nutrient‐free agar conditions. Our results show that while higher fixed and alternating temperatures enhance germination, early seedling survival declined at the warmest temperature (30°C), and root growth peaked at 20°C and decreased at higher temperatures. Cold stratification significantly improved germination across all temperature regimes, reducing the need for warmer incubation temperatures to achieve high germination. Light had a limited effect on overall germination. These findings indicate stage‐specific responses to warming, as warmer conditions favor germination, whereas cooler conditions favor early seedling survival and root allocation. Consequently, successful regeneration assessments and conservation planning should consider both germination and early seedling stages, alongside local thermal contexts, when evaluating the impacts of climate change on Trojan fir.

Cerebellum-cerebrum functional connectivity mediates the association between Adverse Childhood Experiences and suicidal behaviors in depressed adolescents.

Linking temperature-dependent survival of Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) early life stages to habitat suitability and catch variability.

Acute toxicity assessment and real-time metabolic rate responses of early life stage Macrobrachium rosenbergii to ammonia exposures at different salinities.

Assessing the effect of microplastics on marine invertebrates: the consequence of exposure of sea urchin larvae to polystyrene microplastics.

Ancestral exposure to amitriptyline disrupts the behavior and gene expression in zebrafish F2 offspring.

Fish screens are a sustainable agricultural innovation that offers economic and environmental benefits by protecting aquatic life and enhancing the efficiency of irrigation. In freshwater irrigation ecosystems, fish screens help protect aquatic organisms by reducing fish entrainment, facilitating ecological connectivity, and lowering mortality at early life stages. Therefore, they contribute significantly to aquatic biodiversity conservation. However, the role of trust in media in influencing Australian irrigators’ intentions to use fish screens remains underexplored. The study, guided by the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) and incorporating the Theory of Consumption Values, examines trust in media as a persuasive factor impacting the functional, environmental, and Interpersonal Trust Cue of fish screens. The irrigators’ willingness to test, adopt, or implement fish screens can also predict the irrigators’ readiness to act for biodiversity-relevant outcomes. Data were collected between December 2021 and May 2023 from 192 Australian irrigators (sampling frame = 3736; response rate = 5.1%). The PLS-SEM results reveal that trust in media significantly predicts adoption intention (β = 0.134, 95% CI [0.021, 0.246]) and resource (time) efficacy (β = 0.170, 95% CI [0.054, 0.289]), with resource efficacy partially mediating this relationship. The study offers a theoretical contribution by integrating the ELM, the Theory of Consumption Value, and resource efficacy to explain how trust in media influences adoption through different persuasive routes. The model explains 22.5% of the variance in adoption intention. The findings indicate that resource efficacy is a critical enabling factor in translating conservation-oriented communication into an effective measure to protect freshwater biodiversity.

Background/Objectives: The identification of individuals from human remains is crucial in any scenario where their identity is unknown. The study of ontogenetic allometry, which refers to proportional changes in the shape and size of bones during growth, provides important baseline information for constructing biological profiles. Methods: This study focuses on the analysis of the ontogenetic allometry of the scapula in Portuguese reference skeletal samples, using geometric morphometric techniques. The sample includes 140 individuals (67 females, 73 males), ranging from birth to 89 years old. Scapulae were photographed, and seven landmarks and forty semi-landmarks were digitized using the “tps” programs. Statistical analyses were performed using the MorphoJ (v. 1.08.02) and PAST (v. 5.2) programs. Results: The results point to a significant and continuous growth of the scapula in the early stages of life, with a tendency to stabilize after adolescence. Centroid size significantly influenced shape variation across the full sample. Conclusions: These findings provide a descriptive baseline of scapular development that can aid future anthropological and forensic research, including studies on population variation and age-related morphological trajectories.

Parasitism by pinnotherid crabs in the Japanese scallop Mizuhopecten yessoensis: first host record and quantitative assessment of host impacts

The gut microbiome undergoes dynamic age-related changes shaped by diet and maternal factors. Here, we present a species-level, long-read 16S rRNA survey of the developing gut microbiome in a translational canine model, profiling 89 purebred Hungarian Pumis across early-life and reproductive stages. We collected 456 fecal samples longitudinally: 60 puppies followed from birth to 81 weeks, their mothers sampled during pregnancy and lactation, and adult controls from six kennels. We recorded detailed dietary metadata and reproductive status throughout the study. Age was the strongest determinant of alpha diversity, with a rapid increase during weaning and stabilization by 6 months of age. Beta diversity analyses revealed structured compositional transitions from early developmental phases to adulthood, including a shift toward more uniform, adult-like communities. Within-kennel variation was modest, consistent with shared environmental exposures. Mixed-effects models showed robust associations between specific taxa and age, diet, and kennel, while SparCC-inferred co-occurrence networks indicated increasing ecological complexity with age. We also demonstrated that the delivery mode-vaginal versus cesarean-impacted early-life microbiome composition: Lactobacillus spp. were significantly more abundant in cesarean-born puppies than in vaginally delivered littermates during the 8-10-week window. We also observed reproducible maternal microbiome shifts during pregnancy and lactation, with potential implications for vertical microbial transfer. Taken together, our results show that domestic dogs follow a reproducible, age-structured trajectory of microbial maturation that parallels human development, including delivery-mode effects and diet-responsive taxa.IMPORTANCEMicrobiome research is among the fastest-moving areas in biomedicine driven by major global efforts to understand how microbial communities shape human health and disease. Dogs provide an ideal translational model because their gut microbiota more closely resembles that of humans than that of other studied animals; moreover, breeds show high within-breed genetic homogeneity; diets can be tightly regulated; and longitudinal sampling across the lifespan is feasible. Mapping shifts driven by diet and maternal factors-from early-life events through later life, including senior stages-is essential to leverage microbial plasticity for prevention, with implications for inflammation, metabolic disease, and neurodegeneration. Here, we advance this goal by providing a longitudinal, high-resolution data set and demonstrating that full-length 16S rRNA sequencing is a powerful tool for resolving fine-scale patterns of gut colonization and maturation.

This study investigated the effects of dietary fermented mulberry leaves (FML) on growth performance, carcass traits, muscle composition, and innate immune responses of juvenile Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). The use of functional feed additives is increasingly emphasized in aquaculture to reduce antibiotic dependence, particularly during early life stages when fish are highly susceptible to disease. Juvenile tilapias were fed diets containing 0% (control), 1%, 2%, or 4% FML for 60 days. Dietary supplementation with FML significantly improved weight gain, length gain, average daily gain, feed conversion ratio, and survival (P < 0.05). The 2% FML diet produced the most favorable outcomes in muscle nutritional quality, including elevated crude protein and reduced lipid and fiber contents (P < 0.05). Immune parameters were also enhanced in fish receiving FML. Agglutination titers, lysozyme activity, and phagocytic efficiency increased significantly across FML-treated groups (P < 0.05). Moreover, the 2% inclusion level resulted in higher concentrations of the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-1, indicating activation of innate immune pathways (P < 0.05). These findings demonstrate that FML, particularly at a 2% dietary inclusion, is an effective and environmentally sustainable feed supplement capable of improving growth performance, muscle composition, and immune competence in juvenile Nile tilapia. The incorporation of FML may therefore contribute to reduced reliance on antibiotics and support more sustainable aquaculture practices.

Context The white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) is a large-bodied, cosmopolitan predator. In Southern California, juvenile white sharks (JWS) can be found at both nearshore and offshore habitats across the Southern California Bight. Understanding their foraging behavior at this early life stage is essential for assessing their ecological roles and interactions with fisheries. Aim This study used cloacal swab DNA metabarcoding to identify prey items in JWS incidentally captured offshore to assess dietary composition and explore preliminary patterns across sex and size classes. Methods Cloacal swabs were collected from 12 JWS caught >5 km offshore in commercial gillnet fisheries between 2020 and 2022. DNA was extracted and sequenced using MiFish primers, with taxonomy assigned using a regional 12S reference library. Key results A total of 19 prey families were detected, including both pelagic and demersal fishes suggested that JWS are generalist feeders. Conclusion This study adds to the increasing body of evidence that DNA metabarcoding from cloacal swabs provides a less invasive tool to assess recently consumed prey in juvenile sharks. These preliminary findings suggest that JWS foraging offshore exhibit generalist diets, consistent with insights from prior dietary studies using traditional and molecular techniques. Implications This study supports previous studies done in the region and provides more information on the diet and resource use of the JWS in Southern California waters.

Skin development undergoes significant molecular changes during early life stages in mammals. This study investigated transcriptomic differences in skin tissues between newborn (Y0) and one-year-old (Y1) Dezhou donkey foals using RNA-sequencing technology. Skin samples were collected from 13 Dezhou donkeys (7 newborns and 6 one-year-olds) and subjected to transcriptome analysis using the Illumina NovaSeq 6000 platform. A total of 133.66 Gb of clean data was obtained, yielding 252,342 transcripts and 204,683 unigenes. Differential expression analysis revealed 9878 significantly differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between age groups, with 4252 up-regulated and 5626 down-regulated genes in Y1 compared to Y0. Functional enrichment analysis identified key pathways, including ECM-receptor interaction, PI3K-Akt signaling, WNT signaling, and TGF-β signaling pathways. Notable findings included up-regulation of keratin genes (KRT1) and WNT family genes (WNT3, WNT4, WNT5, WNT6, WNT7, WNT10) in one-year-old foals, while collagen genes (COL1A, COL4A, COL5AS) and TGF-β signaling components (TGFB2, TGFB3, BMP5) were down-regulated. These results suggest that skin maturation involves enhanced barrier function, hair follicle development, and reduced collagen synthesis rates, providing insights into mammalian skin development mechanisms and potential applications in veterinary medicine and comparative biology.

Underwater noise is a growing source of anthropogenic pollution in aquatic environments. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of underwater noise on aquatic invertebrates. More importantly, studies involving early developmental stages have been poorly addressed. Significant limitations are due to the lack of standardized protocols for working in the laboratory. Particularly, the design of uniform procedures in the laboratory is important when working with species that inhabit short-term changing habitats, such as estuaries, which makes it difficult to carry out repeated experiments in the natural habitat. Besides, controlling for environmental variables is also important when assessing the effect of a stressor on the physiological parameters of individuals. This experimental protocol addresses that gap by offering an adaptable laboratory-based method to evaluate sublethal physiological responses to sound exposure under highly controlled conditions. Here, we present a reproducible and accessible laboratory protocol to expose crabs to recorded boat noise and evaluate physiological responses using oxidative stress biomarkers. The method is designed for ovigerous females, as we evaluated the effects on embryos and early life stages (i.e., larvae), but it can be readily adapted to different life stages of aquatic invertebrates. A key strength of this protocol is its simplicity and flexibility: animals are exposed to noise using submerged transducers under well-controlled laboratory conditions, ensuring consistency and repeatability. Following exposure, tissues or whole-body samples can be processed for a suite of oxidative stress biomarkers-glutathione-S-transferase (GST), catalase (CAT), lipid peroxidation (LPO), and protein oxidation. These biomarkers are highly responsive, cost-effective indicators that provide a sensitive and early readout of sublethal stress. Together, the exposure and analysis steps described in this protocol offer a powerful and scalable approach for investigating the physiological impacts of underwater noise in crustaceans and other aquatic invertebrates. Key features • Enables measurement of oxidative stress markers across different life stages-from embryos to larvae and adult tissues-offering a complete view of physiological impact. • Ensures consistent, reproducible conditions through standardized exposure and sampling, supporting reliable comparisons across experiments. • Flexible protocol adaptable to Neohelice granulata and other estuarine decapods or marine benthic invertebrates, broadening its applicability.

Marine fish eggs exhibit transversal morphological characteristics that complicate their identification. It is estimated that 75% of pelagic eggs possess oil globule(s). Identifying these eggs provides valuable information about spawning biomass and potential spawning areas for commercially important and threatened species. Molecular markers, such as the FISH (COI gene), enable a precise identification and exploration of the genetic variability within fish populations. San Vicente Bay, located in south-central Chile is partially protected from the effects of the Humboldt current, making it a notable spawning and nursery ground for various fish species. This study aims to identify and characterize, oil-globule-containing eggs present in the bay during October, a period that aligns with the spawning season of many species. This study seek to standardize the DNA extraction method and PCR process, addressing the challenges posed by the low quantities of tissue in these eggs. We employed 2 methods, by a DNA extraction kit and Chelex resin. Out of 94 eggs, 24 samples yielded positive PCR results, corresponding to a 25% of success. All these eggs were successfully identified using genetic databases, revealing a total of 9 genera and 8 species. The observed genetic distances at the species level were low, supporting the hypothesis that the eggs originated from the same female or gene mutation rate. The methods employed successfully identified fish eggs and documented species whose early life stages have not been previously reported in the bay.

In Australia, social norms and policy assume that home ownership protects low-income older people from housing stress and poverty. Yet increasing numbers of older people rent privately. While there is ample evidence of the risk of poverty and precarious housing for older private renters, an understanding of the social, policy and personal conditions across the life course that contribute to being a private renter in older age is limited. This study uses a life course approach to explore the interaction of critical life events, and social and policy conditions that result in cumulative disadvantage and later life private tenancy. The qualitative analysis of 76 life history interviews with older private tenants identified four trajectories: lifelong constant struggle; loss of housing and assets due to a single critical event; repeated losses from multiple critical events; and life choices that deprioritized home ownership but led to vulnerability in later years. Gender, single parenthood, and experiences of violence notably economic abuse were key vulnerabilities. The findings highlight failures in the retirement income system and housing policy. They also suggest that early interventions at earlier life stages across multiple policy domains are needed to address the long-term housing impacts of accumulated disadvantage.

Introduction. The relevance of this study is determined by the need for a quantitative assessment of the negative impact of mass outbreaks of scyphozoan jellyfish (Aurelia aurita and Rhizostomeae) on the bioresources of the Azov Sea, which is subjected to a complex combination of anthropogenic pressures. The theoretical framework of the research is based on the concept of trophic interactions and biological invasions in marine ecosystems. The aim of this study is to develop a mathematical model of the dynamics of the fish community in the Azov Sea that accounts for both competitive and predatory pressure exerted by jellyfish, in order to identify critical biomass thresholds leading to the depression of commercial fish stocks. Materials and Methods. To investigate the influence of scyphozoan jellyfish on the bioresources of the Azov Sea, a mathematical model of biological kinetics was employed as the primary research tool. The model describes the dynamics of three key ecosystem components (zooplankton, fish, and jellyfish), incorporating mechanisms of competition and predation. The research material consists of a system of theoretical equations with appropriate interaction parameters and initial and boundary conditions. Results. Numerical simulations demonstrated that under environmental conditions typical of the summer period in the Azov Sea (elevated water temperature and eutrophication), an increase in scyphozoan jellyfish biomass by more than threefold during July–August leads to an abrupt shift of the ecosystem to an alternative stable state dominated by jellyfish. This transition is driven by the combined effects of intense competition for zooplankton and direct predation by jellyfish on the early life stages of fish, and is accompanied by a critical reduction in food availability, which suppresses the recovery of commercial fish populations. Discussion. The results confirm the high ecological significance of mass aggregations of scyphozoan jellyfish and provide a quantitative justification for the risk of a regime shift in the Azov Sea ecosystem toward an alternative, less productive state dominated by jellyfish. From a theoretical perspective, the study contributes to the development of trophic interaction models that incorporate multiple impact mechanisms of invasive species. Conclusion. The practical significance of this work lies in the fact that the proposed model serves as a tool for predictive assessment of bioresource status and for substantiating management decisions aimed at mitigating the consequences of eutrophication and biological invasions. Future research will focus on further refinement of the model, including the incorporation of seasonal and climatic factors to improve the accuracy of long-term forecasts.

Common methods for detecting Drosophila suzukii (spotted-wing drosophila, SWD) in fruit, such as microscopy, physical extraction, and incubation, are time-consuming and may underrepresent egg and first instar larvae counts, the smallest life stages of SWD. To address these limitations, we evaluated a quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) protocol to detect and quantify SWD eggs using a linear model of the log-transformed ratio of eggs to sample volume (µL) in Tris buffer and fruit tissue. Compared to traditional approaches, this method reduces identification time from several weeks to approximately five hours. We observed a negative linear correlation between qPCR cycle threshold and egg concentration in both standard and fruit tissue samples, with similar model fits (R2 = 0.7215 for field fruit tissue; R2 = 0.874 for standard samples). This DNA-based protocol improves infestation detection speed and accuracy by enabling rapid, species-specific identification of D. suzukii in fruit tissue, addressing limitations of morphological identification of eggs and larvae. Further refinement for fruit tissue could enhance real-world applicability. Rapid detection may enable timely assessment of varietal resistance to SWD and support safer control strategies targeting early life stages, helping to prevent pest development and fruit degradation.