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Topic Review
Functional Ecology
Functional ecology is a branch of ecology that focuses on the roles, or functions, that species play in the community or ecosystem in which they occur. In this approach, physiological, anatomical, and life history characteristics of the species are emphasized. The term "function" is used to emphasize certain physiological processes rather than discrete properties, describe an organism's role in a trophic system, or illustrate the effects of natural selective processes on an organism. This sub-discipline of ecology represents the crossroads between ecological patterns and the processes and mechanisms that underlie them. It focuses on traits represented in large number of species and can be measured in two ways – the first being screening, which involves measuring a trait across a number of species, and the second being empiricism, which provides quantitative relationships for the traits measured in screening. Functional ecology often emphasizes an integrative approach, using organism traits and activities to understand community dynamics and ecosystem processes, particularly in response to the rapid global changes occurring in earth's environment. Functional ecology sits at the nexus of several disparate disciplines and serves as the unifying principle between evolutionary ecology, evolutionary biology, genetics and genomics, and traditional ecological studies. It explores such areas as "[species'] competitive abilities, patterns of species co-occurrence, community assembly, and the role of different traits on ecosystem functioning".
  • 1.3K
  • 27 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Shorebird in West and East Coast of India
Shorebirds constitute a highly diverse group of migrant species that require a high amount of energy in association with their long-distance migration. They are documented in nearly all shorelines of the world except Antarctica. The seasonal migration of shorebirds is an important biological event, characterized by long-distance travel among breeding, stopover and wintering sites driven by seasonal influences on resources. 
  • 1.2K
  • 01 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Montology
"Montology" is the holistic, integrative and transdisciplinary science of mountains, inclusive of physical, social, theoretical and empirical disciplines, as well as humanities and arts associated with mountainscapes.
  • 1.2K
  • 29 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Upcycling of Brewers' Spent Grains
Brewers' spent grains (BSGs) are the most important by-product of the brewing industry and are rich in protein and fiber. However, abundant amounts of BSGs are discarded annually worldwide. This project aimed to employ and compare innovative drying techniques to introduce snacks with protein sources derived from leftover BSGs. This study explored the dehydration kinetics of BSGs and the effect of three different drying methods—oven drying (OD), freeze drying (FD), and vacuum microwave drying (VMD)—on their protein content and functionality. Then, an energy and exergy analysis for the drying methods was given. Accordingly, a snack product (baked chips) using the dehydrated BSGs was developed by a sensory panel study to assess consumer acceptability of the final products. It was found that the VMD process took less drying time (48 min) compared to OD (50 min), with higher effectiveness as a drying process. VMD-treated BSG also showed moderate protein functionality and the highest overall acceptability when used in baked chips. Thus, VMD might be used as a sustainable drying technology for thermal treatment and valorization of BSG. In addition to having implications for dietary health, findings can help improve the economy of the breweries and other industries that deal with the processing of grains by valorizing their process waste and contributing to sustainability.
  • 1.2K
  • 28 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Quantum Biology and Non-Targeted Effects
Non-targeted effects (NTE) are an intriguing phenomenon where the biological responses observed in cells or tissues are not directly exposed to a stressor (e.g., ionizing radiation or chemical agents). onventional radiation biology approaches have predominantly focused on the macroscopic effects of ionizing radiation, overlooking the quantum-scale interactions that may play a crucial role in NTE. Quantum biology (QB) offers a unique perspective to explore and understand the intricate and subtle processes underlying NTE.
  • 1.1K
  • 04 Dec 2023
Topic Review
Opuntia (Cactaceae; Opuntioideae) Flower-Visiting Insects
Opuntia species are cacti with high ecological, economic and conservation interest in semiarid environments, particularly in Mexico. Despite the economic and cultural importance of Opuntia, there is a significant lack of knowledge about the flower-visiting insects and their taxonomic identity. Although some Opuntia species could be visited by birds such as hummingbirds, the most dominant taxonomic group of pollinators are the insects. 
  • 1.1K
  • 19 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Glyphosate Effection on Marine Invertebrates
Glyphosate is the active ingredient of numerous commercial formulations of herbicides applied in different sectors, from agriculture to aquaculture. Due to its widespread use around the world, relatively high concentrations of glyphosate have been detected in soil and aquatic environments. The presence of glyphosate in aquatic ecosystems has aroused the attention of researchers because of its potential negative effects on living organisms, both animals and plants. Generally, data obtained in acute toxicity tests indicate that glyphosate and its commercial formulations are lethal at high concentrations (not environmentally realistic), whereas results of long-lasting experiments indicate that glyphosate can affect markedly biological responses of marine invertebrates. This review intends to summarize results of studies aimed at evaluating the effects of glyphosate (both as active ingredient and component of commercial formulations) on marine invertebrates.
  • 1.1K
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Root Exudates and Soil Organic Carbon
Root exudates, as an important form of material input from plants to the soil, regulate the carbon input and efflux of plant rhizosphere soil and play an important role in maintaining the carbon and nutrient balance of the whole ecosystem. Root exudates are notoriously difficult to collect due to their underlying characteristics (e.g., low concentration and fast turnover rate) and the associated methodological challenges of accurately measuring root exudates in native soils. As a result, up until now, it has been difficult to accurately quantify the soil organic carbon input from root exudates to the soil in most studies. The contribution and ecological effects of root exudates to soil organic carbon input and efflux have been paid more and more attention. 
  • 1.1K
  • 17 Feb 2023
Topic Review
The Role of Commensal and other Non-Pathogenic Bacteria
Not only pathogenic bacteria are reservoirs of antibiotic resistance and virulence genes. Opportunistic pathogenic bacteria, commensal bacteria, and mutualistic bacteria (here named non-pathogenic for simplification) may also carry resistance and virulence genes. However, contrary to pathogenic strains, which are the target of the immune system, non-pathogenic bacteria can colonize hosts for prolonged periods because hosts do not need to be rid of them. Thus, the basic reproductive number of a non-pathogenic bacterial strain, a measure of the strain’s fitness and denoted as R0, is likely to be much higher than one. That is, the expected number of colonized hosts by a single colonized host in a population not yet colonized by that strain is higher than one, which implies that this strain can spread exponentially among hosts. This spread has peculiar consequences for the spread of virulence and resistance genes. For example, computer models that simulate the spread of these genes have shown that their diversities should correlate positively throughout microbiomes. Bioinformatics analysis with real data corroborates this expectation.
  • 1.1K
  • 07 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Marine Benthos and Corals
Researchers present thorough this review of the developments in the field, point out their current limitations and outline its timelines and unique potential. In order to do so, authors introduce the methods used in each of the advances in the application of deep learning (DL) to coral research that took place between the years: 2016–2018. DL has the unique capability of streamlining the description, analysis, and monitoring of coral reefs, saving time, and obtaining higher reliability and accuracy compared with error-prone human performance. Coral reefs are the most diverse and complex of marine ecosystems, undergoing a severe decline worldwide resulting from the adverse synergistic influences of global climate change, ocean acidification, and seawater warming, exacerbated by anthropogenic eutrophication and pollution. DL is an extension of some of the concepts originating from machine learning that join several multilayered neural networks. Machine learning refers to algorithms that automatically detect patterns in data. In the case of corals, these data are underwater photographic images. Based on “learned” patterns, such programs can recognize new images. The novelty of DL is in the use of state-of-art computerized image analyses technologies, and its fully automated methodology of dealing with large data sets of images. Automated Image recognition refers to technologies that identify and detect objects or attributes in a digital video or image automatically. Image recognition classifies data into selected categories out of many. Authors show that Neural Network methods are already reliable in distinguishing corals from other benthos and non-coral organisms. Automated recognition of live coral cover is a powerful indicator of reef response to slow and transient changes in the environment. Improving automated recognition of coral species, DL methods already recognize the decline of coral diversity due to natural and anthropogenic stressors. Diversity indicators can document the effectiveness of reef bioremediation initiatives. Authors explored the current applications of deep learning for corals and benthic image classification by discussing the most recent studies conducted by researchers. Authors review the developments in the field, point out their current limitations, and outline their timelines and unique potential. Authors also discussed a few future research directions in the fields of deep learning. Future needs are the age detection of single species, in order to track trends in their population recruitment, decline, and recovery. Fine resolution, at the polyp level, is still to be developed, in order to allow separation of species with similar macroscopic features. That refinement of DL will allow such comparisons and their analyses. Authors conclude that the usefulness of future, more refined automatic identification will allow reef comparison, and tracking long term changes in species diversity. The hitherto unused addition of intraspecific coral color parameters will add the inclusion of physiological coral responses to environmental conditions and change thereof. The core aim of this review was to underscore the strength and reliability of the DL approach for documenting coral reef features based on an evaluation of the currently available published uses of this method. Authors expect that this review will encourage researchers from computer vision and marine societies to collaborate on similar long-term joint ventures.
  • 989
  • 30 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Asteraceae Paradox
Excessive pollen harvesting by bees can compromise the reproductive success of plants. Plants have therefore evolved different morphological structures and floral cues to narrow the spectrum of pollen feeding visitors. Among “filtering” mechanisms, the chemical and mechanical protection of pollen might shape bee-flower interactions and restrict pollen exploitation to a specific suite of visitors such as observed in Asteraceae. Asteraceae pollen is indeed only occasionally exploited by generalist bee species but plentifully foraged by specialist ones (i.e., Asteraceae paradox). During our bioassays, we observed that micro-colonies of generalist bumblebee (Bombus terrestris L.) feeding on Taraxacum pollen (Asteraceae) reduced their pollen collection and offspring production. Bees also experienced physiological effects of possible defenses in the form of digestive damage. Overall, our results suggest the existence of an effective chemical defense in Asteraceae pollen, while the hypothesis of a mechanical defense appeared more unlikely. Pre- and post-ingestive effects of such chemical defenses (i.e., nutrient deficit or presence of toxic compounds), as well as their role in the shaping of bee-flower interactions, are discussed. Our results strongly suggest that pollen chemical traits may act as drivers of plant selection by bees and partly explain why Asteraceae pollen is rare in generalist bee diets.
  • 986
  • 02 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Mangrove Tree Distribution
As of 2012, mangroves are found in 105 nations globally. Although distributed across 105 nations, the top 10 mangrove holding nations contain approximately 52% of the global mangrove stock with Indonesia alone containing between 26% and 29% of the entire global mangrove stock. The largest continuous area of mangrove forest is likely in-and-around the Sundarbans National Park in India and the Sundarbans Mangrove Forests in Bangladesh, which are both recognized by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. Although existing almost exclusively in the tropics and near-tropics, warm ocean currents support mangrove forests as far north as Walsingham Nature Reserve (Idwal Hughes Nature Reserve) in Bermuda and as far south as Snake Island, Australia.
  • 985
  • 09 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Golden Perch
Freshwater ecosystems and their associated biota have been negatively impacted by the human development of water resources. Fundamental to restoration activities for target species is an understanding of the factors affecting population decline or recovery. Within Australia’s Murray–Darling Basin, recovery efforts to address the population decline of native freshwater fish include stock enhancement, habitat restoration, and the delivery of environmental water. Essential to guiding future management actions is information to assess the efficacy of these efforts. We undertook a study to investigate whether natural spawning and recruitment, stock enhancement, or a combination of the two is contributing to sustaining populations of golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) in the highly regulated Lachlan River, Australia. Otolith microchemistry and genetic analyses were used as complementary tools to determine the source (hatchery origin or wild-spawned) of existing populations in the catchment. We identified that natural spawning and recruitment was contributing to riverine populations in some years but that populations were heavily reliant on stocking. It was not possible to distinguish hatchery and wild-born fish using genetic tools, highlighting the value of using multiple lines of evidence to establish causal mechanisms contributing to population recovery.
  • 967
  • 27 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Urban Ecosystem Models
Urban ecosystem services provide many benefits for human beings. Given the dramatic increase of urbanization, maintaining sustainability of cities relies heavily on ecosystem services, and it is crucial for quantifying, managing, and optimizing urban ecosystem services to promote social and ecological sustainable development. 
  • 959
  • 22 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Cerrado Ecosystems
The Cerrado is the richest savanna in the world and is undergoing one of the planet’s most rapid land transformations for pasture and agriculture; around 45% of the biome has been deforested. Agriculture is of strategic importance to Brazil, but it also modifies ecosystems and jeopardizes habitats and biodiversity. Well-managed agricultural lands can have a favorable impact on environmental conservation.
  • 924
  • 13 Jan 2021
Topic Review
Paleoparasitology
Paleoparasitology aims to study the natural history of parasitic organisms through the recovery of their preserved remains in archaeological, paleontological, paleoecological, and medical contexts. 
  • 922
  • 29 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Sea Slug Elysia crispata
Some species of sacoglossan sea slugs are able to steal chloroplasts from the algae they feed on and maintain them functional for several months, a process termed “kleptoplasty”. One of these photosynthetic slugs is Elysia crispata, found in coral reefs of the Gulf of Mexico. This sacoglossan inhabits different depths (0–25 m), being exposed to different food sources and contrasting light conditions.
  • 919
  • 19 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Microbiome in Oil Reservoirs
Microorganisms inhabiting subsurface petroleum reservoirs are key players in biochemical transformations. The interactions of microbial communities in these environments are highly complex and still poorly understood. This work aimed to assess publicly available metagenomes from oil reservoirs and implement a robust pipeline of genome-resolved metagenomics to decipher metabolic and taxonomic profiles of petroleum reservoirs worldwide. We noticed that the oil reservoirs with a lower level of intervention were the most similar to the potential functional core, while the oil fields with a long history of water injection had greater variation in functional profile. These results show how key microorganisms and their functions respond to the distinct physicochemical parameters and interventions of the oil field operations such as water injection and expand the knowledge of biogeochemical transformations in these ecosystems.
  • 896
  • 03 Sep 2021
Topic Review
The Role of Flavonoids in Plant Terrestrialization
Plants evolved an impressive arsenal of specialized metabolites to cope with the novel environmental pressures imposed by the terrestrial habitat when moving from water. Flavonoids are maybe the most important specilized metabolites that show multifarious roles in the sucess of plant terrestrialization. These compounds modulated auxin transport and signaling and promoted the symbiosis between plants and fungi (e.g., arbuscular mycorrhizal, AM), a central event for the conquest of land by plants. AM improved the ability of early plants to take up nutrients and water from highly impoverished soils. Therefore, flavonoids were essential to plant development in the “new world” scarce of water and nutrients.
  • 873
  • 30 May 2022
Topic Review
Impacts of COVID-19 on the Aquatic Environment
The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), resulted in ecological changes of aquatic ecosystems, affected the aquatic food supply chain, and disrupted the socio-economy of global populations. Due to reduced human activities during the pandemic, the aquatic environment was reported to improve its water quality, wild fishery stocks, and biodiversity. However, the sudden surge of plastics and biomedical wastes during the COVID-19 pandemic masked the positive impacts and increased the risks of aquatic pollution, especially microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and disinfectants. 
  • 865
  • 03 Nov 2021
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